1988-03-24

              The Record

OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF ST. JOHN'S UNIVERSITY March 24,1988                         Volume 101                                 Number 5                        Collegeville, MN

Non-profit organization U.S. POSTAGE PAID

Permit No. 1 Co'legeville, MN

Photo by Jeff Brzozowski

Sending a message...

The SJU/CSB Social Action Coalition organized a series of activities observing Central America Week. The activities included various speakers, films and a prayer vigil. A mock graveyard was constructed to remember those killed in the Central American conflict.

SJU searches for minorities

By Kevin Dumville

The SJU Admissions Office is apparently accepting more minorities and foreign students for next year's freshman class than in previous years. The reason for the increase in foreign students is due to the Admissions Office's efforts to visit foreign countries and recruit potential students.

Some American students may well be elbowed out of a spot in next year's freshman class, but as Roger Young, SJU director of admissions told The Record, "We'll do anything we can to diversify an incoming class. The belter mix we have, the better a class represents the whole situation and more of a complete knowledge is gained."

The Admissions Office is seeking students not only in America, but also in such foreign lands as Japan, Hong Kong and Malaysia. Young himself will visit die Bahamas with the intention of recruiting a large number of pupils. Young purported, "In the future we're also aiming to recruit more students from Central and Southern America."

Despite efforts to increase student diversity, Young insisted the academic standards and requirements for next year's class will not drop. He said, "There's always the hope that our standards will increase, and we hope to continue attracting good students well into the future."

In fact, the Admissions Office has, according to Young, attracted more applicants this year than last, and as a conscqucncehas denied more people admission. "We've worked extremely hard to attract these students to SJU, but we want to have the same size class as last year, and that's 510 students. We just don't have enough room on campus for more."

Three quarters of the freshman class has apparently already been filled, a figure 10 percent greater than at this time last year. Young said that figure is more significant when realizing that the total number of high school graduates is decreasing. "The baby-boom generation is over," staled Young, "and so we expect the number of high school graduates to decrease until 1992 before

Photo by JcfT Brzozowski

Roger Young, SJU director of admissions.

rising." But Young pointed out there is now an increasing percentage of high school graduates actually going on to college rather than other areas.

Palaestra to be tobacco-free

ByM.A. Holscher

The SJU Warner Palaestra has been declared a "tobacco-free facility" by Roman Paur, OSB, SJU vice president for student affairs. In a letter dated March 8 to all SJU varsity coaches, Paur asked that they discourage all use of tobacco in the sports complex.

"I support your consensus and the recommendation of the Student Affairs Advisory Council in recognizing the entire Warner Palaestra as a lo-bacco-iiee facility," the letter said.

Seth Beckman, SJU senior, said he was happy about the new rule. "It should definitely be smoke-free," he said. "Smoking seems to contradict everything that the Palaestra is about."

MikeMulvihill, SJU freshman, agreed. "It's great because the smoke creates an unhealthy atmosphere when you're working out."

Paur told The Record this week that the idea for the designation has been "simmering for years," and that the SJU rule follows similar rules atother colleges and universities. He said that Gustavus Adolphus College has a rule which outlaws all tobacco in its sports facility, and characterized it as "the decent tiling to do in promoting good health."

SJU cross-country coach, Tim Miles, said this week that the vote for the policy was "almost unanimous from the coaches. When you're in a bar it is kind of expected that people will smoke and Lhe smell will be around. But not in an athletic

Palaestra

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Housing rate increases set for 88-89

Flynntown houses to go; apartments for seniors only

By M.A. Holscher

Roman Paur, OSB, SJU vice president for student affairs, has approved a proposal which calls for substantial increases in housing costs for next year's residents in Tommy and Mary Hall, as well as in some Greg House rooms and Seidcnbush apartments. The third and final draft was approved by Paur on March 21 following weeks of discussion with his Student Affairs Advisory Council (SAAC) and other groups.

The new rates reflect the university's call for a seven percent overall increase in student housing costs, as stipulated in the 1988-89 university budget. In consultation with the SAAC, Paur decided to restructure the housing rates rather than enact a seven percent hike across-the-board.

Judy Karasch, SJU director of housing and student services, lold The Record last Tuesday that the restructuring "represents the relative quality of housing." She said that recent renovations and upgrading have changed the relative value of SJU's on-campus housing, changes which were not previously reflected in room costs. "We've taken a look at our housing and have restructured the costs according to what it's worth," she explained.

Paur observed that the final decision on the new housing rates "represents a compromise of various points of view." He said that "most schools don't have a variation in housing costs...(but) we think that the fee ought to reflect the circumstances of the facility in a way that is reasonably affordable so that buildings wilh similar value have similar rent."

The biggest increase in rales will be seen by SJU students living in Seidcnbush Apartments four, five, six and seven. The apartments, which currently run Si300 a year per resident, will cost S1650 next year. But Karasch explained thai the 27 percent increase is a result of a reduction in the number of residents living in each unit. While the apartments currently house six residents per unit, Karasch said they will only house three next year.

Paur said
tlic reduction
in residents is part of

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File Photo

Judy Karasch, SJU director of student housing.

SJU's commitment to alleviating overcrowded conditions. He explained that the federal norm for apartment living space "is about 250 square feel per person, and Seidcnbush will now meet those requirements."

The relatively large increases in Tommy and M-ary Hall, according to Paur, are the result of recent renovations to those buildings which increase the quality of the facilities. lThe university has spent a million dollars in the last four or five years, so the increase reflects the cost of the (upgraded) buildings," he said. The rates in Tommy and Mary will now equal those in Bernard, Patrick and Boniface Halls.

Under the new scheme, lhe cost of Greg quadruples will equal the cost of triples and doubles in the building. Paur explained that the 14 percent increase is indicative of the similarity of per capita space in each of those multiple units. Greg singles will increase by about S60.

Most of the other residences will experience only relatively moderate increases under the new rate structure. But much of the apartment-style housing will be more expensive than Paur had proposed earlier this month. Originally, Paur called for minimal hikes in the Scion apartments in an effort to attract more fourth and fiflh year students to on-campus housing. The current rates, however, are $100 higher than those in the original proposal.

"We tried to hold down ihc costs of upper-class housing, and I still would have liked to have ihcm

Housing

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