2008 Woodie Awards
Reporter Rewind
January 31, 2008
Issue date: 1/31/08
Section: Reporter Rewind
Dirty politics
Jan. 31, 1991
Mankato State Student Association President Mike Opela came under fire for allegedly discriminating international senators. The offended senators said they were referred to as 'you guys' or 'you foreign guys' instead of the term 'senator'. One Pakistan senator even claimed that Opela used him to gain international supporters for his campaign then failed to deliver on his end of the deal. Opela allegedly promised the Pakistan senator a seat on the steering committee but forgot about his promises soon after being elected. Opela completely denied all allegations calling them 'ludicrous' and 'unfounded'. Opela was also upset that the international senators contacted the media before coming to him with their issues. "You're not going to get me to address an issue by having the Reporter do an article," said Opela. "In fact, you're just going to make me angry." This quote was run on the Reporter's front page.
Bus gets green light
Jan. 31, 1989
Mankato City Council and MSSA were working together to produce a campus bus. The Mankato head of mass transit, who claimed there were no grants available, initially shot down the idea of a bus. Student Senate persisted and was able to find a grant through the Minnesota Department of Transportation. The grant covered 60 percent of the $35,000 estimated cost of the bus. Fares, advertising and the Student Senate met the remainder of the bus cost. Negotiations for funding were also made with nearby apartment complexes that had a large pool of potential student riders.
Disappearing students
Feb. 1, 1994
Student Affairs was alarmed when more than 500 students failed to return for fall quarter. A calling campaign was initiated over winter break by MSU faculty and staff to figure out the reason for the drop. The primary reason given for those students not returning was financial. Other reasons included students transferring to different schools and taking full time jobs. According to the First Year Experience counselor Anne Latsch, a very small percentage of respondents gave dissatisfaction with MSU as a reason for not returning. The conclusion of the study was that MSU needed to focus on students building ties to the school through groups and activities.
Compiled by assistant news editor Nia Jonesz
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