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WEDNESDAY. OCT( >BI-.R 5, 2007
Newt Gingrich presents Solutions Day Workshop
By Fontez Brooks
Staff Writer
Falridg 1 @ my.west go .edit
“Today is the day
for real change.”
That was the
dominating phrase at the
Solutions Day Workshop
Saturday afternoon at
the University of West
Georgia, generating
discussions on topics
such as conservation,
citizenship. The Fair
Tax, space, and much
more.
The Solutions Day
Workshop was paid for
by American Solutions,
a non-partisan
organization founded
by Newt Gingrich. The
group presented the
idea that change is in
the hands of everyday
citizens.
American Solutions
is an organization
Campus crime statistics updated: Burglary on the rise
By Tracy Ammons
Copy Editor
tamnions I @my.westga .edit
Incidents of burglary
at the University of West
Georgia more than doubled
between 2005 and 2006,
and underage drinking and
entering autos have also
increased, according to
recently released statistics.
However, driving under
the influence and drug
violations have slightly
decreased.
The U WG Department
of Public Safety is required
to release crime statistics
and security policies each
year in accordance with
the Federal Clery Act. The
act is named after Jeanne
Ann Clery, a 19-year
old freshman at Lehigh
University, Penn., who was
raped and murdered while
asleep in her residence hall
in 1986.
The data reported
83 incidents of burglary
on campus in 2006,
compared to 35 incidents
in 2005. Sixty-six of the
83 burglaries occurred in
residence halls, compared
to 25 residence hall
burglaries in 2005.
UWG Lt. Investigator
Laura Bennett said that
most burglaries on campus
result from students
leaving their dorm rooms
West Georgia's A DAY helps students achieve dreams
By Carlos Sellers
Staff Writer
csellerl @my.westga .edit
When logging on to
the University of West
Georgia Web site, there is
one quote that describes
what this school is
about— “Educational
Excellence in a Personal
Environment.”
At UWG, the
ullje West (Georgian
The University of West Georgia
University Community Center, Room 111
Carrollton, GA, 30118-0070
Editorial Line: (678) 839-6527
Advertising Manager: (678) 839-4783
Editorial E-mail: uwgpaperra westga.edu
Advertising E-mail: paperads@westga.edu
On the web at http://www.thewestgeorgian.com
for those looking to
make real change and
a serious difference,
not just in their local
communities, but on a
national scale as well.
Solutions Day
consisted of four time
slots, 1:30 to 2:30,
2:45 to 3:45 and 4:00
to 5:00, including an
opening and closing by
Gingrich. Each time
slot contained anywhere
from five to seven
individual workshops
on a given topic.
The workshops
were all given by
esteemed speakers, who
ranged from former
Congressman Bob
Walker to former CIA
Director Peter Gross.
The workshops
lasted about an hour
each, with a question
and answer session
immediately following.
unlocked. She said the
students aren’t being
careless, but they are “too
trusting.”
UWG Director of
Public Safety Tom Mackel
mentioned an organized
group of student burglars
Photo courtesy of w ww.google.com
who stole items from dorm
rooms in the middle of the
day.
“These are students
who are able to walk
around unnoticed,” Mackel
said. "We arrested one, but
he wouldn’t tell us who he
was working with.”
Mackelalsomentioned
an increase in electronic
success of its students
is the sole ambition for
the school’s existence.
From being successful
in the classroom to
accomplishments on the
athletic Held, UWG’s
faculty and staff are here
to help students succeed
and excel.
UWG’s Alumni DAY
helps students achieve
their dreams of a college
Questions jumped from
health care to Georgia’s
cigarette bans.
Fair-Tax workshop
was given by author
Neal Boortz and
congressmen and radio
talk show host, John
Linder.
Even with the Flat-
Tax workshop going
on upstairs at the exact
same time, the Fair-
Tax workshop pushed
maximum capacity
as spectators were
crunched to standing
room only.
In the opening
remarks about the
workshops, Gingrich
explained that American
Solutions did n<
contain any political
agenda,nor was race or
social ranking a factor.
Gingrich also
announced that he
would not be running
theft- items such as iPods,
laptop computers, and
Xbox gaming systems are
prime objects for reported
burglaries. Mackel said
he encourages students
and parents at orientation
sessions to record all the
serial numbers on their
electronics, because in the
event of theft, the serial
number can be tracked on
state and national crime
computer networks.
He recommends that
students purchase tracking
software for their laptops.
Costing about SIOO. the
three-year-protect ion
education; The largest
percentage of A DAY
funds are used to support
student scholarships.
A DAY was started in
1983 under the direction
of Bob Stone, Dean
Brown, and many others.
It has been a flourishing
event for more than 20
years, not only because
of the many contributions
from individuals,families
Erik Waters, Editor-in-Chief
Stephanie Smith, Advertising & Business Manager
Ellis Smith, News Editor
Jesse Duke, A&E Editor
Steven A. Gilley, Sports Editor
Terence Rushin, Photo Editor
Tracy Ammons, Copy Editor
Lauren Lovvom, Webmaster
Chris Graydon, Distribution Manager
Doug Vinson, Advisor
Masthead Art by Jesse Duke
for the Republican
nomination in
the upcoming
2008 presidential
election. Because
of the McCain-
Feingold law,
passed by Congress
in 2002, Gingrich
could not lead
American Solutions
and simultanously
run as a presidential
nominee.
Gingrich said
he is devoted to the
organization, and
he is not willing to
abandon American
Solutions,especially
since the group is in
its early stages.
Every workshop
from Saturday’s
event will be
available to for public
viewing on www.
amerieansolutions.
com
software traces the location
of the laptop every time the
user gets on the Internet.
“Earlier this summer
we tracked down a stolen
laptop and relocated it
to its owner,” he said.
“Somebody had bought it
at a flea market.”
Mackel said that in
2006, University Suites
and Strozier Hall were
the two targeted residence
halls for burglary.
Incidents of entering
autos slightly increased
from 48 in 2005 to 59 in
2006. "That’s one of the
biggest crimes that we
and corporations, but also
because of time donations
from many volunteers
from Carroll County and
beyond.
This year marks
the 25th year of A DAY,
and the support of the
students, faculty, and
staff are greatly needed.
Help us celebrate this
thrilling community
fundraising experience
Tin WIST (,i:OR(,IA\ M vvs
i r ’■i f v
Photo />v Tcrcm e Hushin
have on campus,” Mackel
said. “Some students have
car stereos worth more than
what the car is worth.”
Incidents of underage
drinking on campus have
increased from 136 in
20()5 to 166 in 2006.
“There’s been a lot of
arrests for consumption
underage this year; we’ve
seen that drastically,”
Bennett said. "When we
respond to a consumption
underage, they're tested on
a portable breathalyzer.lf
they register 0.1 or higher,
they go to jail. Below that,
they’re released wdth a
by volunteering as much
as you possibly can.
One annual A Day
event is the Run for A
Day, which will take
place this Thursday
evening, Oct. 4. Runners
pay a fee to participate in
either a one mile walk/
run or a 5K road race; all
the money goes to the A
Day fund.
The race is sponsored
Copyright Notice
The West Georgian , copy right 2007, is an official publication of the
University of West Georgia. Opinions expressed herein are those of the
newspaper staff or individual authors and do not necessarily reflect the
views of university faculty or staff
Letter Submission Policy
The West Georgian welcomes letters to the editor. Letters may
be mailed to: Editor, The West Georgian, University of West
Georgia, Carrollton, GA, 30118, or sent via electronic mail to:
uwgpaper(®westga edu
All letters must be signed and include a phone number and mailing ad
dress for verification purposes Letters should not exceed 350 words and
should be submitted by 5 p.m the Sunday prior to publication Editors
reserve the right to edit for style, content and length
citation - there’s usually
a fine and community
service with that.”
Mackel said the
increase in underage
drinking citations may be
explained by the increased
public safety personnel
who bike-patrol the
residence halls on a regular
basis. The bike patrol was
temporarily removed
during budget cuts in 2004
-and recorded underage
drinking citations dropped
to 40 that year.
DUIs decreased
slightly from 36 in 2005
to 30 in 2006, while drug
violations decreased from
30 in 2005 to 10 in 2006.
"We actually had 40
calls for drug violations
in 2006, but only 10
were arrested, because in
the other 30 cases, there
wasn’t sufficient evidence
to arrest,” Mackel said.
“There would be the
heavy smell of marijuana
smoke in the room, but we
couldn’t prove anything.”
No reported crimes
were listed on the UWG
Newnan campus. Since
the Newnan facilities are
much smaller and there are
no residence halls, crime
doesn’t seem to be an
issue.
“I don’t recall any
crime going on through
there,” Bennett said.
by First National Bank of
Georgia, formerly West
Georgia National Bank.
Students can enter the
race Thursday for $7
with a student ID; a race
t-shirt is included.
If you are interested in
being one of hundreds of
volunteers or supporting
the annual fund, contact
Frank Pritchett at
frankp@westga.edu.