6 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
(11/20/14 12:57am)
There is no instance in which a victim of sexual violence should be silenced. Whether survivors of violent crimes are women or not, they deserve to be heard and the perpetrators of these crimes deserve to be brought to justice.
(10/30/14 12:13am)
American universities have not adopted a universal grading system. Although discrepancies between universities lead to blurred standards in terms of real-world competencies, it makes sense that universities have developed their own grading criteria.
(10/23/14 1:35am)
ASU’s Zero Waste by 2015 initiative was launched on April 1 of this year, though it has been in the works for several years. One of many efforts centered around sustainability on campus, the Zero Waste program has been publicized fairly well and many of its programs have already been implemented. For instance, there are recycling bins on every corner; composting bins have been installed at Hassayampa and Barrett, the Honors College’s dining halls; cardboard collecting services have been implemented in Tempe and Polytechnic; hand dryers have been installed in most restrooms at all four campuses; and even more obscure efforts, such as athletic shoe collection, have been enacted in order to reduce solid waste diversion by 90 percent.
ASU’s effort to become a more sustainable institution should not be a surprise given the presence of the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability and the School of Sustainability, one of the best sustainability programs in the world — and similar enterprises should be setting comparable goals. However, while reducing ASU’s waste is an extremely important and noble goal given its immense ecological footprint (17.72 million gross square feet), the Zero Waste by 2015 initiative is ultimately incomplete.
Earlier this year, ASU published a seemingly comprehensive Zero Waste roadmap that outlines the initiative’s baseline data, trajectories and goals. Within this document, it is revealed that waste characterization studies, meant to reveal the current state of ASU’s waste diversion, were conducted from Feb. 12-14, 2012. These studies include only 30 total samples, each weighing 200-300 pounds. While the roadmap claims that these samples were taken from representative receptacles, it does not seem likely that a two-day period could be completely illustrative of the entire University’s yearly waste production. Within the roadmap document, there is also a table containing information about ASU’s waste that dates from 2007-12, but the methods by which this data was collected are undisclosed. It is unclear whether this information is any more representative than that of the 2012 study.
More comprehensive studies should have been conducted because ultimately, it is impossible to create and implement mitigation strategies when the current state of the problem has not been properly analyzed. Perhaps this lack of information has led to additional obstacles facing the Zero Waste initiative.
Additionally, a large portion of the programs that are outlined in the Zero Waste roadmap are phrased as either being proposed or being in the piloting stage; this means that a lot of the programs that may ultimately allow the University to reach its zero waste goal have not been implemented enterprise-wide. In particular, most of the proposed composting programs are currently in the piloting stage — and given the fact that nearly 65 percent of ASU’s solid waste is compostable (paper and organics), the University should probably speed up its composting efforts.
The aforementioned roadmap was published earlier this year, and therefore, it is likely that more of the piloted, waste diversion programs have been implemented at ASU. Important to note, though, is the fact that the program’s failures are not the sole fault of its directors — in order for the initiative to be successful, all parties involved must be on board, especially considering ASU’s 100+ departments and partner organizations that are responsible for participating in new programs and projects. But unfortunately, 2014 is coming to a rapid conclusion, and the Zero Waste policy has not been completely adopted at ASU.
As this semester comes to a close, let’s hope that more of Zero Waste’s projects are implemented enterprise-wide so that ASU can move a little closer toward diverting 90 percent of its solid waste away from local dumps and toward sustainable alternatives. Reach the columnist at kpolickk@asu.edu or follow her on Twitter @kaelynpkEditor’s note: The opinions presented in this column are the author’s and do not imply any endorsement from The State Press or its editors.Want to join the conversation? Send an email to opiniondesk.statepress@gmail.com. Keep letters under 300 words and be sure to include your university affiliation. Anonymity will not be granted.Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on Twitter.
(10/16/14 1:09am)
With almost 80,000 attending students, ASU is a diverse campus that claims to welcome all types of students regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation or gender presentation. Present on campus are a number of organizations, clubs and coalitions that cater to all types of students. The LGBTQA Coalition, for instance, is an organization of students and staff who ensure the inclusivity and safety of ASU in regards to its many students who are trans*, bisexual, lesbian, gay or queer.This group has done a lot in an effort to build a safe environment for students at ASU. Through associated clubs and online pages, the LGTBQA Coalition provides resources for students who may be looking for a safe space to express their individuality or seeking information about health services and the community.However, despite this organization’s efforts to help ASU move towards inclusivity, there are still limited resources and familiarity for the transgender community at the University. In particular, there is limited information about and access to gender-neutral and private restrooms. It may be difficult to understand the importance of these restrooms on campus for those who conform to gender norms — that is, someone whose gender identity is consistent with the sex they were assigned at birth.However, for those individuals who do not have the privileges of cisgender folk, using a public and gender-specific bathroom can be both intimidating and dangerous. In fact, gender non-conforming and transgender people often experience harassment and assault when using public restrooms. Because of the fear of ridicule and assault, some individuals avoid using public restrooms altogether. Ultimately and very unfortunately, gender-specific restrooms have become an unsafe place on campus. Because of their private nature, it is difficult to ensure both their security and their privacy at the same time.The same can be said for the people who use public restrooms. If ASU decided to provide some sort of security in restrooms across campus, the privacy of both trans* and cis people would be compromised. Therefore, it is essential that gender-neutral and private bathrooms are accessible in all areas at ASU and to all students at ASU. One of the resources the LGTBQ Coalition provides is information regarding the gender-neutral and private restrooms on campus. It is likely that this has become an essential guide to those who are aware of it, but ultimately, these resources are not available to those who are familiar with the coalition, to those who do not have constant Internet access or to those uncomfortable with asking for the information from students or campus staff members. The University claims there are 44 buildings in which gender-neutral bathrooms are present, but many of these are simply family restrooms. While these may be safe and locking restrooms, it is important to distinguish the difference between these and truly gender-neutral restrooms, because the latter increase visibility and inclusivity for the transgender community on campus. The Tempe campus has 14 truly gender-neutral restrooms, but there is no signage pointing to these restrooms. There are no maps or directions regarding these restrooms available in ASU's centers for health or student services and the responsibility of informing students about them has largely been left up to one campus organization. Perhaps more gender-neutral bathrooms need to be installed at ASU, but for now, considering the financial burden of plumbing and remodeling, it would be enough for the University at large to publicize the locations and benefits of these bathrooms so that those who do not feel safe using gendered spaces can have access to a basic human need on campus. Reach the columnist at kpolickk@asu.edu or follow her on Twitter @kaelynpkEditor’s note: The opinions presented in this column are the author’s and do not imply any endorsement from The State Press or its editors.Want to join the conversation? Send an email to opiniondesk.statepress@gmail.com. Keep letters under 300 words and be sure to include your university affiliation. Anonymity will not be granted.Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on Twitter.
(10/08/14 11:28pm)
WOW Factor! and Man Up are two organizations on campus that claim they are committed to building a culture of respect between men and women at ASU. They were formed as partner organizations at the University, and they are maintaining active members across all campuses.
(10/01/14 10:41pm)
The Polytechnic campus of ASU, the previous home of the College of Technology and Innovation, serves over 9,500 students and is the most uniquely innovative campus at ASU. Small class sizes and access to high-tech facilities, laboratories and design studios are all offerings of the Polytechnic campus that are not available at Tempe, Downtown or West campuses. However, these facilities are not all that provide a special experience at Poly; the culture of innovation is an integral part of the campus spirit as well.