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February 17, 2014 SGA Lobbies in Working Overtime Va Serving James Madison University Since 1922 BreezeJMU.org Vol. 92, No. 37 Mostly sunny n 38°/ 28° chance of precipitation: 10% Monday, February 17, 2014 SGA lobbies in Working overtime Va. capital Students increasingly need to work more as minimum wage remains stagnant Members discuss increased financial aid, stricter hazing laws, no out-of-state admission cap ByR PaT ICK MORTIERE The Breeze Eleven members of the Student Government Association journeyed to Richmond on Feb. 6 to voice their concerns to lawmakers regard- ing legislation that affects university students. Financial aid, university hazing and a proposed cap on the admissions of out-of-state students were the primary topics of discussion between the SGA BLAIR ROSEN / THE BREEZE members and Richmond legislators. SOURCE: U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS In an effort to divide and conquer, Percentage of hourly-paid wage workers with earnings at or below the prevailing federal minimum wage in Virginia, annual averages, 2003-12. In the 11 SGA members broke up into Virginia, there were 123,000 workers earning the federal minimum wage or less in 2012; 55 percent of these workers were women. factions and targeted delegates and senators within the education com- ByA MEG N DimaiOLO help junior vocal major Rachel Sandler pay for students worked while in school, according to mittee to relay JMU’s key concern over The Breeze college, but also help with her studies. In addi- the U.S. Census Bureau. financial aid funding. tion to being a resident adviser in Logan Hall, Amber Weaver, a student employment It takes 133 hours of working at a minimum Sandler also works at Chipotle and as a tutor specialist in the Office of Financial Aid and “It’s important that our wage job for a JMU student to buy the aver- in the music department. Last weekend, she Scholarships, said there has been an increase age $960 worth of textbooks for two semesters, worked 18 hours at Chipotle and had a 6-hour of students working and looking for work on out-of-state student according to JMU’s Office of Financial Aid and RA duty shift, along with planning her tutoring campus. percentage doesn’t Scholarships. sessions for the upcoming week. “We have a lot more students wanting to According to the U.S. Department of Labor, “If I hadn’t been working, I would be able to work, needing to work now over the last prob- decrease because so 21 states have minimum wages that are set get more school work done,” Sandler said. “I’m ably couple years,” Weaver said. “We have more much of our diversity above the national minimum wage of $7.25 taking 20 credits and working on a recital. So, it students now qualifying for Federal Work Study, an hour. Virginia is not one of them. takes away from the typical college experience.” as well as wanting to work in the Federal Work around campus comes Both state and federal legislatures have Being an out-of-state student, Sandler uses Study positions ... because mom and dad can’t from out-of-state.” been debating about raising the minimum her three jobs to pay for tuition, living expenses support them any longer.” wage. This past Wednesday, President Barack and her school supplies. Out-of-state tuition is Weaver said there are currently about 3,500 Julie Hirschhorn Obama signed an executive order raising the $23,654 per year, and that’s not including room students employed by JMU. Students are SGA member and junior minimum wage for federal contractors from and board which is about $8,500 per year. capped at working 20 hours per week, so that communication studies $7.25 to $10.10 an hour. On Thursday, a bill that “The RA job is great, but it only pays about they can focus on their classwork. and writing, rhetoric and would have raised the Virginia minimum wage $4,200 a year. All of that money goes straight “You’re not here to earn money,” Weaver technical communication to $9.25 by 2015 died in a Virginia House com- to my school account,” Sandler said. “I needed said. “You’re not here to work. You’re here for double major mittee, only two days after the bill had passed more jobs to supplement living expenses and academics. The majority of your time should in the Virginia Senate. ... to live a little bit.” Raising the minimum wage would not only In 2011, 25 percent of Virginia college see WagE, page 4 “I told my group never to doubt what you had to say, and whatev- er concerns you have are important and are met with great empathy by the legislators,” Adam Miner, an SGA senator and sophomore political sci- ence major, said. Undercover Virginia’s biennial budget for 2014- 16, which was presented during the agents January Board of Visitors meeting, would allot JMU $200,000 in state funding for financial aid, which is an underwhelming figure considering 54 Male practice players percent of JMU students rely on this assistance, according to JMU’s admis- demonstrate pride for sions site. At the April 5, 2013 Board of Visitors JMU by helping the meeting, the board approved a budget for the 2013-14 year that allotted $12.1 women’s basketball million for financial aid. Associate director of communications Bill Wyatt team prepare for explained that most money for finan- cial aid, besides state funds, comes upcoming games. from the university’s non-general fund, which is funded from sources such as tuition, fees, ticket sales and private donations. Page 11 While JMU students wait for action by the legislature, the SGA and JMU’s Financial Education LAUREN GORDON / THE BREEZE Committee, a board comprised of faculty and students, are working together with students to budget and plan their finances accordingly. see SGA, page 4 The best pick Alums collaborate to create online sales website that features best aspects of eBay and Craigslist 2/17 INSIDE ByN JOAN A MORELLI Pickarious is sort of to capture some NEWS The Breeze of that.” Last May Fulkerson and two 3 Mall renovation of his co-workers at Rosetta Stone, Valley Mall prepared to Imagine an online trading post that JMU graduates Brian Vaughn (’05) get a hefty $1.5 million is less anonymous than Craigslist and and Andy Harbick (’96), began talk- update. has buyers more committed to items ing about the idea of a website where than eBay; with Pickarious finally up users could record footage of their OPINION and running for the Harrisonburg products that they wished to sell. The 6 Diversity? region, your online selling and buy- official release of the website wasn’t Two columnists ing woes may disappear. until October. explore and debate It all began when Mike Fulkerson, “Mike had the initial idea and race issues at JMU. one of the three co-founders of Pick- Andy and I thought it was something arious, began watching the television we could build. All of us were excited LifE show “American Pickers” on the His- about it and so we decided to go for 9 All work, snow play tory Channel. The show, featuring a it,” Vaughn said. “In part it came from Students spend their pursuit in the Midwest for antiques experiences like yard sales and flea snow days online and collectibles, gave Fulkerson a markets — the excitement of explor- instead of outside. desire to do the same — but why not ing a bunch of stuff that may have online? something special hidden in it.” SPORTS “There’s something kind of strange- Video was an important aspect of 11 Dukes down Hokies ly compelling about it [“American the website to not only make it stand Lacrosse starts off LAUREN GORDON / THE BREEZE Pickers”] to me,” Fulkerson said. out, but make it appeal to users. season with win over Mike Fulkerson, Brian Vaughn and Andy Harbick created Pickarious in “They look for something interest- Virginia Tech. May of 2013. The website features semi-interactive trading posts. ing … it’s kind of a hunt. The idea of see PICKARIOUS, page 10 Today Tuesday Wednesday T hursday mostly sunny a.m. snow showers partly cloudy mostly cloudy 38°/28° 44°/36° 55°/32° 52°/46° Monday, February 17, 2014 2 PageEDITORS Drew Crane & Kortney Frederick 2 EMAIL [email protected] Serving James Madison University Since 1922 G1 Anthony-Seeger Hall, MSC 6805 James Madison University Harrisonburg, Va. 22807 PHONE: 540-568-6127 FAX: 540-568-6736 MISSION The Breeze, the student-run newspaper of James Madison University, serves student, faculty and staff readership by reporting news involving the campus and local community. The Breeze strives to be impartial and fair in its reporting and firmly believes in First Amendment rights. Published Monday and Thursday mornings, The Breeze is distributed throughout James Madison University and the local Harrisonburg community. Single copies of The Breeze are distributed free of charge. Additional copies are available for 50 cents by contacting our business office. Comments and complaints should be addressed to Sean Cassidy, editor. EDITOR-IN-CHIEF SEAN CASSIDY [email protected] MANAGING EDITOR ANNE ELSEA [email protected] NEWS DESK Friday’s puzzle solved [email protected] LIFE DESK [email protected] SPORTS DESK [email protected] OPINION DESK [email protected] COPY DESK [email protected] P HOTO [email protected] VIDEO [email protected] ADVERTISING DEPARTMENT 540-568-6127 G et involved. ADS MANAGER Ethan Miller The Breeze is looking for reporters, A SST. ADS MANAGER photographers and videographers. Will Bungarden CREATIVE DIRECTOR Email [email protected]. Zack Owen A SST.
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