By Kelly Hollerankellyh@dailymail.com

A new building on MarshallUniversity’s campus may bring ad-ditional opportunities to the school’sscience faculty and students.

With the opening of the RobertC. Byrd Biotechnology ScienceCenter in October, biomedicalsciences and the basic sciencesare now housed in the samebuilding. That makes it easier forteams of scientists to work to-gether on research projects, andthat will make it easier for theuniversity to secure grant money.

Before the building was erect-ed, the Department of Biomed-ical Sciences was housed eightmiles from the university at the

Huntington Veterans Adminis-tration Medical Center in SpringValley, making it difficult for sci-entists to collaborate.

“The chemists and the biolo-gists were all downtown,” saidDr. Howard Aulick, vice presidentof research at Marshall. “We hadthis real split that was affectingthe way we could do research.We’re just going to be able to im-prove the research and the mon-ey we can bring to the universi-ty with the new center.”

The students will benefit fromthe building as well, Aulick said.They will be able to work withmedical school graduates andcan decide early in their collegeeducation whether or not a ca-reer in science is for them.

“Undergrads can have a bet-ter idea of what their responsi-bilities will be,” Aulick said. “Theycan make a better decision as toif they want to deal with clientsor research.”

The building features 10-foottall projection boards, whichmake it easier for students to seea professor’s lecture notes.

Science faculty members have re-

search offices in the new building. Some research labs have dish-

washers. The computer equip-ment is much more sophisticated,and there are new autoclave fa-cilities, which sterilize equipment.Lecture halls are capable of hold-ing 80 or 90 students.

Members of the science facul-ty have said they enjoy the cen-ter’s new, state-of-the-art class-rooms and laboratories.

“They love it. The classroomsare beautiful. The IT (integratedtechnology) capabilities in thelabs are spectacular. The facilitiesare so much nicer from a teach-ing standpoint,” Aulick said.

Before the building could open,Marshall staff had to move allequipment from the old medicalschool.

“There was a lot of expensiveequipment that had to be pro-tected and kept under rigorous,

well-defined limits of tempera-ture. It was a marvelous move.There was no real damage toequipment that we know of. Itwas a lot less traumatic than wethought,” Aulick said.

All the old equipment was inthe Biotechnology Center by Oc-tober, when it opened for med-ical school students and faculty.In January, the center opened forall college of science students andfaculty as well.

“It’s pretty much up to fullsteam,” Aulick said.

Marshall is now hiring newfaculty and presenting the build-ing to potential students and re-searchers.

“We’ve had some very nation-ally competitive researchers vis-iting us,” said Aulick. “It’s goingto be an exceptional recruitingtool for new faculty and stu-dents.”

10K February 25, 2007 Sunday Gazette-Mail

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By Jessica M. Karmasekjessica@dailymail.com

John Adams Middle Schooland other secondary schools inKanawha County are workingon a new computerized grad-ing system.

The system, called Grade-Quick, should be up and run-ning at John Adams Middlenext fall, said Assistant Princi-pal Lois Greene.

GradeQuick offers cus-tomized reports and reportcards, features to help with at-tendance management andseating charts with student pho-tos. The grading system also al-lows parents or guardians to ac-cess student grades.

Elementary schools alreadyuse the grading system. Middleand high schools are adding orwill add the system soon.

“We’ve started using it atsome schools for a few yearsnow, gradually adding schools,”said Jerry Legg, director of in-formation systems and opera-tions for the school system.

Legg said schools are not re-quired to use the new gradingsystem but the features areuseful.

Greene agreed: “It’s reallynice. It makes things so mucheasier. It’s going to be helpful forstudents, parents and teachers.”

Some John Adams teachersare experimenting with the pro-gram, trying to familiarize them-selves with its features, Greenesaid. Other teachers are beingtrained to use the program nextschool year, she said.

“It’s really convenient. I thinkit’s going to be a great tool,”she said.

The grading system is able toconnect to the West VirginiaEducation Information System.The state system was created in1990 to ensure standardizeddata collection and reporting to

the state Department of Edu-cation.

Current student applicationson the WVEIS network includestudent scheduling, student at-tendance, student grading, andseveral custom programs.

Other financial and employ-ee applications include payrollprocessing, human resources,fixed asset inventory, ware-housing, and purchasing.

Nancy Baldwin, coordinatorof information systems forKanawha schools, said teacherswill be able to upload finalgrades from GradeQuick intothe WVEIS system at the endof the year.

However, WVEIS currentlydoes not have a grade book.

“That’s where GradeQuickcomes in,” Baldwin said.

Greene said the systemshould be ready for use at theschool next year. She wouldhave liked to have the systemimplemented before, but rightnow only about 20 percent ofthe school’s computers haveWindows XP, the operating sys-tem required to run the newgrading program.

Many of the computers inthe school, especially those inindividual classrooms, current-ly run on a Windows 95 oper-ating system.

Greene said she hopes morecomputers able to run Grade-Quick will be installed laterthis year.

Most of the money for com-puters in Kanawha and PutnamCounty schools comes fromthe state’s basic skills program.Some schools also get moneyfrom the federal Title I pro-gram, Ed Tech grants or busi-ness partners.

Unfortunately for most indi-vidual schools, there isn’t a lotof money in the county budg-et for technology improve-ments.

GradeQuick system in works

By Charlotte Ferrell Smithcharlotte@dailymail.com

Technology can boost learningor deter from it, depending uponhow it used.

Just ask any teacher or schooladministrator.

“Technology is changing schoolsand has changed the world,” saidMichael Wilkinson, assistant prin-cipal of Riverside High School,where plans are in the works forwireless computer access.

Aside from computers, schoolsare also filled with cell phonesand various other gadgets virtu-ally every day, leaving school of-ficials in charge of monitoring agrowing number of devices.

“We have 1,300 students andall of them have cell phones,”Wilkinson said.

Kanawha County schoolsadopted a policy in 2005 thatprohibits the use of cell phones,beepers and pagers from the be-ginning of the first instructionalperiod to the end of the last in-structional period. Subject to ap-propriate school regulations, stu-dents may use cell phones dur-ing lunch breaks.

The policy was adopted toprevent class disruption or cheat-ing through the use of text mes-saging. At least one parent wel-comed the policy change foranother reason, said schoolboard attorney Jim Withrow.

Before the policy was adopt-ed, the mother complained toschool officials that she received

a $500 cell phone bill showingher daughter had either sent orreceived frequent text messages.

“She was definitely in favor ofthe policy,” Withrow said.

Wilkinson said the policy mir-rors what Riverside was doinganyway.

“At Riverside we allow stu-dents to use cell phones in thecommons area during lunch,” hesaid. “They are supposed tokeep them out of site duringschool. Some get them out tolook at the time but teachersdon’t know if they are texting.Teachers request that they putthem away. If they don’t they aretaken away and returned at theend of the day.”

Repeat violations can result inkeeping the phone until a par-ent picks it up.

Wilkinson favors cell phoneswhen they are used properly.

“My girl is in middle school andhas a cell phone,” he said. “I don’tget off work at a certain time andwant her to be able to contact me.”

It isn’t the technological toolthat is a problem but when andhow it is used.

“After Christmas, we had abunch of iPods increase duringschool,” Wilkinson said. “Theyare not supposed to have themin class. Some kids come fromMontgomery and have a longbus ride. They can listen tothem for an hour on the bus.”

If the privilege is abused, theiPod is taken away just like thecell phone.

Schools develop new policies for technology

By Jessica M. KarmasekJessica@dailymail.com

Kanawha County school offi-cials remain focused on a planthat would replace old elemen-tary schools with two newschools on the West Side.

Board members met withteachers, parents and communi-ty members last August to discusstheir options for the deterioratingschools — Chandler, Glenwood,Watts and J.E. Robins.

Some suggested building onehuge school, or two new ones,while others preferred renovationof existing schools.

The two-school concept pre-vailed. The board is in no rushto hammer out final details, be-cause of a funding moratoriumdeclared by the School BuildingAuthority.

Board member Pete Thawsaid his support for the planhasn’t wavered.

“I’m still adamant,” Thaw said.“I want two new schools. I’ll votefor two schools until the end.”

Members of the building au-thority announced last summerthat the agency would not handout money for new school build-

ings this school year.The authority is managing

more than $84 million worth ofschool construction across thestate, and officials have saidthose projects must be closer tocompletion before any new proj-ects are funded. They said theywere concerned about cost over-runs on existing projects.

Originally, Kanawha CountySchool Superintendent Ron Duer-ring had hoped to submit a fund-ing application to the SchoolBuilding Authority in October. Henow plans to submit a funding ap-plication next fall.

The two-school plan wouldsend some students from Chan-dler and Watts to Grandview,Bonham, Piedmont and Shoalselementaries.

Projected enrollment for thetwo new schools is 321 studentsat one and 313 students at theother.

The estimated cost of the twonew schools is $26.1 million.

Chuck Wilson, facilities direc-tor for the school system, has es-timated the building authoritywould provide about $10.5 mil-lion, leaving the county to put upthe remaining $15.5 million.

Officials still focus on plan for new West Side schools

TOM HINDMAN/Sunday Gazette-Mail

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Marshall biotech centerpromotes collaborationBiomedical, basic sciences now housed in one building

The Associated Press

MARTINSVILLE, Ohio —Tucked away in the den of his127-year-old farmhouse, Ed Win-kle huddles over his computer.The screen’s soft glow lights uphis eyeglasses, reflecting mes-sages about tractors, corn hybridsand crop insurance.

Winkle is checking the latest post-ings on his favorite Internet farm fo-rum. Advice from fellow farmersaround the country has enabledhim to increase his corn and soybeanproduction, better market his crops,learn how to rebuild engines and getgood tires for his tractor.

Online message boards andchat rooms are replacing ruralcoffee shops and feed mills asplaces for farmers to talk farm-ing and trade tips as more of ru-ral America goes online.

“You get the best thinkers inagriculture,” Winkle said of theforums. “You’re mixing such a di-

verse group of people — fromdifferent areas, from differentbackgrounds, different experi-ences, different ways of farming.”

Fifty-one percent of U.S. farmshave Internet access, according toa July 2005 report by the U.S. De-partment of Agriculture, up from48 percent in 2003. More thantwo-thirds of them, however, stilluse dial-up modems to connect.

The popularity of online farmforums has grown as well, saidMack Strickland, an agriculturalengineer at Purdue Universityand farm-computer expert.

The Internet division of FarmJournal Media, www.agweb.com,says user traffic doubled betweenOctober 2005 and October 2006,with the forums on the site en-joying similar growth. Traffic onthe Des Moines, Iowa-basedwww.agriculture.com has in-creased 20 percent to 25 percentover the past year, said editorJohn Walter. Both are free sitessupported by ads.

More farmers goingonline to get tips