The Stetson Reporter

ixE_y issue 5 volume i'13 txtte>a*Sit&Bt2iBii~xartodl k&teMu^nwwnU&t Florida's Number One Private College Newspaper e SPORTS: Build your arms with Katie Harrigan [ page 6b ] LIFE: Flight of the German Sky Piece by Michael Klant is successful [ page 3b ] Administrators pay attention to evaluations By Josh Jungferman STAFF WRITER Do students' evaluations of professors "matter? "Yes," said Dr. James Woodward, dean of the School of Music. "They are an important...when deciding to give tenure, promotions, and pay increases." At the end of each semester, the evaluations from students are taken to the Office of Institutional Research to be given to the deans. The sheets are typed up as reports, according to Patty Sanders of Institutional Research. "I type every word from the comments section." The evaluation data is perused by the deans and-department heads. "They impact sabbatical awards," said Woodward. A sabbatical is a paid leave of absence, during which faculty members travel, conduct research and rest. They are typically available to a faculty member every seven years. The responses are given to the individual professors so they have the chance to respond. "I consider written responses to be the most significant and insightful part of the evaluations," said Dr. Karen Kaivola, associate dean of the School of Arts and Sciences. "I wish there were more open-response questions." Professors are evaluated on quality of teaching, scholarship and service, according to Kaivola. Student evaluations are a firsthand measure of a professor's teaching performance, according to Woodward. Other questions on the evaluation are designed to measure the students as credible evaluators. "I look at questions concerning attendance and effort on the part of the student, then I consider questions of overall teacher performance," said Woodward. Professors are evaluated by their peers as well as by the deans and department heads. They get scored on overall performance and effectiveness with the written comments, according to Kaivola. The evaluation data is kept throughout a professor's career. "When I apply for tenure, I will include the evaluations for all the years I have been here," said Kaivola. Joshua Jungferman is a junior business major. ^Reporter Index ^Hi»&r<.'i)ilI5KC News 2a Opinions 4a Editorial 4a Life ib Health 2 b Classifieds 3b Sports 5 b Comics 6a Calendar 6a Horoscopes 6a Shout 6a Crossword 6a Contact Us to.>-;*£'**^ !****>««;■» *i.-^.f^fa3^ 421 N. Woodland Blvd. #'8409 DeLand, FL 32720-3751 904.822.7224 FAX 904.822.7233 [email protected] [email protected] opinions© stetson.edu [email protected] etcetera® stetson.edu sports® stetson.edu [email protected] [email protected] \ Organizations encourage students Students look at the opportunities to help the local community By Kaitlin Bellerose MANAGING EDITOR The haves and have-nots met on neutral ground last Wednesday. ■ Over 15 local and nationally affiliated agencies gathered around Holler Fountain in search of volunteers who were willing to give their time to help groups that could always use another helping hand. The Into the Streets-sponsored Volunteer Fair, the third in two years and the first this semester, drew many interested volunteer service organizations to campus. Organizations like the Duvall Home, the American Lung Association and the Children's Home congregated under the palm trees and solicited volunteers. The ITS-sponsored event also attracted university-based groups like Peer Career and the university chapter of Circle K International. According to written materials provided by the Community Service Office, university students gave a considerable amount of their time to the community. Coming off a year during which university students logged more than 4000 hours of service, the Volunteer Fair organizers hoped to keep it up. "We wanted to give students an easy opportunity to get involved in the community," said ITS member Courtney Nail. The students were not the only ones given an easy opportunity. Several organizations experienced a measure of success in recruiting volunteers. [ see FAIR, page 2a ] HELPING: Courtney Nail gives Chris Farzanrad a sticker during the Volunteer Fair around the Holler Fountain, photo by valerie futch community news DAMAGE: A DPD officer walks by a tree laying across Amelia Avenue near fraternity row. The tree blocked traffic on Tuesday, photo by brian campbell Life disrupted for several hours after storm strikes area By Jeff Hamrick editor-in-chief A AFTERMATH: An officer talks with Ron Hall, a member of the philosophy department, photo by brian campbell freak storm blasted the campus last Tuesday causing damage to trees, buildings, power lines and vehicles. The storm, which began at approximately 3:30 p.m. Sept. 20, began as a light rain but then quickly turned into a torrential downpour peppered with hailstones as large as grapes. According to Ron Roux, director of Campus Maintenance and Operations, the storm became particularly severe around 3:45 p.m. and was over by approximately 4:15 p.m. This storm brought down main power lines around the city and resulted in blackouts in the local community for over 24 hours. According to Chief of Public Safety Jim Lockwood, no injuries were reported as a result of the storm. "Primarily, we were concerned about checking up on everybody's well-being," said Lockwood, who brought in extra officers to patrol the campus after the storm. Lockwood said that his primary concern was with the fire alarms in the residential halls. Officials from the Department of Residential Life ordered resident assisr tants to maintain an all-night vigil for —-—: — fires and fire alarms. The Office of Marketing and Communications released a report Friday, which stated "several larger oak and magnolia trees fell, causing damage to "Several larger oak and magnolia trees fell, causing damage to fencing and seven vehicles parked near Wilson Center and Presser Hall, and knocking out electrical power lines." fencing and seven vehicles parked near Wilson Center and Presser Hall, and knocking out electrical power lines." According to Roux, twelve panels attached to the side of the Lynn Business Center flew -off during the storm but caused no damage to nearby vehicles or structures. "Those panels are attached with adhesives," said Roux. "The adhesive wears off over time, breaks down, and then there's water penetration. These factors contributed to the detachment...but we are watching them continuously." Roux said that the softball batting cage adjacent to the Edmunds Center was heavily damaged, and that a power trans- [ see STORM, page 2a] httpy/rebbtter.stetson.edu- talk/applaui >sTfi nasi i isla wsBmsssmmm