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* www.dailygamecock.com _MONDAY, MARCH 15,2004_ Since 1908 « , Sorensen restarts bus tour USC president spends spring break across state pn Bow Tie trip BY KEVIN FELLNER TIIK IIAMKCOCK USC President Andrew Sorensen was the most popular customer at the Huddle House in McBee shortly after dawn one morning last week. He introduced himself to every patron having breakfast and coffee and even . found some wearing garnet and black attire without prior knowl edge of a visit that morning from their favorite university’s top ad ministrator. While it might have looked like a political campaign event, the vis it was the first stop of Sorensen’s second Bow Tie Bus Tour, which he says he intends to make an an nual spring series. The first tour lasted from fall 2002 through early spring 2003 and took Sorensen to all of South Carolina’s 46 counties. Last week, the first leg of the public relations tour involved meeting with high school stu dents, business leaders and alum ni in the Pee Dee region. After chatting with his five traveling staff members about the basketball team’s potential in the SEC tournament, Sorensen trav ♦ BUSTOUR, SEE PAGE 6 ( I Resources on campus and in state make coping with stress easier BY ALEXIS BASS ^k|IK CAM HOUCK As the semester winds down, students face projects, research papers and finals. But resources from USC and around the state can help students cope with stress. For on-campus information and resources for managing stress, the Strom Thurmond Wellness & Fitness Center offers an open door drop-in center and other programs on health improvement. If a student is experiencing severe stress levels, he or she is referred to the counseling center on campus, said Campus Wellness program director Michelle Murphy. “Normally stress is because of poor time management,” she said. A seminar, “Coping with Stress and Preventing Burnout” will be held from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. March 23 at the Counseling & Human Development Center. The one-session overview, conducted by ♦STRESS, SEEPAGES Surf Yourself For more information about campus services for stress relief visit: www.sa.sc.edu/wellness/campus.htm Late-season.surge i_jHBnnnmHH PHOTO BY JOHNNY HAYNES/THE GAMECOCK Guard Michael Boynton celebrates during USC’s 20-point win against LSU during the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament. ♦ FOR MORE ON THE SEC TOURNAMENT, SEE INSERT. Carolina to play in NCAA tourney BY JONATHAN H1LLYARD THE GAMECOCK The USC men’s basketball team will play in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in six years after completing a 23-10 season. USC will now face the Memphis Tigers in the opening round of the tournament Friday in Kansas City, Mo. Following this weekend’s SEC Tournament, the conference will send Kentucky, Florida, Vanderbilt, South Carolina, Mississippi State and Alabama. The Gamecocks won two games over the weekend during the SEC Basketball Tournament in Atlanta before losing to eventual SEC champion Kentucky. Carolina de leaieu rtinansas mursuay anu LSU Friday in fairly convincing fashion. Solid performances by se nior guard Mike Boynton and ju nior guard Josh Gonner led the Gamecocks to important wins and knocked USC off the NCAA bub ble. The Wildcats went on to demol ish Florida in the finals of the tour nament, earning themselves a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. This year’s SEC tournament was the first of its kind, in which one division represented all final four teams in the field. Highlights of the tournament included Vanderbilt’s upset of Mississippi State and Florida’s last-second shot to defeat Alabama in overtime of their quar terfinal game. Comments on this story?E-mail gamecocknews@gwm.sc.edu Australia offers adventure BY KATIE CHURCH STI-XIAI, TO TIIK CAMKCOCK Australia is no longer just a place for hot vacations, gorgeous sunsets and unusual animals. As more and more stqdents seek new options for studying abroad, the land down under is fast be coming the location of choice. “I think the reason a lot of stu dents choose to go to Australia is because it's an English-speaking country,” Alexa Maddox, a study abroad adviser, said. “They get an exotic atmosphere and their classes in English.” Jillian Deibert, a third-year mar keting student who studied at the University of Newcastle fall 2003, agreed. “There is no lan guage barrier, plus I have always been interested in Australia be cause of its landscape,” she said. Deibert traveled into the Northern Territory of Australia or “outback country,” from Darwin to Uluru to Alice Springs. “The postcards are just the be ginning,” she said. Laura Bliss, a fourth-year advertising student who also studied at the University of Newcastle fall 2003, back packed from Sydney to Cairns, which is a city just off of the Great Barrier Reef. “I chose Australia because it has this ide al style of life and I wanted a chance to explore,” she said. In Australia the course load for students is lighter, but the workload is heavier and primar ily independent. “I felt like the classes at Newcastle didn't waste my time,” Deibert said. “I didn't realize how much I learned until 1 came back to the States.” Deibert and Bliss both lived on campus at Newcastle. “There's lots of'Uni' pride, es pecially if you're living on cam pus.” Bliss said. “They don't have football though,” Diebert said, “but they do play cricket and rugby.” ♦ AUSTRALIA, SEE PAGE 6 “I chose Australia because it has this ideal style of life and I wanted a chance to explore” LAURA BLISS FOURTH-YEAR ADVERTISING STUDENT College taxes befuddle students Beneficial tax credits confuse BY MARY DALRYMPLE THE ASSOCIATED l-IIESS WASHINGTON — Students heading to college might want to make their first class a short course in tax law. They will need it to work out the myriad tax credits, deductions and savings plans that help defray the rising cost of a college education. The complications built into tax benefits for students and par ents of college-bound children caught the attention of Treasury Department officials. Last month, they asked lawmakers to simplify things. “These things kind of multi ply,” said Gregory Jenner, acting assistant treasury secretary for taxes. “Now what we’re trying to do is rationalize them.” Observers cheered the idea but said attempts to straighten out complicated tax laws usually prove politically popular but rarely successful. “There doesn’t seem to be any glory in simplification,” said David Keating, senior counselor at the National Taxpayers Union. “Most congressmen don’t find any political glory in that.” Under the current rules, stu dents in their first two years of college qualify for the Hope cred it. Upperclassmen, graduate stu dents and professionals can use the lifetime learning credit. Parents with children, or attend ing school themselves, can claim more than one Hope credit but only one lifetime learning credit. A taxpayer can take a deduc tion for up to $4,000 of higher ed ucation expenses, but only when opting not to use the education credits. A different deduction lets taxpayers recoup some of the cost of student loan interest. It and the other deductions and credits start to disappear as taxpayers earn more. ♦ COLLEGE, SEE PAGE 5 Inside CONCERN terrorist atQsk, ruling party ted as v6j|rs drvide! FOR MORE SEE l^^fcpWSMflg^ther charged in nine deaths of children, grandchildren. FOR MORE SEE PAGE 7 ♦ ACCOLADES Men's basketball coach and freshman forward honored by SEC coaches. FOR MORE SEE PAGE 12 ♦ FEELING LUCKY The Mix explores the symbolism behind the shamrock. FOR MORE SEE PAGE 10 ♦ MARCH MADNESS The Gamecock's NCAA Tournament preview. INSERT Index Comics and Crossword 12 Classified 16 Horoscopes 12 Letters to the Editor 9 in f1 i'iiiih ii i ■iii|niiinHiir|uiriLi Online Poll 9 Police Report__ 2 Entertainment News2 USC Calendar 2 The Gamecock Is printed on recycled paper. Visit us online at: www.dailygamecock.com