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University of South Carolina \A/FnMITQnAV ADD 11 01 000/1 VOL 97, No. 90 www.dailygamecock.com VVLUINLoUAY, Ar KIL Z I, ZUU4 Since 1908 Yearbook might return Survey to gauge student interest after 10-year absence from campus by ADAM BEAM the hammock USC is considering publishing a yearbook if results of a student survey indicate a strong interest for it. Student Life Director Jerry Brewer said representatives from Taylor Publishing approached the Alumni Association about a new marketing strategy for year books, called Milestones. The strategy, which is in its first full year of testing, markets year books to parents instead of stu dents. Student Media Director Scott Lindenberg has put together an online survey at www.sa.sc.edu/studentmedia in an attempt to gauge student inter est. “We need to figure out if stu dents want it, determine the lo gistics and then figure out the bud get to see if it is feasible," Lindenberg said. “It’s really im portant for students who are not interested in the yearbook to re spond to this survey. If it’s all peo ple who are interested in it then it’s not a good representative sam ple of student opinion." USC discontinued its yearbook 10 years ago after lack of interest and lack of student participation. Carolyn Griffin, student media business manager, has been with student media 24 years. “We had a lot of problems get ting people to pick up their year books," she said. “We had no place to store them.” While high school yearbooks are thriving, publishing compa nies have slowly lost ground at col leges and universities. Mike Cobb, yearbook product manager for Taylor Publishing, said college yearbooks have been gradually disappearing during the last 15 years for no specific reason. ♦YEARBOOK, SEE PAGE 4 . PHOTO BY GABRIELIE SINCLAIR/THE GAMECOCK These pictures, from USC's 1981 yearbook, are a glimpse of what the Garnet & Black used to be. USC graduation rate above U.S. average BY MARJORIE RIDDLE THE HAMECOCK With graduation just around the comer, USC is boasting a 60 percent graduation rate — but Student Affairs Vice President Dennis Pruitt said that number can be mis leading. Pruitt said an institution collects data on their full-time, freshman class. If a stu dent leaves the university, they are not be ing tracked, and as a result, Pruitt said graduation rates are generally 20 percent higher than what any one institution shows. “The higher education committee is a little sensitive to graduation rates because of the way the data is collected,” Pruitt said. He said students at USC’s Columbia campus have a good chance of moving away at some point in their undergradu ate careers because of the military and in ternational industrial presence in the Midlands area. “The cost of attendance of an education has skyrocketed so dramatically,” Pruitt said. “Particularly when you have a bad economy, some students go to college dur ing a bad economy to retool or prepare for their next job, but also a lot of students drop out or stop out during a bad econo my because they have to help their fami lies.” He said that at USC, only 16 percent of freshmen who enroll do not return their sophomore year — 6 percent because they are not academically eligible. The retention rate of returning USC freshmen has in creased from 77 percent to 84 percent in sev en years. “That’s a 7-percentage-point increase — that’s dramatic,” Pruitt said. “There are a couple reasons for that. We have a much more academically talented student coming to the university. Our SATs are up 45 points ♦ GRADUATION, SEE PAGE 4 PHOTO SPECIA TO THE GAMECOCK USC’fi 60 percent graduation rate is above the national average, but some say this number can be misleading. Professors support ban on ephedrine |bY IRA KLEIN THE GAMECOCK USC pharmacy professors voiced support for a nationwide ban of ephedrine, a popular di etary supplement, a prohibition that has some college students across the nation up in arms. One reason for the new ban, according to USC associate pro fessor of pharmacy Brooks Metts, is that ephedrine. no mat ter what form it is in, can be used to make methamphetamine J— otherwise known as crystal meth. Metts said he agrees with the Food and Drug Administration’s ■ecision. ^ “There are so many other compounds around that do pret ty much the same thing and are much safer,” he said. “It just didn’t make any sense to leave such a dangerous and nonessen tial supplement on the shelves.” Unlike medications, which must be proven safe and effec tive before they can be sold, fed eral law allows dietary supple ments to be marketed without any such proof. A 1994 law al lows the FDA to remove a di etary supplement from the mar ket only if it presents a risk of illness. The FDA’s removal of ephedrine from the market marks the government’s first ban on a dietary supplement. “It was about time they final ly step in and do something to Iregulate these supplements,” Metts said. “There are ineffec tive and unsafe products out there that are taking advantage of consumers.” Ephedrine, also known as ephedra, is an amphetamine-like herbal stimulant that is popular among bodybuilders and ath letes as a performance enhancer and a source of energy. College students also use it as a stay awake study aid. Research shows the herb can speed up heart rate and constrict blood vessels even in seemingly healthy people. FDA records show the drug has caused 155 deaths nationwide, usually by stroke or heart attack. More than 1,500 people have encoun tered serious non-lethal health problems as a result of ephedrine use. The herb re ceived increased scrutiny this year after the February death of Baltimore Orioles pitcher Steve Bechler, who was taking the drug. The FDA warned customers in December to stop using the drug. However, following the announcement, New Jersey ephedrine manufacturer NVE Pharmaceuticals Inc. filed for suit to prevent the ban until fur ther scientific tests, arguing that ephedrine is safe when used as directed. A second com pany, the National Institute for Clinical Weight Loss in Atlanta, eventually joined NVE’s legal action. During the litigation, the FDA announced Feb. 6 that ♦ EPHEDRINE, SEE PAGE 4 i mwiu u i Jnuun jiLLLninn/ iiil. uni«LL<VL>n Members of Refried Films shoot a scene outside the John Welsh Humanities Center. The organization develops scripts Into movies. BY Z’ANNE COVELL THECiAMECOCK Refried Films, a student organization dedi cated to writing and producing scripts, helps aspiring filmmakers make their dreams a reality. “Everyone has an idea for a movie, but they don’t students with their respective film projects, Steelman said. Refried Idea Creation Experiment meets weekly to discuss the development of scripts, often helping struggling screenwriters suffering from writer’s block. “We accept scripts from anybody, and at RICE we talk about the scripts and work out any kinks,” said .— t _a.____i r_i n _ j IU1V n v“--— ’ uuuv/11 UlVVlillUU, yiV/Ol JL UU1 1UU1 1\U * 11/11, LIVUJUi VI U11U W iUUUU^J. U1 1VU11 X&U dent and co-founder of Refried Films and second-year media arts stu- Films and second-year media arts student. dent. “But it’s doable, and we provide resources for students who want The organization’s name stems from the open discussion where the to make films.” Refried members write and produce their own scripts but also help ♦ FILMS, SEE PAGE 3 |Wtiatl.frisicle If ♦ ^eibafiomags Abortion cases ■Mgn ajtattle of language® EOR MORE » SEE PAGE 6< £ ^lytVEHas Curtis Chow writes men and women should follow their instincts. Mi FOR MORE SEE PAGE 8 + HBMCAI.NBLB Sorensen looks out for the state and USC in pharmacy endorsement. FOR MORE SEE PAGE 8 ♦ UK’S A BEACH Check out some of the coast's less-commercialized shoreline. FOR MORE SEE PAGE 10 +SKMMSH Baseball takes on the Citadel tonight at Sarge Frye Field. FOR MORE SEE PAGE 13 Index Comics and Crossword12 Classified_ 15 Horoscopes 12 Letters to the Editor 8 mm : - fr'i."- \ v-a - s i Online Poll 8 Police Report 2 Entertainment News2 USC Calendar 2 ■■■■'■ , v . t The Gamecock is printed on recycled paper. Visit us online at www.dailygamecock.com