"My brain just does not shut down. I usually only sleep four hours a
night just because my brain refuses to quit." books and everything else. So when they help more
- Ross Zambanini, donating money and books, I am very impressed
International Business and Marketing major, - Quing Lian
°
page 8
,diol ESL Coordinator for the International Institute of Eri
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APR i .9 2007
Friday, April 13, 2007
Behrend staff attempts to
improve diversity among
faculty members
By Sheri Kroskie
staff writer
For college students, Penn State Behrend offers a wide
range of opportunities. Students are able to choose from 31
different bachelor degrees along with numerous clubs and
sports. However, according to some students and professors,
Behrend is lacking in an essential aspect that every liberal
arts school should be offering: diversity.
According to a survey done for the college in 2004, out of
the 221 full-time faculty members, only 27 were minorities.
Sixteen of the 27 were only considered assistant professors,
while a total of seven were either associate professors or
professors (associate professor and professor are ranked as
higher positions compared to that of assistant professor).
Behrend's faculty consists of less than 2 percent of African
Americans, 10 percent of Asians, and less than 1.5 percent
of Hispanics.
Behrend's Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies and
Academic Administration, Dr. David Christiansen, realizes
that our campus has a problem. "Our numbers are low and
we want to improve. We absolutely have steps we are taking
to make the changes necessary," said Christiansen. "We can
be doing better, and we should be doing better."
The Behrend definition of Diversity states, "The College
affirms its belief that diversity has a critical role in a liberal
education. A college campus provides a unique intellectual
environment for individuals with different experiences,
backgrounds, and values to interact with one another. Only
through the open exchange of different beliefs, experiences,
and values can individuals develop the important critical
thinking skills that will serve them throughout their life."
Asstistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering Oladipo
Onipede feels that the students here are not receiving the
type of education that is stated in Behrend's definition of
Diversity. "Here at Behrend, there is not much diversity of
the faculty, especially cultural and ethnic diversity,"
Onipede said. "I think that our students need both a diverse
student body and faculty for their intellectual development
and to help prepare them for their careers. At some point in
their careers they are going to be exposed to co-workers,
bosses and other people who will not be white American
males.
Onipede, who likes to be called Dipo, was born and raised
in Nigeria. Onipede is one of the only African American
professors here at Behrend. Onipede, who went to college in
New York City, and received his Ph.D. in Engineering from
UCLA, thinks that Erie is the least diverse city he has ever
lived in, saying, "I think that the lack of diversity here at
Behrend is partly reflected by the region. Some of the best
features of the region, its coziness, friendliness of the peo
ple and family closeness can sometimes be a hindrance to
fostering diversity." In addition, Onipede said, "Diversity
may require opening up and changing some of the attitudes
and stereotypes of others. It may require us to put ourselves
in other people's shoes and try not to automatically value
the people and cultures we are comfortable with
Continued on page 2.
Contents
News 1-3
Opinion 4
Fun Page 5
Humor 6
Student Life 7-8
Sports 9-10
Contact Us
Newsroom:
898-6488
Fax:
898-6019
E-mail: cslsoos@psu.edu
Our offices are located down
stairs in the Reed Union
Building.
Tuition, room and board, books, activity fees, technology fees
and don't forget parking fees. Every year, Penn State Behrend stu
dents are required to pay $l4O, or $250 or more if they want to park
on campus. If they choose to park without paying, there could be
hefty fines awaiting them. Parking fines range from an affordable
$7 for having your permit improperly displayed, to a pricier $5O
for not having your vehicle registered. These fines are not just
affecting students; they are also affecting staff and faculty mem
bers, as well as visitors to Behrend's campus.
One of the biggest questions regarding parking that Behrend stu
dents have is, "Where does all the money brought in from parking
tickets go?" With 3,508 parking tickets handed out during the
2005-06 school year, and 3,771 handed out during the 2006-07
school year so far, thousands of dollars are being generated. One
common misconception is that all this money goes to support
University Park. The real answer, though, is one that should make
Penn State students very happy. The money goes right back to
them. All money collected from parking fines goes into scholar
ships and student activity fees which are distributed by the Student
Government Association (SGA). The same goes for the parking
permits; the money goes back to students through maintenance of
the parking lots, and the construction of new parking areas.
When asked about how she feels about money from permits
going back into the parking lots, former Behrend student Brittany
Nguyen replied, "Wow, I didn't know that. I only used a few of
When Penn State Behrend's Police and Safety distribute these blaze orange tickets,
the parking lots, but they were in pretty good condition. It's good
many students become angry, but they may not know the money from the fees direct
to know that money I paid just went back into taking care of the
parking lots." ly benefit all students.
Nguyen continued to say that she occasionally joins Behrend student Jen trating because there isn't anywhere to park, so we have to park somewhere
Smith. 08, to do homework at the Research and Economic Development else and walk up. The only parking there is for teachers."
Center, (REDC), where parking is currently limited. "Sometimes it's frus- Continued on page 2.
A group of Master Gardeners from the Erie
area, including one of Behrend's own, are mak
ing plans to construct a new garden and seating
area outside of the Smith Chapel using funds
from this year's graduating class.
The walk from the Junker Center to the REDC
will never be the same. The plans for the garden
are to piece together an all-season perennial gar
den. Perennial plants, which once planted, will
come back every year during their peak growing
season.
Students, faculty and guests of the campus will
have the opportunity to enjoy a constantly chang
ing living canvas. The plans for the garden are
being carefully designed so that every few weeks
International Institute Project raises money and supplies for immigrants
to help them when they were actually in need," said Wilson.
Behrend students helped raise the $4OO and boxes of books and suppli. Shown above are Kelly On Tuesday, April 10, Wilson said she delivered the donations to
Walczak and Danielle Wilson, who presented the donations to Barbara Webber, and the ESL depart- the International Institute of Erie, where the staff and ESL students were
ment of the International Institute of Erie. more than gracious to receive them. "It was a surprise to the students.
When we showed up, they were so excited and grateful to get to look
through all the boxes of books. That's what made the fundraiser a huge success," said
Wilson. After the students of the ESL class looked through the collection
of books, Wilson said they were excited to take their choices home, which wall now
Continued on page 3.
Despite many struggles the International Institute of Erie has experienced, Behrend
students came together in a fundraising effort to help ease their financial troubles. In
the past weeks, the International Institute of Erie has been in the process of merging
A Penn State Behrend Student Publication
Fines and fees find their way back to students
Senior gift to spruce up Junker to REDO walk
By Ben Raymond
humor editor
By Ashley Bressler
news editor
By Jessica Hancock
contributing writer
during the year the scenery will change colors,
and out like a living screensaver.
Taking on this task is a group of community
volunteers, but they are not your garden variety
green thumbs. They are certified gardeners who
have had hours of training, classes and tests. So
far there are 15 Master Gardeners from the Erie
area signed up for the project. One of them can
be found in the first floor of the Reed Union
Building.
When the Senior Class gift committee tallied
the votes from a survey of the Senior Class, it
was brought to the attention of Mary Beth
McCarthy, the CDC's Director of Academic
Advising. She is on the committee for the proj
ect and has high expectations for the garden.
When she brought it up to some of her fellow
Master Gardeners she said,
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
"Students have their own money problems with tuition,
by
iARY
as a way to recover from lack of funds. Through this process, they feared
the worst; closing their doors to hundreds of immigrants and refugees
whose livelihood in Erie, solely depends on the services they provide for
them. Fortunately, there was a sign of hope for the International Institute
of Erie as Penn State Behrend students supported the International
Institute Project fundraiser providing books, school supplies and the
means for them to remain open a little longer.
In recent weeks, the International Institute Project fundraiser, head
ed by freshman psychology major Danielle Wilson and associate profes
sor of psychology Dr. Dawn Blasko, set up various locations through out
the campus where students could bring their donations of children's
books, school supplies and cash. The International Institute Project com
mittee hoped the donations would help the International Institute of Erie
stay open and continue to provide financial, educational and emotional
support for the 350 refugees who are expected to be placed in Erie this
year. In the two weeks the fundraiser was held, Wilson said Behrend stu
dents were able to help raise over $4OO and numerous boxes of books
and school supplies that will benefit the ESL (English as a Second
Language) department at the International Institute of Erie. Wilson vol
unteers as an ESL tutor at the International Institute of Erie, and said she
noticed their financial strain. "I didn't know they were having trouble, so
that wasn't our initial intent for the fundraiser, but it was nice to be able
Vol. LIII. No. XXIII
"Wouldn't it be nice if we could use this as a mas
ter project," and, "keep it in house.-
The Master Gardeners have worked on a num
ber of projects around the city. including a com
munity vegetable garden for those who could not
do their own gardening, as well as a test garden
at the Erie Zoo. With all of these projects sprout
ing up around Erie, what can the campus expect?
The target budget of the project is $5.000, but
what exactly will that be used for? A good por
tion will be used for a number of benches for peo
ple to rest and relax on. The rest will be used for
the bulbs that will bloom in to a wide variety of
flowers including but not limited to, tulips, iris'
and other fragrant plants.
The garden will provide a number of benefits
to the campus. From Spring to Fall
Continued on page 2.
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