First floor of Newcomb

NEWS

This week in-brief

CD News Staff

Ellen Yates elected Student Council president

Third-year College student Ellen Yates was elected Student Council president Feb. 28, with 10.03 percent of the University’s student body voting in the election — a drop from last year’s turnout of 12.6 percent. Yates ran unopposed after third-year College student Hunter Wagenaar withdrew from the race during the presidential candidate forum Feb. 24.

Yates ran on a joint ticket with third-year College student Shefalika Prasad, who was re-elected as the vice president for organizations, and third-year Curry student Darynha Gnep, who was elected vice president for administration in a contested election against second-year College student Ilyas Saltani. Saltani had been on a joint ticket with Wagenaar and third-year Architecture student Veronica Merril.

Gnep received 59.5 percent of votes, with 10.6 percent of the student body voting in the VPA election, and 9.93 percent of the study body voting in the VPO election.

Yates, Prasad and Gnep campaigned under the slogan “A Renewed Commitment,” expressing their devotion to creating change in Student Council’s presence, partnership and accountability.

Yates will succeed fourth-year College student Ellie Brasacchio as Student Council President. EMMA KLEIN | THE CAVALIER DAILY Yates’ platform aims to establish better relationships between the Council and student body.

Major water line failure in Alderman Library shuts down Greenberry’s and West Wing restrooms

The University Library announced March 3 that a major water line failure in Alderman Library has led to the closure of Greenberry’s cafe and half of the building’s bathrooms. All water to the West Wing will remain shut off for the remainder of the semester, as the library is scheduled to close completely for renovations this coming May.

The water shut down closed all women’s restrooms located on the west side of the library. As a solution, the library reassigned East Wing restrooms to accommodate students and put up new signage to indicate changes.

John Unsworth, dean of libraries and University librarian, attributed the water line issue to the building’s old plumbing system.

“The plumbing in Alderman Library is original to the building (1937), and it has been failing in the last few years,” Unsworth said in an email to The Cavalier Daily. “Our friends in Facilities have worked their hardest to keep this building open and functioning up to now, and we are fortunate to be in position to close the building as planned in May, or even sooner if there’s any further failure in the plumbing.”

In response to Greenberry’s closing, students were encouraged to make use of other cafe options close-by, including Einstein Bros. Bagels in the Bookstore, Starbucks in Newcomb Hall and the West Range Café. PAIGE WATERHOUSE | THE CAVALIER DAILY The library announces henceforth closure of these locations in light of upcoming renovations.

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Attempted robbery reported at Lambeth Field

A female victim reported an attempted robbery to University police Feb. 29, according to a right-to-know alert issued by Tim Longo, chief of University police and associate vice president for safety and security. The incident occurred at 10:31 p.m. at the Colonnades at Lambeth Field.

According to the alert, the victim reported that a man ordered her to stop and appeared to be holding an unidentified object, and the victim fled to call the police.

The suspect is described as an African American male aged 30 to 39, weighing between 200 and 250 pounds. He was said to be wearing a grey plaid shirt over a red hoodie with blue jeans and brown boots.

Benjamin Rexrode, crime prevention sergeant for the University Police Department, added that UPD is “working diligently to identify the suspect.” UPD requests that anyone with information relating to the incident — or who noticed an individual matching the suspect description between the hours of 10 and 11 p.m. Saturday night — contact them at 434-924-7166. CHRISTINA ANTON | THE CAVALIER DAILY University police are working to identify the suspect

Community gathers for vigil honoring people sold as slaves in Charlottesville

Dozens of community members gathered in Court Square March 1 for Beloved Community CVille’s slave auction block vigil to honor the enslaved people of Charlottesville, many of whom were sold into bondage outside the courthouse. It was a solemn beginning for a week of programming celebrating Charlottesville’s first official Liberation and Freedom Day, commemorated March 3, the anniversary of the Union troops’ arrival that began the emancipation of more than 14,000 enslaved people in 1865. Events continue through March 8.

The vigil took place in the shadow of the auction block marker’s theft by a local white activist. The theft was not the focus of the evening, but event organizer Deacon Don Gathers told The Cavalier Daily in an interview that he hoped the week’s events would energize an effort to replace the plaque with a monument commemorating Charlottesville’s enslaved population.

“It is not an accident that there are tall Confederate statues across the street, while this plaque is buried in the ground,” Gathers said. “That power imbalance must be addressed.”

The vigil included a short walking tour around the square, with descendants of the enslaved speaking, praying and singing at each station. MACKENZIE WILLIAMS | THE CAVALIER DAILY Descendants of the enslaved were highlighted throughout the event