Advisory board could upset
international studies program
The board, included in a
federal bill that has passed
the House, would monitor
international programs
By Chelsea Duncan
News Reporter
A proposed federal bill that could
create an advisory board to monitor
international studies programs at
universities has some faculty wor
ried about the implications of gov
ernment influence.
The bill, which passed the House
in October and now awaits Senate
consideration, includes a provision
seeking to establish an advisory
board of political appointees to ana
lyze the way international studies
are taught and make recommenda
tions to the administration if a prob
• lem is perceived.
The provision could affect any uni
versity and college program funded
under Title VI of the Higher Educa
tion Act, which provides financial
support for such programs. The over
all bill is part of the reauthorization of
the Higher Education Act.
International Studies Assistant
Professor Stephen Wooten said the
board was proposed last summer
when certain political leaders raised
concerns that some programs taught
anti-American sentiments and did
not serve the interests of the Bush
administration.
"It's certainly not true, but that's what
they were perceiving," Wooten said.
In October, Rep. John Boehner,
R-Ohio, chairman of the Education
and the Workforce Committee, said
the bill is important for maintaining
"critical international and foreign lan
guage programs," according to a press
release from the Office of Govern
mental Affairs.
Eric Bishoff Freelance Photographer
Assistant Professor Stephen Wooten’s International Studies classes could be impacted
by the federal bill if it is approved by the U.S. Senate.
"Now, more than at virtually any
other time in our history, we must un
derstand our national interests and se
'Now, more than at
virtually any other time in
our history, we must
understand our national
interests and security
concerns within an
international context. We
do not live in a vacuum,
and our higher education
system must reflect this."
John Boehner
Chairman of the Education
and the Workforce Committee
curity concerns within an internation
al context," he said. "We do not live in
a vacuum, and our higher education
system must reflect this."
Wooten said the purpose of an
international studies program is to in
crease international understanding.
"By design, that's what the pro
gram is supposed to do," he said.
"Our goal is really to enrich the
American perspective."
He added that those who support
implementing the board likely do
not support international studies in
general.
"The people who are the most reac
tionary are people who don't want
other perspectives," he said.
Although the University's Interna
tional Studies Program is not fund
ed under Title VI, a portion of it
could be soon.
Wooten said he has applied for a
grant under Title VI, which would be
used to enhance African studies at
the University.
But Wooten said the advisory
board, if it is created, will have lim
ited power, and therefore he is not
worried about his grant being ap
proved or future studies being
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Totally Cellular’s
EMU location closes
The cell phone company
will continue to pay $1,100
in rent until their lease
expires in about two years
By Caron Alarab
Senior News Reporter
Although she never needed to use
the services at the Totally Cellular
store in the EMU, freshman Kathleen
Martin said she wasn't surprised when
she recently noticed an empty room
in its place.
"I know a lot of the time they sent
my friends to the mall because they
couldn't fix certain phones," she said.
After less than a year on campus,
local cell phone retailer Totally Cel
lular closed its EMU location last
month in an effort to regain the
profits it lost while serving the Uni
versity community.
Despite a high-traffic location be
tween the Fishbowl and the Ticket
Office, the company decided to pull
out of the building following fall
term final exams, EMU Director
Dusty Miller said. -
"Doing retail on campus is very dif
ferent from doing it on the street," he
said. "About five months out of 12,
campus retailers need to make a prof
it to sustain their businesses, and
some barely break even."
Miller said he will consult recent
market research and solicit new "enti
ties" to take up the space before mak
ing a presentation to the EMU Board.
In the meantime, Totally Cellular will
pay monthly rent until its lease is up
Eric Bishoff Freelance Photographer
Totally Cellular's store on the first floor of the
EMU closed its doors at the end of fall term.
in about two years.
"I believe this was (Totally Cellu
lar's) first attempt at working on a col
lege campus," Miller said.
A Totally Cellular employee who
did not want to be identified said the
cell phone retailer first decided to re
locate the EMU store in mid-Decem
ber. The company then moved the
store to a prior location in Springfield
while keeping the same employees
and the same look.
Located at 107 W. Q St., the new
and improved Totally Cellular store is
open for business, and the company
hopes the change will help it make a
better profit, the employee said.
According to http://www.totallycel
lular.net, the Springfield location is
just one of nine current branches
statewide. Established in 1996, the
privately owned company went
Turn to CELLULAR, page 6
I
air
"Life's most urgent question
is: What are you doing for
others?"
-MLK Jr.
January 21, 22
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