The All State

Recently, it has come to the attention of the TAS editorial board some of the changes being made in SGA are centered around heavy rumors.

Trent Gaasch has taken up the post of Chief Justice, because former Chief Justice, Brianna Velazquez, stepped down due to what she said were “personal reasons.” SGA President Chris Drew and  SGA Adviser Greg Singleton both confirmed this statement. This would not normally be cause for concern. However, the student body has been buzzing with rumors that suggest the change in staff has another meaning. Nothing has been confirmed, and no one is talking.

Gaasch is also the third Chief Justice SGA has had this semester. The first Chief Justice, Megan Garret, resigned at the beginning of the semester, citing personal reasons as well. No significant speculation surrounded her resignation, though.

One editorial board member said it would be best for SGA to come forward and explain in order to separate fact and fiction. While everyone is eager to know the truth, we feel it is the sole responsibility of the person involved to come forward if they so choose.

We regret Velazquez’s own personal choices have been the cause of such commotion, but when one is elected to a public office, one must accept the responsibilities of that office, including the public eye. Despite all the “he said/she said” mess, it is likely more details about the story will not be revealed anytime soon. Therefore, we must take the explanation as is, and make the best of the situation.

All the attention SGA is receiving stems from a dramatic situation. Perhaps the student body should pay more attention to SGA and its affairs all the time.

We cannot complain about being out of the loop and uninvolved if we don’t make the first step. SGA holds open forums in which students are permitted to express themselves. We should take advantage of this opportunity to contribute to our campus.

APSU reached a historical landmark this semester. We now have over 10,000 graduate and undergraduate students, both part-time and full-time.

The editorial board at The All State is both excited and concerned about this breakthrough at our university.

Due to our status as the fastest-growing university in Tennessee and our increased numbers, we have not had to suffer the severe budget cuts much larger schools have. We feel currently, as a middle-grade small school, we have just enough to support ourselves.

Our size is also appealing to potential students. We are not too small, but not too large. One staff member said she was glad to see everywhere you go on campus, you can see someone you know, but at the same time you will see someone you don’t know yet. It seems to give the campus a good balance.

Some are concerned that parking, living accommodations, funds and building space will suffer with the increased enrollment. However, these figures can be deceptive. APSU does not exist solely on campus. We have students that attend at Fort Campbell and many only take online and hybrid classes.

Our numbers also fluctuate based on deployments, since we are a military town with many military and nontraditional students. Many APSU students may never have to set foot on the main campus. This means that these changes are in a way more technical than purely physical. Our numbers and programs can potentially attract students who do not wish to attend an exclusively on-campus school.
We are also concerned our increased size will lead to over-compensation. If we build too many dormitories, add too much extra parking or build too many new facilities, we could end up with wasted space. We feel it is sometimes better to have just enough than too much.

If we continue to grow at such a fast rate, we may have to take action to control our size. APSU may need to eventually change its admissions requirements so as not to become overcrowded.

We feel overexpansion is also a concern. We are a predominantly military town, not a college town.

APSU’s campus is already located in a very congested area, and spreading the campus throughout the city does not seem practical for our school.
We are growing into our space, and we feel for now we are in a very comfortable position with our numbers.

By Staff Reports

On college campuses across the United States, students are sitting in the bleachers, cheering on their home teams and cracking open an ice cold beer. At APSU, the students are enjoying a refreshing soda or a warm hot chocolate. Those who are not at the games are likely drinking alcohol elsewhere.

The reason? APSU is a dry campus.

According to the APSU Policies and Procedures Manual, dated Aug. 13, 1990, “an environment free of the illegal or abusive use of alcohol or other drugs by members of the academic community encourages educational development.”

APSU, as a member of the Tennessee Board of Regents, must follow this policy. The TBR Web site says “the use and/or possession of alcoholic beverages on university, community college and technology center owned or controlled property shall be prohibited except as provided by Policy 1:07:00:00.”

This policy is slightly more complicated. Policy 1:07:00:00: “The President of each four and two-year institution is authorized to, and may from time to time designate a place on property owned or controlled by the institution where alcoholic beverages may be served by alumni and foundation organizations at a function or event sponsored by said organization.

“This area shall not be in classrooms, labs, faculty or administrative offices, residence halls, student dining halls, student gathering areas, outdoor public areas or athletic facilities accessible to the public.

Furthermore, under Policy 3:05:01:01 the use and/or possession of alcoholic beverages by students are prohibited on property owned or controlled by the institution.

“The sale of alcoholic beverages at the designated place is prohibited. “Sale” means any transfer, trade, exchange or barter, in any manner or by any means, for consideration, including, but not limited to, requiring fees or the purchase of tickets for admission to the area or event at which alcoholic beverages will be served. State funds may not be used for the purchase of alcoholic beverages.”

This policy is basically stating exceptions can be made for alumni or certain organizations. It is almost as if students, regardless of age, are not considered adults

Non-traditional students made up about 35 percent of APSU’s undergraduates in 2008, according to the Office of Institutional Research and Effectiveness.

This is a fairly large number, especially compared to more typical universities. What are the chances these fully grown adults drink alcohol on occasion? Probably very likely.

APSU has always been big on trying to get its students more involved in campus activities. One of the most popular campus activities is football. It is given the majority of the campus’s attention during the beginning of the Fall semester, and many people get involved.

Another important aspect of these games is the concessions. The stadium sells snacks, drinks and candy. No alcohol is served. No alcohol is permitted at the game.

This seems like a waste of a perfect opportunity to rake in some money, especially in a time of economic hardship, where every dollar draft— or just plain dollar—counts.

At The All State, we believe APSU, along with TBR, should reconsider its dry campus policy. It is possible to control the use of alcohol, and not let it get out of hand. Anyone with a valid, legal ID should be permitted to purchase alcohol at a sporting event or otherwise.

Granted, students should not just have free reign. Alcohol should stay separate from academic life, and should not interfere with such. However, if a 30-year-old non-traditional student living in Hand Village wishes to have a nightcap, it shouldn’t be a crime.

We realize this concept is currently unattainable, but we don’t think it is so far-fetched. With a convincing argument and an intelligent plan of attack, any rule can be changed.

We believe APSU would benefit economically from this amendment through alcoholic beverage sales and the attraction of more non-traditional students to the campus.

Permitting alcohol will not necessarily turn APSU into a “party school.” As long as alcoholic use is regulated properly and responsibly, it should not cause a problem. Bottoms up.

By Staff Reports

It has recently come to the attention of the editorial board of The All State, and apparently the rest of campus as well, the H1N1 virus, also known as ‘swine flu’, is a hot topic on campus as well as worldwide.

While some of us believe it is encouraging that APSU is nipping the issue in the bud, others are concerned it may be blown out of proportion.

Why is the H1N1 virus currently such a major concern? According to APSU’s Web site devoted to the virus, the World Health Organization declared H1N1 to be a pandemic June 11, 2009. By definition, a pandemic is a disease prevalent throughout an entire country, continent, or the whole world, or an epidemic over a large area. Cases of H1N1 have been reported all over the world, and as flu season approaches, the masses are preparing for the worst. The Web site pointed out the pandemic was declared because the illness is widespread, not because it has become any more severe than it was previously.

The question is: How worried should we be? In comparison to other strains of influenza, H1N1 is not significantly different. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it is simply the most dominant flu virus in the world at this time. The major symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue.

Many cases have also reported symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea. We’ve surely all experienced a few or all of these symptoms at some point in our lives, and the majority of us have most likely contracted some form of the flu. Does this sound deadly?

We at TAS feel that the students and faculty/staff of APSU should not panic. True, extra hygienic and health precautions should be taken, but this time of year brings those kinds of worries anyway.

We are impressed that APSU has stepped up and created a task force to deal with the matter, but we believe students should be informed, not paranoid. The bathrooms on campus are filled with fliers proclaiming the importance of hygienic practices. These are common sense tasks that mature, educated adults should all be practicing anyway.

The paranoia has escalated so far as to lead to the termination of employment, and even rude glances from classmates for a simple runny nose. According to Boyd Health Services on campus, no confirmed cases of H1N1 have been reported at APSU.

There are also several other diseases and illnesses just as pressing, if not more, as H1N1, that should not be ignored.

Students should be on their toes regarding all illnesses that impact people gathered in large groups. H1N1 may be serious at the time, but more fatal diseases can sneak up on us if we are too absorbed in a possibility.

APSU students have surely heard about the issue through their professors. Students are even allowed excused absences if they contract the illness. This is very generous and wise as far as quarantine purposes go, but chances are it will be severely abused.

Another important aspect of the H1N1 virus is its vaccine. The CDC reports the vaccine is being developed and should be available in the fall, and the vaccine provided for other strains of the flu is not expected to help prevent H1N1.

In a poll of the editorial board, only three of the 11 members said they plan on getting vaccinated for H1N1 if it is available for free. This is not a very high number. Perhaps we are afraid of the risks of such a new development.

We believe this is not an issue to be laughed at, but there is also no reason to become an overnight hypochondriac.

We should all take measures to keep ourselves clean and healthy, but continue to live our lives this semester without fear of impending doom.

Tell us what you think about the H1N1 vaccine by voting in our online poll at the right.