Auxiliary Organizations On Campus

The Daily 49er published an article titled, Transparency bill redefines 'auxiliary' which discusses first what auxiliary organizations are.
"Among the auxiliaries at Cal State Long Beach are the CSULB Foundation, Associated Students Inc. and 49er Shops," the Daily 49er reported.
Before reading this article I did not know that the shops on campus were an auxiliary and just the term auxiliary itself left me confused. So I looked it up.
According to Webster's Dictionary, auxiliary is defined as giving or furnishing aid.
Going back to the article this definition fits. For example, "Sen. Yee’s Website lists the CSU auxiliaries funding at $1.34 billion, which accounts for about 20 percent of the CSU’s $6.7 billion budget."
Senator Lee of San Francisco proposed a transparency bill (SB 218) that would redefine auxiliary organizations as state agencies instead of "private entities."
Dave Edwards, president of CSU Auxiliary Organizations Association (AOA), however was one among others that disagreed with Lee's bill because he believed it was important to keep auxiliaries' "private status."
No resolutions have been made, but with the economy the way it is, no economic issues are left alone.

Cutting the Prices

As most of you know, CSULB has a hair salon on campus called Elektric Hair Inc. that not only offers hair cuts and color, but also waxing and nail jobs including manicures, pedicures, and acrylics now at a "special" price.

The shop opened about 5 years ago according to Jenavie Ban, a sophmore and employee at Elektric.

Ban's mother is the manager of the hair salon but not the founder of the business.

Still, just sitting outside of the Student Union where the shop is located, one can't miss the "Special" sign that displays a discounted price for hair cuts and highlights.

Why a special? Well, money is tight for everyone these days and Elektric just like the eateries on campus, hopes to attract its customers with a discounted price.

"Most customers are students, but we get professors in as well, and more faculties are beginning to come in for hair and nails," Ban said. "My mom also has outside clients coming in too."

These deals on campus are becoming more prevalent but justifiable all at the same time.

Brown Bag Special

The economy has put a strain on the wallets of many students here at CSULB especially when it comes to what they eat.
According to the Daily 49er, "Cal State Long Beach eateries are offering more specials to encourage student purchases..." since there has been a decline in business for on-campus restaurants beginning last semester.
"I've noticed the deals," said Patricia Gonzalez who is a sophomore and undeclared major. "I still bring food from home because it's already there and I don't need to spend extra money."
The Daily 49er reported, "Don Penrod, CEO and general manager of 49er Shops Inc. at CSULB, also observed more students with sack lunches, as well as fewer students purchasing meals in the UDP or at the Outpost."
"I've never eaten at the Outpost," said sophomore Ashley Azevedo. "I've been bringing food from home since my freshmen year."
With the economy not showing any vast improvements it is safe to assume that the "5 to 10 percent decrease in business" is something that will continue throughout the remaining weeks of this semester and perhaps through all of next year.

More on textbooks

While searching through the Daily 49er archives I came across a brilliant article. The article titled, Our View-Textbook costs ongoing student bane, highlights exactly what Crystal Aguilar confirmed in the previous post, textbooks are cheaper online. A search was conducted regarding the price of a chemical engineering book that costs $196.60 new at the University Bookstore. For a used copy the price is $147.45. Now are you ready to be stunned? The same exact book was found on Amazon.com for a shocking $122.35! It doesn't stop there because for a used copy (there were 10), the price fell to a minimal $25.50. The article offers other options in the hunt for textbooks such as textbook rental or digital books, however the latter may be more expensive than the paper version.
I'm sure a lot of you already know the University Bookstore is expensive but did you know that some professors actually get "in trouble" for telling students their assigned textbooks could be found cheaper online? I know firsthand since one of my professors this semester told my class a little story of how she got yelled at by the "bookstore" for advising students to shop online for books. I understand that the bookstore is only looking out for its business but really scolding professors who are only trying to save students money is a little harsh.
The point is students need to do whatever they need to do to afford textbooks for college especially in this economy. As the article ends, "If even one student is forced to drop out because they can’t afford books, we lose the vast intellectual potential that individual might have brought to our communities."