IV t Students campaign for . z Super Bowl 2000 r., 44 SGA Senator seats t preview . , PAGE 4- 1 ' 1, N , , EEC -. .... iGE 14 . . I JAN 8 1 2 000 B VEHR Galt oN BEHREND .. ........_ 40 ..../e Vol. XLVIII No. 17 14 pages Interview process for Dean of Students begins by Mike Frawley managing editor For the past one and a half years the Office of Student Affairs has been run by Interim Dean of Stu dents Ken Miller. The search com mittee to find a new dean has con ducted a national search to fill the position left empty in 1998. The committee has the candidates narrowed down to two choices: John Harp and the Interim Dean Ken Miller. Over the next two weeks, in depth interviews will be conducted with each finalist for the position in the hopes of filling this position on a more permanent ba sis within the near future. On Thursday, January 27th, John Harp did a question and answer ses sion with a group of students in the Reed Commons. Harp is currently the Associate Dean of Students for Cornell College in Mount Vernon, lowa. He has also held various po sitions at the University of Mem phis, Rhodes College in Memphis, TN, and Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC. The positions that he held at these schools included Assistant Director of Residence Life and Fraternities Advisor. He is currently working on his dissertation for his doctorate in edu cation at the University of Mem phis. His doctorate is a study of work-study students and their over all impression of college life. Harp believes that college students that work on campus get much more out of their college experience. Mr. Harp held his interview ses Presidential primaries a chance for students to speak out by Mike Frawley managing editor The Presidential primary season has begun. This past week lowa held its caucus, which is the first event in the primary season, and one contestant for the Republican presidential nomina- tion has already decided to drop out of the race. Orrin Hatch, a Republi can Senator from Utah, after having a very dismal showing in lowa, felt his campaign to be a lost cause and dropped out, throwing his meager support to Republican frontrunner George W Bush, the governor of Texas, and son of former President George Bush. Of interest to college students is Bill Bradley's showing among college students. Bradley pulled in more votes in that group than any of his competitors. All of these events do have an ef fect on the lives of the average col lege student. For many students this will be their first chance to participate in a presidential election, and to be able to vote intelligently students need to be informed about the issues that each candidate stands for. Behrend student Meggan Allen said, "I have the right to vote, so I feel that I should. I watch the debates and read up on the issues so I can make an informed choice." ES2Sa PHOTO BY JEFF MILLEN Mr. John Harp sits with students on Thursday during his interview process. Harp is the first of two appli cants for the position of Dean of Students. The second interview will be with the current Interim Dean of Students Mr. Ken Miller this coming Thursday. Student leaders of many organizations will have a say in the decision to name Behrend's new Dean of Students. sion with a group of 10 students. He spent the 45 minutes session in dis cussion with the students, finding out about what the students were in volved with, and what their concerns were about how things on campus could be improved. He encouraged students to work toward their goals and make use of all of the facilities available on campus to meet their Pennsylvania does not hold its pri mary until April 4th, which many people consider to be useless because many times the primary contest is over with weaker candidates dropping out of the nomination race well be fore this. But with the strong cam "I watch the debates and read up on the issues so I can make an informed choice." paigns of Democrat Bill Bradley and Republican John McCain, the race could still be up for grabs in early April. To be able to vote in Pennsylvania, you must be registered to vote by one month before the election. You can pick up a voter registration form at the Post Office, the local Republican and Democratic Headquarters, and at various other sites. College students have one of the lowest voter turnouts among any age group. Many students cite a lack of time and being away from home as the main reason why Weekend weather POLICE AND SAFETY PAGE 2 outlook on page 2. goals. Harp told the students to, "Go out and test the waters." The students in attendance then asked Mr. Harp questions about his background and qualifications for the position. He stressed how much he enjoyed working with students and how important that he felt that this was. Harp said, "You have to be student centered." At the end of they do not participate in elections. There are many different ways for students to become more informed about the candidates, and for those who have a more political taste can even find various ways to become involved in the campaigning process. - Meggan Allen, Behrend student With the onset of primary season, the election has become a lead news story almost everyday. A quick look at a newspaper or watching the national nightly news can greatly inform you about what important topics that the candidates are debating. Their are also a wide variety of websites avail able that spell out the views of each candidate, but because these sites can be put up by anyone it is important that you make sure that the provider of the site is credible before making any decisions based on the informa tion that you find there. THE BEHREND BEACON INDEX NEWS PAGE 1 WORLD NEWS PAGE 5 CAMPUS NEWS PAGE 6 Friday, January 28, 2000 the discussion, when asked what he liked about Behrend, Harp said, "I haven't seen anything I don't, unless it snows like this all year round." On next Thursday, February 3rd, another interview session will be held for students to talk with Ken Miller about his qualifications and ideas for the position of Dean of Stu dents. Students who want to become more involved in the political process can go and become a campaign volunteer in your local area for the candidate that you support. Campaign offices are always looking for volunteers to stuff envelopes and answer phones, while giving students a chance to see the interworkings of a campaign. Students who live outside of Penn sylvania and are registered to vote, but are away from home when voting takes place in your area can request and fill out absentee ballots. This way you can still participate in the elec tion even without being able to actu ally get to the voting booth. Students are also able to register to vote at their Behrend campus address and vote lo cally. There are a variety of ways for stu dents to become more involved in the political process and a presidential election is a memorable way to begin you political involvement. Bill Bradley, a candidate for the Democratic nomination for president, proved to be popular among college students in the lowa Caucus. Here, he is speaking at Cornell College in lowa. CALENDAR PAGE 7 4 EDITORIAL PAGE 8 FEATURES PAGE 10 SPORTS PAGE 11 SGA to hold elections for Senate and UFS seats by Karl Benacci assistant news editor Due to a number of new openings in SGA senate seats, an election will be held February 2nd and 3rd to fill the empty seats. Senate seats open up for various reasons. Last semester one senator transferred and a few senators knew that they couldn't dedi cate the time that was needed for SGA. SGA elections occur during the spring semester to elect a whole new senate or when there are open seats that need to be filled. In the past, the whole college would vote in the April elections, while sen ate seats that opened during the school year were filled by elections within SGA. However, because of the large number of empty seats that need to be filled this semester, SGA felt that the whole college should be included in the decision. To be eligible to run, a candidate must be a full time Behrend student The SGA elections will fill up some of the empty seats at their Wednesday night meetings. A Penn State Erie Student Publication and collect fifty signatures to be put on ballot. When asked what SGA looks for in a senator, SGA President Andrea DiPlacido responded," SGA looks for members who are willing to dedicate a few hours of their time each week to the betterment of the Behrend com- munity." The SGA senate is made up of eleven senator seats, two freshmen seats, six council seats, and four ex ecutive board seats. This semester, five students will be trying to win one of three open posi tions. The candidatesfor the election are Matt Grimmke, Jason Nachman, Matt Wiertel, Brandi Hovis, and Kim Moses (for more information about the candidates please turn to page four). When asked how she felt about the election, DiPlacido stated " I am very positive about this election. We re ceived five submission forms to run for three open senate seats, which Elections cont. on page 2 PENNSTATE PHOTO BY JEFF MILLER TMS PHOTO Erie