The Reporter

wed jan-04 s I http://: "feer.stetson.edu I HllJJl I_JIUIUI>JW>_MI IJIMIipi J. .A^lUfai^...lAtf.fr;,A''>,A^ lEWSi Stetson hosts Martin Luther King breakfast page 2a WHATSiwsipe' News 2a . ■ Opinions 4a Life ii Classifieds 3a Sports 5B Etcetera || LIFEs Oscar Bluemner comes to the Duncan Gallery page il Career Services offers student workshops By Jamie Kinsley ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR Not many people know where the Career Services office is located. However, a student may not necessarily need to trek over to 102 Flagler Hall to discover the plethora of resources that Career Services has to offer. This semester Career Services is offering a vast number of workshops and resources for students regardless of their area of interest or post-graduation goals. David Jenks, the assistant director of career services, said, "Only. 3% of arts and sciences students used the career services resources last semester. This is not enough. We need to be teaching the students skills that are vital to their career success after graduation. These include articulating their ideas and skills effectively to employers. I think many students think of Career Services as a placement or resume . writing service, and we are much more than that. We offer a myriad of services." Events will be offered during days and the evenings to accommodate students' schedules. There will be a "Life after Stetson" workshop on March 31 that will feature things that juniors and seniors need to know. Alumni will come to talk to students about things like buying a car, paying taxes, credit cards, 40Ik's, food and wine, dinning out, and developing a social life after Stetson. Other new events include a "Junior Open House Orientation," w-hich will allow students to get a head start on looking for jobs or graduate schools. There will also be a* "Last Minute Job Search" workshop. This will assist students in finding jobs in the tight job market this year. "It will give us a chance for to tell them what type of time line they wall be looking at for getting a job. If they go to as many workshops as possible they will have a better chance," said Jenks. One event that does have a rather larger turnout than most is the etiquette dinner. This event focuses not only on dining etiquette, but also business etiquette, and food and wine knowledge. "I definitely think that Career Services is helpful. Career Services has helped me acquire important skills, and their new event look good for younger students who are looking for job opportunities and internships," said Steven EISViCES, page 2s ^Reporter Corrections 1. "Reflections of a non-traditional semester," OPINIONS, Issue 12. This article was written by David Keith. 2. "Stetson diversity discussion raises necessary, valid points," OPINIONS, Issue 12. This letter to the editor was written by Margaret A. Grebin. C ONTACT US 421 N. Woodland Blvd. #8409 DeLand, FL 32720-3751 . 386.822.7224 FAX 386.822.7233 reporter."?.'; stetson, edu reporter_news'«'.s tetson.edu opinionsJ.fstetson.edu life'.'?'stetson, edu etcetera.^' stetson.edu sports':!'stetson, edu on line(<?;s tetson.edu advertisers tetson.edu LAW SCHOOL 1 . _, I .■A ,. .-".--i -V^*>$SB#y£' CAMPUS: The Tampa Law Center and Campus, the first law school in Tampa opened for classes on Thurs., Jan. 15. photo courtesy of stetson university college of law By Liz Erlenbach NEWS EDITOR n Thurs, Jan. 15, the College of Law opened a second campus, in downtown Tampa. The Tampa Law Center and Campus will host the college's I 125 part-time law students, as well as the Second District Court of Appeal's Tampa offices. It is the first law school in Tampa. Though construction is currently ongoing on the campus, the college was able to begin holding classes on the campus on the 15th. "There's some painting to be done; there's landscaping, there's some computer work that's being done, and some of the rooms are still being finished. But for classroom purposes we're up and running," said Jan Majewski, associate dean of the Tampa campus. Due to construction delays, the first week of classes was required to be held on the college's main campus in Gulfport, according to Majewski. Groundbreaking for the three- story, 73,500-square-foot building occurred in Jan. 2003. "The actual construction began sometime in late March," said Majewski. The $9.23 million building is built in the same Spanish-Mediterranean style as the Gulfport campus. Majewski said that opening a campus in Tampa has long been a priority. "It was always viewed as being important to have a part-time program where it could be centrally located in the Tampa Bay area. Most part-time programs attract people who commute in. In order to be as convenient as possible, and also be accessible to the courts, the different governmental agencies, law firms, and other businesses, which are predominately in the downtown Tampa area, it was viewed as an advantage to be in a downtown Tampa location," Majewski said. The convenience of the Tampa campus also benefits the students currently enrolled in the part-time program. "Some of them have been commuting to Gulfport from the east side of Orlando. By having the Tampa campus open, even though they don't have all their classes there, on the days, they do have classes in Tampa, some of them are saving as much as two and a half to three hours of commute time," said Majewski. Students enrolled in the part-time pro- —r" ~" gram will attend classes on both the Tampa campus and the Gulfport campus. Their classes are held only in the evenings, and the program allows students who cannot attend daytime classes to attain a law degree. "It makes it easier for people to get a law degree without having to put their lives on hold for three years," said Majewski. The program has been in existence since the fall of 2002. -tfi *■& t£*T *"■—iVFmJ ■ills) &£&&' ^ -_ «- fMt^fc, ^___j __ COURT: The courtroom in the new Tampa campus will be used by both the school and Tampa's appeals court, photo courtesy of stetson university college of law However, since fewer courses are taken each semester, the program takes four years to complete (eleven semesters, including summer semesters). :r=i_ While the first two levels of the Tampa campus will house classrooms, a courtroom, a law library, and other spaces used for the law school, the third level of the three-story building will house the offices and chambers of Florida's Second District Court of Appeals. According to Majewski, "The court had to find new offices because the place where they were being housed "It was always viewed as being important to have a part-time program where it could be centrally located in the Tampa Bay area." was undergoing some renovation. The state would have had to build them a whole new building, and it ended up being much more cost-effective for the state to lease space from the law school, have their offices in our building, and use our classroom/courtroom for their oral arguments." While the court will use the courtroom during the day, the law school will use it at night to teach classes. The partnership is expected to work well, according to Majewski. "The law school has had a longstanding relationship with the local appellate court, and it's something that has invigorated a lot of the see -yiui^Uis, page 2B fl®®l x ©©Mm By Youssef Benkhatar BUSINESS MANAGER It has been said that two things are guaranteed in life: death and taxes. Perhaps in response to this, Stetson University is now offering a new elective course this semester. This experimental course, entitled "Personal Tax: What you need to know now so you don't pay later"(ATG 295) is being offered through the School of Business Administration. The new course has been advertised on the Stetson University website as "designed for non-accounting majors who have an interest in learning more about the taxes that impact individuals and small businesses." This billing has apparently found a niche among several Stetson students who are taking the class for just those reasons. "It is something that I wanted to learn before I graduated and entered the real world," said Eddie Kurkland, a senior general business major. Students outside the business school also had positive comments about the. course. "It is full of practical knowledge —-.--. --r-rr~ that I can use as soon as I graduate from college," said Jon Martin, a senior political and religious studies major. "The class is not too challenging, but is very useful." What is perhaps *"" surprising about the new personal taxation course is the fact that there are as many faculty and staff members taking the class as students. "This course has been very helpful," said Stetson University staff member Norma Dean. "Since we all pay taxes it just seemed beneficial to learn "This course has been very helpful. Since we all pay taxes it just seemed beneficial to learn more about the process." more about the process." Although she expressed a bit of uncertainty about taking classes' as a married adult mother, Nancy Sharff, the women's golf coach, seemed to agree. "I've always had people doing my taxes, so I wanted - .:.-.:—:--:— to understand more about it," said Sharff. The course is being taught by Mr. Judson P. Stryker and Dr. Michael E. Bitter, both certified public accountants. The course objectives of-thi-s new class, as stated in the syllabus, are "to provide an introduction to issues of personal taxation." The issues to be discussed range from business expenses and capital gains and losses to estate and gift taxation. The course also covers tax planning and individual tax returns. The class's format is a combination of lecture and discussion, and the reading material consists of a single textbook, Income Tax Fundamentals. "The idea for the course started with the students in November," explained Bitter. "We decided to make it an experimental class." The introduction class included-a discussion of simple tax forms including the 10-40EZ and a listing of various examples of deductions. Students will also be required to successfully complete three separate tax returns during the course of the semester. "If people like it, we will continue it," noted Bitter of the class. "It is a fun course at the 200 level." The three credit-hour course meets Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1 to •2:15 p.m. and does not require any previous experience or prerequisites. The course is open to all students except junior and senior accounting majors. Contact Youssef Benkhatar ai yukon 7401 @aol. com. ITIim ilfrUll nihil f nil imt-i TwratiMWittwiitWwftittfliiiB'^'ij^iftifflimMa^^