SARA BROWN
News Editor

Each year, as winter closes in, a small amount of hysteria occurs due to the flu.  This year, however, we have seen the introduction of H1N1 Influenza A.  Also known as the “swine flu,” the virus contains many genes similar to those found in influenza viruses in pigs, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At the moment the virus is no deadlier than the seasonal flu we have all come to know and love; still, this particular strand is running in the off-season and just won’t seem to die off. 

But fear not! As of Sept. 11, 2009, The New York Times reported on findings from the CDC. The vaccine that has been in production was found to be more potent than originally thought.  It turns out the vaccine will no longer have to be administered in two doses, but in one.  Thus doubling the protective coverage. 

While vaccines are always a good preventative measure for any virus, they should not be anyone’s singular defense, especially when living in a communal environment such as a college campus. And, unless you haven’t gone to class yet, you will have noticed that teachers are collecting your personal contact information, just in case there is an H1N1 outbreak on campus. 

“The university’s Wellness Center is keeping us informed of the directives coming from the state,” said physical education and health professor Joan Desilets.  “In addition, two years ago faculty were asked to come up with a plan for their courses should the University be closed and we lost the Internet services from campus. Thus far I have collected personal contact information from my students so that I might be able to continue my course teaching from a distance.”

As with any other virus, the first line of prevention always comes from individual people.  Though a college campus does depend on the faculty, staff and students to be responsible when it comes to health issues, there also have to be plans in place to help deal with any major situations.

“The campus Emergency Management Team met with the regional health officer to discuss preparations for the swine flu. The health officer provides guidance and instructions. Whatever he tells us to do, we will do,” said Provost Kenneth Greene.

Two years ago, another form of the flu called the norovirus hit the College at Florham. Since then the campus has had plans in place to deal with other contagious viruses.  Greene said the plan consists of a number of tactics, which include:

1.   Detailed information posted to the FDU Web site, which everyone should read.
2.   Additional cleanings of buildings by Facilities.
3.   Longer hours at the Wellness Center in order to treat students.
4.  Plans created by faculty members to ensure that they may continue classes (through Blackboard or otherwise) in case they or many of their students become ill.
5.   And students who become ill will be asked to go home until 24 hours after they are free of symptoms.

There are currently no plans to close the campus down. 

“Of course, if the flu outbreak is serious we would consult with the regional health officer concerning closing the campus,” said Greene.

The main defense for preventing the spread of the H1N1 flu and keeping the campus from closing comes from individuals. 

“I hope to have my students submit all papers through the Internet for sanitary reasons,” said Desilets. “It is a known fact that papers often carry the same germs that cause the flu so Internet submission help to alleviate that.”

Practicing good hygiene is key: everyone should be following the basic, common sense health precautions.

“It is extremely important that individuals also do what is necessary to stop the spread of the flu. Students, faculty and staff should wash hands regularly, use hand sanitizers, cough into their sleeves, and take the other preventative actions listed on the Web site,” said Greene. “If we take these steps, we should be able to control the flu’s spread.”

Whenever I find myself outside of my dorm building, Park Ave., after 9 p.m, I wonder what was so important to keep me out past 9. Not because I like to go to bed at 9 or anything along those lines. It is simply because, whenever I get to Park Ave. after 9 p.m, I have to drag myself around to the front to let myself in. Doesn’t sound so bad, except that it is bloody freezing out at the moment. Not to mention the fact that it is just simply inconvenient. And, well, nobody likes to be inconvenienced.
When I had first found out that the side doors of Park Ave. could not be used as an entrance after 9 p.m I was a little confused. I had a feeling that it was some delusional attempt at deterring vandalism and upping student safety. When I was able to contact residence life about the subject, I found that while I wasn’t too far off in my guesses, my hypothesis about their coherency was incorrect.

I played a quick game of phone tag with Residence Life and Public Safety and was able to talk to the Residence Life Director Eric Range about the Park Ave. side doors. What I found out was that originally there was only one entrance into Park Ave., the front entrance. Once the school had decided to utilize card access, Residence Life, in conjunction with Public Safety, had decided to allow access to the side doors during the day.

During a trial period entrance through the side doors was available until Midnight, but it was found there was a rise of unwanted activities, such as people from other buildings bringing unwanted items into Park Ave. So it was decided that when the Resident Assistants began their shifts in the front entrance booth at 9 p.m the side doors would no longer be available as an entrance.

The idea is that it is better to be able to see all who are coming in and out of the building. That being aware that you are being watched as you enter a building will deter you from deviant behavior. I have to disagree with this. I think that cameras could do the trick, especially because you never know who is on the other end of a camera’s signal. Walking through the front door, the only person you come across could quite possibly be a friend who is willing to look the other way. And regardless of who is watching you when you enter, no one continues to watch you through the rest of your excursion through the building.

And anyway, people can prop the doors to allow entrance for whomever. They can also let their friends in the side doors. If entrance through the side doors was at the very least extended for an hour or so, there would be less of a propping problem.

Though vandalism is historically high in Park Ave., the recent decline is being credited more to the switch of card swipes and the addition of cameras to the buildings than to the filtering of students through the front entrance. So that sort of debunks my “deterring vandalism” theory.

I will actually have to say that overall I am less annoyed with the fact that the side doors of Park Ave. are inconveniently inaccessible for entrance after 9 p.m than I am with the idea that we need to be babysat. Now, that is a little difficult to swallow.

SARA BROWN
Student Voice Contributor

Paul Russell and Janna Nephew are two Fairleigh Dickinson students who will be voting in this year’s election. Though they have a plethora of reasons for why they are voting, and who they are voting for, a common theme is dissatisfaction with the past eight years of leadership.

“I am amazed that we allowed Bush to stay in office for so long,” said Nephew, a hospitality major. She also said that she is more intrigued by this election because she can actually vote in it. “I am going to vote mainly because I feel like I am supposed to. I have the right to vote,” she said.

Russell, a creative writing major, said he will vote this year because he “might as well have some kind of say in how this country is run.” He said that he is interested in this year’s election “because it will, hopefully, bring about a better four years than these past eight years have been.”

Nephew and Russell are just two members of a demographic that is supposed to tip the scales in the upcoming presidential election: the youth demographic. Consisting of 18- to 29-year-olds, this particular demographic has been eluding the public for years when it comes to elections.

It seems that, during every election, predictions arise that place the youth demographic at voting booths in record numbers, and each election, this particular demographic fails to show. So what makes the race between Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama so different? Well, some are banking on the actual increase in numbers.

A 2005 Fact Sheet compiled by researchers from the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, CIRCLE, displays the largest surge in youth voter turnout in a presidential election since 1992. The surge is witnessed in the 2004 presidential election, which drew 47 percent of voters in the 18-to-24 demographic, an 11 percent increase from the 2000 election. It also showed that, nationwide, the voter turnout in the 18-to-29 age range increased from 40 percent in 2000 to 49 percent in 2004.

CIRCLE has found that, “In states where data is available for both the 2008 and 2000 primaries, the national youth turnout rate rose from nine percent in the 2000 primaries to 17 percent in the 2008 primaries.”

At the time the fact sheet was published, researchers were unsure of whether or not the increase in youth voter turnout between 2000 and 2004 was a part of a new trend or if it was a blip. The increase in youth voter turnout in the 2004 presidential election, coupled with the increase of youth voter turnout in the 2008 primary election, is leading many to predict that this year is the year of the youth vote.

Daniel Cassino, a political science professor at FDU, said that this is a critical year because it is “the year that tells us if we are seeing a blip, or if we are seeing the beginning of a sustained realignment.”

Cassino said that a realignment is a switch in the dominant party, a switch that is totally plausible because the youth demographic is leaning more toward the Democratic Party than ever.

Krista Jenkins, also a political science professor at FDU, said that the youth demographic is more Democratic because they are influenced by the times and an unpopular president.

Cassino called them “Bush Democrats,” people who generally have had no prior party ties and who do not like Bush, so they decide that they are Democrats. He also said that they will most likely stay Democrats, since party attachments generally form around the ages of 18 to 24, which is why the events that take place during that time period are so critical.

In a recent survey of 202 FDU students, 38 percent identified themselves as Democrats, 22 percent as Independents and 20 percent as Republicans. The remainder didn’t answer the question or responded that they either belong to another party or none at all.

When it comes to the youth demographic, Jenkins said, “Politics just don’t connect.” It seems that, generally, the politicians do not try to connect either. Because they have no habitual voting pattern, or long standing ties to either party, youth seem to be getting short shrift from politicians in their campaigns.
Both Jenkins and Cassino think that the Internet has played a big role in increasing youth voter turnout in recent elections. Jenkins believes that some politicians have learned to better utilize the Internet to reach a broader spectrum of people. And Cassino said that the Internet reduces political barriers by making the exchange of information much easier.

The numbers in 2004 and 2008 are significant, however, the media hype that surrounds them fails to recognize that the increase did not just come out of nowhere. Jenkins said that there has been a gradual increase in youth voter turnout since 1996.

While the 2004 presidential election and the 2008 primaries do show a surge in the percentage of youth voter turnout, it has to be remembered that the numbers still show fewer than 50 percent coming out to cast their ballots. That is the lowest of all the age groups. Also, the percentage of youth voter turnout is still five percent lower than it was in 1972.

“It is still the case that young people don’t pay attention, and don’t vote,” Jenkins said of the low youth voter turnout. “You would think that, with more college education, you would see more voting.”

At FDU, several groups recently have promoted the importance of the youth vote. In September, SGA and ABC co-sponsored a rally in the cafeteria to help inform students about the election issues and to make sure they were registered. The event featured representatives from the McCain and Obama campaigns to help answer questions that students might have about the candidates and their positions on several issues. The Office of Residence Life also promoted a voter registration drive.

For their part, students at the College at Florham seem to have mixed feelings about politics, and some are choosing not to vote in the presidential election.

Allison Biederman, a 21-year-old senior, has admitted that she’s not voting. “For one, I never really pay attention to politics,” she said. “Two, I don’t know who I would vote for, considering I haven’t been paying attention at all.”

Other students, like senior Amanda Marconi, think that voting is important because the outcome will affect students when they enter the “real world.”

“It’s important because everything that happens now will affect us, especially after graduation,” she said. “All of the policies and things will have an influence on our employment opportunities.”

SARA BROWN AND MAGGY PATRICK
Staff Writers