COMMENTARY: J Advice for new Prez

Guarding our Watchdogs

Frank LoMonte, director of the Student Press Law Center penned a terrific column on the Education Advice for the New President blog.

In the column, "Protect Student Journalism," LoMonte wrote that today's student journalists face more challenges and carry more responsibility.

"With professional journalism outlets slashing staff, the watchdog role of student journalists in holding our schools accountable for their performance is more important than ever," he wrote.

I've made a few emergency calls to SPLC while a staffer on the student newspaper The Campus Ledger. I wouldn't have been able to investigate and publish my 13-month investigative story on the allegations of sexual harassment against my college president, who immediately stepped down and retired when the story broke.

Student journalists give voice to the campus community and ensure public business takes place in public. Thank goodness there is an organization like SPLC that strives to ensure the rights and voices of student journalists.

Become a fan of SPLC on facebook here.

COMMENTARY: College Employee Endorses Candidate

Walking on the Ledge:

JCCC should not approve this message

Jerry Wolfskill at the Police Academy at Johnson County Community College

With the transitions going on at Johnson County Community College, it might be difficult for some to understand the influence and limitations of these new campus positions.

Take the case of Jerry Wolfskill, director of Public Safety, as he assumes more responsibility with the newly formed JCCC Police department.

Terry Calaway, president of JCCC, posted an item Sept. 15 on the college's electronic mail server, Infolist, noting Wolfskill's new responsibilities with the JCCCPD.

"I have asked Jerry Wolfskill to take on the added leadership role for the Campus Police department," he wrote. "He will work with Chief Ramirez to continue to assess all means needed to assure a safe environment for all on our campus.

"In his new role Mr. Wolfskill will work to expand opportunities with our community police and law enforcement entities and will assure, along with the chief, that officer training and community policing are of the highest priority."

I doubt Calaway meant for these expanded opportuntites to include endorsing political candidates. Yet, Wolfskill has done just that.

Frank Denning a candidate for Johnson County Sheriff lists Wolfskill's endorsement on his website.

While inappropriate, the endorsement does not violate college policy.

According to college policy 422.02, "All college personnel enjoy the rights and privileges of any free citizen in matters of a political nature. Employees shall not use time for which college pay is received, nor college property, students, school equipment or materials for the purpose of solicitation, promotion, election, or defeat of any candidate for public office or of passage or defeat of any election issue."

(Right) Denning at the JCCC Police Academy graduation July 2008

To my knowledge Wolfskill has not used college time, resources or students to promote Denning's candidacy. However, he is using college property -- it's name -- and by making a public endorsement, Wolfskill suggests to the public that JCCC supports Denning.

As a private citizens, Wolfskill and JCCC employees can advocate for whomever they wish. However as an official of the college, Wolfskill should retract his endorsement and the Board of Trustees should amend college policy to prohibit employees from using their titles to endorse political candidates or issues.

TIME OUT: J-Lessons in Spam

Returning from the UNITY journalism conference in Chicago, I checked my e-mail to see if any recruiters or new friends contacted me (recruiters no, friends yes).

Like most, I accumulated pages of spam in my absence. Though my Gmail account filters do great work, I checked of my spam folder to if a message ended up there by mistake. That's when I noticed how enticing spam subject lines have become. Of course, there's still the cryptic ASCII-like text for \/!@GЯª and whatnot.

Maybe because I'd just lived and breathed journalism for the past week, my editor's eye began to see these subject lines as headlines. I gotta tell you, a few laid off journalists must've become spammers because some of these heads are really good.

• Gay Rights Terrorist Kills Eight in Fabulous Bombing
  
• Al Qaeda Reports Declining Revenues in Fiscal '08
• McCain Sex Tape Surfaces
• Obama Swears to Get Even
• FBI Watching Hezbollah in Facebook

Clearly, part of the enticement comes from events that haven't happened -- at least I hope not. A McCain sex tape? Eeesh! Yet these head/subject lines build on topical events. I think there's a journalism lesson to learn from spam, you know, besides it being a future form of employment.

Time Out is a coaching feature of The Latino Reporter highlighting tools for student journalists.

COMMENTARY: Tales of Two Students

Walking on the Ledge: Student Life
Sometimes the best thing a college can provide is stability

Thor Nystrum stands in the parking lot where a fight in 2003 triggered a breakdown that resulted in Nystrum begging a police officer to kill him. "Shoot me in the head. No one has to know," he begged. Photo by Rachel Seymore, courtesy of The Daily Kansan

Johnson County Community College plays a part in two recent stories focusing on students struggling with life challenges.

Current student, Cali Senkpeil, finds herself trying to keep her family together in The Kansas City Star's "Neighbors come to aid of brother and sister who lost parents."

Cali Senkpiel spent the past two weeks gaining custody of her younger brother, John Christian, and then helping move him into her apartment. At the same time all that was going on, there was one other responsibility the 20-year-old needed to fulfill — make funeral arrangements for her father.

Once those matters were settled — difficult as it was — Cali felt strongly that she had to keep moving. So this week she headed back to her classes at Johnson County Community College.

Former student Thor Nystrum, describes his break and mental health recovery in The Daily Kansan's "To Hell and Back."

Upon returning home, I inform my parents I will be returning to Kansas. They call it a “terrible, terrible decision.” I have enrolled in spring classes at Johnson County Community College, and I have agreed to sublease a place from a student in Lawrence. They attempt to talk me out of it.

“This is what I’ve decided to do,” I say. There is a conviction in my voice that I haven’t felt in more than a year.

Published within days of each other (Cali's story on May 2 and Thor's on May 5) these articles illustrate how the college serves as a grounding force in students' lives -- especially in times of need.

I hope Thor and Cali inspire us to make our campus a better place. They show us that responsibility doesn't come by simply following the rules but though understanding them. They also show us that breaking the rules is as an essential a skill as following them.

The articles remind this administration watchdog that I need to tell students' stories more often. Wt think that investigations uncover truth -- and they do -- but so do these stories.

COMMENTARY: Finals Week Starts with Mother's Day

Walking on the Ledge:

Stressed students seesaw between family and finals

Ever since PBS began its Poetry Everywhere campaign, one piece always stops me in my tracks whenever it airs -- Billy Collins' "The Lanyard."

It's hard to listen to and watch because it highlights one of the biggest problems college students face as we finish final projects and prepare for finals week -- Mother's Day.

How do we make time for mom when every second must be devoted to the most important week of the semester? We stress because we've probably missed birthdays, weddings, and other holidays because of our commitment to school. And mom, who probably gives us a little bit of a hard time when we do miss those events, is most probably one of our biggest supporters while we're in school. For that reason, it just doesn't feel right to push her day aside.

Others, like me, find the day difficult because our mothers have passed. I usually try to stay home that day save for one trip -- to the cemetery. I don't want to see families having dinner. I don't want to drive past a park to see them picnic. I don't want to see children buying presents at Target or a cake and a card at the grocery store.When it's time, I try to find a small out of the way flower shop where I can swoop in, buy a dozen roses without engaging in small talk with the cashier. I hate to see the look on their faces when they realize their roses are going to a grave instead of a family dinner.

Once at the cemetery I see other orphans paying respect. Some have been making the trip for years. And for others, this is their first time. That's when it's especially hard to visit mom. Everyone cries but those uncontrolled and visceral sobs transport everyone to our first Mother's Day at the cemetery.

After sitting in my car trying to pull myself together so that I can drive home, I leave the cemetery. I'll be back on my birthday and on hers.

At some point, I light a candle for her and thank her for my life. But maybe this year, we can follow Collins' lead and present mom with our own lanyards.

RELATED: I've Been Thinking About ... Mom

COMMENTARY: Regret the Error

Walking on the Ledge:

Errors that Influence
Was Learning Management System Vote Tainted by Student Newspaper?

Every campus newspaper staff wants to influence campus – but not through errors.

An article in the April 24 issue of The Campus Ledger reported Johnson County Community College (JCCC) will abandon its current Management Learning System (LMS) powered by Blackboard in favor of one powered by ANGEL Learning. The article also reported the LMS will be in place by fall 2008.

The problem? The faculty was in the midst of conducting a vote on whether to adopt ANGEL. A day after the story ran, a posting on the college's electronic mail server, Infolist, voiced faculty concerns.

“Contrary to the Campus Ledger article, the college's move to ANGEL Learning is not a forgone conclusion,” the post read. “We're in the middle of the faculty vote to support or not support the move to ANGEL Learning. Faculty votes count and are crucial as no decision will be made until the voting time period concludes on Monday, April 28, 2008 at midnight.”

The posting said if the vote is affirmative, the faculty’s recommendation moves to the Academic Technology Advisory Council, the Executive Council, the Board of Trustees’ Finance Committee and then to the entire Board of Trustees. A negative vote from faculty could stop the process, as could a negative finding by any of the committees along the way.

“If approved by all parties, the timeline for the implementation of a new LMS still needs to be developed,” the posting continued. “Any assumption that faculty and students will be using a different LMS for fall 2008 is premature. Implementation will require more time than exists between the board vote and the start of fall classes.”

Read the faculty post here.

A few faculty members asked how the paper could publish these errors and who, if anyone, checks facts. I explained the editing process I helped establish during my tenure at The Ledger. A minimum of three editors check the story and the staff reviews the proofs, or “minis,” for errors on production night. Yet, I agreed the article’s factual errors also could serve as errors that influence.

“Maybe this calls for something more than running a correction in the next issue, perhaps a staff ed?” I wrote in an April 29 e-mail to the Ledger's adviser, editor in chief, and managing editor. “I know the situation sucks because everyone loves to point out when The Ledger makes a mistake. But if it's not addressed then the integrity of the paper suffers especially on the heels of some prestigious awards this year.”

The next day, six days after publishing the article, The Ledger posted a correction and apology on Infolist.

“It has come to the attention of The Campus Ledger that the April 24 article about the Blackboard Learning System contained incorrect information,” the post read. “It was not our intention to sway the vote for a new learning management system ... Our staff will take this experience to heart. We plan to continue providing the quality, accurate news that you have come to expect from our award-winning newspaper.”

Read The Ledger post here.

Seeing this as a teachable moment, I asked the Ledger's adviser, editor in chief, managing editor and the reporter how the situation unfolded.

Linda Friedel, managing editor, acknowledged ethics breach.

“We definitely consider it a learning moment,” Friedel said. “It is the worst mistake anyone has made on the Ledger this year.”

She said a meeting took place yet they could not identify the origin of the mistake.

“Either the reporter didn't make the question clear, the source spoke out of line, the source didn't communicate it was a done deal and the reporter thought it was a done deal,” she said.

Friedel said the most they could do was acknowledge the mistake and use it as an example of how not tor report.

Alexia Lang, editor in chief, did not respond to my question.

Anne Christiansen-Bullers, adviser, said she would meet with the reporter and Lang to discover how the errors happened.

The reporter, Bartholomew Klick, said a few days after The Ledger's apology posted, Lang abruptly fired him. He said she cited the errors along with an e-mail campaign he spearheaded against The Ledger for an unrelated story as reasons for his termination.

Yet, Klick contends he accurately reported the story. He said during the editing process, editors cut crucial information and left gaps they later filled with assumptions and other misinformation.

Klick provided his unedited copy showing the differences. His original lead reads:
“As quickly as autumn of this year, the college may have a new program for managing its online course material.”

The published version reads:
“Beginning this fall, the college will have a new program for managing its online course material.”

Read The Ledger article here.
Read Klick's original version here.

Klick said the only thing he regretted about the story was that he did not record and clearly document his interviews. Both he and Friedel agreed organized documentation would have identified errors and allowed corrections before publication.

Further complicating the situation is that everyone involved is an accomplished journalist. Klick and another staffer recently were awarded the college’s Robert J. Helmer award for excellence in journalism. Alexia Lang was named first runner up for the Kansas Associated Collegiate Press Journalist of the Year award in the two-year division. Friedel is a contributing columnist to The Kansas City Star’s Neighborhood News and Christian-Bullers has earned an advising award from the Collage Media Advisers association.

The faculty voted to endorse ANGEL Learning as it’s LMS. The recommendation now moves along the path to approval. Yet the question remains: did the reporting errors influence the vote?

Visit Regret the Error to read about media mistakes

COMMENTARY: Holocaust Remebrence Day

Walking on the Ledge:
▼Pride and Prejudice▼

Today is another reminder of why I am proud to be gay.

Holocaust Remembrance Day reinforces why it’s important for me to honor the gay men who died wearing a pink triangles and the lesbians who died wearing black ones. Nazis tagged them with a symbol, tortured them and finally slaughtered them.

When I first moved to Kansas City, I didn’t know much about being gay except that I was. One day in the public library, I found what appeared to be the gay section. One of the first books I picked up was a book about the Nazi persecution of gays.

I sat crying as I read the entire book. Then I picked up another and then another.

As I continued to check out books and videos, these men and women slowly transformed from being cases to being relatives. I was like an orphan discovering his roots.

They taught me that being gay isn’t simply about attraction to another man. It’s a history. It’s a culture. It’s … a gift.

I honor these lost family members by embracing my own pink triangle and the label that comes with it. I embrace their sacrifice. I cry for their suffering and I live to fulfill the dreams they passed down to me.

Sometimes that means when a gay issue arises in class, I have to become an instructor. Sometimes it means I have to write letters, e-mails and make phone calls to elected officials. And a few times, it meant that I had to commit civil disobedience.

What I find most troubling is that as society moves towards accepting -- not just tolerating -- gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people, our community is facing a challenge from many who reject those labels. Rejecting those labels means forgetting the men with the pink triangles. It means negating the existence of the women with the black triangles.

It means we’re one step closer to wearing them as symbols of oppression instead of symbols of pride.▼▼

TIME OUT: Dinosaurs vs. Divas

Kansas City Journalists, Bloggers Meet IRL

As part of the Society of Professional Journalists' Ethics Week, the Kansas City Press Club invited me to sit on a panel about the ethics of blogging.

I walked in late to the KSHB building with Tony from Tony's Kansas City. He didn't seem like the baby-eating, garbage producing media whore I've been told he is. Although we really didn't talk because Hispanics have this thing that we either bond instantly or give each other the stink eye. I'm not quite sure which happened ... a stinky bond perhaps?

This sounds weird but I never really considered myself a blogger. I consider myself a print journalist who happens to publish on a blog.

In the traditional media, we’re taught to fear the blogger because they cheapen our profession. Bloggers ride our journalistic coattails. Bloggers are untrained, unskilled, unethical monkeys who throw poo and make life difficult for “real” journalists. That vibe was present at the KC Press Club event. Yet, few of the bloggers present considered themselves journalists even though some have journalism training and/or do investigative reporting.

A bald white guy, who I later learned was Xavier Onasis from Hip Suburban White Guy, got into a bit of a tussle with Bill Grady from KMBZ-AM. An upset Grady said he’s only seen two bloggers at news events but that somehow bloggers post what reads like first-hand coverage of the events. XO asked Grady how he knew there were only two bloggers. Grady replied that they wear press passes identifying them as such or ask questions that identify their blog affiliation. XO said that wasn’t an accurate indicator of blogger presence.

Also in attendance were Mark Forsythe (who is totally adorable) from The Kansas City Post and John Lansberg of Bottom Line Communications. Forsythe, who doesn’t consider himself a blogger but an op/ed columnist, discussed the practice of media swagger jacking (stealing story angles and/or sources). Lansberg discussed how a story breaks online and days later it finds its way into the mainstream media. I added that bloggers usually don’t have the verisimilitude and immediate access a media corporation provides so when our stories get jacked, we'd appreciate some ink. Forsythe said he'd settle for an e-mail from the reporter saying, "Great post, I'm gonna take your idea and run with it."

Here are a few of the other items we discussed:

• Anonymity and pseudonymity
• Code of ethics
• Hyperlocal coverage
• Real-time blogging
• Breaking news
• Accuracy and vetting

I know other KC premium bloggers attended -- I just didn't know any of them nor they me. It turned out to be a lively discussion. I hope more bloggers become part of the KC Press Club or join professional journalism organizations.

I’m not sure after today’s event I consider myself a blogger but I’m warming up to the idea.

SUNSHINE WEEK: FERPA vs FOI

Walking on the Ledge:
FERPA FOLLIES

Margret Spellings, U.S. Secretary of Education, announces new brochures to help guide schools on disclosing student information. She made the announcement with Michael Chertoff, Homeland Security Secretary (left), and Carlos Gutierrez, Commerce Secretary (right), Oct. 31, 2008.

The battle over student information comes down to FERPA

The incident with the missing student and the e-mail assault that took place after got me thinking about FERPA, the Family Education Rights Privacy Act.

FERPA, or the Buckley Amendment, stands as one of the major points of contention between student media and college officials. Usually neither camp understands the finer points of FERPA that allows and promotes disclosing information.

Following the shootings at Virginia Tech last April, the Department of Education issued a guidance to college administrators that focuses on how to disclose information under FERPA. It supports the act's original provision that states:

“An educational agency or institution may disclose personally identifiable information from an education record to appropriate parties in connection with an emergency if knowledge of the information is necessary to protect the health or safety of the student or other individuals.”

In addition, campus police departments, like the one JCCC wants to establish, cannot withhold information under FERPA. According to the Student Press Law Center:

“FERPA mandates that schools cannot release a student's educational record without that student's consent, but a 1992 amendment to the law clarifies that records maintained and created by a ‘law enforcement unit’ of a college or university do not fall under FERPA's restrictions.”

While student journalists may now have some leverage in accessing information, they still face the misconception -- endorsed by administrators -- that they cannot publish it.

However, the College Media Advisers blog, Inside CMA, notes that FERPA disclosure restrictions do not apply to student media because they are not agents of the college.

“This issues comes up at least once a year on the listserv and has come up a million times in the gazillion law sessions I’ve done at CMA conventions. The Federal Educational Rights and Privacy Act (aka-Buckley Amendment) applies to 'colleges and universities' releasing information. Certainly at public schools, the courts have made it clear that would student editors make decisions, they are not 'government actors.' Thus, for FERPA purposes information released by a student media organization is not information released by the university.”

Student journalists often have trouble navigating the waters of campus journalism especially if an administrator dosen't know the law or intentionally cites a violation where none exists.

Yet, the responsibility does not rest entirely on administrators. If student journalists want to ride the rapids, they better master the essential policies, procedures and skills or else they'll find themselves up a creek without a paddle.

SUNSHSINE WEEK: Campus Crime

Campus Crime Information Vital in Keeping Students Safe

By Adam Goldstein

Universities receiving federal funding are presented with a fine line to walk when it comes to opening and providing their records. On the one hand, colleges have a mandate to protect student privacy; on the other hand, campus crime information must be made available to the student body. There is little room for error between these two obligations, because both are designed to protect the safety of students.

The obligation to disclose crime information was imposed to correct a tragic error of omission.

On April 5, 1986, Jeanne Clery was raped and murdered by a fellow student. Jeanne, a 19-year-old freshman at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania, had her throat cut with a broken beer bottle and was strangled to death by an attacker who passed through three unlocked, propped-open doors to reach her.

Each of those doors could have been, and should have been, locked. But Jeanne, like many students at Lehigh, did not know that there had been reports of violent crime on the campus; they did not know that there were simple steps they could take to protect themselves.

It was with this in mind that the Campus Security Act, later renamed in honor of Jeanne Clery, was signed into law in 1990. The Clery Act requires all colleges receiving federal funds to maintain open daily crime logs, report annual crime statistics, and provide a "timely warning" to the campus when crimes present a serious or continuing threat to students and employees.

It is sad that the need to share campus crime information came at the cost of a young woman’s life. It is sadder still that some universities two decades later still had not learned from that tragedy.

On Dec. 15, 2006, Laura Dickinson’s body was found in her dorm room at Eastern Michigan University, where she had died four days earlier. The next day, the university issued a press release to the community informing students about the death and stating that there was "no reason to suspect foul play."

Ten weeks later, a suspect — a fellow student — was arrested and charged with homicide and criminal sexual misconduct in the death of Laura Dickinson. It was revealed that, at the time the press release was issued suggesting nothing violent about Laura's death, the University knew her body had been found naked with a pillowcase over her head.

In July 2007, the Department of Education found that Eastern Michigan University had failed to adhere to the provisions of the Clery Act. In fact, the report found — among other things — that in 2003, 2004 and 2005, the university had failed to properly disclose crime statistics, and the crime log had also been improperly maintained, in that Laura's death was not listed as a homicide within 48 hours of that information being known to the school.

"Not only did EMU fail to disclose information that would enable the campus community to make informed decisions and take necessary precautions to protect themselves, but it issued misleading statements from the outset, providing false reassurance that foul play was not suspected, and that it had no knowledge of an ongoing criminal/homicide investigation prior to the arrest of the suspect," the Department of Education report said.

The failure to correctly report crime statistics in prior years is especially sad, as it was the hope among those who championed the Clery Act that this information might have led Jeanne to take more precautions.

Had it been correct at Eastern Michigan, it might have led Laura to take more precautions, too.

The trial for the suspect in Laura Dickinson's death is ongoing, and Eastern Michigan University has been fined for its violation. The university has acknowledged its failure to maintain the provisions of the Clery Act, though it is appealing the amount of the fine later levied: $357,000.

No fine will bring Laura back, just as no law could bring Jeanne back. But it was the federal law passed in the aftermath of Jeanne's murder that was supposed protect Laura. And what lesson can we learn from the events before and after Laura’s death?

What we know is that, on some campuses, they have not learned the bloody lessons from an April night over two decades ago. And what we do not know is how many bodies it will take for those lessons to sink in.

Incidents like the shootings at Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University have brought a renewed focus on the importance of campus security officers sharing information honestly and quickly after a tragedy begins. But we must not forget that the obligation — both legal and moral — to protect college students begins long before the first bullet is fired. It begins before the murder, before the rape, before the burglary; it begins even before the first-year student arrives on campus.

The obligation to protect college students begins with giving students honest and accurate information about the crime on campus so that the student can protect himself or herself.

And the institution that plays a public relations game with that information is putting its image above the lives of its students.

Goldstein is attorney advocate for the Student Press Law Center in Arlington, Va.

BREAKING NEWS: Uno Mas

Ironically, the original e-mail carried the subject line:[jccc] Campus Ledger: Rachel Wooldridge (missing student) follow up

The controversy that set off the firestorm of postings centered on concern for the privacy of the girl who went missing. Well, in the 22 posted responses, no one felt concerned enough to remove her name from the subject line when they posted a new message...

NEWS: Pestacides Aside

The Plain View on Pesticides
Photos by John J. Tipton, The Porterville Recorder, Noticiero Semanal

New America Media's Photo of the Day blog features a victory march that reminded me of my days as a farmworker.

The march, which took place in Plainview, Calif., came in response to new buffer zones established in Tulare County. The buffer zone prohibits cropdusters from spraying pesticides near residential areas, labor camps and schools.

As farmworkers, my family primarily worked around Plainview, Texas. I remember being 10 years-old and having cropdusters spray us as we worked to clear weeds from the soybean and cotton fields.

My mom would yell for us to get down and to cover our noses and mouths. But I always welcomed the low flying cropdusters. The chemical droplets felt like cool rain on my skin -- even if it made my clothes smell the way medicine tasted.

My mother died of breast cancer in 1992. She was 47.

COMMENTARY: BOT Play-by-Play

This edited summary of yesterday's Board of Trustee meeting combines the version posted on the college's electronic mail server, Infolist, the version by Faculty Association President Mike Martin posted to the FA listerv in green, and my sarcastic comments in red.

New Library

The board heard a presentation from the Clark Enersen Group about plans for the library of the 21st century. Possibilities include renovating the existing Billington Library, building a new library and renovating the existing building, or building an addition to the library and renovating the existing structure. The last option is the one Clark Enersen recommends, which keeps the project within the $35 million budget. The new structure would be to the southeast of the existing library. The project would include a bridge to the Regnier Center; space for offices and programs already housed within the library; space for programs that would be good partners for the library, such as the Writing Center and the Academic Achievement Center, among others; more classrooms; faculty offices; and perhaps underground parking. The board and the Facilities Committee will continue to discuss possibilities for the library.

As an employee of the library, I really don’t have much to say about this project other than we really do need a new facility, which will happen. The big question is ultimately what will students get? No one has really explained that to me -- or the campus.

While no actions were taken, open, informative discussions were had. I expressed to the Board that a contemporary library is central to the operation and mission of an academic institution. We support a new library and also acknowledge a shortage of classrooms and office space -- some of the four plans addressed this better than others.

When the faculty were asked (several years ago and under a different administration) to support a new art museum and the Regnier Center, it was pledged that at least 25 classrooms would be gained from the buildings and the vacated spaces. To date, we have a net gain of 18 classrooms (and that was up from the 11 or 12 that were first rolled out).

Based on their experience with the Nerman and Regnier buildings, the FA is right to worrying about a new library. Like them, I’m concerned the process of creating a student-friendly library will get bastardized into another opportunity to reward donors with useless named facilities. I’m concerned that administrators will claim this new prime real estate overlooking the Japanese Garden and Regnier Center. I’m mostly concerned that students will end up with yet another building created for them that they cannot use.

I expressed to the board that program growth and sustainability require additional classroom and office space. We, the faculty, are poised to do more with grants and collaborative initiatives, but that requires the space to grow (and not to displace current offerings). I tried to express to the Board that classrooms and office space are a high priority for the faculty. While the Board does serve as stewards for the community to the financial resources of the College, they also serve as stewards for the community to the intellectual resources/talent within it; by providing adequate classroom and office space for the College at a time when we are anticipating growth in student numbers and faculty initiatives, the Board can help to catalyze the intellectual growth and work-readiness of the community.

Students totally support creating more offices for faculty. We know -- as does the college -- that cramming multiple instructors into one office violates student privacy.

The external firm did involve two faculty members from the library, Carol Campbell and Judy Guzzy, but did not involve any other faculty; given that some of the four plans did involve regular classrooms and faculty offices, it seems prudent that other faculty would have been involved in these considerations. The report given was preliminary and there should be future opportunities for engagement as plans might proceed.

Armed Campus

Dr. Wayne Brown, executive vice president, administration, gave an update on safety matters. The deliberation on whether the current department of Public Safety should become a police force continues (yeah, sure it does). As an intermediate step, certified officers will be equipped with OC (pepper) spray and a baton. All officers will be outfitted with bulletproof vests. In addition, funds have been budgeted for two fully-equipped police vehicles in next year's budget (‘deliberation,’ huh?). Two vendors will be interviewed regarding a campus-wide emergency notification system. A web survey will be conducted to ask students, faculty and staff their opinion about having a police force on campus (which we already have with an armed officer from Overland Park) to help make justify the decision.

Seriously?

It was suggested in new business that the Pledge of Allegiance be said before each JCCC Board Meeting. Also, a desire to have a US flag and a copy of the US Constitution be placed in each classroom (preliminary costs were given for some of this) was expressed. It will be a topic for the Board at an upcoming retreat. A primary retreat consideration will be on potentially switching to a policy governance approach on behalf of the Board.

Governance

Trustees Don Weiss and Shirley Brown-VanArsdale, President Terry Calaway, and Vice President Dorothy Friedrich have been working on policy governance, which is a model for board oversight and decision making.

Anything project involving Dorothy Friedrich, a woman who violated college policy by covering up for Carlsen’s alleged harassment, makes me think it’s a bad idea.

Policy governance focuses on policy issues while leaving operational decisions to the president and administration. Weiss will present the framework for policy governance to the board over the next few months, and the subject will also be discussed at the board retreat April 19.

Other Actions

• The board approved a new course in administration of justice and course fees for floriculture and horticulture courses.
• The board approved clinical affiliates for the dental hygiene program.
• They approved the proposal from SKC Smart Communications for the purchase of an audiovisual system for the Healthcare Simulation Center at a cost of $352,263.
• They approved a three-year extension of the lease agreement at King's Cove in the following amounts: March 1, 2008-Feb. 28, 2009, $110,703; March 1, 2009-Feb. 28, 2010, $115,222; and March 1, 2010-Feb. 28, 2011, $119.740. The total square footage of lease space will increase from 8,357 to 9,037. Kings Cove is used for credit education classes for the practical nursing program and health occupations.
• The board approved an international student exchange policy that promotes student participation in the study abroad program by providing for a tuition exchange for international students from designated international schools, programs or agencies. (I don’t know what that means.)
• The board also approved the bids for purchasing a digital color production printing system, science lab supplies, audiovisual equipment, theater lighting, ceiling renovation in the Commons building, and carpet for the renovation projects in the Carlsen Center and the Billington Library.

Faculty Association

The board also met in executive session for 30 minutes to discuss the benefit package, which pertains to matters of non-elected personnel and to consult with the college attorney. The college has received a proposal from Blue Cross Blue Shield for an increase in benefits of 9.2 percent, which exceeds the 9 percent threshold for opening the contract with the Faculty Association. The board approved the 9.2 percent increase in benefits; members of the Faculty Association will vote on the contract before the end of the month.

I don’t know what this means, either.

When we first negotiated our multi-year contract (but with annual vote), it was not anticipated by the board or the bargaining unit that a health plan option would be removed as BCBS has done. This has resulted in additional, unforeseen costs and we all are now in positions to be responsive to them. Through the work of HR, the FA, and the benefits committee we have worked to retain our benefits package and philosophy. At last night's meeting, the board voted to cover the projected 9.2 percent increase in benefit costs and to keep with the practiced philosophy of full-family coverage and basic life insurance being contained within our allotted flex benefit credits. This is conditional upon a vote of the bargaining unit (to be conducted next week via email) and, if it is voted up, will be implemented for all JCCC faculty and staff. More will follow on this soon.

Okay, so this had to do with a health benefits, right? And now everyone should be cool with the outcome, yes?

Boring Stuff

The board also heard a report from the college's lobbyist in Topeka, Dick Carter. Carter talked about what has been happening in Topeka, including bills on energy, immigration, educational funding practices, and the state budget.

These faculty and staff members were recognized for their achievements:

• Karen Gerety Folk, curator of education, Nerman Museum, had an essay published in an anthology on art museum education.
• Robert Brandon, Postal Services associate, was commended for finding and returning more than $400 that was dropped in the hall. (I’d like to say that I’d do the same -- and I probably would. But still, that’s 400 bucks … man, that’s a lot of money. He had better have gotten a reward.)
• Dr. Marilyn Rhinehart, vice president, Instruction, received the Administrator Award of Distinction from Phi Theta Kappa, the international honor society for two-year schools.

Charles Rogers, director, Carlsen Center, listed performers who will appear in the Carlsen Center series in 2008-2009:

• The Estonian National Symphony Orchestra (boring)
• The Czech Symphony Orchestra (boring)
• Savion Glover - Tap dancer (Hurray!)
• Branford Marsalis - Musician (Cool, cool)
• Ruben Studdard - American Idol winner (… interesting)
• Garrison Keillor - humorist (Funny for old people)
• Luna Negra Dance Theater (Hot Latin guys and girls? ¡Que Rico!)
• National Acrobats of China (Is that like Cirque du Soliel?)
• Zakir Hussain - folk drumming from Grammy-award (...uhmm, ok)
• The Capitol Steps - political satire (Political satire in an election year? That’s just crazy!)

The next meeting of the JCCC board of trustees is at 5 p.m. March 27 in the Hugh W. Speer Board Room, 137 GEB. Board of trustee meetings are open to the public.

You can watch archived Board of Trustee meetings on JCCC’s video server.

COMMENTARY: New News

Walking on the Ledge:
Civil Disorder

by Miguel M. Morales

Not being on the student newspaper, The Campus Ledger, this year, I've noticed the lack of campus news -- I mean substantial, sink-your-teeth-into news. I spoke with the new news editor and he assures me that new news is on the way.

I shared with him that the big news story at the college this academic year comes in the form of a chaotic reorganization effort (and the slightly smaller but still important story of the effects this reorganization has on the college's Faculty Association).

So in support of my theory, here's something a source sent to me this morning:

Good Morning,

The general membership of the faculty association met yesterday and a motion concerning the membership of the listserv was forwarded and unanimously passed. The call was for the listserv to include all members of the bargaining unit and to exclude members of the administration. While this wasn't part of the official motion, it is thought that excluding members of administration is simply a means to promote candid communication on critical issues and it is still possible to copy individuals on relevant, timely topics.

By the time I send another message to the list, the membership of the listserv will be updated accordingly.

Mike Martin

Faculty gives admins the boot
Until now, the Faculty Association's listserve included administrators and the college's Board of Trustees.

The fact that a vote -- a unanimous vote -- passed to exclude them hints at the climate around here.

I understand this move by the Faculty Association leaders who simply want to ensure protection for members who communicate candid and critical information.

However, with the college's leadership professing a new era of civility and a policy that's "hard on problems but easy on people," what exactly do faculty members need to be protected from?

Clearly, the answer comes in who they are excluding -- the administration.

COMMENTARY: WORLD AIDS DAY

Walking on the Ledge:

Silence = Death

By Miguel M. Morales

After 26 years, AIDS no longer devastates or threatens the life of the average American.

While there is no cure for what is now known as HIV disease, it’s become a manageable chronic illness in the United States.

In fact, a report released last month by the United Nations and the World Health Organization cut the global number of estimated infections by approximately 7 million. This 16 percent reduction comes from improved methods of tracking infections.

Unfortunately, a similar revision by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is Ivexpected to increase the number of HIV infections in the United States as much as 50 percent.

But we’ve clearly established, PWAs, or People With AIDS, can live long productive lives.

While I am not infected with HIV, it has affected my life.

Deciding to write this column for World AIDS Day, I searched the Internet only to discover that many of the friends I parted ways with have died.

In the early 1990s, I served as a member of the radical AIDS activist group called the AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power, or ACT-UP/KC.

I remember my new friends inspired me to fight for more treatment options at a time when AZT was the only drug used to manage HIV infection and when the only answer was to identify “AIDS victims” though mandatory testing of all patients.

That fight included three arrests for civil disobedience.

The first arrest came in a demonstration at the annual American Medical Association conference in Chicago. We were protesting the AMA’s proposal to support mandatory AIDS testing. As we the police processed the arrested protesters, I saw them beat a young man as he tried to assert that he had rights. I quickly looked away as not to be noticed by the officers. As I stared at the white linoleum floor, I saw blood fall like rain sprinkles and the young man’s screams grew louder until he was sobbing uncontrollably.

The second arrest came in Washington DC in protest of the murderous policies of George Bush. I guess I should be specific -- the murderous policies of George Bush, Sr.

Hundreds of AIDS activists marched through DC chanting their way to the White House. During the march, I met Nurse Bush -- a drag queen dressed as a nurse wearing a Barbra Bush wig and carrying a bloody hammer. Nurse Bush said she was simply carrying out her husband’s AIDS policies. And of course, she was hilarious.

Once we reached the White House, my group helped chain PWAs (People With AIDS) to the White House fence. We then chained ourselves. Naturally, the parks department revoked our permit and began arresting people. In teams of two, officers approached each protester along the fence asking him or her to leave. When the protester refused, officers notified the protester that he or she was under arrest and ask him or her to come willingly or be carried.

After the bloody mess in Chicago, I was ready for anything. But these officers surprised me. Obviously, they deal with protesters all the time and have worked out a system that ensures respect on all sides. Some protesters tried to resist, you know for the cameras, but the officers simply carried the protester to the arrest wagon or whatever its called. When it came my turn, I refused to leave but when the officer asked me to walk or be carried, I didn’t know what to do.

If I walked, I’d be the first one to do so. If they carried me, would I get charged with resisting arrest?

What’s an AIDS activist to do?

“If you carry me, is it an extra charge?” I asked the officer.

I guess no one had ever asked that before because he looked confused.

“We ... don’t charge,” he said.

“No, I mean is it an extra arrest charge like resisting arrest?” I explained.

“No.”

“OK, carry me.” I said.

When I arrived at the police wagon, he searched my pockets. That’s when I froze.

During the march, an elderly Mexican woman asked me to carry her jacket. I tied it around my waist and thought nothing of it -- until that moment.

My poor officer, he pulled out a little pink teddy bear from a pocket of the jacket. Then he pulled out some tissues and a lipstick tube.

“Is this yours?” he asked as he twisted the lipstick tube revealing a shade of red that would have make Nurse Bush drop her hammer.

I paused for a moment trying to decide if I should explain about the old Mexican woman but that big hulking man wearing riot gear suddenly looked like a confused nine years old boy. I don’t know why, but I lied and said they belonged to me. You should have seen his face.

My final arrest came at a protest. at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Mo. Secret Service agents arrested me because they though I was someone else, a man named Mark Chaney who was my AIDS-infected hero. They took me to the KCMO police department where they found I had a warrant for not paying a $10 parking ticket when I attended classes in Texas at Tarrant County Community College. The Secret Service was trying to get me extradited to Texas but the campus police refused. A female Secret Service agent seethed as I paid a $25 fine and walked out of jail.

Soon I became a respectable and worked as one of the first HIV educators in Kansas City -- but that’s a story for another time.

As I learn uninfected friends are now HIV positive and friends who were positive are now dead, all I have left are stories and the knowledge that AIDS no longer devastates or threatens life of the average American -- unless you or someone you becomes infected.

Twenty-five million people have died from AIDS since 1981. Currently, there are more than 38 million people infected with HIV.

OPINION: No Shield for J-Students

Walking on the Ledge
Sheilding Student Journalists

Last month, the US House of Representatives passed the first part of a long overdue federal shield law for journalists.

by Miguel M. Morales

Not all journalists celebrated when H. R. 2102, known as the Free Flow of Information Act of 2007, or FFIA, passed Oct 16.

I was one of them.

A statement issued by the Society of Professional Journalists says that as written, FFIA protects bloggers and freelancers.

However, as written, the House version of FFIA covers “a person who regularly gathers, prepares, collects, photographs, records, writes, edits, reports, or publishes news or information that concerns local, national, or international events or other matters of public interest for dissemination to the public for a substantial portion of the person's livelihood or for substantial financial gain.”

Most bloggers and freelancers do not fall into this category, nor do student journalists.

Adam Adam Goldstein, attorney advocate for the Student Press Law Center, an organization advocating the legal rights of student journalists, agrees.

"The [House] language would exclude the vast majority of student journalists," he said in an e-mail. "but it's not as grim as all that."

Goldstien is referring to another shield law, S.2035 (also known as the Free Flow of Information Act of 2007), that is currently in the Senate.

My knowledge of how bills become laws amounts to this 'Schoolhouse Rock' cartoon.

What Goldstien and other student journalist advocates find hopeful is that S.2035 covers “a person who is engaged in journalism.” This would truly cover bloggers, freelancers and student journalists.

However, S.2035 also has a major drawback in that it only applies in cases where a journalist explicitly promises confidentiality.

"At some point, the versions will have to be reconciled," Goldstien said. "The reason for the disagreement is the difficulty in attempting to define who is or isn't a 'journalist.'"

"The problem is that, with everyone communicating online, everyone is a publisher in a sense," he continued, "and if you define 'journalist' that broadly, then instead of a reporter's privilege, you end up with a universal privilege not to answer to a judge, which isn't the goal."

The longest-incarcerated journalist for contempt of court in U.S. history, Josh Wolf, spent 226 days in federal prison for his refusal to cooperate with law enforcement. Wolf's blog, Media Sphere, explains why journalists need a federal shield law -- but not FFIA.

"There's a sense that student journalists could be covered in the eventual law, it's just a question of finding the right way to do it and making people in the House aware of the problem," Goldstein added.

In the long term, students should join professional journalism organizations and urge them to advocate protection for student journalists.

In the short term, we need to urge Congress to include bloggers, freelancers and student journalists in the final version of the federal shield law. If not, we’ll follow the Schoolhouse Rock lead and yell a few interjections of our own.