Maryann Lesert instructing her EN 102 class, which has a special emphasis on the environment. (Photo by Lonnie Allen /Collegiate

Student group advocates concealed weapons at CC
By Kyle A. Kiekintveld
Collegiate Staff Writer

A new student group has started on campus. A GRCC chapter of Students for Concealed Carry on Campus (SCCC) has been approved. They seek the ability to carry concealed weapons on the GRCC campus.

According to the SCCC web site, it is a national non-partisan group with over 35,000 members advocating the right for concealed weapon permit holders to carry concealed weapons on campus.

State law currently prohibits people from carrying concealed weapons on college campuses, regardless of whether they have a permit.

The GRCC code of conduct also bans carrying firearms, air pistols/rifles, knives, licensed weapons on campus amongst other potential weapons. Anyone caught violating these rules are subject to the appropriate legal action as well as disciplinary action, up to expulsion.

In order to get a concealed weapon permit, according to GRCC Police Chief Cindy Kennell, a permit is required to first purchase the weapon, a background check is needed, a review by the concealed weapon board, as well as completing a required training course.

"To get a concealed weapon permit, it's a state required eight hour class." Josh Eberly, President of the GRCC chapter of SCCC said.

"Some schools go eight hours some go 16 or 20. With at least three hours of range time, it covers your Michigan state firearms laws, the transportation of firearms, the carry of firearms, the locations where firearms are illegal to carry, and where firearms are legal to carry. It also covers the legal use of lethal force, or potentially lethal force."

Also those who have been forcibly hospitalized for a mental illness or been ordered to go through psychiatric treatment are disqualified for concealed weapon permits.

Eberly points out that it is extremely easy to lose a concealed weapon permit. Any felony automatically revokes the permit and permits can be revoked over unpaid parking tickets as well.

"It's not the people with the concealed weapon permits I'm worried about. It's the people that have illegal firearms purchased on the streets." Chief Kennell said.

"From the standpoint of the right to bare arms I support the second amendment rights. From the standpoint of supporting a campus ban I support that as well." Chief Kennell said.

Chief Kennell points out that the police do everything they can to keep people safe on the state level, and the GRCC police department does everything they can do to keep things safe here on campus.

Eric Mullen, Student Life Director, has stated that the group has been recognized. He also mentions that the group is clear on college policy and will be monitored to make sure they stay in good standing with the requirements to be a recognized student group.

"This is a civil rights issue, however, primarily, we are concerned with getting the campuses safe," Eberly said. "Being allowed to take responsibility for our own safety like we do everywhere else. As far as feeling safe on campus, students at Northern Illinois felt safe, students at Virginia Tech felt safe. Until something happened.

Feeling safe is not being safe. And when the law disarms the law abiding persons, especially while providing no guarantee whatsoever that a criminal will not be armed, it is absolutely ridiculous and it is an infringement on civil rights and it is an infringement on the natural right of self defense.

'Even if the (police) response time is great, take a look at Northern Illinois University," Eberly said. "Police were on the scene in roughly two, two and a half minutes. They weren't fast enough. How can you get a better response time than that? I'm not faulting the police department at all. They did a phenomenal job, but they can't be their all the time."

Some people agree with the ban of concealed weapons on college campuses though. "I think the risk [with concealed weapons on campus] are too high." GRCC student Dan Ebels said.

In the environment of a school shooting he is worried about the possibility of more innocent people being killed by crossfire.

"I feel pretty safe (at GRCC)." Ebels said.

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Energy savings add up
By Mieke Stoub
Collegiate Staff Writer

In the last five months, GRCC's partnership with the Energy Education Inc. has saved the college almost a quarter of a million dollars.

At the Nov. 17 Board of Trustees meeting, the Energy Program reported that electricity, gas, water, and sewer utility rates have all increased in the last year.

Since May, GRCC has saved thousands of dollars even though the cost of these utilities has gone up. A press release the same month projected energy savings at GRCC should hit $6 million by 2015.

Dorothy Burns, Energy Manager at GRCC, is proud of the partnership with Energy Education. Burns said that the way it's structured is what makes it stand out.

"Only Energy Education offers over 400 years of combined experience in these fields, and has successfully worked in over 13,000 facilities," Burns said. "Energy Education’s unique approach involves literally hundreds of person-hours and thousands of interactions with people and building audits."

The program focuses on sustainability, and in reducing energy consumption when buildings aren't in use. The Energy Conservation Policy provided through GRCC's web site lists several ways that they are lowering consumption.

Appliances such as computers, monitors and copy machines are turned off at night and put on the "energy saver" mode during the day. Lights are to be turned off when the room is unoccupied and all natural light areas should be utilized when possible. Some lights have motion sensors that turn them off automatically.

Along with saving money, GRCC is saving energy. The report also stated a savings of 1.2 million kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity. One kWh is the amount of electricity used by ten 100-watt light bulbs if they were left on for one hour.

"No other company known by Energy Education offers this level of program intensity or the amount of on-site training and oversight, which yields the maximum results," Burns said.

Also with Energy Education, GRCC has saved 21 percent in natural gas. The report stated without the program GRCC would have spent $529,085 and instead spent $415,598.

Burns also said that GRCC is the community college to pair up with Energy Education. Other K-12 schools include East Grand Rapids, Cedar Springs, Forest Hills, and Rockford.

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Going green with English 102
By Lonnie Allen
Editor-in-Chief

Dwindling water supplies, environmental issues, and focusing on sustainability in the Great Lakes region are the special focus of this one English Composition class.

GRCC English Professor Maryann Lesert is excited to implement one of her passions into the English class curriculum. Her love of reading, thinking, and engaging in critical discussions about Sustainability is why she chose this subject for her class curriculum, Lesert said.

“Being outdoors has always been a big part of my life,” Lesert said. “Hiking above the clouds in the Rockies and standing in a field where the buffalo roam were always worth it.”

This is not the first time GRCC professors have had classes with a special focus Lesert said, though this is the first year she has chosen to teach Environment and Sustainability as a focus in her EN102 composition class.

Some of the students in her class took it because of the focus on the environment Lesert said.

Lesert said some of the books that influenced her on issues of Environment and Sustainability were “Walden,” by Henry David Thoreau and “Silent Spring,” by Rachel Carson. A book that she and her students dug into this semester was “Having Faith,”by Sandra Steingraber, which details “The increasing amount of pesticides and chemical contaminants found in human breast milk,” Lesert said.

GRCC student Mitchell Klooster thought it would be a nice alternative to the other English 102 classes offered at GRCC.

Klooster also said the curriculum in the class has been a blessing to him.

“It has given me the opportunity to expand on what I learned in my first college English class while also learning about ‘green’ issues,” Klooster said.

Klooster was so impressed with Lesert’s topics in the class, the time and effort she put into grading, and giving feedback, that he would recommend this class to other GRCC students.

GRCC student Travis Graham had no idea the class had a special focus. Graham said that when he signed up for the class it was to meet his prerequisite for English. Graham felt that the class curriculum was beneficial to him.

“It has really opened my eyes to some major problems out there that aren’t being recognized as they should be,” Graham said. “The curriculum is better than any other English class I have ever taken.”
Graham is another student who strongly recommends this class to other students at GRCC.

“I will leave this class very knowledgeable about issues that I can share with other people,” Graham said.

Lesert’s course involves having students read the different texts required in the syllabus, doing group work, and writing a final paper where students complete a “Call to Action,” which is a assignment about making a difference on water conservation.

“It was the perfect model for teaching students on what a “make a difference” piece of writing sounds like, structured like, and what it hopes to do out in the world,” Lesert said. “Which is to increase awareness and to provide the reader with several ways to make a difference on their own.”

Graham and Klooster, among other students, expressed the fact that with this class it was more than English. Discussions in the class gave everyone the chance to express him or herself, even if they did not always agree on the topic.

“The class setting made it easy for everyone to join in on a discussion,” Graham said.

Lesert said that if student is interested in her English 102 class in the future, they should read the course description when registering classes.

This class will be available for students in the winter semester of 2009, and Lesert will continue to teach this topic in all of her EN 102 sections for Fall 2009 and Winter 2010, Lesert said.

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B.D. Wong tells all at pre-lecture forum
By Jacqueline Prins
Web Design Editor
By Ryan Lenau
Collegiate Staff Writer

Actor, public speaker, and author, B.D. Wong addressed students at an open forum held only a few hours before he was scheduled to speak in GRCC's Diversity Lecture Series.

B.D. Wong is best known by many for his role as forensic scientist, Dr. George Huang on NBC’s hit show “Law and Order: Special Victims Unit.” He also played a role on HBO’s series “OZ” as Father Ray Mukada.

“Now that I’m in the pocket of being myself I find much more success,” Wong said.

Wong gave a brief introduction, but the majority of the forum was an open question and answer session. He answered questions from the audience about everything from his work on “Law and Order: SVU” to the struggles he has experienced as an openly gay actor.

“There are some positives to working on ‘Law and Order’,” Wong said, while sitting cross-legged at the front of the auditorium. “I have access to people thanks to the show. People are often receptive to me because they see me in their living rooms.”

Students lined up for autographs and photographs with Wong as the discussion came to a close.

Despite having another interview scheduled, Wong stayed long enough to meet with students and even sign the “Law and Order: SVU” DVD collection of one fan.

Leslie Lenau, a fan of the show, said, “He was so nice to take the time to sign my DVDs.”

Other students responded to Wong’s pre-lecture discussion.

Dave Woolworth, GRCC Student Congress Communications Director, said, "He does a good job avoiding roles that could be considered stereotypical in his career.”

Avi Forstein, WOOD TV8 editor and photojournalist, interviewed Wong before the discussion began.

“I was nervous to interview him in person,” Forstein said. “He seems to be a very smart guy.”
Wong spoke later that evening at Fountain Street Church.

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News Briefs for December 10, 2008
Compiled By Collegiate Staff

Amethyst Initiative seeks to lower drinking age (Courtesy of MCT Wire)
The Amethyst Initiative, a statement calling for discussion and examination of the 21 drinking age law, is provoking controversy over the country. Since July, 134 university presidents and chancellors have signed the statement. The Amethyst Initiative does not specifically say the drinking age should be lowered, but considers it is perhaps not as effective in curbing underage drinking as it should be, and may be having unintended negative consequences. But some still fiercely defend the law. In response to the initiative, the organization Mothers Against Drunk Driving launched a campaign in which supporters of the law could fill out an email form and send it to the chancellors and presidents who signed on..

Student debt grows; Financial aid application rates rise (Courtesy of MCT Wire)
Already-high student loan rates are going to go up even more because of the bad economy, according to the Project on Student Debt, a group focused on cost-effective education. In total dollars, student loans were up 17 percent over last year. Nationally, almost 1.3 million more FASFA's were submitted, according to the Information for Financial Aid Professionals Library, a government organization. The nation's credit crunch will likely cause another increase. One-third of parents are slowing college savings because of declining home values and rising unemployment, leaving students with less money, according to a survey by TD Ameritrade Holding Corp., an investment firm. The United States is losing 200,000 jobs per month, according to Jared Bernstein, an economist at the Economic Policy Institute. Graduates of all degree levels will be 8 percent less likely to be hired compared to last year, according to a study by the Collegiate Employment Research Institute at Michigan University. With money tight, students are relying on private and federal loans to get them through school, but fear graduation and paying off their debt.

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Police Reports for December 10, 2008
Compiled By Collegiate Staff

11/11/08 Accident
A man at the GRCC M-tech center, was backing out of the Auto bay when he “forgot to pump the breaks” prior to backing out causing him to hit a GRCC truck causing damages to the truck.

11/16/08 Bad Check
A student issued a check to Grand Rapids Community College was returned because the account had been closed prior to the College redeeming the check. A service fee of $50 dollars was added to the amount due and a notice was mailed to the suspect.

11/24/08 Found Property
A flash drive was fond in 236 of the Main building and was turned into the Campus Police office. The owner was found and the property was returned.

11/24/08 Found Property
A cell phone was found in the Cook building and turned into the Campus Police. The phone’s owner was located and the phone was returned to her.

11/24/08 Medical
A GRCC student was found in the bake shop after fainting. Students advised police that the victim had not eaten in three weeks. The student was transported to the hospital by ambulance.

11/24/08 Property Damage
The gate at the G1 parking Garage was found damaged. No suspects were found.

11/24/08 Graffiti
Racial graffiti was found in the 4th floor North Building men’s bathroom. There are no suspects.

11/25/08 Found Debit Card
A female student found a debit card in ramp 2 on Lyon Street. The owner of the card was contacted and the card was returned to the owner.

11/25/08 Panhandling
A man previously convicted of burglary, approached occupied vehicles asking for money on Fountain Street. Officers gave a verbal warning not to panhandle on GRCC’s campus and that further panhandling would result in being arrested.

11/25/08 Medical
A GRCC employee injured herself while removing some cables from underneath a desk. She injured her eye and had a small cut below her eyelid.

11/25/08 Found Raider Card
A Raider Card was found in the Bostwick parking ramp. The card was returned to the owner.

11/25/08 Students Arguing
Two GRCC students were found arguing outside the Library when Police arrived, they discovered one student had a prior warrant for his arrest. The student was brought into custody.

11/25/08 Found Property
A Flash drive was found in 224 Cook and turned into the Campus Police office. The owner is unknown.

11/26/08 Found Property
A wallet was found discovered in a trash can outside the Cook Building. The wallet was turned into GRCC Police. The wallet was returned to the owner.

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