18—The Daily Collegian Monday, Oct. 12, 1981
Housing board to select student
Rental advisory committee seeks concerned student for input
By CINDY ORREN
Daily Collegian Staff Writer
The Rental Housing Advisory Committee of the
Centre Regional Council of Governments will be
selecting a student tonight to sit on the RHAC board.
Committee chairwOman Charlene H. Harrison said
the subcommittee will be looking for students who
have the ability to articulate their opinions and be
compatible with other members of the committee.
The student's rental experience and term standing
are also important, she said. The committee would
like to have a student who is going to be in the area for
at least one year and also during the summer. The
student should also be able to identify rental
problems that need to be remedied.
"The student should have a genuine concern about
rental housing," Harrison said.
Members should be willing to serve on
subcommittees that coincide with their interests and
abilities, and to contribute comments, suggestions
and interest on all rental problems.
"Members are expected to give their best thought
power to the issue," Harrison said.
Ray Boyle, a finer student representative to RHAC,
assisted with a committee that tried to persuade a
community group, such as a church or civic group, to
become involved with elderly renters.
The plan's intention was to provide companionship
for'elderly renters and assist them in simple
household chores in order to offer an alternative to
L.A. majors benefit
from business skills
By BRIAN E. BOWERS
Daily Collegian Staff Writer
Liberal arts majors who have business
and quantitative skills find it easier to
find employment after graduation, said a
representative from the Career
Development and Placement Center.
Courses in quantitative reasoning and
analysis, computer science and
economics can be taken by students in
the College of The Liberal , Arts to
increase their chances of employment,
said Beth Shirey during a University-
Employer Relations Forum held last
week.
Many jobs are technically based, so
engineers are often hired before liberal
arts majors, Shirey said. Howeyei., many
engineers are transient in their jobs
because they end up doing jobs that are
better suited for liberal arts majors, she
said.
"A lot of engineers are doing a lot of
writing and administration and
negotiation for which liberal arts majors
are better equipped," Shirey said.
The forum, held Thursday and Friday,
was designed for employers and liberal
arts faculty to get together to discuss
employment opportunities for liberal
arts majors and how they can be
improved, said Richard Hess, one of the
Career Development and Placement
Center committee members who
organized the program
"The intent (of the forum) was to fill a
void," Hess said. "Not very often, in
some organized fashion, do faculty from
the College of Liberal Arts have the
opportunity to get together with
employers and share ideas. What we did
was provide a forum for that to happen."
Employers, mostly from large
corporations and the government, and
faculty members broke into small groups
during the forum to discuss skills needed
by liberal arts majors to compete for
jobs, what types of courses would make
graduates more competitive and other
related topics.
Some understanding of computer use,
quantitative knowledge and leadership
. .
. . . .
. .
••.• . : . .
••••• . •• •••• ,• . .
..• . . • . • . •
.....••• . . . . . . .
.• . . .
. .• . .• . . . • , .•• ••_.. •• . . -• .
.•
The lion is safe
for another year
Continued from Page 6.
Cindi Kleeman (11th-accounting), the
unofficial leader of the morning crowd
said dedication and pride in the lion
kept them all there despite the cold.
Several suspicious looking people
toting violin cases were spotted around
3 a.m., but were quickly discovered
because of their Boston accents and
temporary ID cards.
After a point, normal suspicion
turned into deep paranoia.
"Here comes a car . . . he's getting
out . . . what is he doing? What's taking
him so long? He's probably mixing the
paint in the back of the car," and "Oh
sure, you say you are just a squirrel but
how do we know you are not a spy for
the enemy?"
Finally, with no threat in sight, vigil
watchers left around 7:15 with the
secure notion that lion was safe.
At least until next year.
Oktoberfest:
for alums only
Continued from Page 6
Hotdogs, sauerkraut, beer, cider and
a band welcomed the blue- and white
clad fans returning from the game.
Heather Gilbert, assistant executive
director for the Alumni Assocation,
said the Oktoberfest was a service for
the alumni and has been a popular
nursing homes and other types of housing for the
elderly, Boyle said.
Although the plan was never realized, it is hoped
that it will be taken up again, Harrison said.
Boyle and another committee member also met
with senior citizens to discuss the Uniform
Condominium Act, which converted many
appartments into condominiums, causing several
elderly renters to lose their apartments. They
discussed the current impacts of the act, what the
future impacts would be and what kind of local laws
could be enacted to control condominium conversion.
Boyle, along with the RI-lAC, has studied energy
problems of renters, particularly the Energy
Escalator Clause. This clause is used when utilities
are included in the rent but the cost of heating fuel,
for example, increases during the year.
A landlord cannot raise the rent, but can use the
Energy Escalator Clause to make the renter pay for
"unforeseen circumstances." The RHAC tried to
determine just what the responsibility of the landlord
is, and sent a set of recommendations to the
municipality.
"As a student renter, it was nice to be able to talk to
a landlord, and tell him about my frustration," Boyle
said. "A landlord who would serve on such a
committee is obviously concerned about what's
happening."
The RHAC is responsible for providing a forum of
discussion for rental housing issues that are
skills are needed by liberal arts majors,
said Louise Sandmeyer, a moderator for
one of the discussions.
Leadership skills are usually acquired
in extracurricular activities rather than
learned in classes, Sandmeyer said.
Many liberal arts majors do obtain
some quantitative knowledge but they do
not know how to communicate this
during an interview, she said.
"The faculty, Career Development and
Placement and employers must '
recognize liberal arts majors do have
marketable skills," Sandmeyer said.
Jeff Garis, from Career Development
and Placement, said communications
skills are also essential for liberal arts
majors.
"Anyone not graced with
communications skills will find it hard to
get and maintain a job," he said.
Hess said students should learn to
"package" themselves so they can.show
they have the skills that are related to the
job they want.
Liberal arts majors may have to
accept jobs that they believe they are
overqualified for and then work their
way up from the inside, Garis said.
Many liberal arts students are suited
for middle-management positions, he
said, but these are usually available only
from the inside.
"Some students may have to swallow
their pride and start at a non
professional level," he said.
Gary Foster of the CIA was one of the
representatives from the federal
government attending the forum.
"The government is a big consumer of
liberal arts majors because it seems that
careers (in the government) develop
across so many different lines that what
we look for is people with a great deal of
flexibility," Foster said.
"We also have to have people who have
highly specialized skills in engineering
and others, but we need people who can
translate from the specialized skill to the
generalist policy maker, who doesn't
have special skills," he said.
Nittany Lion fans are led in cheers at Friday night's bonfire another part of this weekend's Homecoming festivities
event in the past. A crowd of more than
500 was expected by the end of the
evening.
"The Oktoberfest is a gathering place
for alumni to come," she said, "and it is
also a chance for people to meet other
Penn Staters and hopefully to meet
some new friends."
The University's new indoor sports complex, dedicated yesterday, includes
indoor practice facilities, football offices, meeting rooms, a Hall of Fame,
Indoor sports complex
•
By BECKY OLSON
Daily Collegian Staff Writer
Each person using the new indoor sports complex is
indebted to hundreds of unseen hands, University
President John W. Oswald said yesterday at the
dedication of the complex.
"I know of no other university which comes close to
Penn State in providing opportunity for physical
activity and recreation," Oswald said, "and with this
complex, we move another step forward."
The complex, which resulted from the largest
private fund-raising effort in University history, cost
about $3.5 million. More than half of that total was
raised by alumni and friends, while the rest came
from outside borrowing, athletic income and ice rink
revenue.
The total amount of money raised was insufficient,
however, because of inflation and higher-than
anticipated costs of construction. According to the
dedication program; several hundred thousand
dollars still need to be raised, and landscaping . and ,
other tasks must be completed.
Alumni Association President
Richard Zimmerman praised the work
of Kathy Lewis and the Homecoming
Committee for making such a
successful Homecoming for the
students and alumni.
"I'm very impressed by the spirit,"
Zimmerman said. "We've had
important to landlords and tenants, local
governments, the University and others in the
community. The committee discusses specific rental
housing issues in the Centre Region and reports to
COG.
In the past, the RHAC completed a report on the
impact of a switch from municipal property taxes to
income taxes on renters and rental property owners.
Besides discussing condominium conversion in
State College and energy conservation in rental
housing, the committee has visited a number of
different units and conducted a Rental Housing Tour
for local residents and students, Harrison said.
The RHAC consists of 13 members one from each
of the five COG bodies (State College borough and
Ferguson, College, Patton and Harris township); one
each for the Organization for Town Independent
Students, the University and the Centre County
Housing Authority; two from the State College
Chamber of Commerce Apartment Owners and
Managers Committee; one student renter; and one
professional person.
Harrison said students interested in filling the open
position should write a statement explaining why
they want to serve on a committee concerned with
renting. The statement should be sent to COG
executive secretary Tom Kurtz, 118 S. Fraser St., by
today. A subcommittee will review the statements at
the meeting tonight and will then meet with the
students to choose one for the board.
beautiful weather, the tailgating was
great and I saw a lot of old friends."
The young and old Penn Staters, the
future Penn Staters and even some non-
Penn Staters filtered in and out of the
Oktoberfest and talked about the game
and Penn State.
Joe Paterno, head football coach and athletic
director, said he is pleased with the completion of the
complex.
"For almost 30 years, we (the football staff) spent
10 to 12 hours each day in one room with no windows
or air conditioning and a lot of cheap cigars
smoking," Paterno said. "For this building, we
wanted adequate space and a Hall of Fame."
The complex has large football offices, meeting
rooms and a Hall of Fame room devoted to Penn
State sports achievements. It also features indoor
practice facilities for outdoor sports teams,
equipment, training and locker rooms and an indoor
ice skating rink which seats 1,100 spectators.
Paterno said it was not fair for the football squad to
play outside in bitter November weather conditions.
"It's an investment," he said. "Some things we just
need to work on inside."
But Oswald said some students petitioned the loss
of the old skating rink and two dorms when
construction on the complex began three years ago.
Mercury spill closes
building temporarily
A mercury spill that caused
"minimal airborne contamination"
closed Unit 2 of the University's
Research Center, east of University
Drive near East College Avenue, on
Friday until 2:45 p.m., the manager
of safety , services said.
"At this time, we are not aware of
all the circumstances or of the
persons involved, but we are
continuing to investigate," said
Howard 0. Triebold Jr.
The contamination was caused by
a beaker of liquid mercury which
broke and then evaporated. Dan
Love (10th-general agriculture), a
work-study student in the plant
pathology department, said that as
far as he knew, the beaker was
broken between 5 and 11 Thursday
night.
"Some guy phoned in the
information to the department,"
Love said. "We don't know who he
was or if he was the cause of the
spill."
Triebold said safety services
personnel took an air quality
equipment, training and locker rooms and a skating rink. The complex is
located in the Nittany Halls area next to the football practice field.
Marching down
College Avenue
is a tradition
Continued from Page 6.
Pollock-Nittany Residence Hall
Association won in the overall
independent category for their float
and crazy band.
As darkness descended upon
campus, people gathered on the
steps of Old Main. University
President John W. Oswald
welcomed the crowd and the Penn
State Glee Club sang a few
selections.
"We're glad you came back and
we want you to come back often,"
Oswald said.
Oswald reminisced about the
many traditions of Penn State and
told the audience that although he
came to Penn State in 1970 and the
University is over 125 years old, he is
well aware of the many traditions on
campus.
"I've been here long enough to
know of the heritage of Penn State,"
he said
Oswald recalled the days when the
bonfire was held on College Avenue,
how students would run in packs
past ticket takers in the movie
theatres, and the tug-of-wars on Old
Main's lawn.
reading Friday morning in the
laboratory where the spill occurred
and throughout the building and
found that mercury levels in the air
did not exceed a measure of danger
known as the "eight-hour allowable
limit."
"In fact," Triebold said, "the
reading only indicated minimal
airborne contamination and was
approximately half of the eight-hour
allowable limit."
Dr. Michael Leicht of the Poison
Control Center at the Geisinger
Medical Center in Danville said
mercury vapor is only dangerous
"in very high concentrations. If that
occurs ; a person who inhales the
vapor would feel dizzy or
lightheaded with headaches and
difficulty in breathing."
Proper ventilation of the room
where the mercury spilled is the best
prevention for these symptoms, he
said.
Monitoring of vapor levels will
continue into the early part of this
week. —by Lindsay Naythons
dedicated
"But most students developed faith in what we
were doing for two years," he said.
Paterno said that although there is a indoor area
for football and other sports, the Hall of Fame is the
soul of the complex.
"For the first time, an important aspect of Penn
State has been put together as an inspiration for the
future," he said.
Oswald said the Hall of Fame shows not just a
gratitude for the past, but an anticipation for the
future.
Paterno said, "We are Penn State, and I think this
complex, thanks to you (donators and fund-raisers),
shows why we are."
Paterno said one reason he has stayed at the
University for 31 years is because of the unique
loyalty here that he has not seen at many schools.
The dedication was initiated and sponsored by the
athletic department and the College of Health,
Physical Education and Recreation as an added fund
raising effort for the complex.
He also praised some of the newer
traditions such as orientation
leaders, dance marathons and
Gentle Thursday.
"Good memories are still being
made," he said. "We are part of a
tradition that goes past 100 years."
Oswald said the spirit of the.
University is another important part
of Penn State.
"The lasting tradition, I subinit, is
spirit," he said. "The spirit of caring
about Penn State, making it better
and at the same time having a good
time."
The Glee club then asked the
audience to join in with them to sing
"Fight On, State" and then
performed several other selections
on the candlelit steps of Old Main.
Later in the evening, the bonfire,
pep rally and fireworks display were
held near Beaver Stadium with an
appreciative and rowdy crowd in
attendance.
The Blue Band played, the
cheerleaders cheered and Joe I
Paterno and the football captains
welcomed the crowd and asked for
their support in the game on
Saturday