The Daily CoUe Sharing is Carin Fifty-four percent of the top 25 universities provide gender neutral restroom options Offer gendei neutral restror 2007 Geniu: PSU ranked for gender neutrality By Margaret Miceli COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER | mcmso9B@psu.edij Universities across the nation are moving toward fos tering gender identity and expression by amending their discrimination policies and adding gender-neutral bath rooms and housing, according to a new report. Sponsored by the Gender Q|) thp Public Advocacy Coalition, the study found that 147 colleges W6D "T and universities have added gender identity and expression For a list of gender to their non-discrimination neutral bathrooms policies, 141 have created some on campus, visit: gender-neutral bathrooms and www.colleglan.psu.edu 30 have created options for gender-neutral housing. Penn State has added gender identity and expression to its non-discrimination policy and has created gender neutral bathrooms but not gender-neutral housing, according to the report. Lynn Dubois, associate director of housing, said the lack of gender-neutral housing at Penn State has not been an issue. “I haven’t had any requests for it," she said. “Typically, if a student would come to me and request that type of housing, we would work with Residence Life to make See FACILITIES, Page 2. Vote machines may change By lan Brown COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER | idbsoo2@psu.edu A Centre County voters group screened a report last night at Schlow Centre Region Library in support of a bill that would force voting machines to produce paper records by the 2008 elections. The bill is being debated this week in the U S. House of Representatives, and while it has drawn praise from groups like Concerned Voters of Centre County; it has also been criticized for demanding too much of the coun ty Centre County currently uses iVotronic touch-screen voting systems, which produce no paper record of votes. Mary Vollero, Concerned Voters of Centre County chairwoman, said the systems are the same system of those that were used during the 2006 presidential elec tion in Sarasota, Fla., when more than 18,000 votes were lost and unable to be retrieved. “If there’s a problem, there’s no way to do a transpar ent investigation,” she said. “What would we do if votes got lost? We need [paper records] in place as soon as possible.” Vollero said the bill would require Centre County to See VOTING, Page 2. Andrew Lala/Collegian Students use touchscreen voting machines last fall. Today: Tonight: 1 f 'N Tomorrow: Exte ndecl forecast | WEATHER, Page 2. a Briefs .2 Comics 19 NEWS' BfiS-IR9« .. weatnen 76 um s „ Contents. ■ •■■■» ~«£] ssSttr* 46% Offer gender Britt Miller/Collegian UPUA suggests changes Student leaders offered three recommendations on Penn State’s Judicial Affairs report By Lauren McCormack COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER | Icmso27@psu.edu Following an investigation of Penn State’s Judicial Affairs that yielded 12 suggested changes last week, the student govern ment’s legal branch added three more rec ommendations in a report submitted Mon day. Dance the night away David Walker/Collegian Erlick Navas (sophomore-petroleum engineering) and Harry Holt (graduate health policy and administration) dance in the tango class held in the White Building last night. For coverage of the dance classes, | LOCAL, Page 3. Door-to-door magazine sellers a scam, police say By Andrew McGill COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER | armso77@psu.edu When a “Penn State student” showed up at Molly Thomas' door selling maga zines two weeks ago, yet couldn’t name a single class in her own major, the Beaver Hill resident knew something was up. The woman's excuse? “She said, ‘Penn State doesn't really want to know about us going around,’ ” Thomas (jun ior-nutrition) said. Standing outside Thomas’ sixth-floor apartment, the woman pressed a ratty laminated pamphlet into her hands, pressuring Thomas to buy subscrip tions, so the seller could win a competi tion. Thomas declined. The woman asked again, adding that she was currently in third place out of 2,100 people. Thomas still refused. “She really wanted to sell this to me,” Thomas said. “She was just really cheesy. She mentioned how she would have fundraised for Girl Scout cookies, but said she’d eat them before she sold them. I just wanted to laugh in her face.” Thomas wasn’t the only student to receive a visit from strangers bearing magazines. Multiple downtown resi dents and neighboring municipalities have complained of unlicensed door-to- -JL. Published independently by students at Penn State The initial report, commissioned by Penn iting a student’s extra-curricular activities if State President Graham Spanier, was he or she is in violation of the Student Code released to the public Sept. 10 and was led of Conduct. It also suggests that student by vice provost emeritus Robert Secor. athletes facing disciplinary action be pro- University Park Undergraduate Associa- vided with their own adviser through the tion (UPUA) legal affairs responded to the Morgan Academic Support Center for Stu report by drafting its own proposal that was dent Athletes. Additionally, high-profile, off left at Spanier’s office, said Christian Nick- campus cases may be settled with discipli erson, the organization’s director. nary warnings, subject to the university. “Overall, our reaction to the initial report Though the branch thinks “the current was quite positive,” said Matthew Lach- Judicial Affairs system functions fairly man, the document s drafter and UPUA well,” the proposal addresses three issues legal affairs director for town affairs. that members felt needed reforming The changes addressed policies the com- University spokesman Bill Mahon said mittee thought were outdated, such as lim- See UPUA, Page 2 door solicitors, the State College Police Department said. On Aug. 30, police cited Jeremy Gatlin, an Austin, Texas native, for sell ing magazines at Meridian Apartments, 636 E. College Ave. Police said they have since received additional com plaints from residents at other apart ment complexes. It’s never the same person or story. Residents have described visits from a heavyset blonde woman, a black woman, a man with tattoos and others, police said. Pitches follow a familiar script: Solicitors are trying to win “points” by selling magazine subscrip tions, they’re poor college students and they’re “oh-so-close” to their goal. A woman told Nathan Hazi (junior biochemistry and molecular biology) two weeks ago that his subscriptions would go toward her college financial aid, but she didn’t mention how much it would cost him. And before he knew what was going on, “she had me signed up,” the Highland Tower resident said. “She gave me a receipt, and I looked at the cost. It was over $60,” Hazi, who later refused payment, said. “She didn’t even mention the exact name of the program she worked for.” But another man, warned by police on Aug. 31 for selling magazines with- See SCAM, Page 2. Bee There * Bshenhower - Auditorium www.collegian.psu.edu New meter might help students save on electricity By Christ! Brua COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER | cmbs2l2@psu.edu Electricity consumers in Pennsylvania may soon have the option to curb energy use to times when electricity costs the least, as opposed to paying a flat rate for electricity, which can be more costly. A special session of the state legislature, called by Gov. Ed Rendell, is meeting this week to discuss issues of energy conservation and foreign oil dependence. One topic under discussion is the possibility of requiring utility companies to provide con sumers with up-to-date, market-based energy prices and high-tech electricity meters, so con sumers can control their energy use when prices are high, according to a Sept. 14 press release. At their most advanced, these high-tech elec tricity meters, known as “smart meters,” would inform consumers of hourly changes in energy prices, said David Neurohr, spokesman for Allegheny Energy, the primary energy provider for State College. Chuck Ardo, Rendell’s press secretary, said any place that is metered, including apart ments, would be offered smart meters by elec tric companies if the proposal passes as it is now. “It’s an effort to save consumers significant amounts of money by allowing consumers to time their energy use when prices are at their lowest levels,” Ardo said. Downtown realtors GN Associates, The Apartment Store, Associated Realty Property Management and Copper Beech Townhomes all said they use Allegheny Energy. Penn State purchases most of its electricity from Allegheny Energy as well, said Paul Ruskin, public affairs coordinator at Penn State’s Office of Physical Plant. Penn State is currently in the process of changing from meters that need to be read manually to anoth er model that can be read electronically, he said. Mike Prinkey, energy program engineer at the physical plant, said eventually all of Penn State’s utility systems will migrate to smart metering. Utility companies would “absolutely” pay for the installation of the smart meters, Ardo said. Neurohr said there would have to be a phase in plan to determine who will make the meters and how long installation will take. Additionally, he said the responsibility of paying for the meters still needs to be worked out in the pro posal. Allegheny Energy serves 710,000 consumers, and there are several million consumers in the state, Neurohr said. At $lOO to $4OO per meter, production and installation would be costly for the company. Still, Allegheny Energy supports “the governor and his approach to energy,” he said. The smart meters would allow customers to realize electricity is cheapest when demand is lowest, such as during nights and weekends, Ardo said. The hottest and coldest days of the year will cost the most, Neurohr added. “If you can plan to do a load of laundry in the evening as opposed to mid-day, it would be cheaper,” Ardo said. The way energy billing currently works, con sumers pay the same price per kilowatt-hour no matter what time electricity is used. The current method determines the price by taking an average price of electricity per kilowatt-hour during the month, Neurohr said. By paying the market price for electricity, consumers may be able to save 10 percent on their electricity bill, he said. However, Neurohr said not every consumer would be open to the smart meter technology. Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2007
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