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Show Monday, September 18, 2006 University Journal New minivans purchased, travel expenses increased - 911 article provokes suspension by BYU questions arise regarding academic freedom By DARCY STAUFFER dstauffersuujournal.com After the September 2005 Utah State University accident that killed eight students and an vans are being sold instructor, SUUs in accordance with the Utah Board of Regents determination that they are unsafe. The regents decision was made in response to safety concerns school officials across the state have had for students, and several accidents, including the Utah State University accident, Bowrns, motor pool manager. However, according to the accidents police report, the Utah State University accident had more to do with the individuals involved than the 9 By JEFFREY WILBUR I said-Case- vans safety. The Utah Highway Patrol stands by our findings that speed was a factor in the crash, said Jeff Nigbur, UHP trooper. According to the police report, the driver of the van was going 100 mph when the failed. The left rear tire, which was vehicle was also overloaded. When the tire failed, the driver overcorrected, , d and rolling, according to the going police report. The UHP also found that, in the Utah State University accident, none of the passengers or the driver were wearing seatbelts, Nigbur said-- . When the vehicle rolled, all 11 occupants were ejected, according to the police report. Six were declared dead at the scene. vans were still being used SUUs after the accident, but have not been used since the end of July in compliance with the regents decision to no longer allow colleges and universities to use vans, Bowns said. any The Board of Regents doesnt want any more accidents and members think using minivans or vans anything smaller instead of the will reduce the accidents, he said. vans have been under fire by The school officials for several years, Bowns said. With accidents occurring more often, students driving who may not be able to handle a larger vehicle and people not wearing seat belts every tjme they get into a car, its safer for club advisers and instructors to take minivans instead of the vans, he said. larger vans and some of the motor The pools sedans were traded for minivans and five he other minivans were purchased in mid-Julsaid. The minivans have been in use since their purchase. The five purchased minivans were bought using funds from the motorpool account and a supplement said. Bowns from SUUs administration, With the purchase of the new minivans, larger groups will now need to rent two or more minivans instead of a van, he added. This change will have a positive effect on student travel. Its a safer mode of transportation, Bowns . off-roa- However, financially, it will cost more. The motor pool rents vehicles out per day and mile, Bowns said. vans was $40 The cost for two per day and 30 cents per mile, he said. The cost for four minivans is $30 per day and 20 cents per mile. For a one-datrip of 100 miles, the cost for vans was $140 while the cost for two four minivans is $200. With fuel prices so high, filling a van, which holds approximately 30 gallons, would currently cost about $90. Minivans have a smaller tank and hold about 20 gallons, so the cost to fill them would be about $60, Bowns said. Because of the change, the Athletics Department will now be chartering buses to use on road trips y jwilbursuujournal.com On Sept. 7 BYU placed Steven Jones, professor known for his theories on the events of 911, on paid leave, raising questions of how much academic freedom should be given to professors on college campuses. Jones had previously published a paper entitled, Why Indeed Did the World Trade Center Collapse? The university was concerned that the paper had not gone through sufficient peer review. SUU Provost Abe Harraf had only heard sparse details under-inflate- said. Page 3 BENDRAPER UNIVERbl Y JOURNAL vans are on sale by Three the Coliseum. The vans are no longer allowed after a policy change in the aftermath of the USU accident that left five people dead. instead of renting from motor pool, Bowns said. Its easier for the teams to charter buses instead of taking six or seven minivans. Chartering buses will, be safer but places a financial burden on the department, especially the vans, said sports that relied on the Neil Gardner, sports information director. The department budget has been redone to help pay for the chartering of buses and the university will also help with some of the cost, Gardner said. The smaller squads can still rent vans from a company in Mesquite as long as a professional driver drives the van. We will need to raise more money to help pay for buses, Gardner said. SUUSA is another organization that will be extensively affected by the change because of the need to transport the same amount of people while using smaller vehicles. While the change in the fleet vehicles from vans to minivans makes it more inconvenient to travel with large numbers, it does increase overall safety for students, which is more important, SUUSA President Steve Kiisel said. d Another thing that will be affected is traveling to athletic games. SUUSA will most likely not be able to sponsor as many road trips to athletic events because of gas prices, inconvenience and having to use more vehicles, Kiisel said. I hope to see the university invest in a bus or two similar to what Dixie State College has for athletics and student and alumni use, Kiisel said. Schools around the country hav e already replaced vans and are using alternate modes of transportation to make field trips and different outings safer for students, Bowns said. The motor pool notified the various advisers of clubs, instructors and coaches who were renting the vans on a continuous basis the concerning upcoming change in January, so it wouldnt be a surprise when the change went into affect this summer, Bowns said. SUUSA-sponsore- about the situation, but said he understands BYUs actions. When the faculty does research it has to be validated by the data, he said. It also needs to be scrutinized by a blind party to check whether there is any flaw in the assumption and conclusions. Harraf said whether or not similar action would be taken at SUU if the situation had occurred here would depend on the circumstances. We would look at it to see whether there was a violation, he said Naturally it requires some study. (The actions are) intended to buy some time for the university. SUUs policy on academic freedom makes it clear that (the professor) shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial matter which has no relation to the subject being taught. When there is a question about a particular faculty members behavior at SUU a Faculty Review Board is organized to review the allegations, and any disciplinary action will reflect the seriousness of the violation, according to SUUs policy on Faculty Due Process. Harraf said that there has never been a situation like Jones at SUU, though. BYU defended its actions in a statement released to the Deseret News on Sept. 8. BYU has repeatedly said that it does not endorse assertions made by individual faculty, accoiding to the statement. We are, however, concerned about the increasingly speculative and accusatory nature of these statements by Dr. Jones. Jones' paper was originally published on the universitys Department of Physics Web site, but was removed by Jones at the universitys request after other faculty members questioned whether Jones had subjected the research to rigorous academic peer review, according to the universitys Web site. The University is aware that Professor Steven Jones hypotheses and interpretations of evidence regarding the collapse of World Trade Center buildings are being questioned by a number of scholars and practitioners, including many of BY ITs own faculty members, according to a statement from the College of Engineering and Technology. The university shares those same concerns, according to the statement given to the Deseret News. BY U remains concerned that Dr. Jones work on this topic has not been published in appropriate scientific venues, l .... 'm-i:'::- the statement said. Jones paper begins with statements that, The views in this paper are the sole responsibility of the author, and that it had undergone modification after a third set of peer reviews organized by Journal of 911 Studies Editor Kevin Ryan. In the 48 page document Jones posits that the World Trade Center collapsed not because of impact by the airliners, but through the use of cutter charges, according to the paper. Jones was not immediately available for comment. of Associate Professor Elementary Education Kevin Robinson, who is in his 19th year at SUU, said he understands BYUs reaction. I am sure (the situation) is embarrassing to BYU, he said. But I am not saying that what BY U did is good or bad. Robinson said he feels that SUU academic supports freedom among its professors. Academic freedom allows you to responsibly pursue knowledge and truth in a safe and supportive environment, he said. I have never been denied that opportunity at this institution. J ,:. Pursue knowledge and truth responsibly Jones on paid leave, after he published a questionable paper, which might not have gone through sufficient peer review. On Sept. 7 BYU placed professor Steven Professors are sometimes put on paid leave to give versities time to study the situation. Whenever professors do research, the data has to be validated and should be scrutinized by a blind party to check whether there is any flaw in the assumption and conclusions. There has never been a situation like Jones' at SUU and SUU supports academic freedom among its professors. Sources: Abe Harraf, provost, Kevin Robinson, associate . professor of elementary education JENNIFER FERNANDEZUNIVERSITY for student loans and more, it's... matching students and financial needs Introducing the mChoice account from Mountain America Credit Union, in just one stop, get your student loan and ail the other financial services you want. Plus, with a bunch of free extras, it's really the way to go! RICHARD PAYSON UNIVERSITY JOURNAL New minivans await use at the SUU Motor Pool. The vans were purchased to replace vans that were phased out during the summer. The newer the larger minivans only hold seven passengers. Students injured in accident By JUSTINE PRUITT jpmittcssuujoumal.com Seven Cedar High School students were involved in a two-ca- r crash in the south paiking lot at the school Thursday. One student was transported View to Medical Valley Center with injuries, Lt. Keith Cedar City Police Savage, Department, said. The girl that was transported hit her head, Kevin Garrett, Cedar High School principal said. The extent of her injuries is unknown. Teachers on the scene treated students before the ambulances got there to assess the scene for minor injuries, Garrett said. A juvenile and a juvenile, both in the same vehicle, were taken away from the scene by police, taken to receiving and given citations for reckless driving, Savage said. Some of the seven students were seat belts, wearing some were not, which could have contributed to injuries, Savage said. There were two passengers in one vehicle, a white Ford both sharing the Bronco, responsibility of driving by the driver controlling the foot pedals and the passenger steering, Savage said. A blue Honda Accord was turning into the parking lot. The Bronco did not respond to the entering vehicle because the reaction time was slowed because of both students trying to drive, Savage said. The Bronco hit the Accord on the passenger side, Garrett said. The estimated speed of the vehicles had not been calculated yet, Savage said Students were just finishing their lunch break and going back to class when the accident occurred, Savage said. There were three or four police officers and one detective that responded to the scene, Detective Murray Suttlemyre, Cedar City Police, said. There were two ambulances and one paramedic on the scene as well, Savage said. Garrett said drivers should be safe while driving through parking lots because students could be walking back from lunch or going to their own vehicles. Be careful in the parking lots, he said. Just be careful. uni- JOURNAL |