Five questions for Lana Voga

By Paula Van Brocklin
May 17

Printed materials get a bad rap in today's "greener" world. But Lana Voga, customer service manager for ISU Printing Services, would like to set the record straight. She would even encourage you to spread the word by printing this article, not emailing it, because it's better for the environment. Find out Voga's reasoning as she responds to five statements about printing and sustainability.  

True or false: Paper is not sustainable

False. Paper comes from wood, which is a renewable, biodegradable resource unlike cell phones, computers and other electronic devices that contaminate landfills. Paper is sustainable and it's more sustainable than the carbon footprint that an email leaves. I think people misunderstand the concept of sustainability. I think people look at trash and garbage and see paper, so I think a lot of the focus on sustainability is toward paper. But they forget about the carbon footprint. Their real focus isn't on the big picture.

True or false: Email is greener than snail mail

False. On average, 62 trillion emails sent globally each year is like driving around the earth 1.6 million times. The carbon footprint of one email is the equivalent of driving a car 3 feet. A piece of paper can be recycled seven times -- it can be recycled over and over and over and over until the fibers become too short to make paper.

True or false: People understand information better when it's printed on paper than when it's on a screen

True. A recent marketing study showed that a combination of written material, like a direct mailing, along with emails or other electronic communication yielded up to a 25 percent higher response rate. People retain more of what they read in print. This study also said that information is 20 to 30 percent more difficult to read on a screen than on paper.     

True or false: ISU Printing uses sustainable and recyclable papers and inks

True. Of the paper we use, 85 percent is either recycled or chain-of-custody certified. That means it comes from a sustainable forest where the production process is guaranteed environmentally sound. Foresters plant three trees for every one tree that's harvested. In the United States, four million trees are planted each day.

Most of our inks are soy-based, which means they are produced from soybeans and they contain almost no voc's (volatile organic compounds), which evaporate into the air.

True or false: ISU Printing always has an eye on sustainability

True. For example, we have significantly reduced the chemicals once needed in the printing process using a computer-to-plate process. We no longer use metal plates in our offset printing process. We recycle about 600 pounds of cardboard each week. We reuse ream boxes and delivery cartons for various purposes. We donate wood pallets to other departments and units on campus; if they can't be used they are burned at the power plant for energy. We acquire used computers from other departments for our production tracking system so we're not littering the landfill with old computers. We even print documents with a special font called Ecofont, which anyone can download. This font has small spaces in the center of the type, which requires less ink. Therefore, when you use this font, you'll use less toner and save money on printer cartridges.  

We also encourage our customers to use variable data options (customized for individuals) when printing and mailing to significantly reduce the number of printed copies and save the department money.

Pamela Anthony named dean of students

May 17

Pamela Anthony, assistant dean of students at Georgia State University, Atlanta, will begin as Iowa State’s dean of students on Aug. 1.

Anthony has served as assistant dean of students at Georgia State since August 2003. Previously, she was the director of student activities at Spelman College, also in Atlanta, and held two positions at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks: coordinator of multicultural affairs and area coordinator of residence life. She has extensive experience in student crisis intervention, judicial affairs, student activities and Greek life.

Anthony earned a B.S. in speech pathology from James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Va.; a master's in student personnel in higher education from the University of Georgia; and a Ph.D. in educational policy studies from Georgia State.

Anthony succeeds Dione Somerville, who left Iowa State in June 2011 to become vice president for student affairs at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. James Dorsett, director of the office of international students and scholars, served as interim dean of students during the 2011-2012 academic year.

Campus will host numerous large groups this summer

By Anne Krapfl
May 17

An estimated 4,900 first-year students who have accepted their admission offers at Iowa State will visit campus for one of 18 orientation sessions scheduled between May 31 and June 28; one-day orientation for transfer students will be held May 30 and June 29.

"We hear through our conversations with them that some, not all, haven't made a final decision yet," said Liz Kurt, director of New Student Programs. "We know that customer service is always very important, and even more so for families still deciding if Iowa State is the right place for them."

Numerous road, utility and building projects this summer will make the service component all the more essential, she said.

During orientation, students meet their academic advisers and register for fall classes, get their ISU email accounts and ID cards, and learn some specifics about their home college as well as academic support and social resources available to them.

There are opportunities to meet with a financial aid adviser and take tours of the library, residence halls or Greek housing network. They'll learn the fight song, what a learning community can offer them, good campus spots for a smoothie or a cup of chai and how their laptop will network with the university IT system.

Orientation will be headquartered on the east side of campus, with check-in at the Hixson Lied Student Success Center and overnight accommodations in Maple Hall. Workshops, activities and tours will be spread across central campus.

Kurt and her team are planning for another record-setting group. Last year, more than 4,800 students participated, and in 2010 about 4,300 would-be freshmen attended orientation.

Here's a quick look at some other large groups visiting campus this summer:

Iowa Special Olympics Summer Games, May 17-19

Nearly 3,000 athletes, accompanied by more than 1,400 coaches and thousands of family members, will compete in soccer, track and field, cycling, swimming, bocce, tennis and developmental events. About 1,100 of the visitors will stay in the Maple-Willow-Larch and Oak-Elm residence halls. Venue sites include the Lied Center and the soccer complex east of it, Forker tennis courts, Beyer Hall, intramural fields east of MWL and the Iowa State Center parking lots. Nearly 1,200 volunteers will assist during the games. The opening ceremony begins at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 17, in Hilton Coliseum; this event and all competitions are free and open to the public.

Odyssey of the Mind, May 23-26

An estimated 800 teams – totaling 15,000 people with coaches and chaperones -- from around the world will visit campus for this creativity/problem-solving competition. They'll compete in four age divisions from kindergarten through college.

The opening ceremony is Wednesday evening, May 23, and the closing ceremony is Saturday evening at Hilton. Teams begin arriving Tuesday morning and will check out of residence halls Sunday morning. Competitions run all day Thursday, Friday and Saturday; competition sites include the auditoriums in Hoover, Kildee, LeBaron and Music halls and the College of Design; the Forker gymnasiums; Pearson classrooms and the Memorial Union ballrooms. The main floor of the Lied center will be reserved May 23-26 for a creativity festival and a NASA e-theatre event will be repeated several times a day in the Howe auditorium. Guests will use every residence hall.

Most recently, OM World Finals were here in 2009 and 2006.

Iowa Girls State, June 17-22

About 300 young women entering their senior year of high school from around the state will meet at the Iowa State Center to study the political process. They'll arrive Sunday morning and depart following an 8 p.m. event Friday evening; they'll live in the MWL residence complex for the week.

Iowa 4-H Youth Conference, June 26-28

More than 900 Iowa teens (ninth graders-to-be and older) come to campus for 60-plus workshops, motivational speakers, community service projects and social events. The focus is on understanding citizenship and developing leadership skills. Students don't have to be 4-H members to attend this conference. Large group events are held at the Iowa State Center; workshops are held in academic building classrooms around campus. Participants will stay in the Richardson Court residence halls.

Iowa Games, summer edition, July 12-15, also July 7-8, July 20-22

An estimated 15,000 athletes, both youth and adults, will compete in 58 amateur sporting events over three weekends. Many, though not all, venue sites are in the Ames area. Campus facilities in use during the event include Beyer and Forker halls, the Lied center, the southeast intramural fields, cross-country course and disc golf course.

The opening ceremony is Friday, July 13, in parking lot S-6 on the east side of Jack Trice Stadium.

Iowa Shrine football game and practices, July 15-21

Ninety-two football players just out of high school, 60 cheerleaders and coaching staffs have been selected to participate in the 40th annual awareness- and fund-raising event for the Shriners Children's Hospitals. Participants begin arriving on campus July 15. They live in the MWL complex, and use the Lied Center and athletics department facilities. The football game begins at 7 p.m. Saturday, July 21, at Jack Trice Stadium; tickets are $15 at the gate, $10 in advance. A pregame parade in downtown Ames begins at 9:30 a.m.

Youth Leadership Forum, July 15-20

An anticipated 60 high school juniors and seniors with disabilities from around the state will attend the forum, which focuses on developing leadership skills, identifying resources that could assist them, learning about various careers and becoming self-sufficient. Their activities will be held in the Union Drive Community Center and the Memorial Union, and they'll live in Martin Hall. A smaller camp of about 20 college juniors and seniors will be held July 27-30, using the same facilities.

National Cheer and Dance Association camp, July 16-19

Up to 170 high school cheer squad members will participate in this training camp. A second, smaller camp of about 100 participants will be held June 25-28. Camp activities will be in State Gym; participants will live in Friley Hall.

Beep Baseball World Series, July 22-28

The championships for this modified game for blind and visually impaired adults will be played on all-grass areas of the intramural fields east of Jack Trice Stadium. About 500 athletes will compete this year, the first time the world series has been held in Iowa. Games between coed teams begin on Tuesday, July 24, and continue through Saturday, and are free and open to the public. Athletes and visitors will stay in area hotels.

Yearlong review of university budget model wraps up

By Anne Krapfl
May 17

A 10-member committee asked to review the effectiveness of Iowa State's 4-year-old budget model completed its task last week and posted its report and recommendations online for the university community.

"I thank the committee for its hard work and thorough report, and I am pleased to see that there is general agreement that the RMM has worked well," said executive vice president and provost Elizabeth Hoffman, who gave the group its assignment. "I agree with the suggestions for ways to make sure that units that do not benefit directly from the incentives imbedded in the model could be better integrated into the budgeting process.

"While the model has brought greater transparency to the budgeting process, I also recognize that more and better communication is always valuable," Hoffman said.

The 134-page, interactive report contains lots of data and discussions of numerous inquiries into how or why the the Resource Management Model (RMM) operates the way it does. Pages 106-113 contain a summary of the review committee's recommendations. Their insights include:

• The formula for distributing tuition, at both the undergraduate or graduate levels, should not be changed.
• The Institutional Excellence Fund should be increased. (State budget cuts reduced its size because these dollars were used to deal with funding shortfalls, not for strategic investments as designed.) More leaders, not just the provost and president, should have input into how these dollars are invested, and an annual summary should document its allocations and investments.
• Funding for the Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development has not kept pace with the growth in research activities. The unit should receive a funding increase (from the university's general state appropriation), both to improve administrative support of Iowa State's research engine and for flexibility in funding special research initiatives.
• The budget model is geared toward undergraduate education, but two units important to the university's land-grant mission – College of Veterinary Medicine and Extension and Outreach – don't serve undergraduates. The provost and president, who can adjust state appropriations going to colleges and the other outside revenue-generating units, should do so when necessary to ensure high quality programs.
• An "enrollment contingency fund" of $500,000 should be created within the Institutional Excellence Fund. It would be used as needed to help the six administrative service units in the model deal with fall enrollments that exceed the May projections.
• Advisory groups put in place to provide regular input on budget issues to the leaders of the six administrative service units (such as library, IT services, business services, student services) haven't all worked as planned and should be disbanded. Broad-based input still is crucial, and each leader should develop a new mechanism for gathering advice.
• More conversation, both formal and informal, should occur among leaders of the various budget units (such as colleges, VP units), including discussion "this year" of university budget priorities for the next fiscal year.
• Employees should receive more training on the RMM so they are equipped to complete the tasks it requires of them.

The committee noted in its report that some criticisms of the RMM more accurately might be outcomes of historic cuts in state funding to the university. Implementation of the model occurred at the start of the cuts.

What's next

Associate vice president Miles Lackey said President Steven Leath is committed to implementing recommendations in the report. After the campus community has had some time to study the report, he said Leath would announce the process for getting that done.

Director of university budgets Dave Biedenbach, who assisted the committee, said changes that are implemented would occur as the FY14 budget (the year that begins July 1, 2013) is developed. Noting that a majority of the committee's recommendations focus on processes, he said some changes could take more than a year to implement.

Background

Iowa State units first used the model to build budgets for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2009. The committee that adapted and led its implementation recommended a review of the model after three to five years of use.

The review committee was assembled last June and led by Liberal Arts and Sciences associate dean Arne Hallam and former Business dean Labh Hira. The committee worked with Resource Planning and Management Associates, Nashville, on the information gathering during fall semester. The listening phase included a daylong symposium, interviews with budget unit leaders and budget officers, focus groups and two open forums. Members of the university community also submitted comments to a designated email address.

Residence retention tool is getting results

By Erin Rosacker
May 17

Each fall since 2008, incoming freshmen have been invited to take part in a free, 20-minute online assessment tool called MAP-Works. Although it is funded by the Department of Residence, on- and off-campus first-time, first-year students are encouraged to participate.

The short "Transition Survey" provides students with feedback that targets campus resources to assist in their transition to Iowa State. Strengths, weakness and concerns can be identified and addressed to each individual's needs. Participating faculty and staff (primarily advisers) use the data to provide appropriate transition help, especially for at-risk students.

"Wherever the system raises red flags, it offers resources the students can reach out to on campus," said Ginny Arthur, associate director for residence life who coordinates the program with associate dean of students Mary Jo Gonzales. "It's a very personalized system. That's one of the hallmarks of the program."

Early intervention

"The survey begins the third week of the fall semester," Arthur said. "That is a high-risk time -- when students might be struggling. They need to figure out how to change their behaviors and what resources we have for them."

Data from MAP-Works helps measure the academic success and retention rates of survey participants. Low, moderate and high "risk indicators," based on academic ability measures such as ACT score, high school rank and GPA, are collected for all freshmen. However, survey answers from MAP-Works participants also are factored into the risk equation. These questions have included issues such as financial distress, time management skills, campus involvement and homesickness.

Academic advisers and residence hall directors likely are the first to contact high-risk students. Hall directors also follow up with students who do not participate in the survey, since the numbers show they are more at risk than those who do participate.

The data

Donald Whalen, DOR research analyst, is spearheading the compilation of MAP-Works data. Participation numbers and participant vs. nonparticipant comparisons are among the reports available online.

Last fall, 81.4 percent of first-year freshmen (4,108) completed the survey, including 86 percent of freshmen living on campus. MAP-Works participants posted a higher average GPA (2.8) and spring retention rate (95.9 percent) than nonparticipants (2.45 and 89.7 percent).

Incentives

Students are offered incentives to participate in the MAP-Works program. Students who complete the survey are eligible for prize drawings, and pizza parties are awarded to residence hall houses with the highest participation rates. Random prize drawings have included parking passes, gift cards, basketball tickets and a free year of room and board.

Memorial Day ceremony is May 28

By Diana Pounds
May 17

Iowa State employees, retirees and spouses who have died during the past year will be remembered at the university's annual Memorial Day ceremony on Monday, May 28. The ceremony will begin at 9 a.m. in the Reiman Ballroom at the Alumni Center, 420 Beach Ave.

The ceremony will start with a prelude by Collegiate Brass from Collegiate United Methodist Church and an invocation by the Rev. Larry Mitchell, retired Presbyterian pastor. Family, friends and colleagues will be invited to share memories of loved ones.

Parking is available in Lots A2-3 on the east side of the Alumni Center. Submit information online, by phone (4-6515) or email (kjlgood@iastate.edu).

Submit names, tributes

The deadline to submit names or information to be included in this year's ceremony is May 18. All tributes will be posted on the ISU Retirees website by May 25.

The ceremony is planned by a subcommittee of the ISU Retirees Association. For more information, contact Jerilyn Logue at 4-3192, jlogue@iastate.edu.