The Griffin: volume 51, issue 18 - Mar. 27, 1981

              "The computer age is already here," Ryan said, "and a college such as Canisius must utilize the knowledge and tools of this new age." Fr. Edmund G. Ryan, S.J., vicepresident of academic affairs, said that he agrees with experts who see computer language as the common language of business, industry, science and politics for the rest of the 20th and all of the 21st century. He said he thinks that "if a person is to be considered literate and hopes to inspire leadership locally and nationally, he must be familiar with the use of computers and computer languages. "I think that you'll find more and more students taking a basic computer course," Sholtys stated. They will need to learn to cope with the computer in their personal as well as their business lives, she said. "People have to know a little bit about computers," she continued, "so they won't be put off by them." from computers." It is important for students to develop a basic understanding of computers, she said, because there will be an even greater emphasis on them in the next 10-20 years. Club Rooms7 Locks Changed —photo by Mike Hirsch Dr. Phyllis Sholtys, Director of Planning and Research —file photo Because club rooms in the basement of the Student Center have experienced a rash of break-ins and thefts recently the locks on the doors are in the process of being changed, according to Mrs. Pat Zasidal, director of the Student Center. by Randy Andreozzi and Anne Morey Access has been gained by some unknown persons into four rooms in the Student Center: The Campus Program Board, Little Theater, the Canisius College Choir, and Amici d'ltalia. Money was taken from each office. The Choir has had three such break-ins this semester. There was no forced entry in most cases, but according to Mr. Robert I. Lowman, Director of Physical Plant, there were definite signs of forced entry in one of the offices. To curb these break-ins, the school, under the direction of Mr. Lowman, has initiated a new According to Mr. Sam Puma, Director of Public Safety, keys to the offices, other than the ones assigned to club officers, can only be obtained through either the Student Center Director's office or through the Department of Public Safety. Puma said that in order for keys to be signed out from his department, two people must be present to request the key, and they must sign out the date and the time the key was taken. system of Best locks, which is based on internal maintenance. Keys cannot be duplicated outside, and no locksmith is able to work on them, unlike the formerly used Russwin system. The entire maintenance system is concen-  trated in the school, Lowman said,  Only one person in the campus |  knows how to operate the new  It is up the the presidents of the various clubs to decide on the distribution of keys. Once this is (Continued on Page 10) Best machine. Mr. Lowman says of the system, "We started the procedure of replacing locks six months ago, and hope to have the entire campus into our system by September." University Provost Keith Kennedy wants $700,000 to buy 100 terminals and 25 microcomputers to patch onto the existing network now used by students and faculty, explains Kenneth King, Kennedy's assistant provost. But the nearly physical force of the campus rush to computers is creating new kinds of financial difficulties for many colleges and universities. Though some schools can tap special endowments for buying computers, others are raising the necessary money by going to an old source: students. For example, Cornell University, fearing a "retreat into the past," may soon be increasing its computer budget by $1.7 million, and getting the money for it by increasing each student's tuition by $100 (out of a total increase of $1000). Indeed, the computer revolution is in full swing, and schools are hurrying to keep up with it. By 1978, colleges and universities had spent over $1 billion on computing activities, says computer science professor John Hamblen of the University of Missouri. Computers have been bought and installed at so rapid a pace since then that more recent reliable statistics don't exist. (CPS)—The availability of high quality computers is becoming as important as strong libraries in American universities, a Stanford task force reports, and the day is not far off when a school will be judged by the "excellence of its computer facilities." King says computer knowledge is becoming increasingly important in the business world, and notes that the use of "intelligent (continued on Page 9) "The computer has pervaded practically every discipline, in both instruction and research," Hamblen told the New York Times. Dartmouth College President John Kemeny recommends that every college and university should make computer services as readily available to their students as "books on their library shelves." King is far from alone in this opinion. He says there is a developing consensus across the country that "every student should know about computers" before graduating. "The value of a student's degree if they get a good computer education is vastly more than that," King says. "Without computers, you're getting a second class educaiton." But King suggests the $100 per student isn't much compared to the worth of a good knowledge of computers. King adds the computer expenditures are the biggest single contributor to the projected $17 million increase in Cornell's general purpose budget for 1981- 82. Another $700,00 will pay for improving administrative processes like registration and billing procedures, while $300,000 more will cover the cost of inflation, King hopes. Canisius Invests in New Computer Fr. Edward G. Ryan, vice president of academic affairs • Jgr ' fl .. I Patricia Zasadil, director of the Student Center The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that employment of computer specialists will more than double between 1978 and 1990. An article in The Chronicle of Higher Education states that (Continued on Page 2) ly, there are seven jobs available for every computer science graduate with a bachelor's degree. "Even more startling is that in Western New York, there are ten jobs for every graduate," he said. Sholtys said that the new computer center, scheduled to be completed by late this summer, will have a large number of terminals located in at least a couple of areas throughout the school. This by Mike Hirsch Canisius is investing nearly $1.5 million to develop a new computer system of the latest technology at the Main-Eastwood Building. This new computer has enabled the college to offer a computer science major for the first time starting this coming fall semester, according to Dr. Phyllis Sholtys, the Director of Planning and Research. The computer, which will be used for administrative as well as academic purposes, will occupy most of the first floor of the Main- Eastwood Building. The renovation of the building will include work to make it accessible to the handicapped. Dr. Lawrence Franz, vice-president of business and finance, said the total renovation cost will be $700,000. Sholtys said, "There is virtually no realm of life that is isolated system, she said, will use the most modern technology — interactive computing — providing almost instantaneous information directly on a screen. Schools Look to Future; Investing in Computers On job opportunities in the computer field, Ryan noted that recent studies have shown that, national- Sholtys said that she is "very excited that Canisius is moving ahead at the forefront of the state of the art." VOLUME LI, NUMBER 18 Canisius College FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 1981 t