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t I ■ P&A 1811 JBM First copy free Volume 55 lssue 6 Parking findings cast new light on old problem By Larry Peel Staff Writer larry@ioncinema.com One of the hottest topics of discussion of late on campus has been the parking situation. The addition of new buildings on campus, new apartments off campus and an ever growing student body make each day’s rush hour seem more like a cross between a NASCAR race and a rodeo than the campus of an institute of higher learning. Students vie for position and race for the best available spots, often leaving home early to ensure they park as close to their classes as possible. Often though desperation and frustration leads to poor choices and students opt to take their chances parking in unauthorized zones. Last year alone, students who were either in too big a hurry, or simply thought they could beat the system, contributed $334,435 to the University’s Auxiliary Services budget in parking violation fines. According to Chief Tom Mackel of the Department of Public- Safety, the most common violation area is the staff parking places. Staff parking is often located in the most convenient places on campus and a student running late or simply gambling on their chances attempt to park in these lots only to find out the Volunteer fair draws diverse companies Event highlights opportunities for students By Mariam Abuhaideri Staff Writer mabuhaideri @ westga.edu The Department of Career Services organized a Volunteer Fair in the TLC lobby last Wednesday. The fair was arranged to introduce UWG students to the many volunteer opportunities available at West Georgia and its vicinities. The nature of volunteer activity was diverse. There was something to suit every student’s interest. For those who enjoy working with children either as a mentor or “The Student Voice at the University of West Georgia since IV.U" price of their haste is cold hard cash. Students often believe that the fines imposed by the University are harsh and somehow governed by the University seeking to flesh out the budget of the Department of Public Safety. Records show, however, that the funds obtained by the parking violations have no actual impact on the operations of the Department or its annual budget. Chief Mackel explains “|Parking Services] has 18 full-time employees and one part time employee, including bus drivers. The budget for the department is based solely on the salaries of those employees, fuel and maintenance costs for the vehicles (ATVs and buses) and the cost of maintaining signs and curb painting.” All the signs posted around campus indicating parking restrictions, directional markers and lot descriptions are handled through the use of state prison labor which saves the University thousands of dollars per year in potential expense versus using private contractors. For those whose attempts to find parking result in locations that gamer them citations, there is hope. The Student Judiciary division of the Student Government Association oversees the monthly meeting of the Parking Appeals committee. The committee is headed by the Judicial Chair of the SGA, a student volunteer, Hemophilia of Georgia, Inc. Twin Cedars Youth Services, Inc, Youth Connections and Carroll County Court Appointed Special Advocates, Inc. were at hand to share the opportunities they have. Some like the Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta were present to recruit volunteers for their various foundation endeavors that benefit children. “We have had a lot of interested students who are willing to volunteer for different projects,” said Marina Rogers, Case Manager for Twin Cedars. ®hie a (SenripEtt representative, one faculty member and one staff representative. The Appeals Committee meets once per month and reviews cases presented either in person or in writing for the previous month. Chief Mackel said that often students represent themselves on multiple citations at once, he explained “If a student, for example, is a commuter student and doesn’t have their hanger up, they can be cited for both unregistered vehicle (for the no hanger), as well as for unauthorized parking (since the lot cannot be determined without the hanger). [ln those cases] it is not uncommon for one of the citations to be dropped on appeal.” While attempts to contact the members of the Appeals Committee for comment were unsuccessful, records indicate that last year 2,620 cases were heard by the committee. There are no records of how many appeals were actually granted because the citation is simply removed from the record of the student, leaving no record for validation. Mackel went on to explain that students face worse potential than a simple citation if they choose to park in areas that are strictly forbidden such as fire lanes, handicap spaces, and even the Evergreen Terrace apartments at the north entrance of campus. While the University enforces the tow-away Others like the Keep Carroll Beautiful were there to get volunteers for their many projects in Bowdon, Carrollton, Mt. Zion and Villa Rica. These projects include planting flowers, weeding, litter clean-up, landscaping and river clean-up. Matthew Searels, an intern with Keep Carroll Beautiful, said that their hope is to get a good number of volunteers to help them with beautification projects throughout the county as well as with Kids Peace. Douglas County Habitat for Humanity participated at the fair as well. www.thewestgeorgian.com i Many students who park In areas that are not designated for them are given tickets. The most common violation are students parking in areas that are for faculty and staff. zones for fire and handicap areas, Evergreen Terrace apartments has posted their own towing guidelines for students who park illegally in their lot. Students had previously been parking also in the abandoned car wash off campus as well, but that area has since The Citizens Academy of Carroll County Sheriff’s Office was represented by Lt. Matt Wilson and Lt. Donald Gibson. They were seeking volunteers for their academy program. The purpose of the Academy is to develop interest in local Carroll County residents about how their Sheriff’s Office operates thus creating positive relations between Law Enforcement and community via education. The program covers areas such as Youth issues, Motor Vehicle dfdf Wednesday , September 20, 2006 been cordoned off due to complaints by the City of Carrollton that people were using the bays as oil change areas and contributing to the pollution of the environment by pouring the used oil into the drains of the bays which feed into the Little Tallapoosa River. The Department attempts to assist students Enforcement, gang problems, criminal investigations and much more. This program is held twice a year. The Asera Care Hospice was on hand for students interested in volunteering. The Latinos United of Carroll County was seeking volunteers for its Health Care Center, Life Skills Education, PESCA, ESL classed, sexual education classes, computer classes, and citizenship education. The scope of all their programs is directed towards local Latino communities. Photo by Josh Grubb in their quest to arrive on time to classes by operating a small fleet of mass transportation buses on campus. The University operates two campus wide routes, one clockwise and one counterclockwise, which completely encircle the See PARKING, page 3 Vicki Hardin,assistant director of Department of Career Services, and others from the department were on hand directing students to the tables and addressing queries of students and organization representatives. “We believe in making students know what is available. A lot of students seem interested but do not know about available sources of volunteer opportunities. Plus these fairs are beneficial to the organizations as well. This is something students can put on their resume, an excellent avenue for job searches,” Hardin said.