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Sweets shop opens in Student Center

By Crystal Cole / STAFF REPORTER | February 11

A new dessert-only food venue opened Monday in the Student Center.Tiger Treats took the place of Deli-cious and will beopen11a.m.-4p.m.Gina Groome, a marketing manager, said the menu changes daily, but the basics desserts are the same."We have brownies, ice cream, cake and cookies," she said.

Riley breaks ground for new MRI Center

By Drew Thompson / ASSISTANT CAMPUS EDITOR | February 11

Gov. Bob Riley began his speech at 2:19 p.m. at the groundbreaking ceremony of Auburn University's Magnetic Resonance Imaging Research Center, held at Auburn Research Park, Feb.

Senate talks retention rate, books

By Drew Thompson / ASSISTANT CAMPUS EDITOR | February 11

Faculty senate unanimously passed four action items on the agenda Feb. 10.One action item was a the Endorsement of Retention Statement from Retention Committee.Auburn is tied with the University of Alabama with both freshmen and 6-year graduating student retention, with respective percentages of 85 and 64 percent.In order to have effective retention increase, it requires the support of every part of the University, said Jeffrey Fergus, chair of Retention Committee."Staff has responsibility, faculty do and students do as well," Fergus said.Key components in keeping the responsibilities distributed accordingly will be communication and cooperation among all areas of the University.Faculty and staff can communicate to students in learning communities, which teach incoming freshman what may be encountered at Auburn.The UNIV 1000 level classes have freshmen retention of 90.5 percent, Fergus said.Supplemental instruction also adds to the percentage of retention.The average test scores from classes that offer SI are four to seven points higher than the average tests scores from non-SI classes, Fergus said.The motion passed enabling students to meet high academic standards through the cooperative efforts of faculty, staff and students.There are 12 colleges and schools at Auburn University so the Faculty Research Committee undergoes a rotation schedule with three-year terms."We meet monthly and some colleges are being left out," said Bruce Smith, chair of the Faculty Research Committee.Constance Relihan, chair of Auburn Connects Common Book Program and senior associate dean for academic affairs in the College of Liberal Arts, supported Fergus' goals for higher retention percentages."This program, which we are calling Auburn Connects, the Common Book Program, comes out of all of this emphasis on student retention," Relihan said.The idea is to give students a visualization of as many things as possible, all in one book.

Avian aficionados brave cold for course

By Bree Bowen / WRITER | February 11

Dreary weather didn't keep bird enthusiasts from attending the Bird Counting and Feeding 101 session at the Louise Kreher Forest Ecology Preserve Saturday.Despite chilly temperatures and rain, a large crowd huddled under a pavilion to hear Jennifer Lolley, administrator of the preserve, and Rita Kempf of the Auburn Birding Club, speak about the 13th Backyard Bird Count Feb.

Bill restricts access to 911 call transcripts

By Laura Maxwell / ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR | February 11

The House passed a bill sponsored by Rep. Ronald Johnson which will prohibit the release of transcripts of 911 calls without permission from a court.The bill also requires that individuals who request a transcript to pay a fee.House Bill 159 says a court would have to determine whether the public's need to get a copy of the recording outweighs the importance of preserving the privacy of the individuals involved in the call.However, the bill does not apply to law enforcement officials conducting an investigation, as long as the transcript of the call may be relevant to the investigation."The biggest reason for the bill was because several people had mentioned that their 911 call-ins had been used by criminals, who were involved in a crime that was being reported, to harass the person who made the 911 calls," said Rep.

Smiths Station reallocates students

By Rod Guajardo/ MANAGING EDITOR | February 11

The audience gathered inside the Wacoochee Junior High School cafeteria held its breath as five of the six Lee County Board of Education members voted to approve the Smiths Station Attendance Area School Reorganization and Construction plan Tuesday night.The revised plan is designed to allocate students into a combination of new and renovated schools to make traveling easier for parents who carpool their children to school.

Law tightens control on credit cards

By Daniel Chesser / ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR | February 11

The Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 goes into effect Feb. 22, and will have new restrictions on anyone under the age of 21.Underage cardholders will now have to get permission from the parent, guardian or spouse on their joint account to increase the credit limit on their card.It will also prevent credit card companies from setting up 1,000 yards within campus and offering gifts to students as an incentive to get them to apply for a credit card."Over the past 10 to 15 years credit card issuers have aggressively courted college students through direct mail and on-campus marketing efforts," said Ben Woosley, director of marketing and consumer research at CreditCards.com.

City replaces Donahue Drive bridge, annexes Farmville Road as Auburn property

By David Norwood / ASSISTANT MULTIMEDIA EDITOR | February 11

Negotiations between City of Auburn and Lee County officials have concluded plans for a replacement bridge on North Donahue Drive near Yarborough Elementary School.Also, Farmville Road is being annexed to become city property.Prior to the recent negotiations, the City of Auburn only owned the segments of Farmville Road where city property was located on both sides of the street."If you were to call me up and say there's a pothole on Farmville Road at this address, then we'd have to sort out who goes to fix it," said City Manager Charlie Duggan.Duggan said an inspection done in the last six months showed that the current bridge was still structurally sound, but was showing the normal wear and tear of a few decades.The new bridge is designed to be longer, wider and high enough to meet standards set by updated FEMA national floodplain maps and city engineers.The original construction cost as projected by Gonzalez-Strength & Associates, Inc. of Birmingham was $1.6 million.D & J Enterprises Inc. of Auburn received the city contract with the low bid of $2.69 million for the project, with the cost divided between the city and county.Duggan attributed the elevated cost to standard industry variance and an oversight by Gonzalez Strength.Project Manager William Liveoak said Monday D & J would subcontract the actual task of the bridge to F & W Construction of Ozark while the Auburn company handled the road resurfacing.The bridge remodeling project is scheduled to take approximately one year to complete.The portion of Farmville Road between North Donahue and U.S.

Love Your Heart Run Promotes Health and Raises Money

By Katie Ehrhart / WRITER | February 8

On Saturday, Feb. 6, runners, bikers and supporters packed Chewacla State Park for the 21st annual Love Your Heart Run.As of Friday afternoon, 335 people registered to partake in the event which benefits Lee County's special needs programs. Between 100 and 175 more people registered the day of the event.

UPDATE: Pedestrian Struck by Car on Magnolia Avenue

By Rod Guajardo/ MANAGING EDITOR | February 4

A 33-year-old male was struck by a car while crossing West Magnolia Avenue Wednesday night.Haluk Yapicioglu, a Post Doctoral Research Fellow in the College of Engineering, was struck while walking across the crosswalk in between Cox Street and North Donahue Drive at 8:23 p.m. by 21-year-old Lois Jackson, junior in human development and family sciences, driving a gold Honda Accord.

Music adds rhythm to humdrum campus

By Christian Becraft / WRITER | February 4

It's not a project. It's not homework. It's not even really for a purpose, yet some students are just doing it. It's their breakaway from school life, and luckily, it's something everyone can enjoy.As students break into spring semester, many are already finding activities that they can fiddle with to get out of the study mode.

Burn calories, not money

By Olivia Martin / Associate Intrigue Editor | February 4

With spring break over a month away, students looking to increase their workout schedules may be baffled by the array of choices offered in Auburn. From pricier places to free fitness, students can customize their workout routines with these options.

Creative create clubs on campus

By Maxwell Newfield / ASSOCIATE CAMPUS EDITOR | February 4

In a university of 24,000 people, some people may have a difficult time finding their role on campus.

South seeks speedy trains

By Daniel Chesser / ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR | February 4

Taking the train may make a comeback as a more popular travel option, but in a different form than has been seen in the past.Alabama joined six other states to form a coalition to develop a form of high-speed intercity rail connectivity in the Southeast.High-speed rail transportation is a passenger train that can reach speeds up to 150 miles per hour."Top speeds would likely be reached only on specially designed and dedicated tracks," said Jim Plott of Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs.

Grant lets states 'Race to the Top'

By Davis Potter / WRITER | February 4

The state has submitted an application for approximately $180 million in "Race to the Top" funds that would help improve education and innovation in public schools.The grant will be taken from the $4.35 billion set aside for federal education money as part of the stimulus bill, according to U.S.

Small towns receive big honor in 2010

By Laura Maxwell / ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR | February 4

Local residents believe in Auburn and love it, but now the rest of Alabama has a chance to as well.Gov.

Group brings art to the 'layman'

By Ashley Marks / WRITER | February 4

A new non-profit arts organization moved in behind the glass of downtown Auburn.The arts-based group, the Layman Group, opened its first location in downtown Auburn.The office is located on the top floor of Behind the Glass boutique.The Layman Group began in fall 2009.The group held its open-house party Friday.

Poet reads poems, finds way out of labyrinth at Gnu's Room

By Nicole Emmett / WRITER | February 4

Scott Wilkerson, a poet and theorist, enthusiastically shared poetry from his new book "Threading Stone" at Gnu's Room Saturday night.The 22 listeners sat shoulder to shoulder in the bookstore as they sipped coffee and made requests for poems.Wilkerson's book is the second publication of Auburn-based publisher New Plains Press."I am delighted, of course, to be one of the first, but it is also an extraordinary amount of pressure," Wilkerson said.John Summerfield, creator and owner of Summerfield Publishing/New Plains Press, said he was impressed in a strange way when he came across Wilkerson's poetry."He invited me to his classroom to read my poetry," Summerfield said, "and that's when he let me know he was a poet and I read his manuscript."Summerfield said he and Wilkerson differ in the poets they admire, but they respect each other's work.Summerfield said he has known Wilkerson for three years and they have developed a great relationship."Scott is a funny guy, a wonderful poet and a great orator," Summerfield said.Wilkerson, a self-pro-claimed jokester, is a professor at Columbus State University who teaches English Composition and Creative Writing.He has written poetry for 20 years.