Maroon

              The MAROON Vol. 65, No. 12 Loyola University, New Orleans, Louisiana 70118 November 21, 1986 New advising process gives freshmen boost By Mary Caffrey News Editor A new advising program for general studies freshmen is having positive effects on their academic progress and may be expanded next fall, according to Dr. Claire Paolini, associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. This fall, Paolini created two special common curriculum sections with only 14 general studies freshmen in each. The professors who teach these courses act as the students' advisers and present information on Loyola's academic policies in class. She said the sections are designed to give general studies freshmen added personal attention since this group usually has one of the highest attrition rates in the university. "The courses are taught normally," Paolini said. "Within the regular class time, the instructor would introduce common curriculum requirements . . . Also, at appropriate times, they talked about GPAs, how to figure them out, and how to withdraw from a course." Course instructors. Dr. Cora Presley, associate professor of history, and Dr. Daniel Sheridan, associate professor of religious studies, met the freshmen in the special sections during either Lagniappe, the summer orientation program, or Lagniappe 11, the orientation held the week before the fall semester. The freshmen meet with their professors outside of the religious studies and history classes and also participate in career counseling programs and social activities created for their group. Personal attention appears to be working. When Paolini sent midterm notices to all Arts and Sciences freshmen with grade point averages below 2.0, all but three of the 32 general studies freshmen not in the special course received a midterm notice. Only seven of the 28 students in the new program received them. The figure for all Arts and Sciences students receiving midterm notices, 44 percent, is approximately the same as last fall, Paolini said. Although a large number of freshmen receive midterm warnings, most are able to improve Feeding the hungry Tricia Pierce, communications freshman and a member of Loyola University Community Action Program, delivers food to a New Orleans resident. LUCAP is collecting food and clothing this week to be delivered during Thanksgiving to Hope House. - t'hoio hy Mary Itenium Edwards says drinking age will rise By Michelle Slocum Managing Editor A bill to raise the state's drinking age from 18 to 21 in order to save millions of dollars in highway funds will be introduced in next month's special Legislative session, Gov. Edwin W. Edwards said Tuesday. Speaking at the annual Greater New Orleans Tourist & Convention Commission, Inc. luncheon at the New Orleans Marriott, Edwards said there is a good chance the drinking age will be raised at the session, which starts Dec. 4. It is expected to last two weeks. The Legislature last summer came close to increasing the drinking age. The bill, sponsored by state Sen. Richard Neeson, D-Shreveport, and state Rep. Margaret Lowenthal, D- Lake Charles, passed the Senate but died on the House floor in the final hours of the regular session. As a result, the state temporarily lost about $15 million in federal highway aid for the 1986-87 fiscal year. House Speaker John Alario Jr., D- Westwego, told the Press Club of New Orleans this week that legislators will be asked to address the higher drinking age as one of several ways to eliminate a $380 million budget deficit during the special session. Alario said legislation to increase the drinking age would save the state about $15 million. The federal government has threatened to withhold that amount of highway funds from the state if it does not comply with government directives to increase the drinking age. Several states, including Mississippi and North Carolina, recently voted to increase the legal drinking age to 21. Lt. Gov. Bobby Freeman, who was at the luncheon, said he thinks the bill will pass. Freeman said that he believes legislators will reluctantly approve the bill. "They resent the federal government telling them that they have to do something," he said. The federal government should not be able to regulate powers that belong to states, Freeman said. "I just don't think it's right. I don't think that it's proper for the federal government to assume a responsibility which is that of a state government. And that is to regulate your police powers, to establish your laws," he added. Alario said the form the bill will take at the special session has not been determined. "My guess is that the governor will put it in the call" for the session, Alario said. The call is the official word from the governor's office on when the session will be held and what items will be taken up. "1 feel certain that if it's in the call that there's a strong, strong chance it's going to pass this year," Freeman said. "They're going to have to [pass the bill] because of the loss of revenues," Freeman said, adding that if the bill fails, it will have adverse effects on the slate's economy. "The problem is that we face millions of dollars of losses of federal revenue," he said. "I think it's a 50-50 chance at this point [that the bill will pass]," said City may limit future frat houses By Alicia Clemens Staff writer Zoning of future fraternity and sorority houses is the proposed solution that New Orleans City Councilman Peggy Wilson hopes will end complaints regarding Greek houses in Uptown neighborhoods, Anne Quinlan, Wilson's legislative aide, said. "We've gotten calls about noise and trash levels around fraternity houses and realized some changes were needed in present residential zoning laws," Quinlan said. "This motion addresses these new procedures in the zoning ordinances." The initiative behind the proposal was two-fold, according to Quinlan. Complaints from residents have increased, she said, and the possibility of the drinking age being raised to 21 magnifies the problem. A higher drinking age would make fraternity and sorority houses even more of a focus for hosting events in which alcohol is served, Quinlan said. Quinlan said she fears that a higher drinking age would encourage Greek organizations to have more than one house in the same area. "We were concerned that there would be more pressures on fraternities and sororities to have more than one house since they would be considered private clubs, and See Frat houses/page 7 See Drinking age/page 7 See Advising/page 5 'The Maroon * will not publish next week because of the Thanksgiving holidays. Publication will resume Dec. 5.