Caltech’s Kip Thorne discusses Einstein’s impact I 8
An independent newspaper _mmv dailyemerald.com Since 1900 | Volume 106, Issue 107 | Monday, March 28, 2005
LTD to repay University for strike
Members of theASUO will meet today to discuss how to allocate
the $38,276 that Lane Transit District has offered to reimburse
BY MEGHANN M. CUNIFF
SENIOR NEWS REPORTER
The University will be reimbursed $38,276
from Lane TYansit District to make up for the
week-long driver strike that halted bus serv
ice across the county and the one week of
free bus service that followed. The money
will be deducted from the amount the Uni
versity has to pay for spring term service.
Student money finances the free bus
service University students receive from
LTD. Andy Vobora, LTD service planning
and marketing manager, said the district felt
it was necessary to compensate students for
the strike and give them the same week of
free service given to everyone else in
the county.
“We feel like it’s the appropriate thing to
do based on past relationships,” Vobora said,
stressing the need to preserve the positive,
working relationship that exists between
LTD and the University.
Because the money will be deducted from
this term’s billing cycle, it will likely end up
in the ASUO Student Senate surplus, ASUO
Community and Housing Coordinator Scott
Lu said.
The surplus is in place to meet the unex
pected needs of programs funded by inciden
tal fees, “as well as other minor emergen
cies,” according to the ASUO rule book, the
Green Tape Notebook.
Lu said he will be meeting with ASUO
LTD, page 4
Parking,
paying,
The University's new "smart" parking meters offer
an easy-to-use solution for coin-toting drivers
BY EMILY SMITH
NEWS REPORTER
Starting today, University parking
moves into the future. Seven “Pay
and Display” parking meters —
which are solar powered and accept
various forms of payment, including
credit cards — have been installed at
several locations on campus. There
are five along East 15th Avenue, one
in a portion of the EMU parking lot
and one in front of Oregon Hall.
They will cost the same 75 cents
per hour as the old meters, and
with the exception of the one out
side Oregon Hall, there is no limit
to the amount of time a student
can purchase. There is, however, a
minimum purchase of one hour,
and if students don’t use all of
their time, it won’t carry over.
The machines distribute a slip of
paper to be placed on a car’s dash
board. TWenty to thirty spaces are
designated to each machine.
At around $10,000 per unit, the
new machines cost much more
than traditional meters, which run
about $350 excluding the post and
installation expenses. However,
each new meter has the potential
to cover 1,000 spaces.
Department of Public Safety
Parking and Transportation Man
ager Rand Stamm said the new
meters will require little mainte
nance, and because parking is
self-supporting, they will eventual
ly pay for themselves.
“Pay and Display” meters at the
University will accept cash, any
denomination of coins, Visa and
Mastercard; if this test period
proves successful, they could be
programmed to accept tokens and
Smartcards as well. Smartcards
work similarly to prepaid phone
cards, keeping track of the cash
value remaining each time the
card is used.
DPS has beeh working on the
parking project since last summer.
“Pay and Display” meters communi
cate wirelessly and are secured with
bullet-proof steel, drill resistant locks
and anti-crowbar door protection.
Stamm, who initially proposed
and spearheaded the program after
seeing its success in downtown
Portland, said the change was
made primarily for convenience
and easier maintenance, not to
make more money.
According the City of Portland’s
Office of TYansportation Web site,
the city switched to the Smartmeter
system because each of the city’s
7,000 street meters “must be visited
frequently for cash collections, re
pairs, battery replacements, etc.” It
also notes that the new meters im
prove reliability and reduce costs.
emilysmith@ daily emerald, com
Environmen
tally friendly
parking
kiosks
powered by
now
available in
the EMU
parking lot
in front
of Oregon
Hall, make
parking
oasier by
allowing
drivers to use
different
oayment
methods.
Danielle Hickey | Photo Editor
Graduates
could face
increasing
loan rates
With rates set to increase as
much as 64 percent, early debt
consolidation may help students
BY SHELDON TRAVER
NEWS REPORTER
For most seniors, the final disbursement of
financial aid arrived March 25 to fulfill their
tuition and fee obligations for the term. If the
seniors are lucky, they may receive a little ex
tra cash to help them make it through the next
12 weeks.
But after they graduate June 11, these fu
ture employees will be handed more than a
diploma: They will also be handed a bill for
the financial aid they received that could
reach higher than $250 per month.
With interest rates possibly set to rise July 1,
graduating seniors may want to consider con
solidating their loans now to save money.
Loans in repayment are currently set at
3.337 percent. New loan rates are set every
July 1 based on 13-week Treasury Bill Rates.
These rates have been climbing steadily dur
ing the past nine months and, according to
Jonathan Rudy, director of customer service
at www.studentloanconsolidator.com, this
could mean a 52 to 64 percent increase to
make loan rates as high as 5.5 percent.
“For students with an average of $30,000
on loans, the rate increase will translate into
an extra $1,018 in interest paid every year,”
Rudy said.
Students with federal subsidized and un
subsidized loans have a six-month grace peri
od to begin repayment; Federal Perkins loans
have a nine-month grace period. Rudy said
that students who consolidate prior to July 1
might lose these grace periods, depending on
whom they choose to consolidate through.
Direct Loans is the source of funding for
students receiving financial aid at the Univer
sity. According to its Web site, www.loancon
solidation.ed.gov, students who consolidate
prior to graduation may be able to keep their
grace periods. However, students need to
shop around for the consolidator that will best
suit their needs.
One consideration when shopping for a
loan agent is to look at minimum loan
amounts. Some consolidators will not take
loans with a balance of less than $7,500. An
other problem could be the chance of losing
AID, page 4
Programs Finance Committee
Stipend model still a hot-button topic in new budget
The proposed $5.23 million budget is a 6.88 percent funding increase
from last year, but international students raise concerns about pay cuts
BY PARKER HOWELL
SENIOR NEWS REPORTER
Despite llth-hour apprehension from some
student groups that pay cuts approved for stu
dent leaders next year will be unfair, the com
mittee that allocates student money finalized
a budget March 17 that includes a reduction
in the number of paid positions some groups
will receive.
Although members of the Programs
Finance Committee discussed amending the
stipend model used in the budget, which in
cludes cuts of up to three-fourths of some stu
dent leaders’ pay, the committee didn’t create
an amendment during the break. The PFC
will instead include a budget note asking next
year’s ASUO Student Senate to address indi
vidual groups’ concerns about pay cuts, per
haps funding some of the cut money with
surplus funds.
If the Senate approves the budget on
Wednesday, groups will receive about
$5.23 million, a 6.88 percent increase from last
year. The PFC reopened its budget March 16
to adjust a discrepancy between the numbers
it originally approved March 4 and final num
bers calculated by committee members.
The budget falls just below the 7 percent
cap on growth allowed by Green Tape Note
book rules.
Representatives of several multicultural
groups voiced concerns to the PFC at a March 16
meeting that the pay cuts unfairly affect interna
tional students and students of color.
Multicultural Center Co-Director Maria
Hwang called the cuts a “major structural
change,” adding that they would lead to the
“gentrification of the (student) unions.” She
said some student leaders depend on stipends
for essentials like rent and food.
Hwang said the cut also "disproportionate
ly affects disadvantaged students.”
“In times when the administration is work
ing on diversity, (the cuts are) contrary to
how the administration and University in gen
eral hopes to be a more diverse university,”
she said.
Hwang presented a summary of several
PFC, page 8