Pai!e2
Divestment Expected by 1988
By Jan Travers
The university has announced it
will divest all securities in U.S. operated
corporations doing business in South
Africa, effective December 31, 1988.
The resolution, passed liy the
Penn State Board of Trustees on
September 19, provides for a plan to
withdraw $6.3 million invested in U.S.
companies unless they voluntarily
withdraw from South Africa by June 30,
1988. If they do not meet the deadline,
Penn State will sell the investments by
December 31, 1988.
In addition to divesting, the
September 24 issue of Intercom, a PSU
publication for faculty and staff, reported
several educational initiatives that were
also authorized. Known as the Penn
State-South Africa SHARE Program,
the following will be established:
Election Results Announced
By Cindi Greenawalt
The Student Government
Association election for secretaries,
junior senators, and senators-at-large
were held September 29 and 30.
Carol Kilko was elected Board
Secretary and Michael Pauzo,
Committee Secretary.
The Junior Senators elected are
Jodie Kelley, representing the Public
Affairs division; Jacqueline Curley,
Science, Engineering and Technology;
Brenda Marchegiani, Humanities; and
John Nagengast, Business
Administration.
Has Anyone Seen My CCSG?
By Todd M. I lammaker
I've got a problem. My CCSG
was gone
First, I was told, "Todd. You've
got CCSG, let's make something of it."
Great, I thought, but just what is a
CCSG? I had very little to go on. I did
know that it had something to do with
University Park. Well, at least that it
"happened" at University Park.
I asked some of the admin
istrators. Some didn't know. Some didn't
want to talk about it. Others said, "It's
what you want it to be." As unusual as
it may seem, this didn't help me. So I
tried another approach. I searched the
SGA files. If you think thermodynamics
is scary, try going through the SGA
files.
After a long and exhausting
search, I found a constitution for CCSG.
In fact, found two constitutions
(different years). I was overcome with
joy. Finally I would know what CCSG
is all aobut.
Start into the constitution, I
first found the "NAME," "This orga
nization shall be known as the Council
of Commonwealth Student Governments
of the Pennsylvania State University,
and shall constitute the official rep
****Scholarships for black South
African students to attend Penn State.
****Help in those areas where Penn
State expertise can assist South African
blacks, in, for example, teacher
preparation and continuing education.
****Academic exchanges bringing black
South African faculty members and
administrators to Penn State.
****Review of equity holdings in order
to divest from all American companies
in South Africa that do not provide
nonsegregation and equality of
opportunity.
****Educational efforts aimed at
enlarging and expanding knowledge of
southern Africa within the Penn State
community.
(Information for this article quoted from
Intercom.)
The Behavioral Science and
Education division elected Senior
Senator Darvin Geyer to fill a position
vacanted in the spring election. No
junior ran for this position.
Elected Senators-at-Large,
representing the general student body, are
Maria Rusynyk, Bernie Mixon, Gene
Albano, Scott Squeglla and John
D'Ambrosia.
Mike McClure, candidate for
Board Secretary, withdrew from the
election to pursue employment.
Over 300 students turned out
Tuesday and Wednesday to vote.
resentative voice of students attending
the Commonwealth Campuses."
Wow, sounds impressive. But
what exactly is this organization sup
posed to do? Lucky me found Article 11,
"PURPOSE." That should explain it. I
read that the purpose of CCSG was,
"A.Torepresenttheconcernsofstudentsat
tendingdieCommonwealthCampusesin-
mattersofaUniversitywidenatureaswellas-
thoseissuesimpactingonthecombinedinter
estsoftheCommonwealthCampuses."
"Everyone talks about University Park. It's so big. But the common
wealth campuses are big [too]. Each one may be small. But together,
they make up the majority of Penn State." Todd Hammaker, SGA
President.
(Grab a quick breath.) "B.Toprovide
aforumfortheexchangeanddevelopmentof-
ideasinthevariousareasofstudentconcern."
(Now for the big finish.) "C.Torepre
senttheinterestsoftheStudentGovernment
Agencies(SGAs)oftheCommonwealth-
Campuses." That dears it all up, doesn't
it? If you're anything like me, then
you're more confused than ever. Sounds
like mumbo-jumbo.
The CCSG constitution helped
a little, very little. So, what next? I was
OIMUM
Students-- New Market
for Credit Cards
. PSS,STTT...How'd you like to
own this $6OO pair of genuine snakeskin
boots? Want to know how to buy these
"Bruce Willis shades? Need some quick
cash?
Although they're not selling
these products, banks and major credit
card companies are using similar sales
pitches in hopes of turning college
students into customers.
While it was once nearly
impossible for a student to qualify for a
credit card, visit any college union or
bookstore these days and you'll see
Master Card, VISA, or American Express
posters inviting everyone to take home
an application. According to one bank
official, some 14,000 financial
institutions across the country issue
credit cards, and many of them are now
looking for a younger clientele.
Why are they in such hot
pursuit of students?
"Because students graduate and
become real people," says Noel Capon,
director of Columbia University's Center
for Research in the Marketing of
Financial Services. "They're attemtping
to make people loyal to them early on in
their lives and hope they'll hold on to
the cards over time."
With the exception of American
Express, the credit card companies aren't
doing the actual soliciting: That's the
work of individual banks, credit unions,
and savings and loans, say Dan Brigham,
a VISA spokesman. The Master Card
and VISA companies electronically link
institutions and handle settlement and
billing guidelines, he says, "but we don't
market to anyone, it's the individual
banks that decide who gets a credit card."
But aren't college students
generally considered credit risks?
informed that the CCSG would meet
Sept. 26. Finally.
I traveled up the road to State
College, parked off campus, and searched
for the HUB. Luck was with me, and I
found it quickly. I entered the room and
there, throughout the room, were ap
proximately 45 smartly dressed people. I
was glad I wore my clean pair of jeans. I
found the seat and sign for Capital (they
spelled it C-a-p-i-t-o-l) and sat down.
The meeting began.
After many announcements and
introductions, the history of CCSG was
reviewed. Dr. J. Thomas Eakin, assistant
vice president for Student Programs,
explained why CCSG came about. He
said the administration felt out of touch
with the commonwealth campuses. The
students at the campuses also felt they
were not properly represented at Uni
versity Park. Therefore, the organization
came about to serve both groups. The
discussion included the ups and downs of
Opinion varies among credit officials.
"Not really, we think it's a
market with a lot of growth potential,"
said one Citibank spokesman, who
abruptly refused further comment on
college students' creditworthiness.
Bui John Snodgrass, vice
president of First Federal Savings and
Loan in Norman, Oklahoma, doesn't
agree. "Students are considered risks
because most have an unstable
employment history and no established
track record of handling — credit," he says.
"However, this a highly competitive
business and the credit card companies
are driven by pressure (to increase sales).
Any risks they take will be made up by
increased business and the high interest
rates they charge."
According to Capon, credit card
companies fully_ expect to have some
amount'of monetary loss. "If there isn't
any, that means they're too conservative
in their practices," he says. "They have
to accept some degree of loss for the
benefit of getting a broader group of
customers."
In general, banks aren't
changing their criteria just to get
students as credit card customers, Capon
says, but some require a parent to co
sign the application form. "That would
eliminate the bank's risk, but now
there's pressure on the parents if the bills
don't get paid."
Students who have credit cards
should avoid overextending themselves;
says Capon, because a bad credit rating
may never be remedied. "The cards are a
conveneiece; people- should use this
feature and avoid building up big
balances."
((National On-Campus Report)
the organization. The organization did
not operate effectively last year, end the
hope was to make CCSG a viable group
this year.
Dr. Eakin's presentation was
interesting and informative. But it was
Dr. Robert Scannell, vice president and
dean for the Commonwealth Education
System, who really caught my attention.
He talked about the various types of
people who were represented--com
muters, nontraditional students, married
couples, continuing education students,
and others. But what came across was
the numbers. Big numbers. Everyone
talks about University Park. It's so big.
It's the place to be. It is Penn State.
But, the commonwealth cam
puses are big. They may be spread, out
across the state. Each one may be small.
But together, they make up the majority
of Penn State. And that is where CCSG
comes in. If CCSG can get its act
together, work together, and keep it
together, the commonwealth campuses
will have a large voice in what happens
at Penn State. Then, each and every
campus will have a say in what happens
at Penn State. Each and every student
will have a say in Penn State.
Thanks, I found my CCSG.
Oct. 7 1987