Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Textbooks CONTINUED FROM PAGE A1 as an example, bringing up a screen that showed half a dozen versions of the same book. He said ordering the wrong book could cost the store thousands. A bookstore operates at a $4 to $7 million deficit during the sum mer, Yancey said. A vendor like the South Carolina Bookstore spends $2 to $3 million on books alone. Manager Michael Comiskey of the University Bookstore at the Russell House, USC’s official book store, said retail sellers like him self have little to do with the prices book publishers set and that the publishers have their own pro duction costs. They have to pay several authors and contributing editors, as well as for binding and distribution. And while the average student spends $300 or $400 for books, Comiskey said, some students have it even tougher. Nursing stu dents pay up to $600 a semester for their books. “You’ve got no choice but to deal with it,” fourth-year nursing student Nicole Ellington said. “I’m spending $200 a semester and I feel lucky,” third-year-hurs ing student Julie Williams said. Manager Michael Oliver at the i....-... Addams University Bookstore said he wants students to buy more used books. “It’s a win-win situation,” Oliver said. Oliver said when a student sells a book back to his bookstore, two things can happen. If a professor has made an order for that edition, then Comiskey will accept a cer tain quota of books. But if his quo ta is full, he might still accept some number of copies and send them to a wholesaler, who in turn distributes them to bookstores na tionwide according to demand. Oliver said the store saves mon ey on buybacks since it doesn’t have to pay for shipping. “Above all, we’re here to help students get the books they need,” Comiskey said. When Comiskey worked for the University of Central Florida, he said there was a textbook published by Price Water that sold for $400. He said the uni versity bookstore negotiated the book down to $100 for students. But some students remain skep tical of booksellers’ intentions. “I've never gotten halfback for my books,” second-year psycholo gy student David Smith said. He held up one of his books and said, “They know we’ve got to have them.” -Comments on this story?E-mail gamecockudesk@hotma il. com Cocky runs against 11 others for Mascot of the Year award BY ADAM BEAM TIIBIIAMKOOCK Cocky will have a chance to live up to his name this fall as fans will have the opportunity to vote him Mascot of the Year. In June, Cocky, along with 11 other mascots, was selected to the Capital One All-America Mascot Team. Starting on Sept. 4, fans can log on to www.capi talonebowl.com and vote for their favorite to see who will be crowned Mascot of the Year. The voting ends Dec. 22, and fans are only allowed to vote once a day. As part of the All-America team, Cocky traveled to New York for a media blitz, where he appeared on the CBS Saturday Early Morning Show and made an appearance at ESPN Zone, a restaurant/game hall in New York City. From there, Cocky traveled to Miami where he filmed a com mercial with ESPN anchor Kenny Mayne to promote the contest. The winner will be an nounced during the Capital One -, Bowl on Jan. 1,2004. The university also received $5,000 for its mascot program. If Cocky wins the’Mascot of the Year award, the university will receive an additional $5,000. Ayanna Wakefield, assistant media relations director, ac companied Cocky on his tour. “The thing about Cocky is he is a loveable character,” Wakefield said. “We like to think of him as a big kid.” USC cheerleading coach Toni Karl works with Cocky on a reg ular basis. She said the reason he is so popular is that Cocky represents not just football, but student life in general. Cocky keeps up a very busy schedule during the school year. Besides appearing at every foot ball game, Cocky also travels to men’s and women’s soccer games, community service events and the President’s re ception before home football games. “I feel like his agent,” Karl said. Cocky will embark on an all out effort to bring out the vote this fall. He has a special jersey that says “vote for me” as well as fliers that cheerleaders will hand out at every public ap pearance. The national exposure could also bring in more money from memorabilia sales. USC is al ready one of the top-selling brands in the nation, with the “Cocks” logo being a high sell er. “I think it will bring some fun, light-hearted exposure,” Wakefield said. Mascots have often been the unsung heroes of college athlet ics, stirring up the fans to give the team some extra energy at home games. Mascots started ap pearing at college games in the 1800s. Yale University claims to have had the first school mascot with Handsome Dan the Bulldog. The school went 125-6 with Handsome Dan as their mascot. Handsome Dan is now stuffed and preserved in the tro phy room of Yale’s gymnasium. Comments on this story?E-mail gamecockudesk@hotmail.com -- Charity missing $278,000 on its taxes CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) - An amended tax return filed by a Lowcountry nonprofit homeless shelter shows the organization sold most of its property but doesn’t ac count for what happened to $278,000 made from the transac tion. Good Samaritan Mission fildfl the amended 2001 federal tax retui^P last week with the South Carolina secretary of state’s office, The Post and Courier reported Wednesday. It shows a reduction in mission property and assets from $420,858 to just $15,000. The original return did not include the February 2000 sale of about a half-dozen mission owned homes shut down by North Charleston for code violations. While the amended return does not explain nor document the sale, it is the first tax document to ac knowledge that the mission no longer owns the property. Albert J. Salmon Jr., the founder and lone board member of the roughly 25-year-old mission, said in previous interviews with the Charleston newspaper that tta_ property had been sold. But ndH ther the sale nor any profits from it ever showed up on signed tax re turns he filed for 2000 and 2001 with the Internal Revenue Service. Salmon also told the newspaper before that he never reported the transaction because the mission made no money from it. He re fused to talk to a reporter at the paper on Tuesday and did not im mediately return a message left for him by The Associated Press on Wednesday. The sale could prompt a crimi nal investigation. Under state law, when a nonprofit group disposes of property, it must notify the state attorney general’s office at least 20 days in advance. Officials said they have found no records relating to the sale. “This office is working with tH^ secretary of state’s office and the ♦ CHARLESTON, SEE PAGE A4 Here's the church, here's the steeple... Open the doors & here are the people... waiting for you at Shandon United Methodist. Find your way to a church home while you’re here in Columbia. We offer: • Lifeline — a casual, contemporary, upbeat service with a cool band & breakfast snacks at 10:00 am on Sundays 1 * Traditional Worship - stirring music & a friendly atmosphere in a ■j traditional setting at 9:00 & 11:15 31111 on Sundays ■ * Weekly Bible Study for college students 8H3,I1D0I1 United Methodist 3407 Devine Street, next to Dreher High School 8o3 256-8383 vww.shandon~ume.org find your way Natural selection. How smart is this: All the textbooks you need for up to 60% off retail prices. 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