Final Story: Enterprise

Thousands Lose Financial Aid

12,300 students from around the state will be excluded from financial aid after a new budget proposed by Gov.  Christine Gregoire calls for an additional $146 million, or 60 percent, reduction to the State Need Grant program.

Many students who depend on financial aid as their primary source of college funding are worried that they could suddenly be left without means to pay for their increasingly expensive education.

“I’ve used grants to pay for college for the last two years,” said Lane Rosselot, a junior general studies major at Washington State University. “If for some reason I wasn’t able to get financial aid it would probably mean finishing my degree at BCC or somewhere cheaper.”

The new budget will also force WSU to make another $13.55 million in cuts, in addition to the $54 million in cuts already made in May. This has led some students to speculate that another tuition increase might occur sooner than expected, putting even more pressure on the thousands of students around the state that will no longer be able to secure financial aid.

“My parents don’t want me to graduate with a lot of debt, but if tuition keeps increasing I’m going to need to try to get financial aid,” said John Challis, a WSU student who spent the last semester working in Bellevue. “But apparently it’s going to be even harder to get financial aid now, so I maybe I should start looking into getting a student loan.”

WSU President Elson S. Floyd expressed concern about how the new budget proposal will affect higher education and outlined how the university will respond in a statement released on Wednesday.

“The budget proposed today could severely restrict access to WSU and other higher education institutions,” Floyd wrote in the statement regarding the new budget plan. “Further reductions at the level outlined in this budget proposal will require our university to make fundamental changes in our structure, our programs and our operations.”

If the new budget plan is approved it will be effective beginning July 1, 2010, so the university will need to make decisions about how to handle the cuts fast. In the case that WSU is required to move forward under the new budget, a plan will be formulated and shared with the larger university community for input and discussion, Floyd wrote.

Many students were not aware that a new budget plan had even been proposed and did not understand what it meant for WSU, and others worried that it might affect certain programs that have barely survived budget cuts in the past.

“I was thinking about the sports management program but I heard it almost got cut” said Ryan Sikma, a senior at Eastlake High School who was just accepted to WSU. “But if it’s true that there could be even more budget cuts I might try to get into something that I know the school won’t mess with.”

Sources

John Challis [done via phone]

591-5006

jonchall125@msn.com

Lane Rosselot [This interview was done in person]

765-1069

lanerosselot@hotmail.com

Ryan Sikma [done via phone]

425-753-9808

sikmanegro@hotmail.com

Statement from President Floyd regarding new budget plan

URL: http://wsunews.wsu.edu/pages/publications.asp?Action=Detail&PublicationID=17275

Speech Story

Amphibian Decline

Dr. Andrew Storfer, a professor at Washington State University’s School of Biological Sciences, gave a speech concerning the rapid decline of amphibians last night during the Zoology Clubs final meeting.

Storfer began his speech with background information surrounding the decline of amphibians, and then went into details about the various theories and reasons that explain why such a decline is occurring. With nearly 45 percent of amphibian species declining and 180 species already extinct, Storfer was quick to talk about what many scientists believe is largest reason for this rapid change: habitat destruction.

“The rate of change in habitat directly coincides with amphibian survival,” said Storfer while showing a picture of wetlands being destroyed. “It’s easy to see why when you consider that less than 33% of the original wetlands are left in the United States”

Habitat destruction was only the top of the list however, and Storfer continued on to other causes of amphibian decline like invasive species, which are often implemented into an ecosystem on purpose as a means of biological pest control, and over exploitation of amphibians by humans, particularly as a source of food.

“We don’t think of things like frogs as a food source much here in America, but in other parts of the world they are very popular,” said Storfer while talking about the problem of frog and amphibian consumption. “It gets to be a real problem when you consider that 95% of world demand for frog legs and frog products are supplied by wild frogs.”

Storfer also talked about the problem of securing funding for amphibian conservation and research, and pointed out that amphibians were probably quite low on the list of endangered species. It’s just harder to convince people to worry about frog and salamander conservation when it’s the mammals that are usually at the forefront of conservation funding and public opinion.

“People can relate to things like a wolf because they have things like pet dogs – people don’t have pet frogs,” said Storfer. “Mammals are thought to be bigger, smarter and fluffier.”

This seemed to be a point that many people listening to the speech identified with, with more than one person commenting that the public needs to be made more aware about the importance of amphibians and the speed by which they are declining.

“It’s definitely something people should know more about,” said Katy Burr, a 3-year member and president of the Zoology Club. “Amphibians are important to the environment and people don’t realize it.”

The speech ended with Storfer taking questions from people in the audience, which Zoology Club members provided wholeheartedly. The members of the club seemed really interested in the material and had positive things to say about the speech.

“I thought the speech was really good and informative,” said Sydney Zeller, a Zoology Club and Organization of Future Veterinarians member. “It’s something not many people know about.”

Zoology club costs $8 a semester or $15 dollars for two semesters and hosts a variety of events for its members all year.

3 Questions for the speaker:

1. Why should this issue be on the forefront of public debate?
2. How big a part is global warming playing in this decline?
3. What do you think is the best strategy to improve funding for amphibian conservation is?

Contacts:

Dr. Andrew Storfer

astorfer@wsu.edu

Office: (509) 335-7922

Katy Burr

kburr@wsu.edu

Sydney Zeller

szeller@wsu.edu

Outline:

1. Who Spoke

2. Background Info

quote

3. Various points in speech

quote

4. Audience reaction

quote

5. End of speech/what is zoology club

Fake News Release

For the first time, leading journalists and technology executives have come together to examine the recent rise of news media outlets and distribution within virtual 3D worlds like Second Life.  The McCormick Foundation, one of the nation’s largest charities, has partnered with Washington State University to explore these virtual media outlets through panels, workshops and presentations that are to be held at WSU’s Edward R. Murrow College of Communication on April 6.

 ”We’re excited to bring together many of the leaders in technology and journalism to discuss and explore this new media channel for storytelling,” said WSU President Elson S. Floyd. “These and other emerging forms of digital news distribution offer both promise and potential for our students and for the future of journalism.”

 

Among those presenting at the event are Second Life founder Philip Rosedale, Club Penguin co-founder Lane Merrifield and ThinkBalm co-founder Erica Driver. Bob Scheiffer and Helen Thomas will also be in attendance.  

 

 ”The McCormick Foundation is proud to partner with Brett Atwood and WSU’s Edward R. Murrow College,” said Clark Bell, director of the McCormick Foundation’s Journalism Program. “Our reporting institutes are designed to be timely, engaging and insightful. This event should certainly fulfill our expectations and serve as a valuable learning platform for the participating journalists.”

 

The McCormick Foundation is a nonprofit organization committed to strengthening our free, democratic society by investing in children, communities and country. It was established as a charitable trust in 1955, upon the death of Colonel Robert R. McCormick, the longtime editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune. The McCormick Foundation is one of the nation’s largest charities, with $1.2 billion in assets.

 

For complete event information, visit the Web site at http://communication.wsu.edu.

 

 

 

 

 

News Feature Story



The consumption of energy-drink style beverages with high alcohol contents has significantly increased in Pullman over the last year, according to local businesses.

The most popular brand of these kinds of drinks, Four Loko, has an alcohol content of 12 percent and is full of stimulants like caffeine.  These drinks come only in 24 ounce cans, and Washington State University students can’t seem to get enough of them.

“People will come in and buy them by the case,” said Ryan Jones, a senior management operations major and employee of Bobs Corner Market for 3 years.  “It’s not uncommon for them to run out at the warehouse, sometimes I think they just can’t keep up.”

These kinds of drinks with large amounts of alcohol and caffeine can have different effects on the human body then beer or even liquor. When people drink large amounts of alcohol and couple it with large amounts of stimulants like those found in Four Loko, they tend to think they are less drunk then they really are.

“Alcohol is a depressant, so usually you tend to get tired with more consumption,” said Steven Hansen, a Washington State University police lieutenant. “These [Four Loko] styles of drinks though counter-act that, and allow people to consume more because of how it affects them physically.”

This effect allows a person to drink large amounts of a Four Loko or similar beverage and not feel as drunk as they are in reality, and this seems to be one of the reasons that WSU students enjoy drinking them so much.

“Oh Four Lokos are my favorite way to pre-funk for sure,” said Ryan Davis, a senior communications major at WSU. “They’re easy to drink and get you going for the night.”

Coupling high alcohol contents and stimulants the way that Four Lokos and similar drinks do can easily set the stage for someone to drink too much and blackout or worse, mainly because they are not able to accurately judge how drunk they really are.

“It’s sort of a nasty cycle,” said Hansen. “The more that you drink [Four Loko style beverages], the drunker and drunker you’re getting but still feeling energetic. Without the depressive affects of alcohol, people just don’t think they are as drunk as they really are.”

The trend towards these new Four Loko styles of drinks emerged over the last year, when local stores only carried one or two varieties of these kinds of drinks that came in only one or two flavors. Now stores have entire sections dedicated to them and still struggle to keep up with the demand.

“We started out with only 2 varieties but it’s grown to a lot more than that,” said Jones. “We’re completely out of Four Loko right now, actually. People have been coming in and asking for them all day.”

Whether it’s because of the amount of alcohol or how they taste, WSU students can’t seem to get enough of these new styles of drinks. With stores like Bobs Corner Market running out of Four Lokos on a regular basis, the trend towards these drinks seems to be continuing through this year.  

 

 

Sources:

Ryan Jones [This interview was done in person at Bobs Corner Market]

ryan.jones@email.wsu.edu

(509)793-4798

 

Steven Hansen (WSU police lieutenant) [This interview was done in person at the Public Safety Building]

(509)335-8548 ; Fax: (509)335-4239 

hansensj@wsu.edu

 

Ryan Davis 

ryand1222@hotmail.com

(425)269-9062

 

Outline:

Introduction of new drink trend

What is four loko

quote

effects of drink on body

quote

why students like it 

quote

how these drinks lead to over drinking

quote

continuation of trend 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Attribution Exercise

1. Same-sex couples exist whether schools teach about them or not.

 

Needs attribution: avoid bias.

 2. This raises the question, would universal health care work here, locally?

 

Who is raising the question? Attribution needed

 3. Although SB 5688 has been dubbed the “everything but marriage” bill, many people opposed to it feel that if it is approved by state voters and enacted into law it will eventually pave the way for gay marriage in the state of Washington.

 

‘Many people’ vague language, really just a way of writing around the fact that we don’t know.

 4. “Tonight, in an historic vote, the House of Representatives passed a bill that would finally make real the promise of quality, affordable health care for the American people,” President Barack Obama said.

 

Unless we interviewed Barack Obama, say where the information came from, like a press release

 5. The ASWSU Senate is taking a stand against initiative 1033 with their newest resolution.

 

Although subtle, ‘taking a stand’ implies that I-1033 is bad and that the senate is standing up to it.

 6. TAPOR is largely considered a financial disaster for Colorado and was suspended in 2005.

 

TAPOR is an unfamiliar acronym that most people don’t recognize. Who does this disaster affect?

 7. Many local citizens face the tough decision between buying insurance and putting food on the table.

 

How do we know that there are ‘many local citizens’ facing this issue? This should be attributed to someone.

 8. President Obama has received significant public attention for his health care bill, and residents of Whitman County are well aware of what his plan means.

 

How do we know that the residents of Whitman County are well aware? This should be attributed to someone.

 9. While the lighting initiative is important, Workman believes that not all the lighting requested may be necessary.

 

Who said that the lighting initiative is important? This should be attributed to someone.

 10.  Though only a few were positive H1N1 cases, the hysteria spread throughout the community and led to the large number of suspected cases.

 

Who is really in hysterics? What does hysteria really mean?  

 

Political Story Re-Write

Referendum 71: An attack on marriage, or essential rights?

 

The debate over Referendum 71 grows more intense as the 2009 November general election approaches, and many Washington State University students have strong opinions about which way they will vote.

Referendum 71 is an attempt to overturn Senate Bill 5688, an “everything but marriage” law that grants registered domestic partners in Washington all rights, obligations, and responsibilities granted or imposed by the state of Washington on married couples.

Opponents of SB 5688 collected 137,881 signatures and now Referendum 71 will appear on the ballot in the November general election, allowing state voters to determine whether or not the bill will be passed. With thousands of domestic partnerships already registered in Washington, the Referendum has been propelled to the forefront of a statewide debate that has stirred up liberal and conservative supporters on both sides.

“Voting yes on Referendum 71 and approving the senate bill means maybe being able to have a domestic partnership myself,” said Jordan Seider, a senior accounting major and treasurer of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Allies program of Washington State University. “It’s definitely on the steps towards the rights we deserve.”

Although SB 5688 has been dubbed the “everything but marriage” bill, many people opposed to it feel that if it is approved by state voters and enacted into law it will eventually pave the way for gay marriage in the state of Washington.

“Look, I just believe that marriage is something that should only be between a man and woman,” said Phil Gannon, a senior construction management major and opponent of SB 5688. “I know they say that the bill is not really about gay marriage, but really it’s just one more step towards something that I don’t agree with.”

Supporters of SB 5688 maintain that voting yes on Referendum 71 is not really about marriage at all, and merely establishes rights that should have already been established.

“They’re saying that it is defining marriage, and we’re saying that it’s giving rights that should have already been given,” Seider said. “It’s not about marriage at all.”

Conservative opponents of the bill also argue that the law’s cost would be too high, with an additional $2.6 million for state employee pension survivor benefits and an additional $1.1 million for worker compensation and victim claim benefits alone.

“I haven’t really heard much about the cost of it [approving Referendum 71],” said Sara Schelley, a senior at WSU who described herself as neutral towards the bill. “With the recent recession and stuff though I can see how that could be an issue.”

Referendum 71 will appear on the November 2009 general election ballot at which time state voters will determine the fate of SB 5688 and the future of domestic partnerships in Washington.

 

Sources

Jordan Seider [This interview was done in person at the Gender Identity/Expression and Sexual Orientation Resource Center]

jdseider@wsu.edu

Phil Gannon

pjgannon@wsu.edu

(509)869-4026

Sara Schelley

sschelley@wsu.edu

(425)444-0684

Outline:

Headline

What is R-71?

How did it come about/Two sides

Quote (Liberal)

Really about marriage

Quote (Conservative)

Not really about marriage

Quote (Liberal)

Cost argument (non marriage related arguments)

Quote (Neutral)

Conclusion

 

Lede and Nutgraph based on Question Answers

Chelsea Low was nervous when she first came to WSU, but after adjusting to life away from home there is no place that she would rather be.

“When I first came to WSU three years ago, I remember being a little apprehensive about being away from my family,” said Chelsea Low, a Senior  Communications student at Washington State University. “But now I can’t picture myself anywhere else.”

3 Questions

1. Describe the most interesting/profound experience you’ve ever had. 

 

2. Tell me a story about yourself that defines you as a person.

 

3. Who is your biggest role model in life, and why?

Comma Drama

1. We looked through the church and searched outside the building.

2. These lights would be funded by ASWSU, he said.

3. His car is black, yellow and orange.

4. Gunnell said everything is still in the early stages of planning, but he hopes the project will be underway by next summer.

5. For breakfast he had juice, bacon, and ham and eggs.

6. In July, the grassroots organization Protect Marriage Washington turned in thousands of signatures in order to stall the bill and bring the issue to a statewide vote.

7. She was tired. We stayed home.

8. “This is not a bill for gay marriage. I just want to save some money on my taxes and live my life.”

9. Elected to the council were Mark Roberts, 19, a sophomore from Miami, Fla. Suzanne Idley, 20, a junior from Nashville, Tenn. and Alberto Greenberg, 21, a senior from Hartford, Conn.

10. We wanted to leave to the old house but something held us there.

Math Quiz

1. $7,885
2. 83%
3. 8%
4. 67%
5.  a) 33% b) 50%
6. 11%
7. $275,000
8. 3 slices, I get 4 cause I missed lunch
9. 25%
10. $5,890