November 1988
ei ß r c g a y i ye Really Penn State Un
Although I may only be a
freshman of two months duration
here at the Penn State Hazleton
Campus, I have quickly come to
see the many inherent evils of the
Penn State system. Unfortunately,
they are many and I have oily
encountered some, but from my
primal impatience as a university
student, I am quite dismayed at
what I have found and an
beginning to question myself as to
why I even came here.
First of all, I had no choice in
corning to Hazleton. My high
school guidance counselor failed
to process my application and
transcript in time to make the
University Park deadline, which is
in all actuality three days after
prospective freshman applications
are mailed out in late August. The
Unlversitys inane policy of 'first
come, first serve' is totally
ridiculous as it gives no regard to
the needs of its prospective
incoming students, who might
require or desire certain facilities
limited to University Park and not
their second or third choice branch
campuses. In my case, I fenced
for six years and wanted to fence
in college, but the only fencing
teem for Penn State is at
University Park. But because
there wasn't any proverbial "room
at the inn,' I now can no longer
fence for either a school or private
tournament, which is something
that I miss greatly. The same is
true for Latin, which I had for four
years in high school and had
wanted to continue in college, but
on account of the assinine "first
come, first serve' policy, no one
look notice that a student such as
me had a special, qualifying
academic and athletic need for
immediate entrance to University
Park. And now I suffer.
After I discovered that I was
going to be recklessly tossed into
a branch campus, I then had to
find accomodations for myself for
the school year. Again, the
ridiculous "first come, first serve"
policy prevailed. On my
application, I expressly checked
the space that I dd want a dorm
room, but when I returned my
acceptance letter and dorm
contract request card in early
November, I found out three
months later that Hazleton dorms
were filled in early October, at
RADON: Is It a Problem?
Ever since Radon as was
ciscovered in Readng, the
problem of Radon contamination
has been a big concern for the
citizens of Pennsylvania. Although
our campus is more than seventy
miles from Reading, students have
shown some concern about
whether or not there is a Radon
problem on campus. In response
to these concerns, Penn Slate
conducted a university-wide
testing program. Here are the
results.
On May 29, 1987, the last
testing device was removed from
Highacres for analysis. The
device reported a Radon level
under four pitocuries, the level
determined safe by the
least two weeks before I even
processed and mailed my
application( I understand that
Penn Slate has to deal with large
numbers, but such blatant
negligence arid haphazard
processing is horriblel
I eventually found suitable
lodgings off-campus and altar
several months of scheduling,
testing, and waiting, the end of
August and beginning of school
finally rolled around By this time,
I had mixed feelings about just
what I was getting myself into, as
there were obvious, prior Signs of
negligence on the liivermys
behalf.
Before long. I became
situated with my classes and
comfortable with my life here at
Hazleton. But it wasn't long before
I began to see signs of further
negligence from the University. It
would appear in all regards that
Wiversity Park doesn't really care
about their students. On account
of this travesty, there are great
("visions between on and
off-branch campus students and
those lucky, unchosen few who
made It to University Park. I have
been coldly snubbed by
on-campus people at Hazleton and
even more poorly treated try
frieEds who went to University
Parkl The University is solely to
blame.
What sense does this make?
Are we really Penn State
students? Or are we Just a diverse
group of people brought together
under the false pretense of a
*higher education' (when in reality
the only work done in the
freshman year is basic high school
review and completion of general
education courses) for the sole
purpose of lining the pockets of
the administration and funding the
activities of the unchosen few at
University Park? What are we
really getting for our money?
Think about it ladies and
gentlemen. Think about those
things that we here at Hazleton
don't have that the unchosen few
at University Park do have. For
those of you like me, think about
the academic and athletic
negligence that you may be
suffering from. All of you think
about whether or not we can really
consider ourselves Pem State
students.
Department of Enviromental
Resources (DER). Unfortunately,
theetninistration could not release
any specific figures for each
building on campus. They d,
however, state that the university
average was 2.2 picocuries.
What do these numbers
mean? Well, on curie is equal to
3.7 x 10 to the tenth power
(37,000,000,000) disintegrations
per second. A pico is equal to one
trillionth. So, the official danger
level is in excess of four trillionth
of a curie per liter of Radon.
However, different levels affect '
people differently. Smokers may
be able to tolerate eight to ten
picocuries. A young child might
the Highacres Collegian
I say to all, of you that the
answer is no. No professional
university would outrightly do what
this one has. The outrageous lack
of care on the universibes behalf
is appalling. There are people
here at Hazleton who don't bekm
here and shoUld rightly be at
University Park.. For those who
era here because of regoinal
limitations or for whatever other
reasons, you are not getting a full
collegiate education. Think about
it. University Park is not making
any attempt to promulgate a
unified collegiate experience for its
students, which is a part of your
expense. You have only to look at
the disunity of Hazleton Campus
to see that these divisions begin
Immediately In the freshman year.
Where is the united university life
that should be in the Pemsylvania
State University spirit? In effect,
we as a branth campus have
nothing, whores the unchosen,
pampered few of University Park
have everything, Where is the
Justice in this people?
If we are ever to really consider
ourselves as Penn Stale students,
we must speak out against these
abuses and let the University know
that its branch campuses are
greatly dissatisfied. The time for
dissent is now, for how much
longer can these inlolerences be
allowed to continue? I realize that
the times have produced a group
of people who are afraid to speak
out against authority, but individual
needs and rights are being
increasingly lost to student
cisinterestl Speak out for what
you rightly deserve and want!
Irxividial needs require special
care and consideration. We as a
whole carrot allow ourselves to be
molded by the University as a
mass group to be recklessly
tossed about and misharded as if
we were nothing but a
money-generating, third class
piece of merchandise, We have
our rights as students to be
entitled to the care of the special
needs that we require! The
entitlism for the chosen few at
University Park must erxil
How much longer can we
consider ourselves Pern State?
be affected by he. Therefore,
some discretion should be used in
evaluating These readings.
For those unfamiliar with
Radon, it Is a colorless, odorless
gas formed by the breakdown of
lfranium or Thorium in soil. Most
of the danger comes from the
Radon daughter, which is a solid,
radioactive particle. The DER
attributes 30,000 deaths per year
to Radon.
The reason Central
Pennsylvania is so concerned with
Radon is a geological formation
called the Realm Prong. This
irregular band of rocks, extending
from New York 10 - P - Efttylvania,
contains an abundance of granite
and other metamorphic rocks.
ty?
vers
S.O.S.
Save Our
Soccer
Field
Many of the students at PSU
Hazleton enjoy sports of all kinds,
and the campus provides
exceptional facilities for the
pursuit of these games: a large
gym with equipment for basketball,
volleyball, indoor soccer, etc; six
very nice tennis courts with a
oraclice wall: raquatball courts: a
large pool with assorted dives;
even a bowling alley. And then
there is the soccer field, home to
the varsity soccer team and a
multitude of other games -
primariyly pick up football.
Compared to other fields
throughout the area's colleges and
universities, our field is poor.
Compared to the other facilities at
Highacres, the field Is an atrocity.
The field is rocky with holes and
gulleys all over, and is very often
muddy at the south east quarter.
Even several sunny days fall to dry
it, after rain. The little grass that
does grow, exists in small
clumps,making the field very
bumpy and a soccer players
nightmare.
First of all, the ball doesn't roll
on the ground; it hops and
bounces ove every clump, very
often in different directions. This
makes passing very difficult, and
although this may be overlooked at
practice or in pick - up games, in
major varsity matches, such as
against Ogontz or Berks, accurate
passing is crucial, but usually
unobtainable
Another problem for soccer
players, and indeed all athletes, is
the dancer of the clumps of sod. It
is very easy to twist an ankle on
these clumps, and in many sports,
like football and soccer, in which
quick charges of direction while
running are commonplace, more
severe ankle intiries could occur.
The field also retains a lot of
water, and the lack of strong sod
makes for huge puddles and lots
of mud. Slipping and falling in
mud may be funrry, but when
someone slips, falls, and breaks
their leg or tears ligaments, the fun
stops. And after all, isn't that why
the field is there - for the students
to enjoy?
These types of rock are primary
sources of uranium concentration.
Other possible contributors are
sedimentary rock and bituminous
materials. Bituminous means the
malaria contains various mixtures
of hydrocarbons such as coal.
Central Pennsylvania is rich in
both sedimentary and bituminous
materials.
While Radon contamination is,
and should be, an important
concern for us all: it appears that
there is no immediate danger here
at Highacres. Hopefully, there
won't be a problem in the future.
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