The long-term and short-term benefits of the greening of the quad greatly outweigh the minor inconveniences that students may experience while adjusting to the new parking accommodations.

With fewer asphalt surfaces on campus and more green space, John Carroll will have a higher degree of sustainability. This higher environmental standard will be seen on many levels around campus.

Although there are enough parking spaces for everyone, there is more incentive for local students to ride their bicycles or walk. If driving is necessary, that is still a possibility since the current parking capacity is 1,650 spaces and only 1,475 passes have been sold this year.

Another environmental advantage is the amount of rain water that will no longer run into the city’s sewer system. This will decrease the University’s regional water run-off fee, currently estimated at $36,000 annually. 

Despite the environmental and financial benefits, the elimination of the lot has aroused concern among students who fear that there will not be enough on-campus parking for everyone.

Even though there are 250 fewer parking spaces on campus this semester, the efforts of the University and the cooperation of the students and faculty have helped to avoid any major traffic problems and should be commended.

Campus Safety Services has been instrumental in the new traffic pattern. This transition allows it to maintain control of traffic flow and keep track of the number of cars on campus. With the addition of two new guardhouse attendants, CSS is handling the revised traffic patterns and vehicle control well.

Students should continue to support the new parking situation, as its benefits to the University are great. In the instance that there is not enough parking on campus, students should also take advantage of the overflow parking and shuttle service that the University has started to and from Target.

Overall, the greening of Hamlin Quad is praiseworthy and shows evidence of thorough planning and execution of the project on behalf of the University.

The University must agree, among other conditions, to moratoriums on future property purchases and special appeals in a designated area of University Heights, as well as, a prohibition from seeking tax-exempt status for the property, a house at 4070 Carroll Blvd. 

The University should promptly accept the motion approved by City Council, in spite of the additional restrictions. 

The restrictions address the concerns of residents of neighboring properties. Conditions that restrict signage on the second floor of the residence keep the building nondescript and undifferentiated from surrounding homes. Restrictions on parking military and other vehicles have similar functions.

The University should not seek tax-exempt status, so as not to diminish the property’s value to the City. 

The motion’s approval from City Council is demonstrative of an effort to work collaboratively with JCU and to ameliorate poor past relations. 

By agreeing to the motion, JCU would publicly display cooperation with the City and respect for the requests and concerns of its citizens. 

The acceptance of the City’s motion and a good faith effort to abide by it would vastly improve the image of JCU in the community and would create opportunities for future collaborative efforts.

The bike program is a praiseworthy endeavor that demonstrates dedication to personal wellness and sustainability and synergizes the resources of JCU, University Heights and EIG.

We applaud the students involved in EIG for taking the initiative to develop this program and for working to find funding through grants and donations. These students exhibit a knack for resourceful planning and commitment to bringing green initiatives to JCU. 

We commend University Heights Mayor Susan Infeld for supporting the efforts of EIG and the City for donating 28 bikes. The donations are generous gifts that reflect the City’s willingness to collaborate with JCU. 

The JCU administration approved winter storage space for the bikes in the Dolan Science Center garage. We recognize the University for helping EIG bring the program to fruition, as well. 

The program will begin next fall. At that time, EIG must continue to promote the bike program and educate the JCU community about sustainability. Student awareness is required to make the program worthwhile and beneficial. 

EIG must also follow through with their plan to use the bikes during JCU’s Ride For Miles event and to develop recreational programs. 

Students should support the efforts of their peers by renting the bicycles. Using the program demonstrates commitment to Earth-friendly practices and physical fitness. 

Also, student support of the program is likely to encourage the

In some departments, every teacher is responsible for designing their own course evaluation forms. In others, the faculty comes up with the surveys as a department. Because of the loose formatting standards for these surveys across the board, there is a lack of uniformity between classes and between departments.

These evaluations are very important to curricular design, but there are a number of fundamental problems that must be addressed before they can be an effective meterstick of a course’s success.

The first major problem is how seriously students fill out the evaluations. The professors use the students’ criticism and recommendations to further develop their courses. If the students do not take the surveys seriously, then the professors will not have any constructive suggestions to work with. 

This problem can be addressed if the evaluations themselves are restructured. Currently, there are no universal criteria to which the surveys must conform, leaving some departments with very ineffective evaluation forms. The University must institute standards that clearly outline what the forms must include; this will create a much more effective measure of how well the courses are received by the students. 

The Boler School of Business serves as a good model for effective course evaluations. We believe that they should be commended for their thorough collections and analysis of their feedback. 

The Boler School uses two types of criteria. The first is quantitative, giving students a series of questions that can be answered on a scale of one to five. The next criterion is qualitative, asking specific questions about the professor and how the class was conducted. 

The quantitative information is processed and analyzed to come up with a concrete list of how effective their courses are and which areas they need to improve. The qualitative responses are given to the professors so they can revise their individual classes as necessary.

The other schools should conform their surveys to the Boler School model. Uniform class evaluation forms would provide a more comprehensive analysis of the classes. We also believe that a central office for review  is a necessary facet of the evaluation process.

This year’s event raised approximately $40,000, a steep decrease from the more than $100,000 that was raised during the first JCU Relay For Life event in 2007. 

While we recognize the economic recession as a factor in the decrease, we also hold lagging student participation and dedication as contributors. About 600 people participted, down approximately 250 people compared to last year.

As people attending a university that prides itself on service, students should make an effort to support large fundraising events like Relay For Life. Students could have formed teams or attended the event to show support in place of monetary contributions. 

Further, as JCU and the City work to strengthen their relationship, it is important to have a large student presence at events that invite the community to participate. Relay For Life is an opportunity to unify JCU students with community members for a common cause. 

We hope to see more student involvement in future Relay For Life events on campus and greater concern for being active members of the JCU and University Heights communities.

We commend those who participated through rain and shine to support the goals of the event and raised a significant amount of money for the American Cancer Society.

We also commend the volunteers who organized the event. This year’s Relay received approval from the city of University Heights to remain outside for the duration of the event; however, rain forced the event inside. The event coordinators made a fluid transition to the DeCarlo Varsity Gym, where WJCU and live musical performances provided entertainment.

We commend the University’s efforts to expand the number of programs offered. Included among the new programs are a leadership studies minor, an international business major, a human resource management major and a peace, justice and human rights major. The benefits of the curricular expansion are many.

On one level, this will hopefully draw more interest from potential students. Many high school seniors have a good idea of what field they would like to pursue, but their major may be largely undecided. For these students, a college with a greater list of majors would be more appealing. The additional programs would allow them to choose their school without knowing exactly which major they will declare.

At the same time, it is important that these new programs uphold the academic integrity that the University has in the other majors. While attracting new students is definitely an advantage, it is more important that JCU maintains an academic standard on par with the University’s reputation, and that they do not sacrifice quality for quantity.

We also feel it is important to look at what current students desire. Every year, JCU loses some students who transfer to other schools that offer more majors. We feel that any department could benefit from additional majors, and students should let the faculty know if they would like to see new programs.

We believe that the recent development of the East Asian studies major should be used as a guideline to build other new programs. Last fall, the East Asian studies program was offered as only a minor. Within a year, it has grown into a full, 36-credit program. 

Since there is no deadline for new majors to be completed, the University must hold the faculty accountable for the completion and development of the new programs also.

We also applaud the diversity of the East Asian studies major. It is a comprehensive examination of East Asian languages and cultures and already has satellite programs in China and Japan to encourage studying abroad. We hope that the new programs follow the initiative of this major.

The Carroll News commends the JCU administration for allowing a protest of this magnitude and controversy to be held on campus. We also commend the students and members of John Carroll Conservatives for organizing the event. The magnitude of the event was impressive, however, with classes still in session the music was disruptive. This may be something to take into consideration for future events during school hours. 

We commend the student protestors for their peaceful protest of the event as well. The welcoming attitude of the Tea Party to the student protestors was also commendable. 

It is encouraging to see a healthy, engaged political discussion among students and adults.  For all members of the JCU community, no matter their political affiliation, the Tea Party movement was beneficial because it exhibited democracy in action. 

The Carroll News believes that more debates and events of this nature should be held on campus. For example, political debates between party members or even political rallies. This would help to engage our generation in the political discourse and participate in the freedom of democracy.

We commend Infeld for her efforts to re-evaluate the City’s budget, re-format the newsletter, and improve communication between the University and the City. These are the hallmark accomplishments of her first 100 days, but she is looking forward to many other reforms as well.

Her plans include modernizing the City’s Web site and putting City procedures into writing. The goal for the University Heights Web site is to make it more interactive and user-friendly and make online bill payment available to the community.

We appreciate her aggressive agenda, but the University and the city’s residents must continue to hold her accountable.  Just because she achieved parts of her agenda in her first several months in office does not mean that both parties should become complacent and fail to act as watchdogs.

One of her biggest goals is to improve the relationship between John Carroll University and the rest of the University Heights community.

Mayor Infeld already demonstrated her willingness to cooperate with JCU when she proposed a successful motion that Relay for Life, the East-West high school football game and the Continental Cup be held outside without petitioning City Council each year. We feel that this is the type of progress that is needed to improve relations.

There are many other programs that she plans to implement that will mutually benefit the University and surrounding neighborhoods.

Among them are: environmental programs, community gardens, and a bicycle donation program. Her plan to donate confiscated bicycles to JCU for student use is a beneficial and practical plan.  However, we must ensure that she follows through with these actions.

We feel Mayor Infeld has a lot to offer the community, including the University, and JCU should take advantage of this opportunity and once again open up a two-way dialogue.

With the recent decline in requests for living in a same-sex dorm, we feel the administration made the more practical choice. For the 2008-2009 school year, 70 out of the 1,793 students requested the single-sex option and for 2009-2010 school year, 40 students out of 1,683 on-campus residents requested this option. 

For next year, it was the best option; however, in following years, the administration should continue to take note of the want for single-sex dorms. 

Students who are already members of the JCU community may have concerns about the changing policy and should speak up if they have a strong feeling about the elimination of single-sex dorms.

JCU is not the only Jesuit university to make this change, as Xavier University in Cincinnati and Loyola University Chicago have both switched to strictly co-ed dormitories. 

The administration made a strategic choice and the correct one, but must remember to keep the students’ opinion in mind as they continue housing development in future years.

The Carroll News commends the University Heights City Council for approving this movement in a unanimous decision.

We also commend Mayor Susan Infeld for moving to allow JCU to hold Relay For Life as well as the East-West high school football game and the Continental Cup outside annually.

Lastly, we commend Rachel Ball, the graduate assistant for the office of student activities, for her dedication to assuring that Relay For Life would be held outside throughout the night. 

This is an event which not only benefits the school, but also the community. The outright support from the University Heights City Council has shown they are willing to compromise with the University and work together. 

It’s important to note that this year’s Relay For Life is a test run and although it’s being held outside, Mayor Infeld and the University Heights City Council will evaluate the event and vote again next year. 

The John Carroll University community needs to ensure that this year’s event demonstrates they are capable of conducting the relay appropriately. The JCU community should understand that this is a privilege and not a right. 

Dora Pruce, JCU’s director of government and community relations, stated that amplified noise would be turned off around 9 p.m. to limit the  disturbances for the residents. This is an excellent step to take and we commend the University and those involved for taking this precaution. 

Through residents’ responses Mayor Infeld and the council will evaluate the events. The University and the participants must keep that in mind during Relay. The event is slated to end at 4 a.m. on Sunday morning, and so a safe and quiet return home for both those living on and off campus is imperative.

A step to help make this event an overall success is using common sense. The JCU community should act responsibly, respectfully, and try to keep the activities within the designated space for the relay. 

The school needs to stay on the ball and prove to the City that they can act maturely, while having fun and fighting cancer.

We commend Niehoff for attending the meeting and willingness to answer students’ questions. However, The Carroll News thinks that his opening statement was too long. The event was advertised to students as an open forum where they would be allowed to ask questions. Due to the length of his comments, however, only nine student questions were answered. The information that Niehoff presented was interesting and important to be informed about, but wasn’t necessarily relevant to what the students were curious about, and thus negated the purpose of the meeting. In future Student Union forums we feel that the opening comments should be limited to a few minutes so that more student concerns can be addressed. 

In his opening and closing statements, Niehoff covered a multitude of issues that he is currently trying to solve and reiterated that he is not always the proper person to contact about many of problems that the students have. Niehoff said that students and parents should contact the heads of the proper departments in order for concerns to be addressed more quickly and effectively. He said multiple times that some of the concerns brought to him by students are not within his area of expertise. The example Niehoff used were student and parent letters he has received about the parking situation. 

The Carroll News believes that Student Union should take Niehoff’s advice and invite more administrative leaders, that pertain to current and specific issues, to an open forum. This would be beneficial because more questions would be properly and sufficiently answered while reducing animosity towards Niehoff.

In his statement, Niehoff also placed lack of student knowledge on issues of the student representatives. On each board within the University there are Student Union appointed representatives. Niehoff mentioned that recently many boards have complained about the student delegates’ rate of absences.

The past group of representatives was at fault for the lack of attendance at the previous board meetings. Now that the new representatives have been appointed, there is an opportunity to improve communication between these committee representatives, Student Union and the administration, in hopes that the information will trickle down into the student body. 

Furthermore, students need to be made aware of who the representatives are and should be provided with contact information on Student Union’s Web site. These delegates should be held responsible for their attendance at these board meetings as well as communication between the committees and Student Union. 

 Although Niehoff’s point about better attendance by student representatives is valid, The Carroll News believes that Niehoff should make a more concerted effort to make himself accessible to students on campus in general. Some possible ways of doing this would be to eat in the dining hall a few times a month or to show up at Student Union meetings when in town.     

However, Niehoff is not completely at fault for his lack of visibility to students. Earlier this year there was a major outcry for Niehoff to have a stronger presence on campus. Students were furious that he was not able to attend meetings and attacked his motives. On Tuesday, they had the opportunity to confront him about their concerns and allow him to address problems on campus, but they did not bother to attend. 

The lack of student participation was disheartening. Considering the amount of advertising combined with the general complaints of people on campus, The Carroll News feels that the low student attendance level at the meeting was inexcusable. Many people assert that they are uninformed about University issues and that they have never seen Niehoff in person, but here was an open forum opportunity to talk with Niehoff, and students failed to attend. 

Students have the responsibility of holding Niehoff accountable, but Tuesday illustrated student ambivalence. In failing to provide a strong turnout, students may have given Niehoff the impression that his presence is not necessary.

It is extremely disappointing that our student body was so apathetic and uninterested in an event of such importance. Each student, not just class senators, acts as a voice that should be heard. With only 12 students showing up, an unfortunate message was sent: The student body simply does not care.

Reportedly, the on-duty officer allowed the non-CSS person into the guardhouse to use the computer. 

We at The Carroll News feel that CSS should restrict the use of that computer from any person not employed by CSS due to the potentially confidential information that is accessible.

In the e-mail, presidents of Sigma Phi Epsilon and Delta Tau Delta were asked if they were interested in obtaining this book from the source, known only as Kim Meadows. 

Kyle Shepard, the Sigma Phi Epsilon president, responded to the original e-mail expressing interest in obtaining the book and subsequently returned it to the Beta fraternity. Later that night, the source asked how much the book was worth to him.

We commend Kyle Shepard in acting honorably in notifying Beta Theta Pi about the e-mail. It was a respectable act and illustrated true Jesuit ideals and values. 

Beta Ritual Chair, Nick Orlando, filed a report with CSS about the missing book on Feb. 19. The report included information about the e-mails between Shepard and Meadows from what appears to have been an effort to profit from the return. 

When the book was returned on Feb. 22 to the CSS lost and found, the suspect was not questioned or even identified on record because the CSS officer at the desk was unaware of the situation surrounding the importance of the book. 

Director of CSS, Tim Peppard, admitted to the mistake of not questioning the person who returned the book and that there was limited talk between those involved. There should be better communication within the CSS department. 

It is not policy to question people who turn items into lost and found at the risk that it will deter people from returning items. 

However, in this situation CSS would have had every right to question the suspect because it involved the use of CSS property and there was financial bribery involved. 

Unfortunately, the poor interaction between CSS staff members resulted in the missing of a prime opportunity and are now involved in a messy ongoing investigation. 

Communication practices within the department need to improve immediately in order to prevent future incidents. All officers should be aware of the happenings and complaints within the department. 

At any time there is an ongoing investigation, all personnel of the CSS personnel need to be informed and on the lookout for any items returned that pertain to a case. 

Even for cases in which students return items that are not pertaining to an ongoing investigation, there needs to be some sort of record about where the item was found and other relevant information.

The Student Union has already been presented with two programs as alternatives to the shuttle program. One program was the Zipcar where students could rent vehicles. This program seems a bit unrealistic though. The Student Activity Fee can’t cover  the funding of the shuttle loop, so they probably aren’t going to be able to fund this program. Plus, there would be no way of monitoring what the vehicles would be used for. U-RTA, a $25 per semester program that would allow students to ride the RTA an unlimited amount of times, would allow for prepaid transportation around campus, downtown and to the airport.  

Other Jesuit universities, such as Marquette University, have student drivers who are paid through work-study to act as a student cab service. This would be beneficial as it would employ more students and cut back the costs of paying full-time employees to drive the shuttles. We believe that there are plenty of options to explore here and they should be researched and exhausted fully. Students, especially those who don’t have cars, need some sort of transportation service to Cleveland areas. 

The success of the West Loop Shuttle depends on spreading the word to students. We feel it could be successful if more students are aware, as it is sure to be suggested again in the future if canceled.

 According to the Vice President and Executive Assistant to the President, Jonathan Smith, a committee for improving sustainability on campus will be released this week. We urge Carol Dietz, the chair of this committee, to make recycling at JCU the first item on their agenda. Andrew Fronczek, director of purchasing and auxiliary services, admitted in the Feb. 18 issue of The Carroll News that the University could do better on the recycling issue. It’s a problem that can be fixed immediately simply by using more distinctive sorting bins and better organization. With more distinctively marked bins and better publicity of the advancements on the issue, the University, as a whole, can significantly cut down on the contamination of recycled products. This will also avoid the need for the school to purchase more trash compactors, which can cost over $25,000. The sorting bins should be easily accessible to students everywhere on campus. Even small recycling containers on each floor of all the dorms would make a huge difference in the sustainibility of our University.

A strategy which often proves effective, and at the very least is organized, is to set goals to meet. The new sustainability committee needs to be a group open to the ideas of students and staff. Once the names are released the entire campus needs to be made aware of the members of the committee. Their future attempts at bettering the sustainability of our campus need to be extensively promoted on campus so that students, faculty and staff can help.

We commend the administration for putting together this committee; however, we urge the entire campus community to hold this committee accountable. They need to show the students, faculty and all other JCU employees that they are attacking this problem. This issue isn’t going to be a quick fix and, in order for real improvement, the entire JCU community needs to be involved.

The Student Union acted too quickly and under duress in passing Resolution R-1-SP10, a resolution regarding support of LGBT rights.

The resolution that called for the inclusion of sexual orientation in the school’s non-discrimination policy was voted on and passed in the Feb. 16 Student Union meeting. One clause stated that “students have shown their passion to improve the campus climate for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning (LGBTQ) students.” It goes on to explain that class senators represent the entire student constituency and it is their “responsibility to express the concerns of the student body.”

We find this troublesome because we don’t feel the entire student body was aware, well-informed, or able to express its feelings on this matter. Student Union and class senators should have done a better job gathering their respective class’s attitude on this matter before voting. Student Union should have tabled the resolution for at least two weeks to collect a consensus of the entire student body. A meeting should have been publicized and held for interested students to come and express their feelings, much like the open forum after the campus tragedies.

The final vote on the resolution was: 11 in favor, five opposed and four abstentions. At the time of the vote, four senators were absent and the resolution only required a simple majority. It is important to note that three of the four senators absent were seniors who are not required to attend meetings second semester of their senior year. Additionally, members of the LGBT community were present during the vote, which was inappropriate because senators may have been pressured or swayed to vote for the resolution because of the group’s presence.

The Carroll News feels that the Student Union should revote on the resolution. We feel the revote should be by secret ballot and attendance should be mandatory, even for senior senators (unless health is an issue).

LGBT

Once again The Carroll News commends the students in support of the LGBT inclusion clause on their determination and passion about the issue. However, we question the effectiveness and the necessity of some of the tactics. They have already gotten the attention of a majority of students, faculty and the press. At this point, a more formal approach needs to be taken in hopes of getting the clause passed.

When gathering student quotes for the article titled “Mixed feelings about LGBT methods,” we found that many students expressed concern with the way they were approached to sign the petition. Many were not fully aware of what they were signing, especially in the time between the protest and the release of last week’s issue of The Carroll News. We realize that there is literature available at the tables to educate signers on the issue and that is good, but the education should be given before the person signs.

Another concern has been the campus-wide promotional methods. According to school rules, student organizations must go through the Office of Student Activities to post flyers and advertisements on campus. Because the protesters are not an officially recognized organization, they do not have to go through this process. Flyers have been hung in unapproved areas as well as scrawled across snow mounds. The Carroll News understands the desire to present the messages in this way, however, it is unfair to student organizations who have to go through the official process. There needs to be a more formal push to be sponsored by a department or student group when moving forward in posting media and pressuring the administration.

Fasting in solidarity and standing during Mass isn’t pressuring the administration or the Board to pass the addendum to the policy. The LGBT community and its supporters are also rapidly losing effectiveness due to the length of time between the original sit-in and the Board meeting. After a while the protests becomes irrelevant and easy to tune out, causing it to be ineffective.

In a recent incident, an LGBT supporter approached a tour and began to lecture a prospective student about recent events pertaining to LGBT supporters’ fight for inclusion in the Equal Employment Opportunity Policy and their lack of support from the administration. The supporter urged the student not to attend JCU for these very reasons. The Carroll News recognizes that not all protesters support the actions of that particular member, but it is something that needs to be addressed. That particular protester’s actions were uncalled for, disrespectful and offensive. The point of the protest is not to be offensive.

Overall, the LGBT community needs to reconsider their methods of reaching the student body and gaining support from the administration.

The current policy states that JCU “will not discriminate against any employee or applicant pursuing employment based on race, age, sex, religion, ethnic or national origin, disability or status as a veteran.”

On Feb. 2, an e-mail from Niehoff that addressed the proposal and a draft of JCU’s upcoming community standards statement was sent to all students, faculty and administrators. 

In the e-mail, Niehoff responded to the proposed changes to the EEOP as something that he “could not support.” In response to his disapproval, a group of students protested on Feb. 3, at halftime during the men’s basketball game. The protest sparked discussions between students, faculty and administrators to discuss the e-mail and the documents that it revolved around. 

The Carroll News commends these students for taking a stand and fighting for their beliefs. We also laud the administration and Niehoff for responding quickly and appropriately by holding talks between the students and the administration. 

It is important to note that at this point in time the proposal for the amendment to the EEOP has not been presented to the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors, a group of more than 40 members made up of alumni, Jesuits and others involved with the University, would have the ultimate decision in deciding whether to include the LGBT community in the language of the EEOP. According to the administration, reasons for not presenting the proposal include a fear of losing money from donors and alumni, that they are not mandated by the state of Ohio to include it, and Niehoff did not think that the Board would pass it.

Some students and faculty have answered by citing reasons why they feel it necessary to include the LGBT community in the EEOP. It would legally protect FSA from discrimination based on their sexual orientation. Additionally, it would help curb the harassment of all JCU members of the LGBT community, including students. 

We feel that Niehoff should present the board with the faculty’s proposal to include LGBT in their EEOP and let the board decide for itself. Also students should be allowed to meet with members of the Board and explain why they feel the LGBT community should be included in the policy. There needs to be more dialogue and discussion between these two groups. A constructive and healthy debate would benefit both sides.

In the meantime, The Carroll News believes that the University should approve the community standards statement draft proposed by Niehoff as a step toward achieving some degree of social harmony. 

The community standards statement states that “gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender students, faculty, staff, administrators and alumni are welcome members of the community as children of God they are” and cites the second edition of the Catechism of the Catholic Church that states, “Every sign of unjust discrimination in their [LGBT] regard should be avoided.” The community statement doesn’t need to be approved by the board and would immediately effect the campus community if passed. We feel that presenting the proposal to the board and passing the community statements are steps in the right direction.

According to Tyson DuBay, food service director at John Carroll University, Aramark donated $2.25 for each swipe donated. However, he also said that each meal was valued at around $8. 

Students were unaware that Aramark was only donating $2.25. Aramark should have informed the students that only a portion of the money would be donated. 

We also believe that Aramark should donate all $8 to Haiti. If we were to assume that all meals were priced at that amount, then the total would be $3,600. Therefore, it would result in an additional $2,587.50 being sent  to help the survivors in Haiti.

The Carroll News believes that JCU has done a good job increasing the number of online courses. However, we also think there is room for improvement. So far all online courses offered at JCU are during the summer terms. We believe that JCU should offer more online courses for undergraduates and do so during the school year. JCU has a large local population, and enrollment would rise as the number of courses increase. The school would also increase its enrollment outside of Cleveland and hopefully attract a larger audience nationwide. 

The cost of offering more online courses would not be astronomical, especially if these costs were offset with the tuition for online students. In the past at JCU, all minimum enrollment rates for online courses have been met, and a course has never been cancelled to date. 

The main concern of offering more online courses would be the possible loss of academic standards for the online classes. However, there are solutions to avoid a loss of quality. Identical syllabi to that of classroom courses would be provided and additional interactivity between online students and the professor. 

Such additions would be weekly conference calls with the professor during which students could ask the instructor questions over the phone.  Online quizzes could become a weekly part of the classes to ensure the students are reading and keeping up on the work. This is easy-to-achieve and inexpensive, considering discussions and videos are posted regularly on Blackboard. Students in online courses would have identical assignments and due dates to those in the classroom, forcing the same level of effort to be put forth in seeking the degree. 

Maintaining the level of academic excellence JCU is known for while introducing more convenience with online courses would put JCU ahead of many similarly ranked schools. For example, Baldwin-Wallace College, according to their Web site, offers a limited number of online courses and hybrid Blackboard courses during the year. Cleveland State University, although much larger, offers 14 eLearning Programs for both the undergraduate and graduate level during all semesters of the year. The Carroll News feels that the University can maintain its academic quality while offering more online classes during both the school year and summer.

Follett has been unavailable to answer questions pertaining to the prices of books at JCU. The Carroll News feels that Follett should become more progressive and begin to offer books at a lower price and in other forms. For example, the store could rent books to students at a cheaper price. It would still receive a profit while at the same time pleasing the students. Follett could also begin to offer select chapters of books online so if the professors know they won’t use the entire book, students could purchase only required sections. 

Professors could also help the students save money. We feel that the professors should reevaluate what is absolutely necessary for their courses and possibly cut back or provide some of the material, such as posting documents on Blackboard or making sure that the texts are available at the Grasselli Library or other public libraries. If instructors know that they may not use a certain book, then they shouldn’t require students to buy it until the time arises. Additionally, professors could release their list of required texts further in advance than at the beginning of the semester so students have time to find the books for less money.  

Students could also do more to find less expensive ways to purchase books. The Carroll News thinks that students should continue to buy books from Amazon.com, rent books from sites like Chegg.com, and use programs like OhioLINK to attain their books. 

Each of these three parties can take part in helping to lower the cost of buying books. We feel that through these viable options the end goal of saving money can be achieved.

The Carroll News commends Niehoff for the proactive approach he has taken with the alumni. Because of his efforts, alumni donations are up 29 percent from the fiscal year to date. In the past three years, JCU’s alumni donations have increased from 3,086 in 2008 to 3,148 in 2009 and 4,037 in 2010.  

The University will receive the McDonough donation in installments over a short period of time, which the administration could not specify.  

According to Doreen Riley, vice president of university advancement, there are several options for putting the money to work. However, all areas need some sort of additional funding. One suggestion, not official, is to use the money towards the abandoned Bohannon Science Center, which has been used sparingly since the construction of the Dolan Science Center’s opening in 2003. The administration did not give any specific details on what they would do with the Bohannon Science Center.

According to the administration, all the projects that are being looked into will require more than the $1 million. We, at The Carroll News, think the administration should open a dialogue with the students to see where they feel the money will be best spent. This would allow the administration to see how relevant their improvements are to the needs of the John Carroll community. 

The Carroll News feels that there needs to be more transparency and conversation between the student body and the administration in this allocation process. 

The other lump of money is coming from the bequest, which means the University will receive the money after the passing of the donor, and will be earmarked for student aid. It is the largest anonymous donation in the University’s 124-year history. 

When the University receives the money, a percentage of it, known as the “spending rate” will be allocated to student scholarships each year while the rest will be invested with the Endowment funds. These funds will help future students for many years, but will not necessarily benefit the current student body.

JCU has begun to collect money and other donations for Haiti which will be sent to the Jesuit Refugee Service. The Jesuit Refugee Service aids those who are forcibly displaced and refugees from events such as natural disasters.  

The Carroll News commends JCU for its efforts and commitment to the Jesuit mission. The school is accepting donations at various locations around campus including Campus Ministry, Center for Service and Social Action, and the atrium, to name a few. This past Saturday there was a dance at Jake’s Speakeasy to raise money for the victims.  Despite the underwhelming amount of publicity for the event, there was a large turnout. 

However, the University can do better. We feel they need to engage the student body in a more proactive way. The lack of presence in key student areas such as the atrium has been a disappointment and there needs to be more interaction with the school. 

We recommend that students or FSA volunteers walk around the cafeteria during meal hours and ask students for small donations. Students in the Boler School of Business could also use their marketing skills to form a plan to raise money or hold student and community-wide events to collect donations. There are other methods of raising money which have been seen at local universities. 

For example, Cleveland State University has taken a more personal angle by approaching its student body in all high-traffic areas. CSU maybe be bigger, but we feel that JCU still has the ability to do better. We feel that with all of our available resources, the University can do more to make a difference.

Community Relations

In 2009, John Carroll University’s relationship with University Heights improved, while the newly formed partnership with Shaker Heights caused controversy. University Heights and JCU banded together to help people to vote for a new mayor and begin a new line of communication.

The Carroll News commends the administration and Student Union on an excellent job in their efforts to involve students in the University Heights election. With the Carroll Counts campaign, a larger amount of students than ever before expressed their political right to vote, contributing more than one-third of the city’s total votes. Holding multiple debates, as well as a polling place on campus, the “Storm the Dorms” event, and the City Charter Review bettered the overall accessibility of the election to students. Not only were students more likely to participate in the elections, but it also brought outside community members to the campus, showing UH constituents that we weren’t as bad as the last regime made us out to be.

The Carroll News hopes that both the administration and the Student Union will continue to improve the relationships as the new year commences, building upon the strides made over the past semester.

On the other hand, serious measures need to be taken on the Shaker Heights front. With the purchase of four apartment buildings on Fairmount Circle, JCU expanded its territory into Shaker Heights.

As stated in an earlier issue, The Carroll News does not agree with the ordinance that the city passed last August, which restricts student occupation in the apartments owned by JCU within Shaker Heights.

With the controversial issue being voted upon, University representatives should have been present. The administration and Student Union representatives failed to show up, damaging not only the University’s image, but also our relationship with the city.

The Carroll News would like to see both Student Union and the administration take a more proactive role with the Shaker Heights community, starting with a meeting with Mayor Earl Leiken discussing a possible compromise on the issue.

Sustainability

Earlier this semester, JCU received an overall D+ from greenreport.com, a slight improvement from the previous year, but JCU must do better. The administration received an F for the lack of reporting sustainability despite the prospect of creating a committee in response to the poor grades. The Carroll News believes that the administration has failed to respond properly to the report and must correct the problem as soon as possible. Recently the Student Union passed a resolution urging the administration to join the Collegiate Sustainability practices consortium. We want to see a concerted effort by the administration to reduce the University’s carbon footprint.

The Carroll News applauds the administration and Student Union for taking a step in the right direction; however, they both need to do more. We suggest turning the lights off in buildings such as Bohannon and putting recycling bins in buildings or dorms instead of trash bins that are sorted later. Researching what other schools with high sustainability report cards do and emulating some of their techniques may also prove beneficial.

Tragedies

The administration and Student Union responded appropriately and efficiently to the three tragic losses that hit the JCU community earlier this semester, providing services to those affected by the deaths. The Counseling Center immediately offered its services and a suicide prevention hotline was quickly put in place.

We would like to see students made more aware of the Counseling Center’s hotline and services.

We would also like to see more open forum meetings between the administration and a majority of the student body where feelings and frustrations as well as information on all topics can be expressed.

Shaker Heights’ aim is to place a cap on the number of units being used by students at 87 percent of units in the Fairmount Garden complex and 50 percent in the Fairpark and North Park apartment complexes.

The Carroll News has already voiced their objection to this ordinance in a previous editorial in the Sept. 10 issue.

The interim ordinance, according to Mayor Earl Leiken, is to allow more time for discussion between the City and the University to reach an agreement that is equitable to both parties–no agreement has been reached yet.

Among the concerns being voiced by the residents who attended the meeting were increased traffic congestion and noise levels that would be created by more students moving into the University-owned properties in Shaker Heights.

While The Carroll News thinks it is a healthy debate for these residents to attend the city council meeting and voice their concerns, we are incredibly disappointed and discouraged that no one from either the JCU administration or Student Union were there to provide a defense of the students at the University or the University’s goals and/or policies.

The administration, through the office of JCU’s general council, sent a letter to the mayor of Shaker Heights, which both fiercely defended the University and took great care to emphasize that the University is open to an equitable agreement with the City.  We urge Shaker Heights to be more willing to work with the University than University Heights has been to further the goals of both the City and University. It is in the best interest of both parties that an agreement is made.

However, the fact that no student representative was at the meeting is, in our opinion, unacceptable.

At a time when we were voting for the Student Union executive board–a group of students who receive yearly compensation from every student’s Student Activity Fee–it is discouraging that not one candidate or current member could make the meeting.

Even if we were not paying members of the executive board, it is inherent within the job responsibility of being on the Student Union to be an advocate for the student body at large, and The Carroll News feels that this job responsibility was, in this case, largely ignored.

The Carroll News believes that the University has an opportunity to work with Shaker Heights, and in doing so can improve our relationship with University Heights, and that cannot be overlooked.

The expansion of the University is key to the future of the University–more student housing will expand the ability to adapt to increased enrollment, and that is something the University is attempting to do in order to keep their operating budget at an acceptable level.

Also, the University, largely through it’s students, provides a great service to Northeast Ohio. According to the letter sent by JCU general council, the University injects $115 million into the Northeast Ohio economy, some of which goes to Shaker Heights. A greater portion would go to Shaker Heights if we begin to further expand into the city.

This is a situation that can clearly benefit both parties.

The Carroll News urges the administration to have more of a presence at these meetings (although we do find the letter encouraging), and even more intensely urges Student Union to take their job of advocating for the student body more seriously. This is part of an important, and much needed, effort to expand the University and we cannot let this opportunity slip by.

In particular the University is working with the City to revise the restrictions imposed on Shula Stadium. The current rules restrict the use of the stadium and take away field-time from JCU athletics and intramurals.

These rules need to be amended and it’s great for JCU that University Heights mayor-elect Susan Infeld is willing to work on these issues with the University.

The restrictions that are being looked at include one  which mandates that all intramural events on the field must be finished so that the lights are turned off by 9 p.m. Another states that, men’s and women’s varsity soccer teams are only allowed two home night games per year each. Varsity football is only allowed one home night game per year, unless the game against Mount Union is played at JCU, then that game can be at night as well. The clause also says that games must start by 7 p.m. in order to end by 10 p.m. although there is an exception if the game goes into overtime.

There were restrictions on how the stadium’s sound system was to be built and a maximum sound level it could reach. In total there are 32 separate specifications that the City has on the stadium. Many of the restrictions are excessive and too strict for a city to put on the University that is such a valuable resource to it, so they should be re-evaluated.

The varsity athletic teams should be able to hold more night games at the stadium, and intramurals should also be allowed to run later. The sound system might be difficult to fix because it was built to fit the regulations as they are written. Hopefully under the new administration, the City will be more fair to the University and its students.

When deciding where to make these cuts, it is important to stay away from academic programs.

JCU is primarily a tuition-driven institution, and enrollment was low this past year. One of the keys to turning the University’s budget around is to increase the number of incoming students.

In a story in the Oct. 29 issue of The Carroll News, The Rev. Robert Niehoff mentioned one idea to help solve the enrollment issue is to decrease the size of the University and try to expand JCU’s academic programs to attract more working-adults to take professional classes.

Another idea presented was to expand recruiting efforts in different areas of the country. A more effective way would be to focus on areas like Boston, whose high school students have shown interest in JCU, instead of recruiting from the more local areas.

No matter where the cuts are made, JCU must be careful when considering cuts to academic programs. JCU’s strong academic reputation is a powerful recruitment tool, and it would be counterproductive to decrease funding in that area.