The REDLINE has added one new location of travel, and will make stops at Wolf Village Club house. Photo courtesy of  http://www.colostate-pueblo.edu

Changes in the REDLINE Shuttle route have been continual as the shuttle tries to find the perfect fit at Colorado State University- Pueblo.

The REDLINE Shuttle is a transportation service offered to the students of CSU-Pueblo.

All students who choose to utilize this service must have a valid student ID; those students will then be transported to one of nine locations, as opposed to the previous eight locations.

The newest addition to the list of locations is Kings Soopers, upon the requests of students for convenience. The shuttle now runs in that direction allowing access to the surrounding establishments.

These nine locations include: Walgreens, Pueblo Mall, King Soopers, Applebee’s, Starbucks Coffee, Wal-Mart, Tinseltown, Kohl’s and Angelo’s Pizza.

Last month there were changes made to the REDLINE Shuttle route. With this change the, times and days the shuttle would run were extended to Friday from 5-11 p.m., Saturday and Sunday noon–10 p.m.

“Starting in March, the REDLINE Shuttle will be extending its hours on the weekends. The REDLINE Shuttle will now be running Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.,” an email sent out by Brent Lorenz, scheduling coordinator at CSU-Pueblo, on Wednesday Feb. 27, said.

Although the hour change was a new change, a newer modification was made on Thursday Feb. 28, via email from Lorenz.

“The REDLINE Shuttle will now make stops at the Wolf Village Club house. The REDLINE Shuttle will pick-up and drop-off at Wolf Village every other run. Also, the REDLINE Shuttle has added King Soopers to its list of stops,” Lorenz said.

A large population of CSU-Pueblo’s students reside in Wolf Village and although Wolf Village is not in contract with the university, the REDLINE Shuttle will run there in order help better assist the students.

“We made the decision to add Wolf Village due to the increase interest in students wanting us to stop at Wolf Village. At this time, the REDLINE Shuttle will only make stop at Wolf Village every other run. March is a trial basis to see if the demand is there for the REDLINE to continue to stop at Wolf Village,” Lorenz said.

However, the current schedule may not be permanent.

“The schedule is subject to change, and we are constantly trying to see how we can better serve our students here at CSU-Pueblo,” Lorenz said.

According to the American Association of Poison Control Centers, new legislation will protect underage drinkers from prosecution if they call 911 with an alcohol related emergency. Photo courtesy of http://healthandwellbeingtoday.com

February has been a bad month for alcohol and alcohol related hospital transports at Colorado State University- Pueblo.

In a campus wide email sent out on Feb. 14, Associate Dean of Student Services and Enrollment Management, Marjorie Villani said, “During the past 12 days, three Colorado State University- Pueblo students have been transported to Parkview Hospital for alcohol poisoning.”

“Each student was being carried into the residence hall by other students for the purpose of putting the student in bed. All three students are here with us today because of the quick response of residence hall staff who observed these actions and took steps to call for the appropriate staff to assess for alcohol poisoning,” Villani said.

Like most colleges and universities, CSU- Pueblo has students who go out on the weekends and drink excessive amounts of alcohol, causing drunkenness.

There are very dangerous risks that come along with drinking excessive amounts of alcohol and alcohol poisoning can cause death.

“I feel like alcohol poisoning is definitely something that can be avoided if students are more educated about it,” Kacey Griffin, a senior business major, said.

Students are growing cautious with the effects of alcohol and seem to be taking this issue more seriously.

“I have been hearing a whole bunch about this alcohol poisoning stuff in the residence halls and I feel like you just have to be careful and surround yourself with responsible friends, but you yourself have to responsible as well,” Mario Ruiz, sophomore, Spanish major, said.

“People shouldn’t be afraid to intervene when they see their friends or someone else drinking irresponsibly. When you see something like that, how fast you react could save someone’s life with just a trip to the hospital,” Tyrone Holt, a senior cellular and molecular biology and sociology double major, said.

According to the American Association of Poison Control Centers, “New legislation protects underage drinkers from prosecution if they call 911 with an alcohol related emergency.”

This means, students can call 911 to get their friends help and they will not be in trouble for underage drinking.

It’s time to educate students on the signs and symptoms of alcohol poisoning; this could help save a life.

If any of the following symptoms are present after alcohol intake, please call for help.

According to Mayo Clinic, alcohol poisoning symptoms may include: confusion, vomiting, seizures, slow breathing (less than eight breaths a minute), irregular breathing, blue-tinged skin or pale skin, low body temperature (hypothermia), unconsciousness (passing out) and can’t be roused.

Being unconscious with high blood alcohol levels is dangerous and can lead to death.

“If you’re going to drink just make sure you’re aware of your limits, it only takes that one last drink to put you over your limit. Just be careful,” Holt said.

If a student or a friend is struggling with alcohol abuse, contact the CSU-Pueblo Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention Program at 549-2121.

Tantania Holloway thanks Angela Davis for coming. Photo courtesy of Joe Lamar

Former Black Panther and activist, Angela Davis spoke to students, staff and members of the Pueblo community as they gathered in the Occhiato University Center Ballroom on Feb. 20.

Before the event started, students and faculty members were excited to share their feelings about what they anticipated most from the distinguished speaker.

“I believe Angela Davis will have a profound effect on the students because she will be able to share about a turbulent time in our country when civil rights and gender issues were at the forefront of people’s minds,” Director of Affirmative Action and Diversity Resource Center, LaNeeca Williams said.

“Dr. Davis will hopefully share stories of her life and the experiences of being a part of the Black Panthers, while helping our students understand there are still a lot of issues still worth fighting for in our society today,” Williams said.

“I just hope she shares stories of how she initially got started in being a Black Panther and everything they did for the civil rights movement and what not,” Kierra Yarbrough, sophomore, psychology major, said.

Angela Davis talked with attendees about how far we have come as a nation, but clearly stating that we still have a long ways to go. Referencing the days of slavery, Davis told the audience the about issues from our past.

“If slavery hadn’t been abolished, there would have been no need for a civil rights movement,” Davis said.

Davis shared stories on her view on politics as well her thoughts on the lack of knowledge surrounding the Emancipation Proclamation.  Davis also shared her take and gave an overview on the evolution of black history.

“Black history in the Americas is the history of the quest for liberation,” Davis said.

“Black history is indeed American history, but it’s also national history. We have to separate our emotional ties,” Davis said.

Following the event, students had mixed feelings about Davis.

“Before I heard Angela Davis speak, I expected an overview of her life and her story. I expected to learn more about her, not about history in general and how it relates to now,” Jordan Marsh, a freshman pre-nursing major, said.

“Angela Davis is an amazing woman and I first remember hearing about her on the BET Honors award show. That’s when I took an interest in Davis. Last year I had an opportunity to hear her speak at the Sisters of Loretto event with Vincent Harding. I hoped that one day I could meet her and I did tonight. I was elated,” Kristen Pough, freshman, mass communications and English double major, said.

“I thought she was very inspirational and her explanation on some of the misconceptions of America in regards to activist movements really had me in awe, not because of who it was coming from but because of events that happened in the past, that I would have never related current situations to,” Tantania Holloway, a junior psychology major said.

Angela Davis, a former Black Panther and activist for civil rights, will speak at CSU-Pueblo on Feb. 20. Photo courtesy of arktimes.com

Every year, Colorado State University- Pueblo has a Distinguished Speakers Series, where individuals who are considered to be prominent speakers come to campus.

The Distinguished Speakers Series features eminent national or international speakers who contribute to current thought in social or political activities, in the arts and sciences or other realm of contemporary significance.

The series is an opportunity to learn from scholars, politicians and business people, who can inspire students and community members to think critically about current issues, trends, events, knowledge, diversity and leadership.

Events  are co-sponsored by the Office of Student Activities, Student Fee Governing Board, Associated Students’ Government and the Division of Student Affairs.

Angela Davis, a radical African American educator, former Black Panther and activist for civil rights, is the next distinguished speaker and is set to make an appearance at CSU-Pueblo on Wednesday Feb. 20 at 7 p.m. in the Occhiato University Center Ballroom.

The Black Panthers were a group of people who played a short, but important role in the Civil Rights Movement. The Black Panthers concluded that the non-violent approach that Martin Luther King Jr. believed in, did not succeed. The Black Panthers were a group of blacks that banded together to take a more violent approach.

Davis spent 18 months in jail a short time after being placed on the FBI’s “Ten Most Wanted List.”

Davis will be speaking to students and staff about Democracy and Civil Engagement. She has been involved in the quest for social justice issues most of her life.

Davis is also a member of the executive board of the Women of Color Resource Center that educates members of a community on women who live in poverty.

Davis is a long time professor of History of Consciousness at University of California-Santa Cruz. Davis has taught the History of Consciousness for the last 15 years at the university.

In addition, Davis is the author of eight books, with a ninth book in progress. After she is finished speaking to students and staff on campus she will be holding a meet and greet, as well as a book signing in the CSU-Pueblo Bookstore.

Students are excited to speak with Davis and hear how her experiences have helped to shape the woman she has become.

“I just want to know what advice she has for women in 2013, what she did most have taken a lot of courage,” Kierra Yarbrough, psychology major, said. “It’s important for everyone to know what the Black Panthers stood for, I feel like there is a lot of miscommunication and things that got lost in translation and I’m just anxious to hear what she has to say really. This will be a learning experience for everyone.“

The REDLINE at CSU-Pueblo has changed this semester, as a Sunday route has been added. Photo courtesy of http://www.colostate-pueblo.edu

The REDLINE shuttle route is a transportation service offered to the students of Colorado State University- Pueblo.

Students must have a valid student ID in order to ride the shuttle. Those who choose to utilize the service will be picked up in front of Culebra Residence Hall and transported to one of eight locations.

Of these eight locations, students have the option of also going to surrounding establishments. The lists of locations are as follows: Walgreens, the Pueblo mall, Applebee’s, Starbucks Coffee, Wal-Mart, Tinseltown, Kohl’s and Angelo’s Pizza.

The shuttle runs every two hours and the final run will be for pick-ups only.

There has been a recent change in the REDLINE shuttle schedule. Upon the request of students the shuttle is now running Friday from 5-11:00 p.m.,  and Saturday and Sunday noon to 10:00 p.m.

Though this change was requested early on in the fall semester, the official changes took place at the start of the spring semester. Student input affects the schedule of the REDLINE shuttle drastically.

“We definitely welcome student input.  For example, the students requested that the shuttle run on Sundays, and after looking at the usage from Thursdays, we decided to remove Thursdays and run the shuttle on Sunday.” Brent Lorenz, scheduling coordinator at CSU-Pueblo said.

Even with the REDLINE shuttle being fairly new, it seems to be a really good service offered to the students of CSU-Pueblo. Some students say that the lack of exposure is the only dispute with this service.

“In all honesty, I think it’s a great thing to have on campus. I was excited when I first heard about it starting up. I personally don’t drive so if I need to get somewhere I usually find a way to walk or take the bus. Since the buses stop running at 6:00 p.m., it’s nice to have a safer, free alternative way to get around, especially since the only time during the week I have to go to Wal-Mart or to the movies is during the hours the REDLINE runs,” Freddy Correamanrique, sophomore biology major said

“If more students utilize it and reap the benefits of it, we might be able to have it run more frequently,” Correamanrique said.

Faculty at CSU-Pueblo also gave positive comments on this service.

“With this being a fairly new project, it’s a fantastic idea and a great service that is available to the students to get out and go into Pueblo itself and kind of get off of campus,” Lorenz said.

CSU-Pueblo has a large number of students who live in Wolf Village which is not owned by the school, but the REDLINE shuttle would consider making stops there if students there took an interest in it.

“The Redline was initially developed to assist the students that live on campus.  Since Wolf Village is technically not an on-campus housing facility, we currently do not make stops there.  However, if there is an abundance of interest from the students that are living there, we would take that into consideration,” Lorenz said.