TSG vetoes bill supporting TAUP

Temple Student Government Senate failed to override the veto against the resolution declaring TSG’s support of the Temple Association of University Professionals and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees at its final Senate meeting for the semester.

The Senate needed two-thirds of the senators’ votes to override the veto. The final vote in favor of overriding the veto was 14 in favor, two against and seven abstentions.

The Senate needed one more vote to achieve an override. Therefore, the bill was declared null and void.

“We keep talking about how this is like a government,” said Senate President Jeff Dempsey. “Sometimes you lose. Sometimes your vote doesn’t stretch far enough.”

The resolution was originally passed Nov. 17 with only one vote for abstention and no votes against. It declared the student government’s support for TAUP and AFSCME in the current contract negotiations.
The resolution stated TSG was not only an ally, but a subscriber to the groups’ principles.

Dempsey presented the bill as a sponsor of the Student Labor Action Project, which wrote the resolution.

Nadine Mompremier, student body president, vetoed the legislation later in the week. She cited procedural issues in the passage of the bill. She also noted senators did not discuss the resolution with their constituents.

“Your job is to represent the people in your school,” Mompremier said.

Mompremier said she did not think the senators had adequate time to discuss the bill, which was sent out two hours before the meeting, with their constituents. The senators heard the union positions at the meeting, but there were not representatives from Temple to rebut the union’s assertions.

Representatives from both unions and Sharon Boyle from Temple’s human resources department attended the latest meeting. Both gave their sides of the arguments during the call to audience portion of the meeting.

“Today you had a fair chance to hear from both sides,” Mompremier said. “I will respect any decision the Senate makes as long as they do the research.”

The senators posed questions to the union representatives and Boyle. They paid special attention to the union’s request to mandate that all Temple professionals pay a fee to the union.

Only members of the union pay a fee, although all faculty members are represented and receive benefits from the union representation.

The senators also asked about the differences between merit pay and pay for performance. Pay for performance is the new system Temple proposed to replace merit pay. Boyle said the criteria are promotion and tenure. The new system will also use peer review when discussing raises.

TAUP representatives said the system of pay for performance has not been adequately explained.

“They are asking us to agree to something that isn’t on the table and will be made afterwards,” said TAUP President Art Hochner.

Many senators said although they supported the unions and teachers, they did not support all their proposals.

The resolution stated TSG unequivocally supported all of the unions’ ideals and proposals. Since the bill was passed previously, it could not be amended. Any amendments would undermine the override.

“Doubt is a necessary evil. We can never rid ourselves of doubt,” Dempsey said. “We will always look back and try to see the outcomes had we acted differently.”

Other senators said their peers should vote based on the current facts and not be focused on the problems that may occur afterwards.

“I support the workers who keep this university going. My support is not any disrespect for the university,” said Dusha Holmes, senator for the School of Communications and Theater. “This is my way to make sure the right thing gets done.”

The Senate needed 14.6 votes for the resolution to pass. Only 14 senators cast votes in favor of override.

Mompremier said she was satisfied the Senate did the research and thought about the students they represented.

Dempsey said he is not sure if he will write another resolution because he does not want to create any rifts between the Senate.

“Division isn’t the way to be representative. I don’t want any schisms to make people uncomfortable,” Dempsey said.

He said although he lost, the Senate showed growth and legitimacy through this process.

“We can look at this as a glimmer of hope. Power is held within the Senate,” Dempsey said. “The power of change.”

Rebecca Hale can be reached at rebecca.hale@temple.edu.

Learning at home with TUcapture

For some students, mornings might now mean rolling over and watching your economics class instead of hurrying out of bed to make it a lecture. It’s possible now through increased usage of TUcapture.

TUcapture has been at Temple since 2003, but professors have been using it more often. The system records and webcasts classes, which students can play back on Blackboard. Classrooms in Alter Hall will be equipped with the technology for TUcapture.

“Blackboard is the wrapper, and TUcapture is the candy,” said David R. Feeney, director of digital education.

Its purpose is mutually beneficial for both students and teachers. For students focused on writing notes in a professor’s lecture, they can watch and listen to the lectures again to ensure accuracy.

TUcapture allows students to view, pause, rewind and replay previous classes, which “provides reinforcement for lectures,” said Marc Sobel, a professor in the Fox School of Business.

Its improvement has been constant. Last year, it merely showed the content that a professor had opened on their computer monitor. Now, if a professor simply walks into a room, a camera will automatically turn on and off, send content to Blackboard and even follow the teacher if he or she moves around their classroom.

“We strive to make it literally task-free for the teacher,” Feeney said.

Within the first year, only 1,500 minutes were captured on Blackboard. A year later, more than 150,000 minutes were captured and stored. There are now more than 1 million minutes of footage from 35 classrooms.

Although the cameras are placed in classrooms throughout Temple, Alter Hall is the first building that has been architecturally designed and constructed with TUcapture in mind.

The new building will have cameras in every classroom and breakout room. Classrooms without the technology can still use it via mobile units.

Feeney said TUcapture allows teachers “biofeedback,” which he said will allow people to view their behavior in private.

Marketing professor Mary Conran began using TUcapture as a way to record her students’ presentations in class.

“When they get to hear my feedback along with watching themselves present, it becomes a powerful tool,” she said. “The system is able to also pick up class discussions and student comments. This helps me to step back and assess how I handled the classroom dynamics.”

Although it may seem attendance would be minimal if students could view their classes online, freshman marketing major Jonathon Heberlig, who has TUcapture in his Honors Calculus for Business class, said going to class is imperative “to get questions answered.”

He said viewing class online is “not the same as actually being there. It’s easier to get questions answered in class, but is still really helpful” because he said it adds to the learning experience, he said.

“I expect to continue and even expand my use of this technology in the future,” said Jim Portwood, director of Temple’s Center for European Studies. “I can reduce the amount of lecture time, allowing me to add additional experiential elements.”

“We have not yet begun to capture,” Feeney said, because less than 5 percent of classes, presentations, seminars has been captured.

In the future, his hopes are high for a completely recorded scholastic environment.

“If it is worth having,” Feeney said, “it is worth capturing.”

Matthew Petrillo can be reached at mattp@temple.edu.

Medical school outreach aims to help N. Phila teens

Born to teenage parents in a crime-ridden North Philadelphia neighborhood, Dr. Ala Stanford Frey, director of the Center for Minority Health and Health Disparities at Temple’s School of Medicine, knows first-hand the challenges inner-city teens face.

CMHHD and the Allegheny West Foundation, a nonprofit community development corporation, have created a program designed to reach out to local teens.

“Hopefully, these kids see someone who grew up in an inner-city neighborhood like them and realize they can make it,” Frey said.

Each month, guest speakers will host youth discussions with high school students as part of an after-school program at the Panati Playground at 22nd and Clearfield streets.

The monthly meetings are designed to provide students with information about healthy lifestyle habits.
On Nov. 19, Dr. Raul A. DeLa Cadena, assistant dean and director of recruitment and retention at the School of Medicine, met with 15 students to discuss career opportunities in the healthcare industry.

Cadena tested teens’ knowledge about professions within the medical field and awarded them with prizes, including a set of scrubs and a stethoscope.

He offered insight on the many different types of doctors, nurses and therapists.

Current students from the School of Medicine accompanied Cadena, sharing personal experiences and tips about college with the teens.

“By being here today, you are already ahead of all your peers,” said Andrea Murray, a second-year medical student.

Murray informed students about her personal interest in child psychiatry.

She said she keeps an open mind about her career choices and advised teens to do the same.

James Rough, a third-year general surgery resident who is originally from Tijuana, Mexico, also provided guidance to the students.

“Get the best grades that you can,” Rough said. “[Medical school] is such a long road. Take it piece by piece.”

Murray encouraged students interested in pursuing a career in the medical profession to get involved in programs that would prepare them for college.

She told them to strengthen their personal weaknesses, define their study habits as early as possible and explore subjects they might not have considered.

“Statistics show that for girls growing up with a single parent, you’re more likely to be pregnant than to finish high school,” Frey said. “For a guy, you’re more likely to have a serious run-in with the law than to graduate high school.”

Michelle Davis-Sims, a freshman at Parkway Northwest High School for Peace and Social Justice, attended November’s youth discussion.

She said she plans to become a psychologist.

“It was real helpful,” she said about the discussion on healthcare careers.

Davis-Sims said she appreciated the advice Murray offered students and said while she earns good grades in school, she could study more.

Deloris Washington, a sophomore at City Center Academy, said once she is finished with high school, she would like to study pediatric medicine at an out-of-state medical school.

After last month’s discussion, strengthening her weaknesses is what Washington said she will focus on.
The speakers also provided students with the estimated time it takes to earn certain degrees in the medical field. They answered questions about starting salaries and stressed to students the importance of being passionate about the careers decisions they choose.

“No matter how much money you earn,” Rough said, “it’s important to enjoy what you do.”

Chelsea Calhoun can be reached at chelsea.calhoun@temple.edu.

Campus engineers to help PennDOT

Temple’s civil and environmental engineering department has entered a five-year $5 million contract with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

Faculty and students will assist PennDOT in various infrastructure related projects, such as evaluating the level of deterioration in an old bridge and recommending ways to solve the problem.

“It will help us meet some applied research needs in the areas of research and education,” said Michael Bonini, research program manager at PennDOT. “This is another tool we have in our tool box in real world transportation problem solving.”

“As with any other project, the goal of our projects is not only to do research, the main goal is to train our graduate students and undergraduate students,” said Michel Boufadel, the department chair. “In all our projects, we try to involve our students.”

PennDOT has similar partnerships with Penn State University and the University of Pittsburgh.

Temple will work in the 5th, 6th and 7th districts in Philadelphia but is not confined to only those districts.

Penn State is involved in the central part of the state and the University of Pittsburgh will work in the western section.

Temple will begin to work in March 2009.

Currently, the faculty is looking at three different bridges in the state and will later involve students in its work.

Graduate and undergraduate engineering majors’ roles include going on-site and do field work in evaluating the damage in a bridge and providing recommendations to the faculty as to what work needs to be done.

Most of the $5 million will go toward covering equipment and travel expenses for students while a small portion of the money will go to the faculty.

“Our project is not for profit,” Boufadel said. “We conduct research, we train people and we publish the results, so there is no place for us to say we made a profit.”

Boufadel said PennDOT and other government organizations began initiating contracts with universities after realizing the need to repair the infrastructure in the United States, especially devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina and the 2007 Minnesota bridge collapse.

“This is amazing that a country such as the United States – the top in the world in science and engineering – would have a problem such as that,” Boufadel said. “This country has the resources to fix bridges, so I think there is a big awareness to fix the infrastructure.”

Most highways and bridges in the United States were built in the 1950s and are in need of repair.

“Most of the infrastructure for our country is pretty old, which means a lot of structural work needs to be done,” said Tim Jennings, a senior structural engineering major.

Students in the project will also analyze the surrounding environment near bridges and roads.
“PennDOT is not just interested in structures and concrete, they are interested in the environment surrounding the structures.” Boufadel said.

PennDOT will provide students with contacts and information about working in the transportation business and host academic workshops.

“We are excited to work with Temple, we have not done so in the past,” Bonini said. “Our interactions with the faculty at the university so far have been outstanding, and we are looking forward to building a successful relationship.”

Brian Dzenis can be reached at brian.dzenis@temple.edu.

Special Report: A look at Temple’s crime

For her senior year, Olivia Diez decided to move into a house off campus near Oxford and Bouvier streets. It wasn’t as expensive as the off-campus apartments and was still close enough to walk to class.

But less than one month into the semester, the convenience of living there wasn’t worth risking her life.
On Sept. 16, a man was shot to death a few houses down from hers. On Sept. 23, shots rang again, this time directly in front of her home.

“That’s the moment I decided I was going to leave the house,” the biology major said.

Diez decided to pack up and move back to her Princeton, N.J., home. She now commutes an hour by train to get to Main Campus.

“Considering what I used to have, I really don’t mind,” she said.

Diez is just one student directly affected by crime around Main Campus. Carl Bittenbender, executive director of Campus Safety Services, said crime in the police districts encompassing Temple mirrors city trends.

“The economy is funny,” Bittenbender said. “When the economy is bad, property crime is up.”
In the 22nd, 23rd and 26th police districts, violent crimes like murder, manslaughter and rape are down, while non-violent crimes – burglary and theft, for example – are on the rise.

But outside of Bittenbender’s and CSS’s control is the perception of crime in North Philadelphia due to a number of high-profile cases.

“I need you to know that every day I get up out of bed and think of ways to make this place better and safer,” Bittenbender said. “We try pretty hard.”

PERCEPTIONS VS. FACTS
A soccer player shot at night a block off campus. A highly publicized bust of a profitable student-run marijuana operation. Gunpoint home invasions have everybody talking and Philadelphia Police detectives investigating, putting the area west of campus under constant surveillance.

With the laundry list of high-profile crimes happening this semester, it’s easy to believe crime rates have skyrocketed since last year, which was fairly quiet, save a few publicized incidents.

Despite crimes visible to the Temple community, crime rates overall in Philadelphia and the 22nd, 23rd and 26th police districts surrounding Main Campus have dropped compared to those of last year.

Bittenbender said violent crime has dropped citywide, while property crime is staying static in some areas or rising in others. Reportable campus statistics are following the same pattern, he said.

“The big difference you see nowadays is electronic devices,” Bittenbender said. “If you look at theft, most revolves around cell phones, iPods and laptops. Electronics have [often] been stolen items, but now [someone] can walk out with five laptops in a book bag and get away.”

Bittenbender added the rise in property crime could also be indicative of the less-than-favorable economic climate.

Specifically in the Philadelphia Police districts surrounding Main Campus, the statistics also reflect those of the city as a whole.

In the 23rd District, which extends north from Poplar Street to Montgomery Avenue and east from 10th Street to 33rd Street, violent crime has decreased, while property crime has remained flat during the last year.

In the 26th District, located east of campus and extending between Lehigh Avenue and Poplar Street and from 10th Street to the Delaware River, violent crime also decreased, while property crime increased.

The only district near Temple in which both property and violent crime are up is the notoriously rough 22nd District, bound by Lehigh and Montgomery avenues to the north and south and 10th, 33rd and part of 34th streets to the east and west. In this district, which encompasses most of Main Campus, violent crime has gone up slightly while property crime increased noticeably.

Though a look at reportable statistics appears to indicate a possible growth in crime on Main Campus, Bittenbender said he feels 2008 will be a good year, especially considering the increasing student population.

“If you compare the increase in the residential population and crime, our reportable crime in the [Temple Police] patrol area is down,” he said, adding he would like to see theft and burglary rates for campus decrease.

In the past few years, he said the trend has been the same as it is now. With regard to a growing student body, crime rates have not increased in terms of percentage relative to population.

He said compared to 2007 rates on campus, which were the lowest since 2001, 2008 rates appear to be remaining flat, if not decreasing.

“It’s more than just actual crime,” he said, citing a prospective student’s parent who was concerned about police killings in Philadelphia that made national headlines. “It’s high profile, noteworthy crime [getting attention]. But overall, we’re doing pretty good, especially within our reportable area.”

POPULATION OVERLOAD
Bittenbender estimated that between 1998 and 2004, the number of hours per week students being watched by Campus Police was increased by more than 750,000 hours.

“If you look at that in terms of crime, it’s pretty good,” he said.

The rise in student-watch hours is reflective of Temple shifting from being a largely commuter school to a residential campus in recent years.

Multiple student residences on and around campus have opened since Bittenbender first arrived at Temple in 1996, including 1940, 1300, Kardon-Atlantic Terminal, Oxford Village, University Village and the Edge at Avenue North.

More recently, with the lack of Temple-run housing to accommodate the growing student population, students have moved to the neighborhoods surrounding Main Campus, such as Yorktown, parts of North Central and Jefferson Manor.

Bittenbender now estimates that the number of students living on campus or within walking distance has doubled since 2003. Now, approximately 12,000 students live on campus or within walking distance.

“I find out more students live close every day,” Bittenbender said, adding that in the past, he had officers go door-to-door to take an unofficial census of students living in the area.

He estimated commuter students are on campus for 30 to 32 hours per week, while full-time resident students are on campus for 168 hours per week.

By statistics alone, the increase in number of students on and near campus and hours students spend in the area makes them more likely to become victims of crime, be injured in accidents or misbehave under the watch of Campus Police, he said.

Another dramatic change is many on- and off-campus residences, including some Temple-run facilities like University Village and Oxford Village, rent to students for 12 months instead of the academic year. This means more students on campus during the summer than ever before, Bittenbender said.

“The difference is this place used to be empty in the summer,” Bittenbender said, also mentioning the higher volume of students on campus at night. “We’ve made a lot of changes in terms of how we deploy.”

ACTIVE DUTY
“Just statistically, if you have three times as many people here, you would deduce there would be that many more crimes,” Bittenbender said.

CSS is still responding to Temple’s urban turnaround and finding ways to protect students.
“We’re learning as the place grows,” Bittenbender said.

One way is to increase staff size.

Bittenbender said he has two more people in the Philadelphia Police Academy and is expecting to hire four more to his staff of about 125. CSS is exempt from the university’s hiring freeze put in place in October.

Temple has one of the largest college campus police forces in the United States, Bittenbender said. About 15 officers are on duty during the evening hours – the busiest shift – and all are active-shooter trained by the Philadelphia Police Department.

Another change students will notice is the patrol area of Temple Police. Its current boundaries are Oxford Street to Susquehanna Avenue and Ninth to 16th streets. Soon, supplemental patrolling will extend to a one-block radius outside the current boundaries, and Temple officers will respond within a two-block radius if Philadelphia Police get a call of a crime in progress.

Bittenbender acknowledges that some students who live beyond those areas will be upset with the limited jurisdictional authority, but boundaries need to be drawn, he said.

“This was an issue we didn’t have five years ago. We’re setting defined areas where our police can and cannot go,” he said. “You’ll always make people unhappy.”

CSS has also been working with Temple Student Government to learn students’ biggest safety concerns.
Nexus Cook, the vice president for external affairs, said Temple Police often looks to TSG representatives to find out the students’ wants and needs.

“They’re really passionate about what they do,” Cook said. “They always ask me for input about what students want.”

CSS and TSG have also been working on a new service tentatively called TUr Door (pronounced “To Your Door”). Meant primarily for students living off campus, the shuttle will take students from the Owl Loop stop on 12th Street to their doors. The boundaries of the shuttle will be from Girard Avenue to Cumberland Street and Fifth to 20th streets.

“This is going to benefit a lot of students coming out of the TECH Center at 4 a.m.,” Cook said.

ALERTS & ADVISORIES
A recent test of the university’s TU-Alert system sparked both interest and confusion around campus.
The system sends a text message, phone call and e-mail to all students and employees signed up to receive them in the event of an emergency.

When a TU Advisory was sent alerting students Philadelphia Police Sgt. Patrick McDonald was shot in the line of duty just northwest of campus, but an alert was conspicuously missing after the shooting of soccer player Mackenson Altidor blocks east of campus, students started asking questions.

Junior liberal arts major Rob Talton said the TU-Alert issued following the November 2007 attack inside Anderson Hall came hours too late.

“There needs to be a quicker way to get it out there,” Talton said. “I mean, students check Facebook far more than e-mail.”

Recently, CSS took over the responsibility of issuing TU-Alerts and TU Advisories and redefined both for the university community.

A TU-Alert will be issued only in the event of an extreme emergency that requires the student body and employees to take immediate action, like avoiding a certain area on campus or staying indoors.

A TU-Alert would be issued specifically in the case of weather severe enough to force class cancellations or during an emergency such as an active shooter situation, like that of the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre.

“[We would issue an Alert when] we expect the university to take action because something extremely severe or catastrophic is happening,” Bittenbender said. “It is not news. It is to be used in the most severe consequences.”

A TU Advisory, on the other hand, while it also may warn of nearby danger, is strictly informational. Bittenbender said it would be used in cases like that of McDonald’s shooting to alleviate students’ worries related to increased police presence or helicopters, and also to clarify rumors and misperceptions.

Bittenbender said TU-Alerts and TU Advisories, especially the TU-Alerts calling for immediate action, are not necessarily as instantaneous and accurate as people may think.

“It would be minutes” before everyone received the alert, Bittenbender said, due to the volume of information being sent out at once.

“It’s not as easy as people think,” he continued. “Incidents are fluid.”

In addition to those instantaneous communication systems, CSS is working on an emergency management Web site, which it hopes to have live by the end of this month. The site will explain the purpose of those systems and also give students basic advice on what to do in certain situations.

“But, you certainly don’t want to wait for a text message on what to do [in an emergency],” Bittenbender said. “One of the first things you do in an incident is what you know you should do and follow your human instincts.”

STREET SMARTS
The negative perception of crime Bittenbender mentioned is a concern for many Temple students, and everyone has different ways to cope.

Junior law and business major Alexander Francis, a native of the West Coast, said he feels safe on campus but carries a knife in case he is confronted en route to his home at 17th and Diamond streets.

“I’m from projects, so I know how things work,” said Francis, who added that neither he nor his friends have become crime victims on or near campus. “You do live in North Philadelphia, so you should carry things [to keep yourself safe]. It may sound outlandish, but it’s what I do to feel better.”

Francis said he knows many friends who also carry weapons for protection, especially women who carry mace.

“But it’s a bigger situation than Temple can answer,” he said, reflecting on crime in the surrounding area. “I’d rather see students try to fix it instead of just talking about it. All these students walk around oblivious, but I don’t care where you’re from, you need to help the community where you live.”

But not all students are so oblivious and adverse to the dangers just off campus.

Senior sociology major Christina Garcia, a native of North Philadelphia, said she feels safe on campus but is intimately familiar with off-campus plight and crime.

“Depending on where you’re from, it’s all relative,” said Garcia, who lives 15 minutes from campus. “Crime on campus has to do with people being fairly reckless, but [crime in the neighborhoods] has to do with the economy.”

Francis also cited the economic conditions and poor schooling as reasons for crime in North Philadelphia.
“But you live in North Philadelphia, so what would you expect?” Francis asked. “[Students] don’t like wandering out of their six-block radius that makes them feel ‘safe,’ but this world is not a safe place.”

For Diez, who moved back home with her parents to avoid neighborhood crime, the decision to get away removed some stress.

“The second I left, I felt better,” she said. “I really thought for the whole week and the day after the second shooting that my chest couldn’t relax.”

Some think violent occurrences are few and far between, so while they’re conscious of their surroundings, crime isn’t a major concern.

“Temple students don’t get messed around with too much,” Talton said, despite being a victim of a knifepoint holdup Nov. 4.

After marching to City Hall following President-elect Barack Obama’s election win, he was stopped on his way back to his Dauphin Street home by “two younger kids” near Broad and Jefferson streets. But he doesn’t hold it against CSS or the surrounding communities.

“The community itself around Temple is very welcoming,” Talton said, adding there are rarely “malicious” attacks.

Senior nursing major Erica Marhevka, who once lived on campus but now commutes, said having street smarts is one of the best ways to ensure safety.

“I think if you’re from the suburbs and don’t have any city experience, I feel you have a red flag on your back,” she said. “Know your boundaries.”

PUBLIC INFORMATION
“If you’re a victim of crime, it’s not your fault,” Bittenbender said. “But you should not put yourself in situations where you could be a victim of crime.”

Bittenbender has many responsibilities to ensure crime rates remain low. Temple’s police force is among the largest in the country, which presents a double-edged sword. If statistics say crime is down, why is such a police force needed?

“The world, unfortunately, is changing in terms of people’s expectations of police,” Bittenbender said.
Tragedies at Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University contribute to discomfort some people have regarding safety on college campuses.

At Temple, CSS provides the services and information students can use as resources in terms of how to remain safe on campus or what to do in emergency situations, Bittenbender said. Through the CSS Web site and print brochures, information is made readily available. But it’s up to students to absorb everything.

“Be smart about it,” Bittenbender said. “You have to be.”

Morgan Zalot and Chris Stover can be reached at news@temple-news.com.

Lazy learning leads to A’s

In most lecture classes, attendance doubles on test days.

Many college students have found tools designed to supplement learning, like Blackboard and other online tools, as excuses to not go to their classes.

Law and political science professor David Adamany said a lack of attendance reflects the general attitude of students toward college.

“Students are quite casual about attendance at classes. This may reflect a change in attitude toward college generally,” he said. “At one time, the opportunity to attend college was fairly limited, and the students who enrolled were motivated to get an education.”

In associate professor Ralph Young’s classes, turnout is high.

“Attendance is usually excellent. There are always a few who are chronically late or absent,” he said. “I never find more than 10 percent absent.”

When it comes to attendance and preparation, Temple students’ opinions vary.

Freshman architecture major Daniel Donovan said attendance in his lecture classes is not as important as others.

“I don’t always go to all my lectures,” Donovan said. “And while missing a few isn’t the end of the world, missing too many can become a problem especially if you don’t use the time it creates wisely.”

Megan Baumel, a freshman therapeutic recreation major, said she regularly attends her classes, however, does not find the assigned readings to be essential to earning good grades.

“Three out of four of my classes have readings to keep up with on the syllabus. I have not opened any of my books since the first week of classes.”

“I feel like I need to be in all of my classes except for math, which is algebra,” she added. “I have a very easy time, and all the notes are online so there is really not a need to go to class.”

Senior math major Tiana Britton said she feels differently about attendance.

“I can’t afford wasting my money by simply not going to class,” Britton said.

She said she regularly attends all of her classes and keeps up with her assignments.

Britton said she did not find her classes as challenging when she was a freshman, but now, feels the need to keep up with all of her work.

Attendance and preparation for classes depend on the strictness of the professor and the availability of resources outside of class. Many professors put their presentations on Blackboard, which helps students keep up when absent. However, Britton said she still feels she needs to be present.

“It depends on the class and how the professor teaches, with PowerPoint or not,” she said. “But I usually feel like I need to go.”

“Lack of attendance could be due to a number of things such as students’ laziness, other involvements, whether or not the professor takes attendance and even the professors teaching style, lecture, PowerPoint etcetera,” Baumel said.

Adamany agrees technology might make students feel less guilty about missing class.

“An additional factor may be technology. Students are accustomed to believing that everything will be found on the Internet or will be communicated as copies of PowerPoints or will be somewhere available,” he said. “Believing they will get the information they need elsewhere, they may not see a need to attend class.”

Young said poor attendance is only hurts the students.

“Of course it depends on the student. Some grasp an awful lot just from the lectures and class discussion. Some need to do more work than others,” he said. “When students shirk their work, and I did this myself in college, they’re only hurting themselves. If you’re paying good tuition money to go through college why not maximize your investment?”

Students who do not regularly attend class still claim to do well enough with their grades. “There is no doubt that there is a very significant grade inflation, so students who put in minimal effort and have only erratic attendance nonetheless expect to receive honors grades,” he said. “This is a national phenomenon. Three years ago even Princeton [University] had to impose a limit on the percentage of ‘A’ grades instructors could award in undergraduate classes.”

Adamany said reports on Temple grading practices several years ago showed 74 percent of undergraduate grades are ‘A’s or ‘B’s. Some Temple academic programs have higher percentages than others.

“Yet class attendance is spotty, so many students earning high grades are not regularly attending,” he said.

“I cannot make choices for students,” Adamany said. “I set down expectations, carefully prepare for each class, assist students that seek assistance and give examinations that seem to me to give students an opportunity to reflect knowledge gained in the course. The rest is up to students.”

Valerie Rubinsky can be reached at valerie.rubinsky@temple.edu.

Milkboy rejects record contracts

Sleeping Naked is far from the average band. Its MySpace page boasts more than 50,000 plays from its second album, and its brand of energetic, guitar-driven rock with family-friendly lyrics are a definitive presence on music Web sites like CD Baby, Facebook, iTunes and PureVolume.

But since founders Craig Tallent and Holden Seguso began collaborating, they can count their number of live performances on one hand.

Their responsibilities as full-time students and athletes make touring impossible. Tallent plays scholastic golf and studies at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee, and Seguso attends school at the University of California at Los Angeles.

Still, the music thrives.

Sleeping Naked is one of the more astounding success stories due to UnLabel, a new method of promoting artists.

UnLabel is the brainchild of Jamie Lokoff, owner of MilkBoy Recording in Ardmore, Pa., and marketing director Tom Laskas.

Their new model addresses how digital media is rapidly transforming the way music is bought, listened to and promoted. Rather than forcing artists to sign a contract, UnLabel asks them to invest in themselves by paying an initial fee to Lokoff and Laskas.

In return, UnLabel provides artists with studio space, launches three-month promotional campaigns and offers other support depending on the size of the investment and artists’ ultimate goals – all without contractually-bound obligations.

Lokoff cited the Delaware-based group Feeling December as one of the stronger local acts benefiting from the model. Still, Sleeping Naked remains an UnLabel success story.

“Sleeping Naked [is] a band that has a strong belief in their product, but their challenge was these are two kids that really excel at what they do scholastically and athletically,” Laskas said. “[They have] no ability and time to perform right now, so we get their music out there – using the Internet to build their fan base.”

The lack of contractual obligations to a label grants the members of Sleeping Naked greater freedom to focus on their education and sports.

“I have more time to pay attention to my schoolwork and my golf, since MilkBoy is doing most of the promotional work for us,” Tallent said.

UnLabel comes at a time when popular record labels, whose once-prosperous methods of promoting artists, are now useless against iTunes, MySpace and discount department stores.

“Artists like Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, Madonna [and] the Eagles are selling their music only through Wal-Mart, and they don’t need a record label,” Lokoff said. “They can cut the deal directly with the third party on their own. The promoting arm [of companies like Wal-Mart] is stronger than any record label that’s out there.”

UnLabel’s method is different than the old industry standard, in which record labels forced new bands to buy their own equipment, fund their own tours and promote themselves. Conversely, UnLabel does these services for bands.

The combined cost of Sleeping Naked’s investment, which funded promotion, recording space and the album release, cost about $25,000. Tallent admitted his and Seguso’s parents helped shoulder the cost, but the feedback has been worth it.

A reporter from Blender magazine credited the band for saving her marriage.

“I don’t see record sales going up because it’s not convenient. I heard a song [one] morning and downloaded it in class – that’s how easy it is,” Tallent said. “We’re still building the fan base, but the people who hear our stuff dig it and ask when we’re going on tour or if we’re famous. It’s very positive. I haven’t heard much of ‘you guys suck.’”

Jimmy Viola can be reached at jimmy.viola@temple.edu.

Hip-hop pays homage to city

On the lookout for bands that inspires sweet – and hopefully not embarrassing – dance moves? The Hustle isn’t a bad place to start.

The Philadelphia-based group combines the traditional set-up of guitar, bass, drums and sounds from DJ turntables and a keyboard. For some dance-worthy tracks, add in lyrics about girls who party too much and a dedication to the city.

The group consists of MC Kuf Knotz, vocalist and keyboardist Nora Whittaker, drummer Bradlee Beats, bassist Kurtis Shakemore, guitarist Tom Copson, Jr. and Ray Ventura, also known as DJ Kingspin.

Though some members of the group work on solo projects, they come together to write about Philadelphia.

Knotz, the father of the band, drew from his musical resources in the city to contact Whittaker, former bandmate Copson and friends Bradlee Beats, Shakemore and DJ Kingspin.

After performing a remixed version of the Beatles classic “Good Morning, Good Morning” at World Café Live, the band knew it was on the right track.

Its sound is derived from the members’ personal backgrounds, as well as the history of their hometown of Philadelphia.

In a city where the music comes from soul and funk, the Hustle fuses the two together, while adding in other genres.

“All of us love different styles of music and bring the styles we love into the pot and just mix it up,” Knotz said. “I was raised on hip-hop and soul music and then ventured into punk and indie rock. All the other members brought their influences, and it just seemed to work somehow.”

DJ Kingspin compares his musical relationship with the city to making a cheesesteak.

“In order to make it authentic, it’s important to layer the ingredients accordingly while they sizzle,” he said. “Then flip it so they blend together.”

Not only does its music pay homage to the city, it talks about it.

The Hustle’s song “Philadelphia,” describes different aspects of the city.

“Welcome to Philadelphia, the city of love,” sings Whittaker in the opening lyrics. Knotz then talks about the hipsters who live in Northern Liberties, the drug spots in North Philly and the madness of the city’s sports fans. He even takes jabs at tourists, saying once they get lost, they don’t know if the next turn will take them to a nice street or the middle of the ghetto.

In a few short phrases, Knotz describes the feel of the city with lyrics that define the song.

Knotz spells out Philly, saying “‘P’ is for the people that keep the city live. ‘H’ for hustle, the city’s do or die. ‘I’ is for ill that explain us well, yeah, as in dope, it ain’t hard to tell. ‘L’ is for love that the city project. The other ‘L’ is for the love we hold for music. ‘Y’ is for the youth – the future’s ours.”

Frances McInerney can be reached at frances.mcinerney@temple.edu.

Coles knows the meaning of ‘heart’

There’s a cliché that gets tossed around the sports world rather frequently, its meaning now dulled almost completely.

“To have heart.”

Ever hear that?

Of course you have. The phrase is uttered at least once on every sports telecast, regardless of the sport. And it’s certainly not absent from the print media either, writers applauding the least bit of courage.

The running back who plows his way for a first down “has heart.” The center fielder who stretches out to snare a baseball “has heart.” The ice hockey player skating through the playoffs on a bum knee “has heart.”

It’s almost fair to say “having heart” is a requirement for a player to get off the sidelines.
Funny, because that’s exactly where one finds Charlie Coles, who, if anyone, “has heart.”
Quite literally, too.

Coles is the coach of the Miami (Ohio) basketball team that the men’s team faces tomorrow night in its home opener. The 66-year-old had to travel more than 500 miles to get to Philly, but Coles has traversed much more during the last eight months.

On March 1, Coles was preparing the RedHawks for a game against Ohio but didn’t feel quite right. He checked himself into McCullough-Hyde Memorial Hospital in Oxford, Ohio, where he was then airlifted to Mercy Hospital in nearby Fairfield.

There, Coles underwent several days of testing. The doctors ultimately determined Coles’ heart needed quadruple bypass surgery.

Coles underwent the 14-hour surgery on the day his team left Miami for Cleveland, the site of the Mid-American Conference Tournament. Before leaving, the players paid a visit to the coach who guided them to the 2007 NCAA Tournament.

There, Coles gave them – and himself – a pep talk, advising toughness on both Cleveland and life’s hardwoods.

The RedHawks eventually advanced to the College Basketball Invitational, a new third postseason tournament the NCAA implemented last season. Coles eventually advanced to where he felt he could coach again, though his progression was full of trials.

Following his operation, Coles spent a month in the hospital recovering from both his surgery and a bleeding ulcer. He began spending limited time in his office but returned to the hospital in late May to have his gall bladder removed.

Coles capped his comeback by winning his 300th career game on Opening Night, as the RedHawks downed Weber State at the 2K Sports Classic in Los Angeles. He now needs just eight wins to become Miami’s all-time winningest coach.

That alone is quite a story. But that’s really only the second half of it.

The real story began in 1986, Coles’ first season coaching Central Michigan, when he suffered a heart attack and underwent triple bypass surgery. Coles returned to the sidelines only to have his heart problems flare up again 12 years later – in much more dramatic fashion.

The RedHawks were competing at Western Michigan in the 1998 MAC Tournament when Coles collapsed during a timeout, his heart under cardiac arrest. Working on the sidelines, medical personnel resuscitated Coles and rushed him to a hospital in Kalamazoo, Mich.

Coles was told he had arrhythmia – an irregular heartbeat – and a defibrillator was inserted into his heart.

Coles battled back to take the RedHawks to the Sweet 16 the following season, the furthest the team has ever advanced in the NCAA Tournament.

Having again made a comeback, Coles’ RedHawks look poised for another potentially memorable season, having been picked to finish second in the MAC East Division.

“You see me and a bear fighting, help the bear,” Coles told the Hamilton (Ohio) Journal-News before this season. “Don’t help me. In fact, pour honey on me.”

Now, there’s an individual who deserves the label of “having heart.”

John Kopp can be reached at john.kopp@temple.edu.

Pillow Talk: Winter break quite somber

It’s no real news that Philadelphia is absolutely depressing in the cold – more depressing than usual, that is.

A friend of mine recently pointed out that the wind in the city always seems to be whipping in all directions, and the rain always seems to fall directly in everyone’s eyes, almost as if Mother Nature has a personal vendetta against Broad Street.

The beautiful moments of winter are fleeting. Last week, I looked out a window in my living room while it was dark and saw my first snowflakes of the season, dancing around each other against the purple sky and glowing in the glare of stadium lighting. The scene lasted for maybe a minute, before the lush white flakes quickly devolved into an icy mist.

As if dealing with the impossible weather isn’t agitating enough, all of us begin to realize our ridiculously long winter break isn’t too far away. The last day of finals, Dec. 19, is less than a miserable month away, and we still have holiday cards to send, gifts to buy, home basketball games to attend, final papers to write and six chapters of the Italian language to learn.

It seems like this time of year brings, along with weird precipitation, a to-do list longer than Santa’s list of who’s naughty or nice. And, along with all of our new obligations to schoolwork, we still have to somehow squeeze time in to maintain a social life.

The holidays seem to revolve around friends, family and romance – that social life we’re expected to keep up with and make time for.

But how do you spend time with the ones you love during the holidays when you don’t have anyone to fall in love with?

The holiday season really sucks for singles, I can’t lie. It’s a solid month and a half dedicated to long shopping attacks at the mall, holiday dinners with no one to bring home to mom and dad and New Year’s Eve parties with no one to kiss at midnight.

No wonder the night before Thanksgiving is the biggest party night of the year – it’s a last chance to find someone to make you feel a little less lonely while you make latkes or wrap gifts. Those people who were on top of their game and are in a cozy little relationship right now must feel pretty satisfied with themselves. One less thing to make time to do.

Granted, as lucky as I think these cold-weather college couples are, it must really suck to have to spend the most wonderful time of year apart. I can’t think of a single couple I know that met in college and ended up being from the same area, making it hard to spend some quality holiday time together during five weeks at home (come on, Temple, would it be so hard to give us a fall recess instead?). How hard is it to maintain a relationship dependent on seeing your significant other more than once a day when, in the winter, the closest you can get is a phone call away?

Doesn’t it seem like the most wonderful time of the year for a college student could also be referred to as the most stressful time of the year? The most challenging time of the year? The most depressing time of the year?

Hey, I’m just calling it like I’m seeing it. Single people are opening their legs wider and taking shots faster, couples are frantically trying to figure out if they can spend at least one holiday in each other’s company and all of us are still expected to write, read, speak and act normally. Oh yeah, and find time to breathe.

In respect of tradition, I think some New Year’s resolutions are in order – a list we won’t mind keeping up with for the sake of our own sanity. Let’s resolve to live our lives (yes, Rihanna and T.I. style) and stop wallowing in self-pity when there are dreidels to spin and glasses of eggnog to sip.

Singles, resolve to share the fact that 50 percent of all marriages end in divorce to the annoyingly happy couples you know who might not be so happy later.

Couples, resolve to rub the fact that you have an active sex life in the face of as many of your single friends as possible.

And finally, let’s resolve to always remember things only get more stressful from here, so we should enjoy what we can while we can. May the rest of your semester be merry and bright.

Libby Peck can be reached at elizabeth.peck@temple.edu.

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