Page 4 — LION'S EYE — November 8, 1991 Delco student takes a bre ping-pong. s studies to play a quick game of Photo by: DIANA MICERI PSU Weak In Retention By Amanda Thompson Penn State can’t seem to keep its freshmen, according to one national study. : In a survey of the freshmen classes of 1983 to 1985, Penn State has an average five-year graduation rate of 57 percent, according to a report in U.S. News and World Report. Compared to other Big Ten schools, Penn State ranks below Northwestern University’s 84 percent, but above Ohio State’s 45 percent. Other Big Ten schools fared from 79 to 33 percent. The Univ. of Michigan's graduation rate is 79 percent; the Univ. of Illinois is 73 percent; Purdue Univ. is 61 percent; the Univ. of Wisconsin and Michigan State's is 60 percent; Indiana Univ. is 56 percent; Univ. of Iowa’s is 53 percent; and the Univ. of Minnesota is 33 percent. But University President Joab Thomas said Penn State doesn’t com- pare to most Big Ten schools because more than 60 percent of freshmen start at other campuses, and they don’t necessarily stay at Penn State. C. Gregory Knight, dean of Under- graduate Education said, ‘Penn State University — probably more than most of the Big Ten schools — encourages students tec come and improve themselves. We take a lot of chances on people who may not be as prepared or strongly committed.” Lindsey Cares About Challenged Students By Kemba Vick Beverly Lindsey is the residential Retention Counselor here at Penn State Delaware County Campus. In the position of Retention Counselor, Ms. Lindsey works with minority and academically at risk provisional students. She also offers her ear as a personal counselor to students that just need to ‘be heard. “As a Retention Counselor my goal is to help students help themselves,” she explains. Ms. Lindsey began her academic career at the University of Johnstown in Pittsburgh. There she was a Pre- Law and Creative Writing Major for the first year and a half. Due to financial reasons she was forced to drop out. One year later she returned to school at West Chester University where she received an undergraduate degree in Criminal Justice. For four years she was a Juvenile Probation Officer in Chester County . “I had to leave because the behavior of the kids was getting out of hand; they were {00 unpredictable. There were numerous cases of sexual abuse of the detainees and I was unable to handle that environment.” After completing her graduate degree at West Chester University, she worked in the Admissions Office of the University recruiting minority students. “My only problem was, after I got them there I would never HAVE You DECIDED imaT you WouLD LIKE? see them again. What I wanted to do was develop a long term relationship with the students, particularly minority students.” Ms. Lindsey is one of nine children. From this large family she has become an aunt twenty-nine times and a great- aunt eight times. She was the only member of the immediate family to go to college, and her sense of family life has contributed to her success. Ms. Lindsey has no children of her own, but has been happily married to Marlon Lindsey for nine years. “He’s my best friend. After my relationship with God, it comes before everything. He's very understanding when it comes to my work. At times he does feel I bring my job home too much, but he’s very supportive since he knows how much it means to me. Marlon teaches the General Equivalency Diploma program at the local prison, so with our jobs being somewhat on the same lines it makes things easier.” I asked Ms. Lindsey what attracted her most about him, and her face lit up with a smile, “ He was the most intelligent man I had ever met. I used to love to sit for hours and listen to him talk.” The two seem as much in love now as they were nine years ago. To relax Ms. Lindsey listens to the music of her generation. Its called “oldies” by some and” classics”by others. “I like Bill Withers, and Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin and = TT ’ : THAT TIL TAKE 3,65 AND, Lohan artists like that. They help me to relax when I've had a hectic day.” She is also very active in her church. “I work closely with the women, and youth groups in the church. I help plan workshops and special events and plan field trips. I find it very rewarding.” Ms. Lindsey is a socially conscious person. “I am very concerned with the lack of proper funding for the education of inner-city kids. Something has to be done to protect their future. In the suburbs, some $46, 000 or more is spent per student on education and the inner-city is nowhere near that amount.” “Another issue that concerns me is the issue of the homeless, and why people are homeless. I myself, like others, am one paycheck away from being homeless. We would like to think of the homeless as lazy because it makes us feel better. It’s not true. Homelessness is an economic situation. There are college graduates that are homeless. This means that no one is free from the possibility of being placed in the situation.” “The Clarence Thomas issues concern me as well. It's not a matter .of whether or not I believe that he made sexual remarks to this woman, but the covert way in which it was handled. I feel the hearing dealing with the sexual harassment issue could have been avoided if the Committee would have dealt with the issue when they first found out about it. It was stated as being in pa ”. ~Nea <3) SN -— PRE 77 ME, 0K 15 COURSE T SELECTION LIKE EATING OUT? MAYBE... | WY NWN Beverly Lindsey, Retention Counselor at Delco. Photo by: GINA LUCCHESI F.B.I. reports which the Committee knew about, I feel it should have been dealt with then. To me, this how people deal with the “-isms”: racism, sexism, and homophobia. They go around it, instead of dealing with it head on.” As one student commented , “ I have come to know Ms. Lindsey to be one of the most intelligent, God fearing, socially conscious, African ~ American women | have ever met. Through her position here as a retention counselor she has touched the lives of hundreds of students and I hope she can touch the lives of hundreds more.” ; | | ATER... Ya DECIDED WHAT
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers