New consequences for texting behind the wheel

Professors threaten to lower your final grade in a class if they catch on your cell phone during class. With threats like these most students can’t afford to use their phones until they’re out of class, walking to their cars and eventually on the road. Not all drivers are texting on the road, but Metro police officers are determined to find the drivers who are. The Tennessean reported that the Metro Police Department has “text patrols” on the road observing drivers who seem to be texting while driving. The police officers will be in unmarked SUVs patrolling the streets looking for violators. Kristi Mason, a theater major from Kansas, thinks that knowing what to expect will simply result in more disguised techniques. “If the people know the police’s plan, they will try to be more discreet about texting,” Mason said. “They will lower phones down to a level [where they] completely take [their] eyes off the road.” These antics make the issue seem far more dangerous. Can the issue can be resolved safely at all? Mason doesn’t think so. “If people want to risk their lives and others for a simple text, they will,” Mason said. Metro police officers are now instructed to issue tickets instead of warning violations for people caught texting and driving. Texting while driving is against the law in Tennessee, as in many other states. It’s not an obvious violation police officers can catch with a radar gun or check points, so they have resorted to the more proactive method of casing drivers on the road. Anna Thomas, a senior pre-med student from Franklin, Tenn.,...

Superstitious students prepare to perform rituals during Super Bowl XLV

The Packers and Steelers are two of the most storied franchises in all of football. On Sunday the teams will meet for the biggest prize in the NFL, and the right to say their team is the best. The Packers haven’t won the Super Bowl since 1996. On the other side of the ball, the Steelers are familiar with the big stage and were crowned world champions twice during the last decade. Aaron Rodgers and the cheese heads come into the game as the sixth seed, but they didn’t mind that at all. They won three games on the road to claim their spot in Dallas, including a 48-21 trouncing of the number one seeded Atlanta Falcons. Big Ben and the Steelers had an easier road to Super Bowl XLV, and it’s not like they haven’t done it before. The Steelers had two wins at home, one against their division rivals the Ravens and the other against Rex Ryan’s Jets. Packers and Steelers fans began showing their teams colors on the Lipscomb campus this week in preparation for Sunday’s big matchup. For sophomore Ryan Nowers it’s a family affair. “My grandfather is from the North and has always been a big Packers fan,” Nowers said. “My dad became a Packers fan when he was younger because of my grandfather and I guess when I was born I just took it to a new level.” Lindsay Trucksis, sophomore vocal performance major from Cincinnati, Ohio, is certain who her favorite Packers player is. “Aaron Rodgers, because he’s better than Brett Favre,” Trucksis said. Annie Thompson, a junior and Pennsylvania native, has...

WeCar and Lipscomb provide convenient transportation alternative

  WeCar offers an environmentally friendly solution for Lipscomb students who don’t have access to a car but who need to get off campus. Most student needs can be met right on campus, but there are times –whether it is picking up a prescription, running simple errands or visiting friends and family — when a student needs to venture away from Lipscomb. Riding with friends can be the solution, but it can also make the car-less student feel like something of  aburden to friends serving as taxi drivers. Now a solution is parked within eyesight. Lipscomb University has paired with the WeCar program to provide a solution to this popular problem. WeCar’s aphorism is “Our car, Your car, WeCar.” This company, which is a car-sharing program from Enterprise Rent-A-Car, provides a transportation solution that is convenient and cost-effective. The vehicles are available all hours of the day and night and are usually well-located and easily accessible. WeCar is available to rent for an hour, a day or overnight. Another benefit of the WeCar program is it is environmentally friendly. Offering mostly fuel-efficient, hybrid, and plug-in vehicles decreases pollution. When people participate in car-sharing programs like this, it cuts down on traffic congestion, fuel consumption and vehicle emissions. As much as WeCar helps our environment and aids people financially by not having to purchase their own vehicle, convenience is undoubtedly the prevailing focus of the program that began at Lipscomb Nov. 4. “I think the WeCar program will be great for Lipscomb University because it will give students without cars more options,” said Jesseca Kahn a sophomore elementary education major. “It also provides new...

Lipscomb students’ service hours among highest in nation

Lipscomb University ranks as Nashville’s highest in the state in Washington Monthly rankings of master’s universities Amount of student service hours ranked third in nation NASHVILLE (Sept. 30, 2010) – Lipscomb University has been ranked 65th in the nation, by Washington Monthly in its master’s universities category, the only Nashville master’s category university to make the top 100. Washington Monthly is a magazine that established its own ranking system six years ago as an alternative to the well-knownU.S. News and World Reports rankings.  The Washington Monthly rankings were designed specifically to measure how a university gives back to its community through providing social mobility to low-income students, providing volunteer service and research advancements. The 2010 rankings were reported in the September/October issue of Washington Monthly, now on newsstands, and Lipscomb’s rank can be found on the publication’s Website at: http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/college_guide/rankings_2010/masters_universities_rank.php. More than 550 universities across the nation were included in the master’s-level listing. The Washington Monthly rankings consider the percentage of students receiving Pell grants; research expenditures; the number of students who go on to earn Ph.D.s, apply to the Peace Corps or participate in ROTC; and the number of community service hours carried out by students and full-time staff to develop a ranking that shows “what our colleges are doing for our country.” Lipscomb’s high ranking was due in large part to the university’s large number of student service hours, which Washington Monthly ranked as the third highest in the nation in the master’s category. The number of hours was taken from Lipscomb’s application to the President’s Community Service Honor Roll, which reported 121,910 in student service hours in the 2008-09 school year. “The...