What's going on this January?
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The Ohio House of Representatives passed a bill that will abolish the Ohio Tobacco Prevention Foundation (OTPF) and most likely snuff out programs like DEBUNKIFY along with it.This bill will face the Ohio Senate next week and is predicted to be approved and signed by Gov. Strickland, according to the Ohio State Medical Foundation.This battle between the OTPF and Ohio legislation began when "lawmakers seized $568 million in new annual tobacco payments to balance the state budget," according to an article that appeared last month in The Enquirer (Cincinnati). The OTPF had approximately $10.1 billion from a settlement with major tobacco companies, so this incident was of little concern to the foundation.However, last year Strickland decided to take all of the foundation's future payments and use those funds for tax breaks for the elderly and for construction of schools.On April 2, 2008, Strickland decided to obtain another $230 million dollars from the tobacco prevention agency, leaving it with a mere $40 million that may have lasted only another two years.According to the governor's press secretary, Keith Dailey, the money will be used for a "job stimulus plan to create new jobs during the next five years."If the bill that will abolish the foundation passes in the Senate, Dailey added that "an additional $40 million will be transferred to the Ohio Department of Health to continue all tobacco cessation and prevention efforts."It is still unclear whether the Ohio Department of Health will continue with efforts such as STAND and DEBUNKIFY, but with limited funding these campaigns are not expected to continue.The Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) chapter at Otterbein College has been working with the Ohio Tobacco Prevention Foundation and Northlich Public Relations to further the DEBUNKIFY campaign for the past two years.Junior public relations major Stefanie Campbell, account supervisor for DEBUNKIFY at Otterbein, said PRSSA was granted $8,000 this past year.She said that the chapter was "eager to participate next year" in DEBUNKIFY, but the chapter is already considering other public relations campaign options.PRSSA will be working on a campaign for Roll, a bicycle company located in Polaris and coming soon to Easton.Although Otterbein has found a substitute, those who rely on the Tobacco Prevention Foundation for health reasons may suffer.Programs like STAND have proven effective in the past. According to materials from the Ohio Tobacco Prevention Foundation, over a two-year period, "Fifteen- to 17-year-olds who were aware of STAND were 75 percent less likely to try smoking than their peers unaware of STAND."According to messages from the DEBUNKIFY campaign, "Tobacco kills 18,600 Ohioans every year," and "Tobacco-related health care expenditures cost the state more than $3 billion each year." Without these campaigns and the efforts of the Ohio Tobacco Prevention Foundation, it is hard to say whether Ohio teens and young adults will stay on a smoke-free path, and taxpayers will have to deal with the negative consequences of the government's decision to phase out the OTPF.Despite these drawbacks, Dailey and Strickland see many positives to reallocating the OTPF's funds.Investments will be made in areas such as: local infrastructure, bio-based products, advanced energy, the Workforce/Education Coop Program. t&c;
A new ordinance proposed by the Westerville City Council may increase rent for students living off campus.The new ordinance will require all rental properties in Westerville to be registered with the city and inspected regularly, which could start as early as July 1. If the house is not up to code, repairs must be made. The costs of these inspections and repairs will be put on the landlords' shoulders and logically passed on to the tenants.Director of Planning and Development Karl Craven, said, "We anticipate there will be a lot of community interest." He went on to describe how some people are excited about this new law benefiting the appearance of Westerville communities.Julie Saker, director of student conduct and wellness at Otterbein College, sees this new law as a huge benefit for those who live off campus. She said "it can only help enhance safety issues for students."The City of Westerville issued a report that identifies the benefits of this new program as: "increased property values, decreased general calls for police services, decreased calls about rental property problems to City Officials and increased property management involvement in solving rental property issues."Despite all of these benefits, Craven predicts that some landlords and tenants will be reluctant to welcome inspectors or pay extra rent.One landlord who rents primarily to Otterbein students, Brenda Winebrenner, feels that the new inspections are an "invasion of tenants' privacy." Winebrenner also said "We keep the cost less for students to rent off campus than on...I can no longer guarantee that." She was ashamed to admit that the extra costs of inspections and repairs would be passed on to her tenants.These regular inspections will cost $100 and if a re-inspection is necessary, an additional $25-$75 could be added on. The exterior and interior of the house will be examined and a checklist must be completed. Some of these checklist items that can be found in the Westerville Rental Property Program Report include: airtight doors and windows, no plumbing leaks, no evidence of varmits, all gas heating sources must be vented and working safely and the smoke detectors must be installed near sleeping areas. Otterbein senior psychology major Chris Wyse said "As a renter, I'm not looking forward to it, but the city has fitting plans for the money." Westerville tenants are told that the money they will pay for inspections will be used for improvements to the properties and to supply better services and utilities.Not all students will have to worry about this law. Otterbein- owned buildings will not be affected by this new ordinance. Dorms and other structures that are inspected regularly do not need to undergo the city inspection. It is still uncertain whether or not fraternity and sorority houses will be able to ignore the extra costs ordinary renters will incur. These homes are inspected by the fire department but it is not clear whether this type of inspection is thorough enough for the new ordinance.For students not living in traditional Otterbein dorms next year, be prepared to pay a little more in rent if this law does take effect this summer. t&c;
Inspirational speaker Jonathan Mooney kicked off disability awareness week on Sunday with a discussion dealing with mental disabilities. Mooney's words about the tyranny of normalcy, empowerment and cognitive diversity reverberated through the auditorium, and all those who came ot hear it. Mooney, a Brown University graduate, is the author of "The Short Bus: A Journey Beyond Normal" and "Learning Outside the Lines." Mooney was diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD; he reads at a seventh grade reading level and spells at a third grade level.His childhood experiences inspired him to travel to 45 states in a converted short bus to learn and write about other disabled children's battles with normalcy. "We are all impacted by the concept of normalcy, and we must commit part of our education to challenge what norm we are told to fulfill," he said. "We need to come to an authentic definition of ourselves."During his speech, Mooney advised the audience not to strive to be normal. He said we should "ditch the idea of intelligence as a stable, unchanging quality" and define disability as diversity, because disabilities are advantageous in different environments."Jonathan Mooney's passion for children and a change in the education system for people affected by disabilities left me with a passion to do the same," said Tyler Erdeljac a junior early childhood education major. Disability Awareness Week continued Monday with a presentation on American Sign Language. Victoria Frisch, who teaches an ASL class, discussed deaf culture and taught some basic words in sign language.She addressed through her lectures that sign language is fun and that we should not be afraid to break the barriers and have conversations with the deaf.On Wednesday, philosophy professor Charles Zimmerman spoke to faculty about his "passion for accommodating students with mental disabilities." Zimmerman puts extra time and effort during his classes, to work with special needs students. He looks for ways to play up their strengths, including using different formats for tests or providing help after class.He said it is crucial that everyone understands that "LD (learning disability) students are just as smart as anybody-sometimes smarter."Disability Awareness Week will conclude, with a reception today at 3 p.m. in Roush Hall. It will recognize and thank the Otterbein community for supporting special needs students throughout the year. t&c;