The Pacer

There's no doubt college costs are going up, from tuition to books to housing, and now, contraception. Until 2006, college campus clinics got a cost cut on female contraceptives, which usually ended up passing the savings on to students. But the Deficit Reducation Act passed by Congress and signed by President Bush in 2006 put an end to the government subsidy for contraception, forcing universities to stockpile the drugs or raise their prices.… Post the First Comment

A sorority member was injured Monday afternoon after she fell from the back of a pickup truck during an annual event, sorority officials said. Julie Vantrease, a senior member of the Alpha Omicron Pi sorority, was treated for a concussion at Volunteer Community Hospital in Martin after the accident during a bid day event, chapter relations chair Whitney Ward told The Pacer.… Post the First Comment

A UT Martin employee was hit by a car on a street in front of her office on Tuesday, police said. Stephanie Mueller, an adviser at the Student Success Center, was hit by a car driven by former UTM student Janice Moses in front of Cooper Hall. Mueller was transported by ambulance to Volunteer Community Hospital.… Post the First Comment

When UT Martin's new chancellor Dr. Tom Rakes was a college student, things were different. And he wasn't afraid to flip burgers. "When I went to college, the freshmen had to wear little beanies. Women had to be in their dorms by 10 (p.m.) and you were only allowed to visit them in the visiting area," Rakes said in an interview with The Pacer.… Post the First Comment

UTM fraternities and sports teams showed improvements in Spring 2007 over Spring 2006 grade reports, recently released by the UTM Athletics Department and Office of Greek Life. But the grade point average for sororities decreased slightly in Spring 2007 for the first time in recent years, falling from a 3.… Post the First Comment

Two UT Martin freshmen found a creative but illegal way of making money that got them suspended from their first semester at college. Matthew Dunaway and Elliott Kiegelis, both 18, were arrested last week on counterfeiting and theft charges after they tried to pass off a homemade $20 bill, police said.… Post the First Comment

The Student Government Association took measures to try to prevent the destruction of student organization property last week during their first meeting of the semester. The nonbinding resolution discourages students from defacing or tearing down posters and fliers advertising student organizations.… Post the First Comment

For most people, landing a new job based on one's past accomplishments won't make national and local headlines the next day. However, if the person in question is Rita Geier and the past accomplishments in question include being a civil rights pioneer and winning a landmark law suit, you can count on those headlines being made.… Post the First Comment

The idea that China's economy is burgeoning and playing a rapidly increasing role in globalization is a myth, a UTM professor says. UTM French professor Dr. Robert Peckham hopes to publish a series of essays soon about what he calls the mythology associated with the globalization of the Chinese economy.… Post the First Comment

Becoming a teacher has gotten harder after the Department of Educational Studies raised their admissions requirements. Change in departmental leadership is behind the beefed-up requirements. Interim chair Dr. Mary Lee Hall, dean of the College of Education and Behavior Sciences, spearheaded implementing the changes, which were approved by the university's curriculum committee.… Post the First Comment

College students - both fresh from high school and more seasoned sixth year seniors - often bite too quickly at alluring free credit, a recently released study shows. Young adults 18 to 24 years old spend nearly 30 percent of their monthly income just on repaying debt, and 45 percent of college students are in credit card debt, according to the nonprofit Young Americans Center for Financial Education.… Post the First Comment

Community residents and elected officials joined leadership from the University of Tennessee to officially open the new UT Martin Ripley Center last week. The ceremony was held in the newly renovated facility that culminated several years of collaborative planning and work.… Post the First Comment

A UTM golf cart was involved in a traffic accident Monday morning. Kristina Springer was driving the cart over the cross walk in front of the field house when a red Pontiac Sunfire, driven by Kevin Frazier, collided with the cart, police said. Frazier told police that a gray truck passed through the crosswalk before him and as he began to drive through it the golf cart pulled out in front of him.… Post the First Comment