Student Senate Passes Bill for Paul Bunyan Transit

New Insurance Proposal Yet to be determined
by Brandon Miles

On April 20, 2011 the Bemidji Student Senate sat at the round table and prepared to discuss important issues pertaining to BSU. Among the topics brought up, the Paul Bunyan transit system and the insurance policy were the focal points of the meeting. With the cameras rolling and an audience in attendance, VP Bill Maki as well as others proposed a final price of 24,000 dollars, which was dropped down from 38,000, to cover transportation costs over the course of a year for the public transit system.
Students who use the transit system regularly will be required to pay 25 dollars a semester for unlimited rides. This is a small price to pay given the costs of gasoline.


Student Senate Finalizing The PBT Contract
Photo by Brandon Miles

“I think the transit system is a really good deal because I often find myself spending more money on gas than anything else and all the places I go are easily accessible through public transportation,” said student Senator Joe Maubry. “With a flat fee at the beginning of the year, I feel like students will be able to cut back on their budgets as well as help the environment by cutting back on personal car usage.”
Many students have experienced problems about knowing where to meet the transit and this prevents them from taking advantage of this convenient opportunity. The Paul Bunyan Transit takes a collegiate route that students can access with a current student ID. The problem is that many of the posters guiding students to the pickup points are out of date and do not accurately display the correct route of the transit bus. “Because of the confusion as to wear the transit is going to be, we decided to make new and updated signs so people can easily navigate the campus and the transit route.”  Said Maubry
In a world “going green” this could be extremely beneficial for the campus and the community’s well-being. With easily accessible public transportation and a will to save money, the idea of the public transportation is leading BSU students in a new way. “I have always used Paul Bunyan Transit,” said student affairs co-chair Nick Nelson, “The bus is always pretty empty and I never understood why, but if student pay for it they will feel more of an obligation to ride it and ultimately save money as well as reduce greenhouse gas emissions around the community.”
Along with the transit issue, another equally important topic addressed is the Mandatory Student Insurance Policy. With so many students on campus, accidents are bound to happen and it is important that students have the proper coverage to take care of themselves if anything were to happen. Barbra Erickson and Dale Burns from Federated Insurance proposed the policy. The policy is affordable for students and offers a diverse set of options that is tailored to their needs. The annual rate for the policy is $1100, depending on students plan.

Federated Insurance Rep Dale Burns
Photo by Brandon Miles

The benefits include dental, prescription ($50 co-pay), and surgery. Students who acquire the insurance plan will have $100,000 coverage, with a co-pay of $1100. Student Senate member Cara Mielke said, “We want students to walk around and feel safe, not that we’re saying campus isn’t safe, we just understand that sometimes accidents happen and when they do, it is important that students  are taken care of.”
According to Erickson’s student survey, “12.4 percent of students do not have any medical insurance.” Many of these students get by on a day to day basis without protection and if an accident happened to occur, these students would not have the proper funds to take care of their medical bills.
 The policy is under review and if passed, it will require all students from BSU to be covered by Federated Insurance. If passed, this bill will certainly help in protecting students but with all bills and laws, debate arises. “What if some students can’t afford health insurance or are from another country and not protected under a known company,” said sophomore Senator Kari Cooper. “I think it’s a little unfair because this proposal, if passed, could make it very complicated for some people to better their education just because they don’t have health insurance.”
Whether or not the proposal is passed, Bemidji is on track for an insured future. Student Senate is making strides for the progress of our student body by addressing both their protection and our ecological footprint.

           





Computer Privacy

Computer Privacy on Campus

Why is it a problem? How to guard yourself.

By John Andringa

4/22/11
Due to the way Bemidji State University has its computer labs set up, Microsoft’s Windows and Apple’s Mac operating systems work, as well as the way software companies like Adobe and Autodesk write their programs, Bemidji State University’s students privacy is at risk every time they log in.

When logging into a computer in the Student Technology Center or any other computer lab on campus students must log in with their myBSU credentials. Once logged in, to the Mac partition or Windows partition, the computer loads the user’s profile. Each user has their own profile on every computer that they log into. This is why when you log into a computer for the first time it takes longer to log in, due to the computer creating a new profile for you.

It is safe to say that most students feel that this profile can only be seen by themselves and BSU Information Technology Services staff. Although it is true that no other user can log into your profile, but anyone with a valid myBSU account can access everything you do on that computer, if you do not take precautionary steps.

Every user profile is created as an administrator which allows them access to browse the entire hard drive. On the drive there is a users folder for both Mac and Windows. The computers in the Student Technology Center contain around 200 user’s folders each. These folders contain the profile of every user who has a logged into that computer, the folders share the same name as the students myBSU log in, the first four letters of the last name, a number, and the first three letters of their first name. Contained in this folder is that user’s My Documents folder, Desktop folder, and every other folder that is set up by default by Windows and Mac.

When you click on another user’s profile folder it does pop up a warning window that says you are not allowed to view these folders. On Windows after clicking close on the warning pop up it loads the folder anyway, but on Mac it does not allow you view the folder. This does not mean you are any more safe logging into the Mac partition versus the Windows partition. It just means you can not view other user’s folders while logged into the Mac partition. All of the Mac user’s folders are still viewable from users logged into the Windows partition.

What can you do from within a user’s profile?

Well if they have any files saved you can view, copy, and save them. To make it easier you can search the Windows users folder or Mac users folder for “*.doc” to come up with a list of every user’s saved Microsoft Word documents or “*.jpg” to come up with a list of every user’s saved pictures. This does not seem that bad as most users do not save anything locally on the hard drive. What users do a lot of is web browsing. A user’s web history can not be view simply by opening a file, but if the logged in user replaces their Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, or Google Chrome user folder with that of another user they can load the program and then view the history of said user. Although untested they may be able to log into any accounts that have saved user name and passwords.

BSU’s Computer Lab Policy clearly lays this out and states that “Data on public lab computers may be accessible to other users. For personal privacy, please delete browsing history and cookies after use. Also, save private data to personal flash drives or other external data rather than to computer hard drives.” Yet even with this warning users are not taking the steps to protect themselves.

After talking with BSU’s Network Manager, Mike Smith, solving the problem is as easy as switching users over from administrators to power users. Sadly more problems arise from this. Software companies like Adobe, Auto Desk, and others wrote their programs to be run with administrator privileges. So switching users from administrators to power users would stop them from being able to run programs like Adobe’s Photoshop, Illustrator, and Premier as well as Auto Desk’s Auto CAD, and 3ds Max. BSU’s Chief Information Officer stated in an email that “We will be continuing research and testing during summer 2011.”

So what should students do to protect themselves?

When using a BSU computer you should follow the BSU Computer Lab Policy and only save files to your flash drive, external hard drive, or cloud storage such as Dropbox. As for web browsing use features like Internet Explorer’s InPrivate Browsing, Mozilla Firefox’s Private Browsing, or Google Chome’s Incognito mode.

iMac computers in the Library
Photo by John Andringa

Students using computers
Photo by Jae Seifert

Graduation is Here

So What’s Next?

By: Frank Panzer and Andy Brown

It is time for another round of BSU grads to head out into the real world and look for a start in the career they have worked so hard for the last 4 years.  Kids enter college wondering what in the world they should do with their lives and graduate adults with a plan and goals.  The only problem with continuing the American dream past college is the lack of job opportunities in graduated fields.  Graduates are reverting back to what they know, returning to childhood jobs, or getting wrapped up further than intended in current jobs, jobs that were only meant to help get through college.  College grads, degree in hand are collecting gas money, flipping burgers, and waiting on tables, not necessarily unhappy about it, today it stands to even have a job is an accomplishment, but rather confused as to what the time they spent and debt they collected over the last few years was really for. 

Seventy percent of college graduates today are either unemployed or working somewhere doing something that has absolutely nothing to do with their major.  Job market is certainly part of it but a deeper more concerning cause may be surfacing.  College drop-out Brandon Martell said “I was lucky, I realized I wasn’t doing what I wanted, I was going down the path my parents thought best for me, they wanted it more than I did.”  Pressure from parents, especially if they are helping with tuition or book prices, can be a real stress on students and perhaps lead them somewhere they don’t really want to be.  Brandon, now an employee at Northwestern Minnesota Juvenile Center continued, “I get paid well and enjoy what I do.  Plus all I hear is everyone talking about their debt I feel pretty lucky to have avoided it.”  Parents may not know the added pressure they are putting on their kids and of course they mean and want the best for their children but the need to please those who mean most to students sometimes outweighs personal goals and possibly even ends the possibility of chasing a dream. 

Parents are of course not solely to blame as a number of people including former student Justin Blanford felt as though it may be a case of unpreparedness, a lot of complaining about just all around lack of expectancy and urgency in the real world, “Things like effectively job hunting, not just turning in applications where ever there is a help wanted sign, and putting together a resume that not only garners a second look from an employer but lets them know you are worth meeting, and lastly, if you are lucky enough the interview process.”  All these things can be improved through courses and workshop at BSU, you just have to have the time to participate.  Time is legitimately a concern for some people and things can’t be moved around obviously but it became increasingly more obvious, on top of all the factors stacked up against a college kid, their own worst enemy turns out being themselves, lack of true motivation, lazy, very non-committal when it comes to things that you shouldn’t have to think twice about doing.  Not to take advantage of mock interviewing or training courses on how to make your resume move your consideration for a job to the top, but not to take advantage of these things really is the move of someone who cares enough to be around but not put in the extra work.

There are certainly things that are just going to be out of a student or graduates control, it’s life, but that doesn’t mean you just sit back and coast, you have to go out there, put yourself out there, and work harder than the rest to first graduate and second move on to a great job you worked so long and so hard for.  No one out there wants to see numbers like at one local Bemidji fast food establishment where the majority of their closing crew has either graduated or are very close to it and have no plans beyond the magical fast food kingdom.  A mixture of lack of preparation, the current standing of the job market, laziness, and similar contributing factors whether you think can really contribute or not are making a college degree look like a joke.  Certainly people with college degrees on average are making more than those without degrees but its not quite as big of a gap as you would think.  The idea of an education is not becoming worthless in our world but it certainly is being made less and less important very subtly it appears and perhaps not on purpose but it is happening.  It just makes more sense to get right into the job market, start working and not bury yourself under some incredible debt, debt that you built up to get a degree and maybe end up doing the same job you were going to pass up school for.  If all this were really true however schools would be closing down and degrees losing merit when in reality it still stands that if prepared well, able to compose a resume worth looking at and performing well in the interview the degree will get the job over someone without almost if not every time.  Go to college get your degree just remember it takes more than the fancy paper in todays world, get up, get out there, get prepared, and don’t give anyone a reason to tell a college graduate no when an opportunity comes along.  

Woodson and Andrade take over student senate

New co-presidents are driving for campus bus system

By Jillian Gandsey and Raielle Peterson

Bemidji, MINN. – More community fundraising, a campus bus system, and collaborating with the Sanford Center are a few plans that the new student senate co-presidents, Charlie Woodson and David Andrade, have in mind for next year. 

Woodson has been a part of student senate since his freshmen year at BSU.  “I was just looking for something to do,” he said.  Currently, he is a junior Design Technology major.

Andrade also considered involvement in student senate his freshmen year but he didn’t fully commit to it until he met Woodson a year later.  “We became really good friends and we said that our senior year we should be the presidents,” claimed Andrade.  Currently, he is majoring in Criminal Justice. 

Normally schools have a president and a vice president, but Bemidji State is the only school in the MNSCU (Minnesota State Colleges and Universities) that has two co-presidents.  “It makes working together a lot easier,” said Woodson. 

David Andrade (left) and Charlie Woodson
(right) are excited about next year's co-
presidency.

Woodson and Andrade were enthusiastic about accomplishing their goals for next year.  “We really want to stress that we are trying to correlate with the community,” said Woodson. 

A large issue that the new co-presidents will face next year is that student senate has supported the elimination of the current contract that BSU has with Paul Bunyan Transit.  This cut was another result of the recent recalibration.  However, Woodson and Andrade have been considering other options for students without their own means of transportation on campus.  Woodson had said that he would like to get the students’ opinion to see if they should continue the usage of Paul Bunyan Transit. 

Woodson and Andrade had several ideas to resolve the issue of students losing their way of transportation.  Redoing the contract was certainly in mind, and having only the students who want to ride it, pay. Adding another fee to tuition was also a possible solution. 

The co-presidents said they were also thinking they would like to create their own internal campus bus system, which would be more affiliated with BSU.  “It would be nothing against Paul Bunyan Transit,” said Woodson. “We think they’re a great business.”  They still would like to use their amenities for getting students around town.

“It would help the students who are having to go in between campuses,” said Andrade.  BSU and the Northwest Technical College are closely connected so having transportation between the two schools would be essential.  They also mentioned that having an internal bus system could offer additional work-study jobs to students. 

The new co-presidents also made it clear that they wanted to do more fundraising within BSU and the Bemidji community.  Beltrami County, being the poorest county in Minnesota, is where their motivation has come from.  “We have more elementary schools that aren’t doing so well,” claimed Woodson. 

Their plan to help out the local elementary schools is with the use of box tops.  They started assisting with the box tops this year, but they plan to continue their action into next year as well.  “We have such a tight community and it’s a college town so we want to make sure that our student voices are heard at a city level as well,” said Andrade.

Another plan that Woodson and Andrade have is using the recent surplus in the green-fee to go towards solar panels for the Sanford Center.  Erika Bailey-Johnson approached the student senate with that proposal and it has seemed to click ever since.  “We feel that the Sanford Center, over there, is another part of our campus because it’s used so heavily,” said Woodson. 

Photos taken by Jae Seifert

Northern Minnesota’s fastest growing car club

Automotive enthusiasts come together in Bemidji, Minnesota

 By Taylor Klinke

Everyone knows someone who enjoys working with cars - whether it is your dad, brother, or a friend. They’re the ones who change your oil or help with a flat tire - Or the ones who are constantly upgrading their vehicles with the latest sound systems, etc. A lot of people enjoy working with vehicles and now Bemidji has a club for all local automotive enthusiasts.  

Club Redline is a local car club based in Bemidji and currently consists of 35 members. “We do not cater to a specific style of car, but to the actual person who has an interest in modified cars and trucks,” said Chris Nelson.

Club Redline was formed in 2006 by BSU junior and club president - Chris Nelson. “I wanted to get all automotive enthusiasts in the area connected in a group because one did not exist.” 

Chris decided to start this club after seeing movies and being involved in other groups who enjoyed the same hobby. After brainstorming he recruited three of his friends to put flyers on cars around the Bemidji area – and within two months they went from 4 members to 125 members.

BSU senior - Brian Dahlin joined Club Redline in 2006 after Chris Nelson approached two of his friends while they were out driving around. “I joined because I’ve always had a passion for cars,” He said. “About seventy percent of my thoughts are occupied by something automotive and I like the fact that I have a local forum full of people with the same passion.”

The car club comprises all styles, makes, and models – new and old, import and domestic. Chris Nelson owns a 1985 Pontiac Fiero GT and a 2005 Nissan 350z while Brian Dahlin owns a 1996 Jeep Cherokee and a 2000 Honda Civic.

Club Redline hosts the Club Redline Street Show every June in Bemidji – it is either held indoors at the John Glas Fieldhouse or at various outside venues. They also participate in out-of-town car shows such as the Tintmasters Motorsports Perfect 10 Car Show and also do a lot of drag racing events at the racetracks in Brainerd and Sabin – which is near Moorhead. 

Initially, there was no membership requirement for Club Redline, but since 2009 a flat rate of $35 is required to join and you also need to have at least $1,000 in modifications or upgrades done to your car or truck. 

“Recently in Bemidji the car scene has become increasingly older and more mature,” said Dahlin. “People no longer see the joy in going out for a weekend cruise or a short cruise on a weeknight. I’m guilty of this - I see the fun but I am too busy in my final year of school to be able to go out and cruise when only two other people show up.”

Every Thursday night Club Redline hosts “Thursday Night Cruises” – which is open to the public. Members and Bemidji residents interested meet at a predetermined location with their vehicles and then drive through town and the surrounding area before parking together at a local restaurant to enjoy a meal.

Club Redline is a growing community of automotive enthusiasts in the Bemidji area – started by Bemidji State University students. It is the perfect club for anybody who is interested in cars, drag racing, and modifications. If your interests are new to cars and modifications – this is a club where you’ll be able to learn a lot about how vehicles work. 

You’ll be surrounded by a lot of enthusiasts who know what they’re talking about and are willing to share their expertise.   

If you want to find out more information, visit www.clubredline.net

Brian Dahlin's 2000 Honda Civic

Photo from Brian Dahlin

Chris Nelson's car parked outside of
the Bemidji location Tintmasters

Photo by Taylor Klinke

Chris Nelson's 350z Nissan that he bought in Florida.
He flew down to FL and then drove this car all the way back to Bemidji.

Photo by Taylor Klinke

The BSU Recalibration: It’s Not That Bad?

A Group of Students Take a Stance on Budget Issues

By Cheyenne Horien and Alexandria Leister

A small group of students at Bemidji State University have a more positive perspective regarding the drastic budget cuts that have caused so many changes this year. Recently, they set up a table in the Union where students could learn more about them. Their sign said it all: “Recalibration - it’s not that bad!” Many students and faculty were shocked to see the quote on the sign as they walked by. Only six students comprise the organization known as “HObE,” a group that offers support for the students and faculty negatively affected by the recalibration.

In their mission statement, HObE states that they are “Upstart specialists in counseling, specifically academic counseling, trauma counseling, and academic trauma counseling.” The group also stresses the fact that they will work to assure that students and faculty will have someone to turn to when they need to talk and will do their best to answer any questions “regarding the substantial changes to the BSU curriculum.”

When asked how they planned on counseling, they said that they use their own experience to help people, although they admit they have no qualifications or formal training. “If they (students or faculty) find that BSU is not meeting their academic needs, we try and find alternatives for them, a new major they might like or a new university they could attend," stated HObE Co-President David Teeples.  He added that "Finding a new university is our last resort." They have yet to help any students, but they hope that they will be able to soon.

The group was started in the middle of the spring 2011 semester as an option for students who choose to see the recalibration and all of the changes BSU is facing in a more positive and optimistic way. HObE Co-Presidents Teeples (mass communication) and Philip Ehlke (political science) came up with the idea for HObE for as a way to look at the current issues from President Hanson’s point of view. Other members of HObE consist of Kinsly Tarman (math education), Laura Duscher (business administrations), Andrew Brand (computer science/mathematics), and Claire Poor-Harmon (undecided). All six members of HObE are freshman.

 Even one of the group members is affected by the recalibration. Brand has a computer science/math major, and as of fall 2011, BSU will no longer be offering the computer science major. Brand thinks that Pres. Hanson was being hypocritical when Hanson specifically said the BSU would be strengthening the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) courses. "Computer science is a major that can play heavily into all four of those fields," Brand stated in an email interview, "and yet it's being cut from four professors to two."

“We’re trying to look at it (recalibration) from a more objective stance,” said Ehlke in regards to the mission of the group.

“The recalibration is a way to reshape the campus and move forward,” added Teeples.

All the members of the group say they are neither for nor against the recalibration, they are just a resource for those who see the recalibration as they do - a dialogue between hope and fear.

While the group is not against students and faculty, “We’re not anti-president either,” said Teeples. 

There is a story behind the interesting name of this group. The name HObE was thought up by the group’s Co-Presidents, Teeples and Ehlke. They explained that if you hold up the word HObE upside down to a mirror and read the reflection, it spells HOPE.

“We actually got the idea from one of President Hanson’s slides that he had produced,” said Ehlke.

Pres. Hanson said he's not heard of this group, but was impressed with their mission. “Very bold and very audacious for being freshman,” he said. “It’s a good idea. Hope is the opposite of fear, if you let fear win what you have done? You got nothing done.”

He added he likes it when students have ingenuity and find ways to get things done. “Recalibration is only as bad as you make it,” said Pres. Hanson. “It’s not even one concept; it’s not accurate to say recalibration is…there are many aspects to it. “

Although trying to remain as having a positive outlook on the future of the campus, some students refuse to see eye-to-eye with the group.

“I really hate you guys and everything you stand for,” one student wrote on the group’s Facebook page. The group’s spokesperson responded with “Thanks for the feedback! We’re sorry we do not live up to your expectations and are grateful to you for telling us about it. If people like you did not bring these matters to our attention, we would never be able to fix them.”

Love them or hate them, in the end, the main goal of HObE is very clear: “We hope that people can put away their hard feelings towards the administration and move forward from that,” said Teeples.

The symbol for HObE. Photo by Alex Leister

Pictured left to right. Andrew Brand, Philip Ehlke and David Teeples. Not pictured are Kinsly Tarman, Laura Duscher and Claire Poor-Harmon. Photo by Alex Leister