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(11/06/91 10:00am)
Mitch Winston has changed his mind. The Undergraduate Assembly chairperson -- whose main purpose is to represent undergraduates' interests at the University -- no longer thinks ROTC has a place on this campus. Winston said last night that because U.S. Defense Secretary Dick Cheney said he does not plan to change the military's anti-homosexual policy, he has decided to support a University Council resolution to kick the Reserve Officer's Training Corps off campus in 1993. Cheney told 600 students and faculty at a speech on campus yesterday that he supports the military's stance that homosexuality is "incompatible" with military service and does not plan to change the guideline. The Council resolution, which was passed at last month's meeting, recommended that President Sheldon Hackney kick the University's Army and Naval ROTC units off campus in 1993 if the Defense Department does not change its policy. Winston voted against the resolution with four other UA representatives. The five UA members were the only Council members not to demand ROTC's removal. But while the other UA members still vowed to protect the position of ROTC on campus, Winston said he thinks the University must remove the units if the Defense Department does not change. "If Cheney said he's not planning to change the policy anytime soon, it seems a lost cause," Winston said yesterday. "And I tend to sway over to the side of kicking them off campus." "[Before] I looked at it as a permanent solution to a temporary problem, but since it's to be a permanent problem we need a permanent solution," Winston added. But last night, other UA members maintained their stance that kicking ROTC off campus would hurt undergraduates more than help them. These representatives have said it is better to change the policy from within the system than from outside. "If you think about it, Bush's term is only for four years," UA Vice Chairperson Ethan Youderian said. "Dick Cheney's not always going to be Secretary of Defense and it's always better to be in than out." Youderian, who voted to preserve the units at last month's Council meeting, said his view represents the opinion of most undergraduates on campus. And UA member David Rose, who said he is not at all surprised by Cheney's statement, said by removing ROTC many people may feel the University has settled the issue, while actually there is still a lot of work to be done to change the federal policy. "A lot of people will take this as a quick fix and let the issue go," Rose said. "But the real role of the University is being a true activist in seeking a solution." UA Steering member You-Lee Kim, who was the only UA representative who voted in favor of the Council resolution to kick ROTC units off campus, could not be reached for comment last night.
(11/04/91 10:00am)
It ain't over yet. Smokey Joe's Tavern -- a staple of campus social life at for the past 30 years -- will have its liquor license reconsidered later this month when the Liquor Control Board reviews the bar's record on serving alcohol to minors. The bar, whose license expired on Thursday, will continue to serve alcohol until the LCB's three-person hearing board makes its final decision after a hearing in Harrisburg. The LCB has not set a date for the hearing yet. The LCB did not renew Smoke's license last month, ordering a review to make sure the bar does enough to prevent underage drinking. The bar has four outstanding citations and has settled several other complaints of serving alcohol to minors in the past year. Bar owner Paul Ryan said the bar has also been raided 30 times in the last 18 months. According to LCB Chief Legal Counsel Francis O'Brien, the hearing is a way for the board to monitor underage drinking in bars that "continually abuse their privileges but never did anything bad enough to have their license revoked." O'Brien said Smoke's has never been reviewed through the hearing system, which started two years ago. He said if the LCB still refuses to renew the bar's license after the hearing, Smoke's may appeal the decision in Philadelphia's Court of Common Pleas. Smoke's owner Paul Ryan said last week he will make two defenses in front of the board -- that the bar is in a "very difficult area" for keeping underage drinkers out and that Smoke's, with its video affidavit system, has a stricter enforcement policy than any other bar in the state. "The burden upon the tavern owner is immeasurable," Ryan said. "There is no deterrent to keep minors out because the state has laws it cannot enforce." In Pennsylvania, people caught with fake IDs can be prosecuted, fined and can lose their driver's licenses. In the past, officials said, underage drinkers were not aware of the penalties of breaking the law. Now, O'Brien said, the state police "are now taking a much harsher stance" on enforcement. For bars, defense comes down to presenting written affidavits, signed by patrons, stating that they are over 21 years old. O'Brien said the signed statements are the only ways a bar can show it has made an effort to keep out minors according to the law. But Ryan said he will try to change that law, stating that "our video system fulfills the spirit of the affidavit law better." O'Brien, who said Smoke's is the only bar in the state that has a video setup, said the board members will only renew the bar's license if they are certain that the bar takes an "aggressive" stance on preventing underage drinking. The upcoming hearing will not affect the bar's operations, and Ryan said he is confident that the LCB will renew the bar's license. The tavern owner said he has received support from community leaders, University alumni and students and from parents, who say they are glad students have a place near campus to go to drink.
(10/31/91 10:00am)
If you want to get an A, don't point out that he chews with his mouth open. And during next week's Take a Professor to Lunch Week, don't play with your food -- it's rude. For the ninth year in a row, the Student Committee on Undergraduate Education is sponsoring Take a Professor to Lunch Week next week, giving students and professors an opportunity to get to know each other. "This is really a way to see professors as human beings outside the classroom and to learn more about who they are as individuals," said SCUE member Jackie Einstein, who is co-organizing the event. According to SCUE Chairperson David Kauffman, about 500 students do lunch with their teachers through the program each year, noting that certain professors are taken out for lunch several times during the week. SCUE's program provides an incentive for students to meet with their professors outside of class, but Einstein stressed that next week should be only the beginning. "I wish students would take advantage of the opportunity to get to know their professors more during the semester," she said. "This is only supposed to be a model, not something you wait for." Some professors said yesterday the culinary brown-nosing breaks down the barriers between teachers and students. "It provides an opportunity for professors and students to get to know each other on a personal level," Civil Systems Professor John Keenan said. "It reminds you that every person is an individual and has their own story and that's an important thing to know." Keenan said students take him out to lunch about once a year. And Physics Professor Alfred Mann, who has never been treated to lunch through SCUE's program, said "anything that helps to provide informal relationships . . . between students and faculty is a good idea." Some students said the program is a good way to let good teachers know they are appreciated. "There's one professor that I'd really like to take," Wharton freshman Peter Ehrich said yesterday. "She's really competent . . . Because I took her class I'm going to switch my concentration."
(10/30/91 10:00am)
The Student Activities Council elected four new members to the SAC Finance Committee last night, sifting through the largest number of candidates for the spots in recent years. Sixteen students ran for the four positions compared to only six or seven who ran in the last two elections. "I think it's great that student government is finally getting a lot of people running for office," Finance Committee Chairperson Howard Radzely said after the meeting. "Once you have people to choose from, you're going to get good people in." Radzely added that he thinks students are more aware of SAC than they were in former years, noting especially that some freshmen ran for spots last night. The Finance Committee recommends to the full SAC body how much money to give groups based on the groups' applications for funds. The full SAC body elected College freshman Michael Graves, Wharton and College junior Aron Schwartz, Wharton junior Rich Barrera and former committee member Grace Estebon to the Finance Committee. SAC is also one of the few student government groups to have such a large number of people campaigning for positions. During this month's Undergraduate Assembly elections, only three Engineering students ran for one vacancy and no Nursing students ran for their one spot for the second election in a row. All 16 candidates presented statements to SAC, stressing the need for the diversity of campus groups and their ability to judge impartially how much money to give student groups. New committee members said after the meeting they are excited to take over their new positions and are willing to listen to all the groups' requests without bias. "The most important thing I want to make sure of is that I reciprocate the honor given to me by spending as much time as I need to with SAC groups," Schwartz said. SAC members also distributed $10,555 in contingency money -- funding groups request that was not included in their annual allottment -- to 10 groups. SAC has $21,453 left in contingency funds for the semester.
(10/28/91 10:00am)
Communications Professor Larry Gross is not used to being a possible target for a protest by AIDS activists. But last week, he almost was. Gross, who has been one of the University's most vocal gay-rights advocates, is the primary spokesperson for a Philadelphia Police Commissioner's committee investigating the riot at last month's Center City protest against a visit of President Bush. Gross, along with six other panelists including Assistant Dean of Residences Brenda Ridley, will help investigate accusations that the police unnecessarily attacked demonstrators during Bush's visit to Philadelphia last month, at which four police officers and several protesters were injured. During the September 12 rally, which was held in front of the Bellevue Hotel at Broad and Walnut streets, several police officers hit ralliers when some demonstrators tried to break through the police barricades and enter the hotel. A lawsuit against the city has since been filed by members of ACT-UP, the National Organization of Women, and several individuals, including at least one University student. Gross, who was chairperson of the Philadelphia Lesbian and Gay Task Force for ten years, said last week it is too soon to tell exactly what happened at the rally. He said the commission plans to submit a full report to Williams by the end of November. "The commissioner set up the committee to find out what happened at the rally and to make sure that in the future nothing like that happens," Gross said. Last week's planned protest at the Annenberg School against Gross never materialized, because the AIDS activists, members of Philadelphia ACT-UP, learned that the committee's hearings, which they thought were public, were actually properly conducted in private. The commission is currently conducting public and private interviews with people who were present at the protest. Last week, committee members held private interviews at Annenberg, and Gross said they will probably meet downtown later this week. According to Deputy Police Commissioner Thomas McGeehan, who also sits on the committee, Commissioner Williams will use the results of the investigation to "take any action necessary" to remedy any wrongs committed at the rally. McGeehan said disciplinary action may be taken against police officers if the report recommends it, adding that no formal discussions have been held in the police department to uncover what happened at last month's protest. McGeehan added that about 16 people have stepped forward to testify for the commission so far. The results of the report may also be used as evidence in the suit against the city, in which protesters are demanding money for injuries they received from police officers during the rally. College junior Todd Wharton, one of the plaintiffs in the suit, said he was hit repeatedly by a police officer while he was "just standing there with a sign" protesting Bush's lack of concern for AIDS research. Wharton is also a member of ACT-UP -- the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power -- and said several other members were beaten as well. Several protesters also said after the rally that they had been hit or kicked by the police and eight ralliers were arrested. Police Commissioner Williams has neither defended nor criticized the police force's actions, except to say that he is conducting an investigation and will release the results later.
(10/23/91 9:00am)
Constitutional law experts said yesterday the University's newly-adopted racial harassment policy may violate constitutional standards set by a Wisconsin federal court last week. But University officials said the school's private status exempts it from adhering to constitutional free-speech guidelines. The federal court ruling said the University of Wisconsin's hate speech code infringes on students' First Amendment rights because it is too broad and too vague. The University's code, like the Wisconsin policy, was revamped after a federal court in Michigan struck down a policy almost identical to the University's old code. "If it's reviewed under the federal constitutional requirements, it is dubious at best," Associate Law Professor Seth Kreimer said last night. "There are a lot of [U.S. Supreme Court] cases . . . that suggest that the offensiveness of a statement does not remove constitutional protection for it." And Associate Political Science Professor Ellen Kennedy said that universities are "on thin ice with these policies" because they limit free speech, which she described as a fundamental right on college campuses. "As a university, we should be very cautious about having such policies and should bend over backwards to allow people to say what they think," Kennedy said. "If someone's feelings are hurt, they can resort to civil law. We don't have to tie ourselves in knots constitutionally to try to protect people's feelings." Kennedy added that harassment policies are constitutionally difficult because they deal with the question of intent, an issue that is hard to settle. The University of Wisconsin's code stated that harassment is "intentional conduct which constitutes a serious danger" to a person and is directed at the person it offends. The policy is a general code referring to several different types of harassment. The stipulations of intent and direct address are also integral parts of the University's racial harassment code. U.S. District Court Judge Robert Warren ruled against Wisconsin, saying the school's policy does not specify exactly which instances are harassment, and allows for people to be punished for acts that are constitutionally protected. University officials said consistently throughout last year's debate over the new policy that the University does not have to follow the Constitution's guidelines on free speech. But Assistant to the President Steven Steinberg said this week he thinks the current code would hold up in federal court. And Assistant Political Science Professor William Harris said he thinks the University's harassment policy is a "respectable attempt to reflect the values of the Constitution," noting that besides free speech, the document also guarantees the right of citizenship. Harris added that he does not think the harassment policy is an issue for legal experts to decide, but for the members of the University to discuss and decide "who we are at the University." Law Professor Frank Goodman said that even the U.S. Supreme Court has not consistently settled the question of harassment. He said that over the past 40 years, Justices have swung from one side of the complex issue to the other, noting that in recent years, the Court has ruled that "hate speech is constitutionally protected." But Goodman also said "it is possible that the new, more conservative court may relax First Amendment rights." The Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments in a case this winter concerning the constitutionality of hate speech codes. The case, St. Paul v. R.A.V., challenges whether a St. Paul, Minnesota city ordinance preventing racially hateful expression is constitutional. University General Counsel Shelley Green said last night she could not comment on whether the University's racial harassment code falls within constitutional standards based on the recent decision in Wisconsin. But she noted that "the policy that was challenged is a different policy from ours" and that Wisconsin's enforcement regulations are also different.
(10/22/91 9:00am)
A federal judge struck down the University of Wisconsin's harassment policy last week, saying the code violates students' First Amendment rights because it is "unduly vague." The judge's ruling is similar to a 1989 federal court ruling against the University of Michigan's policy, which instigated President Sheldon Hackney's revision of the University's racial harassment code. But this new ruling, handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Robert Warren, strikes down a narrower code that is similar to the University's revised policy, which was formulated to meet the specifications laid out in the Michigan decision. According to the Wisconsin's Senior Legal Counsel Patricia Hodulik, the school's policy was adopted after the Michigan ruling because school officials believed the code was narrow enough to pass legal muster. "We argued that the rule is constitutional on its face and is not an impermissible restriction on speech," Hodulik said. "We thought ours was considerably narrower than Michigan's policy." But Judge Warren ruled otherwise, stating in his opinion that the policy could be applied to incidents where no harassment occurs. "[The policy] is ambiguous as to whether the regulated speech must actually demean the listener and create an intimidating hostile or demeaning environment for education, or whether the speaker must merely intend to demean the listener and create such an environment," Judge Warren wrote in his decision. Like Wisconsin, the University instituted a new racial harassment code after a University of Michigan "hate speech" code, which was itself based on the University's old racial harassment policy, was found to restrict speech unconstitutionally. But even though the narrower Wisconsin policy was declared unconstitutional, University officials said yesterday they believe the University's new racial harassment policy is narrow enough to meet the First Amendment standards set up by the two rulings. And Assistant to the President Steven Steinberg, who has been Hackney's chief aide in formulating the University's new policy, added that the University does not have to abide by the judges' decisions because the University is a private institution. The University of Wisconsin's code says that the school may punish people for directing "racist or discriminatory comments, epitaphs or other expressive behavior at an individual or on separate occasions at different individuals to intentionally demean . . . and to create an intimidating, hostile or demeaning environment." The University's new code has very similar guidelines to the Wisconsin policy. Like the Wisconsin policy, the University's requires that the racist behavior be directed at an identifiable group, it requires that it be intentionally harmful, and that it insult or demean the race, ethnicity or national origin of a person or group. Hodulik, who said the Wisconsin Attorney General represented the university, added that the school's Board of Regents has not decided if they will appeal the ruling. Wisconsin's policy came under fire in March 1990 when 10 students, one faculty member and the student newspaper at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee filed suit against the university. Since the code was implemented in 1989, about 10 students have been punished for harassment violations, but Jeff Kassel, attorney for the complainants, said yesterday only one of the 10 students suing the University was brought up on charges. Kassel said his arguments in front of the judge were twofold -- that the policy was too vague and that it was too broad. "The code was too broad and prohibited a lot of speech protected under the First Amendment . . . and it was too vague and didn't give adequate warning about what the nature of prohibited speech was," Kassel said. Kassel said Wisconsin's policy differs from Michigan's code in that it does not state specific locations where it applies -- such as in the classroom -- and it applies to only speech directed at an individual, not to a group.
(10/21/91 9:00am)
. . . Tomorrow you will wake up ordinary. So promises "Ballet Blanc," a poem by New York City poet Katha Pollitt. But today, Pollitt promises to be anything but ordinary as she reads from her works at the University as part of an English Department speaker series. Pollitt, who has published a volume of poetry called Antarctic traveller, will read some of her printed and unprinted works. The 42-year-old poet is also a contributing editor to The Nation magazine and has written several essays on feminist issues, including abortion rights. Greg Djanikian, acting director of the Writing Program, said he invited Pollitt to campus because he "really likes her poems" and has taught her work in poetry workshops in the past. "She's never effusive, although the poems deal with very intense and emotional subject matter," English lecturer Djanikian said. "I really like the language, the imagery, her technical ability, the craft which went into the poems." Although Pollitt is also active in journalism and writes essays for various magazines, she said words form themselves into poems most easily. "You don't really get to choose [your writing style]," Pollitt said. "I think peoples' minds work in particular directions, and for me, poetry is a way of using language that appeals to me at a very deep level." Pollitt's poems deal with a spectrum of subjects and cover a range of places and people around the globe, such as "A Turkish Story," "Of the Scythians," and "Parthians." She tends to focus on emotions and uses illustrative words. Djanikian said he finds Pollitt's poetry emotional and sees it as expressing people's concerns for an "otherness." "She seems most concerned with people's longing for lives which they do not live," Djanikian said. "And how sometimes if the longing and the desire is intense enough, how they succeed in passing over from one life into the other, but how for most of us the longing suffices." Pollitt said it is difficult to pinpoint exactly where she gets her inspiration, saying ideas "will just come to me." "Inspiration is one of those words that makes writers blush," Pollitt said. "Sometimes a phrase will just connect up with something else in my life . . . and I'll turn it over and turn it over and gradually a poem collects in my mind." Pollitt, who graduated from Radcliffe College and Columbia University, has lived in New York City for most of her life. She said she is drawn to urban life because of the constant activity, which is fodder for thought and writing. "It's a place where things happen," Pollitt said. "When you go out into the street, you see something, it's sometimes something you don't want to see, but there's always something to respond to." Pollitt will read her poems this afternoon at 4 p.m. in the Philomathean room on fourth floor College Hall.
(10/18/91 9:00am)
Teaching is important too. At the University, where the emphasis on research fosters a "publish or perish" attitude, some students are concerned that excellent teaching tends to fall by the wayside. But the Student Committee on Undergraduate Education hopes to end what it considers an unhealthy trend by convincing schools within the University to provide endowed chairs for teaching. SCUE recommended the chairs at a Council of Undergraduate Deans meeting earlier this month, stressing the need to reward excellence in teaching and to encourage professors to concentrate on their students. Endowed chairs are established when a donor gives at least $1.25 million to the University to pay for a professor's salary for several years. Currently, the University only has endowed chairs -- which bear the donor's name -- for research. "If a person is excellent in teaching, I think they should be rewarded," SCUE Chairperson David Kauffman said last week. "It would be a significant impact on the culture at the University if you could get a chair for teaching." According to Kauffman, SCUE has set no specific parameters for the chair, but he envisions it as a renewable honor given to one professor as long as that person continues to show excellence in teaching. The chair suggestion was a part of SCUE's "White Paper," released last spring, which sets out several strategies to improve teaching at the University. Kauffman said the committee focused on teaching because it should be "a number one priority" for the University. Some deans said this week they have not yet developed a plan to implement SCUE's idea, but applauded the idea of praising good teachers. "Teaching is very hard to do, and when it is done well it should be celebrated," School of Arts and Sciences Dean Rosemary Stevens said last night. But Stevens said SAS -- as well as the other schools -- does not have the money to set up a chair right now. She said she has put SCUE's idea on the list of things she is seeking funding for through the University's $1 billion capital campaign. John Keenan, associate Engineering dean for undergraduate education, said last night he also thinks the chair is "an excellent idea," but said he thinks it may be difficult to raise money for a teaching stipend, noting that it is "hard enough to get money to support a [research] professorship." If the schools go through with SCUE's idea, the new chairs would be one of the most significant acknowledgements of excellent teaching at the University. Currently, outstanding teachers are rewarded with salary raises or with a few honors, such as the Lindback Award and the Abrams Award, which give a few thousand dollars in prize money. Psychology Professor Henry Gleitman said last night the existing teaching awards, while prestigious, are not nearly as encouraging as a term chair would be. "Endowed chairs would make it absolutely clear to especially young faculty members that education is a highly regarded facet of what they're doing," said Gleitman, who said he has received both a Lindback and an Abrams award. "We shouldn't reward the good teacher by giving them extra money. We should regard it as an integral part of the University, and if there were endowed chairs for this, that would say it." SCUE's White Paper, which was released last spring, also made several suggestions to improve teaching, including distributing mid-semester teacher evaluations to give professors student feedback during the course. The committee also suggested instituting more team-taught classes and setting up a new agency to help departments sort through the evaluations each semester. Provost Michael Aiken and Associate Wharton Dean for Undergraduate Education Janice Bellace could not be reached for comment on SCUE's suggestions this week.
(10/10/91 9:00am)
In one of the lowest turnouts ever, a mere 25 Engineering students voted this week to elect junior Eric Spence as their representative to the Undergraduate Assembly. Spence will join eight new freshmen representatives on the UA, Nominations and Elections Committee officials announced last night. After the meeting, NEC officials said they were disappointed with the student body's lack of concern for student government elections. While 31 percent of the freshmen voted on Monday and Tuesday, only three percent of Engineering students voted to fill their one vacancy on the UA. "If people would put more enthusiasm into it, the UA could become a vehicle of power at the University," NEC member Shoshana Schwartz said last night. "This is a sign of apathy on campus." No Nursing School students ran for the school's one seat on the assembly, leaving Nursing students without a representative for the entire academic year. Freshmen who were elected are: Leonard Cooperman, Sarah Doty, Jorge Espinol, Seth Hamlin, Eric Leathers, Brian Morris, Dan Schorr and T.J. Zane. Espinol was the top vote-getter and will hold a seat on University Council. Spence won the Engineering slot, which became available late last month when Engineering junior Tobias Dengel resigned his UA position from Czechoslovakia. Before Dengel's resignation, UA members had voted to allow him to vote by proxy through Spence. The new representatives all had something to say last night, promising their constituents true representation and hard work. "I can bring a new perspective to the UA," Espinol said. "That's why I ran, because I wanted there to be an international student on the assembly. I have different concepts, different issues I think should be considered." And Doty, the only woman who won a seat on the Assembly this week, said she plans to search the UA's agenda for an issue that she can help with. "I want to learn everything I can about the issues we're facing and what students think about them," Doty said. NEC officials also noted last night that the freshmen did not campaign very hard, saying this year's candidates were much less visible than in other years. Schwartz said she thinks the UA's image may have made the candidates not as excited about the election as in her freshman year. And most candidates did not have any platform they were pushing during the campaign. But Doty said she does not think freshman have been here long enough to pick a side on the issues that face the UA this year. "Everyone gave really fake campaign promises and I was offended by that," she said. "I haven't been here long enough to know the issues." Before they announced the winners, the NEC held a hearing for five candidates, including Espinol and Spence, who did not turn in their spending receipts to the NEC office after the polling ended. Although they officially broke the rules, the NEC dropped the charges because they had valid excuses.
(10/10/91 9:00am)
Women won the gender war at Yale University 22 years ago. Or so they thought. Though the school first admitted women in 1969, at Yale's oldest social club, the Skull and Bones society, the women's movement has just begun. Last April, members of the all-male senior society -- whose alumni include President Bush and conservative columnist William Buckley -- created a furor among conservative alumni by "tapping" seven women to join their secret club this semester. Now, despite a membership-wide vote to allow women into the elite club, the co-educational status of the society is still unclear and opposing alumni may yet succeed in keeping women out. · Last month, a group of eight alumni, including Buckley, obtained a court order preventing current Bonesmen from initiating six Boneswomen into the 159-year-old society. The injunction was part of a lawsuit the eight alums filed objecting to the Skull and Bones organization-wide vote last summer. Rather than go to court where society members may have had to reveal the group's deepest and darkest secrets, members agreed instead to decide the matter once and for all at a special membership meeting later this month. The special meeting is a last ditch attempt by those who filed the suit to overturn the 368 to 320 vote in favor of admitting women. Based on that vote last summer, the eight-member alumni board of Bonespeople gave current Bonesmen the go-ahead to initiate the Boneswomen this fall. The controversy started last April, when class of 1991 Bonesmen tapped seven women after waiting fruitlessly for an alumni board decision on the issue of admitting women to the society. Immediately after the minor rebellion, the alumni board changed the locks on the society's "tomb" -- it's official meeting place on Yale's campus. They refused to acknowledge the new group of initiates, saying the tap was void and illegal, and would not open the doors of the sarcophagus for weeks. During that time, the young Bonesmen remained strong and convinced six of the women to join their group. They insisted that they would continue with all the pre-initiation rites outside the crypt, if necessary, until alumni changed their minds. After the summer vote, the alumni board gave the new delegation its blessing and the class of 1992 members thought they had finally sent the opposition to the grave. · Skull and Bones is a secret senior society formed on Yale's campus 159 years ago. It is considered to be the most prestigious of at least a dozen such societies on campus and is one of only two that has remained all-male. The closest the University gets to having a Skull and Bones is the Sphinx Society, one of three senior honor societies on campus. Alumni estimate that almost century-old Sphinx Society began admitting women 15 to 20 years ago. 1966 College graduate Richard Spiegel, a Sphinx alumnus, said last night he remembers receiving a letter from the Sphinx graduate board asking him to vote on whether or not the society should admit women. "The letter basically said undergraduates wanted to elect women and it said it was their impression that if we didn't vote for it, [the incoming class] would be an empty class," Spiegel said. Women were allowed to join and now make up almost half of the 29 members. Current Sphinx Scribe Maureen Hernandez said last night she thinks Bonesmen will be making a mistake if they do not initiate women into the Yale society. "For our organization, having women there has made it so much more of a prestigious organization to be in," College senior Hernandez said. Similar to the members of the bastions of all-male fraternities that cover the nation's campuses, Skull and Bones alumni -- whose names read like a Who's Who in America -- appeal to tradition to keep women out of their secret society. They claim admitting women would change the nature of the group and render some initiation rites impossible to perform. "The issue really is, in a nutshell, essentially who runs the organization," Sid Lovett, the alumni board's spokesperson said last spring. "Undergraduates don't make policy changes. They were unauthorized." But as 1991 Bonesmen stated in a letter to alumni immediately after their precedent-setting tap, waiting for the alumni board to implement change "would have been condemning the Bones to a slow death on the fringes of a co-ed world." "The Bones is . . . perceived by the larger Yale community as both drastically out-of-step with Yale and, what's worse, flagrantly discriminatory and bigoted," Bonesmen wrote. The seniors maintain that they did not violate Skull and Bones' gender-neutral by-laws, which simply state that 15 juniors are to be selected for membership each year by the 15 seniors "or in such other manner as the Board of Directors may determine." The issue has caused a rift in the society, as young Bonesmen have criticized their alumni for being "immoral" and behind the times. The seniors said last spring that if the graduates try to keep women out of the society, "they will be tapping the dregs of Yale, who don't mind being in a virulently anti-female organization." Skull and Bones alumni have taken various stances throughout the debate, as evidenced by the close vote last summer. While some members continue to withhold backing, others have given the class of 1992 full-fledged support and plan to travel to campus to help with the ground-breaking initiation. "I am pleased with the decision to admit women to Skull and Bones," Senator David Boren (D-Oklahoma), a class of 1963 graduate said in a statement last week. "I believe that the 1991 group of seniors made the right recommendation to the institution." And a spokesperson for Senator John Chafee (R-Rhode Island), class of 1944, said last night the former Bonesman thinks current students should be allowed to decide the status of women in their group. "Times have changed since he's been there," said Edward Quinlan, Chafee's press secretary. "He has confidence that the present generation of students will make a decision that is best for the organization." However, the ringleader of the eight alums who filed suit, 1950 graduate Buckley, could not be reached for comment. As for President Bush, a Bonesman of the utmost articulation, his press office refuses to acknowledge the issue. "We can't confirm or deny that President Bush is a member," a White House spokesperson said. And in the true spirit of secrecy, the spokesperson said, "We can't confirm or deny the existence of the society."
(10/08/91 9:00am)
It's hard to get money from the University. It takes proposals, requisition forms and bureaucratic maneuvering -- and that's after a group has been guaranteed money from the Student Activities Council, the Graduate Student Activities Council or the administration. But after tonight, the process may seem easier for student leaders who will attend an Office of Student Life training session on how to work the University's checkbook. "We noticed there's a lot of misunderstanding of some of the University's operating procedures and some things that student organizations need to consider when utilizing funding," said Albert Moore, assistant director of student life activities. "With this program, everyone can get together to hear the same story from the same source." Tonight's program, which is mandatory for all University-funded groups, will be split into five sections -- a review of risk management, University financial procedures, scheduling policies, contracts and publicity regulations. Each lecture focuses on an aspect of the University's bureaucracy that student groups face in order to get funding and assistance from the administration. "Basically, we give these guys binders and binders of stuff about it," Student Activities Council Chairperson Dave Wessels said last night. "If someone's explaining this stuff, hopefully they'll be able to understand it better and a lot of groups that might be doing something they shouldn't be won't." Moore said he expects about 200 students to participate in the program. If SAC- or University-funded organizations do not send a representative, the group will not receive any money this year. Moore said this is to ensure that groups understand the procedures before they attempt to get money from SAC. Wessels said he thinks tonight's program will help student groups wade through financial difficulties, adding that it will also serve as a network for student leaders to understand how other organizations work. "It's a good opportunity for some of my groups to meet other student government organizations," Wessels said. "I don't know how much of campus really knows who these people are, and communication is really essential." Wessels said if groups do not show up tonight, it will probably mean SAC Steering will have to petition the University to fund them this year.
(10/07/91 9:00am)
The Undergraduate Assembly endorsed the Diversity on the Walk Committee's report last night, calling on President Sheldon Hackney to set an "expedient" timetable for change in the center of campus. In a resolution passed at their meeting last night, UA members also urged Hackney to form an oversight committee to review progress in changing the residential make-up of Locust Walk and pledged to provide suggestions for Hackney to work with. They also criticized Hackney for limiting the Walk committee by not allowing its members to consider the removal of Walk fraternities. The UA declined, however, to officially recognize the Walk committee's report because Hackney did not follow the UA's constitution when he appointed undergraduates to the committee last year. According to UA by-laws, the Nominations and Elections Committee must appoint all undergraduate representatives to ad-hoc University committees or the UA will not recognize the group. Hackney himself chose all the Walk committee members. "Our constitution does not allow us officially to recognize the committee or its final report," the resolution states. "Despite our constitutional prohibition, we feel the Locust Walk issue is too important for us to remain silent because of a bureaucratic device." UA members "urged President Hackney to work with the UA and the NEC when forming an ad-hoc committee" in the future. Some members argued against the resolution last night because they said criticizing Hackney for his charge to the committee weakens the UA's statement of approval. "We should say 'We like what you did' without any buts," College sophomore Jen Berrent said at the meeting. "That seems to discredit it." And College junior Lee Eggerman said he thinks the statement implies that the UA wants fraternities kicked off Locust Walk. But despite the objections, the resolution passed 16 to five after UA members rejected an attempt by College junior David Rose to attach a specific plan for the Walk to the group's statement. Rose's proposal was based on the committee's suggestion of moving Locust Walk office space into a high rise and making more student housing on the Walk by spring 1993. Rose said after the meeting that as long as the UA develops its own recommendations and demands action from the University, "the UA is fulfilling its obligation to students and to diversity on the Walk." "We called for a combined committee in order to take action on the issue and that's something the UA hasn't done before," Rose said. The UA's Minority Concerns and Facilities and Campus Planning Committees and its Student Service Task Force will present UA members with a specific plan for the Walk at the next meeting in two weeks. In other business, UA members also commended the University for its new acquaintance rape policy, released during the summer.
(10/04/91 9:00am)
Undergraduate Assembly members will release a statement on the diversity on the Walk committee's report Sunday, which some members said will support the philosophy of the 54-page document but will make additional demands. "People feel the ideas in the report are good," UA Steering Committee member You-Lee Kim said yesterday. "The UA will probably be calling for enactment of the recommendations along with others." The Walk committee's report, which President Sheldon Hackney released last month, focused mainly on the behavioral and philosophical standards necessary for a diversified Locust Walk. The committee called for a few concrete changes, such as building student townhouses on the Bookstore site when the Campus Center is built. Some UA members said last night the committee's report describes the present situation well, but does not go far enough in finding solutions for the future. "I think it's a positive first step, but I think the committee should reconvene in the future to evaluate the progress of the University and re-evaluate if what's been recommended is still what should be done," UA Vice Chairperson Ethan Youderian said last night. And UA mamber David Chen called the committee's document a "benign report" that does not say anything about the future. But UA member Jen Berrent said that while she understands the Walk report does not satisfy some groups on campus, she thinks it goes far enough. "I think generally it goes far enough, but I don't think drastic action is needed on the Walk," Berrent said. "For those it was seeking to appease . . . I don't think it satisfies their demands." The Wharton junior said she also thinks it would be beneficial to re-evaluate Locust Walk in a year or two. Vice Provost for University Life Kim Morrisson said last night she is "interested in hearing the feedback" of the UA, but said Hackney "has pretty much affirmed what he will do." Morrisson, who co-chaired the Diversity on the Walk Committee, added that the criticisms of the report she has heard so far echo many ideas the committee reviewed last year. At Sunday's meeting, the UA will also discuss a resolution supporting the University's new Acquaintance Rape and Sexual Violence Policy released this summer. The policy defines acquaintance rape as "any act in which a member of the university community forces another with whom he or she is acquainted to engage in sexual activity against her or his will or without her or his consent." It describes the University's resources for the prevention and investigation of acquaintance rapes and states the sanctions that will be taken against an individual who commits a sexual assault. The policy was re-released in the September 24 issue of the Almanac. Youderian, who will propose the resolution, said he thinks UA members will pass the resolution without too much debate because "it's a very good policy." "The way we look at it and the way [Hackney told us] the administration looks at it, since the UA has proven itself as a representative body of student concerns, we feel that the opinions expressed represent a centrist approach to what the students think," Youderian said.
(10/02/91 9:00am)
The Nominations and Elections Committee began distributing petitions yesterday for vacant spots on the Undergraduate Assembly and election officials said they hope for a "precedent-setting" election. "It would be nice if they would start a precedent of their class being more involved with undergraduate student government," NEC Elections Committee Chairperson Colleen Bonnicklewis said yesterday. "I hope this leads to classes following this one voting in elections . . . and participating in the process." The UA has openings for eight freshmen, a Nursing School position which was not filled last spring and one Engineering School position which became available last week when UA member Tobias Dengel resigned his post because he is spending the semester in Czechoslovakia. Turning in signed petitions to the NEC is the first step in the UA's election process. Petitions are available in the UA/NEC office in Houston Hall and must be returned along with candidates' statements by Thursday at 4 p.m. College junior Bonnicklewis said freshmen need 112 signatures to begin campaigning on Friday. Nursing students need five signatures and Engineering students need 29. The required number of signatures is based on the student population of the school or class. Bonnicklewis said she does not know how many people have picked up forms so far, adding that NEC's only concern is attracting a lot of people to campaign for the UA spots. And UA Chairperson Mitch Winston said yesterday that a large number of candidates would indicate that freshmen have faith in undergraduate student government. "When you run as a freshman, it's much easier to talk to your constituents because you know the people who vote for you," Winston said, adding that he is looking for candidates who "are willing to work hard and have a willingness to learn about the issues on campus." Campaigning for the positions begins Friday morning at 6 a.m. and elections will be held on Monday and Tuesday. Bonnicklewis said the NEC will announce the results next Wednesday after holding a hearing about campaigning violations.
(10/02/91 9:00am)
Undergraduate Assembly officers yesterday asked the University administration for more money for student activities. UA Chairperson Mitch Winston and Vice Chairperson Ethan Youderian met yesterday with Vice Provost for University Life Kim Morrisson to discuss what Winston termed a "need for more money for student activities." "The biggest problem we have here is that there is not enough money," Winston said last night. This year, undergraduate student government received $669,000 from the University to divide among its five branches -- the UA, the Student Activities Council, the Social Planning and Events Committee, the Nominations and Elections Committee and the Student Committee on Undergraduate Education. The UA gave SAC about $510,000 to fund the 140 groups that receive money from student government. SPEC, whose total budget came to $145,000 this year, received $85,000 from the UA. "The main problem with funding is that activities are expanding at a rate faster than the budget," Wharton sophomore Youderian said last night. "We're searching for money for student activities and we're unable to find it." Winston and Youderian also plan to meet with President Sheldon Hackney on Thursday to request more money. At Monday night's SAC meeting, Winston said student activities funding was low this year because the state threatened to cut $18 million from the University's annual allotment. He said he wants the University to increase the amount of money student government receives now that the state has given the University its full appropriation. But VPUL Morrisson said yesterday that student activities funding increased on par with the general fee -- the money students pay for non-academic services at the University. This year's increase was 6.3 percent. "Over the last five or more years we've made the committment to increase student activities funding at the same rate as the general fee," Morrisson said. The UA asked the University last year to raise the general fee to allow for more activities money, but the administration refused. Fran Walker, student activities and facilities director, said last night that the creation of SPEC last fall meant that SAC had less money to spread around to other groups. While SAC's budget only increased by about $8,700 this year, SPEC's funding went up by $20,000. Much of the disparity, however, is because SPEC has taken over some SAC duties, such as funding Homecoming, Spring Fling and concerts. Walker also said that in forming SPEC, the UA and SAC agreed to fund a portion of the group each year. SAC Chairperson David Wessels, who said last night he supports SPEC receiving the money it does, said SAC groups are suffering because there is not enough money in the budget. "We allocate only 60 to 70 percent of the money that's requested," Wessels said. "This means some worthwhile activities can't get money." But Wessels said he is not currently seeking more funds from the administration because he is trying to "make SAC better organized." Once he is happy with how SAC is run, Wessels said he will join the UA in requesting more money.
(10/01/91 9:00am)
Student Activities Council members last night voted against changing their constitution to enact harsher punishments on SAC groups who do not attend the monthly meetings. In the first meeting of the school year last night, SAC members turned down a proposed amendment which would have made groups that lost recognition for missing two SAC meetings wait four weeks before applying for re-recognition. The amendment would have prevented unrecognized groups from using SAC money during the four-week probation period. Under SAC guidelines, groups that miss two meetings in a school year automatically lose SAC recognition and are unable to use the Council's money until they are reinstated. Currently, SAC groups can apply for re-recognition immediately after they lose it, so groups that miss two meetings can be reinstated at the next full meeting. SAC Steering members said they proposed the amendment as a deterrent to some student groups that frequently miss meetings, losing their recognition and then applying for re-recognition frequently throughout the year. "Some groups show a great disrespect for SAC and those who really want to make it work," SAC Vice Chairperson Felicia Maddox said at last night's meeting. "In the past, we've been accused of being a rubber stamp organization and we're trying to change that view." Wharton senior Maddox said the current guidelines allow for a revolving door of student groups that pass in and out of SAC during a school year. She said that 10 to 20 percent of SAC groups lose recognition each year for missing two meetings, adding that half of those groups come up every year. About 15 of the approximately 140 SAC groups missed last night's meeting. But many members said the amendment was too harsh because it does not distinguish between first-time offenders and those groups that frequently lose their recognition. Members added that it is "easier than you might think" to miss meetings because of miscommunication within groups. Maddox said after the meeting that SAC Steering members "will be looking more closely at groups coming in for re-recognition" in the future to prevent frequent offenders from continuously using up SAC's time. In other business, SAC Finance Committee Chairperson Howard Radzely announced that his committee will be auditing all SAC groups' budgets to find any expenses not approved by the Council. Radzely said any charges that SAC did not approve beforehand must come out of an organization's money, not SAC money. Wharton senior Radzely added that several groups owe SAC money, and that groups with three years of outstanding debts have their funding frozen until the payments are made. SAC members also re-recognized six organizations and allocated contingency money to six others.
(09/30/91 9:00am)
When students in the Class of 1927 were at the University, they had to run all over campus to find out about the different services offered here. Now, 1927 alums have pledged to change things for incoming students. For its 65th reunion gift this year, the Class of 1927 plans to give the Student Commitee on Undergraduate Education $30,000 to publish The Practical Scholar, a comprehensive guide to academics and student services at the University. SCUE Chairperson David Kaufman said last week the committee will use the money to print 20,000 copies of the book, which will go to the presses in the spring. The Practical Scholar will contain information about all areas of academics at the University, such as academic programs, study abroad, libraries and picking a major. It will also explain the other services available at the University, such as career planning, advising and tutoring programs. "We see The Practical Scholar as being good for academics at Penn," SCUE member Jim Stewart said last week. "It will describe all the academic opportunities at the University in one book so students don't have to go all over campus to get what they need." Kaufman said the book will be sent to incoming freshmen next spring and then distributed to upperclassmen in the fall. He also said it will be used by the admissions office to entice prospective students to come to the University. Wharton senior Kaufman said SCUE turned to the Class of '27 to fund the book after the individual schools refused to give money book because of budget problems. The book will now be called The Class of 1927 Practical Scholar. According to John Manotti, an assistant director of the Penn Fund, the gift will count towards the University's $1 billion capital campaign. Manotti said he expects the class to donate much more than the $30,000 needed for SCUE's project, adding that extra money will go into unrestricted donations. So far, 1927 alumni have donated about $15,000, Manotti said. Manotti added that The Practical Scholar is "an excellent idea" for a fundraiser. "It's more interesting and exciting to raise money for a project because it gives [the alumni] something to concentrate on," he said. "It's one last thing they can do for the University that would put their name in front of the University and the students." Stewart, a College junior, added that SCUE is producing the book on computer so it can be revised in a few years. Kaufman praised the University Development Office for "picking up the slack of the schools," but said the schools should be able to fund projects like The Practical Scholar themselves. "I hope the schools in the future have extra money to support student initiatives," Kaufman said. "Every time now something interesting comes up, it's 'go to Development.' "
(09/27/91 9:00am)
Everyone knows how complicated the legal system is. And everyone knows how expensive lawyers are. But unfortunately, many do not know the Undergraduate Assembly provides free legal services for undergraduate and graduate students. Through the UA service, students can receive free legal advice for anything except landlord-tenant problems and suits against the University. To get the service, students must fill out a request slip at the UA office in Houston Hall. UA Legal Services Coordinator David Chun said this week that students have used the services for anything from entrepreneurial advice to adoption. He said the lawyer, Richard Tanker, meets students on campus for 30 minutes at a time. The UA pays about $3600 a year for the local lawyer. While the under-publicized legal aid program was started several years ago to service undergraduates, Chun said that over half of the applicants for the service every year are graduate students. This year, only one out of the 20 applicants so far is an undergraduate. "The UA conceived of the idea first to provide basic counseling for undergraduates," Chun said. "And then we didn't want to exclude graduate students." Chun said he plans to ask the Graduate and Professional Students Assembly to pay for half of the services this year, saying "since mostly graduate students are using the service, it is only fair that they pay for half of it." Chun, who signed a new contract with Tanker last night, said the lawyer promised to approach GAPSA as well. GAPSA Chairperson Michael Goldstein said last night his group "will consider" sharing legal expenses with the UA, but said GAPSA's budget for this year has already been set. Goldstein said that since undergraduates receive more money from the University for student services than graduate and professional students, the group may not be willing to pay the legal fees this year. "I would probably mention to the UA that at least for this year, it would be nice if the undergraduate body, in consideration that [undergraduates] receive more money, could pay for the services," Goldstein said. But UA Vice Chairperson Ethan Youderian said this week that if GAPSA does not pay for the services, the UA will not offer them to graduate and professional students anymore. "We have no control over how much money the University gives undergraduates and gives graduate students," Youderian said. "If the graduate students are going to use the legal services they are going to be asked to pay for them." Although the UA has been offering free legal services for several years, many students do not know they can see a lawyer for free. Some students said the service should be better publicized, but added that most students would probably go to a lawyer for help with tenant-landlord issues, which the service does not provide. "It sounds like a good service," College sophomore Chris Roberts said last night. "But undergraduates wouldn't have much use for it besides [that] issue." Chun said the UA holds a forum on tenant-landlord laws every February.
(09/26/91 9:00am)
Recycle this newspaper. Put it in one of the many white plastic tubs labelled "mixed paper" found all over campus. And then give a big round of applause for the University, whose year-old recycling program will receive an award from the city of Philadelphia next week. Dezzi plans to present University Recycling Coordinator Albert Pallanti with a citation at a recycling convention next Thursday at Thomas Jefferson University. Pallanti said he will make a presentation of the University's program at the convention. Pallanti added the University recycles 45 to 50 tons of mixed paper each week, which is 25 percent of the total waste produced at the University. The University also recycles cans, but Pallanti said Physical Plant does not keep an accurate account of them. And just as the University receives an award for its extensive recycling program, an extension of the program is scheduled to begin next month. The University plans to start a program for disposing of glass bottles and plastics with receptacles first being placed outside Steinberg-Dietrich Hall, in the Graduate Towers and in the Towne Building. Pallanti said Physical Plant is also planning a pilot program for recycling laser toner cartridges used in the printers in administrative offices. Currently, about half of the cartridges are sold back to the vendor and recharged. The University instituted its recycling program last September, in response to a city law mandating that institutions recycle and to student criticisms that the University was dragging its feet. "There were a lot of people who really wanted a sincere recycling program but still had to push the issue through a lot of red tape," said College senior Colin Yost, former president of the Penn Environmental Recycling Group. "Penn got lucky in a sense, because it found [a recycling company] willing to take all of our paper products." Pallanti, who headed the administrative efforts to implement a recycling program last fall, credited student groups with pushing the administration forward and for publicizing the efforts to students. In the past few years, the Environmental Group and the Undergraduate Assembly Environmental and Recycling committee have pushed the administration to start and expand current programs. In fact, it was students who started the first environmental programs on campus. And both groups have presented the administration with proposals and lists of goals which Pallanti said the University has tried to meet. "I personally meet with both groups and they have a very positive influence," Pallanti said. "They assist in the basic follow-up with the students, advertise on Locust Walk . . . they're the publicity department of our program." UA committee Chairperson Jennifer Berrent said the group will continue with publicity this year, with a new campaign of "recycle, and tell your friends to recycle." "We want to go with the idea that if you tell two friends, and they tell two friends and they tell two friends . . . If you can get two of your friends to recycle it can make a huge impact," Berrent said. Yost said that while the University has come a long way, it still does not buy recycled products, which he said is an important part of any recycling program.
