A New York Times article reported that a paper published at Carnegie-Mellon University last year by Alessandro Acquisti and Ralph Gross, stated that the pair could “accurately predict the full, nine-digit Social Security numbers for 8.5 percent of the people born in the United States between 1989 and 2003 — nearly five million individuals.”

They would accomplish this by using public information, including social networking profiles, to find the birthdates and city or state of birth of those individuals. These pieces of information helped the researchers determine the geographic location of the individuals, which would reveal the first three digits of the social security number.

Knowing the first three digits still left six to be predicted, and the government doesn’t disclose how those are assigned. Chris Gregg, director of IRT, has heard of the issue of easily determining the first few digits of the social security number and said it has been discussed in some IT circles.

“It could be a risk in that it can reduce the number of SSN digits [an] identity thief would need to guess,” Gregg said via e-mail. “This is probably a greater risk if the thief had access to the last four digits of the SSN as well, which some companies still use to help verify a person’s identity.”

If an identity thief has some digits of a Social Security number, he or she can use number-generating technology and possibly decipher the rest.

“The irony is the remarkable power on desktops and servers today that can be applied to productive, positive uses can also be applied to illegal, intrusive uses,” IRT Vice President Sam Levy said via e-mail. “There are many very sophisticated methods for what is known as ‘data mining.’ The question is whether the data are gotten legally and used legally. The best advice is still to be very careful about what you put online, and especially any personal information that can lead to any type of pattern matching.”

Most St. Thomas students use some type of social networking site, and many use privacy and security controls to limit the amount of information that some friends and non-friends, can view on their profile. But lots of information is exchanged without a second thought, including birthday greetings and information about jobs and where people attend school.

Many of the students said they trust the security and privacy that Facebook provides, but most said they don’t trust it 100 percent.

“I think that people need to be really careful about Facebook because I think that no matter how much privacy you set you still have so many people you’re connected to and so many ways people can see your information,” freshman Madee Carlson said.

Sophomore Sara Twiehaus has heard of the issue of identity thieves finding out some digits of a person’s Social Security number by using the birthdate. For that reason, she does not list her year of birth on her Facebook profile and said knowing that is “pretty terrifying.”

“People seem to just put whatever they want on [their profile] and they don’t really think that other people besides their good friends and family can see it and that can get really dangerous,” Twiehaus said.

Sophomore Julian Woodhouse has heard of the issue as well. Someone guessed where he was born based on the first three digits of his Social Security number, even though he was born in Germany.

Although many companies mean well, sophomore Ilya Natarius said privacy and security does not always stand up to hackers. He mentioned the PayPal issue a few years ago where users’ bank information was hacked from the site.

“There’s the one kind of code that says if there’s information security that’s written, it can always be unwritten no matter how hard you try,” Natarius said. “So it is what it is you have to accept it and just try as hard as you can to keep as much information private.”

The New York Times reported that the work done by the Carnegie-Mellon researchers presents a potential risk, but not an actual one. However, unpublished research by the two “explores how criminals could use similar techniques for large-scale identity-theft schemes.”

Many St. Thomas students, including senior Michael Alexander, think the young generation is too relaxed about sharing information on social networking sites and elsewhere.

“I feel like people don’t always think things through especially if it comes to the point of an employer seeing it or who they give their information to,” Alexander said.

Stephani Bloomquist can be reached at slbloomquist@stthomas.edu

Still, the average time for a student to graduate at St. Thomas has been steadily decreasing. Coming into freshman year, many students bring credits from the Post-Secondary Enrollment Options program and advanced placement credits, allowing them to graduate early.

Michael Cogan, St. Thomas’ director of institutional research, said approximately 80 percent of students graduate in four years. Another 16 percent complete their degree in five years, and the remaining 4 percent finish in six or more years.

Of those who graduate, 80 percent came to St. Thomas as freshman, while the remaining 20 percent were transfer students.

Between 1998 and 2003, the time in which Tommies graduate dropped from 4.02 years to 3.89 years.

Cogan said St. Thomas is always striving to increase its graduation rate, but at the same time, it’s already achieving more than one assessment’s expectations.

Compared with 138 nationwide institutions participating in the Collegiate Learning Assessment, St. Thomas students rank in the top 10.

The Collegiate Learning Assessment Group predicts graduation and retention rates for each school. The number is based on ACT scores, high school GPAs, gender of the students and other factors, and it tells what the graduation and retention rates should be.

“The Collegiate Learning Assessment Group said that our retention rate is about 7 [or] 8 percent higher than it should be and that our graduation rate is about the same percentage higher than it should be, so in that sense we were overachieving,” Cogan said.

The assessment also shows that St. Thomas are better than other Catholic schools in the report, Cogan said.

After freshman year, 12 percent of students do not return for their second year at St. Thomas. Another 6 to 7 percent is lost going into the third year.

Michael Cogan, St. Thomas' director of institutional research (Photo courtesy of Michael Cogan)

“We know that people who bring in credits, tend to do better here,” Cogan said. “We like to see students come in with credits because they’ve had that college experience … and it works out well for them.”

Senior Becca Cooke came to St. Thomas as a freshman with some credits from UW-Eau Claire and advanced placement credits. She said bringing in credits allowed her to double major and take an elective in a subject she was interested in.

Even though Cooke’s PSEO credit only transferred in as an elective, she said it helped her realize what her passion was and what she wanted to major in at St. Thomas.

When averaged out across an entire class, each freshman brings about six credits into St. Thomas. But Cogan recognizes a disparity in that equation.

“What happens is it’s a little less than half of those bringing in about 12 [or] 13 credits, while the other half brings in zero,” he said.

Senior Ike Wrobel didn’t bring in any credits to St. Thomas but, looking back, he wishes he did. Bringing in credits would have opened up options for him, allowing for a double major or a minor, he said.

“My experience would have been a little more laid back than it was,” Wrobel said. “[I would have had] more time to do electives and also maybe not take four classes every semester and take J-terms.”

Since students aren’t required to apply for graduation, this year’s graduation rate will be unknown until near the end of the summer when degrees are posted.

Stephani Bloomquist can be reached at slbloomquist@stthomas.edu.

But obesity problems aren’t confined to Mississippi. Every state has high percentages of overweight citizens, and poor diets and lack of exercise are the reasons for the high rates. Cutting down on red meat in the diet would improve the health of overweight Americans and would also contribute to a healthier planet.

Although being a vegetarian is great if you care strongly about animal rights, it may be too extreme for your health. If you are a vegetarian, it may do your body more harm than good, depending on the variety of nutrients you get. Moderation is best for your health and the environment, which is why, instead of cutting meat out of your diet entirely, you should try to limit how much red meat you eat.

Health perspective

Many red meats are high in saturated fat, which raises blood cholesterol. The super-sized American diet is putting us at higher risk for all sorts of diseases that stem from obesity.

Think of the traditional diets of Mediterranean and Asian countries. In those diets meat, especially of the red variety, is never eaten as the main part of the meal – it’s usually a side dish or not present at all. Fish is much more prevalent in these cultures, ensuring plenty of Omega-3 fatty acids. These are essential nutrients that lower triglycerides and help reduce the risk of death and heart attacks, as well as helping decrease blood pressure slightly, according to the Mayo Clinic.

If you decide to not eat any red meat, make sure to take iron supplements. Egg yolks are good sources of iron, and for those who avoid all animal products, there are many good plant sources of iron. These include dried beans, spinach and enriched products, according to the American Heart Association.

Environmental perspective

In 2007 MSNBC reported that some scientists had found that methane gas emitted by livestock may be contributing to an increase in greenhouse gas emissions, which in turn can lead to global warming.

Waste from livestock contributes to water contamination as well. In 1999, “the majority of North Carolina’s manure lagoons spilled over into waterways during Hurricane Floyd, leading to widespread water contamination,” according to Sustainable.org. And most states require no treatment of animal waste.

Demand for meat is increasing around the world, including in China where citizens now eat double the amount of red meat they ate just 10 years earlier. This will contribute to increased rates of obesity and degrade the environment even more. By eating less meat, we reduce the demand for meat, which in turn reduces the impact keeping livestock has on the planet.

Better choices

Ground beef is a staple of American culture. It’s used in everything from tacos to chili, burgers and sloppy Joes. But there are many healthier and environmentally friendly alternatives to ground beef. Ground turkey or chicken can be used in chili, or the meat can be omitted altogether and several types of beans can be used instead. Shredded chicken can be the main element in tacos and grilled or baked chicken breast can replace ground beef in burgers.

For those who are partial to the all-American burger, try eating it less often and in smaller portions. Nobody needs the 540 calories and 29 grams of fat a Big Mac offers, so why not make burgers at home with leaner beef and eat a burger every other week instead of waiting in the drive-thru for lunch and dinner several times a week?

Make the change today, because eating red meat in moderation can improve your health and that of the environment, too.

Stephani Bloomquist can be reached at slbloomquist@stthomas.edu.

Dustin Hassett smokes a cigarette outside the O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library. (John Kruger/TommieMedia)

More than 200 campuses across the nation have gone smoke-free, according to the American Lung Association in Oregon, and St. Thomas junior Ariel Kendall thinks it’s St. Thomas’ turn too.

March 13, Westminster College in Missouri also decided to ban smoking from its campus. The ban will go into effect July 1 and means students, faculty and staff will have to smoke in personal vehicles or off campus grounds.

Kendall began her smoke-free grassroots initiative when she was a freshman, but progress has been slow. Originally she teamed up with Birdie Cunningham, health educator in the Wellness Center. She is now working with Bob Douglas, chair of the Sustainability Committee, who thinks smoking is an environmental issue as much as it is a health issue.

“Part of being sustainable isn’t just about reducing our carbon footprint. It’s living a sustainable life, and smoking is not sustainable,” Douglas said.

Douglas and Kendall both think they need more student support before their work can move forward.

“If there is a student movement, we know that will have more weight with the administrators,” Douglas said. “The students are the clients of the University of St. Thomas, and if it’s something that’s important to them, it becomes more important to the administration.”

Kendall created a Facebook group called “Tobacco-Free UST,” which has 53 members. She has also attended lectures and forums at the University of Minnesota and has had several meetings with St. Thomas faculty and staff members to gain support.

Kendall wants to have the smoking ban implemented to improve the health of the St. Thomas campus and its community members.

“[The U of M] is a huge school, and to know that they are working toward this too, it really says a lot about just smoking in general and the health hazards and what colleges in America [are] really going toward,” she said.

Student reactions

A survey conducted by the Wellness Center in 2007 found that 24.2 percent of St. Thomas students consider themselves smokers. That number was lower than the national average, which was at 28.6 percent that year. The number of smokers at St. Thomas has been steadily decreasing since 2002. The Wellness Center is currently conducting its 2010 survey.

Some student smokers, such as senior Charles Seo, think a smoking ban is unnecessary. But Seo said he wouldn’t mind having designated smoking areas.

Still, others think a smoking ban outdoors is outrageous, such as freshman Emily Shroeder.

“I think it’s ridiculous,” Shroeder said. “We’re all outside … To be outside and not be able to smoke on campus? I’d just walk across the street and smoke then. It would do nothing. I just don’t think you should have a smoking ban in a free country. You took it out of bars and restaurants and stuff; you can’t do it on a campus.”

Some non-smokers, including senior Leigh Ann Thul and junior Adam Mallory, don’t necessarily agree with a ban.

“Personally, I am not a fan of smoking, so I would be OK with campus being smoke-free, but I think that would be a big deterrent for a lot of people,” Thul said.

Mallory has friends who smoke and said if they’re following the rules about smoking outside, there shouldn’t be a problem.

“I don’t know what having a campus be smoke-free is going to do for us that the rules in place [don’t] do already,” he said.

Smoking history at St. Thomas

Effective Sept. 1, 1993, St. Thomas banned “smoking in all buildings on the St. Paul and Minneapolis campuses and in all university-owned vehicles.” The policy also states that the exception to this rule is in the limited number of smoking lounges in the St. Paul campus.

But this tobacco policy is outdated because no places on campus currently allow smoking indoors..

According to a 1975 Aquin article, a smoking area in the Grill was set up in November of that year, since the Minnesota Clean Indoor Air Act went into effect that August. The Minnesota Clean Indoor Air Act forbade smoking in all indoor areas except those designated as smoking areas. But the Grill’s smoking section was closed in 2005 after a new ordinance was put into effect in Ramsey County prohibiting smoking in restaurants.

Continued efforts

Currently, 15 colleges and universities in Minnesota have successfully gone smoke-free, including Bethel University, Northwestern College, the University of Minnesota-Duluth, and Winona State University. St. Catherine University and the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities are both working on becoming smoke-free campuses as well.

For now, Kendall and others will continue to work toward a smoke-free campus at St. Thomas. Right now, their main focus is getting students to band together and work toward this common goal.

“Even if it’s, you know, we get smokers actually following the rule of ’30 feet away’ or if we get more cigarette butts in the receptacles … or maybe it’s getting people to quit or educating people, it’s just taking those steps because it is such a long process,” Kendall said.

Stephani Bloomquist can be reached at slbloomquist@stthomas.edu.

In February, the U.S. jobless rate held steady at 9.7 percent and 36,000 positions were cut around the country. Those numbers are lower than expected, signaling that the job market may be healing slowly, but St. Thomas seniors have noticed that this job market is nothing like when most of them graduated from high school.

In 2006 the unemployment rate was 4.6 percent. “Persons are classified as unemployed if they do not have a job, have actively looked for work in the prior 4 weeks, and are currently available for work,” according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

“College graduates always do better in a recession than the rest of the population,” said Diane Crist, director of the Career Development Center. “Students who started college four years ago were in a much different world than they are right now.”

Although the job market looks bleak, many St. Thomas students remain positive.

Senior Dan Fettig said he has applied to at least 15 jobs in St. Paul and about 10 others out of state. He has used several resources to look for jobs but hasn’t had any luck so far.

“I am optimistic, even in today’s job market,” Fettig said in an e-mail. “It doesn’t do any good to complain about it. It is what it is, and you have to roll with it. I think that things have a way of falling into place. So all in all, I feel good about it.”

Despite the lack of jobs, Crist said the outlook is a little better than it was last year. She has seen students get interviews and has noticed an increase in internship positions.

“We’re thinking maybe employers are hiring interns where they really need staffing and they’re a little bit afraid to hire for full-time, so taking on more interns and hopefully that will turn into full-time jobs,” she said.

Some business students having luck, but not all

According to the New York Times, banks are climbing out of the recession, meaning more business students across the country are finding banking jobs and internships.

Diane Crist, director of the Career Development Center, says she has seen some students get internships and hopes those will lead to more long-term positions. (Stephani Bloomquist/TommieMedia)

Senior Bill Bergmann, a marketing management major, has applied for many jobs and has been making the rounds doing “coffee conversations” and informational interviews to try and network.

Just this semester, Bergmann has applied for about 20 to 22 jobs, which he said is a little bit more than the average person.

“I have to say I almost put more time into that now than school,” he said, “which is bad, but [I’m still on the dean’s list].”

Bergmann has used several resources to apply for jobs. He has used the Career Development Center Web site, Experience.com, UW-Eau Claire’s career page, City Job Search for seven cities, CareerBuilder.com and Monster.com, along with Craigslist and LinkedIn.

“I know a lot of people who haven’t talked to a single person quite yet, and they’re graduating in two months,” Bergmann said.

He has had four interviews for jobs that were open and about 10 informational meetings, which he calls “professional socializing.” Bergmann hopes to create relationships to gain an aspect of what people in his field are doing.

“If you ask the right questions, it might lead you to something,” he said.

Education student considers less traditional positions

Still other students are choosing to go abroad and use their skills to help others. Senior Maya Brandl, an education major, would like to teach abroad someday. She said after graduation is the perfect time because she won’t have any other commitments after student-teaching.

“I’m kind of debating between becoming a long-term sub or just taking that semester off and traveling,” Brandl said. “I’m debating the idea of teaching abroad possibly in Africa or maybe Asia. So, I figured, now’s the time to do it.”

Brandl said she wanted to teach abroad even before the recession, but with budget cuts in a lot of public schools, it’s another reason to teach abroad right after graduation.

She also said social studies is a common focus for Education majors and resulting in a lack of job openings in that area. Brandl said this will also make it difficult for her to get a job when she’s done student teaching because social studies is her focus.

“Even if I get hired on first year, it’s usually only like a one-year contract, so with the budget cuts I’ll be the first to go just because I’m the newest person,” she said. “And it doesn’t really have anything to do with like who I am or whatever. It’s just kind of how it is.”

Senior Brittney Tegels, a biochemistry major, is looking into graduate programs instead of finding a full-time job. (Stephani Bloomquist/TommieMedia)

Science student looks at graduate programs

Senior Brittney Tegels, a biochemistry major, already has a job as a technical aid at a lab for 3M. She hopes to finish up her hours there in the year after graduating and then participate in AmeriCorps before going to graduate school.

Her technical aid position didn’t come easy though. Tegels said she applied for about 20 to 25 positions before she got an interview with 3M.

“It’s kind of depressing,” Tegels said of graduating into the current job market. “I just think other people’s opinions and their negative attitudes towards the economy kind of affects what you think about it as well.”

Looking for a full-time job isn’t on Tegels’ mind right now because she wants to serve and then go to graduate school for public health. She isn’t too worried because it’s a little easier to get jobs in her field “because there’s so much you can do with it,” she said.

Hope the for future

Currently the Career Development Center is conducting its graduate follow-up survey, asking last year’s graduates what they are doing now. Crist said the information should be ready at the end of March or in early April.

“We are seeing students get interviews and we think that students are going to be doing well if they can get internships or part-time jobs or just break in any way that is possible for them,” she said.

Crist encourages students to stay active in their job search and talk to a career counselor if they are having trouble.

“Get your resume checked and for heaven’s sake don’t give up,” she said.

Stephani Bloomquist can be reached at slbloomquist@stthomas.edu.

St. Thomas first published a yearbook in 1918. Aquinas, the school's current publication, will release electronic copies this fall. (John Kruger/TommieMedia)

Some colleges around the country have decided to scrap their traditional yearbooks, blaming the age of Facebook and budget cuts.

The University of Virginia is the most recent school to join a growing group of colleges that no longer publish yearbooks as more students have decided to share memories through social networking.

But Aquinas, the St. Thomas yearbook, will remain in hard copy for now, although plans are in the works to start releasing digital copies this fall.

Ann Kenne, St. Thomas’ head of special collections and university archivist, said the first yearbook published for St. Thomas was a combined yearbook with the St. Thomas military academy. The yearbook was called the Kaydet and was released in 1918.

Although Facebook provides instant documentation of memories, some students say they like to hold something in their hands. Much like concerns that arose with phasing out The Aquin student newspaper, some students aren’t ready to completely lose the hardcover yearbook and solely make memories on the Internet.

“I’m a tradition guy,” senior John Busch said. “I like tradition, so I’m so used to having a paper copy of a yearbook. I like to have something physical that I can look at, something tangible.”

Aquinas adviser Cecilia Petschel said the hard copy of the yearbook should stay.

“I think it’s really important to always have a way to document the year,” she said. “[Students] are making memories on Facebook between their own friends, but kind of something all across St. Thomas is really valuable, and it’s good to have something to look at. I mean Facebook is great, but it’s not the same as the yearbook.”

But with the age of Internet and social networking comes the transformation from page to screen. The Aquinas yearbook will follow that trend, although the hardcover version will still be available.

“I don’t necessarily think that we need [yearbooks], but I don’t think that Facebook is a replacement for them,” senior Lauren Miller said. “I think [a yearbook would] be something nice to look back on. I think it’s definitely a nice thing to have for the future.”

The total budget for Aquinas is $68,281, a number that may decrease with the release of an online version of the yearbook. That version will be available in the fall 2010, and Petschel said that after gauging response to the digital version in the next two years, the number of hard copy versions may decrease for sustainability and budget reasons.

“It’s one of those neat traditions that, like The Aquin, [people] are sad when it’s gone,” Petschel said. “So what we can do to keep it current is really important.”

Petschel also said the reasons for moving to a digital copy of the yearbook include expansion of space, which means unlimited copy and photographs as well as the addition of videos. The yearbook is completely student created, so expansion would mean highlighting the talents of photographers, designers and more.

“I think with the technology we have, you almost expect it that it should be online,” Busch said. “With how prominent the Internet is, it’s expected that things should go from paper copy to Internet. With the possibility of having audio and video, it really would set it apart from the paper copy.”

Stephani Bloomquist can be reached at slbloomquist@stthomas.edu.

This is News in :90 for Monday, March 1, 2010.

Construction on the Anderson Student Center, which will feature a bowling alley, putting green and dance floor among other things, will begin in March. (Photo courtesy of student affairs)

The Opening Doors Capital Campaign is more than $37 million short of its goal, but construction on the Anderson Student Center will begin on schedule, with the demolition of O’Shaughnessy Hall in March.

For several reasons, students and staff are excited about the new Anderson Student Center.

Vice President of Student Affairs Jane Canney said the Anderson Student Center “will be a world of difference” from the Murray-Herrick Campus Center.

“It will be an amazing building,” Canney said. “I think of like the student center here as kind of being that space that we call the blue lagoon … You’re going to have this whole amazing building that is just going to really rock the campus in a totally different way.”

Executive Director of Campus and Residence Life Mary Ann Ryan is a collaborator on the student center project.

“[The Anderson Student Center] is a building that our students so richly deserve because it’s going to enhance student life on campus and interaction and, you know, it’s just terrific,” Ryan said.

Murray Hall was built in 1960 when St. Thomas was an all-male college with a population of 1,882 students.

“Murray Hall, at the time it was designed, it was just perfect for that period of time and for that student population, but in the past 50 years, St. Thomas has really changed as the world has changed,” Ryan said. “The Anderson Student Center is being built with today’s students in mind and thinking about the future and what students will want today and [several] years from now.”

Facilities and amenities

The plans for the ground level of the Anderson Student Center include a 4-lane bowling center, a dance floor for more than 200 people, a hair salon and parking for 30 vehicles.

The first floor will be all student space, consisting mostly of a lounge that will look out to Monahan Plaza. Recreational space will feature ping pong tables, flat screen TVs, foosball and a putting green. Ryan said it will be a space for whatever entertainment is popular at the time.

The Emporium, also on the first floor, will include a merchandise store, a new and improved C-Store, a coffee bar, Scooter’s and the Grill. Scooter’s will have a stage, billiards and electronic darts. It will also have a giant pizza oven.

The second floor will include the student dining center, which will stay open later than the current cafeteria. It will also have the priests’ dining room, 10 meeting rooms, a family/lactation room and an art gallery for Asmat art, as well as students’ and visiting artists’ work.

Anderson Student Center will allow many of the offices and services used currently in Murray-Herrick Campus Center to relocate to updated facilities. (Photo courtesy of student affairs)

The third floor will consist mainly of the 9,600 square-foot multipurpose room. This room will seat 750 people for dinner and 900 people for presentations or lectures. The floor will also have four private dining rooms, a hearth room with a double-sided fireplace, a coffee/smoothie bar and more meeting rooms and offices.

Ryan said there are nearly 120 student clubs and organizations at St. Thomas, so the new leadership room, also on the third floor, will be a place for group leaders to work and a place for storage. Each organization will have a drawer in a filing cabinet to keep records in. STAR, USG, Hana, the yearbook staff and Tommie the mascot will have space and storage in the room as well.

Sophomore Kiana Williams, a STAR intern, is excited for the new student center to open.

“I’m ready for it to just be there,” Williams said. “There’s so much planning that we want to do for STAR, but we can’t because of different space and things like that, and I think a lot of people are just so excited just for all the new facilities that are going to be there, all the things you can do and really just want to take advantage of it before we’re graduating.”

How will the O’Shaughnessy family be honored?

How the university will honor the O’Shaughnessy family is still being discussed, but Canney said administrators have been talking with the family.

“John O’Shaughnessy is on our student affairs committee of our board of trustees, and he, at the last board of trustees meeting, talked about how honored he is that the Anderson family has come forward to be a part of the university community and that the Anderson Student Center will be sharing book ends across the mall from the O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library,” Canney said.

The doors from O’Shaughnessy Hall will be in a special exhibit in the corridor of the Anderson Athletic and Recreation Complex. The exhibit will be a special honor for the O’Shaughnessy family and the building.

What will happen to Murray-Herrick Campus Center?

With the opening of the Anderson Student Center, the original Scooter’s, student dining room and the Grill will close. The bookstore on the lower level of Murray-Herrick will only sell books, as the merchandise portion will move to the new student center.

The Commuter Center, Multicultural Student Services, International Student Services, Campus Ministry offices and the Dean of Students will all be moved into the second floor of the new student center as well.

No plans have been made as to what will be done with the open space in Murray-Herrick Campus Center. But Personal Counseling, the post office and the Career Development Center will all stay in Murray-Herrick. Canney said the issues to discuss are funding and who gets priority on using the space.

“It’s just going to be a very different place; it’s going to be a student space,” Canney said. “And we are so thrilled to be able to finally have this opportunity.”

Construction on the building is scheduled to start in May and the Anderson Student Center will open in January 2012.

Stephani Bloomquist can be reached at slbloomquist@stthomas.edu.

Graduating in May? Expect to pay to use the building you've watched from the ground up. (John Kruger)

Students who will graduate before the Anderson Athletic and Recreation Complex opens may never have a chance to use the facilities for “free,” although no official plans have been made yet.

The goal will be to make revenue on the facility, so alumni will need to buy a membership.

“Until we really move in and see what the pattern of usage of our students is, I think you wouldn’t want to start scheduling other people in there and take time from students and things like that,” Athletic Director Steve Fritz said. “So we really want to find that out first.”

In the past, a few alumni purchased memberships to use the old facilities, paying about $75 per year to use the facilities when they were open, Fritz said.

The completion of the athletic center will be a welcomed site for those who have become frustrated with cramped workout facilities on campus.

“We’re all kind of obsessed with working out here, I think, so it’s just good to know that they saw that and they’re going to do something about it,” junior Stephanie Renckens said.

The number of improvements from the old facilities to the new are many.

In the past, track and field events could not be held at St. Thomas because the track was 167 meters, not the standard 200 meters. Fritz said the track was mainly used for training, even though it was too small for that as well. The new track will be 200 meters, and the field house will include a large curtain so multiple activities can be held at once.

The pool in O’Shaughnessy Hall was built in 1938, had only five lanes and wasn’t deep enough for diving in addition to leaking about an inch of water a day, according to Fritz. The new pool will have eight lanes for racing and recreational swimming, a diving area with a 1- and 3-meter boards and seating for about 250 spectators.

Stephani Bloomquist can be reached at slbloomquist@stthomas.edu

The permit’s basic requirement is that there must be one parking space for every four people, which applies to Schoenecker Arena, O’Shaughnessy Stadium and O’Shaughnessy Educational Center auditorium. It also requires that those parking spaces be within 600 feet of primary entrances.

Doug Hennes, vice president of university and government relations, said if the closest parking spot in the lot is within 600 feet of primary entrances, the entire parking lot counts. St. Thomas has always met that requirement, which has existed for more than 20 years, according to Hennes.

“Well, now that [the lots] will be gone, and we’re only going to have 30 spaces under the student center, we’re not going to be in compliance on the stadium or the arena,” he said.

The Anderson Parking Facility will become the main parking center once Lot H is gone, but with St. Thomas’ current permit, that ramp is 500 feet too far from primary entrances.

Because Lot H will be closed in March, Hennes said that St. Thomas will be more than 400 parking spaces short of being in compliance for the stadium and more than 75 spaces from compliance on the arena.

In order to regain compliance, St. Thomas must renew its permit, which was first approved in 1990. This spring, St. Thomas will seek to modify that permit to allow the required parking to be within and beyond 600 feet of primary entrances.

Modifying permit to be in compliance

After Lot H is closed for construction, St. Thomas will be 800 parking spaces short of being in compliance with its current permit. Hennes said that in the spring they hope to modify it with the following points:

• Although Lot H will no longer be available, with the new Anderson Parking Facility, St. Thomas has almost 2,600 parking spaces on campus. People are just going to have to walk a little farther.
• For events in the stadium and the arena, the majority of the spectators are resident students who walk, and therefore do not need parking.
• Stadium and arena games are played on weeknights or Saturdays, when parking is pretty available, although it’s not necessarily within 600 feet.
• The average attendance in the stadium and in the arena is not capacity. The code is to take into account if there is a full house.

Stephani Bloomquist can be reached at slbloomquist@stthomas.edu.