Butler University students spending a semester in Washington, D.C., had the opportunity to attend Barack Obama’s inauguration for his second term as president.

Described as a once-in-a-lifetime experience, the students said it was amazing to witness such a largely-attended event.

Some of the students were able to obtain tickets that allowed them to sit closer to the president.

Junior Jimmy Schwabe said in an email students arrived nearly five hours before the event as part of the largest amount of people he has ever seen.

“The opportunity to witness the president of our country address the nation in person was an amazing experience,” Schwabe said. “The emotion and the energy in the air was indescribable.”

Schwabe said he had no idea what to expect when we woke up that morning, but once it started, he realized it was a day he would remember for the rest of his life.

“People from different parties, races and genders were united together under the belief that America is coming back,” Schwabe said.

Junior Leslie Cyranowski said she was glad she had the opportunity to be within 150 seats of the Capitol.

“I probably won’t have the chance to attend the inauguration again,” Cyranowski said, “especially being so close.”

Schwabe said, for him, Obama’s most memorable line was when he said, “For history tells us that, while these truths may be self-evident, they have never been self-executing.”

“Although we have political divide at times in our country,” Schwabe said, “we can band together under the beliefs, principles and goals put forth by our leader.”

In the 2012 State of the Union address, President Barack Obama emphasized the relationship between an affordable college education, a growing middle class and a strong national economy.

The fiscal year 2013 budget proposal reflects this announcement, specifically with college education.

Obama has proposed a 2.5 percent increase in educational spending.

Butler students should understand that the president’s administration is providing an increased support for federal student financial-aid programs.

But Obama struck out—he missed an opportunity to truly help future students pay for college, even with a $1.7 billion increase from fiscal year 2012.

Obama’s budget uses a variety of tools in an attempt to keep post-secondary education within reach for many American families, including increased grant and work-study funding, and expands access to student loans.

But current and future Butler students will unfortunately not gain much help at all—and this is coming from a very pro-Obama voter.

There are four main components in the budget that deal directly with financial aid that Butler students should be aware of.

First, the budget calls for increased funding for the federal work-study program by $150 million.

The Obama administration states that this increase will provide work-study grants for an additional 110,000 students.

However, not that many Butler students are in this program to begin with, and it will not substantially increase if this proposal is enacted.

Melissa Smurdon, director of financial aid, said Butler has a little fewer than 300 students working in this program.

Strike one.

Second, Obama has proposed an increase in the maximum Pell Grant from $5,550 to $5,636.

It is hard to imagine that this will provide dramatic relief for college students. Though the Obama administration says this small increase will ensure access to almost 10 million needy students, it seems like a drop in the bucket when tuition at Butler is north of $30,000.

Strike two.

The third factor in the budget proposal is actually one that is a necessity for Butler students.

With a looming increase of the interest rate on federal Stafford loans occurring on July 1, 2012, Obama has proposed a freeze on the rate hike.

If enacted, Butler students will continue to pay a 3.4 percent interest rate on Stafford loans rather than the 6.8 percent increase as of July 1.

Almost a home run, but the ball went foul at the last second.

The fourth and final component Butler students should be aware of is the federal Perkins loans program.

About 800 students are enrolled in this program at Butler. The Obama administration has proposed an increase for Federal Perkins Loans offered by the Department of Education from $1 billion to $8.5 billion.

However, Judy Renschler, loan coordinator in student accounts, said that no money has been provided by the government for this program and this proposal will increase the interest rate to 6.8 percent.

“I get concerned with the cost of the loans increasing for students,” Smurdon said. “Having more available is more positive but in the end, it will cost more,” Smurdon said.

“Having said that, Butler students do an exceptional job. We have a really low default rate, and our students pay them back and this is a good contribute for Butler.”

Yet, due to the instability of these programs proposed by presidential administrations, and the hike in interest rates for these loans, I am calling strike three on this proposal.

Students should still be active in community, even without national spotlight on Indianapolis.

The recent Super Bowl madness is giving the rest of the nation a chance to learn what the Butler University community has known since 1855: Indianapolis is a super city, and that fact has nothing to do with a visit from Jimmy Fallon or a celebrity basketball game at
Hinkle Fieldhouse.

After all, one sporting event can’t create a city’s entire legacy, and the 2012 Super Bowl isn’t the first time that Butler students got involved when the city hosted a large sporting event.

Does anyone else remember a NCAA men’s basketball Final Four and national championship that we hosted and participated in less than two years ago?

We have much more to be proud of—namely, Butler students, faculty and staff who make a difference each and every day in the Indianapolis community by volunteering, student teaching, starting businesses and creating programs that continue to make a lasting impact on our city.

Even after the larger-than-life XLVI letters are taken down and we all go back to drinking literally anything besides Bud Light, the Butler community should still continue to display its Indianapolis pride by forging and maintaining lasting partnerships with meaningful groups and organizations.

The Collegian reported today in “Despite administrative changes, partnership stands” that Butler’s relationship with Shortridge Magnet High School, an Indianapolis Public School, is growing despite the school’s recent administrative layoffs and dismissals.

This is an admirable connection for Butler and one the university should keep for years to come.

This connection does every day what the media makes a big deal of highlighting during the hype over a football game—how great it is that Butler students get involved in the city.

To be sure, there is a lesson in the Super Bowl hype. Indianapolis thrives when people get excited about its possibilities.

It is not that we shouldn’t be excited for all of the Butler students who volunteered at the NFL Player’s Party or who posted Facebook pictures of  their downtown celebrity sightings. However, I’m betting these people got more pats on the back and press in the last week than the staff or students at the Butler Volunteer Center have gotten in the last year.

Once the Super Bowl fuss is over, the fact that Butler students danced or participated in a Twitter campaign for Fallon to come back to Butler will not matter.

However to kids involved in the Shortridge partnership, Butler students’ involvement will matter.

There’s no glam or mass media appeal to regular old volunteering, but that doesn’t mean that we should care about it less.

The ground was cold on Tuesday.

Sophomore Christen Schwarz said that was her  first realization as she stepped outside barefoot to support “One Day Without Shoes.”

The event strives to raise awareness about people in other countries who don’t own a pair of shoes.

Tom’s Shoes, a footwear company that donates one pair of shoes to an impoverished person for every pair they sell, sponsors the annual event.

People can become susceptible to disease and infection if they walk barefoot, and schools can deny children entrance if they do not own shoes.

“It’s a good cause,” Schwarz, an international studies major, said. “It makes you appreciate what many children and people in Africa are going through.”

Freshman psychology major Alaina Rodriguez said she found out about the cause through other people and by owning a pair of Tom’s.

She said the event raises awareness because people walking barefoot around campus have to deal with questions and talk about the cause.

“It creates a scene, and people get out the word that way,” she said.

She said it also may inspire others to join in next year or research the issue on their own. This consciousness may also lead people to help in other ways.

“If more people know about it, then the problem is being worked at,” she said.

Kyle Faulkner, a sophomore communications studies and international studies major, said he was inspired to help with the event after learning more about the cause and going on a mission trip to Jamaica.

He said he was inspired to step out of his comfort zone and develop empathy for people who don’t have basic necessities, like shoes.

“I’ve never considered the position of not having shoes, until I found this cause,” he said. “It’s a good time to think about the things we take for granted in our everyday lives.”

He said that while preventing disease by providing people with shoes is important, making sure children can attend school is crucial.

“[Not having shoes] takes opportunities and experiences for growth away from them and harming them for their later years,” he said.

While Faulkner said he understands that some people went without shoes just because their friends did, he said they could still gain something from the experience and realize how fortunate they are.

“My hope is that Butler students are changed too, that we broaden our perspective and realize that some things we worry about are pretty petty,” he said.

He also said the focus of the event was the issue, and people should not get caught up in how long other people went without shoes or where they went without shoes.

“This is not a contest to see who can be the most dedicated to going barefoot all day,” he said. “It’s about drawing empathy and raising awareness for an issue that not many people think about.”

Given the economic situation, it is no surprise that most young graduates face challenges finding jobs, even in fields with high demand.

The latest example of frustrated college graduates is the anonymous Boston College third-year law student, who wrote an open letter to the dean, proposing to exchange his degree for a full tuition reimbursement.

The most recent Labor Department statistics show the unemployment rate in the United States at 9.6 percent. The jobless rate has now topped 9.5 percent for 14 straight months.

“Butler graduates are holding up very well in a tough economy,” Director of Internship and Career Services Gary Beaulieu said. “In 2009, 92 percent of graduates were employed full time, in graduate school or completing gap year experiences six months post graduation.”

Beaulieu expects the class of 2010 to show similar statistics, but says this information will not be available until December.

Despite the statistics, many Butler graduates have had a hard time finding employment.

2009 Butler graduate Ethan Lees said it was difficult to rely on Butler’s career search Web site because of its similarity to other career search Web sites. He believes it would be helpful if it the Web site was more tailored to graduates.

“Finding a job in the field of journalism has been challenging, especially considering that online search options are not much help,” Lees said. “I’ve been going through family members and have gotten better results from that.”

Beaulieu said that graduates’ experience varies across the board, depending on their majors.

The fields that have seen the most demand and easiest job placement are accounting, actuarial science, biology, chemistry, pharmacy, education, public relations and arts administration.

On the other hand, he said that many fields, like marketing, are seeing a downsizing trend.

However, as much as a particular field may not be in high demand, he says that there are many things beyond a major that may impact a student’s chance for success in the job market.

According to an ABC News article, in his letter, the student alleged that the school’s career services were insufficient in helping him find employment. This is a scary claim, considering university career services are often the starting point for a student’s job search.

Internship and Career Services at Butler assists students in increasing their job success rate by providing practice interviews and resume and cover letter writing workshops.

Beaulieu encourages students to network and seek out connections that lead to potential job opportunities.

“You never know who knows somebody that can help you connect to someone who will lead to an internship or a job,” he said.

Regardless of their post-graduate intentions, the one thing that Beaulieu recommends for students is an internship experience, even if a major doesn’t require one.

“Many employers are not even looking at students who haven’t completed an internship,” Beaulieu said.

Members of the Butler University media arts department held open auditions for students to act in a comedic Web series produced and created by students.

Since his junior year in high school, junior Trevor Roach has been waiting for the chance to make a Web series.

Now he finally has that chance, thanks to the media arts faculty and students of Butler.

Over the summer, Roach began to talk to other students about possible interest in producing a comedic Web series.  He also began pitching the idea in his classes and began productive meetings around the beginning of September, student producer Roach said.

The small crew has been meeting to smooth out some of the details, beginning with writing a tentative script and deciding on when and where to shoot scenes.

The crew and producers have finished writing the pilot episode and are now holding open auditions to Butler students.

The five to 10 minute show is the typical story of a college student named Cody.  He is a student just arriving to college with two roommates, Dustin and Edwin.

The show follows the roommates as they deal with the everyday issues of college life.

The producers and crew consider it to to be a more laid back project because it is not an assignment, but rather a chance to prove what they can do, crew member junior Tommy Balestreri said.

“We’re just trying to make a great show that would entertain a lot of people and build our own résumés as well,” Balestreri said.

Many of the students involved see this as more of an opportunity to make themselves known and show the world and even future employees what their capabilities and talents are.

“It’s a great opportunity for us kids in the media arts program to have something to work on to gain more experience, outside of the classroom,” crew member junior Rachel Hollingsworth said.

The producers plan to release the pilot episode early this month and on episode every month after.

As election night approached, one Butler University alumnus found a piece of campaign communication to be offensive and against “the Butler Way.”

Butler alumnus Eddie Journey received a mailer Oct. 15 from congressional candidate and Butler sociology professor Marvin Scott.

Journey said he was under the impression that at an institution like Butler, diversity would be based on the core value of respect for one another. Scott’s communication was the opposite of this, he said.

“The mailer is religionist propaganda designed to leverage an individual’s ignorance or fear of the other,” Journey said. “This mailer is designed to build upon misconceptions of Islam and those of authentic Muslim faith.”

Journey said he is surprised the university would have someone who says these things represent Butler.

According to this piece of communication, Scott is associating his opponent, Rep. André Carson, with Muslim extremists. Carson is a Muslim.

The mailer states, “But we know that, consistent with historical Muslim practice, the Ground-Zero mosque represents a bold monument to conquest, celebrating radical Islam’s violent victory over America on 9/11.”

It goes on to state, “Unlike my opponent, I don’t have the help of radical sinister benefactors or special-interest groups to fund my campaign.”

Journey said this tactic of using religion reflects Scott’s platform.

“Any politician that has to resort to such fear tactics in order to self-promote must have a very shaky platform,” Journey said.

“Fighting Muslim extremism” isn’t the only subject on Scott’s platform according his Web site, drmarvinscottforcongress.com.

His other platform stances include points such as, defending the constitution, restoring and protecting free enterprise and job creation, repealing the health care law and eliminating the deficit and reducing the national debt.

According to his Web site, Scott is running for office because he feels, “Republicans have a long and rich history with basic principles. Individuals, not government, can make the best decisions. All people are entitled to equal rights. And decisions are best made close to home.”

Scott wants to bring long-term leadership to Indiana, and make the state a “benchmark” for the region with success in the economy, education and community.

Journey said he is most concerned about the way this makes Butler look.

“As a minority student, this type of communication from a university professor may have been sufficient enough for me not to attend,” he said. “Hate speech is just that, hate speech. It is not political opinion or academic discourse.”

Journey said he wants the university to do something about it.

“A university that condones such behavior despite the numerous documents, position papers and mission statements to the contrary is not one that I would ever feel is appropriate for me,” Journey said. “To remain silent is to be complicit.”

Butler President Bobby Fong had a different take on Scott’s mailer and Journey’s critism.

“In expressing his opinions on issues, Scott is exercising his prerogative as a citizen running for public office,” Fong said. “By the same token, Journey is exercising his prerogative as a citizen in challenging Scott’s views.

“That is part of ‘The Butler Way’: respecting and defending the rights of people with whom we disagree.”

Journey said, in response to Fong’s statement, if what Scott said is “the Butler Way” that Fong is intending, he would return the diploma he received in 2005.

“We must recognize that there are additional conditions that have not been satisfied as it relates to academic or democratic discourse,” he said. “This mailer is neither democratic nor a discussion.”

Journey said that, because the university has an anti-harassment policy, there is appropriate and inappropriate speech.

Butler’s faculty and staff anti-harassment policy states, harassment is defined as “offensive, intimidating, or hostile work or educational environment.” That is based on things such as race, religion and national origin.

Journey said he believes that even though Scott may have said these things outside of the classroom, his words still have an effect on students and should be dealt with.

“If a student’s actions outside of the classroom are subject to collegiate disciplinary actions, why should such egregious actions by a professor be swept under the tenured rug?” Journey said.

Journey said that he’s not saying anyone should or shouldn’t vote for Scott, but that Butler shouldn’t condone hate speech.

“We as citizens have a responsibility for what we say,” he said. “Running for political office does not override this responsibility.

“If a student were to write this type of communication while running for an SGA office, we could rest assured that he or she would not be afforded such political protection.”

Journey said that if Scott wants to be protected by political speech, he said he suggests Scott sticks to real issues; Islam not being one of them.

Scott declined to comment.

Journey said he wants the university to do something about this because what Scott says does not represent the Butler Way.

“Words have power and people have value,” Journey said. “Let us stop killing each other with our words and focus our energies on causes that can make a better tomorrow for all of us. Yes, Dr. Scott, Muslims included.”

Butler University’s campus was filled with students excited to participate in homecoming events last week.

The theme of homecoming this year was Butler University’s International Tour.

Information about events was sent out via messages from the “Butler Homecoming 2010” Facebook group created by Special Events Chair of Program Board Brittany Dorsett to reign in as much participation as possible.

One of the events that lasted all week and received large participation was the search for Blue II and Butler President Bobby Fong.  Every morning a clue to find either a Blue II or Fong sticker on campus was distributed to homecoming representatives and presidents.

Dorsett also sent an e-mail through the Butler listserv each night explaining when the next clue would be posted on Facebook. Many waited by their computers in the morning and to find the clue as soon as it was posted, she said.

The search for Blue II and Fong got a lot of students to participate in homecoming all week long.

“People really enjoyed this ‘hunt’ every morning and a lot of people said they thought it was a great idea and was really fun,” Dorsett said.

Other homecoming events, all organized by Dorsett and Special Events Committee Co-Chair Michael Couch, began on Monday with the comedy game show in the Reilly Room of Atherton Union.

The comedy show included one hour of stand up, one hour of crowd participation and a costume contest among the king and queen contestants judged at the end of the event.  Members of the homecoming committee also gave away trucker hats and sunglasses to the first students to arrive.

These free and highly-desired items were again given away along with water bottles on Tuesday at the “International Adventure” on the Mall.

The “International Adventure” involved a blow-up obstacle course, sumo wrestling suits, a mechanical bull, pizza and music, attracting more than 500 students.

“People loved the different attractions and we had people out there for the whole two hours,” Dorsett said.

Finally, that night, an entire bus full of students was taken downtown to go on Italian gondola rides on the canal beneath the stars.

On Wednesday, students went to a Zumba class in the Reilly Room where they again received free water bottles and Butler University sweat bands.

Zumba is an intense fitness workout to the blended sounds of Latin and International music.

Students who went to this event also earned points for their homecoming team if they had more than 15 people from their team present.

That night, the homecoming committee also held the annual “Midnight Snack,” which was organized by juniors Colleen Finn and Grace Fisher.

Finn and Fisher acquired more than 2,780 food items from restaurants like McDonald’s, Arby’s and Jimmy John’s.

Wednesday night after the “Midnight Snack,” students stayed up late getting lawn decorations or “lawn decs” set up on their team’s designated lawn as they were due by 10 a.m. Thursday morning.

Thursday night, Butler’s annual cheer competition, “Yell Like Hell,” began in Hinkle Fieldhouse. Teams worked to create the most innovative and crowd-pleasing cheer routines while representing their team’s country.

“It was incredible. We were absolutely thrilled. Everyone put in a lot of effort, so winning was a huge reward,” Krista Miller, a sophomore and member of Kappa Kappa Gamma, said about Team China’s victory in “Yell Like Hell.”

Finally, on Saturday, Butler alumni spent most of the morning and even some of the afternoon visiting the classrooms, dorms and Greek houses they once called their own at Butler University.

At noon, the homecoming parade began at Fairbanks Center and ended at Hinkle, leading the multitude of students, alumni and faculty to the 1 p.m. football game against Morehead State.

The announcement for the winners of homecoming queen and king was made during halftime of Saturday’s game.

Steph Gray, a senior member of Alpha Chi Omega was crowned homecoming queen by last year’s queen, Betsy Shirley.

Joe Wadlington, a senior member of Phi Kappa Psi, was crowned homecoming king by last year’s king, Anthony Erlandson.

The enormous workload of Brittany Dorsett and Michael Couch was eased by the help of Assistant Director of PuLSE Meg Haggerty and the homecoming committee, numbering more than forty student volunteers.

Overall, Couch said he felt good about the week.

“Homecoming went really well. I think that everybody had a great time and that all of the events were successful,” Couch said.

Butler University celebrated homecoming 2010 beginning Oct. 17 and ending Oct. 23 with the homecoming game against Morehead State University.

This past weekend, Butler University students had the opportunity to attend the Interfaith Youth Core Conference in Washington, D.C.

The conference took place Oct. 22-24 at the Interfaith Youth Core Conference’s Student Leadership Institute.

Sophomore Ryan Anderson and junior Brendan Quinn were joined by faculty mentor Mark Fogelsong.

According to its Web site, ifyc.org, IFYC “aims to introduce a new relationship, one that is about mutual respect and religious pluralism.”

Students involved in the movement are provided with leadership training and are encouraged to use their skills and experience to better the interfaith dialogue in their communities.

Anderson explained the process in terms of how the conference benefits Butler’s Interfaith efforts.

“This conference will help our organization with communication skills, organization and networking with campuses across Indianapolis,” he said.

Anderson said they talked a lot about finding ways to expand the IFYC movement on Butler’s campus.

“I am thrilled that [Quinn], [Anderson] and their mentor, Foglesong, represented Butler in Washington, D.C.,” Judith Cebula, director of the Center for Faith and Vocation said. “They are back on campus with some great new energy and ideas about mobilizing students for interfaith action.”

Cebula said the IFYC would benefit students interested in pursuing interfaith projects.

“IFYC encouraged [us to] utilize social networking, student organizations, campus allies and publications to increase interest in the Interfaith movement,” Anderson said.

Anderson said he worked closely with students from   IUPUI, Franklin College and University of Indianapolis and was also able to network with students from across the nation via the internet.

“I really enjoyed talking with people interested in the Interfaith movement across the country,” Anderson said.  “I met people from California, South Carolina and even Duke University.”

Cebula said she has high hopes for the future of the IFYC movement and its ability to make a difference on campus.

“The goal here is to bring these demensions of students’ lives together in interfaith service,” Cebula said. “The Center for Faith and Vocation has been interested for a long time in fostering interfaith conversation and understanding.

“Now, with the ideals of IFYC, it appears we have a strong system to plug into to make it happen.”

Some mornings I wake up so exhausted that I don’t want to attend my classes. Some days, I let my shoulders drop dejectedly when I discover the seven articles posted on Blackboard that I have to read for class.  Some days, I make more than one Starbucks run in order to finish that English paper. Some days, I curse that the parking spots closest to the back door of ResCo aren’t open and I have to park unreasonably far away.

But, there are some things that I never do. I never regret deciding attend Butler and to call myself a Bulldog.

I’m always happy to open my curtains in the morning and see the grass on the mall shining brightly back at me through my window. I’m always happy when I walk into Atherton to discover that they’re serving grilled cheese. I’m even happier when I walk into ResCo and see that they have the pasta bar open.

Above all else, I am generally happy to go to class, unless I have that sinking feeling in my stomach as I look around at my classmates and realize that I didn’t prepare for that quiz as thoroughly as I should have.

Every day, Butler University surprises me with some token of good news. Some mornings, it’s when I’m dying for a caffeine fix and Levester Johnson unexpectedly buys me an always-delicious chai tea latte at Starbucks. Other days, it’s when I check my e-mail to discover a call-out meeting through the Butler Connection that I want to attend. Some days, it’s nice to know that I can talk to my professor after class about grades, tests or even more personal matters. It’s great knowing that if I shoot my adviser an e-mail, she’ll get right back to me, offering me a time and date to stop by her office so that we can talk.

This past weekend was Butler’s homecoming. The excitement on campus was infectious as everyone was grinning ear to ear as they strolled around campus. Some students, including myself, attended the football game against Morehead State with their parents and close family friends.

Other students sat on the hill with roommates, boyfriends, girlfriends and best friends and cheered on our team.

It was incredible to watch other students, parents and alumni cheer, scream, clap, stand up, stomp their feet on the bleachers and passionately root for the Bulldogs to play the best game they could.

I was in awe all morning as I strolled through the Bulldog Beauty Contest. I watched all the bulldogs walk on by, snorting, slobbering and barking at the other dogs. Every col—or combination waddled in front of me, evoking a comment of adoration  when they passed by.

I watched young children accompanied by parents and grandparents stop by face-painting booths and pop around in the bounce houses set up in front of the Health and Recreation Complex. I saw parents and prospective students toting around Butler Legacy balloons that matched the legacy shirt I was wearing.

Watching all the current Butler students and alumni reconnect and enjoy the beautiful campus, I couldn’t help but be overcome with pride and excitement.

Since the day I received my acceptance letter, I was proud to share with others that I intended on attending Butler University.

But, this weekend’s homecoming events made me even more proud to call myself a Bulldog.

Butler is not only an exceptional university to study at, it also provides numerous outlets for socialization and inclusion in the Butler atmosphere. I felt so at home this past weekend as I grinned at my friends that passed me during the parade on their various floats.

As if I wasn’t already aware, homecoming cemented in my mind what a wonderful second home we all have here at Butler University.

I’ve never been quite so proud to call myself a Bulldog.