The Towerlight, November 10, 1983

tl19831110-000 "The Towerlight Vol. 77 No. 10 , Airing one's dirty linen never makes for a masterpiece. �Francois Truffaut PUBLISHED BY THE STUDENTS OF TOWSON STATE UNIVERSITY TOWSON, MARYLAND 21204 November 10, 1983 Night Walk The route of the ""Night Walk"" is traced above. Dots ( � ) indicate where some of the participa fl Is (shown, above right) felt lighting should be improved. Nocturnal tour shines light on dark areas By James Hunt Twenty students and administrators filed out of the warm confines of the University Union Monday night into the brisk autumn air. Their intent: to take a walk. A ""Night Walk."" Or perhaps it should have been called ""Light Walk,"" since, essentially, what the participants in this nocturnal tour of cam-pus looked for were the areas on campus which lacked sufficient lighting. And it also gave some students the chance to air their fears about safety on campus at night to ""people [such as Pres-ident Hoke Smith, and Vice Presidents Donald McCulloh and Dorothy Siegel] who could allocate and would allocate funds"" for lighting improvements, according to Senator Corrine Miller, who organized the Student Government Association-spon-sored ""Night Walk."" ""It's better [to fund improvements] than to have a rape,"" Miller said, echoing the fears of some students concerned about safety on campus following the murders earlier this semester of two women at Frostburg State and Goucher Colleges. Several of those students met at the Women's Center two weeks ago to discuss safety. Miller led the group on a tour that wound through the campus and pointed out what she felt were some of the poorly lit and potentially dangerous areas on campus. Some of the areas highlighted were: the paths leading from the new Residence Towers to parking lot 11 (in front of the Union) and into the center of campus, the Glen Bridge, the path/driveway behind Smith Hall, parking lot 2 (between Stephens and Van Bokkelen Halls), the path between Newell Hall and Glen Esk, and the bus stops on York Road and Cross Campus Drive. Many of the areas surveyed were in or around the Glen, raising the possibility, Miller said, that victims of an attack, particularly women, could be dragged unseen into that wooded area. Lights are already planned for some of the locations noted, Pat Walsh, assistant director of physical plant, told the group. The Glen Bridge ""should have lights within the week,"" Walsh said, and a total of 11 light fixtures will be placed along the two paths leading from the new Towers. See WALK, page 2 Campus recruiting increases nationwide But at Towson State, recruiting drops By Glenn Small College placement officers across the nation have become optimistic of late, predicting a 16- to 20-percent increase in recruitment of graduates over last year. So far, however, the predicted increase seems unlikely here at Towson State unless the economy�and student interest�picks up, said Placement director Francis J. LeMire. In fact, LeMire believes on-campus recruitment has decreased since last year. ""We're down this year. [But] we're trying to analyze what's happening,"" he said. ""The economy hasn't picked up enough yet,"" he believes. To counter that, LeMire said, the Place-ment Office is preparing a brochure which is now being printed, to be sent out across the Baltimore-Washington area to possible employers of University graduates. The brochure is designed to increase on-campus recruiting by local businesses. But student interest in on-campus recruiters is down also, LeMire said. For example, ""Last year [at this time] we had more students signing up to interview for accounting jobs."" LeMire said that there are jobs open in places like New England, Philadelphia, and the Delmarva Peninsula, but added that Towson students ""don't want to go there."" Out-of-state employers are not encouraged, therefore, to recruit on campus. One encouraging sign for many Univer-sity students is a comeback among liberal arts majors. James Briggs of Berkeley says recruiters are showing a greater appreciation for liberal arts, with some softening their tradi-tionally strict requirements for technical training. Liberal arts majors are having good luck among management, financial services and retailing, Briggs said. ""If it's a position that doesn't require a specific technical skill, the employer is going to hire the best person,"" LeMire explained, noting that the person might be the liberal arts major who has what he calls ""impact""�the ability to present oneself to the employer. At Northwestern University, placement director and author of a national survey of student placement Victor Lindquist said, ""I think recruiting is going to be up by 16 to 20 percent nationally from last year,"" adding, however, ""I don't see any sudden turn. This is going to be a gentle turn."" There is little real evidence on which Lindquist bases his predictions, except the fact that things cannot get much worse. ""I don't know how it could get any worse than it was in '83,"" said Lindquist. ""Hiring of graduates was off by 41 percent nation-ally last year."" Michigan State University's place-ment director, Jack Shingleton, agrees, See INCREASE, page 2 Want a job? 'Nothing is easy' By Glenn Small In an office of the second floor of the University Union, a wooden plaque with the words, ""Nothing is easy,"" hangs on the wall. The wall, the plaque, the office, and the sentiment belong to Placement director Francis J. LeMire, who calls his job ""a constant challenge."" The constant challenge is not merely ""getting students jobs,"" as the placement handbook asserts, but to let students know that the placement services exist, so they will take advantage of them. What the placement center does, accord-ing to LeMire, is to help students gain impact�the ability to present oneself well�and increase the ease and success of a job search. ""The better you present yourself to the company, the better are your chances of being considered for the job,"" he explains. This aim is accomplished systematically beginning the moment a student comes into the Placement Center for placement assistance. ""We try to get across five basic points to students,"" said LeMire. The first is to know yourself. ""Know what your strong points are, what you can do,"" he said. Another thing he says is to ""have an idea of what function you would like to perform in the world of work,"" because ""a single job function may be listed under 10 different job titles."" Knowing as much as possible about the company you are applying to, and to know what you would like to accomplish at that company are two other key points, LeMire believes. The final thing LeMire and his associates at the Placement Center try to instill in students is a sense of pride. See JOBS, page 2 Fourth-ranked Forensic Union Default rate drops on student loan payments draws additional funds By Mike Judge The Forensic Union received a com-promise supplemental budget after a) ""see-saw"" debate at Tuesday's Stu-dent Government Association Senate meeting. Forensics received an additional $430 for travel expenses to take twen-ty students to compete in a forensics tournament at Shippensburg State in Pennsylvania next weekend. The Forensics requested the addi-tional money to protect its fourth place ranking nationally in CEDA (Cross-Examination Debate Associa-tion) debate. The team plans to take five teams to the tournament, and hopes all will reach the quarter finals, helping increase the teams' ranking. The Senate voiced strong objections to being the sole source of funds for the Forensics Union. ""The past four Senate's have told them (Forensics) to raise money and not solely depend on the SGA,"" Kevin Shabow, chair-man of the Appropriations Commit-tee, said. Most forensics teams that Towson competes against receive money directly from their school ad-ministrations, and can take more students longer distances to compete. Forensics originally requested $569 for travel expenses to the tournament. The Appropriations Committee knocked down the figure to $290, the original figure requested at last spr-ing's budget hearings, but not funded. The increased request was caused by the addition of CEDA debates this year at Shippensburg. The first re-quest provided expenses for ten speakers to compete in the individual speaking events, but not enough for the ten debaters needed to defend Towson's ranking. The Senate debated for nearly an hour between the two figures, before voting to fund the compromise figure. The team had an extra $150 in its' budget saved by bypassing a debate tournament at Notre Dame. Forensic Union officers and Dr. Brenda Logue, advisor for the Foren-sic Union, will meet with Dr. Sally Souris, Vice President of Institutional Advancement, to discuss plans for fundraising by the Forensic team. University Mission Statement Towson State University is committed to providing comprehensive opportunities for undergraduate and graduate education and offers a variety of programs in the traditional arts and sciences and in specialized professional fields. The curricula, services, and activities of the University are shaped by two primary goals: that all students encounter the values and methods that establish a liberal education, promote critical thought, and develop mental habits required for thoughtful citizenship; and that all students, in completing undergraduate or graduate majors, have the opportunity to gain the knowledge and skills essential to their career choices. The University emphasizes excellent teaching, scholarship and creativity, with students and faculty directly contributing to the intellectual and cultural life of all the communities it serves. The University Mission Statement was approved Monday by the University Senate. More on the University Senate on page 2. By Terie Wolan Students are repaying their National Direct Student Loans (NDSL) at a faster rate than in past years, the U.S. Department of Education reports. In checking the records of loan repayments at 3382 colleges nation-wide, the department found the default rate on NDSL�a program President Reagan wanted to abolish in 1981 and 1982 because so many students weren't repaying their loans�fell from 16.4 percent in 1981 to 10.5 percent of the total amount loaned out by the government. Part of the reason for the decline, however, may be the new way of accounting for defaults,. said Florence Taylor, Education depart-ment aid collection chief. Colleges, which have been respon-sible for collecting past-due loans, can now turn over collection respon-sibility to the federal government. Once they are turned over, Taylor said, the government no longer counts the loan as in default. Towson State has made a con-certed effort to reduce its default rate this year because of a govern-ment rule, which cuts available funds to colleges whose default rate is over 10 percent. Sue Brody, spokesperson for the finance office, said, ""There's a big effort to reduce the default rate�by better in-house collection telephon-ing borrowers, offering partial-pay-ment plans for hardship cases. Also, we are making students still in school better informed of their responsibility before they leave."" The University is the largest school in the state to get under 10 percent; the current rate is 9.25 percent. Brody said the average loan for a four-year student at the University is probably between $500 and $1000. Along with more emphasis on in-house collection by the Univer-sity, the University has engaged Wachozia Services, Inc., to bill students. If the payment is delin-quent, the account is turned over to the State Center Collection Unit. Repayment is also important because the NDSL is a revolving fund, the money that is collected is re-lent to others, with the state matching 10 percent of the federal government funds, Brody said. Most students are careful about paying off their loan, Brody said. ""Now that our collection procedures are better, students are more aware when they leave of their obligation. If they are able to, they are more willing to pay it."" Most of the problems, she said, stem from those students who are unable to find work after graduation. The University was one of 380 colleges which lost all or part of their NDSL funds last spring because of high default rates. Phon-a-thon' : dialing for dollars in reverse By Tina Barbera Towson State's ""Phon-a-thon,"" an annual fundraising event, is off and ringing. A kind of ""Dialing for Dollars"" in reverse, the ""Phon-a-thon"" has brought together students, faculty, and alumni who are spending one or two nights a week calling other alumni and asking them to pledge money to the University. According to Katie Walsh, one of the organizers of the event, the ""Phon-a-thon"" is part of the Univer-sity's effort to secure funds from outside sources to support its continued growth. ""We have to look to the private sector for support since Towson is now a state-assisted and not a state-supported school,"" Walsh said. Last year, support from the ""Phon-a-thon"" amounted to $45,000, a figure which exceeded the expectations of many of the fundraisers. This year a goal of $60,000 has been set. So far, Walsh said, the average pledge per call has increased $3 over last year. In the first week, the average has been $20, compared to $17 last year. Walsh expects 10,000 to 12,000 calls will be made during the three-week fundraiser, which lasts through November 17. The volunteer dialers receive no special training. They familiarize themselves with the name, year of graduation, occupation, and past contribution of each alumnus, but the phone conversations are very informal. Volunteers so far have received a positive response from the alumni, Walsh said. ""We encourage all of the callers to be friendly and we find that people are really thrilled to be contacted and to find out about what is happening at Towson."" The money that is raised will be used to support scholarships, fac-ulty research, and new course offerings, and to pay for library acquisitions, cultural events, and visiting scholars, Walsh said. At the end of the evening, the caller who has compiled the most pledges is allowed to choose a prize from the many that were donated, Walsh said. These include tickets to Center Stage, the Aquarium, and See PHONE, page 2 "