Issues & Answers
Issue: Why isn’t the library open past midnight during the regular semester?
Answer: There has never been much traffic in Middleton Library after midnight. A few years ago, the first floor was kept open until 2 a.m., but with the myriad resources available electronically there were very few patrons. Staffing the library after midnight is extremely difficult and – with all its nooks and crannies – safety and security are of primary concern.
Issue: When completed, will the new Union Theater be completely handicapped accessible?
Answer: Currently, only the orchestra section of the Theater is accessible. The renovation will bring the facility into compliance with ADA regulations. This will include:
. accessibility to all three seating tiers.
. two new elevators will be installed on the northeast corner, serving the main building and the Theater.
. all restroom facilities and backstage facilities (dressing rooms) will be accessible.
. staircases that do not meet code will be replaced; hand railings will be installed as necessary.
. all major exterior entrances will have automatic doors.
Update on LSU Women’s Center and African American Cultural Center
The Women’s Center (WC) and the African American Cultural Center (AACC) Dialogue Teams*, which include affiliates, allies, and supporters, i.e. LSU faculty, staff, students, and community partners, met July 18, 2007, to discuss the current physical plant of both centers and the potential opportunity for growth and expansion. Some key facts presented during this meeting included:
- The current size of each center. The AACC is approximately 1200 sq. ft. and the WC is approximately 1600 sq. ft.
- The current limitations of each center. 1) The AACC has only one meeting space and no other isolated office space; 2) For minimal expansion, both centers would require significant private donations; and 3) Both Centers are on the LSU deferred maintenance list.
- Traffic flow and operations of each center.
- False reports of demolition and discontinuation of each center. Neither center is being demolished nor discontinued. This team will continue to work towards a plan that will be in the best interest of both centers.
This fruitful discussion highlighted the following:
- A recognized truth of the vital contributions that both centers offer to the campus and greater community.
- A unanimous decision to facilitate the expansion and growth of the WC and AACC while maintaining the individuality, integrity, and identity that each center brings to LSU .
- An excitement to work closely with University administration to brainstorm ideas for enhancing space allocation.
- A willingness to interface with campus and community constituents to gain feedback and provide vital progress reports.
* Dialogue Teams – These individuals have committed not only to working closely with the University administration but also to interfacing with campus and community constituencies who have passion about the future of the WC & AACC. Be assured that these stakeholders are vocalizing your concerns and open communication is taking place between the administration and campus and community constituents for both centers. It is our intention that these stakeholders will provide the greater community with accurate reports of the University’s progress.
Women’s Center: Dr. Rita Culross, Professor and Women & Gender Studies Director;
Tim Field, University College and Staff Senate President; Rachel Herbert, LSU graduate and current Women’s Center volunteer; Roberta Madden, YWCA Director of Women’s Health & Public Policy and Women’s Center advocate; Morgan Moreau, Women & Gender Studies major and Women Organizing Women President; Ashley Ransburg, LSU graduate and East Baton Rouge Parish public school teacher, Women’s Center & AACC advocate; Sheri Thompson, Computing Services, former WC director responsible for the WC move from Hatcher to current location; and Jessica Ketchum Weber, doctoral student and Women & Gender Studies Student Organization President.
African American Cultural Center: Dr. Troy Allen, African & African American Studies faculty member and African American Cultural Centers historian; Kwame Asante, State Director of the Louisiana NAACP;Westley Bayas, III, General Studies major and African American Cultural Center Student leader; Kirt Bennett, second African American LSU Student Government president and African American Cultural Center advocate; The Honorable Donald Cravins, Jr., Louisiana State Senator and African American Cultural Center advocate; Elise Gilbert, Kinesiology major; and 2007 Black History Month Chair; and Linda Smith Griffin, librarian and Black Faculty Association & BFSC representative.
For up-to-date information on this topic, please visit www.lsu.edu/diversity.
Issue: I've noticed that in the current as well as past political campaigns some candidates use LSU purple and gold and even reference "Tigers" in their campaign materials. Are these products licensed by LSU?
Answer: LSU has strict guidelines and standards for the use of its marks and colors and closely monitors infringement on the University’s trademark rights. We do not endorse political candidates, and when we are made aware of the issues you reference, we take immediate steps to curtail such use.
LSU Response to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)
05/22/2007 02:44 PM
Note: The following is Chancellor Sean O'Keefe's response to a letter from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) dated May 22, 2007, regarding LSU's plans to obtain a tiger. Mike is a treasured member of the LSU family. There are 71 years of history behind Mike, and he represents the heart of our University. LSU stands behind its treatment of its tigers. Their habitat and lifestyle are constantly monitored to ensure their well being, and they receive state-of-the-art veterinary medical care from the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, which can improve and extend the life of a big cat. This is evidenced by the fact that Mike V lived to be 17 years of age. Two of LSU’s tiger mascots, Mike I and Mike III, lived 19 years, and Mike IV lived 20 years 9 months and 18 days. The average lifespan for a tiger in the wild is about 8-10 years. A tiger in captivity, like Mike V, can live 14-18 years. Our mascots live in an excellent tiger habitat, far better than most found in zoos. Solitary animals by nature, tigers do not congregate in the wild, and due to the alarming state of their species in the wild – tigers are already critically endangered and their numbers continue to shrink – efforts to maintain the integrity of the species will need to be conducted in captivity. The current enclosure is large enough for Mike to express normal species-specific behaviors, including roaming his enclosure. Captive tigers do not have to fight and risk injury to establish and defend their territories, secure mates, or hunt prey. They are also safe from poachers and are not subject to common and debilitating viral, bacterial, and parasitic infections. Further, LSU is committed to the safe, responsible, and ethical care and handling of its tigers. Mike poses no danger to students, spectators at sporting events, visitors to his habitat, or the medical personnel who care for him. Contact is limited by strict order of the mascot’s trainer and veterinarian, as well as by policies established and enforced by the United States Department of Agriculture. During games, Mike is placed in a specially designed trailer. No persons are allowed to contact the tiger without a barrier between them and the tiger. LSU’s tigers are treated with the love we give our mascots and all the respect we give wild animals. They are in no way inhumanely or cruelly treated, and their care and comfort are of the utmost importance to all members of the LSU community. LSU has a federal permit to exhibit a tiger and abides by all animal welfare laws, regulations, and policies. The facility and care provided to LSU's Mike the Tiger exceed federal standards. Finally, it should be noted that LSU, in line with the University’s educational function, is in the process of developing a state-of-the-art tiger education center to educate the public about global conservation issues. The presence of a live tiger will augment the educational impact of the center. Thus, the presence of Mike VI on campus will move the mascot program into a greater educational role than was possible with previous tigers. The School of Veterinary Medicine has already received dozens of offers for a new cub. We will not take a tiger cub from its mother; we will obtain a cub that has been weaned. And, LSU absolutely will not purchase a tiger from a private breeder, as we do not want to encourage irresponsible breeding of tigers. Dr. David Baker* will assess all offers and will also seek candidates through a list of established contacts, primarily zoos. Again, thank you for writing. I hope that I have addressed some of your concerns. Cordially, Sean O'Keefe |
Issue: The RIAA has traditionally engaged in scare tactics and over-ambitious lawsuits. As an LSU student living on campus, what steps has/will LSU take to protect the privacy of students who use peer-to- peer networks for legal purposes? And what steps has/will LSU take to protect its students from the RIAA's scare tactics?
Answer: I assure you that LSU strives to protect the privacy of its students, faculty, and staff. Concerning the issue of peer-to-peer file sharing, Information Technology Service (ITS) has educational material available online at File Sharing at LSU and www.lsu.edu/itpolicy on actions you can take to avoid copyright infringement, and ways in which students who use peer-to-peer applications for legal purposes can protect themselves. In addition, the institution has implemented preventative measures to insure appropriate use of peer-to-peer applications on our campus network and within the residential housing network we support.
I want to take a moment to explain in a bit of detail about how RIAA notifications work, both in the past and now with their new tactic. Indeed, you are correct that they do seem to be taking ever more aggressive actions.
First , ITS (on behalf of the University) does not reveal the identity of students in response to any notification from RIAA (MPAA, or others) regarding potential copyright infringement – unless a legal court order is issued (a subpoena). Here is how the notification process works.
These entities notify LSU of their belief that their copyright is being misused, under what is called the Digital Millennium Copyright (DMCA for short); they give us the only details they can get via the network – the IP number of the device alleged to have infringed on their copyright. The DMCA law then requires LSU to pass on these notifications to those connected to our network at that address. We do not reveal that information to the entity issuing the DMCA complaint. We alert the student – not the RIAA. We do monitor the individual's response to the complaint and there are actions we take as a University network provider (detailed in those Weblinks above).
If the University is served with a subpoena (legal order from a court of law) requiring the name of a person associated with that IP address – usually the result of the problem not being addressed, then and only then do we reveal the information we have on the person – as required by law. At this point, LSU cannot do otherwise and be within the law.
The latest RIAA process is a step beyond the DMCA notifications, but again falls short of a court-mandated action. Now, the RIAA is notifying universities that a particular IP number is infringing copyright and that they intend to eventually issue a subpoena to sue that person in court – but they're offering a chance for that individual to settle in advance without going to court. What LSU will do in this new process is to proceed with forwarding the notification to the user involved (as if it was a DMCA complaint, which after a fashion it is) – but again, we are not revealing their identity without the legal subpoena. We are also going to send along information we have on the law, so the person can best judge what to do.
The news stories also talk about the RIAA asking universities to keep log files. How LSU is interpreting this is as follows. They do not want us, should they issue a subpoena later, to then say “… we erased our network records (say, after the end of a semester) so we can not tell you who had that IP address anymore.” LSU, at the time the notification is received, makes note of to whom we sent the letter; and we've kept that information. We are not tracking the use of that user or computer nor are we keeping data about any use. This is the limit of what we feel we must do under the law. Despite comments in the media from other institutions, I have confidence that they, too, are doing this minimal record keeping.
As a point of fact, in the two years that I have been at LSU, we have not once received a court-order/subpoena to reveal an individual's identity. LSU also is well below the national average in receipt of DMCA complaints as well, and as my recent broadcast memo stated, we have not received any notifications in this most recent RIAA action. I believe that LSU students by and large respond appropriately to initial DMCA notifications, and thus there is no need for the RIAA to go further. This has been our experience to date.
I assure you that the Office of the CIO here at LSU, through its Information Technology Security & Policy function, is closely monitoring the actions being taken by the RIAA, and will work with University Counsel on insuring our network environment continues to promote compliance with the law that protects both copyright owners and the privacy of our network community. We are also working to ensure that the LSU community stays informed of developments.
Again, LSU is committed to providing a safe, secure environment for faculty, staff and students.
Issue: When will the parking garage be ready and who will be able to park in it?
Answer: We are just getting into the design phase of the parking garage, which will be located at the corner of Highland Road and Raphael Semmes Drive behind the African-American Cultural Center. We envision a 750-space facility with 100-150 spaces for exclusive student use (residents who reside on the east side of campus), 100-150 spaces for faculty and staff, and the rest for visitors (paid parking). We hope to get construction underway next spring or early summer when the renovations to Laville and Pentagon cafeterias are complete and we can tear down Highland Cafeteria. It should take about a year to complete, so we hope to have it open by Fall 2009 – or Spring 2010 at the very latest.
Issue: If LSU aspires to be a national flagship university, why is the library closed on home football game Saturdays?
Answer: Middleton Library is not always closed on Saturdays of home football games. If the game begins at 7 p.m. or thereafter, Middleton Library closes at 4 p.m. If the home game begins as early as 4 p.m., it closes at 1 p.m. If games begin between 4 and 7 p.m., a decision is made about closing time, depending upon the starting time of the game. If the game begins earlier than 4:00 p.m., Middleton Library does not open. And, of course, the library is not closed for away games.
Tailgating and game-daytraffic make it difficult for staff and patrons to get to the library. Staff and patrons usually have to park at considerable distance, and leaving campus is also very difficult, especially with the incoming traffic flow. In addition, there are sanitation, safety, and security issues.
The football Saturday Schedules policy is under Hours on the LSU Libraries home page at http://www.lib.lsu.edu/admin/hours/index.html. For the convenience of potential patrons, the closing notice is posted on the Web site as soon as the game time is known, and many of our resources are available electronically so they can be accessed from off campus.
Issue: I'm very upset that there aren't any bowling lanes or a billiard room included the LSU Union's renovation.
Answer: When planning for major renovations to the LSU Union began in 2001, the bowling lanes were included in the plans and were going to be turned into a state-of-the-art facility. During the second and third years of planning, however, several things occurred.
We discovered that the preliminary cost estimates for renovating the bowling lanes were considerably higher than expected – and this was before Hurricane Katrina, which drove all construction costs up even higher.
Interest in bowling has declined steadily over the last decade. In surveys we ran, bowling consistently ranked in the bottom third of services that students would use. In addition, statistics about bowling throughout the state indicated a steady decline in interest among high school students, meaning that smaller numbers of high school students came to college with an interest in bowling. A majority of college students today prefer the types of fitness activities now provided by recreational centers, for example, cardio equipment and weight training.
Bowling was eliminated as an activity class by the Department of Kinesiology. These classes helped create interest in the past.
I assure you, students were involved in every decision of planning from the very beginning through open forums, surveys, meetings with the design architects, and various planning committees.
You'll be happy to know that when completed, your Union will boast a new billiards room with all-new tables. It will be right next to the new Live Oak Lounge on the ground floor and will be accessible in the 24-hour zone.
Issue: I think computer-based math tests are unfair. Is there any plan to do away with computer-based tests in math courses?
Answer: LSU has had great success with its computer-based math tests and does not intend to discontinue them. Indeed, our testing system has become the model that other universities are following.
Experience has shown that students who have success with computer-based testing usually are doing the homework enough times to learn both the skills and concepts involved. Learning for them has become active rather than passive.
All test questions come directly from the computer-based homework, which can be worked and reworked an infinite number of times, thus allowing a student to practice the actual test questions and not be surprised by what is marked right and what is marked wrong. In addition, the directions in the software are very clear and tell students exactly how to enter the answers. For example, in Math 1021, about 120 exercises from quizzes and tests (which come directly from the homework) have been consolidated into two review homework assignments. The 30+ questions on the final examination come directly from those 120 exercises, so there are no surprises.
Issue: What and how much does LSU recycle?
Answer: The University recycles mixed paper (white paper, card stock, colored paper, newspaper, envelopes, phonebooks, magazines, and computer paper), newsprint, cardboard, pallets, concrete, tires, batteries, oil, wood waste, glass, plastic, aluminum, and used cooking oil.
Every effort is made to make recycling easy for faculty, staff, students, and visitors. We have had great success with the blue exterior recycle bins for plastic and aluminum. About 30 exterior containers for the collection of glass plastic and aluminum are in high-traffic areas across campus, and new containers will be provided as funds come available. As an expansion of this effort we are also placing containers for plastic and aluminum can recycling inside classroom buildings. Pilot locations for this effort are the vending areas and entrances of Lockett, Coates Hall, Prescott , Atkinson, and Tureaud halls.
Since 2003, Facility Services has distributed some 2,000 desk-side recycle trays and 800 large recycle boxes to academic and administrative buildings and provides the custodial staff to empty interior recycle boxes. In the near future, the large cardboard paper recycle boxes with more durable blue plastic paper recycle containers.
With the increased number of newspapers being delivered to campus we have placed 30 green recycle bins in the Quad to help capture discarded newspapers.
In addition, there is a 6 yard recycle container located at 20 locations on campus for office paper, shredded paper, and flat cardboard.
Here's a quick glance at LSU recycling efforts:
SOLID WASTE & RECYCLE STATS |
||||
Containers |
Type |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
Wausau container |
Aggregate |
. |
220 |
249 |
Paper recycle containers |
Indoor large |
. |
650 |
665 |
|
Desk side |
. |
1675 |
1675 |
Aluminum/plastic/glass containers |
Blue outdoor |
. |
26 |
46 |
Dumpster box |
30 yard |
. |
8 |
8 |
Front load dumpster |
2,4,6,8 yard |
. |
172 |
185 |
Recycling dumpster |
6, 8 yard |
. |
36 |
41 |
. |
. |
. |
. |
. |
Amount Removed |
. |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
Front Load (regular refuse) |
. |
|
|
19,675.61 yards |
Recycling (cardboard/paper) |
. |
387 tons |
520 tons |
304 tons |
Aluminum cans/plastic |
. |
1.5 tons |
8.2 tons |
12.17 tons (campus) |
Wood waste recycle |
. |
292 tons |
162 tons |
1,334.90 tons |
Pallets |
. |
500 ea. |
700 ea |
370 ea |
Concrete/demolition |
. |
654 tons |
1680 tons |
1775 yards |
Batteries |
. |
134 ea. |
353 ea |
94 ea |
Used cooking oil |
. |
N/A |
5050 gals |
9035 gals |
Tires |
. |
184 ea. |
144 ea. |
132 ea. |
