University student organizations combat poverty

By Antionette Rollins Members of the ONE Campaign UGA volunteer at the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia

Blake Barnett of the ONE Campaign at the Food Bank

Many student organizations at the University of Georgia have committed to eliminating local poverty in Athens Clarke-County, one of the neediest counties in Georgia, and some students gain personal experience along with serving the community.

“I initially joined in high school because it was the biggest organization,” Melanie Phelps, co-president of UGA Habitat for Humanity, said of her organization. “The turning point for me was when I went to a house dedication. It was very emotional and it was a huge thing for the family. It made it more real for me.”

Since 1994, UGA Habitat for Humanity has held events and raised funds, working toward the organization’s goal to combat homelessness and help provide housing for those in need.

“We have a saying, ‘working to house the world’,” said Phelps.

Phelps wanted to clear up a common misconception that her organization houses people for free. Rather, homeowners who receive help from Habitat for Humanity pay affordable mortgage terms without high interest rates.

The UGA chapter of Habitat for Humanity focuses on fund-raising in hopes of building one house per year. Since founded at UGA, the chapter has built 10 homes and is currently working to fund the 11th. Last year, the chapter raised $13,000 in their annual “Gift Wrap Across Georgia”, in which members went to local bookstores and gift-wrapped books for donations.

Another international organization represented on campus is the ONE Campaign UGA, an organization looking to end poverty. David Liddell, executive director of ONE at UGA, said the chapter’s three-prong mission includes awareness of poverty issues, advocacy and an emphasis on community service.

“As an Athens-based organization, we realize that Athens has specific needs,” Liddell said.

To address these needs, ONE has partnered with local organizations such as the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia to directly service the community. On a monthly basis, ONE staffs food bank direct-distribution projects by putting together food packages and helping with paperwork.

The organization also worked with AIDS Athens last year to raise funds, renovate the center’s programming room and collect clothes for the AIDS Athens clothing closet. Liddell believes that AIDS, poverty and hunger are interrelated issues that ONE can fight by supporting AIDS Athens.

“We basically ask where they need help and we try to help the best we can,” Liddell said.
Although student organizations like Habitat for Humanity and ONE put time and funds into their service projects, some students believe that large-scale Athens-area poverty cannot feel the benefits of student involvement.

“It is rampant, it’s everywhere,” said David Lightsey, a senior from Valdosta. “There aren’t enough students helping because at the end of the day, the rich kids go home and forget.”

Junior Meshell Maxam from Atlanta disagrees.

“I think they make an impact,” she said. “Trying to combat poverty says a lot about the quality of student organizations here on campus.”

Phelps and Liddell believe that the impact of student organizations depends upon the attitude of the student body.

“You can be involved as you want to be,” Liddell said in regards to student interest. “Our three-prong policy is flexible, so if you’re interested in community service, you can do that.”

On Oct. 15, 2009, the ONE Campaign UGA will recognize the “International Day for the Eradication of Poverty” by raising money through a film screening.

On Oct. 24, 2009, UGA Habitat for Humanity will host “Slam the Door on Poverty” at Myers Quad, where students can build doors and window frames for local homes.

Students interested in joining the fight against poverty can attend the UGA Habitat for Humanity and ONE Campaign UGA general body meetings and visit the websites www.uga.edu/habitat and www.uga.edu/one for more information.

Edited by Alison Loughman

Students develop skills independently, carry them into future careers

After Nivek Anderson's middle school orchestra teacher told her she had to switch from bass to cello, she told herself she'd inevitably go back to playing bass. Now, with several on-campus gigs and upcoming weddings, she plays regularly.

By AUTUMN ECKENBRECHT

Since high school, two University of Georgia students have been doing what they love — and getting paid for it.

Nivek Anderson said she remembers her first gig as a cellist. Her high school math teacher wanted her to form a quintet to play at her wedding.

Chelsea Darling’s experience began in the newsroom at Pope High School. As entertainment editor for The Greyhound Tracks, she discovered her love for design.

For Anderson, a child and family development major from College Park, sometimes freelancing means finishing homework first and staying up until 3 a.m. to practice for a wedding.

Balancing schoolwork and freelance design is not much different for Darling, a graphic design major from Marietta.

“Everybody, I think, works best when they’re highly caffeinated,” Darling said. “Usually with a job you have to fit it into your class schedule, but if you have a freelance job you can be working at 3 in the morning and fit it in whenever. Then you get a little extra money on the side.”

Darling, who also works part-time in Athens as a design intern at The Adsmith, said networking has been essential for finding paid jobs on the side such as designing resumes, brochures, websites and logos.

Now, she said, commissions are coming to her.

“I don’t really go out to try and find anybody; it just happens,” she said. “It’s always really exciting when somebody comes to you and wants your work. Any artist feels that way about having their work commissioned, and it’s a great learning experience.”

As a cellist, Anderson said she’s also experienced the business side of freelancing.

“You have to be creative,” Anderson said. “I have to be an artist, but at the same time I have to know how to market myself.”

After her first wedding performance in high school, Anderson played over 20 events in a two-year span. When she came to college she already had experience drafting contracts for her services, but her involvement in the music business certificate program at the University has given her additional practice.

Despite difficulties like a late wedding, a bride who backed out and a bride who got sick, Anderson said she enjoys sitting down with couples to discuss what they envision for their weddings.

“It’s great because they’re excited, and I’m excited,” Anderson said. “I like to be able to know that I can make their wedding even better with my music. That’s my purpose—the event itself is already great, so I just want the music to make it perfect.”

Elana Munroe, cafe manager at Big City Bread Cafe in Athens, said she sees how freelancing benefits both the client and the student. Each month a different artist hangs work in the cafe with no commission charge.

“We definitely understand where they’re coming from,” Munroe said. “Local businesses and local artists—everybody’s struggling to stay afloat and we just want to help everybody out so they can be as successful as they can.”

The cafe is a family-owned business with many employees who are also artists, and Munroe said everyone at the cafe values supporting the community.

“We like to keep the art community alive in Athens,” Munroe said. “It’s a really good city for that so we try to encourage that and help people out as much as we can.”

Mark Johnson, a photojournalism lecturer at the University, said he also considers himself to be a “conduit for students looking to shoot more [photographs].” Johnson said he gets several e-mails a week from people offering students opportunities to photograph things—without paying them.

“I filter a lot of stuff out,” he said.
Johnson began freelancing in college and said he has seen his skills from freelancing carry into his current career.

“Freelancing opened up a whole world of people I would have never met otherwise,” Johnson said. “It’s another way to get experience, build contacts and hopefully develop a good business sense. It’s not about the writing or design part—business has to work, and you’ll spend 50 percent of the time or more on business, not on the creative side.”
Johnson’s advice is simple.

“Know the numbers,” he said. “Don’t do stuff for free.”

As Anderson and Darling finish their last two semesters of college, they are expanding their repertoires.

Anderson is practicing so she can sing and play at the same time and Darling is branching out in web design.

“I just hope that I can continue at the same basic level, just being a designer, just focusing on the work and making a physical product that people want,” Darling said. “That’s what drives me.”

Edited by CAREY O’NEIL

Grad students compete for waived tuition

Kiley Dorton helps a professor teach a class at the University's

New Media Institute. (Photos/Carey O'Neil)

By CAREY O’NEIL

Many teaching assistants lecturing in classes every day aren’t doing it just for fun ― they’re getting free tuition.

The more than 3,000 University of Georgia students on assistantships—whether they're research assistants studying biomass or teaching assistants lecturing on the differences between classicism and neoclassicism—have their graduate school tuition waived and receive a monthly stipend.

“It's a huge economic benefit,” said Judy Milton, assistant dean of the Graduate School.

David Knauft, associate dean of the Graduate School, said students on assistantships receive a waiver for all but $25 of their tuition and are covered for 40 percent of their health insurance premium costs, but are still responsible for student fees.

Although the stipend varies depending on assistantship, Milton said students are typically paid the same as the University’s other hourly employees for their average 13 weekly hours of work.

Kiley Dorton, a Grady College grad student working as a TA, said he spends anywhere from 10 to 15 hours a week planning lectures, grading papers and creating tests for his tuition and $1,000 monthly paycheck.

“It pays just about right for rent and food and gas,” he said. “The only problem is, since I have a girlfriend, I have to have another job.”

Dorton said he works three nights a week at Locos and does odd jobs like create Web sites for extra spending money, keeping him constantly occupied.

“I'd say it's better to be busy than bored,” he said. “[Is it] hard? Yes. Fun? Definitely.” Milton said the Graduate School doesn't recommend students work jobs outside the University and limits the hours students can work on their assistantships to 20 per week.

“If you're already working 20 hours a week and you're taking 12 hours of classes, there's the reality that we actually want you to have time to devote to your studies,” she said. Nick Browning, a Grady graduate student and research assistant, said he's content with his schoolwork and 16 hours of research every week.

“Most of the time I'm pretty busy,” he said. “Sometimes I've got to borrow money from my folks. I know other people get loans.”

Browning said even though he's sometimes short on spending money, waived tuition is an offer too good to refuse.

Milton said assistantships are incredibly attractive, but equally difficult to get.

“Most of the students who plan to attend grad school full time have explored the possibility,” she said. “They may not apply for it because they have to be nominated, but they've probably looked into it.”

Milton said each department at the University is allotted a number of assistantship nominations based on the demographics of the college. Nominees are then rated by the Graduate School and the top rated students are awarded the assistantships.

“The Graduate School only funds a small portion of the total graduate student population, primarily through competitive programs designed to help attract high quality students,” Knauft said.

If students don't make the cut for grad school assistantships they still have a shot at getting one through their individual colleges thanks to things like research grants and extra money in the budget, she said.

Dorton said he's happy with his job as a TA and glad he got his assistantship. “Every minute there's something new,” he said.

Edited by AUTUMN ECKENBRECHT

Service Center Provides Relief for Athens’ Homeless

Located on 375 S. Peter St., the Homeless Day Service Center serves as a physical and emotional refuge for homeless citizens in Athens-Clarke County. The center provides its clients with a place to stay, as well as financial and mental health counseling.

by Robert Carnes

The Athens Day Homeless Service Center located at 375 S. Peter St. provides the homeless with relief from the elements, and the two case managers on staff attempt to provide the homeless with relief from their struggles.

“First, we try to understand why they’re on the streets to begin with,” said case manager Ed Moore. “Then we can work towards helping them improve their situation.”

Both case managers meet with clients one-on-one to address the obstacles they face. These problems range from mental issues to drug and alcohol abuse.

“Together we set specific goals to deal with individual problems,” Moore said.

Open weekdays from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., the service center takes a unique approach by caring for the emotional needs of their clients. They are given the attention necessary to help them recover from their situation.

“Between five and twenty-five people will come in on an average day,” case manager Ryan Halsey said. “The number of people here varies from day to day. It certainly seems like more people have been coming in because of the current economy. Many people here have recently lost their jobs.”

Clients’ financial well-being is important, too. Moore will soon take on the role of benefit specialist, a position concerned with the Social Security benefits available to clients.

The service center falls under the management of Advantage Behavioral Health Systems, an organization dedicated to the prospect of improving mental health. Advantage is a publicly funded organization governed by the Community Service Board that serves 10 Georgia counties.

Access to showers, telephones, and laundry machines is available at the center, but the focus is constantly on the available counseling. The homeless benefit from donations of clothes and hygiene products, but the lasting impact comes from the professional attention they get from the center’s staff.

“The overall goal is to help the homeless find and maintain stable housing,” said Matt Hurd, program manager of adult mental health services at Advantage. “Athens has a large homeless population, but we strive to work with them on an individual basis to help overcome their personal obstacles.”

For clients able to prove significant improvement and consistent employment, the center helps to pay a deposit or first month’s rent.

“Our hope is that eventually a client doesn’t need us any more,” Hurd said.

The center is one of several other Advantage services available in Athens. As part of an on-going continuum of care, these locations work together in promoting adult mental health in the city.

Jenna Moon and Jamar Johnson are both seniors in the University of Georgia’s College of Social Work. As part of their course work, both must work directly with a demographic of their choice.

“Advantage is a big organization, which makes it easy to connect people with the services they need,” said Moon. “But the other resources are spread out. This center is a hub that directs people to the right place.”

Johnson is working towards a double major in social work and psychology. He one day hopes to go to graduate school and study the effects of divorce on people.

“As interns, we act as a buffer between the clients and the case managers,” said Johnson. “But our responsibilities are growing and we will eventually take on some of the tasks of a case worker.”

Their daily tasks include helping clients in anything from completing applications to using the Internet.

“This is an informal environment that allows us to deal directly with the homeless,” Moon said. “It has been a really genuine experience.”

edited by Elissa Ewald

Clarke County: Bored of Education

By Elissa Ewald

In his time working in the food industry, David Ragsdale experienced a lack of basic literacy and mathematic skills from his fellow employees—cashiers unable to pronounce product names and add up correct amounts of change for customers were common occurrences.

Now a Clarke Central High School Language Arts teacher, Ragsdale, 33, knows one thing for sure.

“Basic literacy,” Ragsdale said. “You can’t survive in this world without it.”

The education system, however, in Athens-Clarke County is struggling compared to other counties in the state.

In 2005, the dropout rate in Clarke County schools reached 8.1 percent, three percent higher than that of the whole state of Georgia. The graduation rate in the county was at 60.5 percent, nearly ten percent lower than the state as a whole.

Katt Gaines, 15, a freshman at Clarke Central, can see the effects of the high dropout rate at her school on a daily basis.

“I’m only a freshman, and a lot of the kids in my classes don’t show up to class, and if they do, have no idea what is going on,” Gaines said. “You can tell a lot of them are counting down the days until they can leave. They don’t really see the point in wasting their time with school.”

Ragsdale can see this attitude in the students in his classroom, as well.

“I tell them, ‘Look around. Where are the people you went to 9th grade, 10th grade with?’” Ragsdale said, “but most of them can tell you why it is easier for them to sell drugs than get a real job.”

In order to convince his students to attend more classes, Ragsdale makes calls home and discusses absences with other teachers in the building when one of his students has gone missing.

“Parents are our biggest assets,” Ragsdale said, “We are beginning to meet in the local housing communities to discuss how we can help them help their kids.”

Ragsdale still strives to show his students that the issues in the books they are reading in his language arts class are applicable to their lives.
Members of the community, like Lewis Shropshire, former president of Motel Enterprises, have also decided to get involved with the education system in Athens.

“From the business standpoint, I know that you can not succeed in the business world without a basic high school education,” Shropshire said, echoing Ragsdale’s concerns for the students of Clarke County.

In order to improve the state of Athens education, Shropshire became a member of Partners for a Prosperous Athens, choosing to focus his efforts and knowledge as a businessman into mending the way Clarke County thought of learning. The committee he is a member of has focused its efforts on extensive discussion and exploration of alternative education methods, and opened their first school in August, J.J. Harris Elementary School, which they are hoping to turn into a charter school.

“We try to focus on kids in pre-K, first, and second grade, before their habits are formed,” Shropshire said, explaining why his committee has chosen to focus on elementary aged kids in Clarke County.

Efforts to improve education in elementary schools cannot be seen by Gaines, who is already in the school system.

“You never know who just might never come back the next day,” Gaines said.

For teachers like Ragsdale, this can be discouraging.

“It’s so crazy,” Ragsdale said. “I just hope to God that people still want to learn. Life would be really boring if there was not anything to learn.”

Edited by Robert Carnes

Outdoor vending provides an opportunity to do what you love

Above, Shake, of Shake on the Move, keeps his jewerly straight on his table downtown.

Below, Michael Davenport prepares to begin work on another drawing.

Sarah Grace Smith

Glittering jewelry covers tables; freshly drawn pictures line the pavement. Red and black is everywhere in preparation for the big football game the next day. Those who walk by may glance at what vendors have to offer; others have no time to spare, even for art on the sidewalk.

On the corner of Broad and Jackson Streets, Michael Davenport has taken up his usual post outside the Broad Street Bar & Grill. Sweat drips off the end of the artist’s nose as he bends over a portrait of Uga and adds a few more silver spikes to his collar. It is a hot September Friday in Athens, and he’s getting ready for game day, when he said hundreds of people will troop by and look at his art. Many will stop to buy one of his University of Georgia-inspired pictures.

“People have heard of me all over by word of mouth,” Davenport said. “I’m a celebrity here.”

Davenport is one of many sidewalk vendors in Athens who take advantage of downtown foot traffic by selling their wares from tables and carts rather than established stores.

Marker grasped between his teeth, he adds more detail to his picture, then pauses to dab the sweat from his face. This unusual way of drawing came about because of an electrical accident at the age of 13 that left him without arms. Thirty years later, Davenport is doing well with his art.
He slowly taught himself to write, and then to draw, using his mouth.

“I started off drawing Uga,” Davenport said.

Now, he draws everyday. Even when he’s not in his usual spot, Davenport will do artwork at home. His first official artwork was done on a bar napkin, and it went to Vince Dooley, the renowned University of Georgia football coach. Now Davenport’s drawings sell for $60 to $70 on game days, but he’ll let you have one for $50 or less on other days of the week.

At Lafonda Dogs, Travis Ragsdale, a sophomore history major from Norcross, Ga., waits in line for lunch. He is one of many who patronize this sidewalk stand. He comes here for lunch every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. He says the location, on Jackson Street near UGA’s main library, is the main motivation behind his eating there. His other options are few. There are other advantages to lunch at Lafonda Dogs, too.

“The price is fair,” Ragsdale said. “It’s better than going down to the SLC.”

The food at Lafonda Dogs is much more worth the price. He likes to get the chicken sandwich or chicken sausage. Customers like Ragsdale give Lafonda Dogs steady weekday business.

But game day is when the competition really begins, and T-shirt sellers and hot dog vendors take all the best spots downtown. Because she’s there ahead of the Saturday crowds, Marlene Soles is able to claim the coveted corner of Broad Street and College Avenue on Friday afternoon.

Her tables sparkle with red and black necklaces and shiny pairs of sunglasses. Sunglasses are Soles’ big sellers on game days.

“I used to work with my brother,” Soles said. “He was an optician, so I know how to pick them out.”

That’s why she got into this business 10 years ago. She needed a job, and she knew about jewelry, so she started selling it at events. Sole has been selling game-day finery downtown for the past three years. The past year has been a little different, though.

“Business is okay,” she said, “but not as good as before the recession.”

But Soles doesn’t just depend on her downtown sales. She also travels to area festivals and schools selling her jewelry. Her range covers anywhere within 100 miles of Stone Mountain.

Another downtown jewelry vendor, Shake, also supplements his Athens sales with those he makes while traveling. Shake comes back to Athens on the weekends, but he doesn’t call his business “Shake on the Move” for nothing. Most of his weeks are spent on college campuses, ranging from the Southeast to the Midwest. He has had a very different year from Soles.

“I’ve had my best year ever this past year,” Shake said. “On college campuses I’m swarmed. The only thing that hurts is the rain.”

He gets a vacation day whenever it rains. With all the rain lately, Shake said, he got a three-week vacation. This inconvenience is just part of what he does.

It is a welcome change from what he used to do, though. He was in the clothing business in Atlanta for 20 years and had an entire chain of stores in the area. But 12 years ago he decided he needed to downsize.

“I wanted to be more outdoors,” he said. “Not as confined.”

Shake certainly is free to move about at his stand on the corner of College Avenue and Clayton Street. His tables are laid with rings bearing images of fairies and mushrooms; above, gold and silver owl necklaces dangle from hooks. Shake sells one girl a pair of earrings, and then looks for bare places on the table. He clearly enjoys the space and freedom his outdoor stand allows him.

That is what unites the sidewalk vendors of downtown Athens, a passion and love for what they do. It isn’t just about the money; it is about the place and the people.

“I love it,” said Soles. “I love talking to people and meeting people.”

edited by Ashley Strickland

Drinking impacts UGA's reputation, experts say

(Above) Nicole Lackey, bartender at General Beauregard's, serves two students beers Monday night.
(Below) Lackey makes a mixed drink Monday night.

By Lauren Bellamy

Though the University of Georgia is often voted as one of the Princeton Review’s top ten party schools in America, statistics may paint a different picture.

Deanna Walters, the university’s Alcohol and Other Drug prevention coordinator, said data proves the university’s drinking habits aren’t as bad as they are perceived.

“In terms of high-risk or binge drinking behavior, UGA rates are lower than those behaviors reported by students at other universities around the nation,” Walters said.

She also said that the Princeton Review’s annual survey of national party schools creates a “disconnect” between reputation and fact.

“Data for the survey is not necessarily valid or accurate,” Walters said. “Yet people read it, believe it, and it reinforces their perception that everyone around them is drinking heavily and doing so pretty often.”

Although the Princeton Review survey may be inaccurate, it creates a very real perception of the university.

Michael Zimmerman, a university professor who teaches Drug and Alcohol Abuse Issues, even refers to the survey.

“I know we’re in the top ten party schools in the nation,” he said. “I think we’re actually number five.”

Zimmerman said the university is heavily focused on drinking despite what statistics say.

“When I have students tell me that during fall semesters they only take nine credit hours so they can go to football games, I just know where they’re putting their emphasis,’” he said.

“There is a lot of focus on the downtown/music/football scene, and a lot of that involves drinking.”

Walters said she doesn’t believe people in Athens are more likely to binge drink but college towns in general tend to have more prominent bar scenes.

“Athens has a lot of college students and on average, college students engage in riskier drinking behavior,” she said.

And “risky behavior” may be easier in Athens according to Ayaz Virji, a sixth-year housing and consumer economics major from Athens.

Virji said he knew drinking would be a big part of his college life if he came to the University of Georgia.

“It’s just what everyone here does,” Virji said. “People at UGA drink a lot. That’s how it’s always been.”

Virji also said that Athens bars make it easy for underage students to get in.

“Freshman year, almost everyone I knew had a fake ID,” he said. “I know plenty of people — especially girls — that got into bars using paper IDs.”

Nicole Lackey, a bartender at General Beauregard’s in downtown Athens, said the bar has a strict policy on fake IDs.

“Our managers tell the door guys not to let anyone in who looks like they’re using a fake,” she said.

Lackey also said it gets hectic for the bar bouncers.

“Sometimes it gets crazy and people are shoving IDs at them, and I know they’re just trying to get people in as fast as possible,” Lackey said. “But they would never knowingly let in someone with a fake.”

Fake IDs or not, Zimmerman said he doesn’t expect binge drinking at the university to improve anytime soon.

“It’s going to happen no matter what,” he said. “We can address the long-term damage of alcohol all we want, but students are still going to make their own decisions.”

— Edited by Beth Pollak

University resources aid students with mental health issues

(Above) The relaxation rooms provided by Counseling and Psychiatric Services offer a soothing refuge for students who need to unwind and be calm. (Below) The LGBT Resource Center offers a student lounge as a safe space.

By Beth Pollak

Classes. Extracurriculars. Trying to fit in a social life.

All of this can lead to stress, depressions or addictions.

UGA students do not have to look far to find solutions to these or other mental health problems. Many resources exist on campus to help students deal with problems ranging from eating disorders to alcoholism.

The most well-known mental health facility on campus is Counseling and Psychiatric Services. Better known as CAPS, this resource is located in the University Health Center. Open every class day during the semester, CAPS offers consultation, referrals and treatment for a wide variety of issues.

The majority of CAPS patients are young adults, so the staff specializes in helping college students.

“We have a better understanding of developmental tasks and circumstances that are typical for college students,” said Kelly Case-Simonson, a counselor with CAPS. “We work at the University, read The Red and Black every day, and know what’s going on on campus.”

Prospective patients must undergo a phone screening process before being given an appointment time. Most students are able to get an appointment within two weeks based on the urgency and severity of their situation.

The CAPS office also offers a library and relaxation rooms stocked with DVDs and CDs with relaxing sounds and images for patients.

CAPS also has a partnership with the campus Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Resource Center, located in Memorial Hall. The two are working together on the “Let’s Talk About It!” series of talks on sexual identity, which are open to all students.

The discussions are held weekly on different nights at 6:30.

“We are trying to, one, create a dialogue on campus and get people talking about it; and, two, reach beyond those who identify as LGBTQ,” said Jennifer Miracle, director of the LGBT Center.

The John Fontaine, Jr, Center for Alcohol Awareness and Education is an on-campus resource for those seeking treatment for alcohol-related problems. Students who call willingly can meet with a counselor from the center at no charge within a week.

“It doesn’t cost money to come talk to someone at the Fontaine Center if they come in voluntarily,” said Mike Friedline, a certified addiction counselor at the Fontaine Center.

The center, housed in the University Health Center, also provides alcohol education and prevention services. Counselors give talks to dormitories, Greek organizations and other groups to promote awareness.

They also provide mandated intervention for those who have been assigned to courses for DUI or underage possession.

“Most people coming in here aren’t alcoholics or addicts. They’re just students who got in trouble with alcohol, like for drinking underage or DUI,” said Friedline.

The Psychology Clinic is an on-campus facility housed in the Psychology building that is open to anyone in the community. Patients range in age from preschoolers to senior citizens, receiving counseling and treatment for everything from marital problems to phobias.

“We treat any disorder that doesn’t need hospitalization,” said Amos Zeichner, director of the Psychology Clinic.

The clinic acts as a training center for clinical psychology graduate students. Fees are assessed based on a sliding scale according to income and family situation. Patients can make an appointment within three weeks of calling.

Whatever the need might be, on-campus counseling and mental health resources are abundant and provide a unique opportunity for personalized treatment geared towards students.

“We have all dedicated ourselves to working with the student population,” said Case-Simonson.

Want help with mental health issues?

Psychology Clinic – (706) 542-1173
John Fontaine Jr Center – (706) 542-8690
CAPS – (706) 542-2273
LGBT Resource Center – (706) 542-4077

— Edited by Lauren Bellamy

Students Search for Experience, Not Jobs

Ansley Jones, (left) and Beth Cooper, (right), both 22-year-old journalism seniors,

compare job opportunities after the career fair. (Photo/Ashley Strickland)

Employers from 180 businesses speak with students interested

in finding job and internship opportunities at the Fall 2009 Career Fair.

(Photo/Ashley Strickland)

Ashley Strickland

Students have been putting their best foot forward, stepping out in suits and carrying newly polished resumes as they pound the pavement looking for one thing: experience.

Fall at the University of Georgia means a new wave of Career Center events meant to educate students on internships and jobs. Recently, the Classic Center hosted the Fall 2009 Career Fair and orientation started last Wednesday for the Intern for a Day externship program.

The Career Center has been promoting these events to make students more aware of their options after graduation.

“I’ve heard of the Intern for a Day program but I’ve never done it,” said Kate Parham, a 22-year-old magazines senior, said. “I didn’t know where to start or how to apply.”

With the current economy, the Career Center hopes to help students feel secure in their career fields. 180 businesses were represented at the career fair, but some employer booths were empty.

However, attendance at the first night of orientation for the Career Center’s Intern for a Day externship program was notably higher. Aaron Brown, the employment development coordinator at the Career Center, said 117 students attended the first orientation and he expects at least 500 students overall during the next three sessions, which run through Oct. 6.

Students interested in externing for a day with a company related to their career field must first attend an orientation session. Then, they can submit an application and resume that will determine where they are placed.

“Many times when you’re looking for a job or internship, it’s who you know,” Brown said to students at orientation.

The “Intern for a Day” program is designed to allow students to see what it would be like to experience a day in their career field. This also opens the door for possible networking or a job offer in the future.

“We have a pretty good success rate,” Brown said. “I just had a student email me who was able to Intern for a Day in the past and then got a full-time job with the company.”

The Intern for a Day program is offered in the fall from mid-October through Jan. 6. Spring semester externships run from mid-March to the end of May. Students can visit career.uga.edu or stop by the Career Center for more details.

More than jobs and internships, students are working on building up their resumes and focusing on gaining experience for their future careers.

“I have no experience in the accounting field, so I kind of want to see if that’s what I want to do for the rest of my life,” said Amanda Griffin, a 20-year-old accounting junior from Cartersville, Ga. Griffin attended the first night of externship orientation with the hopes of finding a good accounting opportunity.

Griffin is considering pursuing an externship with Dixon Hughes, a corporate accounting firm in Atlanta, for a resume-building experience. She is not as concerned with the economy affecting her job search in the world of accounting.

“I haven’t heard of any UGA students that graduated with a degree in accounting that didn’t get jobs,” Griffin said.

Other students are more concerned with getting accepted into professional schools and hope that externships will provide them with some insight or a competitive edge.

“This is the easiest way to do it,” said Samantha Burke, a 20-year-old pre-pharmacy junior from Lawrenceville, Ga. “Because otherwise, it’s so hard to get experience with pharmacy in Athens. Unless you’re already in the pharmacy school.”

Burke attended orientation to speak with a Career Center representative about her options.
A broad range of employers offer externships through the University of Georgia. The majors are broken up into 17 categories and new employers are added every year.

“We really want to improve the program every semester and provide the best employers,” Brown said. “Several employers weren’t hiring because of the economy and backed off because they didn’t want to give off the wrong impression.”

New employers added to the list this year fill in gaps left by others who have stopped participating in the program. This year’s externship possibilities include the UGA Poultry Diagnostic Research Lab, Hormel Foods, Chastain, Jenkins and Leathers Real Estate, Kohl’s Department Store and Tiffany Brown’s campaign to become Atlanta’s next mayor.

Brown hopes externships will give students a competitive edge in the job market, especially because so many of the externship employers are “pro-UGA.”

“Students want to gain every advantage they can in this economy to branch out,” Brown said.

Edited by Sarah Smith

Georgia children still lacking health care

By Jon-Michael Sullivan

At a time when health care reform has received national attention, Georgia has the 14th highest percentage of uninsured children in the nation, according to the United States Census Department.

About 307,000 children are uninsured in Georgia; more than 3,500 children under the age of 19 are uninsured in Athens-Clarke Country, according to the census data.

"First and foremost, the issue is a humanitarian one," said Michael Smith, volunteer coordinator for the Athens-Clarke County chapter of Organizing for America, formerly Obama for America, Health Care Campaign.

Without access to preventative care, uninsured children are more likely to develop long-term health issues. Delayed care is typically more expensive and less effective, according to Voices for Georgia's Children, an independent policy development and advocacy group.

Families with income less than 133 percent of the federal poverty level, $24,360 for a family of three, qualify for Medicaid.

If a family does not qualify for Medicaid but makes up to 235 percent of the federal poverty level, $43,029 for a family of three for example, the child may be enrolled in PeachCare, the state’s children’s health insurance program. The cost varies but does not exceed $70.

These two programs act as safety nets, especially during a recession.

"The more unstable the economy, the more unstable peoples' lives are, including health insurance coverage," Smith said.

Georgia's unemployment rate is more than 10 percent; however, 85 percent of uninsured children in Georgia comes from families where at least one parent works. And more than two-thirds come from low-income families, who are likely eligible for Medicaid or PeachCare.
Smith said there are many reasons the number of uninsured children is high despite the availability of health care for low-income families.

“The Medicaid system is broken,” Smith said. “The reason is because it’s underfunded; the rules are changed to knock people off the rolls.”

Under PeachCare, there is a provision that children must be uninsured for six months before applying for the program. Additionally, if payment for the program is received late, the child loses eligibility for 30 days and must reapply.

"The burden is wholly on the person to enroll in these programs," said Russell Edwards, president of the University of Georgia Law Democrats from Peachtree City, Ga. " For someone who has two or three jobs, that usually means taking a day off of work, and if they find out that they qualify, they have to prepare all the materials, the tax forms and birth certificates.”

Edwards said that the amount of paperwork is cumbersome and is another hurdle for low-income families. He also said that awareness of health care programs available to families should be increased.

“A robust advertising campaign that could help spread the information on how to effectively enroll in these programs would be a good way to get people on board,” Edwards said. “I know I've never seen any advertisement anywhere on how to enroll in PeachCare.”

Edited by Beth Pollak

Economy Causes Education Shuffle

By Sarah Smith

A mother with grown children goes back to school. An apprentice loses her position with the end of her education in sight. A man begins work on his second degree after 20 years as an architect.

These people are just three of the many students caught up in the great shuffle the failing economy is causing in education.

Tracie Boutwell, a homemaker from Augusta, Ga., is a recent empty nester. Both of her daughters are now off at school, and she finally has time to spend on herself. But because of the sagging real estate market, Boutwell is spending that time getting a new job.

“I needed to do something to help with retirement,” she said.

The value of the real estate that the Boutwells had invested their retirement money in has sunk with the market. To provide for her family’s future, she is going back into the work force.

But before she goes back to work, she’s going back to school. Boutwell worked as a nurse for eight years, mostly in pediatric psychiatry. She loved working with children, but the medical field doesn’t appeal to her as it once did. So, she is working towards a master of arts in teaching. Experiences in substitute teaching have given her a good view of her new chosen profession.

After being in the classroom, she “comes home physically tired but emotionally charged,” she said. She started the 18-month program this summer, so she hopes to be in the classroom by this time next fall.

Though she is going back to work after so many years, she has a positive outlook.

“I’m really kind of excited about it,” she said.

Shelley Cain is on the other end of the spectrum. The suffering economy has put an end to her education at an architecture firm.

“There’s just no jobs,” she said.

Fewer people need architects in the current economy. No one has extra money to spend, and banks are wary to lend out money, she said. Because of this lack of work, the architecture firm where Cain was apprenticed in Pensacola, Fla., had to let her go.

Cain started her apprenticeship at Ron Williamson and Associates eight years ago. She previously worked in the marketing and sales part of real estate, but picked up a love for architecture from being around the designers.

With two more years of training, Cain would have been able to take the test that qualifies apprentices to become licensed architects. For now she’ll have to wait a little longer; her education is on hold while she tries to find a job.

“Right now I’m looking for anything,” she said. “I have a lot of skills I can offer.” These skills range from running a business to waiting tables, but her search has been fruitless so far.

Jim Murphy has already achieved what Cain can still only dream about: he has been an architect for 20 years. But the current lack of work is forcing him to go back to school for a second degree. He is studying electrical engineering in an attempt to expand the amount of work he can do.

“I get work occasionally,” he said. But there is very little work to be found in his field. This gives him more time for school, but it’s also discouraging to him, Murphy said. He hopes to be able to work in designing for the commercial industry once he receives his degree. It will be four years before he reaches this goal.

“I hope by the time I finish school there’s a rebound in the economy,” he said. At that time he hopes to be designing buildings for the commercial industry with his new degree.

For now, there is little monetary help for people like Murphy who are going back to get a second degree.

All students, no matter what their educational past, can fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), said James Mooney, Associate Director of the Office of Student Financial Aid at the University of Georgia. But those who have already received their baccalaureate degree can only hope for federal loans, not scholarships such as the Pell Grant that only first-time university students can receive, he added.

The government “wants to invest in first degrees,” Mooney said. Some work places participate in programs such as the Work Force Investment Act, which can pay for schooling. But this program usually only covers retraining or two-year tech schools. There’s not much in the way of scholarships for people such as Murphy and Boutwell. They must rely on the pay-off their current education will have in the future.

Boutwell, Cain, Murphy and many others must continue to hold on to the hope that the economy will recover, and life will return to what it was before. But for now they take action in whatever way they can, whether it means going back to school or simply searching for a job while their dreams wait.

Edited by Autumn Eckenbrecht

Athens' public housing enhances community

by Elissa Ewald

Five-year-old Broad Acres resident Brinashna Johnson successfully crosses the monkey bars for the first time at the community's playground.

Rick Parker always tries to end his public housing lecture with the same H. L. Mencken quote: “There is a well-known solution to every human problem—neat, plausible, and wrong.”

Parker said that “when it comes to complex social issues like poverty,” this belief definitely applies.

Parker is the executive director of Athens Housing Authority which oversees all 1,255 public housing units in Athens.

The term “public housing” often has a negative connotation.

Senior criminal justice major Julie Close from Locust Grove, Ga., said “dirty” is the first thing she thinks of when she hears the term “public housing.”

“The public housing here is just so unkempt,” Close said.

Parker strives to eliminate stereotypes such as this about the housing programs, residents, and communities he oversees.

“What we run, own and administer is a deep subsidy program,” Parker said, “Rent is based on their income, not based on the value of the unit.”

Residents are charged a rent payment equaling 30 percent of their monthly income, the average percentage an individual is supposed to pay on their housing and utilities each month. Set up by the federal government, this system clearly outlines that if a person’s income increases, then so does their rent payment.

The Athens Housing Authority mission is to “provide secure, affordable, quality housing and resources which encourage and sustain independence” for some of the nearly 11,000 households living in poverty in Athens-Clarke county. The 28.3 percent poverty rate classifies Athens as a “housing-stress” county.

“This means that the cost of housing exceeds a large percentage of the population’s income,” Parker said. “[The residents], for a whole host of complex societal reasons, are having a hard time making it.”

Although the system used to determine rent was federally designed, Athens Housing Authority is not a government operation, but rather an independent agency.

“There are no local dollars involved at all except the residents’ rent,” Parker said.

Public housing may not use local dollars, but it definitely is a local presence, even to students.

“Close to about half of our total units are within close proximity to campus,” Parker said. “The city grew up around the housing authority.”

The project housing areas’ proximity to campus is often shocking to students.

“I was really surprised to see the government housing so close to campus,” first-year biology student Ashley Williams from Marietta, Ga., said. “But I think it's beneficial to students because it opens their eyes to the state of poverty, even in Georgia. It provides a great opportunity for outreach and education.”

Parker encourages student involvement in the housing projects, bragging specifically about organizations such as the Wesley Foundation, where students mentor kids from a local project community.

“[Students are] all part of the fabric of community,” Parker said, “and caring about what happens in the community is just enlightened self-interest.”

Rayshondra Borders, a resident at Broad Acres housing project, said she feels as though the student body is a part of her community.

“I love it when [students] come by to play with the kids,” Borders said, laughing. “It gives me a break. It would be better to see more big brother and sister programs.”

Still, with a student body of over 35,000, Parker acknowledges that only a small percentage of that population has gotten involved in public housing programs.

“Let’s be honest. People love to hate the poor. We all want to think that we make it entirely on our own,” Parker said. This, he supposes, is why not everyone feels the need to be involved with volunteer and development programs in the housing communities.

“It scares us to death that there—but by the grace of God and a couple of paychecks—be I. It’s just easier to blame the person.”

Parker believes the people he serves are worth his time, and the student body’s.

“The vast majority of the people I serve are some of the finest people you’ll ever meet in you life,” Parker said. “Some of those folks are my heroes. Are some of them real pains? Yes. But I have neighbors like that. There’s more binding us together than driving us apart.”

Edited by Antionette Rollins

Local Businesses Learn Value of Cooperation Over Competition

Local businesses use the Two Story Coffeehouse bulletin board to advertise their services.

By Autumn Eckenbrecht

There’s only one vacant table in the café, and the tow truck driver is making his rounds next door; customers have a habit of parking at adjacent stores despite towing warnings. The manager makes a lap around the café, just in time to inform two customers that their cars are about to be hauled off.

The parking lot is full once again at Two Story Coffeehouse, a business in Five Points that opened last November. It’s a far cry from the dismal graphs in newspapers and on television screens—this summer’s numbers show an increase in unemployment by over 2 percent in Athens-Clarke County in the last year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. For manager Chris Barr, ever since news of the recession became pervasive in 2008, things haven’t been all that different.

“I’ve heard about places struggling, and I’ve heard about restaurants and businesses closing,” Barr said. “But I’ve always heard about that.”

What distinguishes successful businesses from the struggling ones is leadership through communication and a core vision, Barr said. For Two Story, that core vision has meant looking past competing with other coffee businesses and focusing on offering something unique and supporting other companies.

“Local businesses realize they’re up against something bigger than them anyway—they’re up against corporate, so it’s a lot better to band together and figure out how to be creative,” Barr said. “A lot of business owners get afraid. They get scared, and they say, ‘What’s going to happen?’ It’s a valid question, but many owners will make their decisions based on that fear, as opposed to making their decisions based on sound practice and what they know to be true.”

Fear didn’t stop Heather Cadle from opening Tena’s jewelry store on Aug. 3 in the heart of downtown.

“When you hear about the economy, it’s all doom and gloom, but we don’t worry ourselves with that,” Cadle said. “We just make sure the people walking in and out the door are happy.”

Cadle remembers the initial days of starting up a new Tena’s in Athens. She says she used every resource she could find—the Terry School of Business, the Downtown Development Authority, the Athens Chamber of Commerce and other nearby mom-and-pop stores for things as simple as “Where’s the water company?”

Even the owner of the store Tena’s replaced, Jane Foster of Foster’s Jewelers, stops by every now and then to help, Cadle said.

“People really want to see local downtown businesses survive,” Cadle said. “I can’t tell you how many people have come in and said, ‘I’m so glad you’re here! We don’t need any more bars.’”

Like Foster’s Jewelers, which had operated in Athens for over 50 years before retiring, Farm Electric is also retiring after 52 years of service in Athens. Unlike Barr, Joseph Causey, 59, the owner of the hardware supply store, said he has felt the blows of the recession.

“It’s been dramatic. We’re wholesale, so we’ve been directly affected by the housing market. Business has been way off by about 35 to 40 percent in our numbers,” Causey said. “I spoke to one builder, and he said he hasn’t started a new house since September a year ago.”

With nearly 10 fewer staff members than he had a year ago, Starbucks manager Jason Corrigan also sees the changes in his numbers—which seem even more daunting when he sees the amount of Starbucks employees wanting to transfer to the Athens store.

The number is in the hundreds, and he can’t say yes to any of them.

“We haven’t been at the growth we need to be. I’ve tried to get Bulldog Bucks, but that’s been unsuccessful for us as a corporation,” Corrigan said. “They want to take 15 percent of my sale, and Starbucks won’t go for that.”

Nevertheless, Corrigan said life’s too short to worry about it. He said that, even if people are trying to be frugal by cutting their luxury expenses, a genuine customer connection will keep them coming back. In the meantime, he meets with other managers from businesses like Five Guys to discuss business strategy.

The story of how the nation’s economy is affecting Athens seems to be more about the solution rather than the problem. The remedy for local businesses—even the corporate ones—is using each other as resources so they can do more than just stay afloat. The same trend proves true for Barr, Cadle, Causey, and Corrigan.

“There’s a whole Five Points business association where a lot of managers and owners just get together and chat about what they can do to help one another,” Barr said. “It’s a give and take thing.”

Edited by Sarah Smith

Healthcare reform provides new options for young adults

By Beth Pollak

In college, eight out of ten students are sitting pretty as far as healthcare is concerned. Mom and Dad (and their health insurance) pay any medical bills that may come up.

After graduation, you get dropped from their insurance plan, but no worries. You are healthy and in the prime of your life – why bother with health insurance?

And who cares about the new healthcare reform proposals being debated in Washington and around the country? Not you. It will not really affect you, right?

Wrong. The healthcare debate has huge ramifications for college students, new graduates and other young adults. And it is not just a recent problem.

“Healthcare reform is not new,” said Dr. Richard Schuster, a professor of health policy and management in the College of Public Health. “It’s been a part of active discussion for about 100 years.”

Even so, new issues and ideas have been proposed within the past year. Since healthcare affects everyone, students should stay updated on the news, and know what aspects may change for them.

Currently, college students can stay on their parents’ health insurance plan until they graduate. Proposals floating around Congress provide a way for young people to remain on their parents’ plan until they are older, even after graduation.

This provision would allow students to have more flexibility in choosing a first post-graduation job, or the opportunity to pursue other avenues before going into a job that provides benefits.

A public option would also give students more options when choosing jobs. Public option is a government-run insurance plan that may be able to offer lower rates than private insurers.

Angie Fertig, assistant professor in the College of Public Health, provided a hypothetical dilemma for a new graduate. The grad has the opportunity to join a hip start-up company with no benefits or a stodgy, boring job with benefits.

Today, the student likely would have to choose the job with benefits in order to get affordable health insurance. With a public option, “the two [job] options would be more even to you because the decision wouldn’t be tied to benefits,” said Fertig, who is also a public service assistant in the Carl Vinson Institute of Government.

Some young adults choose to go without insurance regardless of its availability.

“College students may feel that they’re invincible, but they can be shocked by catastrophic events,” said Dr. Mark Ebell, associate professor in the College of Public Health.

Under the proposed plans, an individual mandate is in the works. That would require all Americans to buy health insurance or face penalties.

“Students going to school without health insurance would be helped by an individual mandate because they are engaging in very risky behavior,” said Lance Palmer, Ph.D, professor in the Family Financial Planning department.

Palmer suggested finding an insurance plan with a high deductible for students who are wary of paying for health insurance benefits that they may not use.

High deductible means that the out-of-pocket costs for the insured would be high, generally upwards of $1000. The premiums, however, are often less than half the cost of a typical health plan. This allows healthy students to have insurance for catastrophic health events, but still make a low monthly payment.

“Those who choose to be uninsured [now] will be unhappy because they will be subsidizing those who are sick,” Fertig said of an individual mandate.

Regardless of how the healthcare debate plays out and affects young adults, there still will be problems, and people will be unhappy.

“Healthcare is always characterized as being in crisis,” Schuster said.


Edited by Jon-Michael Sullivan

Unemployment affects Athens’s residents and students

By ANTIONETTE ROLLINS

Unemployment in Athens, Ga. is something that affects locals and students alike. Many people are forced to adjust their career goals to cope with the current economic situation.
Dr. Douglas Bachtel, housing and consumer economics professor at the University of Georgia, said that the effect of the current economy has been especially severe in Athens.

“The recession has had a more significant impact in Athens because of the city’s relatively high unemployment rate,” Bachtel said.

Estimates for the Bureau of Labor and Statistics show that Athens Clarke-County has had a steady increase in the unemployment rate since 1999, while national rates have slightly fluctuated through the years. As of July 2009, the unemployment rate in Athens was approximately 7.7 percent.

Athens locals aren’t the only ones affected by unemployment.

“Unemployment also takes its toll on University of Georgia students who are working their way through school,” Bachtel said. “Firms will let students go.” Without reliable income, students have a hard time funding their education.
Other students whose parents are suffering from unemployment have a more difficult time paying school tuition.

Many students are worried about finding employment after graduation. This number includes Jasmaine Williams, a senior majoring in biology and Spanish from Stockbridge, Ga.

“I would work for a couple of years if the economy was better,” Williams said. Instead, she plans to attend graduate school after she receives her bachelor’s degree in May. Despite these plans, she is still anxious about the future.

“It’s scary to think about going through a five year program and not getting a job with a Ph.D.,” she said.

Attending graduate school is an option that many Athens’ students choose instead of pursuing a career with present unemployment rates.

“I’m not really concerned about unemployment because I’m not worried about a career at this point in time,” said Samantha Gabai, a senior from Sandy Springs, Ga. Like Williams, she plans to attend graduate school next fall.

Even with constant reminders about the rising rate of unemployment, there are still opportunities.

“Be persistent,” said Lori Chafin, the unit supervisor for the Georgia Department of Labor Athens Career Center. “Don’t give into those around you saying ‘the economy is bad, you’re never going to find a job, because that’s simply not true.”

For those actively seeking employment, the Athens Career Center can be of great assistance. Chafin advised job seekers to use the Center’s available resources.

“There are so many resources here like internet, fax machines and resume critique workshops,” Chafin said. “The main focus is helping job seekers to increase their marketing skills, to be creative in their approach to job seeking and tap into all of the resources that are available to secure employment.”

Athens area job seekers who would like help finding employment can visit the Georgia Department of Labor at www.dol.state.ga.us.

Edited by Robert Carnes

Sick students struggle to balance class work, rest

By Lauren Bellamy

With the University of Georgia’s estimated swine flu toll nearing 300, students all over campus are feeling the effects of the virus.

Some students who have already contracted swine flu this semester are glad they caught it early. Anna Carvalho, a sophomore from Tallahassee, Fla., is one such student. “Now is a better time to get it, because it’s still the beginning of school and you won’t miss as much,” she said.

Even though it is the beginning of the semester, Carvalho still struggled with professors and missing class. “I E-mailed my Spanish teacher telling her I had swine flu, but she just responded that it wasn’t a good time to miss class and that I should be looking at the syllabus,” she said.

Carvalho had to rework her schedule to complete makeup work for class. “I had plans to go [to Tallahassee] for Labor Day, but I had to stay in Athens and catch up on schoolwork,” she said.

While she had swine flu, Carvalho had to check into a room at the Holiday Inn Express to avoid spreading the virus. “The health center told me that I should go home, but I couldn’t drive five hours to get there,” she said. “My roommates were wary of me staying, so I figured the best option would be a hotel.”

Doctors at the health center have been urging students like Carvalho to find an off-campus place to stay while getting over swine flu if at all possible. While some are choosing to isolate themselves in their rooms, many sick students who don’t live far from Athens have simply gone home to recover.

“I can’t imagine feeling as bad as I did without having my mom to take care of me,” said Audrey Batts, a senior from Dalton, Ga. who contracted the virus the second week of school.

Mark Towers, a fifth-year from Augusta, also went home to get over his swine flu. “I had a 105° fever and I was having hot and cold flashes,” he said. “Being in the comfort of my own home and away from everyone helped me rest and get over it much faster.”

While there are many symptoms of swine flu — fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue, according to the CDC — most students find that fatigue is the most difficult to cope with.

“Even though I don’t have the swine flu anymore, I still feel exhausted,” said Carvalho. “I get so tired just from walking to class.”

Batts said she spent days sleeping when she had the virus. “I laid in bed and basically didn’t move until I felt better,” she said.

As swine flu continues to grow nationally, students can do a few things to help prevent the spread of the virus on campus.

Liz Rachun, health communications coordinator at the University Health Center, says that they are promoting frequent hand washing, covering one’s nose and mouth with a tissue when sneezing or coughing and avoiding contact with sick people.

Towers said that he was careful about germs once he found out that swine flu was going around the University, but doesn’t think it made much of a difference. “I was washing my hands all the time, but I still got it,” he said.

Another precaution students can take is getting a seasonal flu shot. The vaccine is expected to arrive at the health center in October according to Rachun, but there are many places in Athens that are already offering the shot.

While getting vaccinated is a popular method of flu prevention, Rachun warns that getting the shot too early in the season could be problematic.

“The vaccine’s level of protection can weaken a few months after getting the shot, which can make people more susceptible to catching influenza during the virus’s peak season,” she said.
Nevertheless, many students will get vaccinated this season.

Towers said he plans to get a flu shot after he has fully recovered from swine flu and he is encouraging others to do the same. “I’m telling everyone I know to get a flu shot,” he said. “No one should have to go through what I went through if they don’t have to.

Edited by Stone Irvin

Universities wrestle with influenza, student body

By Stone Irvin

This school year administrators are adjusting to the strains caused not by schoolwork but the virus H1N1, commonly known as swine flu, by exposing students to an array of sanitary practices to prevent the disease’s spread.

Georgia is listed on the Centers for Disease Control Web site as one of six states reporting widespread influenza activity. Kathryn Moss, the executive administrative assistant of campus life at Emory University, sent an e-mail to students and their parents that listed Georgia as the No. 1 state in the nation for reported H1N1 cases.

Liz Rachun, health communications coordinator for the University of Georgia Health Center, said that as of Sept. 8, 285 cases of swine flu have been diagnosed on campus. But Rachun also pointed out that the virus is not hitting students as hard as once expected.

“A lot of students aren’t coming in because they don’t need to,” she said.

She stressed that over-the-counter medicines like ibuprofen combined with judicious rest are the best remedy for swine flu.

“The good thing is it’s not as aggressive or virulent as other strains of flu,” said Dr. Christopher Whalen, professor of epidemiology at the University of Georgia. But while swine flu may be mild compared to some strains of influenza this fact has not stopped schools from working to hinder its flow.

The most obvious measure universities are taking to halt H1N1 is the promotion of CDC guidelines for keeping healthy. Because of these campaigns to reach students, most now know to cover up coughs and sneezes, avoid touching the eyes and nose, wash their hands regularly and stay home if feeling sick.

Additional measures include self-isolation dormitories to accommodate sick students. The University of Georgia temporarily used Family and Graduate Housing for this purpose but has decided to focus more on encouraging sanitary practices in students instead. Emory, on the other hand, has continued to use its self-isolation dorm.

“It’s voluntary, and everyone has taken us up on it,” said Bridget Riordan, dean of students and campus life at Emory. She said the Turman South dormitory, though due to be demolished, was kept open by the administration in case it was needed to accommodate students sick with swine flu.

“I’m from Bombay, India so going home wasn’t really an option for me,” said Simran Khosa, an English major at Emory who contracted swine flu early in the semester. She said Turman South was a good environment to recover from H1N1 because it was “not a hospital, it was like any other dorm.”

While Riordan counts Emory fortunate for having a dorm available for self-isolation, especially for students like Khosa who are unable to go home to recover, Whalen and Rachun both said that UGA is too large a school for a self-isolation dorm to be effective.

“Isolating 100 people like that might make a difference but it wouldn’t be my priority,” Whalen said. He also said that the guidelines for cleanliness should be enough to curb transmission of swine flu.

But while H1N1 has thus far proven less virulent than once feared, complications and questions about seasonal flu and are now being raised.

“The question on my mind,” Whalen said “is whether it’s possible to get H1N1 in September and turn around and get seasonal flu in January.”

This question has administrators taking precautions on the issue of seasonal flu vaccine. Rachun pointed out that getting seasonal flu vaccines too early can render the recipient vulnerable in January and February, the peak time for catching seasonal influenza. Nevertheless, Emory and UGA are strongly encouraging students to get immunized.

“We started [seasonal] flu vaccination today,” Riordan said Tuesday, “We’re saying ‘Come one, come all; get your flu vaccination today.’”

Edited by Lauren Bellamy

Food 2 Kids fights hunger in local schools

Junior League volunteer Beverly Hall packs lunches for the Food 2 Kids program. Food 2 Kids is collecting peanut butter throughout the month of September.

by Alison Loughman

Believe it or not, some students do not count down the minutes until the Friday bell strikes.

These students, among the 8,000 at Clarke County Schools receiving free or reduced lunch, face weekends without meals or anyone to prepare a meal for them.

Yet thanks to Food 2 Kids, a program from the Junior League of Athens and the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia, fewer kids will worry about going hungry on the weekends. Instead, they can channel their time and energy into school on Monday morning.

Counselors, teachers, and nurses identify students as “in need” based on physical signs such as thinness and behavior like hoarding food. These students receive a bag filled with six meals and additional snacks once a week, adding up to a total of 280 meals over the course of 40 weeks, at a cost of $260 each.

Susan Dodson, former president of the Junior League and chairperson of the Food 2 Kids program, brought the idea to her organization in 2008. Members loved it, and since then the number of children receiving meals has jumped from 80 to 250.

The program hit home for Dodson when she worked in the classrooms of her two daughters at Timothy Road Elementary, dealing personally with children in need.

“The idea that any one of these kids that I had grown to love and adore, that they weren’t eating, just really did it for me,” said Dodson.

The items in the bags include Pop-Tarts, ravioli, and peanut butter. The Food Bank requests donations of peanut butter during September, which can be used by kids to make their own sandwiches.

Organizations like UGA’s Athletic Training Club contribute to the Food Bank through canned food drives. The Training Club has collection bins at the Tate Center, Aderhold Hall, Creswell Hall and Myers Hall. The drive, which runs until Sept. 28, hopes to collect 6000 cans of food and add inter-university competition to community service.

“LSU is doing the exact same thing down in Baton Rouge right now,” said Elise King, a senior and president of the Athletic Training Club. “Our goal is to beat them, and have it announced at the football game [at Sanford Stadium on Oct. 3].”

Without donations, Food 2 Kids would be impossible: as the only program the Food Bank pays for, it relies on a $14,000 donation from American Idol’s “Idol Gives Back” fundraiser.

Saundra Arnold-Smith, a counselor who manages Food 2 Kids at Timothy Road Elementary, packs meals in backpacks donated by her church, Chapelwood United Methodist. Arnold-Smith worried that kids would be ashamed to receive help in front of their peers, but saw differently when a fourth grader ate her Food 2 Kids food at lunch.

“I was the only one who knew [that she received Food 2 Kids], and the other kids were so cool about it, even though it didn’t look like their stuff,” said Arnold-Smith. “I know she felt good about that.”

Another student came into class excited to show his teacher the peanut butter sandwich that he had made for himself. Since he received his meals from the school, he had never brought his lunch from home before.

“That’s what we’re finding more and more of: it gives these kids a sense of normalcy and a sense of belonging,” said Tina Laseter, development director of the Food Bank. “When you’re in fourth, fifth grade, that can be really tough.”

The Food Bank has Food 2 Kids donation bins at Grady College, Aderhold Hall and Terrell Hall, which collect peanut butter in September and pop-top ravioli in October.

The Athletic Training Club is also collecting canned food at the Kroger on Barnett Shoals Road Sept. 20 from 1 to 5 p.m.

edited by Elissa Ewald

Students find new ways to save in hard economic times

Brooke Springfield saves money by shopping at Wal-Mart

By William Moore

Faced with the current economic downturn, many students are finding new ways to save money. Many things that were affordable in years past have become luxuries and no longer have a place in the already-tight budget of the average college student.

With prices on the rise, saving money wherever possible is becoming more and more important. Despite gas prices being much lower than in the past few years, the constant cost of filling the tank can add up to a lot. Chris O'Neill, a 21 year-old Athens native has taken to riding a scooter instead of driving a car.

“You get over 125 miles-per-gallon on a scooter,” said O'Neill, “and spend roughly six dollars a week on gas.”

According to O'Neill, the initial cost of a scooter is much cheaper than a car, and if the engine is less than 50 cubic centimeters, you don't have to pay for insurance.

“On top of the great gas mileage, you never have to pay for parking,” said O'Neill. “With a scooter it’s always easy to find a parking place and it’s always a free one.”

For students who are no longer on the UGA meal plan, groceries are a constant source of expenses. To help save money, many students have taken to shopping at Wal-Mart instead of Kroger and are buying generic brand food instead of the name-brand items.

“I used to do all of my grocery shopping at Kroger,” said Brooke Springfield, a third-year Publication Management major from Cartersville, “but now I try to shop at Wal-Mart whenever I can. It’s basically the exact same food but a little bit cheaper. It might not seem like much of a difference, but every little bit counts.”

Similarly, many students are cutting back on luxury goods and services such as premium television and internet packages. In less trying times, expensive cable and internet packages were more affordable, though with money tight, as little as $10 or $15 per month can make a huge difference.

“I recently downgraded my cable package to better fit my budget,” said Kevin Row, a fourth year Psychology major from Atlanta. “It was nice when we had more channels but it made sense now to get a cheaper package. The money I save adds up to over $100 a year.”

Another student similarly cut down on her television package to fit the economy. Sarah Grace Hudspeth, a fourth-year speech therapy major from Watkinsville, removed premium channels from her cable package to reduce the monthly bill.

Even students with mostly pre-determined budgets are finding ways to save money. Living on campus in the dorms with the UGA meal plan sets the budget of many students in stone, but there are still ways to save a few bucks on the side.

“I live in the dorms and am on the meal plan, so I try not to eat out very often,” said Briana Gerdeman, a second-year Journalism and International Affairs major from Duluth, “but when I do go out to eat, I usually get water instead of a soft drink. It doesn't cost anything extra for water, and its better for you anyways.”

Edited By Austin Pratt

Dry job market sends students to grad school

By ASHLEY STRICKLAND

University of Georgia graduates are returning for graduate school after meeting with meager internship and job offerings over the summer. During the times of the economic downturn, students may be better off staying in school before attempting to enter the real world.

“It has always been challenging for students to find jobs,” Marian Higgins, career consultant and diversity coordinator for the University’s Career Center, said. Higgins said the difficulty for recent graduates securing jobs has increased ever since the economic downturn.

“As career consultants, we are seeing students take an interest in adding certificate programs or professional schools to prolong entering the job market,” Higgins said.

Nearly a year ago, the Atlanta Business Chronicle published a report stating that the University’s graduate school reached a record enrollment of 7,125 students in fall 2008.

“Our application numbers for fall 2009 increased above the numbers for the previous year, but we do see an increase every year,” Krista Haynes, director of graduate admissions and students services for the University’s graduate school, said. No specific numbers for this year’s enrollment were given.

The possibility that employers are turning away recent graduates is alarming for students enrolled in the University as undergraduates and they are turning to their academic advisers for help.

“I have definitely seen an increase in the number of students inquiring about graduate school,” Maria Cooper, academic adviser in the Grady College, said. “I believe this is a direct result of the economy and the poor job market and lack of jobs.”

Students are encouraged now more than ever to pursue specialization that will make them more attractive and competitive in the job market.

Some students do this through certificate programs allowing them to completely master their field of interest. Others are adding courses that are related to their majors to increase their marketable skills.

“When a student asks about graduate school options, I strongly encourage them to look into a variety of different programs to see what interests them the most and what would increase their chances in the stagnant job market,” Cooper said.

“I also inform students that graduate school is not to be taken lightly. It is a lot of work, and they will invest a lot of time into the program, so they need to be sure that they are passionate about the program they choose,” she said.

But what about students who feel it is too late to change their major or specialized field of interest?

“There are jobs out there, this situation just requires more networking,” Higgins said.

Government jobs are always available, and students don’t have to be limited by their major when looking for jobs, Higgins said. And for students considering remaining in the education field, teachers who specialize in math, science or special education are still needed.

Students concerned with finding jobs are encouraged by career consultants to attend one of the many events put on by the Career Center. The Classic Center will be hosting the Fall Career Fair on Sept. 23. At least 130 potential employers seeking interns or full-time applicants are expected to attend and the list covers a broad range of career options.

The Career Center also offers workshops that will cover career choices in various majors. The workshops will cover resume writing, interviewing etiquette, networking and graduate school information.

Students can view the full calendar on the Career Center’s Web site, www.career.uga.edu, or stop by Clark Howell Hall to speak with a career consultant.

Meanwhile, recent graduates are still dealing with economic upheaval.

Olga Herndon, a triple major in cultural anthropology, human geography and global studies, graduated in the spring and has been working odd jobs. She is considering going to grad school, but wants to ride out the economy for now to see how it goes.

“I want to see how scary it is,” Herndon said. “It’s not just the economy, it’s your attitude about the economy.”

Edited by Carey O'Neil