The Hilltop Townhomes, which are expected to be built by next fall, is open to all students. The homes will offer game roomes and tanning beds for students. (Photo by Jon Gustafson)

Ever since the Great Recession tightened state budgets nationwide, public universities have buffered the steady decline of tax-payer support by increasing student enrollment. InsideNAU reported Arizona’s most recent reduction of $30 million from NAU’s budget leaves state support at less than 25 percent of the university’s revenue, compared to 41 percent a decade ago. While state support for NAU dwindles, enrollment numbers continue to grow with the 2010 NAU Campus Master Plan projecting 25,000 students on the Flagstaff campus by 2020 or soon after.

To accommodate increasing enrollment and student’s desires for on-campus housing, NAU requested proposals back in 2008 from private real estate investment trusts (REITs) which manage all aspects of design, finance, construction and operational management of student housing properties.

American Campus Communities (ACC), the largest private owner and manager of student housing communities in the U.S., was selected in NAU’s competitive bidding process. According to an April 2011 ABOR meeting document, NAU will lease campus property to ACC for a period of 40 years with four 10-year options to renew. In return ACC funds, builds and operates the estimated $68 million Hilltop Townhomes and Suites residences which can accommodate up to 1,100 students.

Alicia Voytek, NAU Residence Life’s Associate Director of Operations, explained how the partnership between NAU and ACC came about.

“Basically, NAU was starting to seek a private partner to develop additional housing in support of enrollment growth,” Voytek said. “As enrollment was growing, we were trying to meet the demand of students that wanted to come back to campus. NAU chose ACC because of their reputation and to preserve our own capital for future academic projects.”

According to a Business Wire press release, ACC owns 119 student housing properties nationwide containing approximately 74,100 beds. Its clients include Portland State University, Princeton University and the University of New Mexico among others.

Brochures tout NAU’s Hilltop Townhomes as offering students luxurious amenities including Xbox 360 and PS3 game rooms, tanning beds, iPad bars and private bedrooms and bathrooms for a price nearing $600 per month. Students at the Townhomes pay for their electricity usage in addition to monthly dues whereas students at the Suites see all utilities (cable TV, internet, trash, sewer, water and gas) included in their monthly rates. No pets are allowed at the new residences and rooms come fully furnished.

While both McKay Village and Pine Ridge Village, the university’s current apartment style suites, only accept students with 60 credits, the Suites and Hilltop Townhomes are allowing all classes — including incoming freshmen — to apply for housing.

In addition, The Suites are advertising a deal on their website that will give Suites residents of fall 2012 priority to rooms at Hilltop Townhomes in fall of the following year.

According to Charysse Bartels, a sophomore exercise science major, the Hilltop Townhomes’ location and privacy were what convinced her to sign her lease. “We live in an apartment off-campus now because I didn’t like living in the dorms, but with awkward breaks between classes I don’t have enough time to get on the bus and go home,” Bartels said. “And there are washers and dryers in every unit — whereas the place we live now you have to pay $1.25 to wash and $1.25 to dry, so that alone saves $10 a week.”

Other NAU students expressed desire for the prime location, newness and privacy offered by The Suites. Nicole Malkou, a freshman finance major, is moving into The Suites in fall 2012. “I thought it would be cool to live in a brand new place next year,” Malkou said. “I really like being on campus, [and] the only thing I didn’t like is not having my own bathroom and I wasn’t into having the whole RA thing. I also liked how the suites were separate from the dorms and NAU. It might be a little bit more expensive, but I think it’s better.”

Instead of traditional RAs, The Hilltop Townhomes and Suites will offer their own Community Assistants who will work the front desks, manage disputes among residents and organize activities, according to an on-campus leasing representative. The private residences will also manage their own on-site maintenance staffs, separate from NAU.

However, NAUPD Community Relations Officer Joe Tritschler stated that for campus police the new properties will be business-as-usual.

“The new residences are within the jurisdiction of NAUPD, so criminal cases will be handled just as they would on any other facility or location on campus.” The only difference Tritschler noted was that NAUPD might not have access to the new residences’ room keys. “We have keys to dorm rooms on campus in the event of an emergency — if it’s a life and death situation we can get in without breaking the door down. I don’t know if we’ll have keys to the new facility.”

Chris Michels, NAU’s Director of Information Technology Services, also said students in the new residence halls will have access to the same level of support from the Student Technology Center and will connect to the NAU network just like any other residence hall.

“The goal is to make it the same. The only difference is going to be that telephone service is not provided by default in these residence halls,” Michels said.“The biggest advantage of a landline is if you wanted 911 to go directly to NAUPD. If you call from your cell phone it will go to the Coconino County dispatcher.”

Responding to the lack of landline phone services in the new residences, Tritschler stated, “The issue was brought up before . . . we will definitely do an educational campaign to get our number out there. But the reality is if someone does call 911, all they need to say is ‘I’m on campus.’”

Once the dispatcher is notified of the location, the call will be transferred along with all transcribed information from the prior dispatcher. “The system is in place to handle these situations in an expeditious manner.”

With a season-ending knee injury to senior point guard Caty Huntington and a strained foot ligament keeping sophomore forward Shay May out the past five games, a trio of freshman has seen steady playing time.

Each freshman has stood out in a game for clearly gaining effective experience, more than can be said for the middling men’s team with no direction and an uncertain future.

Freshman point guard Jasmine Sneed has played at least eight minutes in the past 10 games, averaging 13 minutes in the past five games since Huntington went down against Eastern Washington in Cheney, Wash. While averaging 2.6 points and an assist in those five games, Sneed played a role in the Lumberjacks’ road win this season. With Weber State inbounding under its own basket, leading 82–81, and only 15 seconds remaining in the game, Sneed tipped the pass into the hands of junior Amy Patton who put the ball right up for the go-ahead basket. Sneed then hit a pair of free throws to ice the game for the 85–82 win.

Additionally, Sneed dished out a career-high four assists and played a career-high 21 minutes in the Lumberjacks’ most recent game against the Cal State Bakersfield Roadrunners.

Freshman center Raven Anderson averaged eight minutes in the past four games. Prior to the recent increase in playing time, Anderson had totaled 16 minutes in the previous 14 games. Against conference leading Idaho State, Anderson provided a spark when she scored six points and grabbed five rebounds in only six first half minutes.

Against Montana State, the freshman center scored a career-high nine points and tied a career-high with six rebounds. Of the six rebounds, five came on the offensive boards.

Lastly, freshman power forward Erikka Banks has stepped in to fill the void left by May. Since May’s injury against Eastern Washington, Banks has averaged 15 minutes in the last six games. By comparison, Banks had averaged eight minutes in the six before that.

Banks’ highlight of the recent stretch came against Weber State, when she recorded a career-high 12 points and eight rebounds in the Lumberjacks single road win.

Obviously, each remains raw in their abilities and has clear room for improvement. Kelly has said she feels all three are bound to make the basic mistakes you expect freshman to make but each has shown flashes of potential.

At times it even appears as if Sneed is trying to do too much on the court. Kelly said previously that Anderson possibly lacks the knowledge or maybe conditioning, but is beginning to hit her stride and already may be the team’s best offensive threat in the low post. And Banks flashed her athletic ability, causing Kelly to call her a “freak athlete” who should have a “phenomenal career.”

The three have been on the court all at the same time in the past few games, providing a glimpse of a lineup you could expect to see for years to come. Kelly said the three are the future of the program, whose potential provides the chance to be major contributors next season.

The future remains unknown. Results will need to be seen on the court going forward. Otherwise these flashes become just that, flashes, rather than sustained results. At the very least, it has given us something to enjoy late in this otherwise disappointing season.

Let’s ignore the content of HB 2349 first. Regardless of the fact the bill approves the possession of up to two ounces of marijuana, it is a voter-approved initiative. Simply put, as a democratic population, we voted to approve the bill and the state house has no right tinkering and undermining its effectiveness. Legally, the house is permitted to make changes to voter-approved initiatives that “further the purpose” of the measure, but that requires a three-fourths vote from both the house and the senate. In what universe does banning marijuana from campuses qualify as “furthering its purpose”?

To be completely honest, it’s not surprising the state government is compromising the measure. It has been almost two years since the bill was voted on and dispensaries haven’t exactly popped up on every street corner. As of early February, Arizona is one of the few states to punish physicians for benevolent medicinal card approval and despite dozens of applications, have yet to grant a single dispensary license.

Meanwhile, the senate decided last week to re-introduce HB 1747, allowing anyone over the age of 21 to carry concealed firearms on campus. Current policy requires an eight hour training course on Arizona gun laws and safety, as well as requiring the applicant to hit 14 out of 20 targets. If HB 1747 passes, no form of training will be necessary to own a gun and carry it on university campuses.

It is impossible to ignore stereotypes and negative connotations with marijuana, but where’s the logic for a prescribed burner to wind up in the back of a campus cop car for the possession of mary jane, when good ole Jimmy comes to class locked and loaded. Everyone is supposed to breath easier, but that dude is strapped, that is not comforting to the general population

It’s confounding that firearms are more politically appetizing than marijuana in Arizona — or for that matter, anywhere in the world. Whether it be at the hands of a decades long smear campaign (search “why is marijuana illegal” and you’ll get hundreds of congruous conspiracy theories, all of which ring surprisingly valid) or because it really is the gateway drug to a life of crime, poverty, drug-use and cheeto addiction.

Where is the thinking? As an elected government official, the job is not so easy. One side of the general public will agree with the course of action, and the other will not; that’s politics, but what Arizonans should expect is for their so called leaders to have their best interests in mind.

This argument isn’t about whether pot or even firearms belong on university campuses. Obviously,we’re not calling for every medical marijuana patient to spark up and hot box the residence halls on campus, nor do we encourage users to toke a bowl on the bus. There is a time and place for everything. Arizona senators take note.

The chronological  juxtaposition of these two bills is too ridiculous to ignore. What are we saying about ourselves when we consider an armed population of students less threatening than a medicated one? Assuming, as politicians seem to do, that if medicinal marijuana were readily available in the Grand Canyon State a plague of laziness and ineptitude would sweep the desert in a dusty haze.

It’s official, Arizona is set on slowly killing the state. Children will grow up dumb because the state’s failed education system and ill patients will be refused medicine. But hey, if I’m struck with terminal cancer tomorrow and can’t afford proper treatment, I can always buy a gun; if it is anything this state has taught me, it’s guns don’t kill people, plants that grow from the ground do.

As the final two games of the season approach, the Lumberjacks have performed well below season expectations, finishing dead last in the Big Sky Conference (BSC) and compiling five wins on the year thus far. They were projected to at least qualify for the conference tournament, even during a time labeled as a transition phase.

Perhaps the biggest story out of the year was the resignation of head coach Mike Adras, who abandoned his post amid allegations of conduct detrimental to the team and violating NCAA regulations. He was replaced by Dave Brown on an interim basis, who won three of his first four games at the helm, but has not won in a 15-game span.

If the previous sentence does not make it obvious, then this should — Dave Brown should not be the head coach next year.

With that belief comes the feeling the university needs to make an impact hire to bring credibility back to the program.

So far, there have been three names to pop up in recent weeks — ASU assistant Scott Pera, Oregon State assistant David Grace  and current Grand Canyon University  head coach Russ Pennell.

All three have their merits: Pera has been at ASU for five years now and recruited current NBA player James Harden to the Sun Devils, Grace is in his fourth year at OSU and has been a successful head coach at every stop he’s made and Pennell took over for Lute Olson at Arizona during the 2008-09 season, leading the Wildcats to a Sweet 16 appearance before being hired at GCU.

Pennell would be the ideal candidate. He has already coached a Pac-12 team to the Big Dance, plus he has made tremendous strides at GCU, a school looking to move up to the Division I level next year. With that in mind, he has only spent one year as the Antelopes’ head coach and with the attempted move to D-I, it looks like he may be out of the question.

Pera, serving under Herb Sendek, has produced a coaching tree including current Arizona head coach Sean Miller and Ohio State head man Thad Matta. Pera has also been in charge of recruiting for ASU since joining the Sun Devils’ staff, and could bring quality players from the Phoenix area, a market NAU consistently misses out on. However, Pera has only been a head coach at the high school level and with ASU currently in a downswing, he may not be the best option.

Up at OSU, Grace has assisted in rebuilding a program that had been a bottom-feeder in the Pac-12. The Beavers have compiled quality seasons the last few years, including post-season tournament wins. He was a successful high school coach and has experience coaching in the BSC, having spent time at Sacramento State. He is a decorated military veteran and carries a strong presence with him, both on and off the court and his leadership experience could provide a strong boost to an unstable program.

NAU needs to pursue these three heavily and focus on these three alone. All three have their pros and cons associated with them, but all three would bring stability to a program that needs to regain its luster. If the administration chooses to go after someone else, hopefully they do not chicken out and go for a “safe” hire.