UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA ASHEVILLE
tP
The Blue Banner
Friday, September 5, 2008
www.tlieltluehamKT.nel
Vul. 49, Issue 1
Pnoix)s BY Katik Bac'Hmi;y[;r - Staff Phoixirai>mf;r
eft: A student uses a new “smart card” machine
installed on dorm entrances. Above: Students prepar
ing to enter Mills Hall. A smoking ban and changes in
the security process to enter dorms are among several
changes being implemented this semester.
Secure and smoke-free
Students
adjust to
changes
in health
plan
Jason Howell
Staff Writer
JDHOWELL@UNCA.EDU
Cassidy Culbertson
Staff Writer
CJCULBER@UNCA.EDU
Resident students ar
rived on campus this se
mester to temporarily
crowded, smoke-free and
“smart-card” accessible
residence halls.
“I wouldn’t character
ize overcrowding as a bad
thing,” said Vollie Barn
well, director of housing
operations. “I’m extreme
ly happy we have as many
students who want to live
on campus as we do.”
About 20 students
remained in temporary
housing as of Aug. 29,
Barnwell said, down from
a high of about 60 at the
start of the semester.
Temporary spaces in
clude rooms typically re
served solely for resident
assistants and lounges.
The guest apartment, usu
ally reserved for universi
ty visitors, is also serving
as a temporary residence
for students. A few larger
double rooms are housing
four residents.
Students often don’t
want to leave temporary
housing for smaller rooms,
according to Barnwell.
Other students wait for
rooms in specific dorms
to become available and
prefer waiting for their
desired rooms rather than
making another tempo
rary switch.
While the housing
shortage affects only
some residential students,
they must adjust to legis
lation passed by the North
Carolina General Assem
bly, which bans smoking
in public university resi
dence halls.
“It sucks, I can’t just
light up in my room, es
pecially when it rains,”
said, Ben McMechen,
freshman student, as he
smoked at an uncovered
picnic table near Founders
Hall Sunday.
McMechen, a Found
ers resident, joined one of
the Faceboo^com groups
dedicated to “DSAF,” the
designated smoking area
of Founders. Residents
regularly crowd the table,
designed to seat eight,
throughout the day and
into the early morning.
“It has its pros. We’ve
got our own little social
group now,” said Jeremy
Freeman, freshman stu
dent and fellow DSAF
member and smoker.
Barnwell said health
and safety concerns
prompted the legislation.
“Smoke-free residence
halls are a big thing on a
lot of levels. Obviously
it does impact ease with
which students can control
their own environment,”
he said. “It does make
it more inconvenient to
smoke but it definitely im
proves air quality and also
safety, because so many
fires are caused by smok
ing accidents.”
Housing also decided
to replace most of the key
code units this summer
with card entry systems
in order to resolve safety
issues in residence halls,
Barnwell said.
New “smart cards”
allow residents to enter
dorms by holding their
cards a few inches away
from sensors at building
entrances.
Card access prevents
non-residents from enter
ing buildings better than
codes, which residents can
easily share with friends,
according to Barnwell.
“Card access definitely
gives a higher level of se
curity,” he said. “It will
never be 100 percent se
cure, but it keeps some
body from walking out
of the Botanical Gardens
and into the building.”
The keypads in.stalled
last year provided an in
terim step, getting resi
dents into the habit of do
ing something to enter the
dorms, Barnwell said.
Sophomore student
Elizabeth Smith said card
access makes her feel saf
er in the residence halls.
"1 also love that you
don’t have to take your
OneCard out of your
pocket,” the Founders res
ident said.
Smith said more safety
measures would help her
feel safer.
“It can be creepy walk
ing all the way around
Founders late at night
when the HSU is closed,”
she said. “I would love
it if there was a back en
trance to the building. It
would save time and make
me feel much safer late at
night.”
Installing card access
points and distributing
new cards is an expensive
and timely process, Barn
well said.
Nine doors in West
Ridge, South Ridge, Gov
ernor’s Hall, Mills Hall
and Founders Hall have
card access. Governors
Village’s four halls have
keypad access.
Installing card access
to these nine doors cost
See HOUSING Page 2 |
Power Vote looks to engage UNCA
Jonathan Waiczak
News Editor
JMWALCZA@UNCA.EDU
Braving a steady rain,
25 students met Tuesday,
Aug. 26, in Highsmith
University Union to jump-
start the local efforts of
Power Vote, a national
movement aimed at rally
ing youth around energy
and environmental issues.
“The idea of Power
Vote is to get all the youth
in every region mobi
lized,” said sophomore
Rhys Baker, who is or
ganizing the movement
in Buncombe County.
Baker, 20, began the
meeting by asking each
student why they were
interested in volunteering
for Power Vote. The stat
ed reasons ranged from
serious to lighthearted,
including one student
who said she didn’t want
her kids “to die a hot
and miserable death.”
“This is a really good
opportunity with the No
vember election coming
up because we’re really
in a key time,” said junior
political science student
Kasey Baker. “Just look
at the global warming ef
fects that are going on with
massive hurricanes, etc.
You can go down the list.”
The Buncombe County
chapter of Power Vote in
tends to collect 3,000 sig
natures, building towards
a national goal of having
MfX: RAWI..S - EDITOR -IN-CHIEF
See power Page 2 |
Rhys Baker, sophomore student, high fives Elllie Johnston, senior environmental
studies .student, at an Aug. 26 meeting of the UNCA chapter of Power Vote.
Staci Thomas, fresh
man student, suffered
a medical emergen
cy when she was 23.
“I was at work one day
and all of a sudden there
was this sharp pain in my
abdomen,” Thomas, now
25, said. “My gall blad
der had stopped work
ing. I developed pancre
atic and so I was in the
hospital for 10 days.”
The ordeal cost more
than $80,000 by the
time she went home.
Blue Cross Blue Shield
of North Carolina insured
Thomas at the time, but
the Weaverville resident
said she wanted to switch
to Pearce and Pearce, the
South Carolina-based
company that won the bid
to be UNC Asheville’s
provider. Under Pearce
and Pearce,Thomas would
received about the same
coverage without paying
the $250 monthly fee she
owed to Blue Cross Blue
Shield of North Carolina.
UNC A.sheville
launched its required
health insurance cover
age this semester. Pearce
and Pearce breaks a
year s coverage into two
terms: fall and spring
through summer. Each
term requires one pay
ment; $611 for one stu
dent, $ 1,512 for a student
and his or her spouse and
$926 per child each year.
“I’m a big supporter
of the school’s manda
tory insurance,” Thomas
said. “It’s a lot cheaper.”
The student insurance
program covers sports-
related injuries under
$3,000, up to $100 a year
for immunizations and 80
percent on abortions under
$500. It afso covers ap
pointments with approved
doctors and counselors
up to 80 percent, but only
covers 60 percent for doc
tors outside the network.
Some of Pearce and
Pearce’s coverage-exclu
sions include eye exami
nations, glasses or con
tacts, hearing exams and
routine physicals. The
insurance does not cover
dental treatment but will
pay for accidental injury
to otherwise healthy teeth.
Students who veri
fied their pre-existing
health insurance may ob
tain prescription drugs,
HIV testing and birth
control through Stu
dent Health Services
starting immediately.
“We referred peo
ple from the first day,”
said Dr. Rick Pyeritz,
medical director of Stu
dent Health Services
and family physician.
Pyeritz, also an ad
junct professor, ex
pressed concern
See health Page 2 I
Sports Features
‘-mp
Soccer Profile
Pg.5
Drum Circle
Pg.8
Weather
THURSDAY
85
60
SATURDAY
83
60
FRIDAY
75
60
SUNDAY
80
60
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