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(12/07/11 10:07pm)
On Nov. 15, 2011, a Bibb County grand jury indicted Stephen Mark McDaniel on one count of murder and 30 counts of child sexual exploitation. The indictments were released by the Bibb County Clerk’s Office just after noon.
McDaniel is formally charged with the alleged murder of Lauren Giddings, a member of the 2011 graduating class of the Walter F. George School of Law.
On June 30, 2011, officers found Giddings dismembered body in a trashcan outside of her Georgia Avenue apartment, which is located directly across from the law school.
McDaniel was Giddings’ neighbor and fellow student.
Since Giddings’ body was found within the city limits of Macon, the Macon Police Department is the lead investigatory office on the case.
McDaniel was originally arrested on charges of burglary and has been held in jail since the first week of July. He had a master key to every apartment in the building.
The arrest warrant taken out against McDaniel for the charge of murder said that a hacksaw was found in a storage closet at the apartment complex. The hacksaw had traces of Giddings’ DNA on it. Packaging material for the same brand of hacksaw was found in his apartment.
The indictment charges that the murder occurred sometime between June 25 and June 30, 2011. However, the exact date of the murder is unknown.
Later in the investigations, a flash drive containing child pornography was allegedly found in his apartment.
According to a report from 13WMAZ, more than 200 items were collected and sent to the FBI Crime Lab.
In a capital felony case such as this one, the case is presented to a group of 23 grand jurors by the District Attorney and a number of witnesses testify as to the evidence in the case. The jurors then decide whether or not there evidence is sufficient enough to warrant a trial.
When a “true bill of indictment” is returned by the grand jury, the defendant is formally charged with the offenses and must then appear at an arraignment hearing where he or she is required to plead guilty or not guilty. Of the 23 jurors, 12 are needed to “true bill” an indictment.
If the defendant chooses to plead not guilty a trial date will be set.
Due to the gruesome circumstances surrounding the murder, the prosecution can seek the death penalty in this case.
Greg Winters, District Attorney of the Macon Judicial Circuit, said, “The announcement has to be made prior to arraignment to the Court and his [McDanielís] attorney. Right now we do not have a time or date set for arraignment.”
If the State does not choose to seek the death penalty, McDaniel can receive life with or without parole if convicted.
During his studies at Mercer Law, McDaniel interned with the prosecuting office. Earlier in the caseís progression, the defense attorney for McDaniel filed a motion to disqualify the Macon Circuit District Attorneyís Office from prosecuting the case.
McDanielís attorney claimed that the internship presented a conflict of interest.
According to a report by the Macon Telegraph, however, a Macon judge denied that motion.
McDaniel is from Lilburn, Ga. and was a recipient of the prestigious Presidential Scholarship during his undergraduate studies at Mercer University. He then enrolled at the Walter F. George School of Law in the fall of 2008 and graduated this past May.
(11/17/11 12:35am)
Two Mercer University undergraduate students have been charged with vandalizing one of Macon Art Alliance’s fiberglass bear statues. The statue was located in Tattnall Square Park and painted by local artist Connie Redd.
The two students were booked into the Bibb County Jail, but later bonded out.
The bear was vandalized to a point beyond repair and was located at the corner of Coleman Avenue and Adams Street.
According to a recent report by the Macon Telegraph, Jordan Luke McMahan and Chris Anthony Santiago have been charged with criminal damage to property and theft by taking.
The alleged offense occurred in the early hours of Saturday morning on Halloween weekend.
The estimated value of the fiberglass bear was between $3,500 and $4,000, which makes the charge of theft by taking a felony offense.
According to the Macon Police Department’s report, a Mercer police officer observed the two suspects kicking the bear statue down the street after it was detached from the base. He then detained the suspects and the Macon Police Department was contacted to further investigate.
Not only will the two suspects face charges if convicted, but they will also receive University reprimands.
Larry Brumley, Senior Vice President for Marketing and Communications, Chief of Staff, said, “The students involved will go through the normal student judicial process, in addition to any consequences they face from local law enforcement.”
In a statement released by the University, officials reported that they were “embarrassed and disappointed that Mercer students engaged in such thoughtless and destructive behavior.”
The University offered apologies to the Macon Arts Alliance, as well as the local artist who painted the bear. While art cannot be replaced, the University stated they would work with the Alliance to help recreate the vandalized statue.
The vandalized bear is one of six statues placed throughout Macon as part of the Mercer Bear Trail. Each bear was painted by a different local artist.
The bears were purchased with a $15,000 grant that was funded by the Knight Neighborhood Challenge.
The Macon Arts Alliance is currently working to find a solution for replacing the bear. The statue is expected to be replaced by another in the same location and to be painted by Redd.
(10/05/11 10:48pm)
Over the past month, Mercer students have seen a rise in criminal activity in the area. More importantly, several of these recent criminal acts have directly affected students on the Macon campus.
During the month of September, a car was reported stolen from behind Jittery Joe’s Coffee, two law students were mugged walking from downtown, two students were physically assaulted during a home invasion and seven cars were broken into in the parking lot directly across from the Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity house.
Over the summer, a law student was murdered and another female was kidnapped on Montpelier Avenue.
Mercer students were the victims of all of these crimes.
Larry Brumley, Senior Vice President for Marketing and Communications, said, “All of these incidents are unrelated. They didn’t have any relationship as far as we know.”
All but two of these acts occurred off-campus.
Gary Collins, Chief of Mercer Police, said, “You can’t stop crime from occurring and some of the things that have happened, unless an officer was there, there’s no way they could prevent that crime.”
The fact that these acts involved Mercer students as victims has raised awareness about crime in the city of Macon. “These are Mercer students being victims of crime. When it gets close to home you look more closely,” Collins said.
The stolen car, which was originally reported stolen to Mercer Police, has recently been recovered undamaged by Macon Police. Chief Collins said that there were occupants in the car when the police found it, but the incident is still being investigated.
We haven’t had one of those [incidents] in years,” said Brumley.
Two law students were the victims of a mugging in downtown Macon less than a month ago. The incident occurred after midnight while the two were walking home from a bar.
Chief Collins urges students to utilize transportation resources available to students and not to walk home in these areas. Students can use the Mercer Trolley system or call a cab.
“We cannot control the city of Macon. Call 9-11 immediately if you are off-campus and students can call us if they are in close vicinity of campus.”
While Mercer Police do have jurisdiction within several miles of campus, they cannot police the entire area. “Our main focus is campus,” Collins said.
On Sept. 20, two Mercer females living off-campus were the victims of a home invasion. Both students were transported to the hospital and suffered injuries from the assault.
Since the incident occured, the victims have terminated their lease and Mercer has provided the students with on-campus housing. “Dr. Pearson handled the details of the on-campus housing after the incident and they took him up on it.” Brumley said.
While many students face the issue of the affordability of on-campus housing, the Macon Police Department urges students interested in off-campus housing to call the City of Macon for crime statistics in these areas.
“There is a reason why these houses are cheap,” said Brumley. “We don’t have the jurisdiction to patrol these areas.”
“Before you sign a contract, check crime statistics,” said Chief Collins. “Look for a gated community with security.”
Mercer University President, Bill Underwood, hopes to implement a four-year-housing requirement in the future. Brumley said that, while safety is not the main reason to implement this new requirement, it does give more control to the University and provide students with greater security and safety.
“Our highest priority is safety, but students, faculty and staff have to do their part and make wise decisions,” Brumley said.
Currently, University officials are meeting to come up with a more effective way to educate students on safety.
Seven students were also the victims of car break-ins on campus. “Mercer Police apprehended the suspect and most of the stolen items were returned to the victims,” Collins said.
He advises that students not leave change out in the open for people to see, GPS devices, phone charges or even mounts for GPS systems.
Currently, there are no cameras in the parking lot in which these cars were located.
The University is not held responsible for covering the cost of damages to these vehicles and students’ insurance policies will have to replace the windows.
If the defendant is found guilty, restitution can be ordered to all victims involved in these break-ins.
“Macon has its up and downs and I’m certainly hoping that the crime rate starts declining. Macon Police are hoping to get youth involved in good things. I think if these new programs are put into effect, it will help a great deal,” Collins said. He said that Mercer Police do their best to eliminate crime, but some incidents are inevitable.
(09/21/11 10:34pm)
While the economic situation remains stagnate, students will have to find more inventive ways to market themselves. Countless companies around the country stress the importance of work experience on any college graduate’s resume.
Luckily, several local business and organizations offer internships for students to participate in.
Caitlin Donnelly, a junior majoring in Psychology, completed an internship with Crisis Line and Safe House last year. The internship provided Donnelly with a great resume booster and will certainly benefit her job search down the road.
While completing the internship, Donnelly was responsible for several projects. “I specifically worked with the Safe House portion of the organization. I worked with another person once a week for three hours. We worked on several projects to help the women and families who lived in the house,” she said.
One of these projects included making a booklet with activities for the children to do while staying at the Safe House. “They have movies to watch and books to read, but we wanted crafts for them to do,” Donnelly said.
“We also came up with a cookbook with quick and easy recipes, but our biggest project was an updated directory. It included places for them to go get medical help and gave them telephone numbers for any hotline they might need, daycares and housing options. There are also churches and donation centers,” said Donnelly.
Donnelly said that Safe House is the Central Georgia location, so if someone comes in and they aren’t from this area, this directory helps them find the resources they need.
The internship with this particular organization has played a critical role in Donnelly’s college experience. “I learned how poverty plays a really big role in the situations people are in. It kind of determines whether women stay in that situation or not. It’s hard for them to leave an abusive husband when they are in poverty. They are very restricted,” she said.
On the other end of the spectrum, Greta Woods, an Environmental Science major, is working with a private consulting firm that assesses environmental areas on building and renovation sites.
Woods works specifically with Geotechnical and Environmental Consultants (GEC). She began a summer internship with them this year and it has carried over to the fall semester.
During the summer, the company works with developers who want to improve, renovate or build low-income housing. These developers seek federal aid to help with these projects from the Environmental Protection Agency.
In order for the EPA to grant this money to developers, an environmental assessment must be completed. This is where firms like GEC step in.
“This summer I worked on reports and completed mapping projects. I also went on a couple site visits,” Woods said.
The firm includes engineers, wetland specialists, oil scientists, geologists and specialized field technicians.
“I’ve loved going out in the field and getting to travel all over Georgia. I’ve gotten to meet and hear the stories of people in low-income situations. It has opened my eyes to all the different aspects of environment and how specialized people within the field are. I know I need to pick a path and specialize in it,” Woods said.
The private firm offers a few paid internships during the summer and anyone interested should speak to them at Career Fair this year.
“They had 3 interns this summer and it has varied each year,” Woods said.
Life lessons like these are another reason why completing an internship before graduation is critical for most career paths. Both Donnelly and Woods gained real-world knowledge through their exposure to the public sector. Work experience can only catch more attention with a future employer and with the economy in its current state, competition is fierce.
(09/21/11 10:21pm)
Mercer student, Kelvin Graddick recently was selected to participate in the Food and Community Fellows program. Graddick is one of 14 students selected for this year’s program from a pool of 560 applicants.
Graddick will return to his hometown of Hamilton, Ga. to revamp the West Georgia Farmers Cooperative.
The goal is to adjoin African Americans and low-income whites under a cooperative to grow and sell fruits and vegetables. The Cooperative was founded in the 1960s.
“Producers in the area don’t have the volume, resources, or knowledge to reach the right markets and consumers in the area don’t always have access to healthy, affordable food. People in the area often suffer from a lack of economic opportunities,” said Graddick.
Graddick’s family and friends began the cooperative to deal with a lack of economic opportunities in the area. The Georgia Famer’s Cooperative has been addressing these issues for over 30 years, but has now become defunct. “Now it is needed more than ever with today’s economic crisis. Fueled by my family’s love for the co-op, I decided to propose a way to bring the co-op back,” he said.
Graddick proposed his redevelopment idea to the Institute of Agriculture and Trade this January. The institute was very receptive to his plan. In July, Graddick attended an orientation and has been working on the co-op since.
Over the summer, Graddick helped work on the cooperative’s building, fundraising and creating a new board. The group now has more than 20 members and many will begin growing products for the cooperative next spring.
“IATP currently funds me and offers any support I need for training, planning, and organizing,” he said.
He believes his family played a crucial role in this process.
“They taught me that we must work to make change and that it won’t happen without dedication,” said Graddick.
His hometown of Hamilton has been very supportive of redeveloping the cooperative.
“The buzz around the co-op is growing every week and more and more people are joining the cause. The strong support of community has allowed me to secure Internet, newspaper, church, and television exposure for the co-op,” he said.
Graddick did not imagine his career panning out the way it has.
“Originally when I came to Mercer, my only goal was to graduate. My goals have changed after uncovering this amazing opportunity though. I hope to use many of the skills I learned at Mercer to help a great amount of people through my managing of the West Georgia Farmerís Cooperative,” he said.
Graddick will receive a yearly stipend of $35,000 for this two-year fellowship and he will have the opportunity to attend meetings around the country. The Kellogg Foundation funds the Food and Community Fellows Program.
(09/08/11 12:45am)
From August Wed., Aug. 10 to Sun., Aug. 14, the Mercer University Flute Choir attended the National Flute Association Convention in Charlotte, NC. While at the convention, the flute choir had the honor or performing in a showcase.
Joanna Malcom, a member of the flute choir, said that the experience was wonderful. “Getting to go was a great experience. Our performance went wonderfully and has earned us an invitation to perform at another flute convention,” she said.
In order to be chosen for the performance, the group had to send in an audition tape over six months ago. The top ten chosen were able to perform in the showcase.
“There were a lot of audition tapes sent in. So, it’s a great honor,” Malcom said.
The flute choir is comprised of around 14 current students, alumni and a few community members.
As of now, the flute choir is unsure if they will be allowed to accept the invitation to play in the Florida Flute Convention.
Malcom is a senior communication studies major from Monroe, Ga. While she is not a music major, Malcom believes that this did not hinder her ability to enjoy the music convention.
“For me it was a great experience because I’m not a music major. It was eye- opening to be exposed to that environment. It was a great experience for music majors too because they met professional flute players and were able to try-out new instruments,” Malcom said.
Mercer’s flute choir practices once a week, under the direction of Kelly Via. Via is an adjunct professor who also teaches flute classes.
In order to prepare for the convention, members of the choir moved back early and began practicing before school started.
The Mercer University Flute Choir is part of the Townsend School of Music.
(08/18/11 9:02pm)
On Tuesday, July 12, Fountain of Juice opened its newest location at Mercer Village. Fountain of Juice is owned and operated by two local residents, one of whom is a graduate of Mercer.
Carl Phillips and his wife, Natasha, opened the first Fountain of Juice on Vineville Avenue in November of 2007. They have now opened a second location at Mercer Village.
The restaurant is open Monday through Saturday for breakfast and lunch. Natasha Phillips, co-owner of Fountain of Juice, is excited to have students back on campus and hopes that business will flourish. “We have definitely been missing the students. We are changing our hours. We will be open Monday through Friday from eight to four and Saturday from ten to three,” she said.
Phillips said as long as the restaurant still has breakfast, it will be available.
The menu offers soups, salads and sandwiches for lunch and several options for breakfast including: quiche, muffins, biscuits, frittatas and bagels. “Soups, salads and sandwiches are our specialty. We also have fresh, express juices, all-natural smoothies and the best brownies in town,” said Phillips.
Fountain of Juices smoothies offer a great alternative to drinks loaded with sugar. “Usually we don’t add sugar. We only add simple syrup to a couple,” said Phillips.
The new location at Mercer Village offers many lunch options, but the most popular have been the Turkey Delight with avocado spread and the Stansfield Special, which includes turkey, bacon and pimento cheese.
Fountain of Juice is keeping both locations open and Phillips is hopeful that the greater amount of traffic through Mercer Village will increase business as well.
When designing the new location, the owners wanted to give the restaurant a fresh, California vibe.
Recycled tins are being used as light fixtures and the tables were imported from Italy. There is also a recycling bin at the front of the store for glass bottles.
“We have been embraced by the community already. We are seeing familiar faces each week. That tells us we are doing something right,” said Phillips.
Car Phillips graduated from Mercer with a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts. Later, he attended graduate school at the Savannah College of Art and Design. His paintings are displayed throughout the restaurant as part of the décor.
For the full menu and more information, students can visit www.fountainofjuice.it.
(04/27/11 11:59pm)
For students who think a degree won’t land you a job in this economy, think again. Abby Feine, a 2010 graduate of Mercer, is currently working with Strategic Systems Progams, a part of the Department of Defense, in Washington, D.C. and performs logistical analysis on submarines.
Feine graduated from Mercer with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering with a minor in photography.
During her sophomore year of college, a neighbor provided Feine with a flyer advertising a summer hire program with the government in Kings Bay, Ga. She now works for the company full-time.
She said, “I will stay at this job until I stop wanting to wake up and come to work every morning. I have a job I love and I’m living in our Nation’s capitol.”
Her position also allows for travel and this is something she has enjoyed tremendously. “I’m from small town, so it’s fun and exciting to be taking week trips to California or Indiana,” Feine said.
Feine advises current students to take internships early and keep in touch with any contacts that are formed over the years. “I don’t care what people say, it always comes down to who you know,” she said.
She believes that Mercer’s engineering school provided her with the background knowledge she needed to perform her day-to-day duties at work.
Her favorite professor during her undergraduate studies was Richard Kunz. “It was in his class when I realized that I could actually grow up and be an engineer one day,” she said.
While at Mercer, Feine was an active sister of the Chi Omega Fraternity. She is originally from Saint Marys, Ga. and is currently living in Arlington, Va.
Feine encourages students to look for positions now. “Get a contact! Ask everyone you know that might potentially have a contact that could help. Look further than just Georgia. Even though some of us might not want to admit this, but there is life outside of those Georgia lines.”
Feine said, “I feel like I’m actually doing something important. But even though I love my job, if money wasn’t an issue, I’d drop everything and buy a plane and fly to the middle of nowhere and take pictures for the rest of my life.”
(04/27/11 12:32am)
When students return to campus for the fall semester they are going to have a variety of food to choose from in Mercer Village. Both Margaritas Mexican Grill and Fountain of Juice are currently under construction.
The Rodriguez family founded Margarita’s Mexican Grill and has been serving the Middle Georgia area since 1988. The chain currently has three locations in Macon and one in Milledgeville.
Brad Cork, an in-law of the family, will be overseeing the Mercer Village location with his wife, Valerie.
Cork said, “This will be a smaller location than the others. It’s 3,200 square feet. So we will have a limited menu, but most of things we have removed are items college students do not order.”
The family debated how to run the Mercer Village location, whether as a full-service restaurant or a setup similar to Moe’s . “We want to continue the feel of traditional Mexican restaurants where customers sit down to order and they are served chips and salsa.”
The restaurant will also have the feel of a pub where students and locals can come to enjoy a beer and football games on Saturdays.
The tentative plan for the Margarita’s restaurant is to have 36 draft beers and a large selection of bottled beers as well.
“This location will cater to a different clientele than the other three and will reach a new market,” said Cork. “Our plan is to gain input from students and local residents about what selection of beers they want.”
The target opening for the Mexican restaurant is Aug. 1. The business will do a soft opening to ensure that everything is running smoothly.
The hours of operation for the Mercer Village location will be flexible. “We’re going to do whatever we can to be open when business dictates. Our intention is to be open for kids to eat on Thursday nights at midnight if that’s what they want.” However, the restaurant will be sensitive to residents living above the establishment.
Natasha Phillips, owner of Fountain of Juice, said the new restaurant will have the same feel and menu as the current location on Vineville.
“We’ve seen the area grow and College Hill grow and we wanted to be part of it,” said Phillips.
The tentative hours of operation for Fountain of Juice are 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., Monday through Friday and 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Saturdays.
The restaurant will offer breakfast items such as paninis and frittatas, while continuing their tradition of soups, salads and sandwiches for lunch.
Phillips said, “We use all-natural ingredients and we try to stay healthy, but not everything can be. We use heavy creams in some of our soups.”
The restaurant will also offer smoothies, juices and baked goods. Phillips said that their signature vanilla cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, as well as homemade cookies will be available.
“We are a green restaurant. We use cups made of corn that biodegrade quickly and our forks and spoons are made from potato starch,” said Phillips.
She and her husband, Carl, opened the Vineville location in November of 2007. Carl Phillips is a Mercer alumni who graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. He then attended graduate school at the Savannah College of Art and Design.
The Mercer Village location for Fountain of Juice will incorporate the same, bright feel as the Vineville location.
For the full menu and updates on the progress of Fountain of Juice’s new location students can visit www.fountainofjuice.it.
(04/13/11 11:20pm)
Mercer students can now whip out their smart phones and keep in constant contact with campus and city police.
A new web-based app for mobile phones announced recently by the InTown Macon Neighborhood Association and Mercer Police allows students to contact Mercer Police and the Macon Police Department directly.
Ted Goshorn, vice president and president-elect for InTown Macon, said the idea for a mobile safety website came from a conversation with the board about wanting to increase response time for residents who observe criminal or suspicious activity.
This mobile application will work on all smartphones. Students visit the website and save the application to the home screen instead of downloading it from a wireless provider or Apple's iTunes Store.
InTown Macon is encouraging all smartphone users to utilize the site because it is free and functions like an app.
Students have the option of calling Mercer Police, the non-emergency number for Macon Police or Judy Gordon, the Neighborhood Watch Coordinator.
“All you do is touch the app and it calls. We are hoping this will increase response rates," Goshorn said.
To install the app, students can visit http://m.intownmacon.org and save the mobile website to the phone’s home screen.
This will add the application to the student’s phone. The app will then be denoted by the InTown Macon logo.
“Macon Police [are] really big on calling the non-emergency number any time a person sees suspicious activity,” Goshorn said.
Mercer students are encouraged to call Mercer Police if they see anything suspicious happening in the vicinity of campus, but this mobile website allows students, faculty and staff the option of calling either the Macon Police or Neighborhood Watch to report activity off-campus without having to call 9-11.
“We know that a lot of Mercer students have problems with their cars getting broken into, so if the opportunity is not there, the crime won’t happen. Students can now report things through this app,” Goshorn said.
InTown Macon hopes that the application will be beneficial to off-campus students as well as those living on campus.
Goshorn said that incidents of cars getting broken into recently occurred on several streets near the law school.
The break-ins were reported and Macon PD put police officers on top of the Massee apartment building with night vision goggles. The officers were able to apprehend three suspects that night and the problem stopped.
“Reporting to the non-emergency number is really valuable,” Goshorn said.
The launch of this mobile website was decided at a March board meeting of InTown Macon.
Gary Collins, Chief of Mercer Police, said that his department received a request to participate in the mobile website’s launch, and that they agreed.
Goshorn said the mobile website can be very beneficial.
“If students choose to make use of this, the increased amount of information flowing to the police departments can help. Awareness can only help.”
InTown Macon was established in 1974. The committee’s goal is to protect and improve the quality of life for Macon residents.
For more information or questions regarding the mobile website, students can contact InTown Macon at intownmacon@gmail.com.
(04/13/11 6:24pm)
Kappa Sigma Fraternity will host its annual 5k race Saturday, April 16. Registration will open at 8:30 a.m. and the race will begin at 9:45 a.m.
The race will benefit military families in need through the Militay Heroes Campaign.
The pre-registration fee for the race is $15 and $20 on race day. This fee includes a T-shirt and lunch.
The race will begin at the back entrance to the University Center and will be part of the spring race series of the Macon Track’s running club.
Students and Macon track members as well as members of the community are encouraged to participate.
Austin Thompson, philanthropy chair for Kappa Sigma, said, “This is the third time we’ve done the race. Last year we didn’t do it, so I though it would be a good event to bring back.”
Thompson and senior Carl Lewis have coordinated the event.
“We’ve had about 45 people register already and we are hoping to get more in the coming days and at the event,” Thompson said.
There are eight category ages for the race, ranging from 10 and under to 60 and over.
Awards will be given to the top five overall winners and the top three in each age category for male and female.
Military Heroes Campaign is Kappa Sigma’s national philanthropy. This campaign focuses on providing these proceeds to the Fisher House Foundaion.
Proceeds will be used to provide free housing to wounded military veterans during rehabilitation.
The Fisher House Foundation provides 38 homes on the grounds of major military and VA medical centers.
For questions regarding the race, contact Austin Thompson or register online at gatorgo5k2011.org.
(03/30/11 10:53pm)
The Lofts at Mercer Village, which were originally slated to be open for business by January, should be finished within roughly the next 30 days. Full occupancy is expected for the fall semester of 2011.
Jim Daws, president of Sierra Development, said the company had encountered normal construction delays, but that the Lofts should be ready within a month or so.
The lofts will house 117 students in 30 units consisting of three- and four-bedroom apartments and will be privately managed by Sierra Development.
“We’ve probably leased over half of them already and we are getting law and med students,” Daws said.
James Netherton, Executive Vice President of Administration and Finance, said that undergraduate seniors have first pick, followed by graduate and professional students and then juniors.
Daws said that added safety features like the use of Bear Cards to enter the residential area, as well as cameras at all entrances to the building, are important to the company.
Mercer Police will monitor the surveillance cameras.
Another feature that Sierra Development will implement is recycling within the residential space, Daws said.
Also, the floors of the lofts will be made of cork that meets leading standards.
Designer Tan, which will be housed in the retail space next to the new bookstore, should also be ready for business in around 30 days. Fountain of Juice is expected to be completed within 60 to 90 days.
Margaritas Mexican Grill, another of the retail stores, will have around 100 microbrews to offer, as well as around 30 additional beers on tap.
Students living in the Lofts will be allowed to drink within their residence, so long as they are of legal drinking age.
“The Lofts have the convenience of living on-campus without the hassles,” Daws said,
A second phase of the lofts has been considered, which will include more retail space. “We are considering it. No decisions have been made, but this has been so successful that the developer has been planning the second phase,” Netherton said.
The main entrance to the residential area will have study areas, a big-screen television, a Mac Pro work station and a print station where residents can use their Bear Cards to print. The building will also include wireless Internet.
Each unit will be fully furnished and will also include a washer and dryer as well as a private bathroom for each resident.
A total of 117 parking spaces will be reserved for Loft residents. These include spots in the parking lot beside the screen shop and Greek Village, as well as 19 spaces directly behind the Lofts.
Netherton said, “I think it’s going to be a really neat place.”
The Lofts are currently priced at $3,390 per semester for three-bedroom units and $3,360 per semester for four-bedroom units. Students can also lease the units during the summer semester for $1,250.
These prices are around $450 to $500 more per semester than a typical three- or four-bedroom Garden apartment.
(03/30/11 2:58pm)
[caption id="attachment_3093" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="This Friday, Relay For Life of Macon Area Colleges will hosts its event on Porter Patch from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. on Saturday morning. Last year, group efforts raised around $14,000 for Relay."]
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On Friday, April 1 from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., Mercer’s Relay For Life group will hold their biggest fundraiser event of the year on Porter Patch. This event is an all-night celebration of how much money the teams have raised.
The reason for the all-night event is to remember that cancer never sleeps.
The celebration will include live music from Atlanta performer E. B. Reece, games, tie-dye and root beer pong.
Last year, Mercer’s Relay For Life raised $14,000.
The organization’s directors are expecting between 100-150 people. Twenty teams participated in the fundraising efforts this year, including Delta Sigma Pi and Greek organizations.
The total fundraising amounts will be revealed at the morning ceremony for captains.
The teams are given freedom as to how they raise money for the cause. The teams consist of 10 to 15 people.
Emily Brownlee, Chair of Relay of Macon Area Colleges, said, “We have three really important laps: the luminary, survivor and faculty and staff support laps. The luminary lap is my favorite of the night. It’s a reverence ceremony led by bagpipes in memory of the people we’ve lost to cancer. “
The survivor lap celebrates everyone who is currently battling cancer or is remission.
Mercer faculty and staff are encouraged to attend the event. Both Anya Silver and Frank Macke, professors in the college of liberal arts, are cancer survivors.
Elizabeth Cobb, Fundraising Chair of Macon Area Colleges, said, “If you are not on a team or just want to come for a little while, you are more than welcome.”
Funds raised will help to further cancer research and to support Hope Lodges. Each lodge gives cancer patients and families a free, temporary residence when their greatest chance for treatment may be in a city other than their hometowns.
Relay for Life is the main fundraising effort for the American Cancer Society. It began in the United States and has spread to 21 countries throughout the world.
Cobb said, “Cancer is something that has affected almost everyone on this campus in some way. It’s a disease that will keep progressing, so our treatment for the disease needs to keep up. Our fundraising efforts help to fund research and prevention.”
Brownlee said, “My family has been affected by cancer. It’s something unpredictable that can ruin people’s lives. Helping head up something that could prevent this is very important to me.”
Finding a way to prevent others from going through what her family has been through is one of the reasons Brownlee decided to chair this chapter of Relay.
“The biggest reason is that it’s so much more tangible a thing for me. When my uncle was diagnosed with cancer he couldn’t afford treatment, or even get to the facility. Relay For Life helps to offset that.”
(03/16/11 8:05pm)
Emma Stitt and Stephanie Hennigan were two of four students to receive the George W. Woodruff Scholarship to the Walter F. George School of Law. Stitt and Hennigan are Mercer seniors who will be attending law school this fall.
The award is a merit-based scholarship granted annually to four members of each entering class. The scholarship covers full tuition and the students also receive a $5,000 annual stipend, which can be used for living expenses and books. As long as the students remain in good standing, the scholarship is renewable.
The students have until April 1 to accept the scholarship.
Stitt said, “The scholarship is making it much easier for me to stay in Macon. I definitely won’t have to take out as many loans, and staying in Macon was ideal.”
Stitt also considered attending the University of Georgia and Emory University for law school because she wanted to remain in-state. However, she has made the decision to attend Mercer Law.
“I just have to make the deposit,” she said.
Hennigan has been accepted to Washington and Lee University, William and Mary University and Wake Forest University. Her acceptance of the award to Mercer Law is still pending.
Hennigan said, “It’s a huge honor. Law school is very expensive and to not only be awarded a full ride but such a generous stipend as well is incredible.”
Both students were initially awarded full tuition, but after a rigorous weekend-long interview process they were awarded the additional stipend.
Stitt said, “I wasn’t as nervous after I knew that I got a full ride. I knew Mercer was where I wanted to be. I just had to show them how well I thought Mercer would fit.”
Mercer Law paid for the 12 Woodruff Scholarship candidates to stay at the 1842 Inn during the interview process. The students had a tour of the school, met with professors and were able to attend a class. Next, they had a 30-minute interview with each panel, which was made up of former scholars, alumni and professors.
Hennigan said, “The coolest part of the whole weekend was when the dean looked at my resume and said, ‘I don’t think there’s anything else you could have done and nothing you could have done better to prepare for law school.’”
Stitt said she enjoyed seeing how energetic and sincere the alumni who helped with the scholarship weekend were about the school. She said, “They were willing to answer questions and they genuinely liked being at Mercer.”
Stitt is a psychology major with a minor in music. She also held a leading role in The Lucky Spot and is performing in My Fair Lady this semester.
Hennigan is a sociology and communications double-major with a minor in Criminal Justice. She also spent last summer working with orphans in Moldova through Mercer on Mission. She hopes to pursue a career working in the public-service sector of law. Stitt plans to practice family law, mainly divorce, but is open to exploration.
(02/01/11 4:01am)
Mercer University’s Sexual assault, Hazing and Alcohol Prevention Education committee will hold an information meeting today at 4:30 p.m. in the Connell Student Center, Conference Room 2, to discuss the upcoming carnival in March. Any organization interested in hosting a booth at the carnival should send a representative to the meeting.
SHAPE will hold the 3rd Annual Carnival on Wednesday, March 30 from 4 to 6 p.m. The purpose of the carnival is to raise awareness about sexual assault, hazing and drug and alcohol abuse.
The SHAPE committee is asking for organizations on campus to host a booth at the carnival to help reach this goal.
Last year’s carnival was very successful. Over 300 students attended the carnival and this year the committee is hoping for an even larger turnout.
Alexis Moss, graduate assistant to SHAPE, said, “In the pre- vious year we had 27 organiza- tions participate in the Carnival. This year we hope to surpass that number and have at least 30 organizations participate.”
Student organizations can participate by having either a pas- sive or interactive booth at the carnival with a game, or they can provide food. “Organiza- tions are asked to sponsor their own booths. However, if finan- cial assistance is needed, orga- nizations can submit requests for assistance to the SHAPE committee,” Moss said.
Examples of previous booths include a balloon pop, where students throw darts at balloons. Inside the balloon is a question and students must answer correctly in order to receive a prize. Another example is to have a cotton candy machine and attach safety tips on preventing sexual assault to the sticks.
Moss said that booths are not limited to giving candy as a prize and she encourages organizations to be creative.
“Participation in the Shape Carnival is a great way for or- ganizations to gain some publicity on campus,” said Moss.
For further information and updates of the event, organizations are encouraged to join the SHAPE Facebook group.
(01/31/11 11:24pm)
Brothers of the Georgia Gamma Chapter of the Phi Delta Theta Fraternity will be participating in Iron Phi, a race to benefit the fight against ALS on Feb. 13, at the Mercedes Marathon in Birmingham, Ala.
Adam Lewis, a brother of Phi Delta Theta and a runner in the event, said, “I wanted to be an Iron Phi from the first time I saw it.” He said the challenge was a large part of what inspired him to take on this event.
Lewis and other brothers of Mercer’s chapter decided to take on this challenge after Phi Delta Theta headquarters reached out to all of the Southeastern presidents about the opportunity in Birmingham.
Fuji Islom, another Iron Phi runner, said, “This is the first time that I am participating in the Iron Phi. I am running in the gym three times a week.”
Lewis, along with another participant, Andrew Karas, will begin his training next week and will be in the gym every night.
ALS is a “progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord.” The disease is also named for Lou Gehrig, a Major League Baseball Hall of Famer, who was the first person to be formally diagnosed with ALS. Gehrig was a brother of Phi Delta Theta and was known as the “Iron Horse” because of his perseverance and determination in all that he did. In honor of Gehrig, the name Iron Phi was given to the cause to encourage members to remember his “never-give-up attitude” when seeking to achieve a goal.
Lewis said the fight against ALS is very personal to him because he has seen it affect someone he knows. He said, “My sister's best friend's dad was diagnosed with ALS while she was in middle school and he has just recently started to show major symptoms. His ability to live a normal life has been extremely impaired by the effects. Seeing that firsthand is horrible, and for it to happen to somebody I respect is even worse, so I know that'll keep me going on the last few miles.”
To become an “Iron Phi,” members of Phi Delta Theta select an athletic event, such as a half-marathon or triathlon, raise $1,000 for the cause, and accomplish the event itself.
Through this experience, Islom said he will know that his fundraising helped people with ALS and the search for its cure.
Lewis said it is up to younger brothers to decide whether or not they will continue to participate in the future. “I hope the legacy of this run and my time as an Iron Phi can be a source of inspiration for many Phis in the future to continue the fight against ALS.”
Anyone interested in donating can visit ironphi.org or contact Adam Lewis for on-campus donations. Donations can be made by check or cash and are greatly appreciated.