March 20, 2006 The Lion’s Eye Eve On Campus SGA Elections Heat Up By Tyler Harvey Waking up one morning about 10:00 a.m., you have a leisurely breakfast. Around lunchtime you get in the shower and start getting dressed. Around 2:00 p.m. you start your schoolwork, the telephone rings and it is your friend who attends the local public high school. They want to go to the mall with you. Your school work can wait as you cruise out the door. Now it's time for a reality check. No one lives that life, unless you're home schooled, right?. One person stated, "I would love to be home schooled. I could sleep in every day and never actually do my work. That would be the life." Well in actuality, home schooling is so much more than just sleeping in and no homework. Many peo- ple believe that homeschoolers do not have rules, regulations, and dead lines. In actuality, home- schoolers have a vigorous, demanding schedule. There are requirements and federal laws that need to be met in order to graduate. Homeschoolers have tests, papers, mid-terms, finals, and quizzes. Home schooling and charter schooling may be the future of our education system. As a homeschooler, you have the ability to travel more and get out. You could potentially hit the road and not return for the entire school year. You have all your schoolwork right there with you. What would stop you from traveling the world? Just as long as you get your work done. On the other hand, homeschooling only caters to academics. There is no social context for homeschoolers to develop in. They miss out on different life experi- ences. Homeschoolers may never experience a prom, a high school football game, or studying late after class with friends. These are different experi- ences that some students take for granted. Some homeschoolers don't mind that lack of normality in their high school years, and yet others regret never having gone to a high school. Homeschooling in general gives parents the main responsibility for the education of their children. Many troubled youth have been homeschooled so that parents could keep a better watch over them. That is what a lot of parents are looking for. The idea of homeschooling allows more parental partic- ipation. Homeschooling in the past has taken on a bad rep- utation for taking children out of public schools. Teachers are not happy about the decline of stu- dents in public schools. Alternative academic insti- tutions like charter schools, homeschools, and other schools like it are becoming more popular with a lot of American families. Simply put, with having the flexibility of being able to take your school work on the road and the parent - student relationship that is involved, more parents are turning to homeschooling. Gospel Choir Spreads Good News By KAT SPECHT kvs5045@psu.edu Let's admit it, most of us sing at some point or another (regardless of a few of us being tone deaf). Whether it's in the privacy of the car, the shower, the bedroom, in front of the mirror with a hairbrush in hand, or even in front of a crowd, singers just cannot help getting into the beat. And why is that? "Because I'm a Christian," said Nikki Ferrell, who is a member of the Penn State Delco Gospel Choir. "We have a responsibility to our faith and beliefs. Music reaches a lot of people." It definitely reaches Ferrell. She's not only a performer in the choir, but a fan of the music, as well. "Gospel has a really strong message," she said. Penn State Delaware County's Gospel Choir performs primarily at on-campus events, such as the Mister and Miss Penn State Delco Pageant. The group will also be spotlighted at the Gospel Explosion coming up on April 21 at the campus. Most of the students involved in the Gospel Choir are also involved with their local church's choir. who is majoring in nursing. gospel background. Most students involved in the choir see it as a great "I've been involved in my church's choir for years," said freshman and newcomer to the choir, Ciday Brown Brown is one of many who joined the group with a By GERRY DUNGAN gmd138@psu.edu New rules combined with old regulations are stirring up conflict- ed reactions in the upcoming Student Government Association (SGA) elections. The extensive revisions to the SGA constitution this year were designed to prevent pre- and post- election frustration. This resulted in the abolition of a 20 member running party ticket in favor of a mere four member executive party- oriented ticket compromised of a President, Vice-President, Treasurer, and Secretary. Furthermore, the remaining 16 positions have been slashed to nearly half their original size, in effect mandating no more than an 11 member executive and cabinet administration for the incoming student government. However, there is one catch: seven cabinet positions are appointed post-election, much like a parliamentary election. "Last year, 40 students ran and only 20 were selected," said cur- rent SGA president Stacie Mann, who lead the revision of the con- stitution. She said that this post election appointment system allows for students to be involved as leaders no matter what party wins. He Veteran SGA Advisor and Student Life guru, Chris Coia said that the main reason for the constitutional changes were because candidates filled positions just to put their name on the ticket. Some that are not in association with the current Blue and White party administration disagree. "They changed it so if they lose, their people won't be alienated from the positions," said Paul Huyrch, vice president of the IST club. "That may be inflammato- ry...but I'll be playing by the rules." Conversely, some may see this as a tactic to block bi-partisan unity. In defense, Mann stated that every potential candidate has a place in the upcoming race, "for the same reasons, they just have different ways of getting there. Besides, conflicts can bring about very interesting solutions to problems." All this was explained at an SGA informational session on March 1st , facilitated by Mann. There an official SGA elections sign up sheet for those interested. Page 3- "It's just a list for the incoming exec board to help pick students for their cabinet," said Mann. "They can sign up to show interest, but their position is not guaranteed." This proved to be a little confus- ing for some interested partici- pants, because of a column labeled "positions." As it turns out, cam- paigning and declaration of candi- dacy status as defined in the SGA constitution, conflict with the sign up sheet. As of Friday last week, only nine people expressed interest on the sheet. However, two names listed executive positions. According to the constitution, under the code of elections, this may prove to be illicit information. "It would jeopardize the candi- dates if that information would be printed," said Coia, whose duties include the facilitation of the entire SGA electoral process. "The sheet is not public info, the only public info is when they come to me and make themselves official." The constitution does not define campaigning, which blurs the line of interest and intent and prevents anyone from revealing their inter- est in an executive position despite the fact that they wrote it down on the SGA elections sheet. "There is a lot of red tape," said Devin Zuczek, treasurer of the IST club. : Like Huyrch, Zuczek has declared an interest in an executive position according to the elections sheet. Both students acknowledge the wide speculation that there will be an opposition party to the incum- bent party when they declare their intent to run. : The two names on the list that sparked equal controversy are the only students who left blank their interested positions. Current Vice President and Student Affairs Chairperson, Crystal Bowhall and Sean Nichols, respectively, have omitted a response to the "positions" column. "Crystal and I didn't know what position we wanted yet," said Sean Nichols, with Bowhall confirming this information three weeks after they entered their names. "They should only be talking to people that are going to be on their exec board," at least for now, explained Mann at the first SGA info session. "I probably should have kept two separate lists," she later said. opportunity to combine both their performance and musi- cal abilities and as a release for their own personal reli- gious beliefs in an accepting academic atmosphere. The choir is always looking for new members that would like to celebrate their faith. Anyone interested in joining the Penn State Delco Gospel Choir, head up to Student Life Services to gather more information. "Come try it out. It's fun and different." said Brown.
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