As students are faced with the mounting challenges of paying for college, few options are presenting themselves in the open market aside from the usual sources: Pell Grants, scholarships and student loans. Even now at Bakersfield College, Pell Grant disbursements are being delayed for as long as 12 weeks with the added surge of students who have been laid off and are returning to school.
For now, the campus-wide ban on smoking seems to be up in smoke. However, the newly installed SGA president, Kristi Newsom, who replaced former SGA president Shawn Newsom for the current academic year, said that the ban BC students voted for last spring will eventually be enforced.
As the economy suffers and the gas prices rise, many people feel that public transportation is the best and cheaper way to go. Although this may seem to be a good idea, it may not be the cheapest way to go. Riding the Golden Empire Transit cuts down on traffic and gas, but it is not as cheap as many may think.
With the economy and the amount of unemployment, Bakersfield College students are strapped for cash. "I am doing my best to budget my money. I go online and try to rent cheap used books on chegg.com," said Alex Ross, a BC student. The tight economy has also affected students who want to grab a bite to eat on campus.
The Art Council of Kern County recently acquired a grant to help Kern County musicians and to make the county's music more diverse. The grant was made possible by the Irvine Foundation, which has worked with the Art Council for many years. "The purpose of this grant is to find local bands and musicians and bring their talents together," said Jill Eglan, director of special projects for the Art Council.
As students return to campus, their concerns lie with books, waitlists and financial aid, but few seem to be concerned with H1N1, also known as Swine Flu. The Centers for Disease Control, however, warns that H1N1 could be a much larger problem than previously anticipated.
Shortly before 10 a.m. on Sept. 10, BC officials received a bomb threat via telephone. According to Amber Chiang, director of Media Relations for BC, a caller with a man's voice phoned in the threat and left no specifics as to location or type of device. "Immediately after receiving the call, we activated our Incident Command Team and began a systematic sweep of the campus," Chiang said in a telephone interview.
Bakersfield College has had an increase in tuition fees beginning this 2009 school year. Greg Chamberlain, president of Bakersfield College, said, "The state's legislature and government did this in order to help balance out the last budget." Due to budget cuts, all community colleges in California had an increase of $6 for tuition.
With the conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan occurring, many veterans are returning home with the hope of obtaining a college education. Michael G. Penney, supervisor of Kern County Veterans Service Department and former U.S. Navy veteran, stated programs are available to help veterans and their families when encountering the hardships of returning to a normal civilian life.
Due to the state of California's financial problems, several colleges will receive less money for education. This semester has 1,603 sections compared to last semester in the fall of 2008 with 1,871 sections. This is about a 14 percent decrease in classes or more than 200 sections not offered to students at BC this year.
In previous semesters, students have been able to look for deals on textbooks from people selling their used books along the walkways near the entrance to the BC Bookstore. This year students have been directed to sell their books in the area in front of the gymnasium.
Less than one week into the semester, the Business Administration building has been hit by a major theft. Three new projectors were stolen sometime between Aug. 28 and Aug. 31. The projectors had been purchased by Bakersfield College and installed approximately two weeks before the start of the new semester.
On July 1, former newly elected SGA President Shawn Newsom resigned, leaving his wife, former Vice President Kristi Newsom, as the new acting president. According to Shawn Newsom, he resigned for "personal reasons and prior commitments." Shawn and Kristi Newsom ran for president and vice president in last year's SGA elections campaign and were successfully elected in May 2009.
California's 22nd congressional district representative, Kevin McCarthy, held a town hall style meeting on the CSUB campus on August 26. National health care reform was the main topic of discussion however many other topics were voiced.