PAGE 2 THE BEHREND BEACON FEBRUARY 25 2000 NEWS AND WEATHER American Dream to be studied now at Behrend by Angela Majoris staff writer Since the discovery of America, people have come to the shores of this country with a personal vision, vari ous expectations, and the promise of possibility. Eventually the motives behind the immigration of these peoples became known as the "American Dream". However, the plasticity of this term illustrates its lack of a concrete definition. It is the many versions of the American Dream that have inspired the creation of a new institute here at Behrend. Mr. Charles Brock, an Erie native and chaplain of Mansfield Col lege in Oxford, England, founded the Institute on the American Dream. The mission of the institute is to, "define, analyze, and compare con cepts of individual, ethnic, and na tional American dreams, seek their origins, and evaluate who wins and who loses under the various defini- Brock described his interest in the institute to his board of directors, "1 considered it was my main intellec tual task while teaching in Oxford to ask 'what is the church for?' I later decided that was a good question to Question of WHAT ARE YOU PLANNING TO DO DURING "I'm planning to go to Daytona Beach." "I'm going to Florida, near the Pensacola Peninsula." ask about Britain and America too-- what is Britain for? What is America for? I never solved it for Britain... But America is something different. Here we have a nation founded on ideas. . . [The American Dream] is about freedom, justice and equality. The American Dream is also about success, and that can be crude or subtle, but it is important to grasp." Brock, and Dr. Julie Husband, As sistant Director of the Institute, and an English teacher here at Behrend, have planned a conference to take place in the spring 2001. The con ference will feature a well-known keynote speaker, and a series of scholars from varying academic dis ciplines to discuss their work and ideas on the American dream. They also hope to sponsor a dra matic production off campus, and a series of workshops hosted by people who in one way or another are work ing to make the American dream a reality. "The workshops are, I think, the most important part of the confer ence because out of these workshops we hope to develop a continuing re lationship between the students and faculty of Penn State Erie and Erie area grassroots, labor, and social ser- the Week SPRING BREAK? -Doug Peters, 09, EE "I'm going home in Philadelphia." -Kristin Fleming, 04, 810 -Tina Lawther, 06, Management "I have to go home - I don't have many choices with my cast on -Anton Zonneveld, 10, ME "I'm going home in Pittsburgh." -Scott Broniak, 08, MIS vices organizations," said Husband. One. of, the goals for the Institute is to help reverse the high percentage of poverty stricken people by starting lo cally in Erie and continuing through out the U.S. "I would really like to see the Insti tute develop into the kind of hybrid organization that effectively links tal ented, socially-conscious Behrend stu dents and faculty to successful Erie area anti-poverty initiatives. I would like to see a healthy discussion of the merits of labor initiatives, cultural pro grams, educational programs and so cial services in empowering poor neighborhoods, families and individu als," said Husband. She continued, "We will need ideas for conference panel topics, perform ers for the play, people willing to help with mailings and the logistics of the conference, and liaisons to workshop leaders." The Institute on the American Dream is looking for the input of students, fac ulty and staff to plan the conference. Any interested students should contact Dr. Husband at 898-6073 or stop by her office, 131 Academic on Mondays, Wednesdays or Fridays. The Beacon's next regu lar issue will run on Fri day March 17, 2000. Enjoy your spring break!!! Blue Bus continued from front page transportation concerns." After speaking with several students and riders of the bus, there has been a lot of reactions to the new policy. One student, Akaiilah Staten, thought that the fact that she did not have to pay to ride the bus was "great ... it is so convenient because the two dollars that I ended up paying before really added up.- Riders such as Vielka Wilkinson are taking advantage of not having to pay by riding more often. "Before I didn't ride that often; now I find myself taking the Blue Bus a little more." It has also been a relief for passengers who take the bus on a daily basis to A caller informed P&S of vandalism in a conference room 2/16/00 A complainant reported a theft of the Swear Jar from the Beacon Office 2/17/00 A caller reported some suspicious activity 2/18/00 A complainant called about a person attempting to access her computer. 2/18/00 A complainant reported that a candy machine in Ohio Hall was unlocked and the door 2/18/00 was open A complainant reported that he observed a student removing a memory chip from a computer in the Prishak Building. 2/18/00 09:00 A minor car accident happened on Jordan Road in front of the Police and Safety Building. Owners exchanged information since there were no injuries and neither car needed towing 2/18/00 16:10 A complainant reported finding stolen property during room inspections 2/18/00 16:24 A complainant reported that someone had pushed over a light pole near the north side of Perry Hall. 2/18/00 22:20 A complainant called to report two unruly students on the north side of Almy Hall. Officers arrived and advised the students that they were being referred for violating University policy regarding noise. 2/19/00 A complainant reported that someone deposited feces on the lobby furniture in Perry Hall 2/20/00 A complainant came to P&S and reported his textbook was stolen while he was in 088 2/22/00 WEEKEND WEATHER OUTLOOK FEBRUARY 25-27, 2000 1 0 11 dl ita 4 , , ` iii „ 4 , o t t i , , d 6 1 b i b i FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY MORNING SHOWERS; PARTLY CLOUDY WITH SHOWERS; HIGH 51, LO HIGH 56, LOW 45 EVENING SHOWERS, 34. WINDY AND WARM; HIGH NEAR 60, LOW 42. get back and forth to work, home, and school. Blue Bus driver Barb Doud also had a response to the new policy. "I love it. It makes a lot of things easier. Kids pay enough as it is," Barb Doud said on her route back to campus. Although she has not seen a huge difference in the number of people that ride the bus, she notes that there has been a little bit of an increase. It is her hope that more students will go for a ride on the bus. There are also a few additional things that frequent riders would like to see happen with the Blue Bus. Anthein Thomas would like a more Police And Safety REPOR T: flexible schedule, with pick-ups every hour. Miller addressed the possibility of more riders. "Because it's free, more people use it. The more people use it, the more it's necessary for change," stated Miller. Doud herself also had a request that would make her more comfortable. "We have almost 120,000 miles on the bus. Maybe a new one would be nice, eventually." As for the amount of time that this policy will be in effect, Miller assured students that this procedure will not only be implemented this semester, but that it is a permanent change for the Blue Bus riders. \‘• 00 0 0