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Ithaca College Digital Commons @ IC The thI acan, 2009-10 The thI acan: 2000/01 to 2009/2010 10-1-2009 The thI acan, 2009-10-01 Ithaca College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.ithaca.edu/ithacan_2009-10 Part of the Higher Education Commons OPINION LEARN MORE ABOUT SERLING’S LEGACY, PAGE 10 TWILIGH T TURNS 50! SPORTS SIBLINGS TAKE RIVALRY TO SOCCER FIELD, PAGE 23 College honors Serling as professor and writer, page 13 THIS I SEE LOCALS PAINT THE TOWN APPLE RED, PAGE 28 Thursday Ithaca, N.Y. October 1, 2009 The Ithacan Volume 77, Issue 6 House passes bill No money, to expand college aid for students BY MICHAEL FISCELLA CONTRIBUTING WRITER A bill passed by the House of Rep- no problem resentatives will increase the maxi- mum Pell Grant by hundreds of dol- lars but will change Federal Perkins Loans so that loans will begin accru- Study finds more ing interest while student-lenders are still in school. college students The measure, passed Sept. 17 and use credit cards known as the Stu- dent Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act, will oust private BY ASHLEY MAY all cards except one, which is under her lenders from the ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR mother’s name. Two of Portolesi’s cards federal college loan More students are choosing plastic are retail credit cards from Nordstrom’s business and require CM HA BERS said the Pell Grant will over paper this year. This isn’t a checkout- and Macy’s. One is under her name and all schools to switch be increased to bagging question or an anti-green trend the other is under her mother’s, with Por- to the federal Direct $5,550 this year. — it’s about credit. tolesi listed as an authorized user. Loan Program by Junior Alessandra Portolesi, like other According to a Sallie Mae national July 1, 2010. college students, is swiping cards over study published in 2009, 84 percent of Direct Loans are low-interest fed- counting cash. polled undergraduates have at least one eral loans for students and parents During the school year, she said she credit card, compared with 76 percent that help pay for the cost of a student’s rarely keeps cash in her wallet and instead in 2004. education. The lender is the U.S. De- uses her credit card for expenses such as The report said students who used partment of Education — rather than textbooks, Internet and cable. credit cards to pay for direct education a bank or other financial institution. Portolesi, a business administration expenses said they charged an estimat- The bill will now move to the Sen- major with a concentration in manage- ed $2,200 — more than double 2004’s ate where it is expected to pass. ment and minor in economics, uses four average of $942. The most common di- Larry Chambers, director of stu- credit cards. She said one benefit of having rect education expenses are textbooks, dent financial services, said he is not credit available is the convenience. school supplies and commuter costs. convinced the removal of private lend- “Sometimes I don’t have cash, but I Patricia Nash Christel, spokeswoman ers will result in substantial benefits know that I will in a week or two weeks,” for Sallie Mae, said this is the highest num- for students. she said. “The fact that I am able to borrow ber of students using credit cards recorded “Having both direct lending and the money for such a temporary time and pay by Sallie Mae. Stafford Loan programs has fostered it back and not get penalized helps.” competition, enhanced services and ILLUSTRatION BY JON WHITE Portolesi is responsible for paying off SeeT CREDI , page 4 provided students with choice,” Cham- bers said. “With only one lender — the federal government — students will no longer have a choice of a lender.” Chambers said new changes be- College lacks child care options compared with Cornell ing made to the Federal Perkins Loan will leave college students BY TAYLOR LONG with more loans that begin accruing CONTRIBUTING WRITER interest immediately. For the fourth year in a row, Cornell Uni- Freshman Adam Melnick said versity has been chosen as one of the 100 best loans that immediately start building U.S. employers for working mothers by Work- interest, often known as unsubsidized ing Mother magazine. loans, make life harder for students. With the addition of Cornell Child Care “We’re not making real money as Center under the management of Bright Ho- undergraduates, so it’s hard to chip rizons Family Solutions, the institution contin- away at what we owe,” Melnick said. ues to strengthen its reputation as one of the “Then when we graduate, the interest most accommodating employers in the area, has already blown our debt through according to Working Mother magazine. the roof.” The care center at Cornell is located on Proponents of the bill, however, campus, with room for 158 children, 48 in- point to the introduction of variable fants, 50 toddlers and 60 preschoolers. interest rates as proposed by the SAF- Joseph Schwartz, public information offi- RA. After college, the lenders’ inter- cer at Cornell, said there are many programs est rates will vary depending on their at Cornell that led to the recognition of Work- financial standing. Individuals with a ing Mother magazine and others that have ac- low-income will not be subjected to knowledged Cornell over the years. higher interest rates. “Cornell tries to have a comfortable work- The Obama administration said ing environment for everyone,” Schwartz said. Carolina Hassett picks up her son, Hanssen, Tuesday afternoon from Cornell Child Care Center. the government will save more than Lynette Chappell-Williams, associate vice Cornell University was voted one of the best employers for working mothers. $80 billion over 10 years and that this ANDY MatIAS/THE IthacaN president for workforce diversity and inclusion surplus will be invested in Pell Grants at Cornell, helped develop these programs and for low-income students, commu- continues to invent new ways of meeting the offer the same options for its working parents. Cornell about providing child care assistance nity colleges and early-childhood needs of Cornell families. The most recent Mark Coldren, associate vice president of but Cornell’s size and resources probably allow educational programs. project aims to offer flexible work arrange- the human resources department, said even for such a comprehensive program. In the near Chambers said the bill would in- ments to employees. though the college helps new employees find future, Coldren said he hopes to develop an as- crease the current maximum Pell “This program allows employees to modify nearby day cares for their children and provides sessment to measure the level of faculty inter- Grant from $5,350 to $5,550 during their work hours or to work remotely, such as leave time to new mothers in compliance with est and the feasibility of the program. the 2010-11 school year, and by 2019, from home, which provides for an opportunity the Family Medical Leave Act, he still receives “We need to see what people want now the Pell Grant scholarship should for balancing work opportunities and family,” requests for there to be child care offered at and five years from now,” Coldren said. “It’s grow to $6,900. Chappell-Williams said. the college. Here on South Hill, Ithaca College does not Coldren said the college could learn from See FAMILIES, page 4 See AID, page 4 find more. online. www.theithacan.org [THURSDAY BRIEFING] 2 The Ithacan Thursday, October 1, 2009 THIS Nation&World WEEK US talks with Iran about weapons { } Even as they prepare for new talks today with 1 THURSDAY Iran on its nuclear program, the U.S. and its allies Gerontology Institute Annual are contemplating new and tighter sanctions on Fall Conference, sponsored by Tehran in a clear signal of expectations that the ne- the Division of Interdisciplinary gotiations may again end in failure. Studies, will be held from 8 a.m. The fact that the meeting is taking place at all to 5 p.m. in Emerson Suites. offers some hope, reflecting both sides’ desire to talk, despite a spike in tensions over last week’s rev- 2 FRIDAY elations by Iran that it had been secretly building a new uranium enrichment plant. Rod Serling Conference: Ahead of today’s negotiations, the State De- “Celebrating 50 Years of partment stressed its hope that the session would ‘The Twilight Zone’” will be open the door to more in-depth dialogue about held from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. ways Iran could alleviate concerns that its emerg- in Emerson Suites, Phillips ing nuclear program may be secretly developing Hall and Park Hall. nuclear weapons. Shabbat Services will begin If Iran is willing to address the nuclear issues, at 6 p.m. in Muller Chapel. then there likely will be subsequent meetings, Shabbat Dinner will begin at State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said 7:15 p.m. in Terrace Dining Hall. in Washington, D.C. Crowley noted that President Barack Obama has said he intends to take a few months to assess 3 SATURDAY Iran’s position and consult with U.S. negotiating Rod Serling Conference: partners before deciding what next steps to take. “Celebrating 50 Years of ‘The Pacific tsunami kills thousands Twilight Zone’” will be held Money madness from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. in Federal disaster officials said “tens of thou- Protestors from “Communities Against Cuts” stage a national march yesterday in Dublin, Ireland, Emerson Suites, Phillips Hall sands” of people on American Samoa and Samoa against the current and proposed cuts to community projects.