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Show JTHURSDAY, APRIL 5 , 2001 UN IVERSITY JOURNAL CAMPUS NEWS PAGE 3 j Man sentenced ·Skinhead plans to recruit at SUU for SUU crimes BY THOMAS BURR SENIOR STAFF WRITER A 22-year-old Provo man was sentenced Tuesday to one year in the Iron County Jail for his part in a brazen crime spree in Cedar City last September. Trent Seegmiller pleaded guilty during an arraignment in 5th District Court on Jan. 16 to two second-degree felonies of burglary of a dwelling for entering several apartments SQ.d homes in Cedar City, primarily those of SUU students, on Sept. 16, 2000, and st~aling about $600 in cash . He was originally charged with six counts, but the charges were reduced in a plea agreement. Judge Robert Braithwaite also sentenced Seegmiller to two consecutive 15 year terms in the Utah State Prison , but stayed those terms and placed Seegmiller on probation for three years following his jail sentence. Seegmiller was allegedly joined by Aaron Foote, 23 , Provo, during the heists that apparently occurred while the residents of the dwellings were sleeping. Foote, who pleaded innocent to six charges of burglary of a dwelling, faces a jury trial on July 12. Seegmiller's attorney, William Leigh, said fn court his cl ient did not deserve a harsh sentence because tie was "under the spell" of Foote during the burglaries and did not carry a weapon or have a criminal history. "Sending him to the state prison would do him no , good." Leigh said. Iron County Attorney Scott Bums said Seegmiller faces about 15 felony charges in 4th District Court in Provo for similar crimes in the Provo-Orem area, and anyone with the "audacity" to commit such crimes deserves a harsh sentence. "We all expect that we are safe when we tuck ourselves into bed," Bums said. "We .don't expect to wake up and find someone reaching over the bed for our wallet. " Braithwaite also sentenced Seegmiller to pay restitution of $642 and a fine of $1,500. He was also ordered to perform 200 hours of COl)1munity service and have no contact with Foote. -Thomas Burr not necessarily agree with Davis' group, but would not infringe on his right to talk to students on campus . "It's not important whether we agree, everybbdy has A self-proclaimed racist skinhead pleaded no contest the right to say what they want in this country : to a class 8 misdemeanor assault charge in 5th District O'Driscoll said. "Likewise, everybody has the right to Court in Cedar City on Tuesday, and then said he plans decide if they want to listen to that. Let the people to start a "major recruiting campaign" during the next talking to him decide if he has anything valuable to say." few months, focusing on the campus of SUU . O'Driscoll also said he believes focusing on "educated Christopher Davis, 23, was ordered by Judge Robert people" at the university would probably be a Braithwaite to pay a $350 fine and received six-months disadvantage to Davis. bench probation for threatening a "The more educated someone is, ~he woman with a baseball bat at his former .. more likely they are n9t to have racist residence. beliefs," he said. Davis shocked this southwestern Ali.cia Tafoya, the multi-cultural Utah community in February when he representative of SUUSA, said sent a letter to local officials announcing Wednesday that Davis would bring a he will use the city as headquarters for "hostile" atmosphere to the SUU his group, the American United National campus. Socialist Workers Front "The point is we're here as students The group plans to rid the area of to create a place of learning ," she said. drugs through "non-violenr means, "And , he wants to make a hostile Davis said, such as staging protests in situation with his negative energy and front of homes suspected of dealing negative thoughts. That would make drugs. [SUUJ a hostile learning environment." Davis has since "suspended " hi.s Tafoya, a senior theatre/dance major operations, he said, while his from Los Angeles, said minority aggravated assault charge was students at SUU may already feel adjudicated . · estranged from the majority, a point Following the court appearance, . . that will not be helped by Davis' Davis said he has plans to start Chnstopher Davis · rhetoric. sponsoring meetings for his group, which he says "We don't need to alienate those students who numbers about 10, and he will post fliers about the already feel alienated,".she said. group throughout the community. Lynne Brown, director of student support services. "We're going to be active here," he said. "We're not s~id Davis has the right to talk all he wants on campus, going anywhere ." but students may not be sympathetic to his cause. Davis said he wants to focus on the SUU students "Obviously there is free speech in this country," she because he wants "educated people, not idiots· for his said, "but 1·hope we're bright enough to not listen, not group. join and not buy into this stuff.· Dean O'Driscoll, director of public relations and Of 6,872 students who ta~e classes from SUU , 413 marketing 'at SUU , said Wednesday the university does are registered as minorities. SUUans seek to improve advisement BY RHIANNON BENT SENIOR STAFF WRITER ldir Azouz, assistant professor of engineen·ng, explains the different steps to getting an engineering degr_ee through the new four-year program during yesterday's engineering meeting. For More details, see the Monday, April 9 edition of the 'Journal.' SUU's faculty, staff, administration and students all see a need for and are working toward improving academic advisement on campus. "Students don't see any direction in their majors, what they can get with degrees, or what classes they need for their majors,· said Marilyn Hodson, a se_nior political science major from West Valley City. "Without academic advisement, we lose a lot of'students at this university. Advisement could increase recruitmen·t and retention and give students direction so they stay here at SUU." Currently, students with undeclared majors are sent to the Student Development Center for advisement. Declared majors go to their departments to talk to faculty members or staff hired for advisement. . Michael Richards, associate provost, said he thought this decentralized method of advisemenf may be keeping retention numbers down. SUU Provost D. Ray Reutzel said he favors mandatory advisement in order for students io register for classes. He said advisement isn't easily accessible and would be more beneficial in a central location, like a "one-stop shopping approach." The Fitness Center, once located in the Sharwan Smith Center, has moved to the new Sorenson Physical Education Building. The move created a space, Reutzel said, that will be an appropriate location for centralized advisement. John E. •'Jeb" Branin, orientation coordinator and academic adviser in the Student Development Center, said, "Inconsistent advisement makes room for errors and takes more communication." Reutzel said he believes the faculty mentors better than it advises because it doesn't have much time to examine the university. "(Advising] is not the best use of a Ph.D's time,· he said. However, Reutzel also said that ~u~e . . . . • • • .• communication is enhanced when the adviser is located within the college , there is a detriment to a centralized location. •A central location might impede the flow of informatfon." he said. Brigham Young University has a system called Advisement By Computer. Reutzel said it is similar to a degree audit, but more flexible in that it tells a student the requirements for his or her major, lists -the classes already taken and those needed and suggests a possible schedule. Reutzel said he doesn't know if SUU has the capacity for ABC , but would like to see it here. A $55,000 budget is available for advisement, but Reutzel said it hasn't all been allocated to advisement because the administration hasn't come up with a plan for how to best spend it. Richards is working on expandir:ig information in the general catalog by including a list of names and phone numbers of advisers as well as an advisement worksheet that will help students plan their courses. SUU is also developing a pre-advisement program online. Branin said it will be available for incoming freshmen as a reservation for registration . Student government leaders are looking for answers to the problem from students. SUUSA senators Hodson , Camille Bell, Marcy GuQler and Kayce Hatch created a survey for seniors to answer questions about graduation and advisement. Bell, a senior English major from Cedar City, said seniors have had the most experience with these subjects and would have ideas on improvements to make. The goal o_f the survey is to find the overall perspectives of successes and failures about advisement and graduation, then chart the responses. . Ideally, she said, the senators would like to see seniors help with advisement because they are more approachable. "The need for improvement is coming through the ~tudent v.o)ce • ~~It ~i<f... ,' . |