News – Page 110 – The Western Howl

By JACK ARMSTRONG
 News Editor

Western’s Incidental Fee Committee and Associated Students of Western Oregon have both voted to ratify controversial budget decisions made by IFC for the 2015-2016 academic year.

If approved by university President Mark Weiss, the per-term fee for 2015-2016 will increase $5 from 2014-2015 to $327, or $981 per year total.

The IFC is a group of student leaders supervised by staff advisers. The only voting members of the process are the students who sit on the committee.

Incidental fees are collected separate from students’ tuition every term and are used for student clubs and activities that fall outside the realm of academics.

IFC voted to uphold the majority of the preliminary decision Monday, Feb. 16, but several changes were made before the budget was ratified.

The committee first considered the changes to the overall budgets of each funded area. Once again the debate focused on athletics and the possible 5 percent cut.

Several of the voting members relayed the information they had gathered during the open hearings, and Barbara Dearing, executive director of intercollegiate athletics, made a final appeal to reverse the decision.

The committee ultimately ratified all of the general budgets from the preliminary decision for each funded area.

Every budget except for athletics was approved with a unanimous vote. Only six of the eight committee members voted to uphold the 5 percent cut to athletics while two members abstained.

While calling the meeting to order, IFC Chair Quinn Forner addressed the recent debate surrounding the divisive cut to athletics. “Any decision will make a lot of people unhappy, especially in a lean budget year like the one we are facing,” Forner said.

After the general budgets were approved, the committee moved on to vote concerning enhancement requests.

Enhancements differ from the overall budgets because they are an increase in funding for an organization to be put towards a specifically requested item.

While most of the funded areas had no change to the decisions made about enhancements in the preliminary budget, athletics, creative arts and campus recreation experienced reductions in previously approved enhancements.

Athletics had been initially approved for an enhancement to replace
the football program’s coordinator headsets that are used by coaches to talk to each other during the games.

The headset replacement unit, priced at $43,712, was taken away in the final decision leaving athletics with $14,060 budgeted for other
enhancements.

Speaking on the decision to remove the headset funding, Forner said “we recognized the need for additional athlete safety, and we felt other department requests would fill the same need.”

Removing the headset enhancement was intended to free up funds for the creation of electronic athlete medical records, a new weight room treadmill, and padding for the fence surrounding the softball field (a NCAA requirement).

Creative arts had initially been approved funding to continue to offer free tickets for Western students to all on-campus performances and productions. IFC voted down this initial approval.

Committee member Jessica Hand explained that “there wasn’t enough data provided by the department about student attendance to provide
approval,” but she added that if enough evidence could be provided next year, IFC would consider reversing their decision. The committee also decided to deny the hiring of a new drum line instructor for creative arts, reducing the overall enhancements granted to the group by $11,748.

IFC then voted to alter campus recreations’ enhancements by removing the funding allotted to hire a new executive accounting and support specialist for the department. This resulted in the allotted funds being reduced by $32,402.

After IFC voted their final decision, the budget was sent for review by the ASWOU senate on Wednesday, Feb. 18.

ASWOU is the official student government of Western. Members are elected by the student body to serve as representation in various capacities like administrative meetings.

Much like the United States branches of government, ASWOU, IFC, and Western’s administration all act as oversight for each other. Jenessa Ross, ASWOU judicial administrator said, “ASWOU reviews the IFC process, not the numbers submitted.”

Voting on IFC’s process is a way for ASWOU to review the guidelines
and rules that the fee committee followed while making the preliminary and final decisions.

“ASWOU is a check and balance system,” Ross said.

One of the guidelines discussed was student body involvement. ASWOU members noted the official IFC handbook which states that the fee committee must do their best to create a budget that represents the majority opinion of students.

ASWOU’s vote was unanimous with all five voting members expressing confidence that the incidental fee committee had performed their job within the necessary rules and regulations.

Now that ASWOU has ratified IFC’s decision, the process now moves to President Weiss. According to the IFC regulations, Weiss has to make a decision “no later than (5) days” after the budget has been received by his office.

If the president was to decide that the budget presented was unacceptable, IFC would meet again to attempt to reach a compromise.

Disclaimer: The Journal is funded through Incidental Fees via Student Media

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Faculty senate passes divestment resolution

By LAURA KNUDSON
 Editor-in-Chief

The faculty senate is encouraging Western’s Development Foundation to investigate and provide information on fossil fuel divestment.

In an (18-4-0) vote, the senate passed a resolution Tuesday calling for the collaboration of the foundation, environmental club, Associated Students of
Western Oregon University, and the administration.

Divesting refers to getting rid of stocks, bonds or investment funds that are part of the fossil fuel industry.

The foundation is a private, nonprofit organization that financially assists the college through investment returns and gifts from donors. Last school year, the foundation’s total revenue was $4,302,690 according to their audit report.

Earlier this year, the environmental club, comprised of about 15 to 20 members launched a divestment campaign, collecting signatures in favor of divestment, representing more than 10 percent of the student body. They also protested outside at a Dec. 6 foundation meeting after being denied a spot on the agenda.

Foundation meetings are closed for confidentiality, so groups or individuals must be invited to speak.

Karl Amspacher, environmental club member, recently submitted a resolution to ASWOU, calling for the foundation to divest over the next five years or explain their reasoning if they chose not to.

In a 0-5-0 vote Jan. 28, the ASWOU senate did not approve the resolution. At the same meeting, Amspacher asked the Senate to withdraw the resolution because, “It felt like it wasn’t going to pass, and it’d be better to have something pass then have it voted down,” he said.

Since Senator Braden Shribbs had written the legislation and is, therefore, the only one who can withdraw it, the vote took place because Shribbs was absent from the meeting.

Corbin Garner, ASWOU president, said the resolution was not approved because “the students [senators] conversed with were not well informed, and we felt that divestment at this point was not the right option.”

Amspacher was disappointed in the decision to move forward with the vote. “They could have tabled it indefinitely,” Amspacher said. “Instead they chose to vote on it, and they voted unanimously.” He added there is clear student support in favor of divestment and ASWOU is “disregarding their mission” as a voice for students. “Whatever their motives are, it’s not in support of students,” he said.

ASWOU has not taken a stance on divestment, Garner said, because, “We don’t feel it’s our place to take a side.” The environmental club plans to introduce legislation to ASWOU modeled after the faculty senate legislation that was passed.

Dr. Emily Plec, co-adviser of the environmental club, has taken over for Mark VanSteeter, who is on sabbatical. Plec said the club is shifting their strategy to a “longer approach focused on multiple goals.”

By working to increase campus awareness and educate on divestment, they will “pull back from the force with which they had approached foundation partners in finding out more information,” she said.

“There’s been this perception on campus that the foundation has avoided any conversation and that’s not true,” Tommy Love, executive director in the Office of University Advancement and Western Development Foundation said in a Tuesday interview.

While the foundation does not disclose where they invest, Love did contact the foundation fund managers, Ferguson Wellman Capital Management in Portland, requesting information on the foundation’s investments in energy.

He was provided with a graphic demonstrating 5 percent of the foundation’s endowments are in energy. Of that 5 percent, not all is necessarily in fossil fuels, Love said.

Fund managers who weighed in also disagree with divestment, Love said. “They don’t think it will have any impact.” “We’re not giving these companies an influx of cash; we’re buying an ownership stake,” Love said. “That’s essentially what stock is.”

Love is not alone in this regard. “I don’t think divestment deals with it in the slightest,” President Mark Weiss said in a phone interview Wednesday.

While Weiss acknowledges climate change is a serious issue, he said, “There’s no incentive to not burn fossil fuels. It doesn’t do anything to solve the problem.”

“I absolutely agree with Mark when he says that the WOU foundation divesting will not impact the industry in any quantifiable way,” Plec said in an email Wednesday.

For Amspacher, divestment is about doing the ethical thing. “Western’s foundation by itself is not going to have a big impact,” Amspacher said. “While it’s just symbolic, if other schools follow what we do, then it loses its purely symbolic action and it becomes something with a tangible impact.”

Though both sides may be in agreement that divesting will have little-to no impact on fossil fuel companies, the question has been raised whether or not
it could hurt student scholarship money brought in by the foundation.

With the first American college, Hampshire College, Mass. having divested in 2011 according to gofossilfree.org, quantitative data of divestment’s impact is hard to come by. This leaves Love unsure of the consequences when it comes to student scholarship money.

“To say that by having our school divest, our financial returns won’t be hurt is untrue and unpredictable,” Love said in a presentation to ASWOU Jan. 14 according to senate minutes.

In the 2013-2014 fiscal year, the foundation awarded $663,669 in scholarship support.

Love said the risk of losing financial returns and hurting scholarships for students is prevalent.

“We have the moral obligation to provide as many scholarships as we can,” he said. “At this time the foundation is not looking to divest.”

“Some universities have received new donations specifically because they divested, and it is possible that some donors do not support divestment,” said a Jan. 22 memo from Plec and VanSteeter addressed to faulty senate.

However, “Some of our most significant contributions for the benefit of students and our campus have come from individuals in the business chain of big oil,”
Weiss said in a Wednesday email.

In a follow-up phone interview, Weiss said, “Just in the past two years, we’ve gotten approximately $3 million from donors that have ties to energy.” Some significant donors have ties to road construction companies or major trucking
companies, he added.

Weiss said he wants to see the conversation shift toward solving global warming and what can be done on campus.

Love said just because the foundation doesn’t support divestment doesn’t mean they’re not interested in a discussion on climate change.

Plec said the environmental club will focus the rest of this term on educating the campus. Beginning this term, they will also work to give the foundation incentive to divest. This will be done through divestment initiative donation
request forms given out to organizations, institutions, donors and individuals.

Money raised from pledges would work to offset any possible short-term negative financial divestment consequences. The form can be found on the environmental
club’s Facebook page.

“Whether or not we succeed with divestment, we’re going to measure our success by how informed and thoughtful people are about the issue,” Plec said. “I think when you make real social changes, there’s a lot of leg work involved.”

Finding a way to make divestment profitable for Western is the environmental club’s new goal. Plec said it’s time to “put our money where our ethics and values are.”

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The time is now to rise for revolution

By KATRINA PENAFLOR
 Campus Life Editor

Abby’s House brought the campaign, One Billion Rising Revolution, to Western’s campus Feb. 12, for its third year. One Billion Rising is a national event that started in 2012, with its focus to end violence against women.

According to www.onebillionrising.org,“One in three women across the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. That’s one billion women and girls.”

One Billion Rising has taken place in over 200 countries, and people can show their support by rising against these injustices.

The One Billion Rising Revolution campaign continues the previous year’s One Billion Rising for Justice campaign.

Promoting the campaign brings awareness to the issues and Andrea Hugmeyer, assistant director of Abby’s House, said she hopes students will, “recognize the incredible amount of violence women experience in their lives.”

Abby’s House played music and provided free hot chocolate to students. They also set up tables and posters with statistic about racism, ableism, classism, sexism, and heterosexism for students to recognize the different systems of oppression.

One of the posters included a quote from Lilla Watson, a woman’s activist from Australia: “If you have come to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us walk together.”

There was also a large sign for students to paint their handprints to support the campaign.

Jessica Galbraith, who is doing her practicum with Abby’s House, said she likes “the idea of getting the youth involved.” The many handprints on the sign was evidence of Western’s students support for One Billion Rising.

The event was set up on the front plaza of the Werner University Center. Being in such a high traffic area gave more students the opportunity to notice what was happening. The campaign “forces people to think about it,” Hugmeyer said.

“We want them to think about social injustice,” said Abby’s House advocate Jessica Fontaine.

One Billion Rising was the kick off for the upcoming Valentine’s Day events Abby’s House will present in February, such as the Vagina Monologues.

“Together we can rise for revolution,” Hugmeyer said.

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IFC decision sparks controversy

By JACK ARMSTRONG & CONNER WILLIAMS
 News Editor & Staff Writer

Proposed changes during the preliminary decision of the Incidental Fee Committee’s (IFC) 2015-2016 budget were met with resistance from students, staff and faculty.

The committee drafted a budget which would maintain the previous year’s operating budget for every funded area except athletics.

If ratified, the suggested budget would reduce athletics’ overall budget 5 percent.

The Incidental Fee Committee is a group of student leaders supervised by staff advisers. The only voting members of the process are the students who sit on the committee.

Incidental fees are collected from students every term and are used for student clubs and activities that fall outside the realm of academics such as student leadership activities, special interest clubs, health and wellness, and athletics.

All of the academic-related expenses (professor salary, administrative expenses, etc.) are covered through tuition.

Speaking on the value of the IFC, Western’s President Mark Weiss stated that all students should have a voice.

“Some students are concerned about raising fees while other students believe it important to fund co-curricular activities at even higher amounts,” Weiss said.

The current year’s incidental fees total $322 per term or $966 per year. If the proposed budget is voted through unchanged, fees for 2015-2016 will increase 3.7 percent to $334 per term or $1,002 per year.

The preliminary budget increases the student fees per term despite the divisive cut to athletics due to an increase in enhancements granted to various funded areas.

Enhancements are one-time increases in funding for clubs to use towards a specific item (e.g., a new computer, travel to a conference, etc.).

After IFC reached an initial decision, the student body was given the opportunity to present their opinions directly to the committee in a series of town-hall style open hearings.

OPEN HEARING BEGINS

Held on Thursday, Feb. 5, the first hearing drew large audiences and raw emotions as students packed the Summit room in the Werner University Center.
Some student groups attended to express their appreciation for the difficult decisions of the IFC.

The Child Development Center presented the committee with crafts the children had made, while the directors discussed the importance of easy access to day care for student with children.

The creative arts department also had multiple representatives express their gratitude from jazz band, theater arts, marching band and drum line.

While praise flowed from many who spoke, the majority of students in attendance were athletes with grievances.

One student presenting on behalf of Western football asked for all the representatives of the athletic department to rise, and nearly threequarters of the room stood.

Student athletes lobbying for Western’s track and field, football, and volleyball teams were met with uproarious cheers and rounds of applause.

Nicole Anderson, a senior track and field athlete, was moved to tears as she said she was “ashamed to be a part of a university that doesn’t support all student endeavors equally.”

Anderson stated that “Western athletes are scraping the bottom. We’re the least funded program in the GNAC.”

David Mcleod, a sophomore track athlete, revealed his intention to leave Western as a result of what he saw as the committee’s “continued lack of support for athletics.”

Mcleod highlighted his lack of opportunity within the team as his main motivation to seek out another school.

“I came to compete, but I didn’t get the chance,” Mcleod said. “The budget definitely limits the amount of athletes who can travel to races. To work and train so hard to not see that work rewarded with races is difficult to swallow.”

Themes of fairness and unrewarded hard work were common in the presentations by athletes.

IFC’s decision had divided the student body, and Chair Quinn Forner was expecting the response. “I wasn’t surprised by the emotion, it is understandable,” he said.

SECOND HEARING BEGINS

The second open hearing, held on Monday, Feb. 9, played host to even more students than the first, and once again the athletics department dominated the attendance sheet.

In addition to more positive feedback from groups like creative arts, Abby’s House, and Stonewall Center, various club sports teams voiced their appreciation for continued funding.

Members of the both the men’s and women’s rugby teams, along with representatives from men’s soccer and men’s lacrosse all highlighted their gratitude for the chance to play.

While the club teams expressed support for their own continued funding, many also pleaded for a reconsideration of the cut to athletics.

Several of the presenting students who were involved in multiple IFC funded areas also stressed the importance of the range of activities currently available, especially as a means to raise Western’s image in the communities where athletics conducts their outreach.

The impact on prospective student recruitment and the impact on the overall community and culture of campus was often cited as the main reasoning behind the cross-club support.

Almost all spoke on unfavorable travel conditions for away matches, uniforms in dire need of replacement, and equipment improvements required for maintaining compliance with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

The argument against budget cuts had become one of a return on investment for athletes who train daily for the chance to compete and are also expected to maintain academic excellence.

While many of the pleas were similar to those from the first hearing, one student had a message that was different from the rest.

Jenesa Honda, judicial administrator and head of the Associated Students of Western Oregon University Judicial Branch, supported the proposed cut to the athletics fund because of the overall effect on student fees.

“The rest of the departments can’t always take the hit,” Honda said. She added that “each one has some excess fluff that can be trimmed.” Honda specified that athletes and athletics can bring a certain spirit, but that usually only involves those who choose to participate.

“Students sometimes question funding athletics, especially those who aren’t associated with them,” Honda said. “This fee was $277 per term in 2011, and now it is expected to rise to $334 in 2015.”

The difference between these two figures is $171 annually, and that can amount to the cost of all textbooks in a term for some students.
Honda’s opinions are not uncommon among the student body. Juan Esparza, a business administration senior, initially didn’t know that his incidental fees went towards athletics.

“I actually wasn’t aware that I paid for clubs and athletics, and no, I don’t think it is fair,” Esparza said. He said that while he “understood that the school must fund activities, tuition is already a stretch for many.”

Students looking for more explanation of the IFC process or more information on how to become involved for the 2016 academic year can speak to IFC Chair and ASWOU representative Forner.

Forner is available for student feedback at the ASWOU table on the second floor of the Werner Center, across from the bookstore, every Tuesday and Thursday from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.

A meeting for the final deliberations will be held in the Columbia Room of the WUC, Monday, Feb. 16, 5:30 p.m.

Disclaimer: The Journal is funded through Incidental Fees via Student Media.

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Students attend state capitol rally to restore higher education

By JACK ARMSTRONG
 News Editor

Over 100 Western students attended the Rally to Restore Higher Education at the Oregon state capitol building, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2015.

The rally was part of an effort by the Oregon Student Association to push the further investment needed for Oregon to freeze state university and community college tuition rates until 2017.

Representatives from Western joined students from 26 other community colleges and state universities from across Oregon.

The Oregon Legislature would need to invest $755 million for state universities and $560 million for community colleges to ensure that tuition rates could remain the same. If the legislature cannot approve this investment, tuition could rise as much as 10 percent in the next year.

“Education is an opportunity everyone should have a chance to experience,” said Kristen Case, a sophomore and a resident assistant who attended the rally. “There is so much power in it.”

Other students attending the rally were focused on maintaining the financial viability for currently enrolled students.

“The financial burden is always present for students and it’s the most stressful thing, even above grades,” said Emiliano Cruz-Barrera, first year student.

Some students like Javan Davis, a mathematics and dance major, face the possibility of having to drop out if the tuition freeze does not go through.

“Currently if I don’t find a job, I’ll have to drop out before the next term even starts,” Davis said. “If we keep making entry into college harder and we keep raising prices, we won’t get anywhere.”

Students at the rally also had a chance to hear from bi-partisan speakers of the legislature such as house representative Mark Johnson (R), and co-chair of the Ways and Means committee representative Peter Buckley (D).

For more information on the tuition freeze, visit www.orstudents.org

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Western sees continued growth in online course offerings

By JACK ARMSTRONG
 News Editor

Online courses are an integral component of learning on campus. Most students have now taken a class that involves the use of Moodle or Yammer. Many professors also use their own personal websites and spaces like WordPress to enhance student engagement.

The growing number of students expressing interest in online learning tools has prompted Western’s Center for Teaching and Learning and Extended Programs, located in ITC 204, to look toward expansion. Director Dan Clark and Strategic Partnerships Manager Elayne Kuletz are leading the charge towards technology-enhancedleading the charge towards technology-enhanced learning.

Clark said he is most excited about the possibility of an expanded online catalog because it would “meet the evolving needs of the students in our region.”

Kuletz said most students who have been asked about the benefits of online class options tend to cite the flexibility afforded by the lack of a set-in-stone, face-to-face schedule.

Clark said that often it is the availability of online classes that can be the make-or-break for students with extenuating circumstances to attend Western at all.

The flexibility of online courses is especially important for students who work when they are not in class, commuter students who live in Salem and beyond, and students who have children.

During a Jan. 9 meeting, the Division of Extended Programs discussed proposing a list of practices and processes to support flexible learning opportunities. At this point, policies for programs like Moodle, or course syllabi are limited or non-existent.

It is also unclear to DEP how many classes are offered online and calculations could be in dispute because certain online courses or partial online courses are only offered to certain students.

This number is especially difficult to determine because of the lack of standard definitions concerning what constitutes an online course.

Kuletz stressed a “push for more clarity.” She added there was a belief in the department that “students have the right to know what they are signing up for.”

According to Clark, there are seven categories of Technology Enhanced Classes. Classes are broken into: Technology Enhanced, Online, Online Proctored, Online Plus, Hybrid, Live Virtual and Virtual Hybrid. Each one attempts to address a different need for time or location flexibility.

All classes have the option of creating an online presence through Moodle. It is up to the professor and the department as to whether or not that option is exercised. Many faculty members make frequent use of Moodle as a document delivery system and a way to make class announcements.

Students have already experienced classes using the hybrid methodology. Courses in this style are taught through in-person meeting times and online work.

Online courses are classified as courses delivered only online with no pre-arranged time commitments.

In moving forward with an extended range of offerings, however, Clark said he encourages faculty to utilize the Online Plus format.

Online Plus is similar to the “only online” offerings in that all of the content is delivered online, but this iteration would also provide students with regular (but optional) meetings and activities.

These additional activities could range from professor-run question and answer sessions, to simply having access to an on-campus tutor on particular days.

Clark said he champions Online Plus because “there are hurdles when you never meet the students.” Some students will not be able to attend, but for those who really need a face-to-face (or even virtual) meeting, it is an opportunity to retain some of the feel of a more traditional classroom experience. Online Plus is designed to appeal the widest range of student learning styles while still accommodating students who are not able to attend regular class meetings.

Clark said he hopes this approach will bring more faculty members on board with a more expansive online catalog.

To help further their cause among the faculty, the department is in the process of interviewing candidates for an additional team member who would be responsible for training faculty in the creation of a cohesive online course.

This new position will be important as every online class is designed and maintained by a professor in conjunction with their department. This is an important distinction from other online colleges as it should result in more relevant and useful courses for the students.

In addition to new staff, the Center for Teaching and Learning and Extended Programs is offering a recurring series of seminars for tenure-track faculty to better understand what it takes to create a dynamic and effective online course.

The most recent of these events called the Winter Online Teaching Institute, took place during winter break, but there are several offered throughout the year.

Clark and Kuletz said more participation in the Institutes will translate to a higher quality of online education. Clark recognizes students are turned off by massive online colleges like the University of Phoenix and said Western has a unique opportunity to offer “something that is devised to fit the needs of Western.”

The Center is committed to expanding the possibilities at Western and, in the meantime, will continue streamlining Moodle and Yammer for both the student and faculty benefit.

Western Oregon University’s Land Acknowledgement
Western Oregon University in Monmouth, OR is located within the traditional homelands of the Luckiamute Band of Kalapuya. Following the Willamette Valley Treaty of 1855 (Kalapuya etc. Treaty), Kalapuya people were forcibly removed to reservations in Western Oregon. Today, living descendants of these people are a part of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde Community of Oregon and the Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians.

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WOU prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, national or ethnic origin, age, religion, marital status, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression in all programs, activities and employment practices as required by Title IX, other applicable laws, and policies. Retaliation is prohibited by WOU.

IFC and ASWOU Debate Fees UPDATE

Faculty senate passes divestment resolution

Campus Poll: Facial Hair?

The time is now to rise for revolution

IFC decision sparks controversy

Students attend state capitol rally to restore higher education

Western sees continued growth in online course offerings

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