Dr. Burke speaks on student retention by Abigail Mouyard staff writer Ever hear of a senior survey? Around graduation time, seniors are surveyed on why they stayed at Be hrend to finish their degree and what kept them from transferring to a dif ferent college. Behrend has many qualities that seem to retain stu dents. Aside from having small classes and personable faculty, Penn State Behrend has many programs to help students along the journey of getting a degree. Dr. Jack Burke, Senior Associate Provost and Dean recommends that students look at the Student Hand book to find the wealth of resources available at Behrend. According to the 1996-97 student handbook, "The Career Development Center assists students in the process of career planning, career development, and life planning." Campus Ministry at Sen. Rick Santorum criticizes student aid programs by Ayodele Jones .cta# t nter On Tuesday March 10, students who The "spiral" of increases in aid and attended the PolSc 297 D class to Wash- tuition will eventually have to stop be iiigton, D.C., were afforded the oppor- cause there will he a point of saturation. tunity to sit in on a Pennsylvania state Students argued that Santorum was briefing with United States Senator being unfair because he could not pos- Rick Santorum. Members of various sibly understand the viewpoint from Pennsylvania interest groups in Wash- which they were coming. A student iigton were also invited to attend the from the University of Pittsburgh stated t riefing, puring the hour_longmett- .., that be would probably have to declare sr • ilg,avtirious issues were addlessetl4 "banknipwy once he finished his edu- Aovemment surpluses, social security. cation because of the large mass of credit unions and student aid. loans he will have to repay. Santorum Of all the issues discussed, student responded: "I owed $32,000 when I got did was the most hotly debated. This out of law school and I wouldn't let 4'as mostly because the audience in- myself default. The problem with so dluded students from The University ciety is 'victimization', a victim of of Pittsburgh, Temple University and poverty etc. Bankruptcy is the easy Other Pennsylvania colleges. A stu- way out, don't default on your loans." dent from Temple University asked A student upset with Santorum's Santorum whether he would be in fa- position on student aid stormed out of ‘lor of decreasing student interest rates the briefing saying "See you on elec on loans and eradicating the origination day." Santorum replied tion fees that banks charge. Santorum nonchalantly "looking forward to it." adamantly said he would not support Santorum agreed with the recent Su atny such motion in Congress. He also prerne Court decision about credit argued against increasing government unions. He tends to lean towards big rants and tax breaks to students, he- banks. "Credit unions are great, they qause universities and colleges take want to act as banks but they don't want these government increases as an op- to he regulated as banks. Credit unions flortunity to increase tuition. "If are designed to serve a niche, now they schools see that the federal government want to go outside that niche, and I Sen. Santorum is surrounded by Behrend students on the steps of the U.S. Capitol Behrend is a program that provides worship opportunities to students, assisting in spiritual growth throughout one's four years at Be hrend. An example is Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship (IVCF), which provides a friendly atmosphere to learn and worship. The Child Care Center is another convenience Be hrend offers its students. The hand book states. "The Child Care Cen ter provides quality services for chil dren of faculty, staff, students, and the Erie community. - Behrend also has counseling ser vices for those students who may need help making adjustments in their social, personal and academic lives. "The personal counselor of fers individual counseling and sup port groups for those students who may occasionally feel a need to ex plore their various options and/or stressors in a confidential, non Local members of Congress address is giving students more money, tuition rates will escalate . ' said Santorum. threatening environment. The Learning Assistance Center is a free tutorial service available to all stu dents. Peer and faculty tutors assist students on an individual basis in understanding classroom lectures and responding to assignments." Another incentive for staying at Behrend to finish a degree are the new facilities and programs that will be appearing soon on Behrend's campus. According to Burke, Knowledge Park, which is a part ner to the Greater Erie Industrial Development Corporation, will de velop on Behrend's property in a park-like setting with knowledge based companies to recruit students from Behrend to work in the Erie area. Burke went on to say that there will be opportunities for Behrend students to work here while attend ing college. Knowledge Park is an outreach mission to serve economic student concerns have a problem with that" said Santorum Another issue that Santorum is in terested in is Social Security. Santorum may support a means test for social security. "How we transition social security will be important to the future of young people." The reasons why Social Security is becoming bankrupt are that people are living longer; in the year 2011, 1.6 million baby boomers will turn sixty-five. This will eventu ally quadruple the number of elderly in the United States. In order to "save" the state of Social Security as we know it, Santorum suggests raising the retire ment age and privatization of some as pects of Social Security programs. He also encourages younger people to put money aside in a retirement ac count so that it can compound over time. Rick Santorum answered as many questions possible without pan dering to the audience's points of view. He stood firm on the issues he believed in, despite the fact that a majority of the audience disagreed with his posi tion on certain policies. The briefing allowed Pennsylvania state residents to question one of the two Senators they sent to Congress to represent their vari ous views. News development in this region Dr. Burke reiterated that Penn State Behrend is a - small college with a big degree. — Because of Behrend's small, intimate classroom settings and its variety of majors, programs, and activities, students receive the hest of hoth worlds on this campus. letters to the editor behrcoll2@aol.com Rep. Phil discusses with Behrend students U.S. Rep. Phil English of Erie speaks to a group of Behrend students in a Ways and Means Committee room in Washington DC. to I 011 IMMEI photos courtesy of Dr. Robert Speel 14; yb' The Behrend College Collegian. Thursday, March 26, 1998 - page 3 Rlice And Safety lE2_ E V' 0 12_ -IF 03/21/98 Found cigarette urn at south entrance to Lawrence Hall was tipped over and rolled down the stairs 03/21/98 Complainant requested her husband be asked to call home regarding a death in the family. Was able to locate the individual and deliver the message. 03/22/98 Complainant escorted a student from downtown Wesleyville to campus. The student was intoxicated and of age. Complainant wanted to make sure student arrived safely which he did and was very thankful. 03/22/98 Complainant stated there was no power to the dryers on the third floor east of Niagara. Housing was notified. 03/22/98 Complainant reported a volleyball player had run into the wall resulting in a head injury. Had transported to St. Vincent Heath Center. English public policy by Ayodele Jones skiff writer On Thursday March 12, 1998, students who attended the trip to Washington D.C. were able to meet with U.S. Representative Phil English. English represents Northwest Pennsylvania's 21st District which includes Erie, Mercer, Crawford and Butler counties. English is the first freshman Republican to serve on the House Ways and Means Committee in thirty years. This committee is responsible for all tax policy, trade, health, social security and welfare. The House Ways and Means Committee spends 60% of the national budget. English divides his time between his appointments on the Committee on Science, the Small Business Committee and the Ways and Means Oversight and Human Resources subcommittees, and he is regarded as one of the hardest working legislators. English states that "he would like to have a significant role on the committee but he doesn't want to make it a career." English plans to concentrate on representing the four counties of Pennsylvania. He has no desire to reach for the White House because he states that "The House of Representatives is a terrific role for me." In terms of campaigning for office, English does not desire to get involved in further negative campaigning, he would prefer to discuss issues that really matter to his constituents Students were given the opportunity to ask Representative English questions on an array of topics. On the issue of student aid English said "he would like tax advantages for people who make the best investments of all, education for yourself and family." In contrast to Senator Rick Santorum, English would also like to see more money for Pell grants, because these grants give a greater incentive for students to attend colleges and universities in the state of Pennsylvania. He also wishes to expand the TAP program for the people of Pennsylvania. English is in favor of states having more responsibilities in aspects of welfare reform. He argues that states can be more effective than one entire federal unit. Increased state participation in welfare would allow for greater state flexibility because each individual state can set qualifiers for their welfare programs. In relation to privatizing social security, English doesn't think that pure privatization would work. He does agree that personal retirement accounts do have potential. "It is important to find a solution because we must protect the interests of those depending on the system, those close to retirement age. A poll found that more twenty-somethings believe in UFO's than the fact of receiving Social Security benefits."
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers