Spinnaker [Distributed: Wednesday, December 6, 2006]

One of the biggest and undoubtedly toughest duties for Student Government at the University of North Florida is deciding how to spend the budget. Hundreds of hours and mountains of paperwork go into selecting which campus projects and organizations receive what amount of money each year. And the results are almost guaranteed to incite consternation among some groups who inevitably didn't garner what they'd hoped for in school-sponsored funding.

That's why making responsible fiscal decisions is paramount in establishing the success of any SG administration. With limited funds and virtually unlimited demand for them, a carefully structured budget plan that's guided by an awareness of campus needs and refined by debate is one of the most crucial avenues through which SG can make an impact on school affairs.

So when the idea for something like a skate park comes along - something that demands more money than Anna Murdoch in a divorce - questions should be asked. The logical sequence of evaluation and skepticism ought to be adopted to determine if it is, in fact, a worthwhile endeavor.

For starters, what's the price tag? Approximately $250,000, according to former SG President Jerry Watterson's February 2005 proposal for the project. That's roughly the same amount university funding for flagship programs increased in the 2005-2006 school year. These are the programs President Delaney has said he hopes will rocket the university into the national sphere.

The next question ought to address the benefits spending will give to UNF students. While the academic utility of a skate park is at best dubitable, nobody can doubt it sounds really cool. A move like that can ensure SG would enjoy the image of a student-oriented organization for the rest of its tenure. This is especially true if one were to look at the results of an informal poll conducted by SG in January 2005 that reported 49 percent of students surveyed said they would use a skate park on campus. Those are good numbers.

But wait a minute: almost half of UNF students reported they would hit the ramps given the opportunity? That doesn't sound right. That is, after all, almost 8,000 students by this year's numbers who said they'd line up - all the way around campus, evidently -- to get a chance in the park. It's only upon closer inspection that one comes to realize that the survey population was a mere 159 students -- that's about 1 percent of today's student body. Add to that the fact that the survey methods were questioned by a number of influential former SG members when they talked to the Spinnaker in 2005.

So the case is simple. Without further research, it must appear that a quarter of a million dollars is slated to pay for a skate park that half of 1 percent of the student body said they would use. If SG truly has the best interests of the students at heart, rather than the interest of leaving some inane and soon-obsolete legacy behind as they march off into that great big post-graduation world where credentials and accolades mean everything, they had better consider what it is the students actually want.

Recognize AIDS as world epidemic

Editorial

Communities across the planet joined together to celebrate World Aids Day Dec. 1. The disease has become a brutal epidemic that plagues an estimated 40 million people. Almost 3 million have died in 2006 alone, a little more than 500,000 of which were children.

The area hit the hardest is sub-Saharan Africa, where almost 25 million are infected. Women and children make up more than half of that statistic. These nations are so poor it is nearly impossible to conduct prevention and treatment on the affected population.

And nearly 1.5 million North Americans are infected with HIV/AIDS. Eight million more are scattered throughout Asia, about 2 million in Europe and another 2 million in South America.

It was the leading cause of death from black women age 25-34 worldwide in 2004. No corner of the globe has gone untouched.

Anyone with a television has been inundated with these statistics for the last few weeks. But it's safe to say that many think, "Wow, that's awful, too bad for those poor [fill in the blank], thank goodness that won't happen to me," and move on to a channel without a commercial.

Each and every one of these people lives with the stigma of the disease. It doesn't matter what country they're in, or the circumstances of their infection. They are sullied.

In this country, people living with HIV/AIDS are certainly ostracized. It's a gay disease, or a drug-addict disease. Normal, heterosexual people don't get HIV.

But an estimated 10,400 American women were diagnosed with the disease in 2004. About 78 percent of those women contracted the disease through heterosexual contact. So ladies, being a straight female isn't a get out of jail free card.

Granted, the majority of infected people in the United States are men, and most of those contracted the disease through homosexual sex or intravenous drug use. But more than 5,000 got it from sex with a woman or another, unspecified reason. The risk exists, no matter a person's race, lifestyle or sexual orientation.

Abstinence before marriage is becoming less popular among many people in this country. With so much of the population sexually active with multiple partners, it's imperative to practice safe sex. Wrap it up every time. Get tested. Be educated.

And help others. This isn't a disease that affects one group or another. It affects everyone. If the stigma about HIV is eliminated throughout the world, more infected people would have the courage to get tested and get treatment.

There are a plethora of ways to donate to HIV research and aid. Web sites such as www.avert.org and www.worldaidscampaign.info are good resources for giving and receiving support. Incurable diseases can only be quenched with prevention, and prevention can only be achieved when everyone works together.

Here's some insight into journalism jargon

Staff Opinion

As the Discourse Editor, I'm the one who edits all of the letters to the editor. It's one of the most rewarding parts of my job, because it gives me and the rest of the staff an idea of what readers think about the content of our publication. We see our work as a service to the university community, and one of the best ways to know when we've hit or missed the mark is by getting reader feedback.

That being said, I want to clear up a few things about newspaper content. First of all, the Discourse section of the newspaper is opinion writing, which can be either in the form of editorials or columns. The editorials are always on page two and are written by members of the Spinnaker staff. They reflect our opinion on topics.

Editorials usually discuss important topics, either of the university community or the world in general. This means they require a certain amount of research so readers can get a full understanding of these topics and why we take a certain stance on them.

Columns appear on page three and are usually submitted by non-staffers. Columns don't necessarily require a lot of research on the part of the writer, though the most effective ones have their ducks in a row. In my time as Discourse Editor, I've been lucky enough to have very talented writers submit columns to me. They take a strong point of view and stick with it. I've yet to receive one that didn't make its point.

Because these columnists have been so opinionated, their work is usually the hottest topics for letters to the editor.

But many times the letter writers seem to have some confusion about the difference between an article and a column.

An article is an objective piece of journalism that tells a story based solely on the facts the reporter gathered.

A column is pure opinion, about whatever the writer chooses to spout off about. It isn't journalism, though I try to edit out any blatant fact errors.

So for all of the wonderful readers who get fired up about something they see in the Spinnaker and want to write in, now you can make your point more effectively.

Don't be afraid to point out what you see as erroneous judgments in a columnist's point of view, but understand that these are stated opinions. And by all means, if we get a fact wrong in an actual article, LET US KNOW!

Thank you to all of the contributing columnists and letter writers who made this Discourse section so colorful and full of intelligent exchange.

Please keep it up! We need your input to make the paper the best it can be.

Say 'Merry Christmas,' not 'Happy Holidays'

Student Opinion

I've always loved Christmas time.

Even as a child, I knew Christmas was coming soon when I saw candy canes and drummer boy decorations wrapped tightly around shopping-center light poles.

And I would get downright giddy when boutiques and restaurants painted "Merry Christmas" on their window sills.

But over the years, those decorations have gradually begun to decrease and "Merry Christmas" has now become "Season's Greetings" or "Happy Holidays." In some cases, it has become "Happy Kwanzaa" or "Happy Hanukkah."

Sales associates are no longer allowed to wish customers "Merry Christmas" so that the small percentage of Americans who do not celebrate the holiday will not be offended - and this is all done in the name of tolerance.

When retailers restrain from using the term, however, they are only proving that they are not tolerant of Christians.

But this is no surprise. The Christian faith is becoming less and less accepted throughout the world.

In America, citizens boast of having freedom to practice any religion they want, but it is apparent that Christianity is not among the acceptable choices. Christians are persecuted in nearly every facet of life for believing in doctrines such as creationism and salvation.

And in today's world, Christians are considered lowly and unintelligent - especially in a college atmosphere.

Here at school, I have taken three non-religion classes where the professors have mentioned Christianity and the nonsense behind believing God created the universe and everything in it. In one class, the professor even devoted three classes to "prove" creation was false.

And ironically, all the while I was paying him to teach me about the trouble with discrimination. Go figure.

But while verbal attacks and holiday restrictions may not seem like such a big deal, I am convinced that persecution against the Christian faith will only intensify as time progresses.

In other countries, such as China, Saudi Arabia and North Korea, Christians are beaten or murdered simply for believing in Jesus. And though the attacks in America have not become physical yet, the attempt to remove Christianity from all areas of life demonstrates the same level of intolerance and hatred.

Even at this university, I can't imagine the uproar that would occur if an 8-foot bronze statue of Jesus Christ was placed in the courtyard between Building 1 and Building 2. I do propose, however, that those who oppose it would be the same people who say that Jesus was simply a good teacher - like Mahatma Gandhi, for example. And once again, the opposition would be done in the name of tolerance.

So during this Christmas season, I challenge everyone to observe the ways Christ is being removed from the holiday that began as a celebration of His birth. Then know that it is only getting worse.

But even when it does, I will continue to wish everyone a very merry Christmas.

Not one right answer in education

Let's start with a hard truth. When it comes to education, there is no one panacea, no magic answer for the many different teachers and students in our many different classrooms.

I attended a high level international conference on education with respected researchers reporting on their findings. What I heard is that based on the measurements they had, there is little relationship between education reform (usually considered the magic answer) and student achievement results.

I was disappointed because I would like to have a magic bullet, but I was not really surprised.

In any classroom, there are 30 different learners. The teacher is teaching a single lesson, yet it is learned in 30 different ways.

The same goes for families. Children in families, even linked by many genes, have such different experiences in the same house. Brothers and sisters are convinced they were raised by different parents.

What are some possible solutions? In school, we are told that with a master plan, with standards, goals and objectives, and a foolproof curriculum, then we'd all achieve in the same way.

All of us, including students, are different and we are different learners some slower, some faster; some more creative, endowed with talents; some encumbered with needs that one-size-fits-all school remedies just can't handle ... or even help.

Teachers are under the gun to produce strong test results. Children as young as first grade are being given homework that third graders used to get. For what? Are we making our kids smarter, wiser, able to enjoy reading, enjoy learning? I wish it were so.

We have new education laws, no doubt meant to do good, that have students in every class tested and tested and tested. In education, we have retreated to the one right answer.

Einstein, who famously said that imagination is more important than knowledge, would not be proud of us. We are raising a bunch of test-takers from a very early age who get labeled, often stigmatized and discouraged. Learning to read used to take almost the full year of first grade. It was a slow, gentle process with time along the way for art and music.

Tests can be helpful when they are used to diagnose and then treat children's learning problems. But, when they are used as the prime source for student grades for report cards, they tend to override teacher judgment and yes, compassion.

What our youngest learners need is hope and optimism, and we just can't afford to crush these out of them.

Because children learn in different ways, let's find out how they do learn: Are they pen and pencil learners? Or can they learn reading and math on the sports fields or in activities at home. Not every body has to do, or can do, everything the same way. It looks more efficient, but it doesn't work.

Because teachers teach in different ways, let's give them the chance to come up with creative ways to teach reading and math and science, so that they don't all have to follow the same curriculum day after day. This numbs teacher brains as well as students.

Our goal for really good education is to expand the possibilities for learning, not limit them. I want to see freedom in the classroom, not chaos. I want to give students the opportunity to learn as they learn best and give them the time it takes to do it. And I want to see teachers use their creativity and their knowledge to offer many ways for children to learn ... well beyond the textbook and the workbooks.

We are smarter today about what helps children learn well and teachers teach well. Let's use these smarts.

Print Edition

DISCOURSE

SG out of touch with student interests

Editorial

Recognize AIDS as world epidemic

Editorial

Here's some insight into journalism jargon

Staff Opinion

Say 'Merry Christmas,' not 'Happy Holidays'

Student Opinion

Not one right answer in education

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