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UA to get checkup for reaccreditation
Report: UA needs to improve faculty diversity, planning, decision support, engagement By Luke Money ARIZONA DAILY WILDCAT In less than a month, the UA will be the subject of a site visit that may determine whether the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools reaccredits the university. This site visit, from Dec. 6 to 8, represents the culmination of over two and a half years of work by the co-chairs for the North Central Association 2010 accreditation process: Beth Mitchneck, a geography professor and associate dean in the College of Letters, Arts and Science, and Randy Richardson, a geosciences professor.
“Students should care because this is ultimately about the quality of the experience they have at this university and what their degree from the University of Arizona means, both to them and to the greater community at large.” — Beth Mitchneck Associate dean in the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
In the past years Richardson and Mitchneck have presided over the UA’s self-study process, creating a report that details the institution’s strengths and areas it needs to improve. If the UA were to be denied accreditation, then the institution would no longer be allowed to offer federal financial aid to students. Specifically, the report cites four areas where the UA needs to improve: faculty diversity, planning and budgeting for the future, assessment and decision support, and student and community engagement. Richardson said assessment and decision support means reexamining all facets of UA instruction to ensure what is being CHECKUP, page 3
Board decides all ASUA club funding
Kites honor hate-crime victims
Appropriations members control more than $140,000 for clubs By Jazmine Woodberry ARIZONA DAILY WILDCAT
Ginny Polin/Arizona Daily Wildcat
Laura Flannigan, a psychology senior, displays a kite as part of the community art project “Made for Flight” on the UA Mall on Monday. The project, which memorialized transgender individuals murdered in the past year, opened Transgender Awareness Week, which will feature workshops, panels, plays and films through Saturday.
Each week the ASUA Senate approves thousands of dollars for club funds — but the Appropriations Board decides the amount. The Appropriations Board allocates around $140,000 in club funding to the hundreds of clubs recognized by the Associated Students of the University of Arizona. This was cut by tens of thousands of dollars from last year. At the end of last year, six board members were hired, but after two had to resign, ASUA Executive Vice President Katherine Weingartner was left with too small of a board. Five members is the minimum for properly approving requests. “With six we could operate, but I wanted to have seven in order to be a full board,” Weingartner said, hiring two directors within the first weeks of school. “But it is hard to advertise (the final spot) because people believe that all these positions are filled at that point in the school year.” Carlita Cotton was the last addition to the board. “It’s a good way to learn about all the different clubs on campus,” Cotton said. She said that what makes the job worth it is the mix of personalities on the board and funding clubs that can then go out into the community and promote the UA.
The board consists of seven directors and non-voting ASUA senators, who chair the meetings. Club advocates help show clubs how to approach the board for funding. The directors then base decisions on both precedence in club funding procedures and the bylaws set by ASUA. Funding is broken down into travel and general funds, allowing clubs support in sending members to conferences or competitions for travel or for shirts and space rentals for events in general funding requests. Travel funding tends to be more, Weingartner said, but overall the more than $45,000 the board has delineated is right on pace. Because ASUA receives federal money, there are restrictions on what the board can fund, Weingartner said. On the appearance of tabled and stricken requests, Weingartner said she “doesn’t know how it comes off,” but that usually the reason for the delays is to give clubs more of a chance to correctly apply and utilize the funds. Mitchell Manburg, a board director and student studying Spanish and philosophy, added that allowing clubs to resubmit applications allows students the most money possible, even with the board’s shrinking budget. Jarrett Benkendorfer, a political science student and appropriations director, noted the ASUA, page 5
Transgender panel offered answers, insight By Steven Kwan ARIZONA DAILY WILDCAT
Ginny Polin/Arizona Daily Wildcat
Daniel Raven laughs at a story about his past at the Ask a Trans Person Anything panel at Wingspan on Monday. Wingspan and ASUA Pride Alliance invited trans-identified individuals to answer questions and share experiences about transexuality.
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What gender do you put down on job applications? How do you tell someone you are dating that you are a transgender person? These were some of the questions guests asked during the Ask a Trans Person Anything panel at the Wingspan Community Center, 430 E. Seventh St. The panel on Monday night was held as part of Tucson Transgender Awareness Week, which is organized mainly by Wingspan, Southern Arizona Gender Alliance, and the UA’s ASUA Pride Alliance and Office
Check out Wildlife for a photo spread of Humanities Week activities around campus
of LGBTQ Affairs. After introductions, the six panelists related the experiences and struggles of their personal transitions to another gender. “The process for me didn’t begin with my first shot. It began with having feelings that were stronger than the role I was playing.” said Daniel Raven, 57, a panelist who began transitioning 16 years ago. “I was very offended with my friends who would go, ‘Well, did you just wake up today and decide you want to be a man?’” The other panelists shared similar anecdotes of where they struggled with defining their identities. Some, like
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Raven, sought transgender individuals for insight while others found guidance in memoirs, community groups and online resources. Discussion and questions ranged from topics such as health concerns to confronting assumptions to personal relationships. One audience member asked what motivated each person to participate in the panel. “A lot of times you think you know what a transgender person looks like or who they are. If you’re able to ask these questions and we have the guts to LGBTQ, page 5
Open mic night at Malibu Yogurt and Ice Cream, 825 E. University Blvd., 7 p.m.