the Vagabond Journalist
Americans hope Obama will address the economy in inaugural address
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It’s been more than a month since Election Day, but the economy is still the number one issue Americans are looking to hear about from Obama when he delivers his inaugural speech on January 20.
“I would like to see him touch on his plans for the economy,” said Adam Short, a lecturer in political science at Elon University. “He has stayed in the background in the past few weeks on the auto bailout and plans for an economic stimulus package, so I would like to know more on day one what his plans are.”
Tony Williams, an employee at Wal-Mart from Burlington, North Carolina, agrees that the economy should be the top issue for Obama to address.
“I’d like him to talk about the economy, to continue to do the things that are necessary to get the economy back on track,” Williams said.
Tony Williams, Air Force veteran and Wal-Mart employee from Burlington, North Carolina, discusses what he would like to hear Obama talk about during the his inaugural speech.
Williams, a veteran of the United States Air Force, also says Obama needs to address his course of action in removing troops from Iraq.
“[He should] also concentrate on getting the military people out of Iraq. I don’t feel like they should have been there to start with,” Williams said.
Obama made the campaign promise of a 16-month timetable to remove U.S. combat troops from Iraq.
Harlen Makemson, an assistant professor in the School of Communications at Elon, also wants to hear more on the specifics of Obama’s economic plan.
“I’m encouraged by the people he’s putting into place but the problems are so many and so immense I’d like to know where he’s going to go first to tackle these sorts of things,” Makemson said.
Makemson also hopes that Obama will help bridge the divide between conservatives and liberals.
“There seems to be some good things he’s done on that aspect as well but I think there’s so much work to be done and I worry sometimes that perhaps its too big to be crossed,” said Makemson.
Even those who supported McCain are ready to hear about Obama’s plans for the economy. Joni Grooms, a McCain supporter during the election, wants to hear more of the specifics on how Obama will manage the economy.
“Mainly what I would like him to talk about is how he’s going to pay for all of the things he’s proposing; the new jobs and the changes for America and how he’s going to pay for them,” said Grooms.
Pauli Hawkins, a Wal-Mart employee from Burlington, North Carolina, wants to hear about Obama’s plans for job creation.
“What’s he going to do to help people with jobs?” Hawkins said.
Hawkins supported Obama during the election and has high hopes for the president-elect.
“He’s such a good man, anything he says I’ll be happy with. We have someone now who I can understand and who is intelligent, for the first time in a decade,” said Hawkins.
Mary Morrison, director of the Kernodle Center for Service Learning, hopes that Obama will address public service.
“My hope is that Barack Obama will be able to inspire a whole new generation of people who are committed to public service, [that he] can restore the next generation’s belief in government and the power of government and also in their own efficacy for addressing issues on a local level,” Morrison said.
Brian Collins, associate director of Residence Life for community building at Elon, wants to know what Obama will do to improve America’s standing in the global community.
“I’m hoping that he talks about improving the way America is viewed by the rest of the world and talks about how we need to come together as a community and that there is a world community and that we all play a part in that,” said Collins.
Brian Collins, associate director of Residence Life for community building at Elon, on his hopes that Obama will address America's role in the global community during his inaugural speech.
Elon senior, Chika Kusakawa, says that, judging from his Election Day speech, Obama should handle the inaugural speech well.
“I think he’s always a good speaker and very motivational. I’m sure he’ll say what his goals are, what he plans on doing, and how he plans on achieving those goals,“ Kusakawa said.
With the continuing dismal news coming from the economy, it’s no surprise that American’s are ready to hear Obama’s specific course of action. With more than a month to go until inauguration, most Americans are ready to hear the leadership Obama plans to take to halt the economic recession.
Tags: auto bail out, economics, economy, elon, inaugural address, inauguration, north carolina, obama
What Elon U. means to Elon, NC
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Exploring the university’s relationship with the town of Elon and surrounding communities.
by Dan Rickershauser
It’s a quiet day in late August as storefronts raise their signs of “Welcome Back Elon Students”. For the small town of Elon, it’s a storm of thousands of students, some new to the area, returning to the Elon University campus. But what exactly does this onslaught of students mean to the community?
This graph shows the uneven population distribution by age. Elon students make up a large number of Elon's population. Source: city-data.com
In 2007, WFMY News 2 ran a newscast on excessive student drinking at Elon University. It focused on the student body of Elon to highlight what has become a problem on campuses around the nation. While stories like this and other press coverage can focus on the negative, coverage sometimes overlooks the positive things students contribute can to their community.
Town Student Committee to improve relations with Elon residents.
“I dont think the town’s relationship with the school is strained, nor have I noticed a strain,” Elon senior Torin Reedstrom said.
Reedstrom will be an Elon student chair for the future Town Student Committee, which hopes to improve relations between Elon’s student off-campus residents and Elon’s permanent residents.
“What this committee will try and address is student concerns and issues who live within the town of Elon,” said Reedstrom. “We want to catch and address these concerns and issues before they create a strain on the relationship that the school and the town have.”
Assistant Vice President for Student Life Jana Lynn Patterson has helped to form this group and has worked as the liaison for the town.
Patterson says the committee will help students learn about what their expectations are living in town and being a good neighbor.
“When I would deal with student complaints a couple years ago I found that students just didn’t really understand what the ordinances and things like that were,” said Patterson. “I think the first step is just helping students understand the ordinances. If students know what there expectations are they meet them.”
According to Dean Patterson, the majority of the complaints she hears about are related to trash and garbage issues. As students left for the end of the semester last year, many complaints came in from the town about trash that hadn’t been picked up.
“We really don’t get big complaints about big parties. We got a few earlier in the semester and the community policing officer just went and talked to the kids and they were fine,” said Patterson.
The Town Student Committee will also give students a voice in the town.
“As there is talk about developing the downtown more, we want students to be able to have a conversation about what that might look like,” said Patterson.
Dean Patterson said she also has received complaints from three different students from three different apartment complexes about no recycling program. She hopes this is something the Town Student Committee will be able to address.
To help improve our standing with the town, Patterson has contributed to the town newsletter on the types of things Elon students are involved in.
“I think we have an opportunity to help people understand the good things our students are doing,” said Patterson.
“I think the mayor and the board of alderman understand that they have to appeal to the concerns of different lifestyles of the townspeople,” said Patterson. “But I think they also have a great appreciation for our students and the richness that they bring to our community. It’s a tough balance for them sometimes.”
The good things: The service Elon students’ contribute to the community.
One of the school’s biggest contributions to the community has been the service that Elon students do. Last year alone, 2,847 students participated in service, with 90,184 hours of service reported. While this number includes service Elon students have done everywhere, a large amount of this service has been done within Alamance County. The number includes service done by many different organizations, including Greek Life and other organizations.
“I think for a school this size, that’s a pretty impressive number,” Mary Morrison, Director of the Kernodle Center for Service Learning.
“I think it builds a lot of good will, with community people that have had an opportunity to work with our students,” Morrison said. “Many of our community partners express that they depend on Elon Volunteers to get their work accomplished.”
This year, Elon Volunteers celebrates its 20th anniversary. The group was founded by Chaplain McBride and Elon student, John Barnhill.
“They felt that service was an important part of an Elon education,” Morrison said. “Jimmy Carter had been on our campus talking about Habitat for Humanity, so they started a habitat for humanity chapter along with Elon volunteers at the same time.”
Morrison believes that service is a vital part of the education students receive at Elon.
“The only way to really learn how to be part of a community is to volunteer with the community,” Morrison said. “You have to become engaged with community in order to understand how it works, how you get things done and how you make change.”
While community service is done all across the nation by Elon students, the LINCs program, or Leaders in Collaborative Service, works with various non-profit organizations in Alamance County to help bring in Elon students to volunteer.
For Elon junior Patrick Berrier, service to the community in Alamance county began before he even started school as an Elon freshman. Berrier, along with other incoming freshman, did community service with the annual Pre-serve program.
“It’s a week over the summer that we came and worked with organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Boys and Girls club, and worked at a retirement home,” Berrier said.
Today, Berrier is the Secretary for the Human Service Society, as well as a member of Habitat for Humanity.
“I grew up in a Methodist church where a lot of community service was really important. I feel like those ideals are still at Elon, so I just continue with [community service] here,” Berrier said. “It’s nice to go out and help other people who may not be as fortunate or well off as me or a lot of students at Elon.”
According to Mary Morrison, service-learning can play an important role in an education at Elon.
“The only way to really learn how to be part of a community is to volunteer with the community. You have to become engaged with community in order to understand how that works and how you get things done and how you make change,” Morrison said.
“I think it’s a vital part of what Elon is trying to accomplish, in terms of preparing our students to make a difference after their time at Elon.”
Living in Elon from both perspectives
For Elon Junior Palmer Dillon, going to college didn’t mean going far from home. Dillon has lived at Elon since 1990. Dillion’s mother, like many others in the community, has been a long-time employee of Elon University and currently works with the Teaching Fellows program. According to City-data.com, Elon University is the largest employer for the town of Elon.
Dylan had many positive experiences attending school events at Elon.
“When I was growing up I would go to baseball games and basketball games,” said Dillon.
Dillon is a 2006 graduate of Western Alamance High School. Although Dillon never left his hometown when going off to college, he does say that it can feel like a different place.
Dillon does consider living at Elon different while attending Elon University. For him, attending Elon University means you are in the “Elon Bubble”, a phrase coined for the limited interaction students have with members of the town and sorrounding area.
“Elon’s really like it’s own world,” he said. “That’s what I realized once I got here is that it really was, nobody really mixes with the town and the town doesn’t really mix with us.”
With all the community service students contribute and in many other ways, students do interact with the town and other residents in Alamance County. But according to many others, it’s still the “Elon Bubble”.
Tags: alamance county, community service, elon, kernodle center for service learning, LINCS, town gown
Math Tools for Journalists II
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Polls and Surveys
Polls are everywhere, but can skew information. To find out if a poll is accurate it is up to the journalist to find out…
Name and background on pollster or polling organization
Who funded the poll
How/When was it conducted
The exact wording of questions – this can affect results
The size of the sample, response rate, larger the group the more valid the results
The method used to select the sample.
The margin of error
The relationship of the poll to any news event that could alter the results of the poll.
At least 400 responses keep the margin of error down and is what many polls try to reach as a sample.
There are many different types of polls. Such as…
Census/universe/population sampling – samples everyone in the population.
Example – United States Census
Cluster Sampling – Sampling in one area or region
Multistage Sampling – Frequently used in national samples. This involves picking a specific geographic area, then selecting smaller and smaller subgroups
Systematic Random Sampling – Samples every Nth number of people in a phonebook, directory, or other reference book.
Quota sampling – choosing a sample based on known demographics, to find a proportionate number of certain sub-groups
Probability sampling – involves putting potential subjects in a lottery and drawing out a percentage. This way, everyone in the population has an equal chance of being chosen.
Margin of Error is a degree of accuracy based on standard norms. It is shown in a percentage based on the side of the randomly selected sample. This number should be included in all polls.
Example problem -
A poll from CBS indicates that North Carolina voters support Sen. Elizabeth Dole over challenger Kay Hagan in the polls, with 48% of voters in support of Dole. 45% of voters support Kay Hagan. The margin of error on the poll is 3.1%. Can you say that Elizabeth Dole is leading in the poll?
With the margin of error at 3.1%, this means there is a 3.1% range for the results. That mean Dole can lead by as much as 51.1% (48% + 3.1%) or as little as 44.9% (48% – 3.1%)
This indicates that there is little statistical difference between the candidates’ level of support.
Confidence Level is the percentage at which researchers have confidence in their results. Mathematically, it indicates the probability of getting the same results by chance. A confidence level of 90 percent means there is a 10 percent that they would occur by chance
Adjusted figures are statistically manipulated figures that compensate for missing data
Z score or standard score of a figure, is how much a figure differs from the mean or average of the data.
Formula
Z score = (raw score – mean) / standard deviation
Business
Business news can come in many forms, including….
Quarterly earning reports – large corporations usually release these annually. It is information that can be used by investors, banks, brokers, and others to assess the financial condition of a company.
Annual reports – where more detailed information can be found. These can be available on-line, through stockbrokers, and in some libraries. Annual reports are also read by the Internal Revenue Service to review documents relative relating to a companies tax obligations.
Press releases
Financial Statements can be found in the company’s annual report. They usually include profit and loss report as well as a balance sheet
Profit and Loss (commonly referred to as P&L) shows if company is making money or not. There are many different methods are used to determine P&L, but usually this formula is what is represented.
Formula
Profit = Income-Expenses
Important Terms
Cost of Goods Sold – this refers to the direct expense of making and buying products.
Overhead- this refers to expenses not directly related to the product made and can includes salaries of employees, rent, utilities, and insurance.
Gross Margin – this is the difference between costs of goods sold and selling price
Net profit/Net earning/Net income. – this is the result of when all expenses are subtracted from income. Expenses can include overhead, cost of goods, taxes, and other expenses
EBITDA – this stands for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. It can be useful information when comparing companies
Formula
Gross margin = selling price – cost of goods sold
Important things to remember when reading financial statement….
-numbers are often written in thousands or millions, this will be disclosed at the top of a financial statement
-figures in parenthesis are negative
-compare net income over time, it’s more newsworthy to see difference over time.
FASB- this acronym stands for Financial Accounting Standards Board. It is an independent, non-governmental organization
Formulas
Gross profit = gross margin x number of items sold
Net profit =gross margin – overhead
Example
Joe is selling carrots at a market that he bought for 30 cents a unit. If Joe is selling the carrots at 50 cents per unit, what is his gross margin?
50 cents – 30 cents = 20 cents (Gross Margin)
Joe’s gross margin for the carrots are 20 cents.
Balance Sheet are written financial statement of a company’s assets, liabilities and equity. Balance sheets are used to show the financial stability of a company. With balance sheets, different companies can use different terms. Usually, the assets side of a balance sheet always equals the liabilities and equity side
Formula
Assets = Liabilities + Equity
To show what this formula can include…
Company assets (real estate, equipment, cash) minus liabilities (the money the company owes) equals equity (what the company is worth)
Important Terms
Assets – resources owned by the company that have economic value
Current assets – cash, investments, and other liquid items of value
Long-term assets – this can include buildings and office furniture
Accounts receivable – money owned to the company by customers
Accumulated depreciation – decline in the value of an asset
Inventory – record of goods on hand, raw materials, and work in progress
Intangible assets – copyrights, patents, and other research with legal and economic value
Investments in other corporations – form of stock owned or influence acquired in other companies for economic gain.
Fixed assets – property, plants, equipment, and deferred changes.
Short-term investments – stock and bonds
Pre-paid expenses – rent and insurance
Uncollected accounts receivable – write-offs for bad debts and an allowance for potential bad debts
Equity- the overall value of the company
Dividends – payments to shareholders that represent the distribution of the company’s assets
Retained earnings – earnings set aside for future business purposes
Liabilities – obligations, such as loans, that need to be paid off at later date
Accounts payable – bills that need to be paid
Accrued liabilities – liabilities that have occurred but not yet paid
Current or short-term liabilities – money owed
Long-term liabilities – debt, deferred taxes, and leases
Ratio Analysis are calculations that analysts and business owners use to evaluate a company’s cash situation, profitability, operating efficiency, and market value. Over time, they can examine trends in the company’s life. They can also be used to compare companies in the same field. While ratio analysis can act as an indicator of companies strengths and weaknesses, should be used cautiously.
Current Ratio is the liquidity ratio that measures the ability of a company to meet its liabilities. These are seen often.
Formula
Current ratio = Current assets / Current liabilities
Quick Ratio is a liquidity ratio that measure the ability of a company to meet its current liabilities with cash on hand.
Formula
Quick ratio = cash / current liabilities
Debt-to-asset ratio is similar to the current ratio. This includes all assets and all liabilities.
Formula
Debt-to-asset ratio = total debt / total assets
Debt-to-equity ratio tells how deeply a company is leveraged by comparing what is owned to what is owed
Formula
Debt-to-equity = total debt / equity
Returns on assets is a profitability ratio that measures the return on the investment of all assets
Formula
Return on assets = net income / total assets
Return on equity is a profitability ratio that measure the return on the investment made in equity
Formula
Return on equity = net income / equity
Price-earnings ratio is a value ratio that measures return of the investment based on stock price.
Formula
Price-earnings = market price/share / earnings/share
Stocks and Bonds
Stocks and bonds are two important ways businesses raise money.
Stocks are sold by corporations to make money. People buy stocks as an investment. Buying stock means the person becomes part owner of the company. The value of a stock can vary over time, based on demand. The more people who want to buy stock, the higher the price of the stock rises.
Mutual funds are an alternative way to invest in stocks. With mutual funds, companies sell shares of funds, then use that money to buy stock in other companies.
Important Terms
52-week high/low – highest and lowest stock prices over the year.
Stock – shortened version of the company’s name and used as the symbol of the stock.
Div – the most recent annual dividend the company paid to shareholders, per share.
PE or Price/Earnings ratio – the stock divided by the per-share earnings reported in the last 12 months.
Last – the price of one share at the previous day.
Change – how much the stock went up or down that day.
Bonds are used by corporations and governments raise money. A bond is a loan from an investor to the government or other organization selling the bond. Bonds can earn interest at a set rate and are generally low-risk investments. “Face value” refers to the amount the owner of the bond will receive at maturity. It is usually the amount the owner paid for the bond. Bonds have set interest rates, set dates for interest payment, and a set maturity date.
Investment reports
Important Terms
Form 8-k – companies are required to file an 8-k when a special event occurs, such as bankruptcy, major assets are bought or sold.
Form 10-k – official audited annual report public companies are required to file. This can show assets, liabilities, and revenue.
Form 10-Q – quarterly reports of important financial information.
Proxy Statement – a document sent to a shareholder about matters on which shareholders will vote.
Current yield – return on the investment.
Formula
Current yield = (interest rate x face value) / price
Example
Lillian paid $950 dollars for a $1,000 war bond with a 5 percent interest rate. What is her current yield on the bond?
(5% x $1,000) / $950 = about 5.26% is Lillian’s current yield
Bond cost refers to how much the bonds will ultimately cost.
Formula
Bond cost(interest) = amount x rate x years
Market Indexes are used to measure action on exchanges. They can track the prices of certain groups of stocks. Most commonly used market indexes include Dow Jones, NASDAQ, Russell 2000, and the S&P 500.
Dow Jones Industrial Average is the total value of one share each of 30 select stocks divided by a figure called the divisor. The divisor takes into account stock dividends, splits, spinoffs, and other applicable corporate actions. It can help to provide a snap shot of the entire market. The 30 stocks represent a fifth of the value of all US Stocks
NASDAQ, or National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations, is another market index monitored by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Property Taxes
Property taxes are important for journalists to understand because they are usually the largest single source of income for local government, school districts, and other municipal organizations. Property tax rate determined by taking the total amount of money the governing body needs, divided among the property owners of the district.
Most districts take into account real property, cars, boats and other valuable property.
Property taxes us units called mills, which are 1/10 of a cent.
Reappraisal means to update real property values to reflect current market value of all taxable properties within a taxing district.
Some property can be taxed by more then one governing body.
To simplify things, state officials often regulate the process.
Mill levy = taxes to be collected by the government body / assessed valuation of all property in the taxing district
Appraisel value can be based on all of the following…
Property’s use
Location
Square footage
Number of stories
Exterior wall type
Age
Quality of construction
Amenities
Current market conditions as determined by sales in the immediate area over a specific number of years
A visual inspection of the property by trained appraisers
Formula
Assessed value = appraisal value x rate
Formula for calculating property tax -
Taxed owed = tax rate x (assessed value of the property / $100)
Example
Andre Green has an assessed value on his home of $60,000. What does Green owe for the year with the property tax at $1 per $100, or 10 mills?
(60,000/100) x 1 = $600 dollars.
Silly name to semi-addiction: My day of Twitter
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by Dan Rickershauser
My Twitter page. Twitter asks all users one question, "What are you doing?"
At 9:50 this morning I opened an account on Twitter. By 2 that afternoon, I had 8 followers, was following 21 others and had learned a great deal of interesting news from acquaintances along the way.
While I was once apprehensive about using Twitter, in part due its silly name, in a little over 4 hours of using it, I’ve found it to be quite a useful web tool.
Opening an account and the inaugural tweet
When opening an account for Twitter, you first need a user name, the equivalent of a screen name on instant messaging services. I chose @D4nRicks, the creative way to spell my name.
One of the complaints I have heard from other people starting a Twitter account, that the process to find people to follow is a little confusing. Unlike applications like Facebook, you don’t add “friends”. With Twitter, you find people to follow, with their updates and conversations between people broadcast for all to see. After starting up an account, Twitter encourages you to find others you may know through email address books. This can be confusing, or not of use for people who don’t have an email account with one of the selected email services.
After overcoming this confusion, I sent out my first “tweet” to the world, what a post is called in Twitterland.
“Just joined Twitter and getting the hang of it. Send me any comments on the role of twitter in your life, I’m writing an article on it,” it read.
The challenge with Twitter is keeping your messages under 140 characters, which can be challenging! My first “tweet” was 134, a struggle to keep it just under this requirement.
While it can be a vice, this can also be one of Twitter’s strengths. My first response to this question, from Pendulum editor Olivia Hubert-Allen(@hubertallen), talked about the simplicity of Twitter being one of its strengths.
“Twitter takes the burden out of blogging and let’s you communicate instantly with people with a single click,” she replied.
“Tweets” can be broadcast to all followers, or targeted towards a person using the “@” symbol, following the person’s username.
News from former coworkers
Also responding quickly to my first tweet was Aaron Strout (@astrout), a colleague where I interned this summer, Mzinga. Mzinga being a company that specializes in social media, Aaron and many other employees are frequent users of Twitter. Mzinga even broadcasts live Twitter-feeds during Webinars. It’s easy to see that Aaron has been a big advocate of Twitter, with an astounding 3,080 followers!
While using Twitter, I learned that Aaron had left Mzinga Oct. 31 to take up a job in Austin, Texas as Chief Marketing Officer of Powered. It was all big news that I had discovered through Twitter. While we are friends on Facebook and have each others email addresses, I was able to find this out using Twitter minutes after starting up my account.
Other happenings in the day of Twitter
I learned that Olivia Hubert-Allen had a eye doctor’s appointment and was getting her eyes dilated, which reminded us both of an episode of 90’s Nickelodeon cartoon “Rocko’s Modern Life”.
I discovered, through the Student Government Association at Elon University’s Twitter account (@ElonSGA), that on Oct. 12 they had passed legislation to request more temporary parking spots in Moseley Center parking lot, good news for any Elon student.
I found other classmates completing an assignment on Twitter open their own accounts.
After adding Rick Sanchez (@ricksanchezcnn), a CNN news anchor, I found out that he would be on vacation next week for the holiday. Rick Sanchez regularly broadcasts responses from the audience live through Twitter, a clever use of application.
Once a staunch critic of Twitter, I’ve found it to be useful. The only major downside is that most people my age have never heard or are not familiar with it! It is also possible that another web application can come to fill the purpose of Twitter. Facebook’s status updates offer a similar concept. Only time will tell, but in my brief time using Twitter, I may have found yet another web tool worthy of my daily attention.
Related Articles
ABC News Story on how Comcast, a cable company, uses Twitter to scan for customer service complaints
Social Media Breakfast asks experts in social media how Twitter has changed their lives
Mashable’s post on the mainstream media and their use of Twitter
Miami Herald story on how Rick Sanchez of CNN uses Twitter and other new media on his television show
New York times story on why Twitter rejected Facebook’s $500 million offer
CNN story on Twitter’s role in reaction to the Mumbai Terror Attacks
Tags: cnn, facebook, Mzinga, powered, rick sanchez, Social Media, tweet, twitter
From an oil refinery in Saudi Arabia to a bike shop in Burlington
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Jones-LeGros at her bicycle store, J&L Bicycle Company.
On Nov. 9, Tara Jones-LeGros got on a plane to Saudi Arabia to meet with her husband. These occasional visits and daily video chats they have online before she goes to work has been the only contact she has with her husband.
Two years ago, Tara Jones-LeGros was living with him in Saudi Arabia while he worked as a safety engineer for Saudi Aramco, a Saudi-owned oil company. It was there that she rediscovered her passion for cycling. Today, Jones-LeGros runs their bicycle shop, the J&L Bicycle Company, in downtown Burlington. Her husband still lives and works in Saudi Arabia.
While she didn’t intend for her life to end up like this, the business opportunity didn’t give her the time to wait.
“I landed here in Burlington, didn’t know a soul and started my business,” Jones-LeGros said, “It’s crazy but this is how it worked out.”
For Jones-LeGros, owning a bicycle shop fulfills a passion for cycling she has had since an early age. But living away from her husband while she starts up their business has had its challenges.
Lined up bikes for sale at J&L Bicycle Company
Enthusiasm for cycling, lost and found:
Jones-LeGros has had a passion for cycling ever since she was a teenager.
“I got my first job when I was 15 to be able to buy my first real road bike. From that point on I was always really into it,” Jones-LeGros said.
Tara’s passion for cycling was interrupted, however, shortly after she bought her first road bicycle.
“Two weeks after I bought that bike—that I worked so hard for— I was riding it home and this guy had just robbed a house and was running away and he saw me, tackled me and took off with my bike,” Jones-LeGros said.
The bicycle was later found at a Wal-Mart by an employee who had read the police report about her stolen bile. Even though she got her bike back, it still took away from the cycling experience.
“Riding a bike is such a sense of freedom. When something like that happens, it takes that away,” Jones-LeGros said. “I was really pretty traumatized by the event and, until I was in college, I never rode by myself.”
College, careers and a hobby shop:
Jones-LeGros, having grown up in Tennessee, started college at University of Tennessee-Chattanooga. She later transferred to Louisiana State University and got a degree in environmental science.
“I worked in consulting first, doing groundwater issues and then I went on to work at Borden Chemical and did more groundwater but started managing hazardous waste from the plant,” Jones-LeGros said.
It was at Borden Chemical that Jones-LeGros met her husband, Marc, working at Borden as a safety manager. They both moved to St. Croix in the Virgin Islands, where they worked at the Hovensa Refinery. While working there, Jones-LeGros managed the hazardous waste at the refinery. They eventually both left their jobs to move back to Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Jones-LeGros and her husband discovered they shared a passion for flying remote-controlled planes.
“It was really cool when we found that out about each other,” Jones-LeGros said.
While living in Baton Rouge, they considered opening a hobby shop and even went as far as to line up suppliers and buy a storage unit for the shop. But when a headhunter contacted Jones-LeGros’ husband about a job position in Saudi Arabia, they put their plans to own a business on hold.
Jones-LeGros participating in a race in Saudi Arabia. Photo Courtesy of Tara Jones-LeGros.
Saudi Arabia and rediscovering a passion for cycling:
In August of 2004, Jones-LeGros and her husband relocated to Ras Tanura, a small beach community on the Persian Gulf.
“When we moved to Saudi Arabia, I wasn’t allowed to work there in my real profession,” Jones-LeGros said. “They didn’t let woman in the refinery and to do my job I needed to be in the refinery.”
Having the free time, Jones-LeGros bought a bicycle in Bahrain and got back into cycling.
“I started training and lost a bunch of weight and just totally fell back in love with riding again,” Jones-LeGros said.
She did her training on the 12-mile loop surrounding the compound where they lived.
“I’ve ridden over a thousand miles on that 12-mile loop,” Jones-LeGros said.
Living in Saudi Arabia as an American, Jones-LeGros found a different reality in Saudi Arabia then the news-media portrays.
“People here, based on Fox news or CNN or whoever, have the impression that Middle Eastern Muslims hate Americans,” Jones-LeGros said. “This is not true. And I can sit around with some Saudi friends and they will tell you they hate the terrorism that has mangled their religion.”
Jones-LeGros after finishing the race. Photo Courtesy of Tara Jones-LeGros
A plan trip to Elon:
Still having the dream to own their own business, Jones-LeGros and her husband started looking at business listings online.
“We went to Saudi with the idea of saving money so that we could start our own business,” Jones-LeGros said. “We didn’t know what kind of business, so kind of as a hobby we would peruse the internet and look at businesses for sale all over the world.”
It was in this search online that Jones-LeGros discovered that the Elon Bike Shop was for sale.
“So we decided, ‘yeah, that looks pretty good.’ North Carolina is just prime bicycling country, so we flew over [to Burlington] from Saudi Arabia for three days to meet with the owner of the Elon Bike Shop,” Jones-LeGros said.
Although the deal fell through, Jones-LeGros decided to stay in the area, eventually finding where they are located today, in downtown Burlington.
“So here was Burlington and Alamance County, with no bike shop. The opportunity kind of slapped me in the face, and even though my husband was not finished working in Saudi, we couldn’t pass up the business opportunity,” Jones-LeGros said.
Before she knew it, she was starting up business and a new life in Burlington, North Carolina.
Shifting gears:
In May of 2007, Jones-LeGros moved to Burlington to start up her bicycle company. Moving to Burlington, where she had no connections or a place to live.
“I rented a car for about two months, rented a room at the corporate suites for a couple of months and then finally bought a place here and t a car,” Jones-LeGros said.
While starting up the business, she quickly fell in love with the downtown Burlington area.
“We wanted that classic downtown feel, so that’s how we designed our store front, with the hopes that Burlington will continue to move towards refurbishing and getting some more business downtown,” Jones-LeGros said.
J&L Bicycles Company opened for business in 2007. According to Jones-LeGros, one of the things she loves most about the location is the walk-in traffic.
“Where we are, we get walk in traffic all the time. Being near the public library is fantastic,” Jones-LeGros said.
Elon senior Whitney Waters has been working at J&L Bicycle Company since the beginning of the school year. While working there, Waters has come to consider Jones-LeGros a friend as well a boss.
“I’ve gone out to dinner with her and stuff and just talked to her,” Waters said. “She’s really easy to talk to, really friendly, really funny.”
“I really respect her for being able to run that business when her husband is far away,” said Waters, “she’s kind of having to go back and forth and live in two places.”
Until her husband is able to retire in the next few years, Jones-LeGros will continue living her live in two places and running a start-up bicycle company by herself until then.
Tags: burlington, downtown burlington, j&l bicycle company, oil refinery, saudi arabia, saudi aramco
Election 2008: North Carolina Voters Endure Bad Weather to Make History
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Electioneers stand in the rain to greet voters at Holly Hill Baptist Church. Photo by Miriam Williamson
All over Alamance County, voters braced themselves against bad weather to cast their ballots in an historic election. At Holly Hill Baptist Church precinct in Burlington, N.C. and Elon Fire Station precinct in Elon, N.C., officials noted a busy morning but a normal flow of voters for the rest of the day.
Neither location reported any problems with voting equipment or the process as a whole.
“This morning, opening up we were absolutely mobbed,” said Chief Election Judge Dee Atkinson about the Elon Fire Station. “We had long lines and we overcrowded the building here. It was raining and it made it very uncomfortable for our voters. However, we worked through it.”
Election official Anne Fortney said the Holly Hill Baptist Church voting location experienced a similar situation.
“It was very busy at 6:30 a.m. The line was all the way down the hall,” she said. “But from 9 a.m. on, it’s been steady.”
High levels of early voting contributed to making the process more manageable. Atkinson said early voting kept the Elon Fire Station precinct numbers low.
“I think people were scared with the big election that it was going to be so crowded here, so they went ahead and did the early voting,” Fortney said.
“We have had so many [people] absentee voting and one stop voting on the county level, that we did not have quite as many voters in this particular building,” Atkinson said.
Elon junior Liz Czerwinski decided to vote on Election Day rather than vote early.
“It’s dorky, but I was really excited,” Czerwinski said. “I was like ‘Yeah, I’m going to vote on Election Day.’”
Atkinson said the turnout was strong among Elon Students.
“We had a lot of Elon students, the most we’ve ever had,” he said. “The students made a good effort to be registered and qualified to vote.”
Both the Holly Hill Baptist Church and Elon Firehouse added more voting machines to accommodate a large expected turnout.
“We usually have about six voting machines and we set up 10 voting machines this time,” Atkinson said. “That has speeded [sic] up our voting process to some extent.”
Accommodations were also made for handicap voters.
The option of curbside voting was made available for handicapped voters to have their ballot brought to their cars to fill out.
Alamance County resident Tony Ferrita, a blind man, voted early at May Memorial Library in Burlington. He used the audio ballot option for the blind- and visually-impaired voters.
“It’s very important for the blind people to have the option of the audio ballot, and this year it worked perfectly,“ Ferrita said. “As a blind person for many, many years, I like the independence of doing things myself if I can. I can have the same confidentiality as everybody else has.”
Tags: alamance county, election 2008, elon, north carolina, polling, polls, students, young vote
Math Tools for Journalists I
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Numbers
Numbers are important. When dealing with numbers…
Do not assume other people have done the write math or not messed with the numbers.
General rules with numbers…
• Spell out single digits
• Use numerals for multiple digits
• If number is more than a million, use numeral followed by the spelled out word.
• Round off larger numbers unless the specific number is important relative to what it’s conveying
• Round numbers to the nearest decimal place when possible.
• Spell out fractions less than one.
• Spell out numbers designating rank in order when less than 10, more than 10 use the number followed by superscript.
• If number begins a sentence, spell it out.
• Corporations or organizations that use numbers in their name should be spelled out or used how they use them in their name.
• ALWAYS use numerals for….
Addresses, dates, highway destinations, percentages, speeds, temperatures, times and weights.
Percentages
Percentages can put things into perspective for readers.
Percentage formula
increase/decreases – (new figure – old figure) % old figure
Move the decimal two places to the right.
Question 1:
The average salary of an Elon graduate from the School of Communications has increased from $125,245 to $214,536. What is the percentage increase of the average salary for an Elon graduate of the School of Communications?
Answer: 72.93 or 73%
Percentages of wholes formula
subgroup % whole group
Move decimal place two to the right.
Percentage points –
Percent is always out of a hundred. Percentage points can be a percent of a percent. Be careful and don’t assume.
Simple/annual interest – Interest = principal x rate (as a decimal) x time (in years)
Statistics
Statistics can be used for many things, it is important for journalists to understand how they are often manipulated.
Mean – Mean means the average, and is calculated by adding up the numbers and dividing them by the number of things you added up.
Median – When ranking numbers in order from least to greatest, the middle number is the median.
Mode – Mode is the most repeated number in a series of numbers. Sometimes, there is no mode for data.
Depending on the data, the mean, median, or mode can best accurately represents a story.
Question 2: The following data set are students scores on an algebra test. Find the mean, median, and mode of the data. What number best represents the data?
45 89
75 92
54 71
67 65
100 82
85 82
Answer: Mean – 75.58
Median – 78.5
Mode – 82
Percentile
Percentiles are used to distinguish where something is placed relative to others. For example, if a student placed in the 75th percentile that means 75 percent of students did better than that student. It also means that 25 % of students did worse.
Percentile rank = (# of people at or below the individual score) % (number of test takers)
Standard deviation – Where a group of numbers deviates from the norm. Often used in statistical research and data.
Probability – Deaths per 100,000 people = (Total deaths % total population) x 100,000
Question 3:
There were 14 deaths from food poisoning in the town of Wahoma, Wyoming. The population of Wahoma is 5,300. What is the probability of getting food poisoning in you are from Wahoma?
Answer: 264.15 per 100,000
Ch. 4
Federal Stats
Reporters should understand what statistics mean that they get from the federal government.
Formula
Unemployment rate = (unemployment % labor force) x 100
Inflation –
CPI- used to measure inflation for the average consumer.
Monthly inflation rate = (current CPI – Prior Month CPI) % Prior Month CPI x 100
or
Annual Inflation Rate – (Current CPI – Month of last year’s CPI) x 100
Adjusted for inflation means figures are adjusted to current value of money.
Gross Domestic Product = (consumer spending on goods and services) + (investment spending) +(government spending) +(exports minus imports)
Trade balance = exports – imports
Iraqi journalist and sculptor, Ahmed Fadaam, discusses Iraq and what it means to be a journalist.
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As a working journalist in war-torn Iraq, Ahmed Fadaam knows the power of his profession. On Wednesday, Fadaam shared this insight as well as his experiences in Iraq to a room full of future journalists.
“Since I consider myself anti-war, I don’t like war, I don’t like to have my country at war, then I should do something,” said Fadaam. “And when you want to fight back its not necessary to do it with a weapon. You can do it with words, with bringing in facts, with telling the world about what they are missing.”
Elon Professor, Janna Anderson, introduces Ahmed Fadaam to her reporting class.
Fadaam, who has a Ph. D in Fine Arts, once taught sculpture for the University of Baghdad. Things changed dramatically for Fadaam in 2003 during the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Life since, has been anything but normal.
“Lots of government buildings were burned or destroyed, including the art school, so at the time I had to find me another job,” said Fadaam.
His new job, working as a translator for NPR’s “The Connection” with Dick Gordon, launched Fadaam’s career in journalism. Fadaam found the courage to stay and make his life of value by reporting.
“When the bombings started my wife insisted we should leave Baghdad to find a safer haven for ourselves and the children and I refused and told her that when my children would grow up they would need to know what happened and I didn’t want them to hear about it from someone else, I wanted them to hear about it from me and to be a first hand witnesses,” said Fadaam. “So I decided to stay in the city and know as much as I could about what was going on, until suddenly I found myself working as a journalist.”
Fadaam went on to work for the Agence France Presse and the Baghdad Bureau of the New York Times. As the situation in Iraq deteriorated, Fadaam was forced to confront the reality in Baghdad from two perspectives, as a working journalist in Iraq and as a citizen of Baghdad.
In 2006, Fadaam made the difficult decision to temporarily move his family to Syria.
“You couldn’t even feel safe in your house because of the exchanged shelling between neighborhoods. It’s like you are sitting in your living room and suddenly you start hearing sounds of explosions and bits of mortar shower against your neighborhood. That’s why I moved my family out, at least to send my children to school,” said Fadaam.
When the security situation improved in Iraq, Fadaam moved his family back. But as Fadaam found himself facing a different threat, he was forced to move his family back to Syria where they reside today. Some Iraqis saw Fadaam as a traitor for working for western media.
“After receiving a death threat which included kidnapping one of my children or killing my wife I had decided to send them back again. And they are in Syria right now waiting for me,” said Fadaam, “so it’s not an easy job being a journalist in Iraq.”
Last April, Fadaam left Iraq for the United States to work for Dick Gordon’s “The Story”. Fadaam publishes a series called Ahmed’s Diary, which has won 5 major awards. For Fadaam, it is work that opens the dialogue between Iraqis and Americans.
“There is no American in Iraq explaining to the Iraqis that there are Americans who oppose the war and want to live a normal life away from violence. But there is an Iraqi here in the United States who is trying to do this,” said Fadaam.
It is the latest chapter in his career of providing valuable insight for a volatile situation.
Ahmed works at his other profession, creating a sculpture for Elon University. Photo courtesy of Tom Arcaro.
Gov. Palin speaks at Elon University: North Carolinians and others travel far to show support.
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Photo courtesy of University Relations at Elon University
by Dan Rickershauser
Additional reporting by Bethany Swanson
Vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin made a visit to Elon University this Thursday and was met by enthusiastic supporters from all over North Carolina and the country.
“We live in Danville, Virginia and this is the nearest we could come and support our candidates John McCain and Sarah Palin,” said Barbara Hyler. “We have about a two and a half hour drive back to Danville and it’s well worth it.”
Prior to Gov. Palin’s appearance, most supporters said that they wanted to hear about the economy, an issue that has been at the forefront of many voters minds admit a volatile Wall Street and the global credit meltdown.
“She should talk about the economy, that’s what people are concerned about,” said Robert Priebe, a resident of Winston-Salem.
Tammie McGonagle, a McCain supporter, agreed that the economy was what people wanted to hear about.
“I think the economy affects all of us, so that’s something that everybody here is interested in,” she said.
Palin wasn’t the only politician making a visit, Rick Gunn, a candidate running for the North Carolina State Senate, also made an appearance.
“This is just such a good thing for our community and I feel so good about the ticket with McCain and Gov. Palin,” said Gunn.
Gunn agreed with the other McCain supporters that Palin would be talking about the economy.
“I think you are going to hear a lot about the economy, she knows where we’re from, she knows how we have been hit with economic hard times, both financial but also with our textile communities,” Gunn added.
With music from the Wells Family Band, Hank Williams as well as a brief speech from North Carolina Sen. Elizabeth Dole, Gov. Sarah Palin took the stage to a crowd of “Sarah! Sarah!” chants.
Tags: alamance county, andy milne, election 2008, elizabeth dole, elon, latham park, palin, presidential election 2008, rick gunn, student protester
Elon Student Arrested for Protesting at Palin Rally
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While most came to show support for Palin, some came sporting Obama shirts or expressed opposing views.
Elon sophomore Andy Milne, came with signs showing support for Democratic candidate, Barack Obama. After McCain supporters attempted to take his signs, the scene quickly escalated. His disruption was met with McCain supporters yelling obscenities at him.
Milne was eventually escorted from the event and taken to Graham County Jail for disturbing the peace.
Click here for the full story from Elon University’s the Pendulum.
Click here for the follow-up story on Milne.
Tags: andy milne, elon university, latham park, palin protest, pendulum, sarah palin
