I am in love with a 62-year-old woman. If you let me explain it won’t sound as bad as you undoubtedly think.

Before I came to SDSU to work my way through the pre-med track, I had big dreams of becoming a motion picture director and screenwriter. If you were to ask me back then what one person I wanted to work with my answer would have been a quick one: Meryl Streep. That simple answer has not changed over the last several years.

With each passing year, Streep gives another great performance that reminds me all over again why I love her so much. She’s never the same and has the unique ability to act both drama and comedy with ease. The idea of an actress creating a body of work that is unsurpassed by any other actor or actress, past or present, is mind-boggling. For those of you who know little about Streep, I will tell you a little bit about her so that you may see where my admiration comes from.

Find out why this columnist loves star of The Iron Lady, The Devil Wears Prada, Sophies Choice and many other movies.

See why he believes every award, and heart, she

Jessica Lange: Television has become the format in which many of film’s best actresses find the role of a lifetime. Lange is in her 60s and has already garnered two Oscars for her work in film, but I think that she has delivered her best work yet as Constance in American Horror Story. While all of the actors on the show are great, Lange is the one that I personally could not wait to see onscreen in every episode. Viewers never know what to think of Constance, but they should know what to think of Lange; she is an actress at the top of her game giving one of the greatest performances on

television.

Modern Family: I began watching this show two years ago and have loved it, but I wasn’t sure how long the creators could keep coming up with new storylines.

Much to my delight, they have actually managed to flesh out the characters I have come to love with every passing episode and have created storylines that are always fresh. Watching the show, I have come realize that while the show is the funniest on television, it is also the one show that has the most to say about family and life in general. It features the best ensemble of actors on television and I am always eager to see what each week has in store.

New Girl: Every year, the major networks try their best to create new television shows that connect with a large base across the nation and will go on to be picked up for additional seasons. This last year, I found the FOX comedy New Girl to be the best of the new batch. Much like Modern Family, New Girl takes each episode and decides to talk about issues that the majority have encountered at one point in their lives or continually deal with on a daily basis. Star and producer Zooey Deschanel is also perfect for the lead role. It’s hard to find a comedic actress that is capable of carrying a weekly show, but Deschanel seems to be the perfect fit. With New Girl, Deschanel brings her unique comedic style and quirky relatability to television. The rest of the cast is great, the writing is sharp and always finds the perfect moment to make a more dramatic statement within each episode. The show has already been picked up for a second season and I personally hope there are many more.

The Union lot will be a pay lot with parking meters next semester to allow more accessibility for students and community members.

As SDSU faces changes in the coming months, students can expect to see some different parking options around campus.

One of the largest changes is The Union parking lot transitioning into a paid lot.

“We are trying to get The Union lot to a pay-as-you-go lot by the summer,” said Dean Kattelmann, the assistant vice president for facilities and services. “A request for proposal has just been sent out, which asks to have that system in place by fall 2011.”

“We are looking at possibly making the north half of The Union parking lot, which is now visitor parking, into a metered parking lot,” Students’ Association Vice President Anthony Sutton said. “We are trying to work on the card swipe system during the summer, and everything should be in place when students return in the fall.”

Along with the new pay system, university officials are looking at having a sign placed near Caldwell Hall that will indicate when the lot is full.

“We are really just trying to make the building more accessible for students and the community,” Sutton said. “The pay-as-you-go feature would aid in events on campus and would also allow organizations to block spots off before an event if they needed to.”

In addition to The Union parking lot change, two gravel lots are currently being created north of Coughlin-Alumni Stadium that will be free for student use.

“The first one has already been built, and the second one will be completed over the summer break,” Kattelmann said.

“There will be a one-time $20 cost for the decal just so UPD knows that [a certain] car has been registered through the school,” Sutton said.

Sutton said that conversations about how to best handle the parking in those lots on game days will have to happen soon.

The changes in parking have also caused some slight changes in the pricing of decals for the coming year.

“When the Board of Regents was here in Brookings, they set the prices they would like to see on campus,” Sutton said. “They really felt that we needed to simplify the rates.”

In doing so, rates were set so that a decal for the residence halls and commuter lots costs $120, while a reserved pass costs $240 and a remote parking pass, which allows an individual to park in areas by the PAC and Coughlin-Alumni Stadium, will cost $60.

“The raise in the residence hall pass from $86 to $120 allowed the Parking and Traffic Committee to lower the parking fees for next year,” Sutton said. “Parking in the wrong lot or not properly displaying your parking pass will start to cost students $35. We have already decreased parking fees from $100 a couple years ago, and we aren’t sure where the bottom is.”

All of the changes are an attempt to create a more environmental campus.

“Students need to understand that we are moving toward a walking campus and that we are trying to make our parking lots more safe and green,” Sutton said. “We really just want students to give the [changes] a chance and if they have any problems we are always looking to see what else we can do.”

News Editor

As SDSU faces changes in the coming months, students can expect to see some different parking options around campus.

One of the largest changes is coming about as The Union parking lot is being changed into a paid lot.

“We are trying to get The Union lot to a pay-as-you-go lot by the summer,” Dean Kattelmann, the assistant vice president for facilities and services, said. “A request for proposal has just been sent out, which asks to have that system in place by fall 2011.”

“We are looking at possibly making the north half of The Union parking lot, which is now visitor parking, into a metered parking lot,” Student Associations’ vice-president Anthony Sutton said. “We are trying to work on the card swipe system during the summer, and everything should be in place when students return in the fall.”

Along with the new pay system, university officials are looking at having a sign placed near Caldwell Hall that will indicate when the lot is full.

“We are really just trying to make the building more accessible for students and the community,” Sutton said. “The pay as you go feature would aid in events on campus and would also allow organizations to block spots off before an event if they needed to.”

In addition to The Union parking lot change, two gravel lots are currently being created north of Coughlin-Alumni Stadium that will be free for student use.

“The first one has already been built, and the second one will be completed over the summer break,” Kattelmann explained.

“There will be a one-time $20 cost for the decal just so UPD knows that [a certain] car has been registered through the school” Sutton said.

Sutton said that conversations about how to best handle the parking in those lots on game days will have to happen soon.

The changes in parking have also caused some slight changes in the pricing of passes for the coming year.

“When the Board of Regents was here in Brookings, they set the prices they would like to see on campus,” Sutton said. “They really felt that we needed to simplify the rates.”

In doing so, rates were set so that a pass for the residence halls and commuter lots costs $120, while a reserved pass costs $240 and a remote parking pass, which allows an individual to park in areas by the PAC and Coughlin Stadium, will cost $60.

“The raise in the residence hall pass from $86 to $120 allowed the Parking and Traffic Committee to lower the parking fees for next year,” Sutton said. “Parking in the wrong lot or not properly displaying your parking pass will start to cost students $35. We have already decreased parking fees from $100 a couple years ago, and we aren’t sure where the bottom is.

All of the changes are an attempt to create a more environmental campus.

“Student need to understand that we are moving towards a walking campus and that we are trying to make our parking lots more safe and green,” Sutton said. “We really just want students to give the [changes] a chance and if they have any problems we are always looking to see what else we can do.”

News Editor

As enrollment at SDSU continues to increase, university leaders are working to create what they believe is the best possible college experience for students. That includes looking at the student success model already in place.

The model was revealed over a year ago and is structured around a five-year plan that spans the time prior to a student’s enrollment to post-graduation. All of the programs within the model aim toward increasing retention and graduation rates.

“The plan really runs the gamut,” Marysz Rames, vice president for student affairs, said. “It helps from the recruitment process all the way through graduation, and it gives students the resources they need in order to be successful.”

“[Marysz] and I talked, and there was no comprehensive student success program,” Provost Laurie Nichols said.

The plan was created during the 2009-2010 academic year and was presented in the fall of 2010 to 500 individuals who attended a conference dedicated to the model. John Gardner, who’s work helped bring about a movement in higher education and placed an importance on the first year experience, critiqued the original model and provided feedback to the committee.

“We gave him the model we had worked out and we allowed him to critique the model in front of everyone,” Nichols said. “He highlighted the best points of the model and gave us some recommendations on what we could work on. We then used those comments to change the model.”

The student success model was unveiled in 2010 and consists of numerous projects and activities that are intended to help students throughout their academic career.

“Some of the things in the model are required by all students,” Rames explained. “Those are things that we believe will help connect the students. Other programs are there to help assess possible weaknesses of individual students.”

The last year has been spent working on the models’ first stage, which contains acclimation activities and is focused on the first-year experience.

“This year, we have been creating implementation teams to deal with specific areas of the model,” Nichols said. “The first-year experience is a huge focus, and as soon as it has been launched, we will move into the sophomore experience.”

Some programs within the first-year experience have already been created. The Common Read program and the extended Meet State orientation were both outlined in year one of the plan.

As SDSU continues to grow, however, different committees are working on specific programs.

“One of the biggest programs is dedicated to creating learning communities, in which block schedules will be implemented,” Nichols said. “We are looking to create a smaller environment that will resemble a high-school environment. Students will see the same people in the classes within their block and will develop relationships with those people studying the same material.”

A pilot run of the block scheduling was created last fall for a number of students on campus. The feedback generated was mostly positive and the program was developed throughout the last year.

“All incoming freshman, first-time and first-year students will be in a learning community,” explained Mary Kay Helling, associate vice president for academic affairs. “Those learning communities have held up as one of the most successful components at other universities to engage in learning right away. If students feel connected…they are much more likely to return. ”

As one of the major components of the learning communities program, block scheduling will group two to four classes together in an attempt to bring students closer.

“We realize that there are other ways to create a learning community,” Helling said, “but [the block scheduling] is not that intrusive, and it only contains two to four courses that the students would have to take anyway.”

Helling explained that most students will take classes that will be centered around their intended major. Those who are undecided will take more general classes that will help them learn about all the majors offered through SDSU.

The implementation team responsible for planning much of the program is currently looking at ways to best work with student-athletes, student-musicians and honors students.

The program is expected to begin this fall and will be one semester long. Prior to summer orientation the blocks will have been loaded with students. Students will then be given the opportunity to build their schedule around the block. Block scheduling will then be used in each subsequent fall semester, which provides time for any possible changes to be made to the program.

Helling said that after the Fall 2011 semester the learning outcomes of the program will be looked at in order to find out if the new program is working.

Another program that is being worked on is the Early Alert System, which will be housed in the First Year Advising Center in the College of General Studies.

“The early alert system will go into effect in the fall,” Rames said. “The system will allow faculty to alert advisers when certain students show early signs that they aren’t attending class.”

“The program is a little more invasive than the process we have in place now,” Nichols commented. “It’s really an effort to keep students from falling through the cracks. Right now, by the time deficiencies are given out, it may be too late for students to turn their grades around.”

One other major program that is being worked on is the creation of a first-year seminar. Incoming freshman will be required to enroll in the seminar class in their fall semester.

“A lot of colleges already have a seminar like this one, but right now, only about half of our students have a seminar class like it and half don’t” Nichols said. “It would be used to help freshman understand the resources that are available to them on campus, and it will help them acclimate to college. Students will really learn how to use SDSU to their advantage.”

Each individual committee continues to work on proposals for each program, and the tuition and enrollment increases will likely cause continuous work on the success model.

“We are constantly looking at the model,” Rames said, “and in the next couple of years, we will continue to fine tune it.”

Nichols said that the planning committees will be reactivated later on as the sophomore, junior and senior years of the model are worked on.

By 2012, SDSU hopes to see a retention rate of 80 percent and a graduation rate of 60 percent.

News Editor

An ancient Chinese proverb has the following thing to say about family: A family in harmony will prosper in everything. It’s probably the truth, but some of the best Hollywood films seem to focus on families that are nowhere close to being in harmony.

This week, family is indeed at the center of the two films that I have decided to discuss. The individual films are bound not only by their subject matter but also by their impressive casts and the influential directors behind the camera.

Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead and Cassandra’s Dream were both released in 2007, and both managed to be ignored by audiences who were caught up in the awards frenzy of that year. Both, however, deserve another look.

Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead is brought to us by directing great Sidney Lumet, who passed away on April 9 and was behind such influential classics as Dog Day Afternoon, Network, and The Verdict. Lumet returned to top form with the 2007 film which tells the story of two brothers who need some extra cash and decide to rob a “mom and pop” jewelry store. The only problem is that the store they decide to rob belongs to their own parents, and as events spiral out of control the true measure of family begins to take center stage.

Philip Seymour Hoffman, the greatest working actor in Hollywood, and an effective Ethan Hawke play the brothers who fail to control any of the relationships within their lives. Hoffman’s wife, played by Oscar-winner Marisa Tomei, is having an affair with Hawke’s character and Hoffman is so drugged up that he fails to ever really figure it out.

As a victimless crime turns into a family tragedy, the father (wonderfully played by legendary Albert Finney) begins to take matters into his own hands. As he begins to learn more about what actually happened at the jewelry store, family values are reexamined, and the ties that bind slowly begin to unravel.

Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead is something of a modern Shakespearean tale. It takes a look at extreme instances with one family and dramatizes them to cinematic perfection. What resonates within the film are the values of family that we all hold so dear. The film examines our desire to find things in our own lives that we believe we can control. Only when we truly begin to test whether we can or cannot consciously control such things do we find that our lives begin to fragment.

Cassandra’s Dream is so similar to Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead that it is frightening. This time around, Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell play the brothers and Woody Allen steps behind the camera.

Allen made a filmmaking comeback of sorts in 2005 when he released Match Point to widespread critical acclaim. The film not only marked the resurgence of one of Hollywood’s finest, but it also reestablished his talent for drama. Those who are familiar with Allen’s work know he strives to make great romantic comedies. In 2005 Allen became the most nominated individual in Oscar history when he received his 21st nomination. He has dabbled in drama, and whenever he decides to do so, it results in some impressive films.

Allen writes a story about two brothers who find that they need extra money in order to continue to live the lives they really want. McGregor’s character is trying to invest in some hotels, while Farrell’s character is addicted to gambling and falls into debt. While the two try to figure a way out of their situation, their uncle (played by the criminally underrated Tom Wilkinson) proposes a plan. Originally asking their uncle for money, the two brothers instead decide to perform a favor for their uncle whose business is under scrutiny by a former business partner. After the brothers have performed their duty, they try to go on with their lives as if nothing happened. Farrell’s character, though, is consumed by guilt and contemplates turning himself into the police. As the brothers argue about the correct course of action, their uncle decides there may be only one way to put it all behind them.

Like Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead, Cassandra’s Dream is about what we do for the members of our family. At one point in Cassandra’s Dream, the brothers turn down their uncle’s offer, and the uncle, in turn, informs them that “family is family, blood is blood.” That’s the honest truth, and Cassandra’s Dream succeeds in part because it asks what extremes we are willing to go in order to keep our family close. The brothers in the film love each other so much that they are willing to look past the moral wrong. Again, it’s an extreme case, made real by the magic of Hollywood.

In both of these noteworthy films we are exposed to families that see, as many of us do, an ideal lifestyle that is blocked by choices that may ask us to question what we believe is acceptable. The films are about moral behavior and what constitutes acceptable actions. As the world around us continues to change, the definition of “acceptable” changes, and the families in both of these films represent those changes. Each family shows us that there is no cookie-cutter version for the individuals that make up a family. Family is, after all, what we make it to be.

Final Assessment:

Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead:   A

Cassandra’s Dream:  B

News Editor

Former SA president Brett Monson will begin his new position as executive director of the Student Federation this fall. - Collegian Photo by Robby Gallagher

After finishing out his term as the president of the Students’ Association, Brett Monson has been chosen to fill the spot of executive director of the Student Federation.

Monson won the position after current SA president Mark York and vice president Anthony Sutton voiced their support of Monson. A voting body, which consists of the 12 current Student Federtaion members, later voted in Monson’s favor.

The Student Federation is comprised of a group of individuals from every institution of higher learning in the state of South Dakota. The president and vice president of each school’s student government are appointed as representatives of their schools, and they interact with both the Board of Regents and state legislators on a constant basis.

“Without the Federation, it is really hard for the Board of Regents and state legislators to know where students are on the big issues,” Monson said.

As the executive director, Monson will represent all six schools with regards to student input and making sure each voice is heard.

“My role will to be really active not only at the Board of Regents meetings, but also outside of that setting to let them know what the needs of the students are,” Monson said. “It really means a lot to the Board to have that student presence and to know that we care. That interaction has great impact and influence on the choices that are made.”

In his position, Monson will also have to maintain a tight connection to the students and student governments on all of the campuses.

“My job is to get to know the members and establish communication between all the different sectors,” Monson said. “I will be in contact with each of the board members and will be talking to them on a one on one basis.”

Next year, the Federation could play an essential role when deciding how to deal with the budget cuts across the state.

“The Federation is the voice of higher education,” Monson stated. “They will really serve a purpose next year since we are facing cuts…and our job starts now with talking to [the legislators] about keeping the fees down.”

SA advisers Marysz Rames and Zeno Wicks both voiced their support of Monson in his new position.

“Brett will make a good executive director because he has a positive attitude and he has a willingness to work with people of differing opinions,” Wicks said. “He has a lot of patience and he works very well with the Board of Regents.”

“Brett has an ability to elicit feedback and he is very approachable as well as personable,” Rames said. “He is really an inclusive leader and he is able to bring various groups together. When he wants feedback, he listens to different views and concerns and produces results. He is a really good communicator within large groups and small groups.”

“Brett has shown a commitment to our institution,” Wicks added, “and his experience in student government makes him a good pick.”

“He does a nice job of balancing the needs of the students and he really cares about higher education,” Rames said. “Brett is known by individuals at other schools and he is always engaging people across the state. He is seen as kind and caring and he definitely has a good reputation as a student leader.”

Upon being asked about what he thinks of his new position, Monson said that he was excited to get stated.

“I’m really excited to get the chance to support higher education and its purposes and goals,” Monson said. “I’m a big people-person and I think it’ll be exciting to get to know all of the state legislators and Board members. With a body of over 36,000 students, the college sector is filled with a lot of skilled people and it is important to contribute to what is happening across the state.”

Looking ahead to his new position, Monson said that there are already several things that he is excited to begin work on.

“One of the things we’re trying to do is get students more active in voting,” Monson said. “We heard from some people that they were disappointed with the student turnout and I think it’s really important that the students’ presence is felt when looking at what the future holds.”

In addition, Monson will work with other members of the Federation to organize a Students for Higher Education Day in which students are brought to Pierre and allowed to talk to their local legislators in order to have their voice heard.

How can a true legend be defined? Whether we’re talking about sports, films, or music, the term gets thrown around too often, and it’s hard to settle on one clear definition. I think we can each find different people who we claim are legends of their trade.
For me, a self-proclaimed cinephile, Hollywood lost a true legend on March 23. I’m a firm believer that the films made in today’s Hollywood come nowhere close to rivaling the films made in the golden years of Hollywood. In those golden years, no star was more impactful than Elizabeth Taylor.

She was a Hollywood force of nature; a beauty who grew up in the public eye. People who are familiar with her well-chronicled life find that her own life was more of an intricate story than any of her Hollywood films. She was married eight times and overcame a number of obstacles to establish herself as someone with true resilience. This was a woman who was condemned by Congress for her affair with Richard Burton and managed to come before the same body years later to champion AIDS research. That was the beauty of Elizabeth Taylor. She wasn’t just one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood, but she used her star power to further causes greater than herself.

Her many accomplishments in film, however, cannot be ignored. Before coming to SDSU, I had a thought that I would write and direct my own feature films, and when I think about the kind of actresses I would like to see in Hollywood, I think Taylor is the model for the very best. Most of the students on campus know nothing of her film career, so I thought I’d take a little time to look back on her five best performances. There are surely more, as Taylor had a career that spanned six decades, but for me these performances have come to define who Taylor was onscreen.

5. Butterfield 8 (1960) – Taylor was at an interesting time in her life when this film was released. In her personal life, she was branded a home-wreaker after she had an affair with Eddie Fischer, her co-star in this film. After the Oscar nominations were announced in 1960, Taylor had a near-death bout of pneumonia; an instance that many argue helped catapult her to the Best Actress win. The film isn’t especially strong, but it features a mature performance from Taylor who stars as a call girl in Manhattan. Taylor had said that this film wasn’t a favorite of hers, as she was forced to finish the project before she could start filming Cleopatra, a film for which she became the first actress to earn $1 million for a role. The role is a strong one, though, and it shows Taylor as a star on the verge of something great.

4. Giant (1956) – This epic is one of my personal favorites. Taylor’s role is really a minor one when compared to co-stars Rock Hudson and James Dean, but what stands alone in this film is the type of performance Taylor gives. It’s much more quiet and grounded than some of her more famous roles. She’s quietly affective and she begins to show the flare of an actress who could tackle the more “grown-up” lead roles. She holds her own against the men, especially considering the genius of Dean, who would tragically pass away as the film was being prepped for release.

3. A Place in the Sun (1951) – As I mentioned, Taylor grew up in the public eye after breaking through at the age of twelve in National Velvet. A Place in the Sun really marked her transition from child star to prominent leading lady. Taylor plays the character at the heart of an affair and the film is filled with several dramatic twists. Under people other than Taylor and director George Stevens, the film would probably have been a disaster.

2. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) – Perhaps the most iconic performance of Taylor’s career came at a time of great personal grief. On the first day of shooting, Taylor’s husband, Michael Todd, died in a plane crash. Taylor soldiered on, though, and the result is astounding. Though the original Tennessee Williams play has been toned down, the film still features two lead performances that drive the film. Relative newcomer Paul Newman starred opposite Taylor, but it was Taylor who took the spotlight for all the right reasons. In Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, she’s at her sexiest and she begins to expose an actress that is as vulnerable as the great characters she helped create.

1. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) – This influential film not only refined Hollywood films, but it features Taylor and then-husband Richard Burton at their absolute best. The original play wasn’t considered adaptable due to its language, but studio heads went forward with the project anyways. The finished movie was almost not granted a seal of approval by the Motion Picture Association of America and the Catholic Church threatened to condemn it. Thankfully, director Mike Nichols released the film as it was originally shot. Taylor and Burton were known as a volatile couple and their fiery disputes and history of alcohol use were well known. So, in many ways this film was art imitating life. Both Taylor and Burton are unhinged and allowed to show their true acting ability. They curse, they drink, they fight…and they forever leave their mark on film. The twist at the end comes as the lead characters have torn each other apart, leaving moviegoers speechless. Taylor stretches herself more than in any other film and her performance joins Meryl Streep’s lead performance in Sophie’s Choice as the finest leading actress performance of all time. She would go on to win her second Lead Actress Oscar, while Burton was left empty-handed. Director Mike Nichols, who used this film to showcase the greatest directorial debut of all time, would go to make another controversial film — The Graduate.

SDSU students, from left, Marc Wagner, Hunter Murphy, Lindsey Chambers, Caitlin Pisha, Trisha Naig, and Kent Tornow, won all 17 possible student awards at the regional advertising competition, The ADDY Awards. - Submitted Photo

News Editor

Students attending SDSU swept the ADDYS, a competition geared toward rewarding the best in advertising and design.

“The main goal of the competition is to promote creativity and design among design and advertisement professionals,” said Tim Steele, the interim head of the Visual Arts department.

“SDSU has always dominated the [local] awards and this year we swept.”

SDSU has won over 50 awards in the last three years, and this year students won all 17 possible student awards.

The awards program is structured so that individuals who are named gold winners have their work advanced to the regional level and then possibly to the national level.

“The student awards are juried by professional designers,” Steele explained. “They award prizes by what they deem to be the best designed work of the students.”

Steele explained the process of entering work as being similar to undergraduate research, saying that the works are peer reviewed and given recognition.

“It is one thing to sit in class and hear that your work is good,” Steele said, “but it is another thing to have someone else say that.”

As for what may lead a student to submit work, Steele said that professors inform students of the option, adding that they may even recommend certain works for students to enter.

Ultimately each student self selects which of their works they want to enter.

“Participation in the ADDY Awards is completely voluntary, but the teachers quite strongly encourage it,” said senior graphic design student, Hunter Murphy. “If you chose to participate then it is up to you to decide which category you compete in.”

Murphy, who was awarded a Best in Class for Collateral Material and an additional Best in Show award, explained how he decided on an entry for the show.

“There wasn’t too much of a process that I used to edit my work for the show,” Murphy said. “This year, I picked the work that I thought was most finished and functional.”

Steele and Murphy both explained the importance of the awards.

“The awards are really significant because they are recognized across the United States,” Steele said. “The competition is the first exposure for many of the students and it is a good way to open some doors and see how their work competes.”

“I chose to take part in the ADDY Awards because I believe that it is important to create competition amongst South Dakota designers,” Murphy said. “That competition helps us to improve and develop as designers.”

Steele said that some students have been hired partly because of the work they showed at the ADDYS.

“The biggest benefit to students is that many of the design professionals in the state are present to see each individual’s work,” he said. “People remember the work and those students have a leg up later on.”

Murphy, who also submitted work last year, shared similar thoughts.

“Winning an award at the ADDYS means recognition in the…design community,” Murphy said. “If you win an award, your work and name are both showcased at the ceremony and individuals are noticed by possible employers.”

Nationally, over 40,000 entries are submitted to the competition each year. SDSU gold award winners at the local level will soon be matched up against winners from Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin in the District 8 competition.

The ADDY Awards were originally founded in Florida in 1960 before the American Advertising Federation adopted it as a national competition in 1968. Since then, the competition has grown to acknowledge not only the work of those in the advertisement industry, but of students as well.

According the AAF’s website, applicants in the student categories must be enrolled full or part-time in an accredited educational institution within the United States.

News Editor

The increase of the General Activity Fee has been put on hold in light of the anticipated tuition increase for the 2011-2012 academic year.
“Due to the timing of the situation, we will see the smallest GAF increase in a long time,” former Students’ Association President Brett Monson said.
Due to the timing of situation, we will see the smallest GAF increase in a long time,” former Students’ Association President Brett Monson said.
Due to state budget cuts, Jack Warner, the executive director of the Board of Regents, recommended that the BOR not pass an increase to the fee, aside from the 1 percent to compensate for inflation.
“For us it is a question of timing,” Warner said. “We want to keep the overall tuition and fee increases as low as possible during a very difficult year.”
“We are aware that tuition will be higher next year for students around the state,” Monte Kramer, the BOR’s system vice president for administration, said. “Overall, we have concerns of keeping costs low for students.”
The SA originally proposed a fee increase of $3.38 per credit hour. The organization acknowledged that it may not have been the right time for the issue to be brought before the BOR.
“It’s all about timing,” Monson said. “We are already proposing a lot of things [as a university] and right now, after the budget decrease, it would not be the best time to deal with the fee increase.”
The original proposal had five different projects which all came about through student input. Around 600 electronic surveys, along with 375 paper surveys, were sent out in order to gauge what issues were most important to students.
The largest parts of the proposal would have provided funds for the expansion of the Wellness Center and PAC. In addition, the proposed increase of the GAF would have created more student organization space and would have made SDSU more energy efficient.
“We were planning to create more space so that we could move Multicultural Affairs upstairs so that it could be incorporated into the university,” Monson said. “We also were looking at saving money for SDSU by making it more energy efficient. One of the projects included putting sensors in rooms so that the lights would turn off when nobody was in the room.”
Despite the fact that many of the projects are going to be shelved for the time being, SA still plans to push through with a project that would bring another nurse practitioner to campus.
“Around 7.8 unscheduled student visits per day are turned away because we don’t have enough practitioners to see them. “I think that the issue has a lot of light in the future year and we are trying to get the proposal pushed through by other means.”
On March 28, SA will state that it supports a proposal to take $30,000 out of the university’s reserves to help cover the initial cost.
Despite the fact that the increase will not occur in time for the fall semester, Monson said that he is proud to be a part of the proposal.
“This project has really been a team effort,” Monson said. “I have never seen an effort that has pulled together so many groups, and I don’t think that there is a better project to do so. I’ve always thought of it as the balanced deal where everyone gets a piece of the pie.”
Monson added that SA will return to the issue in October.
“All of these are really good projects,” he said. “At the end of the day, all of them will get done. It’s just a matter of timing.”
The general activity fee at SDSU currently is set at $24.80 per credit hour. Even with the proposed increase, USD’s fee, which is set at over $35, would remain higher.
The BOR will make a formal decision on March 31.