Department of Biology: Lacking in Facilities, Not Faculty

The University of Mississippi Department of Biology has been located in the same building for years. This building, Shoemaker Hall, is often times viewed by observers as being old and out of date. The building was built in the 60’s and has looked the same since it was constructed.

Although the building that the department is in may be out of date, it surely does not lack when it comes to having faculty that could be considered second to none in the Southeast. Sophomore Biology major Adam Liberto had this to say about the department, “It is true that the facility needs to be re-done, but the teachers and the instructors are right where they need to be.” This sort of quote can be heard from just about anyone who has taken a biology class in Shoemaker Hall.

Earlier this semester, I spoke with several instructors in the Department of Biology that all seemed very confident in the work that they put in. Each one of them seemed to tell me the same thing. They believe that they are some of the best instructors in this region, but the facilities that we have at the University make it difficult for each instructor and student to reach their full potential.

So it is pretty clear to see that it is time for the University of Mississippi to begin contemplating the thought of either remodeling the building completely, or tear it down and start from scratch. I spoke with another biology student, Asthon Lemley, and this is what he had to say, “It is time for (Ole Miss) to have a new biology building, and I think the board or whoever is in charge should give it some serious thought.”

Students and instructors both realize the demand for a new Department of Biology and each understand the importance of it. With all the construction going on at the University, it may be a while before we can get around to the Department of Biology. Though I believe that if enough students and faculty complain to the board about the department’s current conditions, I think we will see a new Biology Department here in the next five to ten years. For more information about the Department of Biology go to: http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/biology/.

The MSBDC's Big Move

The Mississippi Small Business Development Center will be moving into a brand new building located on Jeanette Phillips Drive next week. The new center was built using a grant from the Federal Government and is a LEEDs certified building achieving the Silver level of certification making it very environmentally friendly. Before the building of the new center went underway, the MSBDC was housed in a double-wide trailer at the same location. When plans for the new project began, the MSBDC relocated to the University's Physical Plant where it has operated from for the last year and a half. Counselors and employees are waiting with anticipation to move into the new center which will house 10 people and will contain current technology and state of the art equipment. Donovan McCain, who does Public Relations for the center, shared his feeling on re-locating:

"I'm looking forward to the re-location of the MSBDC to our new building. I feel that the facility is well designed, increases our technological ability, and will give us a truly professional workspace for our efforts to assist the small business owners of Mississippi. The building will contain offices for our counselors to work one-on-one with individual clients, in addition to having a larger room with the necessary technology to conduct seminars and workshops for entire groups. I am very confident that this new facility will meet the needs of our clients, and that of our employees for years to come."

The SBDC program started in 1980 following the Small Business Development Center Act of 1980 passed by Congress. This act transformed a small model of the center from a single university into a remarkable network of centers covering all 50 states. Ole Miss established their SBDC program in November of 1981, and later grew to include the State Office which had originally been located in Jackson, MS. There are 5 employees in the State's administration and there are 5 employees in the University's department who provide counseling for the North Mississippi area. Superior parking abilities will be present at the new building with handicap access and an easy route to and from Highway 6, making it easy to find for visitors not familiar with the Ole Miss campus. More information and frequently asked questions on the MSBDC can be found here: The Mississippi Small Business Development Center.

A large amount of new freshman leads to big changes for the University of Mississippi.

Whether you are a returning UM student, teacher, or staff member there is now way you can deny the over whelming amount of new freshman this fall semester. The University of Mississippi website, http://www.olemiss.edu/ has published a record 3,089 new freshman students attending the Oxford campus; this is a 19.9 percent increase over last fall.

Oxford is not the only campus experiencing greater admissions, there is a 6.5 percent combined increase between all of the University of Mississippi campuses, for a combined total of 19,536 Ole Miss students.

Not only has the university seen an increase in new students but in returning students as well. The number of freshman students choosing to return has increased from 78.3 percent to 83.1 percent returning this fall. Ole Miss has seen a steady increase in admissions for the past five year, and it is predicted to only go up from there by http://www.thedmonline.com.

It is unclear why the university has seen such an increase in new students. The DMonline accredits this increase to major publicity. Movies like, “The Blind Side”, and Cotton Bowl championships seem to have put Ole Miss on the map.

Another reason for a heightened enrollment can be accredited to the poor economy. http://www.boston.com reasons that a rise in public college enrollment is due to the slumping economy. A poor economy has students searching for lower tuition costs.

This is a trend Ole Miss is experiencing first hand, according to the DMonline, the university has seen a 30 percent student increase since the fall of the economy in 2008.

With an over whelming amount of new freshman comes numerous award-winning students to further the well-respected reputation of the university. According to olemiss.edu there are now 34 national merit and national achievement finalists in this years freshman class. Out of the 900 students enrolled in the Sally McDonnell Barksdale honors college a record 288 are freshman. Not only are freshman finding success at Ole Miss but returning students are as well. “ I am so excited to be back at Ole Miss this semester, and look forward to graduating… but not too soon.” exclaimed Marianna Decosimo, a UM sophomore.

“While we are excited about new students, we are just as excited about the increased retention rate,” stated Chancellor Dan Jones, according to the DMonline. “more students finding success in their freshman year means more sophomores and ultimately more graduates,”

With an over whelming amount of new students also comes negatives. Students, teaches, and staff members are all experiencing over crowded parking lots, classrooms, and administrative offices. “We have had to add some sections of classes freshman typically take to accommodate the number of students.” Said Sue Weakley a professor of journalism. “One of my classes was so full we had to search for chairs some times before class started.” The journalism school is not the only department experiencing these difficulties. Each department has seen an increase in students. According to olemiss.edu, the university has already put plans and strategies in to place for another large class next fall semester. “I hope that we can continue to add sections to classes so that all the students get the classes they need.” Explains professor Weakley.

According to the DMonline, the university plans to survey all freshman students to better understand the reasons behind deciding to attend Ole Miss.

How do you feel about the amount of new freshman, and do you feel that the university has done anything to help these changes?

Continuos Competition for Aid

With an uncertain economy, the Ole Miss Office of Financial Aid has noticed an increase in applicants and more competition for funds. “There has been a huge change in the amount of students applying for aid, said Dewey Knight, advising director for Financial Aid. “the economy is worse and more families need support for their students.”

The 2009-2010 year ended with 13,912 students receiving aid that totaled $158.7 million. Looking into the past years, the 2007-2008 school year had 11,034 students who received aid. Although totals for this school year will not be available until June, Knight has no doubt there will be another increase. There are a record 15,500 students on the Oxford campus this year. Robert Givens, also an advising director in the office said there’s another dimension. “We are aware that more students are in need of aid and although the requirements basically remain the same as previous years, due to the increased number of applicants the awarding process was much more competitive.” he said.

For some students, the availability of financial aid is what is making their dreams of higher education become reality. One of them is, Bryn Davis, a sophomore Hospitality Management major, who completed the Free Federal Application for Student Aid, the first step in seeking financial assistance. Davis said she was able to receive $5,500 in a Pell Grant and up to $1,200 in work-study compensation because Davis works on campus a maximum of 12 hours per week. Not every student can get a campus job. “For students who have federal aid, one of the hardest things for them to get is work-study because we only get an alloted amount of money and when it runs out there is no more to get.” Knight said.

Along with federal aid students each year are able to apply for scholarships. Unlike the federal aid, this money comes from alumni and other donors at the university. “We are very successful in reaching out to alumni who are very generous, said Knight. “That being said once we receive this money we invest it and since the financial markets have not been successful, less scholarship money has been able to be awarded because we have had less return on our endowment.”For students who are trying to receive aid this is where the competitive circumstances come in. They must apply for scholarships that are based on grade point average, service, and leadership. “With more students applying for the different scholarships offered it is much harder to give students as much aid as it was in previous years and that is where the competitiveness to receive aid comes into play”, Givens said.

Students interested in applying for financial aid can go to their website, http://www.olemiss.edu/finaid/index.html, for more information.

Interview with Professor Eagles on the Lillian Smith Award and The Price of Defiance

It is no secret that the University of Mississippi has a very rich southern heritage. Professor Charles W. Eagles sheds some light on the University’s history in a book about James Meredith, the first African-American to attend Ole Miss.

Professor Eagles’ book, The Price of Defiance, focuses on three major components. He wanted to explain why the riot occurred at the University in 1962, he wanted to write a book that would show James Meredith as a person and focus on his background, and finally he wanted to allow readers to follow James Meredith for his year at Ole Miss.

By writing The Price of Defiance Professor Eagles earned numerous awards and received many commendations. Among his awards he received is the Lillian Smith Award which he received in Atlanta this September. His previous book received the award in 1993 so do date Eagles is the only scholar to have won the award twice.

The book was used immediately in a journalism class at Florida State University and Dr. Namorato has used the book in his Mississippi history classes here at the University. Professor Eagles says that the one important thing that the book does for college aged students is explains what segregation really was. Professor Eagles says, “We all kind of know the almost clichés of segregated water fountains and separate schools for blacks and whites.” He goes on to explain that segregation affected all aspects of life here at Ole Miss. His goal was to give readers a good understanding of how segregation worked as a system and giving concrete examples.

Professor Eagles makes a point of saying how the chapter specifically on James Meredith’s life gets very little attention. He also says that reviews for the book have not mentioned the last chapter of the book. He told me that if I do not read the book I should make a point of reading the last ten pages.

http://southernchanges.blogspot.com/2010/09/charles-eagles-accepts-2010-lillian.html

Mississippi Teacher Corps

Graduation is right around the corner and you decided that teaching is where your heart is. There is a program designed to help you break into the field and pay for everything you need as well. What is the name of this program? It is called the Mississippi Teacher Corps but it is not just for Mississippians.I spoke with the man behind this program Andrew Mullins also known as Andy. Graduate students from all over the United States come to participate in this “actually a majority of the applicants are out-of-state”, stated Mullins.This program is known as the “alternate route to certification” for future teachers.

After a student has completed both parts to the Praxis exam and has now become certified he or she can apply to the Mississippi Teacher Corps. The program has many benefits, such as a full scholarship while you are getting your master’s degree. If accepted the graduate student will then be placed in an area in Mississippi that has it hard finding teachers for their school. Moreover, it is beneficial to the school as well as the person in the program. The graduate student will be getting a hands on experience of what it is like being a certified teacher in an actual classroom.

It is good to know about the Mississippi Teacher Corps and also to go ahead and get your application in if you know you are interested. There is a limited amount of teachers needed so do not wait until it is too late and let this great opportunity pass you by. If it does happen to then there are other programs as well. Find them, they are very beneficial.Then there are certain students who may not have been informed about this program until it was too late. I spoke to a graduate student, Robin Goolsby, who did not know about the program but really wished she did. However, she was not totally disappointed because she received the Lucky Day Scholarship from Ole Miss.

Congratulations to all the graduates of 2010 and upcoming graduates in 2011. For more information contact Andy Mullins at (662) 915-7064 and good luck if you choose to apply.