Lofts at Mercer Landing sneak peek
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In this 21st century economy, the chances of being successful without a proper college education are slim; employers actively search for people with credentials that indicate a high chance for success. Due to this unsaid requirement, education is a primary benefactor in determining an individual’s future socioeconomic status. How can a child from a low-income household rise up and achieve success? Around the age of five, children are sent to kindergarten to begin their arduous journey through school. After a total of 12 to 13 more years of grade, middle and high school, these same children become independent and decide if college is worth its price tag. The importance of these facilities lies in their possession of the resources to unite communities, influence surrounding neighborhoods and protect students from the horrors of the outside world. Once these young adults graduate, the successful alumni return to their old schools and donate money for renovations and advancements in resources. According to this cycle, schools with high graduation rates and standardized test scores should be self-sustaining due to their influence on the community and the nostalgic alumni. When schools integrate, it’s a different story; two schools merge and form a better place for education, but the remnants of the two parent facilities decay and take up space. The abandoned high school across the bridge from Mercer Village, formerly known as the girls-only Miller High School, was shut down around 1970 when Bibb County Judge Bootle ordered the integration of schools combining Miller High with the boys-only Lanier High. This integration formed the coed Central High School of today. Miller High’s remains still decay and tower over the surrounding neighborhood. Either Mercer or the city of Macon should fund the revitalization of the building and use it for more Mercerian dorms or for a community shelter. This facility would then influence and inspire the adolescents from the surrounding neighborhood to enroll in school. In turn, these teens would join as part of the cycle, and influence others and unite the community.
Access to wireless internet connectivity on Mercer’s campus is constantly available to students and faculty via the SSID’s (Service Set Identifiers) MU-Student and MU-Secure. This access requires a web authentication client where users plug in their corresponding student/faculty ID and password. Recently, reports of sluggish internet speeds and occasional server errors have plagued the student body and have caused Mercerians to switch to alternative methods to stay connected. One of the well-known and simplest alternatives is the use of personal wireless routers; simply install, configure through a laptop, and instantly stream Wi-Fi throughout the room. The only downside to utilizing a personal router is that it conflicts with a statement in Section 3 of the Housing Handbook that states, "Wireless routers are prohibited in all residential facilities." The MU-Student bandwidth is constantly allocated campus-wide to multitudes of devices resulting in poor speeds, and almost no response to servers at times. Due to this, wireless routers are currently commonplace in residence halls. Mercer Hall residents recently received an email from Nate Swann, area coordinator of residence life, requesting the discontinuation of the use of personal routers; noncompliance would result in “judicial charges.” It is unfair to students to be issued an indirect search warrant for personally bought devices. It is also unfair to the student when MU-Student is down due to maintenance or server errors, for internet based work will have to be submitted another day. It is fact that personal routers allow unsecured access to the internet because it bypasses the Web Authorization Client, and routers interfere with campus Wi-Fi. However, if students password protect their routers, utilize WPA2 encryption and operate on different Wi-Fi channels, interference and security should not be a problem. If interference is the main reason for the prohibition of personal routers, keep in mind that many other common objects and devices can interfere with Wi-Fi; studies have shown that microwave ovens, Bluetooth devices, cordless phones and even a dense population of human bodies (in extreme cases) can contribute to an interference in Wi-Fi. Should these be prohibited as well?