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(11/01/06 12:00pm)
When the Township and College Together (TACT) committee started its Fourth Annual Good Neighbor Forum, there was one question: Where are all the students?
The forum, which took place on the night of Wednesday, Oct. 25, was open to all "community members, township leaders, and (College) students, faculty and staff," according to a press release.
However, only one student representative, PJ Spigner, IGC liaison to the TACT committee, was present.
"We're sort of preaching to the choir," Patrice Coleman-Boatwright, associate vice president of Public Affairs, said. Coleman-Boatwright added that that's not necessarily a bad thing because "the choir needs support, too."
According to TACT chairwoman Marita Sciarrotta, the committee started "out of what seemed like a real need for dialogue between" the Ewing community and the College.
"Everyone else is looking to someone else to take responsibility," Janis Blayne Paul, community and major events coordinator at the College, said during the open discussion at the end of the forum.
During the open discussion, community residents shared their experiences having College students as neighbors.
Mildred Russell, vice president of the Brae-burn Civic Association, pointed out that most of the houses that landlords rent to College students are old homes situated near communities where older Ewing residents live.
Russell, who said she found 10 Solo plastic cups on the ground on her way to the meeting that night, said that students "have to have some respect for the community."
Tom Kreszl, the only landlord at the meeting, faced criticism from some members of the Ewing community who felt that landlords should pay closer attention to what the students renting their homes do inside those houses.
"I am not their parents," Kreszl said. "(College students) are adults. At a certain point, it's no longer my responsibility."
Spigner said the general attitude of students renting homes off campus is that "we live off campus. We shouldn't have to deal with the College." Spigner added that "if there's a disturbance at the student's house, it's the student's fault."
Some Ewing residents were particularly concerned with the noise students make when leaving a party and walking back to campus in large groups.
"If the students behave themselves, they can do what they want," Todd Roundtree, the leader of Ewing's community watch program for the area near the College, said.
Sometimes, Roundtree said, students going back to campus slam car doors early in the morning or damage mailboxes.
One proposed solution was increased communication.
Spigner, who lives off campus, said he has a good relationship with his Ewing neighbors, who introduced themselves to Spigner and the other students he lives with.
Jim McManimon, Ewing Township business administrator, said Ewing residents insist that "if students have a party, they respect the neighborhood."
Despite past problems, Grace Montgomery, Ewing Township resident and president of Brae-burn Civic Association, said, "I have seen a great improvement in my area (this year)."
Montgomery said part of the reason for the improved relationship between herself and her college-aged neighbors may stem from the fact that she introduced herself when the students moved in.
Attendees of the forum broke into small groups at the start of the meeting to discuss different hypothetical scenarios. The scenarios were, according to Sciarrotta, "exaggerations that are based in fact."
In the "Tuesday Night Party" situation, a loud party took place in a house next to a home occupied by a family with young children. In the situation, the family left its house for school and work the next morning and found blue and red plastic cups littering the lawn, as well as a used condom.
A second situation involved a loud dog that disrupted the student tenants of the house next door.
Participants were asked to react to the hypothetical situations from someone else's perspective.
"Who cares about the community but the people who live in it?" McManimon said, speaking from the perspective of a landlord.
Attendees of the meeting included vice president of Student Life James Norfleet, Sgt. Michael Bell of Campus Police and associate vice president of Administrative and Environmental Services Kathryn Leverton.
"I was very upset to hear that there weren't at least a few students in attendance at the TACT meeting," Christine Cullen, Student Government Association (SGA) executive president, said.
According to Cullen, SGA plans to assign a senator to attend future TACT meetings.
(10/11/06 12:00pm)
In response to recent political, corporate and academic scandals, the College and the Committee for Cultural and Intellectual Community (CCIC) invited author Ethan Canin to speak as part of Community Learning Day.
Canin's collection of short stories, "The Palace Thief," was read as part of the College's summer reading program. Its theme, integrity, was used as the backdrop for Community Learning Day.
Nino Scarpati, CCIC chair and dean of the School of Nursing and Health and Exercise Science, said integrity was chosen as the theme because of the "preponderance of ethical failures in the political (and) journalistic (fields), among others."
"The Palace Thief" follows the story of a boy who lies his way into a position as a U.S. senator and possibly president.
Canin said that he is often asked if the story is about current President George W. Bush or past President Bill Clinton.
"It's about both," Canin said. "I hope it's about all of us."
Canin encouraged students to develop personal integrity.
Social layering, according to Canin, is what prevents a person from being able to see his true self. He said that the expectations of society are "so stuck on us that it's hard to find one thing, even one single thing, that we know ourselves."
Canin used a recent political scandal as an example.
Former Republican congressman Mark Foley has been in the news for allegedly sending explicit e-mails to young pages working in Congress.
"(Foley) is feeling more at ease than he has in years because he's come clean," Canin said.
Canin also drew on personal experiences to describe integrity.
Until the publication of his fourth book, Canin had practiced medicine. He graduated from Stanford University with a bachelor's degree in engineering and went on to Harvard Medical School.
While studying medicine, Canin said he was taught an entirely new language full of vague medical terms.
Since leaving the profession, Canin said he "strive(s) to use real words all the time . not the politically correct words."
Canin said he values words "that still make pictures in our brains" and that this is the "language of integrity."
He encouraged college-aged students to accept their personalities rather than trying to change.
"Integrity has something to do with trying to achieve a union between your public self and your private self," Canin said. He said that change merely "is revealing the truth to yourself and about yourself."
About 250 students, faculty members and College staff attended the lecture, according to Scarpati.
"The audience responded very well to Canin's intellectual and humorous reflections about personal and public integrity, and some of his experiences as a medical doctor and writer," Scarpati said.
German Rozencranc, sophomore political science major, said he enjoyed the lecture but would have preferred if Canin had focused more on his book.
"His viewpoint is centered on integrity and is reinforced by real entities more so than idealistic concepts," Rozencranc said.
Scarpati estimated that about 40 people lined up after the lecture to have a book signed by Canin.
Later in the day, break-out sessions addressed different aspects of integrity. The sessions included "Writing with Integrity," "Integrity in Public Policy" and "Medical Ethics in a Time of War."
(10/11/06 12:00pm)
Carte Blanche plan A was planned to increase from $2,800 per year to $2,912 per year. Plan B was set to raise from $2,600 to $2,704 per year and plan C from $2,266 to $2,356 per year. Plans A, B and C cost $2,926, $2,717 and $2,368, respectively.
The cost of casual dining in Eickhoff Hall was also determined in the contract, according to addendum nine. For FY06, dinner was scheduled to increase from $6.50 to $6.75. Currently, dinner costs $7.
In a Sept. 20 Signal article, Steve Hugg, director of Marketing and Business Development for Sodexho, said that price increases are a result of several different factors.
"During the summer," Hugg said in the article, "we review our retail product mix and prices and make increases as necessary to meet our budget. We get delivery surcharges, gas prices have gone up since Katrina and, as a result, food prices have gone up. These things contribute to our costs."
Addendum 11 of the contract also outlined the commission the College receives from Sodexho. According to the addendum, "the College shall receive 7.46 percent commission on all points plans, Carte Blanche plans, cash, Gold Club, catering conference and summer camp sales for FY06 and FY07 . The commission rate shall be increased to 7.96 percent for FY08."
In addition to guidelines for the quality of food served in the dining halls, the proposal says that "(Sodexho) can and will post all nutritional and statistical information regarding our menu items."
However, in an Oct. 4 Signal article, Sodexho general manager John Higgins said some nutritional information is not displayed because Sodexho uses a database that contains both its recipes and nutritional information.
Some recipes, Higgins said, do not have corresponding nutritional information in the database.
In the RFP the College asks for "a minimum yearly commission of 12 percent on all net sales."
The proposal section of the contract also includes sanitation guidelines and specifications as to how food should be prepared, the grade of eggs, acceptable varieties of bread and expectations for dairy products.
In the RFP, Sodexho outlined its health and safety regulations and food preparation standards. It also included menus and pricing proposals.
(10/04/06 12:00pm)
After reading an article in the Sept. 20 issue of The Signal about the fat and calorie content in food on campus, three sophomore suitemates planned to collect signatures for a petition to request changes that would make eating healthy on campus easier.
Chris Rindosh, who is their Community Advisor as well as vice president of Student Services for the Student Government Association (SGA), asked them for a list of suggestions instead. Rindosh would pass the list on to Jason Schramm and Meagan Terry, senators at-Large and members of the Student Services committee, who could take it to a Dining Services meeting.
On Sept. 26, the three residents, Janna Raudenbush, open options in the school of Culture and Society, Christina Wall, elementary education/psychology major, and Lauren D'Amato, engineering major, compiled a list of 16 questions, suggestions and requests for Sodexho managers, titled "Requests for Healthier Food in the Dining Hall."
The list was presented to Sodexho managers at a Dining Services meeting on Sept. 27.
In response to a request that nutritional information accompany food, John Higgins, general manager of Dining Services, explained that not all the food Sodexho serves has a nutritional breakdown.
According to Higgins, Sodexho uses a database to organize its recipes and nutritional information. In the database, Higgins said, two different programs are used - one for recipes and one for nutritional information. Higgins said that because of this, Sodexho has recipes for some food, but not the corresponding nutritional information.
When asked specifically about missing nutritional information for hamburgers in Eickhoff Hall, Matt Hower, director of resident dining, said the nutritional information card for the item was present, but it was in the wrong place.
Sodexho's relocation of tray carts from the center of Eickhoff dining hall to the area just outside of the kitchen was also questioned at the meeting.
The reason for the change, according to Higgins, was because most students "like the Carte Blanche program." By moving the tray carts more students can eat in Eickhoff.
Higgins said the number of Carte Blanche users at the College has increased by about 500 students this semester. The increase, according to Higgins, came not only because of the larger freshman class, but also because of upperclassmen who have chosen to use Carte Blanche rather than A la Carte.
According to Hower, in light of the increased number of Carte Blanche users, moving the tray carts has made Eickhoff "quieter and cleaner." He added that Sodexho has received many positive comments about the change.
Students also questioned whether Sodexho employees are using too much oil when cooking food. However, according to Sodexho representatives, oil is not used in preparing the food. Instead, margarine is used.
Despite the list, when asked if Sodexho has received complaints since the Signal article, Higgins said, "Not a one."
Rindosh said he was impressed residents on his floor created a list. "Most students don't take the initiative to do that," he said.
"We weren't really trying to ask for much," Raudenbush said. They are not asking for a million healthier entrees, she said, just "simple, one-step things that could be done."
For example, item 12 on the list says, "In the chicken sandwich/hamburger section, rolls should be offered that are not coated and toasted in the butter mixture."
Wall suggested that implementing such a change would also be cost-effective. "You're saving all that butter and oil," she said.
The list asks for more fruits and vegetables, including ripe bananas, and healthier cereal choices. It also says students would welcome lean lunch meat, more low-fat desserts, baked and light chips, and soups lower in calories, fat and sodium. Additionally, the list requests clearly labeled low-fat or non-fat condiments and dressings on a daily basis.
"Please, PLEASE mark the food correctly," the list says in its 16th and final item. "Often bakery items have no information. Items offered in the regular line only correspond with the posted nutritional information about half the time. The labels don't help if the food isn't marked correctly all the time, every time."
Raudenbush said she knows it's not feasible for all the requests to be fulfilled, but thinks that if students write them down, Sodexho will at least know what students want.
"We always thought these things, but we never wrote them down," Raudenbush said, noting that the article in The Signal "sparked a discussion."
Higgins encouraged students to contact a Sodexho manager if they encountered a problem while in a dining hall.
Dining Services meetings are held every other week with interested students, SGA representatives and Sodexho management "to . discuss ways Dining Services can even better meet the needs of our customers," according to the College's Dining Services Web site.
Students with comments and concerns that they would like addressed at the next Dining Services meeting should e-mail them to mktgast@tcnj.edu.
(09/27/06 12:00pm)
The search for a new Interim Provost and vice president of Academic Affairs has been temporarily delayed because of the College's financial crisis. During the postponement, Elizabeth Paul will continue to serve as a temporary replacement.
"After consultation with a lot of individuals, I determined that this was simply not a good time to conduct a national search," College President R. Barbara Gitenstein said in an e-mail.
Paul said the challenge of dealing with the recent budget cuts has used up a lot of "institutional energy."
"This leaves us feeling that conducting a national search for provost - a very intensive campus-wide effort - is not prudent at this time," Paul said.
Matt Golden, director of Communications and Media Relations, said in an e-mail that while delaying the search makes sense now, the College plans to find a new Interim Provost and vice president of Academic Affairs in the future. Golden said a national search at this time would be too costly and time consuming.
"Given the strain that the (state) budget cuts have caused - both financially and in terms of personnel - and the fact that we have an outstanding individual serving as the Interim Provost, it made sense to delay the national search," Golden said.
While Gitenstein acknowledged that the budget was part of the reason for delaying the search, she added that the timing of the search was a factor.
"We need to consolidate some of our decisions from last year and make sure that we are on sound footing for attracting a strong pool of candidates," Gitenstein said.
Gitenstein set a timeline for beginning the search in a campus-wide e-mail sent last week. In the e-mail, Gitenstein said the national search would begin with the addition of professors Christopher Fisher, Thomas Hagedorn, John Karsnitz and Michael Robertson to the search committee on April 15, 2007.
According to the e-mail, "Between April and August 2007, the committee will be able to complete its work of helping to choose a search firm and to develop a job description."
"There have been many positions, in a range of campus departments, that have not been filled because of the state budget cuts - approximately $1.5 million worth," Golden said.
Additionally, some positions and departments have been changed or restructured because of the cuts, including the elimination of the positions of director of Legal Affairs, director of Equity and Diversity and dean of Academic Services.
Some departments, rather than being eliminated, have been combined. For example, the Civic Leadership Development Program, which facilitated social service projects for first-year students, has been united with the Bonner Center for Civic and Community Engagement. The Bonner Center, according to the College's Web site, "coordinates community-engaged learning and community-campus outreach efforts at the College."
(09/06/06 12:00pm)
The parents of John Fiocco Jr., a freshman who disappeared from his Wolfe Hall room last March, have filed a legal notice against the College, indicating their intent to sue.
The court claim, filed during the summer, outlines the Fiocco family's grievances and their possible desire for further legal action, but is not a lawsuit in itself.
According to an Associated Press (AP) article, Fiocco's parents plan to sue the College for over $5 million in damages.
Part of the reason for the notice, according to the article, is possible negligence on the part of the College.
According to an article in the South Jersey Courier-Post, "the College failed to enforce laws against underage drinking and didn't train dormitory personnel properly to deal with 'visibly intoxicated (College) students.'"
Fiocco's parents have hired Glenn A. Zeitz, a civil attorney from Haddonfield, N.J., to plead their case.
Zeitz failed to respond to repeated phone calls and e-mail requests to comment on the case.
However, according to the AP article, Zeitz "questioned the (College's) security and whether the College had done enough to combat underage drinking."
"It's a court claim, not a lawsuit," Matt Golden, director of Communications and Media Relations, said of the legal notice.
While Golden could not definitively say whether or not the notice would lead to a lawsuit, he said, "(the College) has to work on the assumption that there will be a lawsuit."
College president R. Barbara Gitenstein did not comment on the court claim, but said, "I would not presume to understand (the Fiocco's) feelings, nor can I fathom what mine would be in similar circumstances."
The Fiocco family has also hired Dr. Michael Baden, a forensic pathologist, according to an AP article. Baden is the host of HBO's "Autopsy," a documentary series highlighting homicide cases.
In the time after Fiocco disappeared last semester, students had to use their ID cards to swipe into Travers and Wolfe. The entrances to both halls were locked, including during the day, and police officers checked students' keys at the hall desks.
As this semester began, the same 24-hour swipe access that had been in place during the Fiocco investigation was implemented as a campus-wide policy.
The investigation into how Fiocco died is still ongoing, according to Sgt. Stephen Jones of the New Jersey State Police.
Though Jones could not elaborate on the details of the investigation, he said that the results of an autopsy conducted immediately after the body was discovered in a Tullytown, Pa., landfill have been received by investigators.
The medical examiner investigating Fiocco's death has left the case open, Jones said, and the cause and manner of death remain undetermined.
"This remains a criminal investigation," Angelo Onofri, assistant prosecutor at the Mercer County Prosecutor Office, said.
Onofri confirmed that the Fiocco family has hired a civil attorney, but could not release any other information regarding the case.
"We're in about the same place as we were after the body was found," Golden said.
According to Jones, "actions" were taken over the summer, including interviewing, and "there will continue to be action" throughout the semester.
Fiocco was last seen at 3 a.m. on Saturday, March 26 after returning, intoxicated, from an off-campus party.
Fiocco entered Wolfe and fell asleep in the room of a floormate on the fourth floor. On Sunday, March 27, a friend on the floor reported him missing.
Campus Police then began the search for Fiocco on campus and notified local law enforcement and hospitals near the College.
On Monday, March 27, the New Jersey State Police Missing Persons Unit joined the investigation.
The following day, the parking lot directly behind Travers and Wolfe was blocked off by police so that dumpsters located behind the halls could be searched.
At a press conference held later that day, Mercer County Prosecutor Joseph L. Bocchini Jr. said investigators received warrants to search several areas on campus as a result of items which were found in or near the dumpsters.
Some of the search warrants were executed the following day.
Additionally, all residents of Travers and Wolfe were interviewed and the New Jersey State Police Major Crimes Unit was given control over releasing any information relating to the investigation.
The evening of that same day, both Travers and Wolfe were evacuated to allow police dogs to search the buildings.
That night, DNA test results from one of the dumpsters located behind Wolfe were returned to investigators. The following morning, Bocchini announced the results in a press conference.
According to an April 5 article in The Signal, "Bocchini announced that DNA tests had confirmed that blood found in and around one of the Wolfe dumpsters was Fiocco's."
During the press conference, Bocchini also announced investigators' intention to begin searching two separate landfills for evidence - Tullytown Landfill and GROWS landfill in Falls Township, Pa.
That afternoon, search dogs were brought in to investigate lakes Ceva and Sylva on campus.
Between April 5 and April 27, the Crimestoppers of Greater Trenton's reward for information relating to the investigation was raised from $2,000 to $7,500.
On Wednesday, April 26, a body found in the Tullytown Landfill on April 25 was confirmed in a press conference to be that of Fiocco.
The body was transferred to the Mercer County Medical Examiner's Office, where an autopsy was performed.
The results of the autopsy, which was finalized a few weeks after the discovery of the body, have not been released to the public. However, dental records helped positively identify the body as Fiocco's.
As of press time, the manner and cause of death remain undetermined.
According to Jones, "The investigation continues."
- Additional reporting by Scott Kieffer, Nation & World Editor
(08/30/06 12:00pm)
In response to his forced removal from the position of Student Government Association (SGA) executive president, Eric Pasternack has hired a lawyer, Roy Curnow, and filed a lawsuit against the College.
According to a Campus Police report, Pasternack, who was under 21 at the time, was present at a party in the Townhouses East complex in March. In the report, Campus Police, responding to a noise complaint, discovered that "all individuals (at the party) had at least two shots of vodka."
Since the incident, Pasternack has been forced to step down as executive president due to the Student Leadership Criteria that all SGA executive board members must sign. According to the criteria, students on the executive board of any College organization must "be free of probation with restrictions in residence, college-wide disciplinary probation or higher-level disciplinary sanctions."
In an e-mail sent in July, Pasternack explained that the lawsuit was filed "due to the unethical and unconstitutional behavior by certain members of the school administration depriving me of my right to serve as the executive president of (SGA), and to disenfranchise the students of the College to elect representatives to SGA."
Since filing the lawsuit, Pasternack's case has gone to the Mercer County Courthouse in Trenton, where it was heard by Judge Neil Shuster, according to Curnow.
Curnow said that on Friday Shuster released a written opinion regarding the case. Shuster referred the case to the New Jersey Appellate Court. Normally, a case would have to be decided on by a trial judge before being moved to an Appellate court. But, Curnow said, because the College is a public entity, the case moved directly to the Appellate where it will be heard by a different judge.
When asked when the court case would take place, Curnow said it was "hard to say."
Curnow added that he and Pasternack are "pursuing the case."
"(Pasternack) feels he was treated unfairly," Curnow said.
Since his removal from office, Pasternack has been replaced by Christine Cullen. Cullen originally won the position of executive vice president in the SGA general election last April.
However, according to SGA 100-level bylaws, "in the event that the president resigns or has his/her membership on SGA terminated by removal from office, withdrawal from the College, graduation, or for any other reason, the executive vice president shall assume the position of president."
Pasternack, who hopes to resume his position as president, believes Cullen will face many challenges if she remains president.
"(Cullen's) lack of experience may put her at a disadvantage when negotiating with the administration," Pasternack said in an e-mail.
One of Cullen's first challenges will be to fill the empty position of executive vice president.
According to Cullen, she will do this by opening the position to all current SGA senate members that have been a member for at least a year during the first general body meeting this Wednesday. Interested members will fill out an application and be interviewed by Cullen and Magda Manetas, SGA advisor. Cullen will then discuss the applicants with the rest of the executive board members.
"I will decide who will be the new executive vice president and announce my decision at the next general body meeting and swear them in with the senate's approval," Cullen said.
Cullen said she is confident about her ability to lead SGA. "I feel that I am more than qualified for the presidency and with the help of the executive board and the senate I know that this will be a tremendous year for SGA," she said.
"Last I heard, (Cullen) was prepared to assume the duties of the president and (the executive board) resolved to do our best to help her," Michael Strom, vice president of legal and governmental affairs, said.
In the meantime, Pasternack will fight in court to be reinstated into SGA.
However, if Pasternack wins his case, his future as president would still be unclear.
Pasternack said, "As SGA (executive) president, my main concern is not whether or not I am popular with the members of the administration, but whether or not the actions of the administration are beneficial or detrimental to the well-being of the student body."
(08/30/06 12:00pm)
Lingering structural damage continues to plague both Kendall Hall and the Spiritual Center.
While the Spiritual Center needs only minor repairs at this time, the damage to Kendall Hall will close the theater well into the first semester of the academic year.
Kendall Hall was closed last December after some of the plaster on the ceiling collapsed, according to Richard Kroth, director of arts facilities.
Following the collapse, the ceiling was temporarily stabilized to allow events scheduled for March through June to take place within the damaged theater.
"(Arts facilities) closed the entire theatre in late June so that scaffolding could be installed and plaster repairs completed," Kroth said.
Kroth called the ceiling repairs "a large project." The repairs will involve plaster fabrication, restoration, paint and finish work.
Much of the repair work took place during the summer, when most students were off campus.
Though the work will continue into October, Kroth said that "scheduling the work during the summer has significantly reduced the impact to campus events, as fewer events take place between June and October."
Some events, however, were impacted by the closure, including College President R. Barbara Gitenstein's welcome back address to the campus.
Tara Conte, senior English major and director of the College Union Board (CUB), said the Welcome Week comedy show usually schduled to take place in Kendall had to be moved to the Music Building's Mayo Concert Hall this semester.
Conte said that despite the setback, CUB is prepared to deal with the closure.
"Having known for a while that Kendall was under construction, we have been able to take this circumstance into consideration and look to other venues for our events," she said.
In the past, CUB was able to move major campus events to other locations after Kendall closed. Some of the events that had to be moved included a lecture by screenwriter Kevin Smith and CUB's comedy show, which featured Pablo Francisco and Dean Edwards.
Kroth estimates that the repairs will be finished by the third week of October.
Unlike Kendall, most of the major repairs to the Spiritual Center were completed before students arrived for the new semester.
According to Father Joe Hlubik of Catholic Campus Ministriees, repairs were made to the roof, floor and air conditioning system over the summer.
The most serious damage to the building occurred on the roof, according to Hlubik. He said much of the roof needed to be replaced during the summer.
Hlubik said the original roofing "wasn't done correctly."
"It was not quality workmanship," Hlubik said.
The flooring in the building also underwent serious repair work.
According to Ann DeGennaro, director of Campus Wellness, more work will be done to fix the floors over the winter break. DeGennaro said the floors in the building are buckling and molding around the walls is lifting off.
Much of the damage to the floor may have been a result of problems with the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system in the Spiritual Center.
According to Hlubik, the air conditioning system flooded the storage room of the building last year.
Despite the problems, the Spiritual Center opened to students at the start of the semester.
On Saturday, the building opened to freshmen for a "Meet the Ministers" Welcome Week event.
(08/30/06 12:00pm)
The Music Building concert hall, which had been unnamed since it first opened in 1993, has been officially named the Mildred and Ernest E. Mayo Concert Hall in honor of Professor Herbert Mayo's parents.
Mayo, professor of finance, has had a life-long interest in music, College President R. Barbara Gitenstein said in a college-wide e-mail last spring.
In the e-mail, Gitenstein said Mayo "agreed to fund an endowment that will support performance activity in the department of Music." The endowment will help support activities including opera and musical theater performances, according to TCNJ Magazine.
Said Mark Kalinowski, professional services specialist for the music department: "(The music department) is proud to acknowledge a gift from a current faculty member."
(08/24/06 12:00pm)
In anticipation of the arrival of the College's largest incoming freshmen class in nine years, the lounges on each floor of Travers and Wolfe Halls were revamped and redesigned.
Unlike the 2006-2007 academic year, the lounges of Travers and Wolfe will no longer be used as common areas. Instead, they will help house the incoming freshmen.
The lounges now contain beds, desks, dressers and closets. Each lounge has been redesigned to hold four freshmen.
However, some incoming freshmen will live off campus this semester, according to Chris Farrell, assignments coordinator for the Office of Residential and Community Development.
"There are some (freshmen) who didn't accept housing," Farrell said. In previous years, freshmen were required to live on campus and purchase a meal plan, but this year some were allowed to live off campus due to the number of new students and housing complications related to the abandoned Metzger Apartments.
The increased class size and new living arrangements are not a new challenge for the College, and revamping the Travers and Wolfe lounges is not the only such measure the College has used in prior years.
"Lounges in Travers and Wolfe have been used as quads off and on for the past six plus years," Kellie Perkowsky, resident director of Wolfe Hall, said.
Other rooms in Travers and Wolfe will also be altered to accommodate the incoming freshmen.
One such room was a former computer lab. The room, located on the second floor of Travers, was used as a triple for years.
"For this year," Perkowsky said, "(the College) has reinstalled the wall that used to be (in the room) and it is going to go back to being two double rooms."
Additionally, some apartments previously used as housing for Graduate Assistants have been changed into freshmen housing. The apartments, located in Wolfe and Cromwell, can house two to four freshmen each.
The College has revised its housing options for freshmen several times. Formerly, freshmen were housed in Norsworthy Hall, according to Michael Robbins, area director for the office of Residential and Community Development.
The new living arrangements will affect not only the incoming freshmen class, but also the Community Advisors (CA) living and working with them.
The lounges of Travers and Wolfe were used last year as convenient gathering places for CAs to host events and conduct floor meetings. This year, according to Perkowsky, CAs will alternate between the classrooms located on the second, third and fourth floors of Travers and Wolfe.
"While residential life professional and student staff would like to have more common space, it hasn't seemed to negatively impact our programming or student satisfaction in any way," Perkowsky said.
The increased class size was implemented this year as a measure to help offset some of the College's financial burden due to the state budget cuts. The budget cuts, finalized during the summer, cost the College over $8 million.
In addition to increasing the size of the freshman class, the College also admitted a record number of transfer students, many of whom will live in Cromwell.
(04/26/06 12:00pm)
According to Sarah Hines, a member of the International Socialist Organization (ISO), socialism is spreading through Latin America and may one day influence the United States.
Hines, a history teacher at Jonathan Levin High School for Media and Communications in Bronx, N.Y., said that "exploitation (from capitalism) is driving people to rebel in Latin America." Hines had spent time in Latin America, working as a journalist and political activist.
This trend arose in response to neo-liberalism and capitalism, Hines said. She used Venezuela and Bolivia as examples.
In Venezuela, President Hugo Chavez has called for socialist reforms. Hines said Chavez, who was called "Hitler" by U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, has "absolutely no fear of offending (President George W.) Bush."
Chavez has set up several reforms in Venezuela. According to Hines, he has spent oil profits on funding education, resisted privatizing the state-owned oil company and set up a trade block that could challenge the U.S.
Hines said she believes many of these reforms came about because the people of Venezuela are overwhelmingly supportive of Chavez.
She added that the people of Bolivia similarly helped create a strong socialist movement in their country.
"(Bolivian President Evo Morales) came out of six years of struggle against privatization and poverty," Hines said.
Morales, like Chavez, is changing the political climate of Latin America through his leftist reforms. He has repealed a decree that privatized many industries, created teaching jobs and lowered government salaries, including his own.
Working class countries like Venezuela and Bolivia are the driving force of change in Latin America, Hines said.
"Can you imagine if Bill Gates had to listen to what his workers in Indonesia have to say?" Hines said.
Hines said that "the task (at home) is no less urgent," and she encouraged students to participate in socialism in the U.S. "(The U.S.) has a very rich history of working class struggle and rebellion," Hines said.
Hines noted that, as a history teacher, she sees that a lot is left out of the typical high school history curriculum and "deliberately hidden."
During the open discussion that followed the lecture, some students disagreed with these ideas.
Aaron Minnick, a freshman international business major who lived in Bolivia for 12 years, criticized Morales for supporting the ending of programs that give Bolivian farmers alternatives to growing cocoa, a plant turned into cocaine and shipped to the U.S.
The cocoa plant, according to Minnick, takes minerals out of the soil of the rain forest, "destroying the land forever."
Minnick also said that the set-up of the event didn't allow for a "back-and-forth" conversation.
"I thought it was . biased but I didn't expect anything else," John Richard, freshman political science and philosophy major, said.
Richard said he thought that the socialists in the audience who rebutted his remarks were "taking my words and interpreting them the way that they feel is the best way to attack them."
Matt Richman, senior history and women's and gender studies major and ISO member, called Richard and Minnick's remarks "abstract objections."
Richman, who helped organize the event, felt the lecture "went well." He said that ISO and co-sponsor Uni?n Latina chose Hines to speak because she "saw what had happened in Venezuela firsthand."
"(Hines) has a good perspective on what's going on (in Latin America)," Jessica Penaranda, senior criminology and justice studies and women's and gender studies major, said.
According to Penaranda, there were a lot of students who didn't know about socialism or Latin America in the audience, as well as members of the ISO.
"I was surprised there were so many people," Hines said. There were about 35 people at the event.
The next step, according to Hines, "is standing up for immigrant rights."
To do this, a mass demonstration is scheduled for May 1 nationwide, when immigrants and their supporters are encouraged to skip work and school.
(04/19/06 12:00pm)
Even before Patrick Buchanan's speech began Wednesday night, protesters organized outside of Kendall Hall to demonstrate.
Protesters accused Buchanan, who was a senior advisor for presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, communications director for President Ronald Reagan, a host of CNN's "Crossfire" and a former presidential nominee, of being racist, sexist and homophobic.
In his speech, Buchanan addressed President Bush's administration and "whether it is truly conservative."
Buchanan said that "(Bush) was radicalized by 9/11" and that America would not have gone to war with Iraq if it were not for Sept. 11.
Buchanan, a vehement opponent of the war, said, "I oppose the war in Iraq because I believed (America) was attacking and invading a country that did not attack us."
Buchanan also talked about free trade, in which he said he once believed.
"There's a cost to free trade," Buchanan said.
Buchanan, during one of his campaigns, said he traveled around the country and saw factories being shut down.
"I believe that the establishment of both parties in this country are guilty of economic treason," Buchanan said.
In the question-and-answer period following the speech, a student in the audience asked Buchanan to explain his view on America's involvement in the Middle East, particularly Israel.
"I don't think Israel's interests are America's interests," Buchanan said. "(The Palestinians) have a right to a state and a nation and a homeland of their own."
Buchanan was also challenged by students in the audience to address his views on immigration.
In the speech, Buchanan said that "what is happening to America is an invasion."
Some students, particularly those protesting the speech, saw Buchanan's view that America should close its borders and build a fence at major crossing points on the American-Mexican border as offensive.
Chris Geddis, freshman philosophy major and member of the College Libertarians, said that immigration was one of the reasons that his group decided to protest the speech.
Geddis said that the Libertarians are "against (Buchanan's) views on all minorities" and that America should have "completely open borders."
Other groups at the protest included the International Socialist Organization (ISO), Progressive Student Alliance, Women's Center, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Vox.
The groups organized before the speech through e-mails, according to Matt Richman, senior history and women's and gender studies major and member of ISO and PSA.
The e-mail encouraged protesters to wear black shirts to make a "strong visual statement that a majority of (the College's) students, even if they listen to (Buchanan) speak, do not agree with his platform."
"The main reason (for the protests) is just to show the campus that there are a lot of people who disagree with (Buchanan's) views," Dave Weinstein, junior Spanish major and incoming vice president of ACLU, said. Weinstein wrote the original e-mail organizing the protest and then forwarded it to Christi Downey, junior women's and gender studies major and president of the Women's Center, who sent it to other organizations.
"I think that Patrick Buchanan is trying to mainstream racism in the United States," Tom Stone, freshman philosophy major and ISO treasurer, said. "(Buchanan) is trying to bring hate into the public sphere."
Another issue that worried students was the $15,000 Buchanan received to speak at the College.
According to Howard Wegener, sophomore political science major and treasurer of the College Republicans, Buchanan could have been paid as much as $25,000 if it weren't for the reduced rate the College Republicans got.
Wegener said that the College Republicans worked with the Young America's Foundation to bring Buchanan to the College. The Young America's Foundation offered the College Republicans a reduced rate, according to Wegener. Kathy Loglisci, junior English secondary education major and president of Vox, said she was "very upset that despite the well-known recent budget cuts (Buchanan) got this much money."
Despite the protests, members of the College Republicans and Buchanan himself said that the speech went well.
When asked about the protests against him, Buchanan said, "There are protests every time I speak" and that he "thought (the speech) went very well."
Buchanan also said that the protests were "nothing out of the usual." He called them "infantile" but said that the tough questions he received from students in the audience were "polite."
The reason for bringing Buchanan to the College, according to Matt Esposito, senior history education major and chair of the College Republicans, was because the group "wanted a big name conservative speaker."
Tony DeCarlo, senior secondary education and history major and vice chair of the College Republicans, said, "Liberals were shocked that (Buchanan) . he was as smart as he is."
When asked about the audience, Esposito said, "People should do more research than just looking on Wikipedia."
Richman, however, said that while Buchanan was "bland on the surface," students did a good job of challenging him in the question-and-answer period.
(04/12/06 12:00pm)
Due to increasing violence in Trenton, Catholic Campus Ministries (CCM) has ended its tutoring program early this year.
The group usually works with the Martin House Learning Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting "youth and adults in graduating from high school," to provide an after-school tutoring program for children in Trenton.
After a teacher from P.J. Hill Elementary School, the public school many of the tutored children attend, was accidentally shot due to gang violence, CCM decided to suspend the tutoring program.
According to Tom Sales, junior political science major and outgoing president of CCM, some of the students from the College who volunteered as tutors did not feel safe there after the shooting.
Lisa Giovanniello, junior elementary education and psychology major and a member of CCM who had tutored this year, said, "Personally, I thought it was time, for the safety of (CCM members tutoring in Trenton), to stop for now."
According to Giovanniello, CCM ended its tutoring program the week directly after the shooting.
Giovanniello said that CCM stopped the tutoring program not only because of the shooting, but also because the end of the Spring semester is approaching.
She also said that in the past, the school where CCM members tutored "never seemed like a bad neighborhood." Giovanniello said that during winter, CCM tutors had left while it was dark outside and had felt safe doing so.
She said that she hopes that CCM will be able to work with the Martin House Learning Center again next year in a different capacity.
CCM declined in an e-mail to comment on the situation, but has said that "(CCM) will be praying for all those affected by the shootings and for public safety."
(04/12/06 12:00pm)
Only days before the Student Government Association (SGA) elections, questions still remained about who would be on the ballot.
Eric Pasternack, running for executive president, could be forced to step down from the position if elected.
Steve Viola, running for vice president of administration and finance, has been removed from the SGA elections ballot as of press time and did not make a speech at the SGA election speeches Monday night.
Pasternack, who is under 21, is facing the possibility of being put on probation after Campus Police caught him drinking at a party, according to an SGA member who wished to remain anonymous.
According to S. Lee Whitesell, Pasternack's opponent for executive president of SGA, the party took place on March 31.
The SGA member said that Pasternack had been caught drinking while at a party in the townhouses on campus and believes that someone called Campus Police and told them about the party. The SGA member said that he is suspicious that this person may have been a member of "Real Leadership," the group running against Pasternack's "People Over Politics" group in the SGA elections.
Whitesell said that no one from his group, "Real Leadership," called the cops to report Pasternack.
In response to rumors that have spread since the incident, Whitesell said he "know(s) that (Pasternack) is insinuating (rumors)."
Whitesell believes that Pasternack and others in his party immediately assumed Whitesell was the one that called police.
Duane Clark, junior history major and member of "Real Leadership," was upset by the rumors. He called them "completely false," "offensive" and "slanderous."
Whitesell also said that "People Over Politics" has filed numerous complaints against him and "Real Leadership."
One of these complaints involved a facebook.com group that "Real Leadership" made. According to Whitesell, members of "People Over Politics" complained because the group was created before SGA candidates were permitted to start campaigning.
Whitesell said, however, that the Facebook group was not a means of campaigning and did not contain information about candidates.
Clark was particularly upset because he claimed that "People Over Politics" and "Real Leadership" had agreed to run a "clean campaign."
Pasternack was not restricted from running in the SGA elections due to the violation. However, he may be put on probation at a later date if he fails his appeal.
In such a case, if Pasternack was elected SGA executive president, he would have to step down from the position and the executive vice president would take over.
In response to a question about the incident, Pasternack said at the SGA elections speeches, whose audience was primarily SGA members, that "we are all fallible" and that people can "grow and learn from their mistakes."
Viola, who had been on probation for underage drinking at a sorority party in Pa., had been reported by a community advisor (CA) because of a decorative wine bottle, his second violation, according to a member of the SGA.
The SGA member said that the wine bottle had never contained alcohol and was painted for decorative purposes.
The "minor transgression," as Viola called it, disqualified him as a candidate according to the College's student leadership criteria.
The criteria, which applies to all student leaders, says that student leaders must "be free of probation with restrictions in residence, college-wide disciplinary probation, or higher-level disciplinary sanctions."
Viola appealed the decision but, according to an SGA member, the office of Campus Activities didn't grant the appeal.
As of press time, Viola was waiting for a new appeal to be judged and was not included on the SGA elections ballot.
Because Viola is running unopposed, if his appeal is denied his position will remain open.
Viola said that in such an instance he would try to run as a write-in candidate.
However, according to Daria Silvestro, SGA alternate student trustee, Viola cannot run as a write-in candidate.
The anonymous SGA member said Pasternack, if elected, would appoint Viola to fill the position of vice president of administration and finance when Viola's probation ends in September.
However, the SGA member said that if Whitesell is elected, all eligible students will be able to run for the position.
(04/05/06 12:00pm)
Q: In light of the recent missing persons case involving John Fiocco, are you concerned about safety at the College?
Carvel Seepersad, senior at Orange High School: "The fact that (Fiocco) is a freshman is scary. I would wonder how to adapt and be cautious if I came here (in the fall)."
Theodora Douse, mother: "It is not going to affect (where Seepersad goes to college) because I'm still wondering how it happened."
Q: How has the missing persons case involving John Fiocco affected your decision whether or not to attend the College?
Emily Kane, senior at Mercer Christian Academy: "It hasn't affected my decision (to attend the College)."
Holly Kane, mother: "My reaction is that bad things happen to people who drink too much. It doesn't reflect on the College at all."
Q: Are you concerned about Governor Corzine's proposed budget, which would cut $169 million from higher education if it passed?
Heather Capurso, senior at Verona High School: "I was worried because the governor's school (lost funding), but not really."
Lou Capurso, father: "No, because I think (the College) is still the best by far (in terms of value, location and education)."
Q: Have Governor Corzine's proposed budget cuts to higher education affected your decision about what college you will attend next fall?
Anthony Piccoline, senior at Rich High School: "No, I am set on (the College)."
Marie Piccoline, mother: "It will be a lot tougher to pay. There will be more debt."
(03/29/06 12:00pm)
In "The PATRIOT Act: The Home Version" board game, players can be penalized for being Arab, sent to Guant?namo Bay and accused of sedition.
The game, created by Michael Kabbash, assistant professor of art at the College, has been featured in nearly 200 newspapers, including The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Guardian, a British newspaper. An Internet search for the game will produce hits from blogs and newspapers across the world. In addition, it became the subject of a controversial FOX News television report.
Kabbash said that when he first created the game two years ago, no one was talking about the PATRIOT Act.
In fact, the game didn't get much attention until the Associated Press (AP) story about the game ran in The Washington Post and The Philadelphia Inquirer on March 18 and 20, respectively.
MSNBC has also taken an interest in the game. They requested a copy of the game to use on "Countdown with Keith Olbermann."
Kabbash said he created the game to give a "humorous context" to the issue.
The game is based on "Monopoly." It replaces the "Monopoly" man with John Ashcroft, former Attorney General, and jail with Guant?namo Bay. To win, a player must make it all the way around the board while keeping as many civil liberties as possible.
Kabbash said that the game does not attack President Bush and is based on things that have happened in the news.
For example, players may be forced to go back 10 spaces for "wearing a 'Give Peace a Chance' shirt to a shopping mall during wartime," something that Kabbash said he saw on the news.
Kabbash, who is a Christian of Arab decent, faced criticism and hate mail because of the game after FOX News aired a story about it.
Some of the hate mail, according to Kabbash, asked him "to go back to Saudi Arabia or to go to Guant?namo Bay." He called the hate mail "angry," "bigoted" and "racist."
"(The authors of the hate mail) are assuming I want to let the terrorists free," he said.
His true purpose for creating the game, he said, was to get people talking about the PATRIOT Act. Kabbash said his artwork usually focuses on "parody of consumerism and satire."
Despite the international attention the game has received, Kabbash said that few students at the College seem to know about it besides art students, who were notified by a department-wide e-mail.
"I think (the game) is great and 'Monopoly' is a great way to present (the PATRIOT Act)," Matthew Erdely, senior graphic design major, said.
"(Kabbash's) venue for discussion is more effective than writing a politically charged essay," Scott Latyn, senior graphic design major, said. "And now that I equate John Ashcroft with the 'Monopoly' guy, it's tough to take him seriously."
Despite the political nature of the game, Kabbash said that for a long time he had considered himself a moderate. Today, he said "I can safely say I'm a liberal."
Kabbash said that the political climate in the country shifted and "forced people to take sides."
Kabbash indicated that this shift started in September 2001 with the World Trade Center attacks.
After the attacks, there was, according to Kabbash, "a huge climate of fear." The Arab community, in particular, "had a lot to be afraid of."
Kabbash started an ad campaign in 2001 to show Arab Americans as true American citizens.
He said, however, that infringements on civil liberties "affect everybody" and not just an isolated portion of the population.
"There needs to be security, but there needs to be oversight," Kabbash said.
In the game, he criticizes the National Security Agency (NSA) for using wiretaps too often. Players can be forced to move back six places because "your calls for Chinese take-out and the Home Shopping Network have been recorded."
Kabbash said that if the government is watching him, which, according to the AP article, he suspects they may be, then "(NSA) is wasting their time."
The AP article also said that Ashcroft, when asked about the game at a recent crime conference in Florida, had no comment.
Latyn said, "I thought it was hilarious that someone actually posed the question (of whether NSA is watching Kabbash) to (a bureau spokesman), and he 'declined to comment.'"
Kabbash said he is not looking to make a profit from the game. It can be downloaded for free at Kabbash's Web site, "Graphics for Change," graphix4change.com/portfolio_PA_game.html.
(03/29/06 12:00pm)
Taxes are going up. And soon.
Gov. Corzine has proposed a budget that will attempt to tackle New Jersey's debt by raising taxes and cutting funding.
The College, as I assume many already know, will face major budget cuts if this budget is approved.
I will avoid the details - first, because math and I have an abusive relationship, and second because they were spelled out clearly in the two e-mails the College sent about the proposed budget.
The important thing here is the idea.
New Jersey does have a tremendous debt that should be addressed. However, taking money from education should be the absolute last resort. It is ludicrous that the state would consider taking money from higher education first because they fell into a rut.
Corzine has justified his budget by claiming that the cuts to higher education were "partly motivated by the financial scandal at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ)."
UMDNJ deliberately overbilled Medicaid about $5 billion.
Granted, this is a terrible thing to do. But why is every state college in New Jersey being punished?
To justify taking millions of dollars from New Jersey colleges because of one university is idiotic. Corzine's logic falls apart at the slightest scrutiny.
Corzine has also justified the budget by playing to the apathy of the people of this state.
He has said that New Jersey has reached its "day of reckoning." He has harped on how wonderfully tragic it is that he has to be the one to make the tough decision to take money from higher education. He has whined about how sorry he is about the condition of New Jersey's budget.
With phrases like "day of reckoning," Corzine is turning a problem governments have faced for as long as they have existed into an epidemic. Reacting to fear and panic has hurt this country before, and now it threatens New Jersey in particular.
"I affectionately call this the Pepto-Bismol budget. It makes people sick to their stomachs," Assemblyman Joseph Malone (R-Burlington) said.
There is absolutely no reason to tolerate this. There is absolutely no reason for us to be "sick to our stomachs" and yet complacent.
I will not claim that the problem is easy or can be fixed quickly. I will only say that there must be a better alternative and that it is imperative that we challenge the people representing us to sit down, think and find it.
What about the millions of dollars that are wasted on roads that are never fixed? These roads are under construction for months - sometimes even years.
What about the millions of dollars lost in corruption scandals? New Jersey is infamous for corruption. Why not help keep the budget stable in the long run by addressing an issue that is constantly draining the state's budget?
Perhaps because that would put Corzine himself under scrutiny.
According to the conservative news Web site capitolhillcoffeehouse.com, Corzine gave "a half-million dollar loan (to) his ex-girlfriend, Carla Katz, who just happens to be the head of one of New Jersey's largest state workers unions." Eventually, the good governor was even nice enough to forgive the loan. How sweet.
How can Corzine justify this? How can he say that New Jersey has reached its "day of reckoning?" How can he be so audacious as to punish state colleges and universities because some dentists stole some money, while he does the very same?
By his own logic, his own budget should penalize him.
Where in your budget, Gov. Corzine, is the half-million dollars you owe this state?
It is unforgivable that Corzine would dish out money to his friends and take money from the people. He was elected by us and for us.
I have already contacted the senator and both assemblymen for the district in which I live, as well as Gov. Corzine himself.
If you give a damn, I recommend you do the same.
Information from - philly.com, capitolhillcoffeehouse.com
(03/29/06 12:00pm)
Six on-campus political groups gathered for a heated debate on American policy regarding torture and domestic surveillance last Wednesday.
The debate was called "From Torture to Surveillance: A Forum on the War on Terror" and focused primarily on the issue of torture.
Attendees represented not only the College Democrats and Republicans, but also the International Socialist Organization (ISO), Amnesty International, the College Libertarians and the Progressive Student Alliance (PSA).
"(The Republican Party) is against torture," Matt Esposito, senior history education major and chair of the College Republicans, said. He added that the prisoners the United States detains are "dangerous terrorists" who "don't apply under the Geneva Convention."
Amnesty International, a group focused on human rights, rejected this idea.
Ryan Patrick, sophomore computer science major and member of Amnesty International, said that prisoners at Guant?namo Bay needed to be "treated humanely" in accordance with international law.
The debaters were also asked to address the controversial issue of the National Security Agency's (NSA) wiretapping of American citizens.
"(The right to privacy) is not ambiguous," Chris Geddis, freshman philosophy major and member of the College Libertarians, said.
John Leschak, junior criminology and justice studies major and PSA member, called the wiretaps an "ominous revelation." Leschak said that NSA was using the wiretaps to spy on political activists.
"If (the government) is representing the people, then the people must be confused," Leschak said.
Casey Ransom, sophomore biomedical engineering major and ISO member, agreed, and said that the purpose of the wiretapping is to "silence the voice of dissent in America."
Members of the audience spoke up during the question-and-answer portion and supported his claim. Students attending the forum challenged debaters to address tough issues, including American foreign policy and the role of the media.
Esposito was challenged by members of the audience after claiming that "the media has its own agenda."
"The media was invented because it was to be the watchdog of the government," Katherine Healey, senior journalism major, said.
In response to another question from the audience, Dan Beckelman, sophomore political science major and member of the College Democrats, said, "(Terrorists) hate Western civilization."
Beckelman became the subject of harsh criticism during the debate.
Anthony Milici, senior English major, said Beckelman was "actually a Republican."
"I am a conservative democrat," Beckelman said.
Beckelman said that he and Scott Blair, vice president of the College Democrats, decided together that Beckelman would represent the group.
Milici criticized both the College Democrats and Republicans for what he considered a poor showing at the debate.
"The element in the room tonight was the apathy (of Democrats and Republicans)," Milici said.
Part of the problem, Geddis said, was that the debate was "very specific." He said the College Republicans' Feb. 22 debate had "a much more broad question base."
Mark Waltzer, senior psychology major and president of Amnesty International as well as the moderator of the debate, thought that the debate was successful overall. He said that the debate's goal, which was to "get information out there," was accomplished.
(03/08/06 12:00pm)
Irshad Manji's bold, unapologetic lecture criticizing modern Islam came complete with armed Campus Police and a group of protesters from the International Socialist Organization (ISO).
The lecture was part of the Multicultural Lecture Series, which aims, according to chair Lynette Harris, "to bring to our campus community awareness of different cultures and the issues within those cultures." A committee of faculty and students selects speakers to come to the College.
Manji focused on Islamic culture. A refugee from Uganda, Manji grew up in Vancouver, where she attended a public school and an Islamic religious school. She later became a television journalist and visiting fellow at Yale University.
It was during her time at the Islamic religious school that she asked her teacher, "Why can't women read prayer?" and "Where is the proof of (a) Jewish plot against Islam?," among other tough questions.
Throughout her speech, Manji encouraged Muslims and non-Muslims to recreate the spirit of ijtihad, "Islam's tradition of independent reasoning."
According to Manji, "one thing we must accept . is that in the Quran there is plenty of room for debate." She said that according to the Quran, women have the right to choose if they will get married, Jesus is called "the messiah" and the "sovereign role of Jews in the holy land" is validated.
The problem, as Manji sees it, is that even people who describe themselves as moderate Muslims accept the Quran as unchangeable and final. This, Manji says, does not allow room for ijtihad.
"Islam itself once exuded pluralism," Manji said. "(There is) no reason, save for pure politics, that we cannot have (pluralism) again."
One of the most controversial claims Manji made about Islam was that it is reconcilable with homosexuality.
"If (God) did not wish to make me a lesbian," Manji said, "then he would have made someone else in my place."
This statement sparked controversy during the question-and-answer period following the lecture.
In response to concerns that Manji was belittling homosexuality as something that was a lesser choice or not a choice at all, Manji said, "I accept the possibility that God may reject my same-sex relationship, but I don't know." She continued, "We as human beings don't know the truth. What we can do is argue and not play God."
She included all religions in her lecture, not just Islam. "Even Buddhism has extremisms," she said, "but don't ask me how that works."
"People in the West are taking multiculturalism literally," Manji said. She felt that literalism would turn multiculturalism into a doctrine that "compels us to abandon our critical spirit."
She called on the audience to support what it believed was right despite the consequences.
"Yes, you will be called a racist," she said. "Get used to it. But that doesn't mean you have to reconcile with it."
Manji said she has been called a racist and worse. She said that she routinely gets threats and has bulletproof windows on her house.
Regarding the presence of Campus Police at her lecture, Manji said, "I don't live in fear but I am responsible for the people around me."
After the lecture, Manji signed copies of her book "The Trouble With Islam Today." Even students and faculty members who did not stay to get a book signed remained to debate.
"I respected her humor and as a feminist," Nicole Grieco, senior English major and ISO member, said. "But I don't see the climate of too much tolerance (Manji talked about)." Grieco said she didn't see the benefit of bringing a lecturer who was going to speak out against Islam to a predominantly white and Christian campus.
Many ISO members felt that the College had a "political agenda" in inviting Manji to speak.
Harris said she disagreed that there was any political agenda behind choosing Manji. "(The College) wants to challenge our campus community to think critically about some of the things going on in our world," she said. "This is just another example of that challenge."
"I hope that at a college campus, spirited discourse and inquiry would be a goal and not something to be avoided," Magda Manetas, director of Student Life and a member of the lecture series's selection committee, said.
Despite protests, many enjoyed the lecture.
Noel Ramirez, junior women's and gender studies and communication studies major and president of PRISM, a group dedicated to educating the campus on issues of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community, said that the lecture opened his mind. He liked Manji's idea of rediscovering your spine and said that "students at (the College) have always been inclined to say 'That's not my battle.'"
"I understood where she was coming from," Amanda Kita, freshman secondary education/chemistry major, said. She said that the political debate at the lecture was "extremely interesting."
Manji insisted that she did not want to identify with a political party. "The left can be as vicious and narrow-minded as the right," she said.
Nina Verrochi, junior international studies major, disagreed with the lecture. "She was too unwilling to listen to other opinions," she said. "I feel like she's narrowing the interpretation (of the Quran) for all Muslims."
Manji welcomed the criticism.
"I loved the tension. I loved the dissent," she said. "This is what a college campus is supposed to be about."
She said that she has "rarely encountered the kind of vigorous back-and-forth" she found at the College. "This is the pluralism I'm talking about," she said.
(03/01/06 12:00pm)
Julia Pratt, senior nursing major and executive director of the Student Finance Board (SFB), wants to set the record straight about SFB.
"There's a lot more that goes into (SFB) than what meets the eye," Pratt said.
SFB is the student-run organization responsible for distributing the Student Activities Fee collected from every student at the College to organizations and clubs.
SFB also helps pay for the Loop Bus, intramural sports, photocopiers, Planned Parenthood and the Child Care Center with the money that is a part of its budget.
"People don't realize that the SFB provides a lot of services," Pratt said. She also mentioned that SFB is responsible for updating the equipment center and managing insurance policies for the equipment.
Pratt said that she feels "as though there have been misunderstandings about what's been going on (in SFB)."
In particular, she referred to requests from club sports and for conferences.
"Club sports seem to be the red-headed stepchildren of the student organizations," A.J. Richards, junior physics major and president of the men's volleyball club, said.
The controversial conference policy this year has granted no more than $50 per person for each conference. Many student organizations, particularly club sports, have complained that this does not provide students with enough money to attend conferences.
Richards said that his organization asked for $4,500 for the national tournament but received only $500.
"While I was discouraged with SFB's decision, I can understand their reluctance to give us money for the trip," Richards said. Still, he added that it was "infuriating" to read about other organizations receiving funding "for some program I don't care about."
Pratt said that the reason for the conference policy is consistency, but she admitted that there is at least one exception to the policy.
The National Association of Campus Activities conference (NACA) received full funding this fall.
"(The NACA conference) is the only conference that actively brings something back to (the College)," Pratt said. She defended the conference, calling it "essential." Because NACA is a program designed to teach students how to run programs on college campuses, Pratt feels that the benefits of attending the conference can reach every student, rather than just a few.
"I think we've stuck to the (conference) policy," Steve Viola, sophomore business administration and finance major and Student Government Association (SGA) liaison to SFB, said.
Viola described decisions about conferences as difficult. He admitted that some conference requests could require more money than others, but he said that it was hard making that distinction.
Viola said that SFB "wants a policy where people can't say there's an unfair advantage (to any organization)."
Pratt was also concerned that many students are not familiar with SFB. She said that students may incorrectly believe that SFB does not want to give money to student organizations.
"I've heard in some cases that some people haven't gotten the money they wanted," Megan Jones, sophomore English major, said. "But I don't know anything about (SFB)."
Viola said that he addressed the problem of student unfamiliarity with SFB in the beginning of the year. Last fall, he proposed a bill to make SFB's voting records public. He said that he wanted to create a "sense of translucency" so that students would not think of SFB as a "mysterious group of students (who) are on a power trip."
Pratt pointed out that the College's finance board is unlike those she has seen at many other colleges.
She said that one of the main differences is that SFB is entirely student-run.
Viola added that SFB is rare in that it acts as a "check and balance" on SGA. In many other colleges, the student government handles finances.
Pratt said that without SFB, SGA may not be able to have, for example, a Sodexho liaison due to the volume of work for which the organization would be responsible.
Despite the difficulties of the job, Pratt said, "I love the SFB. The kids that are on my board are amazing."
She is optimistic about the future of SFB and the College and said that SFB has planned as far ahead as 2010.
One of her goals is to attract more big-name musical artists, like Gavin DeGraw, who appeared at the College in November.
"I want to see a line wrapping around the student center," she said. She hopes that SFB will be able to fund nationally recognized artists who could attract as many as 2,000 students for a concert.
Pratt pointed out that SFB meetings are open to the public and all students are welcome to attend. She also said any student can apply for an SFB position in the upcoming elections.
Interest sessions for those considering running are March 7 to 9, with elections on April 11 and 12.