Page 4 — LION'S EYE — August 19,1991 OPI nd REVIEW Editorials: Diverting Defense Dollars By Chuck Spector As you may have read on page one of the Lion's Eye, U.S. Department of Defense (formerly the Department of War) figures for the 1990 Fiscal year showed Penn State University ranked third out of all U.S. colleges and | universities in Defense Department grants. Yet, I wonder, are these the type of grants and contracts we really want to get involved with. With so many problems in the world today, do we absolutely need to spend increasing amounts of money for war? I wonder if it is possible to examine the manner in which the 61.6 million dollars was actually spent and the true relevance of the finished projects. Maybe instead of spending such a great deal of money on defense, we could invest a little of the more than $320,000,000,000 spent yearly, and use a small percentage of it towards improving international relations, cooperation, and understanding. Is it possible to ask for a percent of the money that Penn State receives to furnish defense projects to go to programs that encourage peace between nations? Why Go to College? What is it you expect from college? From yourself? If anything at all. This is something you should have thought about before you even applied to college. Unfortunately, not many people do. Consequently, they realize much too late that college is not for them. For me, taking one year off after high school was advantageous. Working in a Mobil Mart allowed me to see exactly what I did not want to do. It is a shame however, the number of young adults who are pushed into pursuing a college career. Granted, these days college is your best bet if you want a proficient job, however there are alternative routes to be explored. There are trades that can be learned through apprenticeships and short term programs, which may be more gratifying for some individuals and not to mention less expensive than four year, even two year, college careers. Without discouraging students, I am merely trying to get across the point that not everybody is cut out to be a college student. I can not help but wonder if the number of people I know who have been on academic probation for the past year would have had this problem had they had more choices out of high school. Or if they were paying for their college expenditures themselves. I may be way out of line but it seems like an awful waste of time and money. Sometimes it is for the best, I suppose, if that is what it takes. I never expected some of my friends and acquaintances to come home from college with such a widened focus on life, but they did. Even though one guy had dropped out for a semester, but live on campus, his grasp on life was more mature and his disposition was undeniably down-to-earth. As irrelevant as this may seem, it really is not. There are so many different things one should expect from college, from themselves and also from others. Hopefully the majority of students will find out that this is what they want for now, and if not maybe they will learn a little bit about themselves and the world around them. THE LION’S EYE August 19, 1991 Vol. XXIII, No. 1 The Pennsylvania State University Delaware County Campus EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Angela Deal PRODUCTION EDITOR David Rhoades ASSISTANT EDITOR Chuck Spector STAFF REPORTERS Frances Callahan David Clements, Jr. Peggie Cahall PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR Diana Miceri ADVISORS Barbara Daniel John Terrell The LION’S EYE is published Monthly during the academic year by the students of the Delaware County Campus. Submissions are welcome from all students, faculty and staff. Material must be typed, double spaced, and submitted in the LION'S EYE mailbox located in the Lion’s Den. Letters, articles and cartoons represent only the views of their authors. Advertisements do not necessarily reflect editorial opinion. THE LION’S EYE regrets it cannot guarantee the return of any material submitted. All submissions are subject to editing. > 2 WA Sn \ ou Ene €y | TOG, WE \ ove OOR Cryldaen : THE FRONT DESK by Ed Tomezsko Campus Executive Officer Welcome back! The campus is too quiet over the Summer. It is really great to have this place alive and buzzing with the new academic year. You see growth and changes again this year. For starters, on August 23 we will break ground for the construction of a new tennis complex — eight state-of-the-art lighted courts. These courts represent the largest single gift in the history of the campus. We are grateful to the Ethel Sergeant Clark Smith Trust for their confidence in Penn State. Later in the year, we will start design and construction on the Advanced Technology Center. This building will give us four very much needed classrooms, allow us to reorganize the computer facilities, and to free some space in the Main Building. This comes about through the generosity of Boeing Helicopters and several other major companies in the area. There are more of you here this year than last year, a continuing sign of the respect for and value of a Penn State education. However, to get this great education you have had to pay a higher tuition this year than last year. This is not a good sign. Basic, secondary, and higher education is the lynch pin of the future development of our state. Maybe it is time to examine the value that Pennsylvania gets for the tax dollars spent on education at all levels. I believe firmly that Penn State has established itself as the preeminent higher educational institution in the Commonwealth and any form of “value” testing applied to us will only confirm my knowledge. As Penn State students, you need to be proud of what we do here and throughout the state simply because you are the ones doing it. You'll get tired of hearing “Penn State Proud,” but it is more than a slogan; it is a reality. We need to spread that message into any ears that will listen. I was a firm advocate of the need for the tax increase through which all of us will now contribute more real money to the future of Pennsylvania. I applaud the legislators who decided that the future of the Commonwealth was more important than being reelected. It is hard to face the reality of the state’s needs and decide now is the time for action. It is easy to be “against a tax increase” without offering a single, specific alternative corrective action. This plays well with the voters. This mentality will not, however, develop jobs, will not repair the infrastructure, nor will it repair a transportation system desperate for repair. : At the same time, I advocate responsible spending by those who receive these tax dollars - the value added test. Basically when you choose to come to our campus, we have passed your value added test. For the cost of tuition, you have made a decision that Penn State is worth the cost. As we go through this year, you need to help us in the faculty and in the administration maintain our value and to improve on it. Keep talking about the way that you want Penn State to be. Value is added every *ime we hear you and do something about it. You'll read a lot about value in this column throughout the ear. We are facing the moment of truth as we begin the new year. Our value is on the line with you. :
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers