The Ithacan, 2009-10-22
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Ithaca College Digital Commons @ IC The thI acan, 2009-10 The thI acan: 2000/01 to 2009/2010 10-22-2009 The thI acan, 2009-10-22 Ithaca College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.ithaca.edu/ithacan_2009-10 Part of the Higher Education Commons OPINION CUSTODIAL WORK-STUDY NOT FOR ALL, PAGE 10 GAININ G DEPTH ACCENT ROOMMATES EXPLORE RACIAL DIFFERENCES, PAGE 13 Injury-plagued Bombers bring in two players, page 23 PHOTO FINISH FOOTBALL FALLS TO FISHER, PAGE 28 Thursday Ithaca, N.Y. October 22, 2009 The Ithacan Volume 77, Issue 8 Carbon neutrality proposal passed Strength in by board of trustees BY TRISTAN FOWLER ONLINE MEDIA EDITOR numbers? The Ithaca College board of trustees approved the Climate Action Plan on Oct. 9. The plan seeks to eliminate the college’s Local unions look to organize net greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The plan establishes three benchmarks on the path to carbon neutrality through Ithaca College employees increased efficiency and investing in renewable BY MALLORY DIAMOND he is a progressive, labor-friendly energy. The first bench- SENIOR WRITER person,” Marsh said. “Now unfor- mark will reduce the The Cortland-Tompkins tunately, other decision makers, college’s carbon emis- County Building and Construc- some of which influence his deci- sions by 25 percent by tion Trades Council and its af- sions, may not feel that way.” the year 2015, then an filiates, led by council president Because the college has additional 25 percent David Marsh, plan to begin an declined to sign the neutral- by 2025 and the last 50 organizing drive among Ithaca ity agreement, the council has percent by 2050. MARIAN BROWN College employees who lack committed to educating inter- “Basically, it’s a said the Climate Action Plan will union representation. ested college employees, who self-investment in be effective. In a letter to President Tom can be legally organized, on the efficiency and effec- Rochon, the council proposed possibility of unionization with tiveness,” said Marian Brown, special that all parties, including the col- the organizing drive. assistant to the provost and vice presi- lege, enter a neutrality agreement Marsh said the council has not dent of academic affairs. in order to ensure that employees yet initiated the organizing drive. A committee of faculty, students and be able to make an informed de- “It would happen very strate- staff, with guidance from outside energy cision about unionization with- gically, and it would be planned consultants, produced the Climate Action out being threatened or coerced. well,” Marsh said. Plan, as a requirement of the American As defined in the contract, Marsh said the primary orga- College and University President’s Climate neutrality prohibits threats or de- nizing drive would be conducted Commitment, which President Emerita laying tactics that might interfere separately from the council’s on- Peggy Williams signed in September 2007. with employees’ efforts to union- going protest, which began in late This plan is a living document and ize. It also prohibits the college summer, of the college’s choice to will depend on available financial re- from organizing a campaign to employ nonlocal and nonunion sources, said Carl Sgrecci, vice presi- oppose union representation. contractors in the construction dent of finance and administration and Marsh said Rochon declined of its $65.5 million Athletic and chair of the committee. to sign the neutrality agreement. Events Center. “The climate action plan is a road Rochon also declined to com- The college was subsequent- map or blueprint,” Sgrecci said. “It’s ment for this story, but Marsh ly awarded this year’s Goat of an idea about what the priorities are said he doesn’t necessarily believe Labor award by the Midstate and how we go about approaching the Rochon to be the problem. Central Labor Council and the respected problems.” “I have purposely not targeted Rob McKenna, senior consultant at ILLUSTRATION BY MICHELLE BARRIE the president … because I think See LABOR, page 4 Energy Strategies — a company that con- sults businesses and higher education in- stitutions about energy costs and policies — said the college prioritized its choices according to the greenhouse gas man- College data shows largest number of ALANA students agement hierarchy, putting energy avoid- ances and reductions first and carbon BY ALLISON MUSANTE over the past decade. visit here that something speaks “Students are finding it in- offsets last. MANAGING EDITOR “The raw numbers show a re- to them and confirms that this is creasingly difficult to identify “That hierarchy drives the thought Ithaca College is showing a flection of the larger class, but on a the right place to be.” with a box on a form as our so- process behind the climate action plan- steady progression in diversifying percentage basis, we’re still show- The report also showed more ciety becomes more multiracial,” ning process,” McKenna said. its student population, enrolling ing continued progress,” he said. “I students declining to identify with a Maguire said. The college will use the greenhouse gas the largest number of students hope to continue to increase that single ethnic group. This year, nearly Junior Chasity Dittmann, emissions inventory from 2007, which was from African, Latino, Asian and percentage in the future.” 16 percent of the college population spokeswoman for the African La- equivalent to 32,600 metric tons of CO2e, Native American backgrounds The freshman class has a is labeled “unknown,” compared as its baseline for reduction. The first five in the past 10 years, according to record-size ALANA class this year with 1.4 percent in fall 2000. See STUDENTS, page 4 years of the plan, when the college will this year’s opening enrollment re- of 297 students, which make up reduce emissions by 25 percent, are well port. The number has also grown nearly 15 percent of the total fresh- defined. The college plans to “seal the en- significantly in proportion to the man class. In fall 2000, ALANA 1200 D IVERSITY REPORT velope” by managing the energy use of all total population on campus. students accounted for less than 9 T his year the college saw the 1087 campus facilities, upgrading controls for largest increase in ALANA A total of 844 ALANA students percent of the freshman class. 1000 lighting and HVAC systems and assign- are enrolled this year, includ- Gerard Turbide, director of students and students who chose ing responsibility to someone to oversee not to identify their ethnicity. ing undergraduates and graduate admissions, said the report re- campus energy use. students, compared with 701 last flects successful recruitment ef- 800 585 774 For the second phase of the plan, from year. The 143-student difference is forts not only on part of the ad- 2016 to 2025, the college will consider in- the largest year-to-year increase missions office and the creation 600 stalling solar thermal systems to heat wa- the college has seen in at least the of diversity task forces, but also 418 ter for resident and dining facilities, two past 10 years, followed secondly how many current students and commercial-scale wind turbines to produce by a 58-student increase between faculty promote diverse cam- 400 electricity and replacing the HVAC systems fall 2002 and fall 2003, according pus life to prospective students 295 287 with more energy-efficient ones with low- 252 40 total 26 total 502 to data provided by the Office of through campus tours, club out- 222 to-neutral carbon emissions. 184 162 169 26 female 14 female 200 149 135 14 male 12 male 356 Institutional Research. reach and Fuse Magazine. 138 152 239 After exhausting options of efficien- 85 93 119 88 Eric Maguire, vice president for “The success of bringing these 133 cy and renewable energy, the college 117 118 151 enrollment management, attributes students to campus has a lot to do 0 53 56 70 65 will still be 28 percent short of its goal. 2009 2008 2009 2008 2009 2008 2009 2008 2009 2008 2009 2008 the jump in part by the college’s with the degree in which our cam- Nonresident Black Hispanic Asian/Pacific Native American Unknown One contingency of the last stage is the Alien Islander over-enrollment of freshmen, but pus is engaged in these conversa- Male Female also in its ability to consistently at- tions,” he said. “ALANA students, See PLAN, page 4 DESIGN BY MICHELLE BARRIE SOURCE: OFFICE OF INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH tract and retain ALANA students like all students, find when they find more. online. www.theithacan.org [THURSDAY BRIEFING] 2 The Ithacan Thursday, October 22, 2009 THIS Nation&World WEEK Poland accepts US missile defense { } Standing alongside U.S. Vice President Joe 22 THURSDAY Biden, Poland’s prime minister said yesterday his Reports from the Field: Global country was ready to participate in the Obama Experiences of Anthropology administration’s revamped plan for a U.S. missile Students will be held from defense shield in Europe. 7 to 9 p.m. in Williams 218. President Barack Obama removed a major Diversity Council meeting will irritant in relations with Russia last month be held from 7 to 8 p.m. in by scrapping U.S. plans to place 10 intercep- Friends 309. tor missiles in Poland and a radar in the Czech Republic to intercept long-range missiles from Harvest Moon Dance, an “rouge” states such as Iran. The Bush-era plan event sponsored by the geron- had enraged Moscow. tology student club, will be The Kremlin has praised Obama for the de- held from 6:30 to 8 p.m. cision, but Russian officials also have said they in Emerson Suites.