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(04/05/95 9:00am)
Emotions exploded as controversial rap artist Sister Souljah spoke about rap, racism and the First Amendment to a filled Stiteler Hall auditorium last night. Souljah confronted the topic of "Rap and Rights: The First Amendment and the Arts" during the panel discussion. Dressed in black, Souljah often incited applause and strong verbal reactions of support from the audience. "I would like to pull the sheets off," Souljah said, adding that she hoped audience members would express their true feelings and views. The issue of rap and freedom of speech revolves around race, Souljah said. "It's completely racial," she said. "African people are not considered human or part of the human family." Souljah -- who stressed her opposition to censorship -- said blacks could never have true freedom of speech because they did not have the power or forum to voice their opinions. "I'm free to express myself -- in my bathroom," she said. Other issues raised included education, responsibility and a comparison between rap and movies. Many focused on panelist Christopher Robbins, a College junior, in light of recent debate regarding his requests for Student Activities Council funding for The Red and Blue, the magazine he edits. Robbins said speech that incites a "clear and present danger" should not be protected under the First Amendment. He provided a leaflet, which Souljah denounced, with various examples of rap that might fit under that category. Organizations such as the National Endowment for the Arts should not be allowed to make funding decisions based on the content of an artist's work, Robbins added. Panelist Eric Perkins, assistant dean in residence for W.E.B. DuBois College House, discussed the importance of rap and hip-hop to blacks and talked about the double standards that exist when people condemn rap without considering other music. Associate Political Science Professor Will Harris, who also served on the panel, concentrated on constitutional issues, noting that speech involving "alternative imagination" -- including rap --Eis protected. The final panelist, Christopher Lake, focused on his editorial role at The Vision -- to guide its ideology without influencing it with his own opinion. The forum was sponsored by Residential Living's Office of First Year Programming.
(04/05/95 9:00am)
The changing of the guard of the United Minorities Council began last night with the election of College junior Onyx Finney and College sophomore Susie Lee as chairperson and vice chairperson of the group. They replace College senior Liz Melendez and Wharton senior Jenny Ho, who will complete their terms at the end of the semester. The elections were almost postponed due to the absence of a representative from the Native American group Six Directions. Only after the group was put on probation for several recent absences from UMC meetings was the body allowed to hold elections under its constitution. Finney, the outgoing vice president of the Black Student League and an African Studies major, defeated College sophomore and outgoing UMC Admissions Board member Steve Kwon and Engineering sophomore and former UMC Treasurer Nelson Ramos to win her seat. In her campaign speech, Finney stressed the need for UMC members, as well as University officials, to take the UMC seriously. Her campaign platform called for the establishment of official departments of South Asian Studies and African Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences, as well as creating a non-Western civilization component in the College's general requirement. "It's so easy to graduate from here without learning anything outside of your own culture," she said. "We've been too long excluded from this administration, especially curriculum." Ramos' platform emphasized re-establishing a racial harassment policy and relocating the Greenfield Intercultural Center, the home to the UMC, to the center of campus. And Kwon said he supported an investigation into the 21st Century Undergraduate Education Initiative, which he finds ambiguous in its dealings with the minority community. He also recommended that the UMC endorse candidates in Undergraduate Assembly elections. Melendez said each candidate was qualified, and that the UMC's election process allowed voters to make educated choices. "I'm actually really excited," Melendez said. "I think that all three candidates were really qualified and the elections process, the question- answer period [and] their speeches were just really great. "It is the best way to come to a conclusion on who the best candidate was," she added. "It came out clear that Onyx was." Finney said she is very anxious take on her new duties. "I'm committed to UMC and its goals," she said. "I look forward to the challenges that will face me in the coming year as chair." Melendez said Six Directions will remain on probation "until they can mount a case on why they can remain [a member of UMC]." She added that she hopes the group comes off probation because "it is a group that needs to be represented and its needs need to be addressed within the UMC." Six Directions President and College senior Desiree Martinez was not available for comment.
(04/04/95 9:00am)
As Yale University graduate students go on strike this week, many University graduate students said they sympathize with their fight for a labor union and for job benefits. "I understand their position and I think Yale University needs to respond to their demands and they haven't," fifth-year English doctoral student Katie Conrad said. Creating a union has been talked about in the past, according to former Graduate and Professional Students Association chairperson Ari Brose. "Penn graduate students are not considered employees," Brose said. "But we pay city taxes as employees." Most University teaching assistants are primarily concerned about health care benefits. According to English graduate student Julie Crawford, students pay close to $1,000 for health benefits each year -- or about 10 percent of their salary. But forming a union would not necessarily solve all of the University graduate students' problems. There are also start-up fees entailed in creating the union. "I am particularly interested to see what specific benefits and costs there would be to forming a union," said GAPSA Chairperson and Wharton first-year graduate student Victor Prince. Like their Yale counterparts, University graduate students feel unappreciated. "We don't get any perks and we are overworked and underpaid," Crawford said. "That's something that graduate students everywhere can sympathize with."
(04/04/95 9:00am)
Yale University teaching assistants in the humanities and social sciences started a week-long strike today, demanding that Yale administrators recognize the results of a union election. The Graduate Employees and Students Organization organized the strike, garnering the support of about 260 teaching assistants. The teaching assistants are refusing to hold any classes this week. Arguing that because being a TA is a substantial commitment -- TAs conduct 53 percent of all class hours at Yale, including all language courses -- GESO claims they deserve a union election, just as any other employees of the University. Yale has repeatedly refused to recognize GESO or recognize the TAs' union elections because officials say TAs are primarily students. According to Gordon Lafer, spokesperson for the Yale Federation of University Employees, until the teaching assistants organize a labor union, Yale will not address any of their grievances. The TAs' complaints include low pay, lack of job security and poor health benefits. Yale currently pays TAs $9,660 on average, which according to GESO, is $2,000 below Yale's own estimates of the cost of living in New Haven. The TAs also hope Yale will increase their health benefits. During a press conference yesterday afternoon, several graduate students spoke about the need for the university to recognize GESO as a labor union. Last month, GESO held an election and voted for the strike by a 10-to-1 margin. GESO also presented a letter of support from more than 300 academic, community, labor and political leaders -- including the American Association of University Professors, the American Federation of Teachers and the National Education Association. "Whereas a majority of Yale's graduate student teachers have signed cards calling upon the Yale University administration to hold a union election," the letter states, "we believe that the Administration should honor this request as a matter of democratic principle." In an effort to show the university that the majority of graduate students favor an election, the League of Women Voters will sponsor an election on Yale's campus April 6. Students will vote whether they want GESO to represent them in collective bargaining.
(04/04/95 9:00am)
In "Stand and Deliver," he taught a class of unmotivated, underprivileged students to love learning. And last night Edward James Olmos -- actor, director, producer and community activist -- came to the University to teach another lesson. He explained to more than 60 students in the University Museum's Harrison Auditorium that the key to combatting racism is to promote awareness of humankind's common roots. Sponsored by Connaissance and the United Minorities Council, Olmos' speech, "We're All in the Same Gang," stressed that "every person on the planet" descended from Africans, and each has the responsibility to educate youth about their inherent similarities. "What we're learning tonight is the power of root," Olmos said. "And our kids will pick up on it fast." Students participated in the discussion by asking Olmos questions about the state of race relations and multicultural education in America. "Strength comes in understanding diversity, and this type of education is the key for all humanity to flourish," Olmos explained. He implored his audience to be aware of the negative stereotypes and myths which assume that one race is superior or inferior to another. To demonstrate this idea, Olmos noted that the Bible describes Jesus Christ as being bronze-skinned and woolen-haired. "If Jesus was shown black, it would allow us to experience that people of color bring value," he said. In addition, Olmos denounced the studies of Charles Murray and Richard Herrnstein. "Right now, The Bell Curve will tell you there is no value in people with color," he said. A number of students expressed admiration for Olmos, who was one of the first movie stars to coordinate aid for the riot-torn communities of Los Angeles in 1992. "He saw the community at large affected, got out of his living room, and helped sweep up South Central Los Angeles," College sophomore Mark Gutierrez said. Liz Melendez, College senior and United Minorities Council president, also praised Olmos. "A lot of what he has to say deals with issues that face the University -- trying to get a fragmented community together for the good of the whole," she said. Olmos presented his ideas as a challenge to students' preconceptions and biases. "I dare you to embrace multicultural understandings," Olmos said as he closed the discussion. "Embrace them and love them."
(04/04/95 9:00am)
Bernice Dowdy, BiCultural InterGreek Council advisor and program coordinator for the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs, announced yesterday that the Big-C will be holding its annual Penn Relays step show in Irvine Auditorium at 7 p.m. Saturday, April 29. The step show is just one of several contributions the Big-C traditionally makes to the annual Penn Relay Carnival. This year's Carnival, the 101st running of the event, will be held April 28, 29 and 30. Big-C President Trista Bridges, a Wharton junior, added that all proceeds from the step show will go to various Big-C organizations. These organizations will in turn donate the money to area college-bound youths. The funds will help pay their college tuitions. She also said that the Big-C hopes to have a barbeque Saturday afternoon in Superblock for all high and low rise residents, during which rap, hip-hop and R-and-B music will be played. As many students may remember, last year's Penn Relays were scheduled during the weekend before final exams, and a number of Superblock residents complained that the loud music disturbed their studying. Dowdy blamed the disturbance on a local radio station that set up speakers and broadcast live from the corner of 39th and Chestnut streets, attracting many West Philadelphia residents to campus. These people, not those participating in the Penn Relays, were responsible for many of last year's problems, Dowdy said. Much crime and violence also accompanied last year's Penn Relays -- there were several reports of gunshots, and three students were pulled out of a car and beaten by a group of men. Dowdy pointed out, however, that like Penn Relays, Spring Fling causes tremendous noise and occasionally violence. Although Big-C organizes daytime festivities on Superblock and a step show at night, "Big-C has no official affiliation with Penn Relays," she explained.
(04/04/95 9:00am)
"Zomething Different" captured the attention of hundreds of students as they converged on Locust Walk yesterday afternoon to experience "Safer Sex on the Beach" and "Acid Drop." As part of Alcohol and Other Drug Awareness Week, students sampled 12 non-alcoholic concoctions at the fourth annual Mocktails Contest sponsored by the Office of Drug and Alcohol Education. "The Mocktails Contest is an event that everyone can enjoy," said College senior Adrienne Frangakis, co-coordinator of the week's events. She added that this is the first year the events have been entirely student run. "It's on Locust Walk, an ideal location. People can't help but get caught up in it." Second-year graduate student Lisa Dolgoff co-coordinated the events with Frangakis. She emphasized that the purpose of the week was to create an atmosphere where the main focus was not on drinking. "We're hoping this will catch on," Dolgoff said. "This week was planned to make people aware before Fling so they'll drink responsibly." College senior Jason Feinstein acted as master of ceremonies for the drinking festival. He introduced performances by campus a cappella group Penny Loafers, Arts House Dance Company and comedian Waverly Yates. "I'm so excited. I love being an M.C.," he said. "This is the most exciting thing that has happened in my four years at Penn." College freshman Lisa Ohebshalom became involved in the event through her sorority. She praised her sorority's mocktail, "Lite as a Kite," because it is fat-free and kosher. "A sugar high has its privileges," she explained. Wharton and Engineering junior Jeremy Morrison, co-president of the Wharton Management Club, manned a table for the "O.J. Simpson Drink." "We think too often that business is associated with going out and drinking after a hard day's work," he said. "I'm really impressed. A lot of people are here and it looks like everyone's having a good time." Engineering junior Debbie Fox, who ranked "Coco Loco" as her favorite drink, agreed. "I think it's really nice for all these groups to be out here supporting this," she said. College senior Jeff Gershkowitz, who attended the event to support his fraternity's "Root'n Tooty Fresh'n Fruity Beverage," won a book by Maya Angelou. "I think this is a good idea -- if nothing else, it shows people there's an alternative" to drinking, he said. College freshman Gwen Baron voted for "Strawberry Smoocher" and won a $35 gift certificate to Godiva Chocolates. She said she thought the University should definitely sponsor more events like the mocktails party. "It makes Locust Walk a more active place and it shows unity in the student body," Baron said. Alcohol and Other Drugs Awareness week continues through the weekend, featuring speakers, movies, workshops and the "Safest Party on Campus" Saturday at Chats.
(04/04/95 9:00am)
The University chapter of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity has been suspended for the remainder of the semester after University Police officers witnessed the hazing of a pledge, according to Sig Ep President and Wharton junior Richard Steinmeier. Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs Director Tricia Phaup said that even thought Sig Ep has been placed on probation, the fraternity is "not going off campus by any means." In a statement released by Steinmeier, two Sig Ep brothers were caught escorting a blindfolded pledge from the fraternity house at 40th and Walnut streets to a second residence at 42nd and Locust streets last month. After questioning the pledge and the two brothers, University Police ordered the blindfold to be removed and reported the incident to University officials. According to the University Policies and Procedures Handbook, hazing is any action or situation that "recklessly or intentionally endangers the mental or physical health or safety of a student" and is "expressly forbidden." As part of the probation, Steinmeier said the fraternity is prohibited from holding any social activities until the start of the 1995 fall semester. In addition, he said the fraternity must develop a new pledge program within the next several weeks. Phaup said she would have to approve the pledging program after it is first reviewed by Sig Ep's local and national organizations. Steinmeier cited the blindfolding of pledges as a "traditional and ritualistic event" that will be discontinued in the future, although at the time the fraternity did not realize the negative consequences of such practices. He added that he views the incident as a positive experience and believes the fraternity has been treated "more than fairly" by the University. "We deserve the punishment we got," he said "We're going to build on this to have the best pledging program."
(04/04/95 9:00am)
Students disappointed Jane Alexander, chairperson of the National Endowment for the Arts, will be the keynote speaker at next month's Commencement ceremony, according to University Secretary Barbara Stevens. Members of the Class of 1995 contacted last night about the selection seemed nonplussed about Alexander's participation in their graduation day. "Dartmouth got Bill Clinton -- if they can do it, why can't we?" asked College senior Christopher Prokop, adding that he had hoped for a speaker plucked from the White House or Supreme Court. Wharton senior Laura Froehlich was even more blunt, admitting that she had "no clue" who Alexander is. "Guess that came through Sheldon [Hackney], huh?" Froehlich said. "That's kind of sad?It could be my ignorance, but with Hillary Rodham Clinton a few years ago, I would have expected someone a little more to date." However, College senior and Senior Class President Loren Mendell, who served on the Commencement speaker selection committee, said the group felt Alexander was "a great speaker" who could communicate well with the graduating class. The committee -- composed of leaders from the student body and the Faculty Senate, personnel from the Secretary's Office and members of the Board of Trustees -- met twice in the fall, Mendell added. They generated a pool of about 50 names for consideration, which was then narrowed down by mail ballot. Stevens said a "short list" was forwarded to University President Judith Rodin, who made a number of telephone calls to find the "best person." "We are awfully thrilled that she accepted," Stevens said, further characterizing Alexander's performances as moving, sensitive and thoughtful. "She is a brilliant actor and a very articulate spokesperson for the arts." Mendell said Alexander -- who won an Emmy for her role in 1981's Playing for Time and was nominated for an Oscar for her performance in All The President's Men -- should appeal to the multi-generational Commencement crowd. "I'm very happy with the selection," he said, adding that his parents are already looking forward to the address. Alexander was confirmed as NEA director in October 1993, following a stint in the Broadway production of Wendy Wasserstein's The Sisters Rosensweig. She appeared with James Earl Jones in The Great White Hope on Washington's Arena Stage -- a production that was later made into a feature film. Alexander arrived at the NEA just as the controversy over public funding of Robert Mapplethorpe's sexually-explicit photographs was subsiding. She now faces a Republican-dominated Congress eager to slash her agency's budget. The NEA also gave financial support to Andres Serrano, whose photograph "Piss Christ" stirred up tensions when it was exhibited on campus at the Institute of Contemporary Art last semester. Because of these monetary allocations, College senior Jeremy Chiappetta said he is angry about the choice of Alexander as Commencement speaker. "I just really have to question why the University continues to offend those who are religious and those who are conservative in their beliefs," he said. Stevens also announced last night that retiring University Chaplain Stanley Johnson will be this year's Baccalaureate speaker. And she disclosed the list of honorary degree recipients. Two scientists are among those selected: chemist Harry Barkus Gray, a professor at the California Institute of Technology, and Stanford University Professor Stanley Cohen, whose research focuses on recombinant biotechnology. Smith College President Mary Maples Dunn, who will become director of Radcliffe College's Schlesinger Library when she steps down from her current post this summer, will also receive an honorary award next month. Her husband, Richard Dunn, is a history professor at the University. Rounding out the roster are former University Board of Trustees Chairperson Alvin Shoemaker, medieval historian Emmanuel LeRoy Ladurie, director of the Bibliotheque de France, and Donald Stewart, former president of Spelman College and current president of the College Board, who was a University administrator from 1970 until 1976.
(04/04/95 9:00am)
and Jonathan Kaye Marketing Professor Scott Ward sat expressionless in the Montgomery County Courthouse yesterday as the prosecution accused him of soliciting prostitution from minors. Meanwhile, his defense team argued that most of the evidence allegedly pointing to his incrimination -- including pornographic materials and correspondence found in Ward's home -- is inadmissable in court. Ward was arrested on October 1, 1993, when he allegedly propositioned Sean McMahon, an undercover Pennsylvania State Trooper, for sex. McMahon, who was posing as a 15-year-old boy named "Frankie," was wearing a concealed microphone when he met Ward at a Roy Rogers restaurant in Ardmore. The two then drove to Ward's home. But the detectives botched the attempt to tape the conversation between Ward and McMahon. "Since I didn't check [the recorder], I consider it to be my fault," testified Detective Raymond Kuter from the Montgomery County District Attorney's office yesterday. According to Kuter, the tape recorder was set to receive from a telephone jack, instead of from the microphone. But Ward's attorney, Jean Green, challenged the claim that the tape recorder malfunction was a simple oversight by the detectives on the scene, stating that the detectives had recently received training in the use of the equipment. "If you believe they forgot to set the tape correctly, you also believe in the tooth fairy," Green said after yesterday's hearing. Although the conversation between Ward and McMahon was not successfully recorded, Montgomery County First Assistant District Attorney Bruce Castor -- who was monitoring their conversation in a police surveillance vehicle -- testified that he heard Ward ask McMahon whether he liked sex. According to Castor, Ward told McMahon that he personally liked sex, and that McMahon could earn a lot of money by having sex with him. Shortly after this conversation, McMahon entered Ward's bathroom and whispered into the transmitter that Ward had sufficiently incriminated himself, and that police could enter the house and arrest him, Castor testified. As police approached Ward's Ardmore home -- which officers described as a huge, nine-bedroom house with a tennis court, a pool and a 10-foot-high wall surrounding it -- they allegedly saw Ward and McMahon begin to go upstairs. At that point, police entered the house. Green questioned the legality of the search of Ward's premises. According to several witnesses, the police at the scene entered Ward's home before Kuter obtained the arrest warrant and the search warrant for the premises. However, Kuter maintained that the actual search was not conducted until after the search warrant was issued. If Ward's residence was illegally searched, the pornographic material, relevant computer files and other incriminating evidence allegedly found inside could be suppressed. Finally, Green questioned the reliability of the informant who first told the police about Ward's alleged activity in August 1993. The informant was spending three to six years in prison for burglary at the time he spoke to the police. Green asked whether the informant's sentence was lightened subsequent to his help. Kuter replied that it was, but that the two events were unrelated. Ward's criminal charges include criminal attempts to commit corruption of a minor, involuntary deviant intercourse, and solicitation to commit prostitution. Ward has allegedly had sexual contact with at least five boys. Yesterday's arguments were made as part of a preliminary hearing. The actual trial will begin in a few weeks, according to several sources. Following the criminal case, Ward faces a civil suit filed by "B.M.," one of his alleged victims. The civil charges against Ward include assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent infliction of emotional distress, negligence and fraud. He is being sued for at least $50,000 for each charge.
(04/04/95 9:00am)
From graffiti in High Rise South elevators to fires in High Rise North stairwells, vandalism has become an increasingly common problem in University residences. And no matter how many times officials plead with the student body to stop the vandalism, it does not appear to decrease, much less stop. Vandalism costs the University approximately $2,000 a week, according to Residential Living Assistant Director for Residential Safety, Security and Facilities Gordon Rickards. That figure does not even include the time and labor of the maintenance employees making repairs --Ewhen they could be doing other work. "It's a terrible problem that the residences face," Residential Living Director Gigi Simeone said. "It wastes a tremendous amount of resources and a lot of money is spent that would go elsewhere." In the most recent incident of campus vandalism, a number of posters were burned in the stairwells of High Rise North last week. And Simeone said vandals have also destroyed safety equipment in the residences. "In one residence over one weekend recently, there were 34 acts of vandalism to hallway and exit lights," she wrote in a letter condemning the vandalism. These incidents are in no way isolated. High Rise South residents found graffiti in the building's elevators on several occasions two weeks ago. Maintenance workers continually attempted to paint over the graffiti, but the perpetrators then scratched names and words into the fresh paint. And in February, a vandal wrote a lengthy poem on the walls of a High Rise South stairwell, beginning between the rooftop lounge and the 24th floor and continuing until the landing between the 15th and 16th floors. Beginning last semester, students and residential advisors found feces piled or smeared in various women's bathrooms in the Community House section of the Quadrangle. Although administrators said they do not know if the acts of the so-called "Mad Shitter" constituted vandalism or a medical problem, no one ruled out the possibility of the former. Even more disturbing, last month, students found anti-gay graffiti chalked on several walls in the Quad. And last year, students found swastikas in Graduate Tower A and the Quad. Simeone said vandalism has been an on-going problem throughout her 16 years with Residential Living. She said the consequences of graffiti, destruction and other acts go beyond draining University resources and budgets. "It shows terrible disrespect for other students and is very demoralizing," she added. "Students need to be outraged by it -- they need to say 'cut it out.' " Simeone said a great deal of vandalism occurs during Spring Fling weekend, which will begin this year on April 21. Quadrangle lounges are now locked over Fling weekend because in the past, they have been "destroyed," she explained. Simeone attributed some of the Spring Fling problems to the multitude of guests who stay in the residences over the weekend. In fact, the majority of vandals do not live in the buildings where they commit the crimes, she said. But Simeone said she did not know how much of the vandalism has been caused by members of the University community and how much has been committed by guests or other outsiders. Those who are responsible for the vandalism could face a wide variety of penalties, depending on the specific circumstances.Residential probation is a "given," Simeone said. Often, students also pay for any repairs that may be required. In some situations, students are permanently denied access to the residence where the vandalism occurred. At other times, the University Police and Judicial Inquiry Officer may become involved.
(04/04/95 9:00am)
A high-speed police chase and ensuing foot pursuit ended in two arrests after Philadelphia Police tailed a stolen car from Center City until it crashed into another vehicle at 36th and Walnut streets yesterday. At times, the pursuit even spilled over onto Locust Walk. Ninth District Philadelphia Police officers, who patrol Center City west of Broad Street, attempted to pull over a black Chevrolet at 22nd and Walnut streets at about 6:58 p.m. A Philadelphia Police detective said the vehicle was observed driving with an expired license plate. The Chevrolet was able to evade the police, however, in a chase that spanned over 20 city blocks and at times had police cars speeding down Locust Walk in pursuit of suspects. The car led police from Center City on Walnut Street toward West Philadelphia, the detective said, adding that 18th District Police units were notified and then joined in the pursuit once the chase crossed the Schuylkill River. It appeared that the Chevrolet was attempting to turn right onto 36th Street from Walnut when the driver lost control of the car and slammed into the driver's side of a blue Pontiac, injuring the two occupants. Police at the scene said that both the driver and passenger of the Pontiac were taken to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Police said that five male suspects fled the scene of the accident and were pursued by the Ninth and 18th District Philadelphia Police in addition to University Police officers. Philadelphia Police Lieutenant Thomas Lederer said one of the men was arrested at 36th and Market streets and taken to Central Detectives. The detective also said that a second suspect was apprehended at 43rd and Locust streets, while three men remain at large. He said that the police had determined that the Chevrolet, which had the lock on the passenger side removed, was stolen on March 22. A large crowd gathered at the scene of the accident, which closed 36th Street for nearly an hour. Philadelphia and University Police blocked off 36th Street between Sansom and Walnut streets, diverting traffic from one lane of Walnut Street until the cars involved in the accident could be removed from the scene.
(04/03/95 9:00am)
Students planning to walk to Hutchinson Gymnasium carrying towels, soap and shampoo each morning might as well stay in their own rooms. There will not be a water shutdown in High Rise South this week -- despite a letter supposedly sent out by Residential Living Saturday. Various students in the building received a memo under their doors Saturday announcing the shutdown beginning today at 10 a.m. and continuing through Thursday at 5 p.m. But residents who continued reading quickly understood it was an April Fool's joke. "To minimize the effect of the shutdown, both Gimbel and Hutch gyms will be open 24 hours a day, Monday through Wednesday," the letter said. "We strongly encourage you to use the showers in the gyms or make arrangements with your friends." Two College sophomores, who live on the 19th floor of High Rise South and requested anonymity, took responsibility for the prank last night. "We decided we had to do something," one roommate said. "We were thinking about how people were having problems with water and shutdowns and decided everybody was going to get pissed off by this. "A lot of people kind of did," the student added. After determining which typeface Residential Living usually uses in its official notices and copying the fake document at Kinko's, the two students delivered it to 10 of their friends' rooms. The student said some were fooled by the notice. "To those who got it -- we got you good," the sophomore said. Engineering sophomore Deniz Cultu said he received the memo -- laser-printed on plain, white paper -- Saturday afternoon. Although Cultu said it was obviously a joke because of the reference to the campus gyms, he added that he knew something was off-kilter because of how the prankster had distributed the letter. "Residential Living never gives it to you under the door," Cultu said. "It's usually posted by the elevators -- and it wasn't." The letter said the shutdown applied to rooms on the 12th floor and above. Cultu lives on the 19th floor. Engineering and Wharton sophomore Peter Daley, a resident of the 15th floor, said he knew the memo was a joke because "letters from [Director of Residential Living] Gigi Simeone usually have her signature." Daley, like many residents who received the letter, said he laughed at the April Fool's joke and never thought it could possibly be true. "I could just imagine people traipsing down to Gimbel," he said. "It never got to the point where we took it seriously." But College junior Sagar Phatak said he began reading it and screamed, "What?" "The initial reaction was definitely not pleasant," he added. "They've been doing work on the pipes so it kind of made sense." Phatak, who lives on the 15th floor, said by the time he finished reading the note, he knew he had been fooled. "It was amusing," he said, adding that Residential Living should not take the incident seriously because "of how ridiculous the last part is." Simeone laughed when told about the letter last night, saying that she was "glad the students that received it knew it was an April Fool's joke."
(04/03/95 9:00am)
Reminiscent of John Belushi and his cohorts in the classic college movie Animal House, the lower level of Stouffer Dining Hall erupted into a food fight Thursday night. University Police responded to a complaint from a Stouffer Dining Services employees -- but by then, all of the food had been flung. And considering how many diners enjoyed witnessing the messy food brawl, police intervention would probably not have been welcome. College freshman Eric Wenke said the fight was "the funniest thing I ever saw in my life -- even people hiding under tables were hit with food." Nursing freshman Rachel Kutcher said she was sitting at a table with four Phi Sigma Sigma pledge sisters when the fight began. "It was between two tables and we thought it wouldn't involve us -- but they started throwing [food] everywhere and we just got hit," Kutcher said. College freshman Dustin Hausladen said "someone was manning the yogurt machine. As his hand filled up, he threw the yogurt into the crowd." Kutcher, whose jacket and pants were caked with cake, said "it was very funny because people had food all over them." University Police Sergeant Michael Fink said that at 6:30 p.m., officers arrived at Stouffer to investigate, but by then then the students involved had left. Stouffer employees had forced the students to evacuate shortly after the incident. Hausladen also said police officers were questioning students on Friday night in the upper level of Stouffer about the food fight. Fink, however, denied this claim.
(04/03/95 9:00am)
Newcomer battles two veterans At least three members of next year's Undergraduate Assembly will vie for the position of UA chairperson on Thursday at the annual transition meeting. College juniors Lance Rogers and Eric Tienou and Wharton junior Gil Beverly announced on Sunday night that they will seek the UA's top post. Rogers, who had the most votes of all College candidates in last week's UA elections, said his goals for the position would be threefold. A member of the UA since his freshman year, Rogers said he would focus first on improving the UA's internal workings and eliminating the political infighting that has at times crippled the body this year. "We will create a more cohesive body that is able to work together and accomplish things in a timely manner," he said. The second part of Rogers' platform would deal with communications between the UA and its constituents, he said. "We want to reach out to the students, explain to them what the UA is, what it does, and how it can help them," Rogers said. Finally, Rogers said he would push the body to take a more active stance on issues than in the past. "The third part of the program is to go ahead and take care of students' concerns after we receive feedback from the students," he said. Rogers said he has also been working on a system where each UA representative would serve as a liaison to a University department, and a way of disciplining UA members who do not participate actively in the body's affairs. Tienou, who also served on this year's UA, said he would continue to pursue the same goal next year that he has this year -- simply, to try to solve whatever problems face students at the University. "If we have any problems that affect undergraduates on this campus, then we really should go after them," he said. "The number one mission of the UA is to be a kind of liaison between undergraduates and the administration." Tienou, like Rogers, said communication between the UA and other campus groups is essential to a successful term. "I'm really interested in taking care of communication within the body and communication between the body and activities on campus," he said. While most of the newly elected body is excited about next year, Tienou said it would hurt them in the long run if the new UA does not proceed methodically from the outset. "Take it slow for the first month," he said. "That month is crucial in determining what we're going to do next year. Don't go out and try to do as many things as possible [in the first month]." Although Beverly has not served on the UA before this year, he said that would not make a difference in his campaign for chairperson. "I don't think that anyone holds the UA in such high esteem at this point that not having been on it will really hurt that much," he said. Beverly said he would prefer to reveal the details of his platform at the transition meeting, which will be held Thursday at 8 p.m. in the UTV-13 studio. But he added that he had spoken to Wharton junior Dan Debicella, this year's UA chairperson, for ideas on the position. Debicella said he endorsed Tienou for the job, calling him the "best UA member this year." He added that Beverly would also be an excellent chairperson. But he said Rogers was unfit for any UA office.
(04/03/95 9:00am)
Hundreds of women activists from a variety of fields and academic backgrounds came from as far away as Chile, Italy, India and the Netherlands to take part in a four-day conference this weekend about "Women, Sexuality and Violence." More than 100 public activists, lawyers, journalists and policy planners from nonprofit organizations were asked to speak about their experiences dealing with women's issues. The speakers participated in 39 discussion panels which covered a range of issues confronting women -- including their role in the workplace, the family, the courts and society at large. The conference was sponsored by the Annenberg Public Policy Center. And according to Wharton senior Catherine Henry, who helped organize the conference, the weekend was a solid success. "I thought the conference went really well," she said. "We got great attendance and lots of positive feedback about it. Everything seemed to run smoothly." Nirva Kudyan, vice president of the University's chapter of the National Organization for Women, said she thought the conference's speakers helped make the conference an enjoyable experience. "I thought the conference was filled with very gifted, very talented panelists," she said. "I think they really mobilized the audience to look into the problems affecting women." College senior Alisha Berry, president of the University's NOW chapter, agreed. "It was a really good thing that the conference had so many people who were discussing women's issues and giving them weight," she said. Discussions identified social problems that participants said need more public policy intervention -- such as rape, domestic abuse, homophobia and sexual harassment. The conference's agenda also included poetry readings and a visit to a feminist museum exhibit. Besides theoretical discussions on the issues, the conference also explored practical ways for audience members to become activists and create change in the political arena. On Saturday night, two workshops were conducted to show how activists and academics can form relationships and pursue new strategies to improve the cause of women's issues. Kudyan said she thought the practical slant of the conference was useful to her in her work as a female activist. "I made a lot of good contacts, even with people who live across the country," she said. However, Graduate Student Association President Bronwyn Beistle was not impressed with the conference's attempts to encourage activism. "The problem with the conference was that it was long on talk, short on strategic planning," said the English graduate student. "I would prefer a conference that had provided more concrete political strategies. Still, it was a good-faith effort that allowed me to find out about resources and make connections." But Berry gave the University credit for holding the conference. "For too long, women's issues were seen as domestic problems that were not worthy of public discourse," she said. "It's great that now that so many people are now giving these issues the open discussion that they deserve."
(04/03/95 9:00am)
Two University professors turned last Tuesday afternoon's forum entitled "Are the Culture Wars International?" into a critical evaluation of world-renowned scholar Samuel Huntington. Criticizing a controversial article of Huntington's -- which was published several years ago -- Legal Studies Professor Ann Mayer called it a "gross over-simplification." Mayer, along with Political Science Professor Ian Lustick, spoke to more than 40 students in Steinberg-Dietrich about the Harvard professor's theories. Huntington's article warned that world-wide cultural war is inevitable, proposing that an end to the Cold War would cause a fracturing of nations along cultural lines. In his article, Huntington identified nine separate cultures between which these splits would ultimately occur. While the article was received with a great deal of skepticism in academic circles, it has nevertheless become popular among many international leaders, Lustick said. One audience member pointed out that Huntington's article had received worldwide attention when it was published and has actually been used by radical Islamic groups to justify their anti-Western agenda. In a humorous attack on the theory, Lustick called the notorious article "intellectually primitive" and suggested that Huntington may have had ulterior motives when he wrote it. He noted that with the demise of the Soviet Union, Huntington -- one of the premier Cold War political scientists -- needed to find a new enemy. Throughout her presentation, Mayer stressed that Huntington had confused the governments of these other civilizations with their underlying cultures. "The realities are far too complex to meet with Huntington's simplistic stereotypes," Mayer said. The forum was sponsored by the International Studies Program.
(04/03/95 9:00am)
There's no place like home. Actress Judy Garland was the first to say it, but University President Judith Rodin is probably feeling that way about Eisenlohr Hall at the moment. Rodin's fundraising and alumni relations responsibilities kept her on the go in California for three days last week. On Friday, she left campus again for an alumni reception and fundraising dinner in Washington, extending her stay in the nation's capital by one day to accommodate meetings with Commerce Secretary Ron Brown and President Clinton's White House safety panel. "I figured since I was in Washington anyway, I would cram in some government business," Rodin quipped. Today, she will be in Harrisburg, testifying before the State Senate Appropriations Committee about the University's Commonwealth funding for fiscal 1996. "They want to get to know me better?give me a chance to tell Penn's story directly," Rodin said. "We do such a tremendous amount for the Commonwealth, far more than we get in those dollars. I'm eager to communicate that." Thursday and Friday, Rodin will be in Miami and Boca Raton, Fla., attending to additional alumni and fundraising commitments. Next week, she's in Boston. This highly charged itinerary is the result of creative scheduling; the President's Office strains to fit a number of off-campus obligations into Rodin's date book whenever possible. Rodin said she spends about 15 percent of an average semester away from campus, adding that she intends to keep this fraction below 20 percent of her time. She said she spent much less time last semester traveling than would be typical of an Ivy League president, since she was still settling into her post and the rhythm of campus life. "In a sense, my schedule reflects the University's priorities," Rodin said, adding that her job requires her to be on-duty seven days a week. She also said she has pushed one trip back until after Commencement, and generally tries to postpone trips until vacation periods or University "downtime." "When it's time that we're in session, I can get in and out in a night, [I go]," Rodin said. "Other than that, I'm here, and then it's incredibly variable because some of it's proactive and some of it's crisis-driven." Now that Rodin has a full complement of senior staff members, including Chief of Staff Stephen Schutt and Vice President for Government, Community and Public Affairs Carol Scheman, it is not as difficult for her to spend time outside West Philadelphia. "When I'm away, I'm on the phone with the office six times a day," she said. "In the beginning, it would have been much harder." But even when she is in town, Rodin must balance the needs of vocal constituencies -- students, faculty, staff, deans and the University's Board of Trustees -- with the demands of city and community relations. "We take our civic partnerships very seriously, it really does rely on my time to some extent," she said, citing the $50 million challenge grant pledged to Philadelphia's public schools by Wallis Annenberg, Walter Annenberg's daughter, as one of the most important of these initiatives.
(04/03/95 9:00am)
Students planning to walk to Hutchinson Gymnasium carrying towels, soap and shampoo each morning might as well stay in their own rooms. There will not be a water shutdown in High Rise South this week -- despite a letter supposedly sent out by Residential Living Saturday. Various students in the building received a memo under their doors Saturday announcing the shutdown beginning today at 10 a.m. and continuing through Thursday at 5 p.m. But residents who continued reading quickly understood it was an April Fool's joke. "To minimize the effect of the shutdown, both Gimbel and Hutch gyms will be open 24 hours a day, Monday through Wednesday," the letter said. "We strongly encourage you to use the showers in the gyms or make arrangements with your friends." Two College sophomores, who live on the 19th floor of High Rise South and requested anonymity, took responsibility for the prank last night. "We decided we had to do something," one roommate said. "We were thinking about how people were having problems with water and shutdowns and decided everybody was going to get pissed off by this. "A lot of people kind of did," the student added. After determining which typeface Residential Living usually uses in its official notices and copying the fake document at Kinko's, the two students delivered it to 10 of their friends' rooms. The student said some were fooled by the notice. "To those who got it -- we got you good," the sophomore said. Engineering sophomore Deniz Cultu said he received the memo -- laser-printed on plain, white paper -- Saturday afternoon. Although Cultu said it was obviously a joke because of the reference to the campus gyms, he added that he knew something was off-kilter because of how the prankster had distributed the letter. "Residential Living never gives it to you under the door," Cultu said. "It's usually posted by the elevators -- and it wasn't." The letter said the shutdown applied to rooms on the 12th floor and above. Cultu lives on the 19th floor. Engineering and Wharton sophomore Peter Daley, a resident of the 15th floor, said he knew the memo was a joke because "letters from [Director of Residential Living] Gigi Simeone usually have her signature." Daley, like many residents who received the letter, said he laughed at the April Fool's joke and never thought it could possibly be true. "I could just imagine people traipsing down to Gimbel," he said. "It never got to the point where we took it seriously." But College junior Sagar Phatak said he began reading it and screamed, "What?" "The initial reaction was definitely not pleasant," he added. "They've been doing work on the pipes so it kind of made sense." Phatak, who lives on the 15th floor, said by the time he finished reading the note, he knew he had been fooled. "It was amusing," he said, adding that Residential Living should not take the incident seriously because "of how ridiculous the last part is." Simeone laughed when told about the letter last night, saying that she was "glad the students that received it knew it was an April Fool's joke."
(04/03/95 9:00am)
Members of the Class of 1996 will have the chance to elect next year's Senior Class Board today and tomorrow. And all three candidates for president said the major issue in the campaign is knowing how to throw a good party. Wharton junior Lenny Chang, College junior Eden Jacobowitz and College junior Adam Miller will vie for the position. Chang, who has been president of the Class of 1996 since freshman year, said his experience gives him an advantage over the other two candidates. "I definitely have learned how to deal with the right people and to set things way in advance so that everything will be picture-perfect when the event arrives," he said, adding that he is "very aware of student needs." Chang said his primary goal, if re-elected, would be to ensure that his class has "the best senior screamers possible, the best Senior Week, the best senior formal, the best Ivy Day speaker, the best graduation speaker? I've already started on some of those things." Jacobowitz, a Daily Pennsylvanian photographer, said the senior class president is primarily a social position. "I think social life on this campus has seriously deteriorated," he said. "Senior screamers can save the social life on this campus -- for seniors, at least." Jacobowitz said that while the Senior Class Board does not cover issues as "important" as those on the Undergraduate Assembly, which he served on this year, it can influence campus life more by throwing parties the entire senior class can attend. Miller, like his opponents, said the most important part of the office is the ability to plan a good party. "[I want] the class to be much more involved in the screamers and the events of the Class Board," he said. "In the past the Board has done a very good job, but I don't think they've incorporated very many people." He added that he ran for senior class president because he felt the Class Board for his class has rarely done anything for him -- and that he wanted to make a difference. "I want to step it up a level that it hasn't gotten to in the past," he said. "[It is time for] a new dimension of leadership, a time for a change."
