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Show 'Cats volleyball takes another blow ... page 6 AT A GLANCE EDITORIAL FEATURES SPORTS CLASSIFIEDS Weber professors celebrate Rosh Hashanah ... page 4 2 3 4 6 9 VOL 82 ISSUE 27 WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2011 WWW.WSUSIGNPOST.COM SignP 0 St WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY Presidents' pay hikes rescinded Board of regents takes governor's advice, postpones Millner's pay raise By Spencer Garn editor-in-chief I The Signpost Under pressure from Governor Gary Herbert, the Utah State Board of Regents unanimously voted earlier this week to rescind pay raises to university presidents, including Weber State University's Ann Millner. "We want to do this all together, and we share the governor's confidence that with all of us working together we can establish a compensa- tion policy that will help keep us competitive," said Holly Braithwaite, director of communications for Higher Ed Utah. "We understand concerns expressed by the governor and others, and that's why we made the step." In a Sept. 26 letter, Herbert outlined those concerns, asking the board's chairman, David Jordan, to be sensitive to the current economic climate and state budgetary constraints and table the raises. "The governor simply wanted the Board of Regents to allow the state sufficient time to get the compensation Temporary pain for long-term health See Pay page 5 PHOTO BY NATHAN CAULFORD I THE SIGNPOST WSU food concerns discussed Student senate brings up health and cost of food By Brian Giles news reporter I The Signpost PHOTO BY KASEY VAN DYKE I THE SIGNPOST Students receive their free flu shots from Brenda Dussol at the student health center. Though students have a 1-in-5 chance of getting the flu virus, according to Dr. Shawn McQuilkin, one of the ways to take the extra step of prevention is to take advantage of the free vaccination. Free flu shots are now available By Randee Jensen correspondent I The Signpost Flu season is here, according to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention. Even though flu season typically peaks around January, the center is encouraging people to start getting their flu shots now "You have a 1-in-5 chance of getting the flu, any given flu season," said Dr. Shawn McQuilkin, physician and medical director at Weber State University's health center. "Odds are that you won't get it. But if you do get it, you'd wish you had gotten the vaccination." Free flu vaccinations are now available at both the Ogden and Davis campuses. "The ones who should be first in line are people with a chronic illness, diabetes, asthma and chronic conditions," McQuilkin said. "For you and I, it puts us in bed for five days, but for them, it could put them in the hospital." McQuilkin said between the two campuses, there are 400 to 600 vaccinations available, which means there will not be enough for every student to get one. See Shot page 5 Working on relationships Workshop explains how to solve conflicts By Tracy Dunlap news reporter I The Signpost Every year, faculty and staff reunite for the Customer Service Conference. The Customer Service Conference helps train faculty and staff on different issues. This year, conference organizers went with interpersonal relationships as the main theme, presented by keynote speaker Matt Townsend, KSL radio host. The Customer Service Conference is annually held during the first week of October. This year, Townsend spoke about the 'Art of Healthy Relationships" to his audience, saying that everyone's personal problems interfere with communicating in their work and home See Relationships page 5 PHOTO BY KASEY VANDYKE I THE SIGNPOST As part of Domestic Violence Awareness Weeks, a break-off group gathers to receive instruction on how to handle conflicts in their relationships. Many events are centered around building stronger, healthier relationships, including The Art of Healthy Relationships" lecture by radio host Matt Townsend. A number of issues were brought before the student senate at its latest meeting Monday. One of these issues was the number of credit hours graduate students must take to be considered full-time students. Currently, graduate students must be enrolled in nine credit hours to be considered full-time. The senate is working on a bill that might change this requirement. "We need to think about that, how we want to define a graduate student to make sure we don't exclude anybody that might not be able to do it," said Brady Harris, senator for the Davis campus, "especially in a spot where they might only be able to take three credit hours or six credit hours one semester and not the next one." Although the number of hours required is generally nine, the senate is working to allow programs to change the number of hours based on their individual requirements. The senate also discussed complaints from students regarding the lack of healthy food options on campus. Michael Vazquez, residence hall senator, said a common complaint is that the food offered on campus is too expensive and not healthy. He also said the new cafeteria in the new residence hall would only benefit the students living on campus. "It doesn't make sense as a benefit to the university as a whole if it's only in the residence hall, when there's so much that can be done here," he said. Vazquez also said he expects the meal plans for residents to change once the new hall is open. "The Wildcat Room is only open from 11 to 3, and there are definitely no breakfast options besides oatmeal and Jamba Juice and cheap eggs and bacon at the grill," Vazquez said. Other common concerns are the limited dinner options for students living on campus or who have night classes, as well as the limited options on weekends. Vazquez will discuss these concerns with the Food Service Advisory Committee. Another issue brought before the senate was that InterVarsity does not have its own place to meet. Harris said the university would not be able to fund a house for the group due to legal reasons, but that they could go through a private donor instead. The senate could help the group with funding as a club, rather than a specific religious organization. LDSSA, the stuSee Senate page 5 |