September 14, 2001 The Lion’s Eye Page 3 By ERIC MAYER Staff Writer The old adage reads: "A watched teapot never boils." Though this saying continues to ring true, many can attest that watching is a far better practice than ignor- ing. 2s Such is the case with the fire emergency proce- dures on Penn State's Delaware County campus. In order to protect the safety of the student body, proper "watch- ing" must take place. This "watching" process embodies the existence of fire drills, smoke detectors, fire alarms, fire extinguishers, and evacuation procedures. Penn State Delaware County does conduct fire drills, use smoke detectors, fire alarms, and fire extin- guishers, and they also have evacuation procedures. What Penn State Delaware County does not have, regrettably, is student awareness. "I can't say I really think of this place in the con- text of a 'fire situation' very much. It's not that I'm being irresponsible, but I just don't feel mentally or:procedural- ly ready," an anonymous student confided. Though the students may prove to be poorly suit- “ed in such a fire emergency, the administration at Penn State Delaware County seems intent on letting the mem- bers of the staff serve as safety conduit. An "emergency preparedness document" to be relayed to administration and staff is in its infancy stages. This document will allow students to receive guidance - from their teachers and directors in a typical fire situation. When finished, it will complement the evacuation materi- als currently present in every room of the buildings, so that the information needed to ensure safety is supplied thoroughly. SGA prepares for new semester By DANIEL ZACHER Assistant editor op, drop and cover When a fire occurs inside one of the buildings, students are advised to proceed to the exit outlined in the aforementioned evacuation material, in order to avoid endangering their safety. The Vairo library and Classroom building are both equipped with smoke detectors, which emit a loud, audible siren when triggered. _ If a student recognizes fire in the Main or Commons buildings, he or she should pull the nearest alarm before proceeding to their respective exit, as there are no smoke detectors in either of these structures. When outside of the building, students should - remain at least 300 feet away. Evacuation is only neces- sary for the building experiencing the alarm, as the risk of fire expansion between Delaware County's prodigiously €¢ [ can't say I really think of this place in the context of a fire situation’ very much. It's not that I'm being irresponsible, but I just don't feel mentally or procedurally ready, €¢ Most people cannot connect with their govern- ment representatives. They seem almost elite to people and not even on the same page. This is untrue about the Student Government Association (SGA) at Penn State Delaware County; here the government is comprised of students just like you. : The SGA has two sections, the Senate and the Executive Board, to try to make student life better. The Executive Board governs the Senate which breaks off into areas of campus life, such as academics and governmen- tal affairs, to try to make their areas better. This Executive Board is made up of 5 students: Andrew Lowry, Keith Farrell, Ivena John, Lauren Showalter, and Daniel Zacher. Heading the entire SGA is the President Andrew Lowry. Graduating from Monsignor Bonnor High School in 1999, Lowry is a third year Urban Education major. He has spend all three years of his college career at Penn State Delco and two of them as a part of the SGA serving as the Historian and Senate Leader before making the jump to President in April. When Lowry is not at school working he is working as a master of all trades at the Havertown Kohl's department store. He has great expectations for this upcoming year and hopes he can accomplish all his goals and make Penn State Delaware County a better place for all. "Don't take the beaten path, make your own for people to follow." This quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson is the way the Vice President, Keith Farrell, tries to live his life. He has had no previous experience in the SGA at Penn State Delaware County before taking this post. His major job is programming and he is responsible for plan- ning the SGA's Fall and Spring Weeks. spaced institutions is extremely low. Penn State Delaware County has an excellent record of accomplishment, as far as fires are concerned. In the campus history, only a few smoker stations and a trac- tor have caught fire, all outside of the central buildings. If a fire such as this occurs, students must notify a security officer, who will investigate the claim and attempt to He is still an active member of the volleyball teams on campus; he is a player on the men's team and a student coach on the women's side. He currently holds many jobs, both on and off campus, which keep him very busy. These jobs are working in the weight room and in the Lion's Den, writ- ing tickets for security, and working at Aéropostale | in the Granite Run Mall. His goals in life are to ride every roller- coaster in the world and to play on an Olympic Volleyball team. The SGA's third Tctutve Board Member is - Ivena John, the Secretary. She is a junior trying to deal out a duel major in Business and Information Sciences and Technology. She is the newest member of the SGA and was nominated by a committee of peers after elected Secretary, Jenni Chun, left for University Park. She is another member of the SGA who has no prior experience with the organization. Her job is to take and file meeting minutes for the major meetings on campus. She was born in Zambia and lived there all her life until coming to Penn State where John is an active member of the Multicultural Clubs and Council: Her goal before she graduates is "to make this campus more diverse and to make students more aware of the different cultures that exist on campus." In her second year in the SGA, Lauren Showalter was promoted to Treasurer during the summer. She has ultimate control over all the club budgets and the SGA budget. She is the person to see if a club needs to have their account tapped for money. She is a third year Human Development and Family Studies major and coordinates the Toys for Tots program at Penn State Delaware County. Her "goal in Student Government is to help [her] fellow students and help others to get involved." Bringing up the rear of the Student Government extinguish the fire. If a fire proves to be unmanageable, the Fire Department will be notified and further steps taken. Fire drills are randomly enacted on campus in order to raise the awareness of the feasibility of fire emer- gency and to hone the evacuation skills of its faculty and students. : According to Lisa Colwell, director of business services, Penn State does not require fire drills. Despite this, as campus executive officer Ed Tomezsko pointed out, fire drills are held periodically whenever it is deemed necessary to do so. - With the large array of fire extinguishers, evacu- - ation procedures, and administrative help that appear to be at Penn State Delaware County's disposal, it is tempting to believe that one's own safety is assured. Tomezsko dis- agrees with this reasoning. "It is essentially impossible for us to obtain a head count for all the students in a building, after that building is evacuated. We know when'a faculty member is ‘there; we have no idea when a student is there. If a build- ing is on fire, the Safety and Security Committee will search for trapped individuals, but this does not and can- not ensure survival in such a situation." Tomezsko also added that he felt the current security procedures at Penn State Delaware County have worked, not hinting at any plans for the future. Both security officer David Horevay and Colwell echoed Tomezsko's words, though Colwell did say she felt there was room for improvement. "I hope that we are adequately prepared for a fire emergency, but you never truly know," Tomezsko said. "In such a situation, the event takes over the preparedness, and everything gets peculiar. You really need to keep a firm head upon your shoulders." Photo by Anteia Consorto The Student Government Executive board includes (from left to right) Daniel Zacher, lvena John, Lauren Showalter, Andrew Lowry, and Keith Farrell. Executive Board is the Senate Leader, Daniel Zacher. He is a second year Information Sciences and Technology major and is the major creator of the SGA's new Website. . He was the former Senator of Information and Technology and was promoted in the April elections. His job is to keep order in the. Senate and assist them i in their daily duties to the campus. Since attending the Summer Experience at Penn State (SEPS) in high school Zacher has been in love with Penn State and University Park and this was the main rea- son he decided to attend Delco. He can usually be found walking around campus, in the Lion’ s. Den or in the Classroom Lounge. : The Senate is split into nine pieces Academics, Campus Services, Community Services, Diversity Affairs, Fundraising, Governmental Affairs, Information and Technology, Public Relations, and Students with Disabilities. The current senators include Elvina Gbee, Andreau Napoles, Simon Burns, Andrea Ricciardi, Dory Shea, and Kelly Goodwin. The SGA still has positions open and is looking for people to join if they are interested. He/She must come into the SGA office and pick up an application and sched- ule and interview with Zacher and/or Lowry. For more information about the Student Government contact the SGA at sgaquestions@hotmail.com, their website http://www.clubs.psu.edu/delcoSGA/index.html, or call the office at 610-892-1240.
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