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_ VOL. 94, No. 18 Friday October 6, 2000_ e Carolina Community since 1Q08 www.gamecock.sc.edu University OF SOUTH Carolina Columbia, S.C. Drop-Date Extension SG hits streets to collect signatures by Brandon Larrabee The Gamecock Norm Jones drives down Greene Street in a golf cart. “Have you signed the drop-date peti tion?” he asks one student. “Stop by the Russell House and sign the drop-date petition,” he tells another. Occasionally, he asks them, “Where are you headed?” If a student’s destination is in the same general direction as his, Jones invites him to catch a ride. Jones, Student Government’s attorney gen eral, was one of the volunteers who canvassed the campus Thursday, using golf carts, balloons, music and signs to gather as many student sig natures as possible in their drive to double the amount of time students are allowed to drop a class before getting a “W.” Preliminary num bers indicated the Thursday drive picked up more than a thousand signatures. “It’s just ridiculous not to, in my opin ion,” Jones said of the proposal to extend the drop date from five days to 10. He said the time given students now is often not enough to make a good decision about whether a class is right for them. “Some people don’t even have one day,” Jones said. As for the petition, Jones called it “a fun way of doing the process.” “It encourages people to be involved in what’s going on on-campus, and what’s going on with Student Government,” Jones said. Sen. Jessica Lentini, picked up by Jones af ter spending more than three hours looking for signatures outside Gambrell Hall, also encour aged students to participate in the process. “Thank you for participating in democra cy,” Lentini said to students who had already signed the petition. “I feel that, as a senator, it’s important to my constituents that they have a chance to sign it,” Lentini said. Some classes didn’t even meet before the drop date had passed this year, Lentini said. ‘They [students in those courses] don’t... even get a chance,” she said. “I think that’s ridiculous.” Beth Venn, a graduate student in the MIBS program, was one of those who stopped to sign the petition. * “I think it’s reasonable for people to have more time to decide,” she said, adding that stress at the beginning of the semester might be a rea son students would need more time. Medical technology freshman Heather Cur ry, who signed the petition at one of the four tables SG set up on Greene Street, agreed stu dents need more time. “You have got to be able to make the right decision,” Curry said. Leigh-Anne Travers, chief of staff for SG President Jolaka Eaddy, worked the tables on Greene Street on Thursday after noon. She said the average drop period for schools in the of American Universities, which USC wants to join, is 18.6 days. npETITION SEE PAGE 3 Election 2000 Clyburn runs on platform of economic development BY ALICIA BALLARD The Gamecock Democrat James Clyburn is running for re election in South Carolina’s 6th U.S. congres sional district with hopes of being able to con tinue his economic development programs. Lg'.EA I Republican Vince Elli son is his opposition. He al- , so ran against Clyburn in * * 1998. South Carolina’s 6th Dis- k trict encompasses the cen- ^M^RF^R ; tra! and southern areas of the I state, including Florence, . ^ parts of Columbia and ^BRdBHBj Charleston. The district is ' the poorest in South Caroli- CLYBURN na. Sixty-two percent of 6th District constituents are black, 37 percent are white and 1 percent arc Hispanic, according to national election fig ures. The major source of income for this district is agriculture, wjth roughly 40 percent of the families depending on tobacco for their income. The district generally gives strong and con sistent support to the Democratic Party at all lev els of the government, although some Republi can support can oe round in tnc suburbs 01 Charleston and Columbia. Clybum was the first African-American to represent South Carolina in Congress since post Reconstruction. He was elected in 1992 and is running for his fourth term. Clybum was born in Sumter and graduated from South Carolina State University in 1962. He worked as a teacher before his election to Congress. Clybum was also the South Carolina Human Affairs commissioner from 1974 to 1992. “Congressman Clyburn is focusing on the same issue that he has for the past eight years: economic development of the 6th District,” said press secretary Hope Derrick. According to Derrick, Clybum is trying to attract industry to the rural and poorer areas of the district. “Clyburn has focused on improving water and sewer systems, roads and other basic things in order to attract industry to District 6,” she said. “He started programs for this type of improve ment during his eight years in Congress.” One specific program sanctioned by Clybum is a $10 million empowerment fund for Co lumbia and Sumter. “The empowerment fund is federal money Clyburn seepages Hodges promises higher pay for state’s teachers by Christine Lawhon The Gamecock Gov. Jim Hodges is promising higher pay for South Carolina teachers, more in line with South eastern and national averages. “We’re asked our teachers to do more, so it’s only fair to pay them more,” Hodges said. “This pay increase will recognize the extra efforts our teachers are making to comply with the Educa tion Accountability Act.” The South Carolina average starting teacher salary is $36,000 per year. This is lower than the southeastern average of $37,000 and the nation al average of $41,000. The six-year, $300 million plan will bring the teacher’s salary up to the national average by 2006 07 year, Hodges said. Not having a sufficient amount of qualified teachers is a growing problem in South Carolina. Almost 400 teaching vacancies are projected for next school year. In live to seven years 8,000 to 10,000 teachers will be needed and not there. One-third of state teachers leave after just live years. South Carolina Teacher of the Year Christa Compton said that while teaching isn’t a finan daily motivated vocation, paying teachers more would ensure their loyalty. ‘Teachers do not become teachers for the mon ey, but they often leave because of the money,” Compton said. Hodges is the only South Carolina governor to make teachers financial issues a priority, said state Education Superintendent Inez Tenenbaum. “He is the first governor of South Carolina ever to put on the table not only to raise teach ers’ salaries to Southeastern average, but to the nation’s average,” Tenenbaum said. Tenenbaum said low salary is the reason South Carolina is losing teachers to North Carolina and Georgia, as well as losing many potential new teachers to other careers. Along with a statewide pay increase, there would be additional compensation bonuses to tar get teaching shortages in certain rural areas and academic fields. Hodges plans to boost teacher pay in school districts that show an increase in PACT test scores. He hopes the reward will drive teachers to work harder in their classrooms. The city/stale desk can be reached at gamecockcttydesk@hotmalLcom. Online bank targets college students I . ' f 1 1HS! ' ‘• I Amy Goulding The Gamecock Online banking services such as IVantage.com plan to reduce the amount of time students like the ones above have to wait In line at ATMs and increase the time they spend at their computers. by Richard Barnes The Gamecock College students, look out: A new dot com is targeting you as a potential cus tomer. IVantagebank.com is an online bank that is specifically seeking to provide the services that college students are most in terested in, focusing especially on Inter net banking. “College students are online four times more than the average population,” the company has said. This approach might yield success. Medical illustration senior Arieus Alcide said he would bank with iVantage because “they’ve shown an interest in students.” By avoiding the costs of traditional banks and not having to provide finan cial resources in low demand by college students, like retirement planning, iVan tage is able to offer a free, interest-bear ing, no-minimum-balance checking ac count, the company has said. Another method iVantage plans to use to attract customers is through partner ships with firms and oiganizations that specifically interest college students. Cur rent partners include the Princeton Re view and eCampus.com. Some say one of iVantage’s most in teresting features is that it promises that customers will have free access to their money anywhere in the world. “A VISA check card can be used at 200,000 locations worldwide, and we [i\hn tage] will reimburse the customer for any ATM fees that are charged,” said Jenny Chan, iVantage’s director of marketing. Students also find this iVantage feature extremely popular. “I really like its convenience and the ability to use any ATM without fees,” said media arts freshman Cory Patton. “If I didn’t already have an account, I would probably bank with them.” IVantage also boasts a feature that the company says is rare among dot-coms — stability. IVantage is a subsidiary of Old National Bancorp, a live-slate, 165-year-old finan cial company that has more than $9 bil lion in assets. IVantage is starting small; however, it plans to build on its foundation. “Our ini tial offer is designed for students. We’re trying to provide only what is necessary in their current financial situation,” Chan said. “Wfe plan to expand as students progress in their college career and as they move into their professional lives,” she said. IVantage is one of many corpora tions that are trying to promote online banking; however, it’s the only one that is attempting to specifically taigel college students. National banks Bank of Ameri ca and Fleet are among those promoting online banking. Currently, Wantage is offering a start ing benefit to students who open an ac count. It will deposit $25 into any new account opened before the end of Octo ber. This plan is also proving to be effec tive in luring potential customers. Busi ness management senior Mike Yant said 'Vantage seepages Weather Inside Quote of the Day Datebook Today 87 62 Saturday 67 43 Spotlight takes a look at peace frogs Page 7 A woman drove me to drink and I never even had the courtesy to thank her. — W. C. Fields Friday • Baptist Student Union Weekend Retreat • Kings of Swing, Roger Center Saturday • Football at Kentucky, 7 p.m. • Baptist Student Union Weekend Retreat