As positions in administration continue to open up, the search to permanently fill these positions depend on the arrival of a new president, a search that is also underway.

Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia, former CSU-Pueblo’s president, said there were many administrative seats he had to fill when he first arrived at the university.

“It took awhile when I first transferred from Pikes Peak Community College,” Garcia said about filling the positions that are similar to some of the ones open now.

“Someone of that level wants to have a cabinet of leaders of his choice,” said Michelle McKinney, director of Denver Public Relations for the CSU system.“He wants people he is comfortable with and that he can trust.”

There have been quite a few interests in the president position, said Terry Payon, Alberto Pimentel’s assistant. Pimentel has been hired to conduct the national search for a new president.

As of mid-February, Pimentel has phoned over 150 calls to potential candidates, according to an article written by Gayle Perez of the Pueblo Chieftain.

The new president will have the opportunity to help decide who some of his closest associates will be. The current open positions are executive assistant to the vice president for Finance and Administration, director of University Counseling Center and Student Affairs, Student Activities event coordinator and the Veterans Upward Bound director.

The current provost is also on a “fixed contract,” according to an article by Bill Dagendesh in a prior TODAY article. Since the provost works so closely with the president it is only natural the president has some say in who will permanently fill the position.  

In addition, Michael Fronmueller has also stepped down as dean of the Hassan school of Business, according to the university’s website. He was preceded by Betty Hanks, interim dean. However, Fronmueller is still working as a professor for the school.  

Stig Jantz, an academic advisor for the Hassan School of Business, was asked to retire late last year, according to an earlier article from the TODAY. He was offered another position, but is no longer on campus after more than 900 people sought to retain his services at the school on Facebook.

David Niccoli, the director of the Information Technology Department, has also retired. His position was only opened a short time before it was put on pause, according to CSU-Pueblo’s Human Resource Department.

The position “is on hold for the president’s position to be filled,” according to a secretary in the provost’s office.

Niccoli served the school for 30 years and had been planning on retirement for awhile. The timing was purely coincidental, according to Garcia.

The process of narrowing down the presidential search is in progress, according to the Presidential Search Advisory Committee’s website. The last couple of conferences have been by phone. The committee will narrow down candidates to three to present to the board members.

The CSU System Board of Governors created the committee, which consists of Dorothy Horrell, Committee Chair, and Mary Lou Makepeace, committee vice chair.

Advisory committee members from CSU-Pueblo include faculty members Judy Baca and Katherine Frank. CSU-Pueblo staff members on the board are Geraldine Trujillo-Martinez and Tracy Samora.

Dawn DiPrince, a CSU-Pueblo post-graduate English student, Ralph Williams, a CSU-Pueblo Alumni and Foundation Board member and Henry Roman, Pueblo’s District 60 superintendent, are also on the committee.

Bonifacio Cosyleon was on the committee, but resigned last month. He was serving his second consecutive term.

iceevecandi@yahoo.com

Bomb threats should never be taken lightly, but a hoax by students isn’t overly concerning to some at CSU-Pueblo.

Clip art courtesy of cbs19.tv.

“I trust that they (police and school authorities) had enough information that the threat was not imminent,” Carroll Langer, department chair of social work said. She was teaching a class when she received a text message warning a bomb threat.

A number of students wanted to complain, Langer said. She said she only wished there were instructions on what the faculty and students should have done following the original message. There was a man looking for anything out of place and someone should have said that there was someone checking the building, she said.

CSU-Pueblo student Aaron Wolking, 25, earning a master's degree in general business.

Aaron Wolking, a 25-year-old student attaining his master degree in general business, said it was interesting to watch how people reacted to the threat, and thought the local law enforcement and the university responded quite well.

“They obviously did their homework, and came to a conclusion it was not a threat,” Wolking said about authorities. “They defeated the purpose of the threat and did not create more mayhem.”

“There should be definite consequences,” Wolking said concerning the perpetrators. “There needs to be a precedence set to cover this type of situation. There is no room to behave like that in an academic setting.”

CSU-Pueblo student Nick Fraduke, 25, biology major.

Nick Fraduke, a 25-year-old Biology student, said he wasn’t affected by the bomb threat at all. “I was a little surprised; you don’t hear that every day.”

“The college did a good job of getting the message out,” Fraduke said, “I was surprised they didn’t shut down the college. After Columbine, you think they would lock the school down.

CSU-Pueblo student Kendra Sutton, 20, History major.

Kendra Sutton, a 20-year-old history student was on campus when she received her text message notification.

“It was an odd way of letting know there was a threat, and I wasn’t really sure what to do. I didn’t know the severity and it created more questions. They let us know, but it was confusing,” Sutton said. “It didn’t seem like too big of a deal because they weren’t making a big deal out of it.”

CSU-Pueblo student Asia Sanders, 18, computer information major.

Asia Sanders an 18-year-old computer information student said this wasn’t the first time she had to deal with a bomb threat at school, and said she wasn’t scared at all. The last time she had to deal with a bomb threat was at Carson Middle School at Fort Carson.

Administrative Assistant to the Dean for The College of Science and Mathematics, Sandi Orbin.

Sandi Orbin, the Administrative Assistant to the Dean for The College of Science and Mathematics, said she was a little bit afraid.

“Just knowing that it could possibly happen here, that’s kind of scary,” Orbin said. “You hate to close everything down because it feels like you’re giving in on a whim, but on the other hand you want to keep everyone safe.”

Orbin also said that there could have been more security patrolling the buildings to make students and staff members feel safer.

“Making a uniform presence known would have been that one step further they could have taken,” she said.

CSU-Pueblo student Nekole Rayme, 19, social work major.

Nekole Rayme, a 19-year-old social work student thought the school should have shut down in the interest of everyone although she didn’t have any classes scheduled for the day.

“A lot of people felt threatened. We shouldn’t have been at school, it was a dangerous situation,” Rayme said.

CSU-Pueblo student Andrea Pritchard, 21, nursing major.

Andrea Pritchard, a 21-year-old nursing student thought everyone should have gone home too.

“When they sent the message they did not take it seriously. How did we know everything was alright? People could have started panicking.”

CSU-Pueblo student Shelby Dewberry, 20, liberal studies major.

Shelby Dewberry, a 20-year-old liberal studies student, is a work-study at the university bookstore and lives in the campus dorms.

“I’m from a small town, Cotapaxi, and we’ve never had something happen like that. I was shocked because everyone knows about it, but no one thinks it can happen to them.”

CSU-Pueblo student Megan Henderson, 24, Sociology major.

Megan Henderson, a 24-year-old Sociology student, said she believed the threat was a “stupid attempt to get some attention.”

“I heard it was a prank. How can somebody throw their life away or spend 20 years in prison for a prank?”

A recent survey taken by 21 random people at CSU-Pueblo about marijuana use and legalization reveals some student’s positions.

Although there has been talk of the CSU-Pueblo campus becoming a completely smoke-free campus, there has been no talk of the medical marijuana needs for some students. Ninety-five percent of survey participants agreed that a person should be able to smoke marijuana on university grounds if they have a medical marijuana card.

According to 86 percent of the sampled population, marijuana should be legalized for everyone. Of the remaining 14 percent, 9 percent said a person should be able to smoke if there is a medical need.  Although 86 percent of the sample said they were in favor of marijuana legalization, one third, 33.3 percent, of the sample admitted to smoking marijuana. 

Those who admittedly smoked held a wide range of smoking habits. Some reported smoking once or twice a month and others reported smoking four times a day.

One participant said they smoked hashish, a marijuana derivative, on a daily basis. Others said they smoke marijuana on a daily basis. Some said they smoked three or four times a day, while others smoked three or four times in a month. There was one who said they smoke marijuana around eight times a month.

However, survey participants were evenly divided when asked if they believed marijuana negatively affects a student’s grade point average. According to 61 percent of the participants, marijuana does not directly cause a student to have a lower grade point average.

About half of the participants said there are safety risks other than a low GPA associated with smoking. The safety risks listed by the students included lung damage, driving under the influence and killing brain cells. Some said the only hazards were becoming tired and lazy.

The Colorado State Senate on Friday, Feb. 18, passed a bill to help people who are convicted of class 6 drug felony charges instead of jailing them.

Senate Bill 11-096 removes the possibility of people, who are charged with class 6 drug felonies, from being considered habitual offenders. At this time, if a person was convicted of a class 6 felony drug possession charge three times, they would be considered habitual offenders. Convictions in other states count toward the required three.

According to the bill, if class 6 drug possession felony offences are removed from the habitual offender list, more people will choose to plea bargain and receive probation.

Photo courtesy of morguefile.com.

Probation for drug charges generally includes therapy and counseling to remove the substance addiction from an offender’s life. Providing recovery would be proactive in limiting future substance abuse, according to the bill.

After the third reading of Senate Bill 11-096, and passage out of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the senate passed the bill unanimously.

The bill has moved to Colorado’s House of Representatives and is being reviewed by its Judiciary Committee. If the House Judiciary Committee votes in favor of the bill, it will move to the House floor to be voted on. The existing law could then be changed.

The current punishment for habitual offenders is stiffer than for non-habitual offenders, according to current state statutes.
When a person is convicted of a class 6 drug possession felony, they receive an average sentence of 12 and half months in a Department of Corrections facility.

If the person becomes a habitual offender they will serve up to four times the maximum amount of time they can receive for one offence, according to current state statutes. The average amount of time they would serve is approximately five years in a department of corrections facility for class 6 drug possession charges.

There are many types of class 6 drug possession offences that include an array of prescription medications and street drugs.

If a person does not have a medical marijuana license, for use or cultivation, and they are found in possession of more than 12 ounces, they will receive a class 6 felony drug possession charge.

If a person is found in possession of 4 grams or more of other substances, such as ketamine (a tranquilizer) or pharmaceuticals, they can also be charged with a class 6 drug possession felonies. Two grams or less of methamphetamine is also a class 6 drug possession felony.

Class 6 drug felonies are not considered as severe as Classes 1-5 drug felony charges.

CSU-Pueblo Students and faculty members could soon be allowed to vote on important university issues at Colorado State University Board of Governors meetings.

The state legislature will be voting Feb. 10, on changes that have the potential to give a voice and more voting power to the students and faculty of both CSU-Pueblo and CSU-Fort Collins.

Steve Titus, president of CSU-Pueblo’s Associated Student Government, has been advocating for the right to vote since taking office two years ago, he said.

“Having the bill written and actually have a chance to be reality is remarkable,” Titus said.

Currently, one student and one faculty member from each university attend board meetings. However, these representatives cannot vote on issues, but can advise the members of the board, according to the BOG website.

If House Bill 11-011 is passed, one student and one faculty representative will have the right to vote on important issues concerning the Colorado State University system during BOG meetings, according to the website. However, there will only be one faculty and one student representative from either CSU-Pueblo or CSU-Fort Collins that will have voting power.

The representatives from CSU-Pueblo are Jennifer Mullen, chair of the Mass Communications and Center for New Media department, and Titus, who will represent the student body. From CSU-Fort Collins, Cooper Anderson will represent the students and Dan Turk will represent the faculty.  

The two additional votes will increase the voting members on the board from nine to 11 and if passed, the new regulations will be implemented later in the year.

Mosio’s Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Gabriel Macias said the short message service (SMS) gives the library staff the ability to use an enhanced seven-internet search engine with one click. The one-in-seven engine is called Ref Start and is loaded onto the secure micro-board the librarians log into to receive questions send out answers.

The services allow students to text questions to the CSU-Pueblo library and receive most answers on their cell phone. Complicated or research questions may have to be sent to an e-mail address, Assistant Professor of Library Services and Instruction Coordinator, Courtney Bruch said.

“It’s easy…; it’s super simple to implement and it makes it so that you communicate,” Macias said. Once a school signs up with for Text a Librarian, the library is granted access to a web page by using log in codes. When a text messages come in, he said, the phone numbers are assigned random patron identification numbers and students remain anonymous.

Bruch said prior questions from an ID will appear when a new question is asked. She said because this information is available, it makes it easier to find relative information.

Keeping track of what patrons ask also allows the library to personalize searches and answers, Macias said. In addition it allows the librarians to know what questions are being asked the most and when. He said this provides them knowledge to keep the library efficiently staffed.

Along with the ability to track what type of information particular students are looking for, the program also keeps track of who is answering questions and how often, Macias said.

Brunch said that all of the librarians who are available to answer questions have at least a master’s degree.

Macias said the SMS service translates over 800 common text acronyms as well so librarians don’t have to guess what an abbreviation may mean.

Furthermore, the Mosio provides services to other institutions and businesses, said Macias. Some museums are using the technology to answer questions about exhibits to visitors and restaurants are using the service to expedite patrons’ food orders.

“We expect to have a lot of libraries use this,” Macias said. “It’s only going to make sense that libraries will need to keep up with that (technology). Librarians want to be as relevant as possible.”

The accreditation for the bachelor’s degree that combines mechanical and electronics engineering, “mechatronics,” began in the fall of 2005, said Jane Fraser, chair of the engineering department, when one student started studying for the program.

The accreditation was given by Engineering Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) and is retroactive for the three students who have completed the program and who were risking their futures on it, Fraser said.

“I want to thank those students tremendously because at some point they bet their careers on us,” she said, “We weren’t really in doubt that we would get accredited, but it’s always a little bit of a risk.”

“Many companies will only hire from accredited programs,” Fraser said.

The Army Core of Engineers wanted to hire one of the graduates and they couldn’t make that persom an offer because they are only allowed to hire people who have graduated from accredited programs, Fraser said.

“But a university can’t actually apply for accreditation until they have had a graduate,” from the program, said Fraser, which didn’t happen until one student graduated in May of 2008 and then two others in spring of 2009.

“We were right on track and we applied for accreditation and we have finally received word last last month that the program has been accredited,” Fraser said, “and that’s a big step from many professional degrees including engineering.

While there is a potentially large job market for science and engineering graduates, they can be very specific to either mechanical or electronic engineering, she said, mechatronics opens up a broader scope of employment opportunities.

Fraser said the study of mechatronics covers devices with moving parts, electrical power and computer controls such as the Mars Rover, heart and lung machines and cars. She also said when students start graduating with this degree the community could possibly benefit by prospective companies who may want to be in the area.

One of the graduates is working at the Transportation Technology Center Incorporated, a train testing facility, Fraser said. The head of engineering at the center has been a big supporter of the mechatronics program because the company needs employees who can work on mecahnical and electrical components.

“It’s exactly the kinds of engineers they want working on their projects. The strength of our students is that they can integrate mechanical engineering and electrical engineering. Students who have only majored in electrical engineering don’t know enough about mechanical engineering and vise-versa,” Fraser said.

While the university is accredited in a general way, each respective department on campus is accredited by individual agencies anointed by the government.

“Accreditation is absolutely necessary for the students and so we are very pleased that we have achieved that,” she said.

DeBiase moved from Chicago in the ’80s and has seen many things in his 14-year career, but didn’t expect the college life to be so uneventful.

“I have seen so much in my career unbelievable stuff that nobody should ever see. This is kind of a god send,” the sergeant said.

The atmosphere at the college, DeBiase said, is awesome. He said he has never seen young people who have enough respect for each other to turn in expensive lost property, such as diamond rings or laptops.

“That doesn’t happen everywhere,” the sergeant said, and partially credits the good fortune to the size, location and the good atmosphere of CSU-Pueblo. 

DeBiase said he expects the parties because it is part of the college experience, but noted they never get out of hand so he tries not to hover.

Due to the influx of students last semester, the sheriff’s office was a little busier than usual, DeBiase said.

“It’s just a matter of playing the odds,” the sergeant said, the more people you have the more incidents may occur.

The sergeant mentioned even though some kids behave like “knuckleheads,” they seem to learn quickly and eventually become model students or find another avenue in life.

“The ones that stay, end up being some pretty neat kids,” DeBiase said. ”They have just never been on their own.”

DeBiase said he enjoys his job, being on campus, educating students about alcoholism and other problems students may encounter and has great respect for his staff.

“We are dedicated to the university,” DeBiase said.

The seven officers on staff at the sheriff’s department’s sub-station are not called away from campus unless it is an emergency.

“I love my staff. I trust them. I trust their work,” DeBiase said. ”I trust their abilities and that’s a good thing to have. I can sleep at night.”

“You have to come in with an open mind. It’s not dirty,” said Deanne Gentile, a CSU-Pueblo student and the campus organizer for the event.

Contrary to popular belief, many males were in attendance. Some men accompanied girlfriends while others were there as moral support for actresses.

The Vagina Monologues was originally written and performed by Eve Ensler. The organization V-Day is the result of Ensler’s innovation to stop crimes against women, according to the V-Day Web site.

V-Day will be the day when no more women are brutalized sexually or otherwise, according to the Web site.

“The program raises funds and awareness through benefit productions of the Vagina Monologues,” Deanne Gentile said.

The event included the opportunity for attendants to take their picture in a larger than life vagina for $1.

There was also an opportunity to decorate a paper vagina with numerous items such as confetti and feathers.

The event consisted of self discovery, how a vagina looks, the numerous names for a vagina, a recording of small girl talking about being raped, 25 different ways to orgasm and much more. 

 ”The event is a global movement to end violence against women and girls,” Gentile said.

Each rendition of The Vagina Monologues incorporates and highlights different atrocities against women in the world. The event held on Friday was to raise awareness about the women in the Congo, Gentile said.

“The spotlight focuses on women in the Congo and how they are raped as a war tactic and how it’s not for pleasure,” Gentile said.

Gentile said she would also like to open a place for abused women in town sighting the fact that there is only one local shelter available for women.

“We need something to get these women to become independent, help them get an education and help them get a job,” Gentile said. “People need to open their eyes.”

Members of the Pueblo Riders along with Conrad Waggener from CSU-Pueblo’s Upward Bound veteran’s program worked together to set the guidelines for the scholarship, according to Alicia Early from the school’s foundation office.

The scholarship is for the veterans who have been serving in the Middle East and their immediate family members including widows/widowers,’ spouses and children, Claude R. “Butch” Chavez, Vice President of the Pueblo American Legion Riders, said.

“The American Legion Riders District 8, Post 2 helps all veterans. We particularly wanted to concentrate our efforts on the Iraq and Afghanistan veterans when they come home,” Chavez said.

Chavez said he recognizes veterans do have the GI Bill, which assists them with college, but the bill doesn’t always cover all the expenses of school. The American Legion Riders wanted to provide supplemental funds for veterans and their families.

The need to help veteran students was discovered when the American Legion Riders spoke with Waggener and found veterans have dropped out of school due to lack of funding, Chavez said.

Although the scholarship is not available yet, the American Legion Riders already has plans to raise funds for it, Chavez said.

Chavez said the American Legion Riders is currently working on grants for the scholarship.

An endowed scholarship must be filled within five years of signing with a minimum of a $25,000 donation, Early said.

“Our goal for the first year is $50,000 and we are going to work hard to try to get that,” Chavez said.

 ”The scholarship will be available upon endowment,” Early said.