NEWS
February ll, 2011
RecycleMania contest continues at Guilford
Environmental Sustainability Coordinator Jim
Dees explains the merits of RecycleMania, an
eight-week international recycling contest.
By Sage Donpineo
Staff Writer
In February 2001, members of Ohio University and Miami
University started a contest to see who could recycle the
most as a way to increase recycling in the residence and
dining halls. This eight-week competition was dubbed
"RecycleMania."
Ten years later, the contest membership has grown from
two universities to 630 colleges and universities from the
United States to the United Kingdom and Qatar. This year,
the contest started on Feb. 6 and will end on Apr. 2 — eight
short weeks to determine who will step up their game to
become the new RecycleMania champion.
What is the prize, you might wonder? The answer is
bragging rights and good, old-fashioned pride in your
school's commitment to the environment.
"This contest not ordy is a good-natured competition, but
also gives us incredible insight into how our progress has
been and gives us a chance to compare (our progress) to the
years before, as well as other schools," said Environmental
Sustainability Coordinator Jim Dees.
Guilford has been a part of RecycleMania since 2008. This
year, Guilford is entered in the Gorilla Classic, the Per Capita
Classic and the Waste Minimization categories, according to
Dees.
Guilford's continued participation in RecyleMania is
especially fitting, as the theme for the 2010-2011 academic
year is sustainability. The college has already shown its
commitment to the environment by installing 200 solar
panels this summer, installing two Earth Tubs for composting
and making Archdale Hall LEED silver certified.
"We are already seeing benefits," said Dees. "The second
year we participated in RecycleMania, we added the first
Earth Tub. This year, we added the second Earth Tub, and
we're composting 100 percent of the food out of the cafeteria.
When we're not composting, one full dumpster weighed six
tons. When we are [composting], it weighs 1,800 pounds."
The contest has had a huge impact on the Guilford
campus, not only physically (the solar panels) but also in the
way Guilford views the environment.
"A big part of RecycleMania is yourself," said Dave
Dobson, associate professor of geology. "People need to
decide how they want to live their lives and how much
impact they want to have on the environment. We need to be
stepping up to our environmental rhetoric and keep living
up to our principles."
One of the events Dees is planning as part of Recylemania
is a trash audit.
"When the weather gets nicer. I'd like to go around and
collect all the trash from the outside public trash cans, then
spread it out on a tarp, look at it (and) weigh it," said Dees.
"I want people to think about how much they throw in the
trash ... if we give people a dose of reality, then maybe we
can hit that social change."
Sophomore Ashley Maciag is highly supportive of the
audit.
"I think that this would be a real eye-opener for Guilford
college students," said Maciag. "If we published this
information weekly, we may be able to reduce the amount
of trash we throw away. It could also help influence people
to recycle more."
Gender-blind housing option for Bryan Hall
By Emily Cooper
Staff Writer
The Office of Campus Life recently posted
housing information online for the 2011-2012
academic year. The latest addition: gender-blind
housing in Bryan Hall.
According to the college website, "Coed groups
must be in equal pairings, meaning each room
within a suite must be single sex, but the suite
itself may be coed."
This means bathrooms will be unisex in coed
suites next year.
This may not faze older students who are
currently living in on-campus apartments, but to
students living in the dorms, it is a new option.
"Guilford College has never had gender-blind
housing," said Associate Dean for Campus Life
Jennifer Agor.
A new idea such as gender-blind housing
generates concerns about how Guilford's image
will be affected.
"I can understand that advertising Guilford
with a gender-blind housing option may be
tough for our admissions representatives because
some may view this as a housing free-for-all,"
said senior Brian Daniel. "However, this is an
important issue surrounding higher education."
Appealing to parents and prospective students
is important to the college, and gender-blind
housing may or may not affect the appeal.
"Gender-blind housing seems to be a reasonable
option," said David Turner, parent of sophomore
Karen Turner. "Friendships are generally gender-
blind, and rooming with a friend would probably
enhance the college experience."
On the other hand, some parents may not
approve of the new coed suite option.
"Most students feel as if college is their time to
learn how to be adults on their own, and this is
true in many ways," said Susie Whalen, mother
of sophomore Daniel Whalen. "However, coed
suites have the potential to create unexpected
situations that the students may not consider,
but parents would. Possible examples could be
privacy concerns, indiscretion, modesty, respect,
violence, etc."
Prospective student Amanda Wimer said she
would be comfortable living in gender-blind
housing and that it did not affect her image of
Guilford College.
"Gender-blind housing shows others that at
Guilford, everyone is equal and it doesn't matter
what gender you are," said Wimer.
From an administrative perspective, gender-
blind housing could bring unnecessary hassle for
the Office of Campus Life.
"I do worry about people wanting to live with
their boyfriend or girlfriend and that's really why
they want gender-blind housing, and then when
they break up, there are issues with that," said
Agor.
The new policy also raises questions about how
it will affect the Guilford community. Guilford's
student body is diverse; therefore, it is important
to consider all of the community's interests,
especially the minority groups on campus.
"What happens when the student wants to
be known as a different gender pronoun than
their biological sex?" said senior Caiden Hogan.
"Do they need to switch rooms? Will they have
that option? These are important questions to ask
because the transgender population is so small on
campus."
"It is important to have an option available for
transgender individuals because it does happen,"
said Hogan. "Diversity is an important value at
Guilford, and it has been consistent for the entire
four years that I have been here."
Guilford has often been criticized by students
for changing its image.
"Guilford College stands as a beacon for free
thought and open acceptance," said sophomore
Austen Applegate. "By taking the step for
gender-blind housing, Guilford is assuring that
it will continue to be a place where everyone is a
valuable part of the community."
"Perhaps if Guilford makes this progressive
and needed change, other schools will follow
suit," said Daniel.
Nity senate update