The Colorado Commission on Higher Education is proposing a change in higher education funding by creating the College Opportunity Fund, a stipend program that would create a savings account for each student and would allocate funds to schools based on the status of students.

The stipend would be about $133 per credit hour for undergraduates and it would also be available to graduate programs, community colleges and vocational schools.

The CCHE is the funding organization for all of Colorado’s public institutions of higher education, and it currently allocates funds directly to the institutions through the governing boards of each school.

“The funding mechanism they’re talking about would be a benefit to Metro,” said Michael Barnett, vice president of administration and finance. “We are the lowest funded four-year higher education institution in the state. Because we serve a lower income student and we are a good value for the dollar, we think it would give us some competitive edges too.”

The idea for this system was formulated by input from the Blue Ribbon Panel on Higher Education in the 21st Century, and focus groups conducted by the CCHE with low to mid income high school students and families.

The students suggested that the state mail a letter to high school freshman and sophomore students informing them that if they stayed in school and kept their grades up, the state would set up a savings account for their college education.

Students would still be responsible for tuition and fees, Barnett said, “but because each student would bring (the savings account) with them, we would be funded for each student, where right now we don’t receive funding for every student. This just changes the way that it (the funds) comes to the college.”  

The state funding is the same funding currently received by schools; the stipend would simply change the way the schools receive those funds.

The CCHE believes that by utilizing the purchasing power of students as consumers of education, colleges and universities will have greater competition in recruiting students and the money that comes along with them.

The hope is that this competition will increase the services provided by institutions of higher education and increase the quality of education offered.

One concern is the lower income students served by higher education institutions.

Those students are the primary recipients of need-based funding such as financial aid, which is separate from the College Opportunity Fund.

The CCHE recognized the need to motivate low-income high school students, and used their input to make many of the decisions regarding higher education funding changes.

“The funding mechanism now works for higher education, but doesn’t seem to be working for the lower income students. We go out and we market higher education to the students regardless of income. That doesn’t seem to be attracting the student that we really want to attract. This is the big issue with the Blue Ribbon panel. So, if this change will help attract more of those (low income) students into higher education, then it’s a good time for the change,” Barnett said.

Linda Curran, Vice President of Administration and Budget for the State College System, which oversees Mesa, Adams and Western State Colleges, said they are watching and waiting to see how this turns out.

“The $91 million that we give to the institutions, primarily for need based financial aid, has been kept, and we will do everything that we possibly can to keep that in next year’s budget. The governor feels very strongly that in a down economy, when people are out of work and are going back to school for retraining, this is the time they need financial aid,” Joan Ringel, spokesperson for CCHE, said.

“We want to make sure we can carry out our mission,” Curran said.
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Photo by - Joshua Lawton Student Government Assembly Vice President for Student Fees Inayet Hadi (left) and Vice President for Student Organizations Yosief Abraha attend to business at an SGA meeting earlier this semester.

At Metro’s recent Student Government Assembly meeting, the SGA made a motion to remove their Administrative Adviser, Joanna Dueñas for expressing her concerns in last week’s issue of The Metropolitan, about a $3,000 retreat the SGA plans to take to Glenwood Springs on Feb. 21-23.

“I feel this Glenwood Springs proposal is an expensive proposal because previous SGAs, even when they have retreated out of town, have spent no more than $1,000-1,200,” Dueñas said.

At the retreat, the SGA plans to have team-building workshops as well as budget planning sessions.

The SGA said they were upset by some of the comments Dueñas made regarding their retreat.

An outline stating the reasons the SGA wanted to remove Dueñas said that she is a hindrance to the SGA in budgetary matters, inter-personal matters and advice. The outline also said that Dueñas continues to talk against the SGA and that she is the biggest waste of student fees.

Dueñas gave the SGA a document explaining why she feels the retreat is a bad idea.

“I have gone on record in the past (last fall) about what I think about expensive retreats and encouraged SGA to consider utilizing on-campus resources not only to save money but also to build more collaboration on campus,” Dueñas said.

The SGA said Dueñas should be a resource person who guides them, helps them and works with them as a part of their team, and they felt that she had not demonstrated any of those things, therefore they wanted to vote her out of her position.

Karen Raforth, associate vice president/ dean for Student Life, told the SGA in the meeting that the only person who could remove Dueñas from her advisory position is Yolanda Ortega-Ericksen, vice president for Student Services.

Disregarding what Raforth said, the SGA made the motion to vote Dueñas out of office. 

Vice President of Student Organizations for the SGA, Yosief Abraha said the reason he wanted to remove Dueñas was because instead of her coming directly to the SGA concerning the retreat, the SGA had to read her concerns in The Metropolitan. He said it would have been better if she talked to the SGA first.

Abraha said that when the SGA proposed the retreat two weeks ago, Dueñas was at the meeting and did not speak out against the retreat.

Arbaha said she made the SGA look like they did not care what they do with student fees.

“Nobody talks about all the stuff we’ve done for students, the money we gave out,” Arbaha said. “That’s why we never took a retreat until this point, because we were doing a lot of other stuff.”

LaShanta Smith, vice president for Student Services for the SGA, shared Abraha’s concerns and said Dueñas did not confront the problem in a professional manner.

After the motion was made, Metro student Rob Haight, representative for Student Advisory Committee to the Auraria Board, expressed his concerns with the SGA’s motion to remove Dueñas.

“Personally, I oppose this resolution,” Haight said.

He said he felt Dueñas had always given him good advice on many different topics and there was no legitimate reason for the SGA’s decision to remove Dueñas.

Before the SGA voted on Dueñas’ removal, Julius Mahammad, vice president of communication for the SGA, said, “Julius Mahammad has not been hindered by Joanna.”

He also said he felt the SGA was handling their problems with Dueñas in a childish manner.

“I think if we read between the lines, there’s some personal issues going on there,” Mahammad said.

The SGA proceeded to vote Dueñas out, but first SGA President Brotha Seku said to Dueñas, “You are a liar and you are a cheat.”

The majority of the SGA members voted Dueñas out, and the motion was passed.

Seku then asked Chief Justice, Felicia Woodsen to escort Dueñas out of the meeting.

“I would like you to leave the building,” Seku said addressing Dueñas.

Raforth intervened and told Seku that they were in a public building, attending a public meeting, and he had no authority to remove Dueñas from the room. 

Woodsen told Seku the only way to get Dueñas to leave the meeting was to ask her to leave. Seku then asked Dueñas to leave and she declined.

Raforth reminded the SGA they did not have the authority to remove Dueñas from her adviser position.

Faculty adviser for the SGA Madison Holloway said Seku’s problem with Dueñas is very counterproductive.

“There has to be a give and take,” Holloway said.

Holloway also said he would not be able to attend the retreat in Glenwood Springs, but will try his hardest to make it up there for possibly one day.
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A seminar on HIV/AIDS is on the agenda for the Health Center at Auraria and is planned for Feb. 20 at St Cajetan’s Church on campus.

The seminar, The Color of HIV/AIDS in the New Millennium, will be split into two sessions: “Impact of HIV/AIDS on Minority Populations.” and, Psychiatric Conditions which Contribute to Risk Behaviors.”

A study published by the Center for Disease Control said, “HIV-related illness and death now have the greatest impact on young people. AIDS is a leading cause of death among Americans between the ages of 25-44. In the same age group, AIDS now accounts for one in every three deaths among African-American men and one in five deaths of African American women.”

Between 1990 and 1995, AIDS occurrence among people 13-25 rose nearly 20 percent. While AIDS among both young gay and bisexual men and young self-injected drug users was relatively constant during this time period, AIDS among young heterosexual men and women rose more than 130 percent.   

The first speaker at the seminar will be George Roberts, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, followed by Andrew S. Angelino, from the Dept. of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at Johns Hopkins University, in Baltimore, Md. where Angelino is the Assistant Director of AIDS and Psychiatry Services. Metro student,

Jamie Rodriguez, 20, said she would not attend. 

“It’s a big subject, but not down my road. I am concerned about it but not to the point where I am going to sit down and listen to someone talk about it and give speeches on it,” Rodriguez said.

Metro student Gary Damrell, 21, had not heard about the seminar either, but said it would be something he would go to.

“I think it serves a good purpose. Anything that is important interests me.” Damrell said. 

The first session of the seminar runs from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.; and the second session starts at 12:30 p.m. and goes to 1:30 p.m.  From 11:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., the Health Center will offer free HIV Testing Information. It is required to RSVP to attend this information meeting.

The Health Center at Auraria can be contacted at (303) 556-3879 or can be located on the first floor of the Plaza building.    

The seminar, The Color of HIV/AIDS in the New Millennium, is split up into two sessions. The first session is entitled, “Impact of HIV/AIDS on Minority Populations.” The second session is, “Psychiatric Conditions which Contribute to Risk Behaviors.”

A study published by the Center for Disease Control said, “HIV-related illness and death now have the greatest impact on young people. AIDS is a leading cause of death among Americans 25-44. In the same age group, AIDS now accounts on average for one in every three deaths among African-American men and one in five deaths of African American women. “

Between 1990 and 1995, AIDS incidence among people 13-25 rose nearly 20 percent. While AIDS among both young gay and bisexual men and young injecting drug users was relatively constant during this time period, AIDS among young heterosexual men and women rose more than 130 percent.   

The first speaker will be George Roberts, from the Center for disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. The second speaker will be Andrew S. Angelino, from Johns Hopkins University, Dept. of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science in Baltimore, Md. He is also the Assistant Director of AIDS and Psychiatry Services.

Metro student Gary Damrell, 21, had not heard about the seminar but said it would be something he would go to.

“I think it serves a good purpose. Anything that is important interests me, and if it is important enough, I would go do it,” Damrell said. 

The seminar is from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. From 11:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., the Health Center will offer free HIV Testing Information. It is required to RSVP to attend this information meeting.

The Health Center at Auraria can be contacted at (303) 556-3879 or can be located on the first floor of the Plaza building.
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Photo by - Joel Tagert Colorado Springs police used tear gas and pepper spray to stop protesters at a war rally Feb. 15.

Colorado Springs police used tear gas and pepper spray Feb. 15, at a peace demonstration, which was sponsored by the Pikes Peak Justice & Peace Commission.

The rally began Saturday at 10:30 a.m. at Palmer Park on the corner of Academy and Maizeland. Three to four thousand people gathered in the park to protest against the possible war on Iraq, as speakers, musicians and a theater troupe performed on a rented stage.

“I came because I’m definitely against military action in Iraq,” said CU Denver student, Jason Polk. “I also came to participate in democracy and show the government of the U.S. that I disagree with the war.”

At 12:30 p.m. a substantial anarchist contingent broke away from the crowd and marched to the Academy and back to the park, waving black flags and chanting, “Join us!”

Shortly after, the crowd began marching down Academy Boulevard as previously planned by event organizers.

Photo by - Joel Tagert Colorado Springs police in full riot gear at a war rally Feb. 15.

The march was complicated by the apparent reluctance of Colorado Springs authorities to issue a permit to the protesters. Demonstrators were repeatedly told to stay on the sidewalk as police attempted to direct traffic through the crowd.

The anarchists resisted these demands, moving into intersections in defiance of police orders.

Many marchers did not seem worried by the conflict. A small marching band played trombone, saxophone, trumpets and drums as many nearby chanted, “Violence is useless but love never fails.”

After an hour of marching and low-level conflicts between protesters and police, riot police donned shields and gas masks. A police loudspeaker repeatedly announced, “Disperse or you will be arrested.”

After ten to fifteen minutes, the crowd slowly moved back toward the park, with riot police following close behind.

Most of the crowd gathered near an intersection when police fired tear gas into the street.

A general rush ensued, with most running into a nearby field. Police followed, still attempting to disperse the crowd.

One man was sprayed with pepper spray and was seen being carried away from the scene by friends, his hands shaking and tears streaming from his eyes and nose.

One woman, angered by the police action, screamed, “What about the children?”

“I felt the police completely overreacted,” said Metro student, Jeremy Bernier. “They waited until the action was completed and then decided to tear gas us as we were dispersing. People were pepper sprayed as they were walking to their cars.”

When asked how he felt about the anarchists’ actions, Bernier said, “I felt in comparison with what they’ve done in the past (that) they weren’t confrontational with police. They succeeded in shutting down three miles of streets to show their opposition to war.”

Photo by - Joel Tagert Colorado Springs police used tear gas and pepper spray to stop protesters at a war rally Feb. 15.

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Photo by - David Merrill Metro junior Rick Hadley, a computer information systems major, lights up a smoke while studying in the Boiler Room Feb. 3.

Sixty-eight percent of Metro students choose not to smoke, according to a survey sponsored by the Campus Tobacco Project. Approximately 625 Metro students were surveyed in the fall of 2002 as part of the CTP’s Social Norms Campaign. 

Doug Smith, who heads up the CTP at Metro, said that the number of Metro students who smoke is slightly higher than the statewide average.

 Metro State is one of 15 colleges that set up anti-smoking projects that are funded by a grant from settlements with major tobacco companies.  

 The goal of the CTP is to raise awareness of the risks associated with tobacco use and to help students who wish to quit smoking.

“Smoking is a mass of addiction,” said Rebekah Markheim, a peer educator working for the CTP. “Anything that we can do to help people stop smoking, let’s do it.”

 “We would like to stop the numbers (of students) who are starting to take up tobacco use,” Smith said.

Smith also said that second hand smoke is a real issue to be concerned about. Smith, however, is more concerned with what the CTP can do on campus, than with the possible indoor smoking ban in Denver.

“I’m all for it. People can go smoke outside,” said Markheim, an ex-smoker.

Bob Doyle, spokesperson for Smoke Free Denver, would like to see indoor smoking abolished.

“We should expect that when we walk into a public place that the air is safe to breath,” Doyle said. “When I walk into a restaurant, my food is inspected for safety, why isn’t my air?”

On Jan. 23, the Denver Board of Health voted 4-0 to “highly recommend” that the City Council pass strict new indoor smoking laws.
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Student assaulted on campus

Sandra Kallich reported an assault at 2:30 a.m. on Feb. 16. The report said Kallich stated an unknown female in the lower level women’s restroom in the Tivoli struck her. The suspect fled and was unable to be found.

The suspect was a Caucasian female, 5’5” with brown hair. She was wearing a green and white button down shirt with a brown knee-length skirt.

There are no leads at this time.

Car vandalism popular

A University of Colorado at Denver staff member reported a theft at 4:47 p.m. on Feb. 14 in parking lot B. The theft occurred between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. when the staff member was at work.

When she returned to her car she found her driver side window broken and a hole in her dash.

Stolen: XM Satellite radio, $250 and a CD that was inside the radio, $20.

There are no leads or suspects at this time.

TOTAL LOSS: $270

Why insurance is important

A 2003 Gold Chevy Cavalier was damaged by a hit and run in the parking garage at 10:51 a.m. on Feb.13. 

The Cavalier, which was a rental, was hit by a car backing out of an opposite parking space. The Cavalier’s rear deck received moderate damage.

There are no suspects or leads at this time.

Multiple arrests on campus

Paul A. Giron, no campus affiliation, was arrested for DUI at 9th St. and Walnut on Feb. 13.

An Metro student was arrested for outstanding warrants at 9:17 a.m. in Lot C on Feb. 13.

William B. Left Hardbull, no campus affliliation, was arrested for outstanding warrants at 6:56 p.m. at the South Classroom on Feb. 12.

- Andrea Terrones

***NEWS BRIEF***

Women’s Leadership Conference March 7

The 7th annual Women’s Leadership Conference will be held in the Tivoli March 7.

Speakers include: Sarah Weddington, the ‘Roe v. Wade’ attorney; photojournalist Tory Read; mountain climber Kim Clark and Denver city councilman Joyce Foster.

Fees are $5 for Auraria students and $20 for non-students until Feb. 28. Go to http://studentactivities/leader/wlc/registration.pdf for a registration form. Return form with checks to Tivoli 305. Contact Gretta Mincer at (303)556-2595 for more information.
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