For sale: Your information

By Tami Livingston
NEWS EDITOR

Jen Quinn

The University of North Florida can release student directory information including names, addresses and phone numbers to credit card companies, the military and other third-party vendors. Students can prevent their information from being released by filling out a non-disclosure form at One Stop Student Services.

Thousands of University of North Florida students are giving their personal information away and may not even know it.

Students' names, phone numbers, addresses, classifications, majors, degrees, dates of attendance and their full or part-time statuses are all available information that can be given out by the university to the public.

"I do think there are probably some students out there that aren't aware," said registrar Vicky Buonomo.

The above information is known as directory information and can be given to third-party vendors such as credit card companies, businesses, the military and others, Buonomo said.

The registrar's office typically receives six or seven directory information requests each semester, Buonomo said. No credit card companies have requested information from UNF since the beginning of 2006. Herff Jones, two student insurance companies and various military branches have made requests since then, she said.

The third-party vendors pay a fee of $50 to receive a list of directory information for each student at UNF, Buonomo said. The list includes directory information on all active students at UNF. The third-party vendors must provide the registrars office a letter in which they state what they will be using the information for, Buonomo said.

Buonomo said she estimates that approximately 20,000 students and their information would be included in the list because students' statuses stay active for one or two semesters after they graduate because they may come back and take more classes.

Only students who have completed a Request for Non-Disclosure of Directory Information form will not be on the list. The non-disclosure forms are available at One Stop Student Services, she said.

"We encourage students who don't want that information released to fill out that form," she said.

Sophomore computer science major Drew Dyr said he knew about the form but didn't know who could get the information.

Once a student completes a non-disclosure form it will take effect immediately and will remain in effect unless it is removed, Buonomo said.

"I didn't know they could get my information," said Staci Harding, an undecided freshman. When told about the non-disclosure form, she said she would "definitely do it."

Students are informed about their information being released and the non-disclosure forms during their orientation, Buonomo said. Information about FERPA and student records rights is available on the registrar's Web site and through the One Stop Web site, she said.

"We try to make this as visual as possible to students so they are aware of our policies," she said.

Personally identifiable information such as Social Security numbers, grades, transcripts, course schedules and "any information that can be traced back to your identity" are not released to third-party vendors, Buonomo said.

While school e-mail addresses are included in directory information under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, UNF has made an institutional decision not to release that information to third party vendors, she said.

University officials can access the directory information along with some personal information, she said. However, those officials must have a "legitimate educational reason or purpose for accessing that information," she said.

Buonomo said a college dean may request information about the grades received for a certain course section or information on how many students are enrolled in the college and they can access that information. University officials can also access student's school e-mail addresses, she said.

For more information about FERPA and a complete list of those allowed to access to student information, visit www.ed.gov or the registrar's Web site at www.unf.edu/registrar.

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Senators authorize $3 million budget

By Tami Livingston
NEWS EDITOR

Rebecca Daly

Senate President A.J. Souto led the senate meeting Feb. 19 where the 2007-2008 Activity and Service Fee budget was revisited and then approved.

The University of North Florida Student Government Senate approved the $3 million Activity and Service Fee Budget Feb. 19 for the 2007-2008 year.

The Budget and Allocations Committee presented a balanced budget after deliberations earlier this month. During a senate meeting that lasted nearly six hours, the senate revisited nine accounts in the budget and rebalanced the budget.

"This budget is not as controversial as last year," said Senate President and junior Political Science major A.J. Souto. "This year people took it in stride and realized we had to make cuts - it had to be done."

The A&S Fee budget is comprised of 34 individual accounts that have their own budgets.

The budget requests from the 34 accounts were approximately $300,000 more than the budget could accommodate, Souto said.

"We started out with a $312,000 deficit," he said.

"They [the senators] were really trying to do the best they could to continue the services without cutting anyone," said SG Comptroller Betty Garris.

The accounts revisited during the senate meeting were: Homecoming, Campus Ministry, the African American Student Union, Recreation and Intramural Sports, Osprey Productions, the Spinnaker and the SG Legislative, Business and Accounting and Judicial accounts.

According to SG statutes, the A&S Fee budget can be used to "support activities that reflect genuine student interest and enhance the educational, social, cultural, and recreational interests of the University of North Florida students."

There are prohibited items and expenditures budget cannot fund, including entertainment which is not open to the whole student body, alcoholic beverages and activities that benefit solely non-UNF students, according to statutes.

Provisionary language for the budget was also revisited during the meeting. Provisionary language is verbiage that gives conditional requirements of A&S budget funding, said SG Accountant John Sapp.

Adrian Semerene, director of Osprey Productions, said he would have liked the provisionary language applicable to OP revisited. In the proposed language for next year there will be a committee in charge of Homecoming comprised of SG members on which the OP Director will serve on, he said. In the past, the OP director has been in charge of the committee, Semerene said.

"Osprey Productions did an excellent job with Homecoming," said Elizabeth Rasmussen, a senior social studies education major and member of the B&A committee. "The proviso language was included to be more specific about who had a voice in homecoming."

Funding for the Day of Fun and the Pep Rally for Homecoming is not included in next year's budget, Semerene said. Funding for those events will have to be secured through Special Requests and "it will be more difficult," he said.

The 2007-2008 budget was calculated based on 395,000 expected credit hours with a $7.83 A&S Fee per credit hour, Garris said.

The current A&S Fee is $7.49 per credit hour and if tuition does not increase next year, as has been recommended by Gov. Charlie Crist, the A&S Fee will not increase, Garris said. If the fee does not increase, SG will use extra money from excess credit hours from the 2006-2007 year to fund the $134,000 difference, she said.

The budget will now go before Student Body President Justin Damiano for approval or line-item veto. If he approves the budget as written it will then go before the Vice President of Student Affairs and UNF President John Delaney. Once approved by Delaney, the budget will become official, Garris said.

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Duval among STD leaders

By Diana Frazee
CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Robert K. Pietrzyk

Duval County had the fifth highest number of chlaymdia cases in Florida for 2006. Gonorrhea is another prevalent STD in Duval County.

One in four Americans has an STD, according the American Social Health Association.

Compared to the other 66 counties in Florida, Duval County had the fifth-highest rating of chlamydia in 2006. The age group of 20-24 accounted for the highest ratings of chlamydia in Duval County while the 15-19 age group came in second, according to the Florida Department of Health Division of Disease Control.

Rodney Brown, a prevention/training consultant of the Duval County Health Department said the years within these age groups are considered the most sexually active years. Many young people have liberal attitudes towards sex, thinking they are invincible and incapable of contracting a deadly disease, he said.

Twenty-year-old Jessica Affendakes, a junior health administration major, agreed with Brown.

"I could probably name at least five people at UNF who have had an STD," she said.

Brown also said drug and alcohol use is at an all-time high during these years and is a definite contributing factor to the high numbers.

Among the highest of these numbers are rates of chlamydia and gonorrhea. In 2006, Duval County had 4,831 reported cases of chlamydia and 2,417 cases of gonorrhea. These diseases are among the most serious because they can cause sterility, making it impossible to reproduce, according to the ASHA.

According to the FDH the number of cases of gonorrhea and chlamydia increased from 2005 to 2006 by more than 3 percent. The numbers of other common STDs dropped slightly or stayed the same.

The 20-24 age group accounted for approximately 1,800 of the chlamydia cases last year.

Jenny DiSanto, a sophomore communications major, described how an STD affected a close friend.

"It's like a constant burden she has to carry with her and she will never be at peace," she said.

Chlamydia, along with many other STDs, often produces no symptoms or symptoms that have nothing to do with the genital region and are similar to having the flu, according to the ASHA.

Brown said the problem in the continuous spread of sexually transmitted diseases is that people infect others not knowing they are infected.

Frequently, once someone realizes there is a possible disease present, he or she receives the medication from a doctor and stops taking it once the initial symptoms are no longer visible, he said.

Simply because the symptoms have vanished does not mean the disease has disappeared, Brown said.

Some STDs cause breaks in the skin which let the HIV virus enter the bloodstream more easily, he said. HIV is the virus that leads to AIDS, which is the most dangerous STD because it is incurable and lethal.

AIDS can only be contracted through contact with blood, semen or vaginal fluid.

It can not be obtained through touching, kissing, coughing, donating blood, swimming in public pools or from food, mosquitoes or toilet seats according to the ASHA.

Misconceptions about STDs contribute to the growing problem, Brown said

"Kids come in and say they want the STD test," said Dody Jenner, RN and head nurse of Student Medical Services. Jenner said many students are not aware that there is not one, all-encompassing "STD test."

There are individual tests which are administered according to the symptoms that are present, she said. New testing methods require urine samples, while others use blood tests and mouth swabs.

STD testing is available in SMS and Health Promotions in the UNF Arena. These locations also offer HIV testing.

The HIV test at the SMS is an $18 non-anonymous blood test. However, the results come back in one or two days.

The HIV test at Health Promotions is anonymous and free but the results do not come back as quickly, Jenner said.

According to Jenner, chlamydia is the most common disease on UNF's campus because the symptoms usually are not visible or easily detectable.

There are no noticeable STD trends at UNF because the numbers are not filed. When an STD test comes back positive from on campus testing services, it is immediately reported to the Duval County Health Department and recorded, Jenner said.

The Duval County Health Department does not record the number of STD tests according to a specific entity such as UNF. The statistics are only recorded according to zip codes, Brown said.

"In the old days, people thought if you had an STD you could just get a shot or something, but it's not like that anymore," Brown said. "We need to educate ourselves and realize that those days are done."

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UPD, JSO investigate threats

By Matt Coleman
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Residents of the Osprey Village may have been surprised Feb. 13 when members of the University Police Department entered their rooms looking for a possible armed kidnapper.

UPD received a call from the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office saying a subject with a gun was holding a resident of the Osprey Village and her friend hostage and was threatening to kill them, said UPD Sergeant Shawn Faulkner. Faulkner said he and other officers were dispatched to the victim's Village residence to try and diffuse the situation.

"When we arrived at the room, I knocked on the door and one of the residents answered," Faulkner said. "I pulled her outside of the room and asked her where the suspect was located. She said she hadn't heard of anyone with a gun."

Faulkner said he and the other officers decided to search other residences in different buildings of the Osprey Village that were similarly numbered. He said the original emergency call came from a cell phone and the JSO 911 operator could have heard the incorrect letter of the building in question.

Sholem Palevsky, a senior biology major, said his room was one of the residences UPD searched.

"I was just hanging out and when the police officer asked if anyone in the room had a gun," Palevsky said. "I thought it was kind of funny at first, but I was a little scared when I realized he was serious. I'm glad they were on the case."

After searching the Osprey Village and determining all the similarly numbered rooms were clear, Faulkner received information that the victims were off-campus. When they returned, Faulkner said UPD assisted JSO with the investigation.

"As the incident occurred off-campus, it was out of our [UPD's] jurisdiction," Faulkner said.

According to the JSO Incident Report, the suspect became angered when his girlfriend attempted to remove some of her belongings from his home, as she was moving into the dorms at UNF. The suspect's girlfriend and her friend, who was assisting with the move, were threatened by the suspect. He said he would shoot them and he had murdered three other people. The victims were forced into the girlfriend's car and the suspect took the wheel, driving at a high speed.

The suspect took the victims on an erratic ride while threatening to drive the vehicle into a tree and kill them all. The suspect was eventually dropped off at Sneakers on Baymeadows Road, but not before he groped his girlfriend's friend.

The victims made contact with the police when the pair arrived on campus. They arrested the suspect later that night.

Faulkner said he's glad the incident didn't escalate and no one was hurt.

"As of Friday night [Feb. 16], the judge had denied the suspect's bail and he was still in jail," Faulkner said.

Before the suspect was arrested, he told officers that he was drunk during the incident and he called the girls "animals."

The JSO Incident Report stated the suspect informed the arresting officers that "Women have to be talked to that way because they lie, cheat and steal."

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Florida college students struggle with four-year finish

By Scott Travis
SOUTH FLORIDA SUN-SENTINEL

Forget about the four-year college student. At most South Florida universities, students are struggling to finish their educations in six years.

Graduation rates at South Florida's colleges and universities trail the state and the nation. Only one major four-year institution in South Florida, the University of Miami, has a six-year graduation rate above 50 percent, according to the most recent figures available from the schools and the National Center for Education Statistics.

At Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, 37 percent finished in six years. Nova Southeastern in Davie had a graduation rate of 39 percent. A substantially smaller number of students finish in four years, with FAU among the lowest at 16 percent.

"To graduate in four years, you have to take 15 hours every semester and basically have no life," said FAU sophomore Kristi Digennaro of Boca Raton, who expects to graduate in five years. "I take 12 to 14 hours a semester."

But some education experts see this as a problem. Students who spend five or more years in college end up with more debt and a smaller lifetime earning potential than those who get out in four years, said Danette Gerald, senior research associate for the Education Trust, a research and policy organization based in Washington, D.C.

"We should be very concerned if students who enroll in our colleges have less than a 1-in-2 chance of getting a degree in four years," she said. "Most don't finish until five or six years, and of course many never finish at all."

Educators say there are many reasons for these low numbers. Some students transfer to other colleges. Many students are nontraditional, fitting in a few classes between work and family life.

As a statewide system, the graduation rate for public universities in Florida compares favorably with the nation's. About 63 percent of students finish in six years, compared with about 53 percent nationally.

But seven of the 10 largest public universities in the state have six-year graduation rates below 50 percent.

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Students push for more funding

By Audrey Hoffer
MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL

Matt Guidry, a junior at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, is already $20,000 in debt and worrying about how he'll afford graduate school.

This week he's in Washington with hundreds of other students lobbying for the Student Aid Reward Act.

The Student Aid Reward Act was introduced by Fond du Lac Republican Rep. Tom Petri and Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) nearly two years ago, but not brought to a vote. It would make more money available to college students to pay for tuition without any additional cost to taxpayers.

At a news conference Feb. 20 that was packed with college students and several members of Congress from both parties, STAR was reintroduced.

One after another, lawmakers and students stood up for the right of all students to pursue college degrees.

"Higher education is key to a better future," said state Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.), "and we have to look for every new way to make college more affordable."

The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that the bill would save the government $13 billion, and that least $10 billion of that would be available as new financial aid.

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Lab explores bio-energy options

By Matt Coleman
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Rebecca Daly

Assistant Professor Dr. David Fletcher and mechanical engineering grad students Ben Swanson and Jason Harrington, developed a bus that runs on battery power and methanol. The bus is one of only five in the country.

As the international community moves away from its reliance on fossil fuels, the cultivation of renewable energy sources becomes more important every day.

The Jacksonville Electric Authority Clean and Renewable Energy Lab at the University of North Florida is working to break the dependence by experimenting with alternative energy like solar, wind and bio-fuels. Led by Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering Dr. David Fletcher, the lab was established by a $500,000 grant from the JEA in 2002.

Fletcher, who has been working with clean energy for more than 15 years, said he started at UNF in the spring of 2003 because he "saw a real oppor- tunity to work with a new, emerging program."

Assisting in Fletcher's work are Ben Swanson and Jason Harrington, two mechanical engineering graduate students from the University of Florida. Swanson said he and Harrington are working at UNF to "lay down a foundation here for future mechanical engineering graduate students."

One of the projects the lab is working on is a direct methanol fuel cell powered by a small methanol cartridge that can be used in small electronic items such as laptops or cell phones. Swanson said they are working with new technology and their proposal has been brought before the Department of Environmental Protection.

The lab is also trying to apply its research to campus with the help of Physical Facilities. While still in the preliminary stages, the plan is to convert Physical Facilities vehicles on campus that run on diesel, such as tractors and other lawn maintenance equipment, to operate using vegetable oil. As of now, the project has yet to find a source to supply vegetable oil, Swanson said.

The most noticeable project the lab is currently involved in may resemble a standard public transportation bus, but the real difference lies beneath the hood. Instead of being powered by an internal combustion engine, the bus is a hybrid running on battery power and methanol.

Brought to UNF as part of a joint effort by Georgetown University and the Jacksonville Transportation Authority, the bus is one of only five in the country. Swanson estimated the total cost of the vehicle is around $10 million.

"This bus brings with it the future of renewable energy research," Harrington said. "It helps us continue our research and work with Georgetown."

Undergraduate studies have also seen an improvement thanks to the lab's research, Fletcher said. He said he has tried to bring the lab's work into the classroom.

"Students in the Energy Systems Laboratory class are converting peanut oil into bio-diesel," Fletcher said. "With our work, we've been able to bring technology and research to undergraduate studies like never before."

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'Miracle Kate' makes rare visit to campus

Ace Stryker

"Miracle Kate" Yeomans, the 11-year-old namesake of recent addition to campus dining Miracle Kate's Hot Diggity Dogs, ventured away from home to the University of North Florida with her family Feb. 19. Yeomans has severe aplastic anemia, a rare and terminal form of cancer. In 1999, her doctor's prognosis gave her two weeks to live. Since then, she's undergone an experimental form of treatment called Amphoteracin and to date is the only person in the world to have survived. Yeomans' condition leaves her mind capable of operating at about the level of a 4-year-old, said Rick Yeomans, her father, who runs the hot dog stand. Proceeds from the stand benefit Kate Yeomans' treatment and the Children's Miracle Network.

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