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(01/22/93 10:00am)
Steve Glass doesn't drink and & doesn't smoke. And sex is definitely out. And, considering his voice, sing - ing may be a bad idea as well. So, what exactly does the Daily Pennsylvanian's new executive edi - tor do? Well, just about anything he sets his mind to. Beneath his easy-going, affable and seemingly spineless exterior, burns a fire of will and determina - tion which has propelled this Mr. Nice Guy to the newspaper's top post. "He comes across like he can be pushed around, but once he sets his mind to something nobody can push him. And I've tried," Glass' father, Jeffrey Glass. Glass, who hails from suburban Chicago -- or the "holy land" as he delutedly dubs it -- may be the ni - cest guy you ever met. In fact, Glass' only known enemy is a llama named Elvis which spat all over him while riding through the Grand Tetons a few years ago. Above all else, Glass is a man of principle. He is never at a loss for words when it comes to defending something in which he believes & strongly. And tomorrow night, as he takes the helm as executive editor, this affability and tenacity will be tested more than ever before. In addition to overseeing the & DP 's editorial and business oper - ations, Glass will also chair the & newspaper's executive board and write a bi-weekly column -- named, ironically enough, "Enemy of the People." Glass said his main goal for the upcoming year is to make the DP more reader friendly. "I want to get in touch with what readers want," he said. Glass comes to his position after three semesters of stellar reporting and a semester of editing. His re - sume also includes a short stint as mayor of his hometown Highland Park and a seat on the town's envir - onmental committee. Glass, an anthropology major, is a strong presence everywhere he goes. While in Boston, he led a & state-wide Pro-Choice demonstra - tion at the ripe age of 16. And while in Arizona, years ago, he set fire to a dude ranch. Here in the Pink Palace, you can't miss him. DP Managing Editor-Elect Scott Calvert said he is like a little kid in candy store sometimes, spreading an "infectious enthusiasm" & throughout the newsroom. Glass is also still a legend at & Highland Park High School, where he was a national standout debater, collecting over 25 debating awards. HPHS still boasts the Steve Glass rule in biology -- no lab can be over eight pages. And several current school leaders still call Glass their mentor. One even adopted his love of argyle socks. But the DP's new CEO was not always the most well-behaved kid. He used to place "For Sale" signs on the lawns of neighbors he did not like. And once he broke a toilet by trying to flush a cinammon tin down it. Although it did not go down the drain right away, true to form, & Glass perisisted until he met suc - cess. Unfortunately, success meant a clogged commode. Some of Glass' lesser known es - capades include a summer of love at Harvard Summer School, where he spent six weeks cohabitating & with a fellow female student. And an even lesser known erotic frolic on a Highland Park beach. Even when he sleeps alone, Glass has proved an endless source of entertainment. He is a notorious sleepwalker and sleeptalker. Former roommate Joon Chong recounted one evening in particular when Glass mumbled the name of a fellow hallmate and former DP staf - fer in which he was interested. "He talked about her in his & sleep . . . muttering her & name all night," the College junior said. Glass is also a real "family man." He, himself, admits his family is the most important thing in his life. "He is very involved with us as a family," said Glass' mother Michele Glass. "He keeps the family cohe - sive. He is there for everyone." "He is a great older brother," Mi - chael Glass, 16, said. "I always & looked up to him and respected & him . . .You could talk to him about everything from sex to sports to board games." Perhaps the most endearing, no, frustrating, part of Glass' personal - ity is his questioning "Are you mad at me?" Everyone who knows Glass talks of countless times he asked this patented question. Calvert, who has been friends & with Glass since their days as re - porters, said he asks it so much it is almost as if he does not mean it. "I don't think he gives a damn," Calvert said. Well, whether he cares or not, Glass has vowed to continue his sensitive ways. And why not -- this nice guy has come out on top.
(03/02/92 10:00am)
Editors at college newspapers across the country said last night they are pleased with a Georgia court ruling allowing college newspapers access to student organizations' judicial records. Editors at both private and public schools said their school administrations frequently cite the Family Educational Records Privacy Act of 1974 to deny them access to files concerning disciplinary action taken against organizations. "We were waiting for this decision," Rutgers University The Daily Targum Editor-in-Chief Rebecca Quick said last night. "We are looking into the case." The Red and the Black, the independent student newspaper of the University of Georgia, won a partial victory last month in its lawsuit aimed at gaining access to the school's Organization Court -- the body which investigates student groups, specifically fraternities and sororities. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Frank Hull ruled the FERPA, which the University says is the backbone of its general records policy, does not apply to disciplinary records, Red and Black Editor-in-Chief Lance Helms said last month. Hull ruled that FERPA, which is commonly referred to as the Buckley Amendment, only applies to academic performance records, Helms said. Under the ruling Red and Black reporters will have access to all judicial records concerning organizations in both past and future cases, but are not allowed to attend the meetings. Helms added the paper will appeal the decision to the state supreme court to gain access to meetings. "It is implicit in the term educational institution that a university will educate its students about what constitutes appropriate and acceptable behavior," the College junior said last night. "Only through opening judicial records will this crucial aspect of education be successfully fulfilled." Currently, the University's judicial records are confidential and can not be viewed by reporters or anyone else not directly involved in the case. Indiana Daily Student Managing Editor Bruce Gray said his paper does not have access to judicial proceedings concerning organizations. He noted that Indiana University claims the records are condsidered an interdepartmental investigation which is protected by state law. "But there is an arrangement [under which] they will tell us what's going on," Gray said last night. "And they have been pretty good." Gray added that his independent newspaper, however, may use this case to demand more information through the Freedom of Information Act. Daniel Restrepo, editor-in-chief of The Cavalier Daily, the University of Virginia's independent newspaper, said his paper has "had trouble in the past" gaining access to the records. But UVA students will vote today on a school-wide referendum to open all of the judicial records that are "nonpersonally identifiable," Restrepo said. Restrepo said the referendum may open up judicial files at UVA, but noted that Cavalier Daily will still look into the Georgia decision and see how it applies to their state school. (CUT LINE) Please see EDITORS, page 5 EDITORS, from page 1
(02/27/92 10:00am)
JIO found student guilty of 1991 rape A Zeta Beta Tau brother was expelled last semester after the University judicial system found him guilty of raping a woman at a January 1991 party in the house, sources said yesterday. But the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office declined last June to press charges against the man. According to several sources, the woman, a Harvard University student, was visiting her sister who attends the University when she was allegedly raped on January 26, 1991. The woman made a report to Harvard Police on March 19, almost two months after the incident. University Police and Philadelphia Police Sex Crimes division were informed on March 29. University officials said the ZBT brother was a sophomore at the time of the incident. Assistant District Attorney Dianne Granlund, who heads the city's rape prosecution unit, said because the case was never taken to court, there is no court file and the name of the student cannot be released. The University judicial system does not release the names of alleged assailants, citing the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act which is designed to protect students' academic records. Harvard University Police Chief Paul Johnson said last year the victim reported the incident to Harvard Police, who then reported it to University Police. Johnson also said the woman had taken a leave of absence from Harvard at the time. Former Judicial Inquiry Officer Constance Goodman, who investigated the incident, declined to comment last night on the specifics of the case. "I will not comment on the painful specifics of this significant case, but I will say that the type of conduct to which you have referred will not be tolerated by this University," Goodman said. "Any member of the University community who is duly proven to be involved in such behavior will be rightly ousted." And ZBT President Matthew Feinsod also declined last night to comment on the case. "Whatever happened, if anything, was handled by the judicial committee of the University and is confidential," he said. "And it would be inappropriate for me to comment." One University official, who asked not to be named, called the expulsion "a major win" for women at the University. And another source, who has been in contact with the victim, said yesterday the woman is pleased with the sanction. While several victim support officials declined to comment on this specific case, they said that the University has made strides in handling rape reports. Penn Women's Center Director Elena DiLapi said she feels the University judicial system has dealt appropriately with most cases. "In a number of cases the system is responding pretty well," DiLapi said, adding that the system is not completely effective because women are "afraid to report because of the social power that fraternities have and [because of fear of] real retaliation." "It is a pattern that people are afraid to come forward," DiLapi said. DiLapi emphasized that the University's system looks particularly good in comparason to peer institutions nationwide. "As much work as our system needs, we are the good news," DiLapi said. Director of Victim Support Services Ruth Wells also said that sanctions for students who are found guilty of rape through the University judicial system are fair. "The University, with the information that it has about all of the cases that are referred either to the [Vice Provost for University Life's] office or the JIO, does take appropriate action," Wells said. Wells, who has been at the University for 15 years, said she is aware of several cases in which students were expelled or left the school voluntarily following a charge of rape by the judicial system. Since her arrival at the University in 1985, DiLapi said she is aware of only one student expulsion because of a charge of rape. ZBT had been on probation since the fall of 1989 as a result of a 1988 incident in which brothers hired two strippers for a rush event. During the strip show, several spectators performed sexual acts upon the women with cucumbers and ketchup. The incident led to an 18-month suspension of the fraternity. While the fraternity was not found collectively responsible, former JIO Goodman, said last spring that if the fraternity had been found responsible as a group it could have affected the probation. Staff writer Jeremy Brosowsky contributed to this story.
(10/09/91 9:00am)
Prosecutors withdrew all criminal charges yesterday against two men accused of raping a Temple University student at a fraternity house last month. But soon after the ruling, Temple administrators revoked official recognition of the Alpha Phi Delta fraternity, the house in which the alleged gang rape occurred. Temple spokesperson George Ingram said last night that this was the first time in his 20 years at Temple that a fraternity has lost its recognition. "Our position was that no matter what the [District Attorney] found, what happened in the fraternity on September 12 was not the kind of behavior one expects from a civilized society," Ingram said. Assistant District Attorney Dianne Granlund, chief of the city's Rape Unit, told the judge that it appeared that the ''sexual intercourse did not rise to the level of unlawful sexual intercourse.'' The defendants, 23-year-old Michael Derita and 22-year-old Raymond Evers, were arrested September 13, the day after the alleged incident at the off-campus frat house. The two men had been charged with rape, indecent assault, indecent exposure, conspiracy and unlawful restraint. Municipal Court Judge Louis Presenza agreed to drop the charges, calling the whole incident ''unfortunate.'' ''Sometimes things get out of hand,'' he said. ''I don't know what the answer is . . . The young men and women need to use more common sense.'' Ingram said that the university cannot bring disciplinary charges against any of the individual students because the fraternity house is off campus. Students living in the fraternity house may continue to live there since the house is privately owned, but the fraternity may not participate in any university sanctioned activies. Ingram added that while the decision to withdraw recognition was unanimous, the fraternity may apply for re-recognition in the future. But Assistant DA Granlund said dropping the charges should not be construed as an exoneration of the fraternity members. ''I would not send my daughter to a party at that place,'' she said. The charges were filed after a 19-year-old student told police that she had been gang-raped at the frat house by four Temple students and two former students. Derita and Evers were the only suspects arrested in the case. ''They are not angels,'' Granlund said after the hearing. ''They took advantage of a young woman in the fraternity that night.'' Granlund and Captain Richard Bullick, of the Philadelphia Police Sex Crimes unit, both declined to give details of their investigation, but said additional witnesses had been interviewed. Defense attorney Charles Peruto said the female student had encouraged and invited the sexual activity. He said she had set the party up and bought the beer, and decided the encounter was rape only after hearing two of the men joke about the incident the next day. The woman was not at the hearing. Derita, a recent alumnus of Temple who sells real estate, said after the hearing that the charges had seriously disrupted his life. He refused to say whether he thought what he and Evers did was wrong. ''Whether what we did was immoral was one thing. Whether what we did was illegal is another,'' he said. Both he and Evers said they were sorry for their part in the bad publicity for the university and the fraternity, but not for the female student. ''She's the person that started this mess,'' Evers said. Both men said the woman's name should have been made public. ''If it's right for our names to be published, it's right for her name to be published,'' Derita said. Another rape case at Temple, reported just days after the frat incident last month, is still pending. Facing charges in that case is Mark McGraw, a son of former Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Tug McGraw. The Associated Press contributed to this story
(01/17/91 10:00am)
Faculty members said last night they are uncertain what will happen next in the Middle East, but said that they are certain students will not sit idly by watching the events unfold. Several history and political science professors, many of whom specialize in Middle Eastern politics, said that they expect the invasion to intensify political debate on campus. And these projections proved to be fairly accurate. As the professors made their predictions last night at their off-campus homes, more than 200 students were rallying on campus against the war. Assistant Political Science Professor Graham Walker said that although many students may not fully understand all the issues prompting military action in the Persian Gulf, they will begin to air their feelings in the coming days. "No doubt, some students will become more vocal," Walker said last night, hours after fighting broke out. "Very few students will think they have mastered the complexities of the issue, but those who do think they have will probably be very dogmatic and very intolerant of those who have doubts on either point of view." History Professor Michael Katz said that student opinion will be polarized about the "legitimacy of this war." "I don't think there will be much apathy," he said. "I think students will be actively engaged and involved whatever their position is." Nearly all the professors made comparisons to the Vietnam era, a time of unprecedented student protest and activism. Political Science Professor Donald Smith said that he does not think students will become involved to the degree of their late 1960's counterparts because of a significantly different political atmosphere. "First, in Vietnam, the draft played a very visible role because it was a personal threat to students," he said last night. "Second, Vietnam dragged on. Student reaction to Vietnam is not likely to be repeated. The degree of international support for the war really makes the Vietnam analogy very shaky. I am not saying, however, that there may not be a huge outcry." Penn Israel Exchange Program Director Norman Oler, who said that he vividly remembers the turmoil of the Vietnam conflict, noted a discrepancy between student reaction to the current crisis and Vietnam. Oler said that the issues are more clearly defined, adding that the widespread support from the world community makes the situation far different from that in Southeast Asia. "When the whole current crisis began to unfold, I hoped and prayed the world could and would not be torn like it was in the Vietnam tragedy," he said. History Professor Drew Faust, who noted that her college career was colored by the Vietnam conflict, said she did not believe the United States would attack as soon as yesterday. "I thought it would not happen for another day," she said. "It was a real shock. Somehow you can't believe something this horrible would happen. You keep hoping something would avert this." "What troubles me is the tremendous confidence of people who undertake war," she added. "They are seldom right and that scares me. I was in college during the Vietnam War and it is so poignant in my mind." Faust, however, said there is a possibility of racial and religious tension on campus because of the war. She said she thinks there may be a division between Jewish and Arab students, something that was not prevalent during the Vietnam War because there were not many Vietnamese students at American Universities. "I think the identity of different groups may lead to a division and there wasn't that identification during the Vietnam War," she said. Although war may occupy students' thoughts outside of the classroom, professors said that they do not want to let the issue dominate their lectures. Adam Garfinkle, who specializes in the Middle East in the political science department, said that he will not ignore other topics in his course to concentrate on the conflict. "The syllabus was created long before the invasion of Kuwait and I'm not going to change it now," he said yesterday. "I'm not going to allow the crisis to devour the course." Faust, who is teaching the history of the American South this semester, said that she is somewhat uneasy keeping her lecture schedule because the crisis is dominating students' thoughts. "How can I give a lesson on secession?" she said. But, she said she would still go ahead with her plans and just try to incorporate the war into the course.
(12/06/90 10:00am)
After a change of ownership and over $100,000 worth of renovations, Troy's Restaurant and Deli could be serving eggels and cheese fries as soon as next week, owner John Kollias said yesterday. On May 18, state police banned Troy's former owners, who operated the restaurant for almost 20 years, from selling alcohol. The next day, they returned and closed the popular late-night hangout for operating without a food retail permit. Kollias, who will run the restaurant with partner Bill Hotzopoulos, said that he did not know the restaurant was not allowed to sell alcohol or that it was violating any laws by operating with the expired food license, since it had not yet received a new license. The previous owners were members of Kollias' family. Kollias said that Troy's will have the same core of employees and maintain the same atmosphere as before. "It will still be run like a family business," he said. The restaurant has undergone extensive renovations, including tripling the kitchen's grill capacity and installing new panelling and counters. Troy's will keep the same hours, staying open until 4 or 5 a.m. during the week and 24 hours on the weekend. Kollias said that Troy's menu will be essentially the same, but that he will emphasize more health food. But since he does not yet have the money to purchase a liquor license, Kollias said, he will not sell liqour. "We will still have the junk food, fresh vegetables and brown rice," Kollias said. Kollias said that if he gets enough money, he will buy a liquor license from the old owners. Kollias said he must get the appropriate health and retail permits from the state and city before he can open. He added that he is angry with the state for closing down many of the area bars. "I don't know why the state keeps putting people out of business."
(12/05/90 10:00am)
September 4 was scheduled to be the first day of classes at Temple University. But for most teachers and many students, it was the beginning of a month-long faculty strike accompanied by student protest and bitterness on all sides. Temple's faculty union called for the walkout, which began September 4 and lasted 29 days, after a disagreement between teachers and administrators over a university contract offer. After three months of on-and-off negotiations, student protests and threats of a second strike, the union and the Temple administration have yet to reach a contract agreement. The contract offer called for a five percent salary increase for faculty and a co-payment of $260 per year towards their health insurance. The offer fell 2.5 percent short of the faculty's salary request, and union members were also dissatisfied with the co-payment, which they said would set a precedent for the administration to make decisions without consulting the faculty. Teachers took to the picket lines for a month, leaving over 23,000 students without at least one class and 6000 students with none. At the height of the strike, the faculty union estimated that over 70 percent of classes had been canceled. On October 3, Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Samuel Lehrer ordered striking Temple faculty members back to the classroom. He issued an injunction saying that the walkout had damaged education for about 29,000 students. · During the strike, over 1800 students withdrew from the university, and Liacouras reported last month that Temple lost over $10 million in tuition revenues. But throughout the strike those students who stayed protested the walkout and harassed the administration for not offering an "acceptable" contract. Daily protests shook the North Philadelphia campus. Students and faculty members chastised Liacouras for his "lack of commitment to education" and lack of interaction with faculty. Students burned Liacouras in effigy, chanting "Peter, Peter, tuition eater." The Graduate Student Employee Association went on strike for two days during the first week of the faculty strike to call attention to the needs of the school's 750 graduate teaching and research assistants. Seven graduate students were arrested in September for blocking the entrance to Liacouras' office. In late September, over 50 students moved into Feinstein Lounge, located across from Liacouras' office, to show their support for the striking faculty and to voice there desire for classes to resume. The group, which called themselves Students United for Education, followed a daily schedule -- starting with revele and ending with a campfire chat. Wake-up was at 8:30 a.m., when students went into the hallway to "welcome" Liacouras to his office. They then met to decide on the day's events, which ranged from sit-ins on Broad Street to an open forum at the Bell Tower -- the center of the Temple campus. For the rest of the day, students either went to classes, if they had any, to work, or just stayed at the SUE headquarters. At 10 p.m. the students sat and talked about the day's events. Four students were arrested, after defying a university order to vacate the lounge. · The faculty rejected another university contract offer in November, by a ratio of over 2-to-1. The offer called for across-the-board five-percent salary increase in each of the next five years, plus an increase of one percent in January 1992 and January 1994. The contract proposal included the $260 co-payment, but stipulated that the payment will be refunded if health-care costs do not rise more than six percent per year. Faculty union president Arthur Hochner said in October that the faculty would consider walking out again next semester if no contract agreement is reached. But Temple administrators said that Judge Lehrer's injunction forcing teachers back to work forbade any discussion of another strike. The injunction prohibits the teacher's union from encouraging and promoting a strike until a hearing sometime next year. Meanwhile, Temple is unleashing a campaign to lure old students back to the school and attract new students. Liacouras announced at a Board of Trustees meeting last week that comedian Bill Cosby, Temple's "most famous graduate" and a university trustee, will participate in a series of advertisements aimed at reinforcing "what is good about Temple." Liacouras said in the speech to the trustees that he hopes the commercials will remind the administration about what it means to "have this fine institution in this region and in this country." Last month, Temple's administration extended the fall semester to January 15 to allow teachers who walked the picket lines more time to finish their courses. The spring semester, originally scheduled to begin on January 15, is now slated to begin on January 21.
(12/03/90 10:00am)
Final exams will be unusually stressful for the thousands of Temple University students who are struggling to cram in course material they missed during the 29-day faculty walkout this fall. The walkout, which began on the first day of classes, left over 23,000 students without at least one class and 6000 students with none at all. Now professors are trying to squeeze in the coursework missed at the beginning of the semester in preperation for finals this month. "They are cramming in the work," said Randi Barron, a journalism major. "We all have tons of papers and exams." Last month, Temple's administration extended the fall semester to January 15 to allow teachers who walked the picket lines more time to finish their courses. The spring semester, originally scheduled to begin on January 15, is now slated to begin on January 21. Most finals will be administered during class time this semester. Since there is no official final examination week, some students will have only one week of winter break and spend the rest of the time in class. "I hate missing vacation," said junior Tiffany Foust, who will have to go to her Human Resource Administration class over winter break. "I am feeling the crunch," said freshman Chris Cotton. Junior Victoria Thierry, a Finance and Risk Management Insurance major, said that she will have to wade through six exams in one week, and three in one day to avoid having to miss any of her winter recess. Temple faculty went on strike on September 4, the first day of classes, to protest a contract proposal. Classes resumed October 3 after Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Samuel Lehrer issued an injunction ordering the striking faculty members back to the classrooms. Throughout the semester, faculty who had participated in the walkout have tried to make up classes by holding more hours of class per week and meeting on the weekends.
(12/03/90 10:00am)
Comedian Bill Cosby will try to sell Temple University to the public in an upcoming series of television and radio commercials -- part of a campaign to lure old students back and to attract new students. Temple President Peter Liacouras announced at a Board of Trustees meeting last week that Cosby, Temple's "most famous graduate" and a university trustee, will try to bring back some of the 1800 students who withdrew from the university during the 29-day faculty strike this fall. The Temple president reported last month that the university had lost over $10 million in tuition revenue because of the strike. About one-third of the freshman class reportedly withdrew. Temple officials will also try to attract new students. Liacouras said that the advertising campaign is aimed at reinforcing what is good about Temple. He said in the speech to the trustees that he hopes the commercials will remind the administration about "what is good about Temple" and what it means to "have this fine institution in this region and in this country." Cosby will start recording the ads sometime this week.
(11/28/90 10:00am)
The University is not the only college in West Philadelphia, and its students and staff are not alone in feeling pressure, anger and fear over increasing crime in the area. They are not alone. Drexel University and the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science -- both located a few blocks from the University -- have enacted similar security measures, and students at those schools have also become more aware of the crime problem and what they can do to counter it. Richard Schneider, Drexel's senior vice president for administration, said yesterday that the school's security programs -- which include a shuttle service, a town watch, security guards in buildings and identification card readers in the dormitories -- seem to be effective. Drexel Director of Security James Powell would not be interviewed this week about the security situation at Drexel. Still, several Drexel students said this week that the measures are not enough. They perceive an increase in crime in the area, and complained that many of those security measures are ineffective. Like their neighbors at the University, many Drexel students move off campus. Schneider said there are 11,500 students at Drexel, about 60 percent of whom live either in campus residences or housing close to campus. The other 40 percent commute to school. Drexel's shuttle system operates from 5:15 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. every night, taking students to designated stops around campus. The two shuttle vans, known as the Dragon Wagons, travel in a loop and operate on a fixed time schedule. There is a van at each stop every 30 minutes, Schneider said. Drexel also has a reciprocal agreement with the University's Escort Service. But some students said that they do not like to take the shuttle because it takes too long to come. "People don't take it because they don't think it is worth the wait," said Kim Skoloff, fourth-year finance and accounting major. Drexel also has a neighborhood watch program, run by fraternities. Schneider said that the watch was named as one of President George Bush's "thousand points of light" last year. Students, mostly fraternity brothers, patrol the neighborhood around Drexel's campus in pairs and communicate with the local police district via telephone and walkie-talkie. The program is similar to the University's Penn Watch program. Drexel students said that the majority of crime occurs near dormitories and off-campus housing. But Schneider said that while the university is aware of the thefts on campus, less is known about off-campus crimes, since the incidents are frequently reported to Philadelphia Police, if they are reported at all. The school recently installed a $200,000 card-reader system to prevent unwanted entrants to the dormitories, Schneider said. But the measures have not reassured all of Drexel's students. Marketing senior Paula Grafstein said that her apartment has been broken into three times in the past year. She said crime has become intolerable. "I can't wait to graduate and get out of here," Grafstein said. · The Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science, located southwest of the University near 43rd and Kingsessing streets, has also instituted crime-prevention measures, said PCPS Director of Security Tim Michener. PCPS has walking and van escort services which operate 24 hours a day, every day. Michener said that escort service was used over 1700 times in September alone. PCPS has about 1500 students. Assistant Dean of Students Patty O'Hagan said one-third of them live on campus, one-third live off campus and the remainder commute. "We go out to the students, we try to contact as many as possible, " Michener said. "We have more of a proactive approach than a reactive approach." PCPS also employs 21 officers who provide round-the-clock coverage, seven days a week. Dormitories at PCPS are guarded all day and night by either security guards or other residence hall employees. Students must present a student identification card to gain access to the dormitories. Assistant Dean O'Hagan said that the administration has been selling personal alarm devices. For $5.50, the college's students and employees can purchase a device with a plug that, when removed, will let off a loud noise. The alarm can also be used to protect dormitory rooms from intruders. Michener said that an alert bulletin giving information about the location and nature of crimes, and general crime prevention tips, are posted around campus and handed out to students. "Most students are cautious," he said. "We try to put crime in perspective. We try to make them aware of what is going on. Our system is excellent." Michener said that there is a lot of dialogue between area schools -- a crime prevention group comes together to share ideas and information. "If we had a problem here we would notify others and they would notify us," he said. So far this year, there have been three off-campus robberies reported, two of which were strong-arm robberies and one in which the victim was held at gunpoint, according to Michener. One of the victims received scratches on her throat and chest. There have also been about 20 to 30 crimes on campus, the majority of which were thefts of wallets, calculators and other "crimes of opportunity," he said. Last year there were 72 crimes of this nature. O'Hagan, who is chairperson of the PCPS Security Committee -- where faculty and students come to air their gripes -- said that she does not have the impression that there is an unusually high crime rate on campus. She said that she has not received any complaints so far this year from students. "There is a crime problem in any big city," she said. "We have not been bombarded."
(11/21/90 10:00am)
The state Liquor Control Board may decide as soon as this week whether to renew the liquor licences of two popular campus hangouts. In October, the LCB rejected the license renewal applications of Kelly and Cohen Restaurant and the Backstreet Cafe because of the establishments' histories of serving alcohol to minors, according to LCB spokesperson Donna Pinkham. Owners of both restaurants appealed the decision, and said yesterday that they are confident their licenses will be renewed. Kelly and Cohen owner Vinesh Vyas said he had "no problem" getting the stay in Harrisburg, because, he said, the LCB had not given him time to appeal before "snatching" his license. Backstreet owner Mark Wright also said he received the stay because he believed he was not given due process. Vyas said that although business was slow for a while, it has picked up after more people found out that Kelly and Cohen is allowed to serve alcohol. Vyas said that he will increase advertising next week. Vyas said that he is optimistic that the LCB will reverse its decision but he added that he is concerned that the LCB has taken so long to reach a verdict. Backstreet closed November 5 because owner Mark Wright said he needed "a little break" after his license was not renewed. The bar reopened last Thursday, but Wright said that business is down because a lot of people do not know that Backstreet is open and serving alcohol. Panos Bomis, owner of High Rise Bar and Restaurant, whose liquor license renewal was also rejected, said last week that he will not serve alcoholic beverages even if his license is renewed. Bomis said that he, too, will appeal the LCB's decision. But he said that if he is successful he will sell his license, which is worth between $25,000 and $30,000. "Nowadays the law enforcemet sees me as a criminal," Bomis said last week. "I can't take it. . . them looking at me like this."
(11/15/90 10:00am)
The owner of the High Rise Bar and Restaurant said that he will no longer sell alcoholic beverages even if his liquor license is renewed. Owner Panos Bomis, whose license renewal was rejected by the state Liquor Control Board after it expired on October 31, said that it is no longer worth the trouble for him to sell alcohol. "Nowadays the law enforcement sees me as a criminal," Bomis said. "I can't take it. . . them looking at me like this." The LCB has heard both appeals and should reach a verdict soon, according to Ilene Onufer, an LCB secretary. High Rise's Bomis said he, too, will appeal the LCB's decision. If he is succesful, he said, he will sell the license, which is worth between $25,000 and $30,000. Bomis said business has dropped off over the last few weeks because he cannot serve alcoholic beverages. But he added that he hopes food business will pick up. Kelly and Cohen owner Vinesh Vyas said he had "no problem" getting the stay in Harrisburg, because, he said, the LCB had not given him time to appeal before "snatching" his license. Backstreet owner Mark Wright also said he received the stay because due process was not followed. Vyas said that business has been down because many people do not know that Kelly and Cohen can serve alcohol. He also said that business at Poor Richard's Deli Restaurant, which he also owns, has been slower because he could not sell alcohol there, either. Backstreet closed November 5 and is scheduled to reopen today. Wright said that he needed to "take a little break" after his license expired. "All this gets on my nerves," he said. "I don't think I am a nuisance." Wright said that he does his best to ensure that his patrons have proper identification. LCB spokesperson Donna Pinkham said the three establishments have histories of citations for serving alcohol to minors. High Rise was cited four times this year for serving minors. For the first offense the restaurant received a $1750 fine, for the second a $1000 fine and for the third a $1200 fine and a three-day suspension of its liquor license. The fourth citation has not yet been adjudicated. Kelly and Cohen was fined $1200 in 1989 for serving 16 minors and received a two-day suspension earlier this year for serving five minors.
(11/07/90 10:00am)
Campus polling places were virtually empty throughout most of the day yesterday, as only a few students among the thousands of registered University-area voters turned out to cast their ballots. When the polls closed at 8 p.m., 81 people had voted at Irvine Auditorium, the polling location for students living in Hill House, sections of Superblock and the Greek houses on Spruce Street between 39th and 40th streets. Sixteen people had voted at the Christian Association building, the location for residents of the Quadrangle, Stouffer College House, parts of Superblock and Locust Walk fraternities. Eighty people out of the over 700 student voters from the Law School dormitories, Graduate Towers, Kings Court/English House and the Greek houses on Walnut Street between 38th and 39th streets had come to vote at International House. Seventy-three people voted at the Dental School, the location for students living off-campus just west of the University. · Those students who did come out to vote said that the abortion issue drew them to the polls. Many voting yesterday afternoon said that they voted for Auditor General Barbara Hafer, a Republican, for governor of Pennsylvania because of her pro-choice stance. College junior Elizabeth Gerst, a Democrat who voted at Irvine, said she almost always adheres to party lines. But she voted on the abortion issue. Wharton senior Michael Pohly, who voted at the Christian Association, said that he voted for Hafer, following the recommendations in the pro-choice voter's guide which he received on Locust Walk. "If you don't vote, you can't bitch," Pohly said. Some students who tried to vote encountered difficulties at the voting booths. Some went to the wrong polling place, others found they were not registered. College sophomore Rachel Cohen came to Irvine prepared to cast her ballot, but was told by poll workers that she was not on the books. Cohen called Voter Registration and discovered that she was registered to vote in her hometown, Huntington Valley, Pennsylvania. "It is frustrating," she said. "I just yelled at everyone for not voting, and I may not be able to myself." Poll workers said that they usually do not get a large student turnout during the day because of classes. Greg Howard, who oversees the polls at Irvine, said that he "hate[s] sending . . . away" people who are not on his rolls. Howard said this year's election was "small," and that usually only 100 students vote at Irvine. In a mayoral election, over 300 students turn out, he said. While they knew about the gubernatorial candidates Hafer and Democratic incumbent Robert Casey and their stances, students seemed uncertain about the other candidates. First-year Medical student Robertson Tucker said he wanted to vote, but was not sure if he would because he did not know enough about races other than the gubernatorial contest. He said he would vote for Casey, and after deliberating for five minutes outside the polls, decided to go in and vote. Stephen Glass, Liz Herman, Raji Jagadeesan and Beth Mantz contributed to this story.
(11/01/90 10:00am)
The liquor licenses of three popular local restaurants expired last night, making it illegal for the establishments to serve alcoholic beverages. Pinkham said the bar owners have already appealed the LCB's decision, but that none of the appeal dates have been set. High Rise and Kelly and Cohen will remain open, but Backstreet owner Mark Wright said last night that he is not sure if his restaurant will reopen today. Wright said he plans to consult his attorney before deciding if it will be worth it for him to remain open without a liquor license. "[My business] is about 50/50 food and alcohol," he said. "Right now it is up in the air." Until the LCB hears the appeals, the three restaurants can apply to the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania for a stay, which would allow them to serve alcoholic beverages until their re-hearing. But according to LCB records, none of the owners have applied for stays. If the restaurants serve alcohol without licenses, they receive a citation and risk what Pinkham called "serious" fines. High Rise and Kelly and Cohen owners were not available for comment last night. Pinkham said that the restaurant owners showed a "blatant disregard" for the law by continuing to serve minors even after being fined several times in the past by the LCB. Backstreet was cited four times in the past two years for serving minors and received a seven-day suspension last year, Pinkham said. High Rise was cited four times this year alone for serving minors, she said. For the first offense the restaurant received a $1750 fine, for the second a $1000 fine, and for the third a $1200 fine and three-day suspension of the liquor license. The fourth citation has not been adjudicated. Kelly and Cohen was fined $1200 in 1989 for serving 16 minors and received a two-day suspension earlier this year for serving five minors, Pinkham said. Although the bars have filed for appeals, Pinkham said that in the past, only a few appeals have been successful. The bars must first appeal to the LCB, asking the board to reconsider its original deicision. Pinkham said the restaurant owners must show reasons "why they should be open." The LCB can either uphold or reverse its previous decision to not renew the licenses. If the LCB rejects the appeal, the next appeal is made to the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. From there an appeal goes through the Pennsylvania courts, if the higher courts are willing to hear the cases.
(10/30/90 10:00am)
Meyerson Hall B-1 was as quiet as a mouse yesterday morning. Quiet, that is, until one scurried across the room. During the first 20 minutes of a History 164 midterm, the only stirring was the scribbling of over 400 pens until a row of pensive students spotted the furry rodent scampering underneath their seats. Screams and laughter filled the air for the rest of the 55-minute Recent American History exam. Some students picked their feet up off the ground and others moved their bags and jackets in hopes of escaping the furry creature. History 164 Professor Bruce Kuklick, who missed the mousecapade, said he found the incident funny. A teaching assistant told him about it immediately after the exam. This was not Kuklick's first brush with four-legged exam visitors. A squirrel crawled into College Hall 200 during an exam he was giving a few years ago. Kuklick said he does not believe that the "rodent trauma" affected exam results and that the incident provided an opportunity for stress relief. And Teaching Assistant Allison Isenberg, who spotted the mouse twice as she proctored the exam, said no one was seriously shaken up by the incident. "No one really freaked out," Isenberg said. "It seemed like everyone figured it out." But at least one student said reaction to the mouse caused him to lose his concentration. "People [in the vicinity of the mouse] should've had more time to finish," College junior Jon Shiff said yesterday. While Kuklick said the mouse incident was humorous, he was quick to add that there was a serious problem with the exam setting -- he said many seats in Meyerson B-1 are broken and unusable. "I am sorry this happened," Kuklick said. "It was funny and you can't prevent it from happening, but you can prevent having a building in bad shape."
(10/29/90 10:00am)
Hours after reaching a tentative contract agreement with university officials last Thursday, Temple University faculty members called for the ouster of President Peter Liacouras. The faculty senate voted 116-1 last Thursday to support a resolution calling for the removal of Liacouras after the second faculty strike in four years. The resolution will be mailed this week to 1391 faculty members, who will then vote on the non-binding proposal. Throughout the 29-day faculty walkout earlier this semester, Temple students and faculty members chastised Liacouras for his "lack of commitment to education" and a lack of interaction with faculty. In daily protests during the strike, students burned Liacouras in effigy chanting "Peter, Peter tuition eater." Liacouras, who was promoted to university president in 1982 after serving 10 years as Temple Law School Dean, said last week that he did not consider the resolution a personal attack. "When passions run high, it is better to have the criticism directed at the president, than one faculty member to another," he said. Richard Fox, chairman of the Temple board of trustees called the motion for Liacouras' removal "inappropriate," adding that the board supports the president. The faculty union and administrators reached an agreement on a tentative contract after seven months of "on-and-off" negotiations and the 29-day faculty strike. Faculty members will vote this Thursday on the proposed contract which, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer, calls for across-the-board five-percent salary increases in each of the next five years, plus an increase of one percent in January 1992 and two percent in January 1994. An annual health insurance contribution, one of the major points of contention between the two sides during negotiations, will remain at $260, but will be refunded if health-care costs do not rise more than six percent per year. The agreement also includes pay for teachers making up classes during winter break that were canceled by the strike. The semester was extended until January 15 to make up class time lost during the strike. Arthur Hochner, the Temple faculty union president, said last week that he hopes the faculty will approve the proposed contract. Temple faculty went on strike September 4, the first day of classes, to protest a university-proposed contract. The proposal fell short of union demands for a seven percent pay increase and no health copayment. On October 3, Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Samuel Lehrer ordered striking Temple faculty members back to the classroom, ending the 29-day walkout. Lehrer issued the injunction saying that the walkout had damaged education for about 29,000 students and also harmed the public. The walkout left over 23,000 students without at least one class and 6000 students with no classes. The strike also led to daily protests at the North Philadelphia campus, including blockades of Broad Street and a sit-in next to Liacouras' office. More than 1800 students withdrew from the university during the strike. The Associated Press contributed to this story
(10/24/90 9:00am)
Many Philadelphia commuters who can't make it home in time for the evening news are catching the latest weather and sports information -- with plenty of commercials -- before they even board their homebound trains. Three years ago, Metro Vision, a computer-operated cable television network, installed television monitors and projection screens in several high-volume SEPTA terminals. The screens broadcast round-the-clock advertisements and information to thousands of commuters. The company, which is owned by the Syracuse-based Metro Vision of North America, developed the system four years ago with the sole purpose of providing a unique passenger information system for mass transit commuters, said Joe Calabrese, Metro Vision vice president. · Although the system features news, weather and sports information, revised train schedules and a trivia quiz, many commuters seem overwhelmed by the advertising segments. Several lunchtime commuters passing through the Blue Line's 8th Street and 15th Street stations yesterday said that the system seems to offer mainly advertising and very little substanitive information. "I would rather read the paper," said Doug Jones, a New Jersey resident who said he rides SEPTA a few times each week. "It is just advertising, who cares what advertising there is." The program runs in a loop as a series of still photographs with text, and is divided into three segments. The first segment is input by the transit authority, which is used to announce delay or schedule information. "If there is an emergency situation of some kind we can get right out to the passengers," she said. The second segment is used for entertainment purposes, providing news, weather, sports and trivia. And the third segment is for select advertising, which is run through the Syracuse office. Calabrese said Philadelphia advertisers include ABC News, Miller Brewing Co., Dow Jones and WCAU-TV. Some commuters said that Metro Vision is most useful when they cannot get home in time for the evening news. Carol Wicker, a Philadelphian who uses SEPTA each day to get to and from work, said that she does not pay attention to Metro Vision in the morning because she is either "engaged in conversation" or waiting far from the Metro Vision screens. But she does watch the screens when she is taking the subway home late at night. "It is good at night because if it is late it is nice to find out what is going on in the world," she said. Abdula Muquit, who works at a kiosk at the 15th Street station, said that while the system may be "interesting," the information it disseminates is not always correct. "Sometimes it is interesting, but a lot of the stuff isn't true," he said. Muquit could not remember any specific examples. And for many area high school students who commute to school by subway, the system serves as a diversion from the wait for the subway. "It is a good time killer," said Tabitha Harrison, a student at Girls' High School. "It keeps you occupied while waiting. "It does show that SEPTA cares about you beside just raising fares." · Calabrese said Metro Vision monitors are placed in terminals based on ridership. Metro Vision screens are located at the Philadelphia International Airport, Bryn Mawr, Jenkintown and Market East stations, and the 8th, 13th and 15th street stations on the Market-Frankford Blue Line. Philadelphia was the first city to receive the network, in 1987. Metro Vision's only cost to the city is for the electricity required to keep the monitors going 24 hours per day, Calabrese said. Cities receive a percentage of the advertising revenue -- in Philadelphia, hundreds of thousands of dollars each year which he said "should offset the cost of electricity but not solve the [financial] crisis." The network was installed in Chicago's mass transit system in 1988, and New York City's in 1989. The four-year old company also serves areas in New Jersey, Ohio and California.
(10/18/90 9:00am)
Just when Temple University students thought it was safe to return to classes, the school's faculty union leaders say they may stage a second teacher walkout at the beginning of the spring semester. Temple students and teachers went back to class October 3 after a month-long faculty strike. But Temple faculty union President Arthur Hochner said last week that the union might resume the walkout in January, if no settlement is reached by that time. Teachers walked out after Temple's administration offered them a contract stipulating a five percent pay increase -- 2.5 percent lower than the faculty requested -- and a $260 contribution toward their health insurance. Contract negotiations began Monday for the first time since the injunction was issued. Over two weeks ago, Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Samuel Lehrer issued an injunction ordered striking Temple faculty members back to the classroom. He said that the walkout had damaged education for about 29,000 students and also harmed the public. But faculty union leaders say Judge Lehrer's injunction does not rule out a strike next semester. Temple's chief negotiator, C. Robert Harrington, last week sent a letter to Hochner requesting that talk about a second walkout "cease and desist immediately" because it would violate the injunction. The injunction prohibits the teacher's union from encouraging and promoting a strike until a final hearing sometime next year. Temple University Counsel George Moore, who sent a similar letter to the union's attorney, said yesterday that it is clear from the injunction that talk of a walkout is prohibited. Moore said that any faculty strike next semester would be illegal, and that the university would definitely ask the court to find the union in contempt of court if it went on strike. Hochner could not be reached for comment. Four Temple students were arrested Saturday after defying an order to vacate a lounge outside of Temple President Peter Liacouras' office. The Students United for Education camped out for several weeks in the lounge, to protest the strike. And the six graduate students arrested last month for blocking Liacouras' office were found guilty of interrupting the normal use of a facility and made to pay a $10 fine, after a Temple University hearing last week. The Philadelphia Inquirer contributed to this article.
(10/11/90 9:00am)
Construction is scheduled to begin late this fall on a $40 million hotel and conference center to be built on Market Street a few blocks from the University. The 270-room University City Conference Center, to be built on what is now a parking lot at 38th and Market streets, will be at the heart of the four-block University City Science Center, a research park controlled by 28 area colleges. The one-acre conference center, scheduled for completion in the summer of 1992, will provide the science park and local universities with a centrally located conference facility. The University holds 42 percent of the stock of the non-profit science center corporation. University Senior Vice President Marna Whittington, who serves on the science center's Board of Directors, said yesterday that while the conference center will not directly affect the University, it will still prove useful. "It will benefit the University in that it is close to campus and give us access to an additional conference facility," she said. The conference center will fulfill the long-time vision of the 27-year-old science center as a medium for "technology-sharing," said Charles Dilks, the center's senior vice-president. Dilks said that sharing information is one of the essentials of science. It has taken a decade to obtain funding for the conference center because the project costs more than a regular hotel, Dilks said. It will be funded through private equity, tax-exempt bonds and a $5 million Federal Urban Development Action Grant Loan. Dilks also said that many people are hesitant to commit funds to an urban conference center. He said that the facility will be the first urban conference center. The projected center will have 15 conference rooms, including "business-school-type" rooms which are tiered and allow for case studies, 18 "breakout" rooms for small discussion sections, and one large, multi-purpose room for displays, banquets and plenary sessions. All meeting rooms will be equipped with projection screen televisions, video equipment and satellite uplink. The conference center will also house a main dining room, two private dining rooms, an athletic facility and a "club and pub" room which will include a bar and card tables. Rooms will have full desks and ample lighting, and will be equipped for computers. They will also be wired to the satellite so that conferences can be viewed from the rooms. The conference center will also have 30,000 square feet reserved for long-term leasing to users who want the amenities of the conference center, but need space to hold their own equipment. Dilks said that there will be many advantages to the conference center's location, such as its central location in the science park and its proximity to the University and to Drexel University, but he is concerned about the difficulties of being in West Philadelphia. Dilks also said that Philadelphia will benefit from the center through the jobs it provides, the money it will pay in real estate taxes, and the wage taxes collected from employees. The conference center was designed by Akira Yamashita and Associates of Boston and will be operated by two outside agencies. No construction company has been selected yet to build the conference center.
(10/10/90 9:00am)
Gerald Garber came to Philadelphia from his home in Boston this weekend to see where his nation's government was born. But the government had other ideas. Almost all of Philadelphia's historical monuments were closed for three days, starting Saturday, after a federal budget impasse resulted in the stoppage of funding to all "non-essential" government services. However, Garber's fortunes improved yesterday when 19 of the city's historical monuments, including the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall, reopened. They were allowed to open yesterday, at least temporarily, after the federal government passed an emergency spending plan allowing government funds to flow again. And by 2 p.m. yesterday afternoon over 2000 visitors, including Garber, had come to the see the Liberty Bell. Carpenters' Hall, the meeting place of the First Continental Congress, remained open because it is privately owned and operated, according to Kathy Diladorno, chief of interpretation and visitor's information for the city's historical monuments. The city's museums and the zoo were not affected by the funding freeze. The combination of unseasonably warm weather, the beginning of fall and the Columbus Day weekend made the monuments' closing more significant than usual, Diladorno said. The monuments are usually open on Columbus Day. The closing of the monuments spelled disappointment for thousands of tourists over the weekend. But visitors standing on Independence Mall Tuesday said they were not really affected by the close. "We just came and [the Liberty Bell] was open," said Michael Rosenfield, from New York City. "We didn't even know it was closed." Some businesses actually benefitted from the closings. Eric Doyle, who operates a horse-drawn carriage for the 76 Carriage Company, said that people needed guided tours and were willing to pay up to $50 an hour for them. Armond Chapadeau, who works at a privately-owned tourist center near Independence Mall, said that most tourists did not know that the monuments were closed when they arrived, and were angry when found out. "I told them to go back and complain to write their senators," he said. Chapadeau added that "the biggest problem tourists had was the lack of bathrooms."
