This week in news

Dan Breitbarth (L), president of Student Government, sits during the Board of Regents meeting at the Alumni Center on Dec. 2. Members for colleges in the state of Iowa spoke on behalf of their schools. Iowa State Government Student body attended the meeting. 

Alex Hanson

Here’s a recap of the week’s biggest stories. Read the quick recap below, then test your knowledge with our online quiz here.

14 dead, 21 injured in California shooting; suspects dead

A shooting Wednesday in San Bernardino, Calif., left 14 people dead and another 21 injured. It was the deadliest mass shooting in the United States since the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012.

Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik, who were married, were heavily armed with thousands of rounds of ammo, and a police search of their residence uncovered a dozen pipe bombs.

The couple fired at least 65 shots at an office party. They then exchanged hundreds of shots with police before they were both killed.

Police were still investigating a link to terrorism Thursday and whether the couple was radicalized, the Los Angeles Times reported.

“We do know that the two individuals who were killed were equipped with weapons and appeared to have access to additional weaponry at their homes,” said President Barack Obama. “But we don’t know why they did it. We don’t know at this point the extent of their plans. We do not know their motivations.”

Regents freeze ISU tuition, increase international student fees

The Iowa Board of Regents met at Iowa State on Wednesday and froze tuition for the 2016-2017 fall semester at Iowa State, but it raised fees for ISU international students.

Tuition will be frozen at Iowa State and the University of Northern Iowa this coming fall, while the University of Iowa will see a 3 percent increase. Tuition is set to go up 3 percent at Iowa State and Northern Iowa this spring, while Iowa’s tuition will stay frozen.

Mandatory fees for international students who attend Iowa State will increase by $500 every year for the next three years after the board agreed Wednesday to increase the fees.

Some ISU students expressed concern with how the fee increase was handled.

“The problem is not that the tuition is being increased, the problem is the way they’ve done it and their justification for it,” said Abhijit Patwa, senior in mechanical engineering.

Jonathan Wickert, senior vice president and provost, said a series of meetings took place throughout November with student groups to discuss the fee increase.

Student Government President Dan Breitbarth, who was present at the regents meeting, also expressed concern.

“The students were obviously in disapproval, and therefore I was in disapproval as well,” he said. “The most frustrating thing was the time frame we were given. I would like to know about it before October.”

The regents also voted to award two honorary doctorate degrees and to approve several business transactions for capital improvement.

Trump, Rubio, Cruz top GOP poll; Carson falling

Businessman Donald Trump boasts a 10-point lead over his closest Republican rivals, a new national Quinnipiac University poll released this week showed.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio has support from 17 percent of voters while Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is close at 16 percent. Support for neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who had a brief lead in Iowa, seems to be dipping. He is at 16 percent, down seven points from last month.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is next at 5 percent.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has widened her lead over Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders on the Democratic side, with 60 percent support compared to Sanders’ 30 percent. 

Full results are available at www.quinnipiac.edu

Matt Campbell becomes Iowa State’s new football coach

As Paul Rhoads was coaching his final football game, Iowa State was just hours away from finalizing a deal with Toledo’s head coach Matt Campbell to become Iowa State’s new head coach.

Iowa State made the deal official Sunday morning and introduced him at a press conference Monday afternoon.

“I couldn’t be more excited to receive the opportunity to coach at Iowa State,” Campbell said in the university’s announcement. “Two years ago, after we played the Cyclones in Ames, I called my wife, Erica, and said you simply would not believe this place. Their fans, the gameday environment and facilities are all incredible. I could see us living in Ames and me coaching the Cyclones some day. My family and I are truly humbled.”

Players also reacted to the swift change.

“It’s been tough,” said redshirt junior captain Levi Peters. “It’s been different. We have a really good relationship with Coach Rhoads and his staff. It’s a tough week for us, but it’s time to move on. As a player and a coach, you know that. These tough times, they’re not going to last. You need to keep going, you need to keep rolling.” 

Ames named best college town in United States

According to a study from the American Institute for Economic Research, Ames ranks as the best college town in the United States.

“The highest-ranking metro areas for the small cities and towns, Boulder, [Colo.], and Ames, share strong social and cultural offerings that enhance the quality of student life,” the study said.

The study’s 11 criteria were youth unemployment rate, share of college-educated population; economic vitality; science, technology, engineering and math workers; price of rent; public transportation; availability of arts and entertainment; employees in cultural institutions; clubs and restaurants; cost of living minus rent; and diversity.

Detailed rankings of the study are available at www.aier.org/cdi.