Monday, December 5, 2016

SEMESTER-IN-REVIEW VOL. 127, ISSUE 30

MONDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2016

SEMESTER IN REVIEW page 2

VICTORIA GIRON | THE CAVALIER DAILY

WHAT’S INSIDE A LOOK BACK AT HATE SPEECH PAGE 3

CAVALIER DAILY ELECTS NEXT BOARD PAGE 4

CRIME IS DOWN THIS SEMESTER PAGE 5

TOP FALL SPORTS MOMENTS PAGE 6

TOP HEADLINES FROM FALL 2016 PAGE 13

THE CAVALIER DAILY

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A look back at the past semester Rotunda opens for the first time since spring 2014, Eramo wins defamation trial KATE BELLOWS AND KATHLEEN SMITH | SENIOR WRITERS

SEPTEMBER 3

JULY 6

VIRGINIA FOOTBALL STARTS SEASON WITH NEW COACH

DRAGAS CONDEMNS STRATEGIC INVESTMENT FUND

JULY

Helen Dragas, rector of the Board of Visitors from 2011 to 2013, published an editorial in the Washington Post in July about the $2.3 billion Strategic Investment Fund, which was authorized by the BOV in February. Dragas opposed the fund, calling it a “slush fund.”

In her article, Dragas mentioned that in-state tuition costs have increased by 74 percent since 2009, and that the fund could be used to slash in-state tuition by 70 percent. The University defended the fund and said the funds will be used for improving academic quality through investment in laboratories and scholarships for in-state students, among other purposes.

Amidst the controversy, two state senators, J. Chapman Petersen (D-Fairfax City) and William R. DeSteph Jr. (Virginia Beach) led an inquiry into the fund. State auditor Eric M. Sandridge, who led the investigation into the fund, found the creation was legal and the University did not violate state audit laws.

SEPTEMBER

Bronco Mendenhall became the 40th head coach of the Virginia football team this year. The University athletics department announced the hire Dec. 4, 2015, following the Nov. 29, 2015 resignation of former head coach Mike London. Mendenhall signed a five-year, $16.25 million agreement to coach the University’s struggling football team.

Mendenhall has already implemented changes to the program, such as giving junior transfer Kurt Benkert the starting quarterback position and reforming preseason and practice drills. Prior to serving at Virginia, Mendenhall spent 11 years as head coach of Brigham Young University football and achieved a 99-43 record. The Cavaliers finished 2-10 this season.

SEPTEMBER 26 ROTUNDA OPENS ITS DOORS AFTER TWO YEARS After being under construction for four years and closed for two, the Rotunda officially opened to the public Sept. 26. The building now has collaborative areas and functioning classrooms, as well as study spaces in the dome room, upper west oval room, first balcony and multipurpose room. The exterior of the Rotunda was updated with the addition of benches to the north, east and west courtyards.

With study rooms and gathering spaces interspersed, the Rotunda serves both educational and social purposes. In a nod to a tradition implemented by President Frank Hereford following renovation in the 1970s, the Rotunda can now again host Dome Room Dinners, formal events for first-year dorm associations.

The Rotunda is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Between Sunday and Tuesday, the building will be open until 10 p.m. for study in the upper west oval room, dome room and middle gallery. During finals, the Rotunda will be open until midnight.

OCTOBER 4

OCTOBER 17NOVEMBER 7

LECTURER COMPARES BLACK LIVES MATTER TO KKK

ERAMO SUES ROLLING STONE A federal jury sided with former Associate Dean Nicole Eramo in a defamation lawsuit that found Sabrina Rubin Erdely, Wenner Media, Inc. and Rolling Stone Magazine liable for actual malice in their November 2014 article “A Rape on Campus.”

The article, written by Erdely, recounted the alleged gang rape of firstyear “Jackie” at the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity house and the University’s subsequent response. An investigation

by Charlottesville Police Department did not find any evidence to support Jackie’s claims.

Eramo, whom Jackie told about the alleged rape, based her case on claims that she was wrongly depicted in the article as uncaring and indifferent toward survivors of sexual assault. The prosecution submitted 14 statements associated with the article to the court, and the defense was found liable for actual malice in six of them. Eramo will be awarded $3 million in settlement.

Douglas Muir, an executive lecturer in the Engineering and Darden Schools, came under fire for comparing the Black Lives Matter movement to the Klu Klux Klan in a Facebook comment.

“Black lives matter is the biggest rasist organisation since the clan [sic]. Are you kidding me. Disgusting!!!” Muir wrote in response to a post from Charlottesville realtor Roger Voisinet.

On Oct. 4, Voisinet posted about Black Lives Matter co-founder Alicia Garza speaking at the Paramount Theater.

Garza was speaking at an event titled “Rooting Out Injustice: Poverty, Race and the Role of Legal Aid.” The Engineering School and Darden School both responded to Muir’s comment via their official Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Following the comments, community members held a protest outside of Muir’s restaurant, Bella’s, on West Main St. Muir took a leave of absence from the University but is now teaching again in the Engineering School.

NOVEMBER

OCTOBER

NOVEMBER 1

KHZIR KHAN VISITS U.VA.

NOVEMBER 19

HONOR HOLDS FIRST OPEN TRIAL SINCE 2013 For the first time since February 2013, Honor held a public trial Nov. 19 at the defendant’s request. Engineering graduate student Georgina Hunt was found guilty of cheating on an MSE 6020 final exam she took during the spring 2016 semester. Prof. Sean Agnew, who taught Hunt’s class — Defects and Microstructure in Materials — filed the charges against Hunt with supporting testimony from one of his teaching assistants, Engineering graduate student Fulin Wang.

Hunt and Agnew met to discuss a final exam Hunt needed to make up, but the two reported very different accounts of the conversation. Agnew had sent out the final exam answers May 11 after the rest of the class had taken it, but Hunt also had access to the email and looked at the responses.

Hunt claimed Agnew granted her permission to look over the original exam, but Agnew said he had told her not to look at it, and that she had acknowledged she would not. Agnew claimed Hunt could not have taken the exam without some form of unauthorized aid.

Hunt is on a student visa granted to her by the University and will now have to either transfer to a different school or go back to the United Kingdom.

Khzir Khan, father of late University alumnus and Army Capt. Humayun Khan, came to the University Nov. 1 for a private taping of the Miller Center show “American Forum” and a public event at Old Cabell Hall.

Humayun Khan graduated from the University in 2000 and later served as a member of the United States Army in Iraq, where he was killed in 2004.

“We only conclude — Mrs. Khan and I — that we were blessed to have him for 27 years,” Khizr Khan said of his son in a previous interview with The Cavalier Daily.

Douglas Blackmon, Miller Center director of public programs and host of “American Forum,” interviewed Khan about his experience as a Muslim-American and what drove him to make his now-famous speech condemning Donald Trump’s comments about banning Muslims from entering the United States at the Democratic National Convention.

PHOTOS BY CAVALIER DAILY PHOTO STAFF

NOVEMBER 11 PROFESSORS QUESTION SULLIVAN’S USE OF JEFFERSON QUOTES IN EMAILS Faculty in the Psychology Department drafted a letter to Sullivan Nov. 11 condemning the use of Thomas Jefferson quotes in her post-election email encouraging community. Following the contentious election between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, Sullivan asked students to unite and work together despite political differences.

“Thomas Jefferson wrote to a friend that University of Virginia students ‘are not of ordinary significance only: they are exactly the persons who are to succeed to the government of our country, and to rule its future enmities, its friendships and fortunes,’” Sullivan said in the email. “I encourage today’s U.Va. students to embrace that responsibility.”

The letter, which was signed by professors, students and alumni, criticized Sullivan’s decision to quote Jefferson in an email calling for unity, as he owned slaves and held racist beliefs. Sullivan defended her original email in a statement Nov. 14, claiming that she supported Jefferson’s message of University students helping to lead the country.

“Quoting Jefferson — or any historical figure — does not imply an endorsement of all the social structures and beliefs of his time,” Sullivan said in the statement.

MONDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2016

www.cavalierdaily.com • NEWS

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A list of hate speech on Grounds this semester Fall semester sees several bias-motivated incidents ALEXIS GRAVELY | ASSOCIATE EDITOR Throughout the fall semester, a number of bias-motivated incidents have occurred on Grounds targeting a variety of minority groups.

The University took note of the increased number of incidents and several administrators condemned what they called “acts of bigotry and bias” in a Nov. 2 email.

“There are several theories for why this may be occurring, including the tone and tenor of the ongoing national election,” the email — which was sent out days before Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the presidential campaign — said.

In response to the incidents, a campaign called “Eliminate the Hate” was founded to provide the University community with solidarity and education regarding hate speech.

Other student responses included a protest at the Board of Visitors meeting Nov. 11 called on the University to provide a safe space for victims of hate crimes.

Below is a timeline of several of the incidents that occurred this semester: SEPT. 2: Residents and resident advisors of the Kent-Dabney Dorm Association discovered the N-word

had been written in permanent marker on the doors of students’ rooms, walls and whiteboards across several floors.

While no specific individual appears to have been targeted — the slur was written on the doors of residents and RAs of a variety of races, ethnicities and gender — students of color were among the students subjected to the graffiti, University spokesperson Anthony de Bruyn said in an email statement.

SEPT. 6: A report came in through the Just Report It system that, on Sept.

6, a male used derogatory language toward the ethnic origin of a graduate student at the Snyder Tennis Center.

The targeted individual was among a larger group waiting to use a court and the identity of the perpetrator is unknown, de Bruyn said.

OCT. 23: Anti-Semitic graffiti was found outside of the GrandMarc apartment complex on 15th Street.

The graffiti depicted an orange Star of David with the word “Juden” — the German word for “Jew” — written below it.

In a joint statement sent that night, Student Council and the Jewish Lead-

ership Council noted “the imagery painted at GrandMarc is intended to intimidate Jewish students and make them feel uncomfortable in their community.”

“It’s direct Holocaust imagery and that’s what’s problematic about it,” third-year College student Michaela Brown said. “It was graffiti that was used to vandalize Jewish shops and homes and destroy them.”

Brown also noticed two other pieces of graffiti on the building written in similar orange paint — one saying “Satan” and the other a pentagram.

OCT. 30: An anti-Muslim remark was written along the walls of Brown College sometime between the mid to late hours of Oct. 30.

The word “terrorist” was written in pencil near a suite where two Muslim students were residing. An arrow was drawn pointing towards the rooms of the students.

An email was sent to the student body by Dean of Students Allen Groves informing students of the incident and condemning the comments.

OCT. 31: A report was received

through the Just Report It system on Oct. 31 stating that a male walking within a larger group used a racial slur towards a group of African-American students.

The incident occurred near a firstyear residence hall, and the identity of the alleged perpetrator is unknown, de Bruyn said.

NOV. 2: A report was received through the Just Report It system that, on Nov. 2, a male student returned to his room in a residence hall and found a slur used against gay males written on his door.

According to the Eliminate the Hate Facebook page, the student was an RA at the International Residential College.

The identity of the alleged perpetrator is unknown, de Bruyn said.

NOV. 3: A report was received through the Just Report It system on stating a stuffed monkey with dreadlocks and a Jamaican cap was attached to the front of Dunglison dorm.

Although the incident was reported as an act of racial bias, de Bruyn stated the students involved did not intend for it to be, and he said that though the doll was tied to an outer

wall, a “hangman’s noose” was not involved.

“They described the action as part of a larger ‘prank’ among friends that was not motivated by racial animus, and demonstrated sincere remorse about the unintended impact on members of the community,” de Bruyn said of the perpetrators.

However, some students considered the act to be offensive, including Weston Gobar, the political action chair of the Black Student Alliance and a third-year College student.

“One might think that at least one person within that group would have the sense to ponder the image of a monkey decorated with a rastafarian hat and dreads being hung from a rope,” Gobar said in an email statement. “One might think that someone within the group would point out how reminiscent the scene was to some of the terrible atrocities perpetrated towards black people in this country coupled with the stereotypical black associations the doll had.”

“I am disappointed in the ignorance and insensitivity of the students who did this," Gobar said.

Minority Rights Coalition presents town hall on diversity Students, administration discuss U.Va.’s historic issues, new strategies KATE LEWIS | SENIOR WRITER The Minority Rights Coalition hosted a town hall on Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Friday — a follow-up to this semester’s spike in reported bias-related incidents and the Eliminate the Hate campaign.

Drawing a crowd of about 65 people to Newcomb Theater, the town hall opened with a presentation that broke the day’s topic into four main areas — academics, leadership, institution and culture.

MRC Chair Attiya Latif, a thirdyear College student, led the crowd through a history of diversity issues at the University, from its founding to incidents such as the reported assault of Daisy Lundy, Martese Johnson’s arrest and this year’s spike in reported hateful speech and graffiti.

“These incidents don’t occur in a vacuum, so we wanted to kick this event off in perspective,” Latif said at the event. “We wanted to share some statistics with you and start with a brief history lesson of the University.”

Latif and other MRC members presented a series of slides featuring statistics that broke down items such as GPA, admissions and mean SAT scores by gender and race.

The Student Experience in the Research University Survey was presented as an indicator of campus

climate, and its results were also broken-down by race.

While the SERU data does not account for safety and inclusion concerns of LGBTQ students, religious minorities or other racial minorities who may be facing feelings of unsafety on Grounds, Latif said, the data showed that black students rate the University significantly lower than all other groups on all climate dimensions.

“Black students distinctly feel that U.Va. is a hostile campus, it’s impersonal, it’s not appreciative of diversity and it’s dangerous, it’s not intellectually stimulating and it’s a little too hard,” Latif said.

They also discussed a report recently released by the Office of the Dean of Students on the number of bias-related incidents from fall 2015 to summer 2016, as well as the first four months of this academic year.

Last academic year, a total of 14 incidents were reported using the University’s anonymous “Just Report It” system as bias-related, while 44 such incidents have been reported since August of this year.

The University defines a bias-related incident as “any report of a threat or act of harassment or intimidation — verbal, written or physi-

cal — which is personally directed against or targets a University of Virginia student because of that student’s age, color, disability, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, veteran status or family medical or genetic information.”

Just three of last years’ reported incidents were found to comply with this definition, compared to 16 of this years’ reports, according to the Office of the Dean of Students.Following the presentation, the assembly broke up for two rounds of small, group discussions on what resources and organizations related to diversity, equity and inclusion already exist at the University, and how these could be improved.

One goal of the town hall was to empower students to engage in substantive discussions with University administrators, MRC President of Outreach Araba Dennis, a third-year College student, said.

“Student self-governance is actually a thing, we can actually have forums with administrators and people that are creating policy and say, ‘This is what we need from you as administrators,’” Dennis said.

One of the break-out groups fea-

tured a panel of administrators from the Office of African American Affairs, Multicultural Student Services, the Women’s Center, the Black Cultural Center and the LGBTQ center, as well as Dean of Students Allen Groves.

Each representative shared a variety of initiatives and resources that their organization provides to students, from social justice advocacy to classes in peer counseling, but a common theme was the importance of students’ physical and mental well-being and how intimately those things are tied to academic success.

“I think it’s a strong-suit of OAAA in that we’re constantly using academic performance as a diagnostic criteria for many things, whether it's social, relational, emotional,” Michael Mason, BCC director and assistant dean of the OAAA, said. “We’re definitely trying to keep our fingers to that pulse.”

When asked what services they would provide to a student in the aftermath of a hate or bias-driven incident, Groves said his office could aid the student in a variety of ways, including counseling referrals, personal safety plans, addressing housing concerns and — if appropriate — securing protective orders and facilitating

police reports.

“I think that when you look at the range of things we deal with every day, we try to listen to the student,” Groves said. “We try to advocate for and protect the student and make them aware of what things might be out there and available.”

Each break-out group will meet again over the course of the next semester as a working group for some facet of University policy change, Latif said.

“We will have working groups for every one of the topics that wishes to have one, with any student that wishes to volunteer and be a part of it, and those groups will meet regularly,” she said. “Whatever they construct or create will be an implementable change.”

After the event, Latif said she was happy with the turnout and the course discussions had taken that day.

“We’ve gotten a really productive outlet for a lot of the things we’ve been thinking about, and we’ve had people to bounce ideas off of,” she said. “We’ve sort of realized that there are productive ways to go about moving forward from here, and we don’t have to stagnate in one place.”

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THE CAVALIER DAILY

NEWS • www.cavalierdaily.com

Law School holds First Amendment rights event Instances of harassment have increased since election DAVID SCHUTTE | ASSOCIATE EDITOR Several Law School professors, students and former lawyers hosted an educational information session designed to inform students and faculty of their First Amendment rights and how to deal with verbal encounters that may seem threatening.

Within the first week following the presidential election, the Southern Poverty Law Center registered 437 instances of verbal harassment, intimidation and physical encounters. These instances were related to political affiliation, race, immigration status, sexual orientation, sex and religion.

“People are beginning to think about how to deal with these kinds of situations in a public setting, what is the appropriate response, what rights do you have under state and federal law,” Brian Owensby, Center for Global Inquiry director, said at the event. “So I thought it

made some sense to start a conversation about that so people can be more informed.”

The session, which lasted for approximately an hour, covered topics ranging from general constitutional rights to specific rights concerning Virginia’s freedom of speech provisions.

Law Prof. Josh Bowers warned about the fine line between exercising free speech and violating the law.

“We have the ability to express ourselves. Necessarily we need to tolerate the expressions of others even when those expressions are morally troubling and downright abhorrent in some context,” Bowers said. “But there’s a line in which speech cuts over into action, and when speech is action is when it’s potentially problematic.”

Law Prof. Leslie Kendrick, whose research focuses primari-

ly on freedom of expression, said speech is only criminal when a true threat can be proven.

“The First Amendment protects much offensive speech, even a great deal of what many people would call ‘hate speech,’” Kendrick said in an email statement. “Offensive speech is generally protected, unless it falls into certain defined categories, such as true threats and incitement, which may be punished as crimes.”

Bowers said at the event that when typical criminal conduct is done to intentionally inflict harm on someone based on their race, religion or ethnicity, that person may be subjected to a longer sentence.

Law students Anna Rao, Amber Strickland and Tex Pasley explained what constitutes battery, assault and vandalism in the state of Virginia.

“If you are patted on the back and you say to that person, ‘don’t do that again,’ that’s not a battery because it wasn’t done in a rude or vengeful manner,” Strickland said.

“But if they do that after you told them to stop that’s clearly something that was done vengefully.”

Assault, on the other hand, is when someone does something with the intention of instilling fear in another person.

Strickland added that even wearing a mask in a public space or on someone else’s private property is illegal unless it is related to a cultural event or holiday. The KKK hood is entirely banned in Virginia.

Vandalism is the intent to infringe on people’s right to use a space and damage a property, Rao said.

Pasley added that certain actions do not necessarily fall under

the general definitions of either battery, assault or vandalism still constitute violations of Virginia statute.

Certain statutes ban the burning of a cross, hanging of a noose and drawing of a swastika on public or private property.

Kendrick said while it is important for students to know basic First Amendment rights, students shouldn’t be hesitant to report instances that may be in violation of amendment rights, even if it won’t necessarily lead to a conviction.

“Don't assume that if something happens to you there is nothing you can do about it,” Kendrick said. “If you're uncertain about whether you have witnessed or been the victim of a crime, report what happened to the University or the police.”

Cavalier Daily elects 128th staff Third-year College student Mike Reingold elected editor-in-chief CATHERINE WIEDMANN | ASSOCIATE EDITOR The Cavalier Daily held its elections for the 128th term Dec. 3 with uncontested Managing Board elections.

Third-year College student Mike Reingold was elected editor-in-chief.

He previously served as one of two assistant managing editors and was a senior copy associate before that.

Reingold said he wants the paper to become “digital-first” and intends to focus on bringing digital content to the forefront of the paper, as well as making the print version more accessible to the University community.

In order to better represent the University community, Reingold said he wants recruitment to focus on creating a more diverse staff.

Second-year College student Tim Dodson was elected managing editor. Before being elected managing editor, Dodson served as one of two news editors.

The managing editor’s responsibilities consist of overseeing the literary sections of the paper as well as the social media, graphics and video sections.

“One thing that I want to work on during my term as managing editor is cross-section collaboration and trying to pair up different sections and writers with different interests to pursue some really interesting features and pieces,” Dodson said.

The role of executive editor will be filled by second-year College student Carlos Lopez. Lopez sat as a selected

From left to right: Parker, Lopez, Reingold, Dodson and Dacanay.

member of the Editorial Board in the 127th term, alongside authoring a weekly Opinion column.

In overseeing subjective content — the Opinion and Humor sections — Lopez said he wants to focus on face time between writers and editors.

For the Opinion section, “We’re looking into ways of resuscitating the section,” Lopez said. “We’re looking forward to getting new people, creating new stuff and making sure we’re producing good content throughout the section.”

The executive editor also chairs the Editorial Board, members of which write and edit the paper’s lead

editorials three times a week.

“We’re looking to provide consistent, factually based opinions that represent — hopefully — the views of the entire paper and the student body as a whole,” Lopez said.

Third-year College student Grant Parker will serve as the chief financial officer. Parker served as one of two business and marketing managers in the 127th term.

Parker said he is looking forward to expanding The Cavalier Daily’s digital presence.

“I’d like to work on expanding our digital advertising,” Parker said. “It’s more of a continuation from the previous term and really building on it.”

The role of operations manager will be filled by third-year College student Danielle Dacanay. Dacanay previously served as one of three production editors.

“What I’m most looking forward to is trying to find ways for the section to collaborate with each other,” Dacanay said.

Dacanay said she plans on continuing the work of the previous operations manager, but adapting the job to be more efficient.

Elections for literary positions on the Junior Board saw many highly contested elections, though some still went uncontested.

Second-year College student Ben Tobin and third-year Curry student Lillian Gaertner will serve as the next assistant managing editors.

Third-year College students Anna Higgins and Hailey Ross will serve as News editors in the upcoming term.

Previously a News editor, third-year College student Hannah Hall will now serve as Focus editor.

Second-year College student Julie Bond and first-year College student Gracie Kreth will serve as the next Life editors. Third-year College student Jessica Chandrasekhar and second-year College student Kate Lewis will serve as the new Health and Science editors — the first leadership transition the section has seen in three years.

Third-year College student Ben Hitchcock and first-year College stu-

dent Dan Goff will take on the roles of Arts and Entertainment editors.

Third-year College student Lucas Halse and first-year College student Amber Liu will serve as Graphics editors along with third-year Engineering student Sean Cassar, who will oversee online graphics.

Third-year College student Rebecca Malaret and second-year College student Sinta Taylor will serve as the next Video editors. Third-year College student Shaelea Carroll and first-year College student Ashley Botkin will be the managers for the Social Media section.

Third-year College student Lucy Siegel and first-year College student Brendan Novak will serve as Opinion editors. Third-year College student Brennan Lee will serve as the next Humor editor.

The Operations Staff saw both contested and uncontested elections.

Cassar will reassume his role as Production editor, along with newly elected second-year College student Victoria Giron and first-year College student Disha Jain.

Third-year Engineering student Richard Dizon and third-year College student Hannah Mussi will serve as the next Photo editors. Second-year Engineering student Leo Dominguez will continue his role as Engineering Manager.

The term will officially transition Jan. 20, 2017.

MONDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2016

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Fall crime declines, sexual assault reports increase An overview of reported crimes this semester ALEXIS GRAVELY | ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR

This semester, students received a total of seven “Timely Warning: Your Right to Know” safety announcements from the University Police Department regarding various crimes that occurred on or around Grounds. The majority of these warnings involved either robberies or sexual assaults.

There were six warnings issued

by UPD in the fall 2015 semester and five warnings issued in the spring 2016 semester, which means the number of safety announcements has increased slightly this semester. However, there has not been a substantial increase in crime on and near Grounds. According to a report from the UPD, the number of crimes reported this semester is the second lowest in the past five years.

Crimes reported this semester On Aug. 24, the day after classes started for the fall semester, UPD sent an email to students regarding a robbery that had occurred after midnight on Aug. 21.

The victim reported being robbed by two armed men while walking alone in the area of 16th Street NW and Gordon Avenue.

This robbery was the first in a string of armed robberies that occurred throughout the next few weeks. The second robbery occurred in the 800 block of Cabell Avenue just before midnight on Aug. 31, and the third occurred in the 400 block of Rugby Road around 11 p.m. on Sept. 4.

As a result, the Charlottesville Police Department began investigating the robberies and increasing patrols around the University.

“Our patrol commanders have been briefing officers on these incidents during roll call and formulating response plans for any additional incidents, [while] our Investigations Bureau is currently investigating all the cases and investigators are collaborating with each other,” CPD Public Information Officer Lt. Steve Upman said in an email statement.

On Sept. 9, the Charlottesville police arrested three suspects — 18-year-old Charlottesville resident Pendarvis Marquette Carrington, 17-year-old Charlottesville resident Za’Juan Page and an unnamed 17-year-old.

A number of sexual assaults have also been reported to the police department this semester. On Aug. 20, a female victim reported that she was sexually assaulted by an unknown man armed with a knife. The assault occurred on Emmet Street between McCormick Road and Thomson Road some-

time between 12:01 a.m. and 1:07 a.m.

Another assault was reported to the police on Oct. 16. According to an email from UPD, a female student reported that she and a friend were walking down 15th Street across from GrandMarc apartments when a group of males approached them. One male pushed the student into the bushes, grabbed her inappropriately and held her in the bushes until she and her friend were able to fight him off.

On the same day, an attempted sexual assault occurred between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. on Grady Avenue. An unknown male entered a

reported twice and automotive theft was reported once.

While two more crimes were reported in the fall 2016 semester than in the fall 2015 semester, the type of crimes shifted from year to year. In fall 2015, only two sexual assaults were reported and five aggravated assaults were reported.

The overall number of crimes on Grounds has decreased the past few years. Three years ago, the number of crimes reported in the fall semester reached 123. While 96 of these crimes were larceny and 15 were burglaries, several automotive thefts, aggravated assaults and sexual assaults were also reported.

chine or device, theft from a motor vehicle and theft of parts from a motor vehicle, was the most common type of crime reported in Charlottesville, just as it was on Grounds.

There were 277 reported larcenies this fall, which accounted for 70 percent of all crimes reported this semester. Upman said he does know the reason for this, simply that it was statistically the most reported incident.

There were only three sexual assaults reported in the city of Charlottesville, less than the amount reported on Grounds.

Number of crimes reported to the University Police*

Fall 2016 3%

150

2% Larceny

8%

120

Sexual Assault

9%

Burglary 78%

90

Aggravated Assault Auto Theft

60 30 0

Fall 2013

Fall 2014

Fall 2015

Fall 2016

*These numbers go from Aug 18 to Nov 27 each year.

KATE MOTSKO, LUCAS HALSE, AMBER LIU, KAY KHOSBAYAR AND ERIC DUONG | THE CAVALIER DAILY

student organization house, went into an upstairs bedroom and began kissing the occupant, who was asleep. The suspect fled the house when confronted by the occupant.

In addition to robberies and sexual assaults, the University experienced an incidence of gun violence this semester.

On Oct. 1, University and city police departments responded to a disorder in the Corner parking lot around 2 a.m. As they approached the scene, they heard gunshots.

Three victims were treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Charlottesville police arrested 23-year-old Lewis Alexander Tyree, Jr. in connection with the shooting. He was charged with possession or transportation of a firearm by a convicted felon.

University crime across semesters Sixty-five on-Grounds crimes were reported this semester, according to statistics from the UPD, which run from Aug. 18 to Nov. 27.

The majority of these crimes were larceny, which was reported 51 times. Sexual assault was reported six times, burglary was reported five times, aggravated assault was

Fall 2016 has seen the highest number of reported sexual assaults on Grounds within the past five years. Fall 2013 is the only semester that comes close with four reported sexual assaults.

Crime in the Charlottesville community Data from CPD shows that as of Dec. 2, a fewer number of fall crimes have been reported in the city of Charlottesville than in the past few years. A complete analysis will not be made until the fall semester concludes on Dec. 16, but so far, there have been 393 reported crimes in Charlottesville. This is in comparison to 405 crimes reported in fall 2015 and a five-year mean of 520 crimes.

This downward trend has been consistent, Upman said.

“For the past 10 years, these [crimes] … they’ve actually been trending downward for ten years,” Upman said. “So while Charlottesville is a much safer environment than some other cities, we still have these types of crimes.”

Overall larceny, which includes pocket picking, purse snatching, shoplifting, theft from a building, theft from a coin operated ma-

Promoting safety on Grounds Both police departments and on-Grounds organizations have measures in place to help make the University a safe place for students.

CPD has a Crime Prevention Unit that speaks with groups in the community and conducts home security surveys, Upman said.

CPD also has officers who are certified in crime prevention through environmental design. “[These officers] can come out and take a look at a building, residence or area and make an analysis on how to reduce the opportunity for incidence to occur by increasing lighting, cutting back bushes, all that kind of stuff,” Upman said.

Upman and UPD Crime Prevention Coordinator Benjamin Rexrode both said patrol officers play a major role in promoting safety.

“One of the best ways to reduce certain types of crimes is our mere presence,” Rexrode said in an email statement. “When our patrol officers are engaged and visible on Grounds, it can instill a sense of security to our community members as well as prevent criminal activity.”

Both the CPD and UPD place

emphasis on informing the community of crimes that have occurred in a timely manner.

“It’s incumbent upon us to let the public know that [crimes] have occurred so that people can be vigilant and not become complacent when it comes to potentially being a victim,” Upman said.

The CPD distributes a daily bulletin, which includes every incident report the police department has received during the previous three days. It also includes information about accidents that have occurred and people who have been arrested.

The UPD sends “Timely Warning” emails when crimes meet specific criteria under the Clery Act. Some of the criteria include whether or not the perpetrator has been apprehended and whether or not there is a serious ongoing threat to the University community.

On Grounds, organizations like the University Judiciary Committee help promote safety in the community.

“What we do to protect students and ensure safety is we uphold these standards and when students are alleged of violating them, we hold them responsible by making them come to the judicial trial,” UJC Chair Mitchell Wellman, a fourth-year College student, said.

UJC has 12 standards that act as behavioral guidelines for students. These standards range in severity from prohibiting students from physically assaulting others to prohibiting the underage consumption of alcohol.

“The big point is that by having a code of conduct, by enforcing the code of conduct, we de-incentivize students from behaving like that,” Wellman said.

UJC also partners with other organizations to go into the community and spread the word about resources available to students or anyone who believes a University student has violated the standards of conduct against them.

However, Wellman said he believes the safety level of a community ultimately depends on the people.

“It depends on the culture of that community and the mechanisms in place that regulate that culture,” Wellman said. “I think that at U.Va., we have a fairly unified community within the University. I think the University provides those mechanisms of control.”

THE CAVALIER DAILY

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Aguilar’s goal tops off Fall 2016 Cavaliers excel at Rio Games, in ACC, NCAA tournaments CD SPORTS STAFF ,Fall 2016 has seen a number of highs and lows for Virginia sports. From the excitement of Leah Smith’s Olympics performance, to football coach Bronco Mendenhall’s first Virginia win (and little success afterwards), to a thrilling beginning to the men’s basketball season, Cavaliers fans have experienced somewhat of a roller coaster. Now three months into the year, here are the Cavalier Daily Sports Staff ’s favorite moments:

1.

The 2016 Field Hockey season was filled with numerous personal accolades, but the top moment of the season was without a doubt the team’s collective accomplishment — capturing their first ever ACC Championship. After an up-and-down regular season, the Cavaliers were able to come together as a team when it counted. The lowest seed (#6) ever to win the tournament, Virginia dominated and set a tournament record by scoring 13 goals along the way. The Cavaliers boasted a talented team, as seen by having four players on the all-tournament team, including tournament MVP senior striker Caleigh Foust.

gold in the 4x200-meter relay team which featured Smith, Allison Schmitt, Maya DiRado and Katie Ledecky. It’s not often that Virginia swimming gets the same appreciation as football or basketball. But this summer, thanks in part to Leah Smith, it most certainly did.

4.

The No. 15 Virginia women's soccer team made it to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament before falling at No. 5 Georgetown by a score of 2-0 in a match they could just as easily have won. Senior midfielder Alexis Shaffer was the top performer all season long for the Cavaliers, pacing the offense with 13 goals and seven assists, garnering NSCAA All-American honors. A particularly memorable moment of the season came early when senior goalkeeper Morgan Stearns, with the help of her fantastic defense, broke the all-time Virginia scoreless streak with 872 consecutive scoreless minutes.

5.

The top moment for the cross-country season this past fall was the men’s team advancing and competing in the NCAA National Championships

PAUL BURKE | THE CAVALIER DAILY

Junior forward Isaiah Wilkins and the men’s basketball team have started strong, taking down Ohio State in thrilling fashion.

just a few weeks ago. With the team finishing in 18th, standout sophomore Brent Demarest capped off a stellar season for the Cavaliers. His first place team finish was one of sever-

2.

Throughout their successful 2016 season, the Virginia men’s soccer team had many incredible moments worth looking back at. But perhaps none were as exhilarating as junior midfielder Pablo Aguilar’s game-winning goal in double overtime against Vermont to give the Cavaliers an opening round win in the NCAA Tournament. After receiving the ball right outside of the box, Aguilar was able to use several dazzling moves to avoid four Vermont defenders and convert an outside-of-the-foot shot to give Virginia the golden goal and the win. This took place in Charlottesville, at a packed Klöckner Stadium, making the moment all the more memorable.

6.

It’s early in the 201617 men’s basketball season, but we can already look back on a great moment. With over 14,500 in attendance Nov. 30 at John Paul Jones Arena, the Cavaliers rallied back from a 36-24 halftime deficit to defeat Ohio State, 63-61. Pressed by head coach Tony Bennett to respond after a sluggish half, senior point guard London Perrantes took over in the final 20 minutes, draining all three of his attempts from downtown. Trailing 63-61, the Buckeyes had possession with just six seconds left – a made three away from pulling off the upset, but the Virginia packline prevailed, forcing a desperate heave that didn’t even come close.

3.

For years, the Cavalier swim and dive teams have dominated the ACC and fielded fiercely competitive teams for NCAA meets in March. The successes enjoyed by the team, however, far surpass the college competitions. This past summer in Rio at the 2016 Summer Olympics, senior swimmer Leah Smith made more than a splash at the games. She racked up a bronze medal, taking third in the 400-meter freestyle, and a

al races this season where he was near the top of the pack of runners representing the Cavaliers. It was a great way to end the season for both Demarest as well as the team. Senior Zach Herriott also set himself apart, finishing his career on a positive note with a top-60 finish in the national championships. Both runners were instrumental in Virginia’s 18th place finish in the national championship race.

7.

WYATT ECK | THE CAVALIER DAILY

Junior midfielder Pablo Aguilar’s game-winning double overtime golden goal to beat Vermont in the first round of the NCAA Tournament shocked the collegiate soccer world.

The Virginia women’s basketball team has gotten off to a solid 6-2 start in non-conference play thus far in its season.

Coach Joanne Boyle stressed how much depth the Cavaliers have this year, and her assessment has proven true so far with

many players contributing to the team’s offense each game. Junior forward Lauren Moses has particularly stood out, putting up 19 points against Nebraska in the South Point Shootout Tournament, earning her All-Tournament honors.

Freshman guards Jocelyn Willoughby and Dominique Toussaint have transitioned very well into starting roles and have shown that they can put up big numbers to complement the upperclassmen.

8.

First-year football coach Bronco Mendenhall was all smiles after the Cavaliers earned their first win and Mendenhall earned his 100th career victory over a talented Central Michigan team. Virginia defeated the Chippewas 49-35 behind a phenomenal performance from junior quarterback Kurt Benkert, who threw five touchdowns and 421 yards. The East Carolina transfer had his best game of the season, breaking Virginia’s single-game passing record.

The game wasn’t short of drama, however. The Cavaliers led 15-0 in the first quarter before Central Michigan came back and tie the game in the fourth quarter.

Virginia regained the lead with an 82-yard touchdown pass from Benkert to sophomore wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus for his longest throw of the season.

MONDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2016

www.cavalierdaily.com • SPORTS

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No. 6 men’s basketball falls to No. 25 West Virginia Bennett’s questionable line-up decisions doom Cavaliers GRANT GOSSAGE | SENIOR ASSOCIATE EDITOR Senior point guard London Perrantes glared at the television mounted in the top corner of the John Paul Jones Arena pressroom as it aired the highlights from the No. 6 Virginia basketball team’s 66-57 loss to No. 25 West Virginia (6-1).

The Cavaliers (7-1) had just fallen on their home court for the first time since 2015, when Duke spoiled College GameDay with a 69-63 victory.

The Mountaineers made Perrantes exert energy through their full-court press, wearing him down physically and mentally throughout his 37 minutes Saturday and leading him to commit to three turnovers.

Perrantes put up just six points on 2-10 shooting.The floor general hadn't failed to score at least 10 since Nov. 22 when he played just 17 minutes against Grambling State.

“I feel like I get everybody’s best now, with Malcolm [Brogdon] and Anthony [Gill] being gone,” Perrantes said. “It is early in the season and I’m not used to it, but we have guys that can step up and help me and help the team, so I’m not worried too much about it.”

Junior guard Darius Thompson had the strongest performance offensively for Virginia, tallying a season high 14 points on 5-10 shooting. The former Tennessee Volunteer drained a three at the top of the key and another in the right corner, igniting a 12-4 run to open the game

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avalier fans are admittedly pretty spoiled when it comes to college hoops. Underclassmen have never experienced a loss at home. Every year since the 2013-14 season, Virginia (7-1) has made it to the NCAA Tournament, earning two No. 1 seeds and a No. 2 seed.

Just earlier this week, No. 6 Virginia avoided a home loss with a late rally against Ohio State, edging out the Buckeyes (6-1) by a score of 63-61. It seemed like the ’Hoos just couldn’t lose.

The team has been hard to beat as of late, both at home and away. It didn’t seem like the Cavaliers could ever lose at JPJ — but they did. They lost to a physical and effective No. 25 West Virginia Saturday afternoon.

The Mountaineers (7-1) won the game 66-57, ending Virginia’s home winning streak at 24 games — tied for sixth longest in the nation.

While I do remember all of the successes of Virginia’s last three seasons, I also recall the times that the team’s identity was challenged.

I remember the frustrating loss to

KILEY LOVELACE | THE CAVALIER DAILY

Coach Tony Bennett and his staff will have to figure out the best personnel combinations going forward to overcome the team’s inexperience and inconsistent start.

for the Cavaliers.

“We had a terrific start,” coach Tony Bennett said. “We were swarming … We had energy, and they just kind of wore on us. I think a couple of crucial turnovers that led to breakaways, missing some free throws, where maybe that lead could have stretched a little more, and they’re just not going to go away.”

After the Cavaliers’ hot start,

West Virginia battled back, thanks in large part to the play of junior guard Daxter Miles Jr. In 11 first-half minutes, Miles contributed seven points on 3-3 shooting. He was arguably the best player on the floor until the officials ejected him at the 2:42 mark, judging his elbow to junior forward Isaiah Wilkins’ face to be a Flagrant II foul.

Even without Miles, who entered

with a 7.3 point-per-game average, the Mountaineers found a variety of ways to score against Virginia’s vaunted pack-line defense — seven other West Virginia players chipped in six or more points.

Junior guard Jevon Carter attacked the lane and got to the line, where he converted all five of his chances. Carter tallied a team-high 11 points, to go along with five assists, three steals and a block.

West Virginia senior forward Nathan Adrian recorded 10 points, five rebounds and four assists. He and sophomore forward Esa Ahmad, who added nine points and a teamhigh seven rebounds, had success against the Cavaliers’ young frontcourt. The Mountaineers outscored Virginia 26-14 in the paint.

“At times, we will try to trap in the post,” Bennett said. “We have to keep the ball out of the paint first with our perimeter defense. We have to be good at swarming and rebounding, but that depends who we have out there personnel-wise. We have different strengths on our team, but I have to do a better job of finding them.”

Wilkins battled the Mountaineers’ frontcourt, totaling seven points and eight boards, but received little help from the other three Cavalier forwards — sophomores Jack Salt and Jarred Reuter and redshirt freshman Mamadi Diakite — who combined to produce only eight points

and six rebounds.

As much as a lack of interior scoring hurt Virginia, they missed six free throws and turned the basketball over a season-high 14 times.

West Virginia turned those miscues into 18 points on the other end, compared to just five points off turnovers for Virginia.

“Basketball in general is a game of runs,” Thompson said. “We had our run and then they came down and forced some turnovers. They had easy layup opportunities, so I would say that that’s what helped them out.”

Junior guard Marial Shayok and freshman guard Kyle Guy each provided a spark off the bench for the Cavaliers. Shayok hit on three of his eight attempts for nine points, while Guy knocked down three of four looks for seven points in only nine minutes.

Surprisingly, Bennett subbed both out with 11:27 in the second half, choosing to play freshman guard Ty Jerome and junior guard Devon Hall down the stretch. The decision to sit the team’s third and fourth leading scorers for two who average a combined 7.6 points per game had fans scratching their heads. West Virginia went on an 11-2 run over the final 1:44, stymying Virginia’s offense entirely.

The Cavaliers will look to get back on the winning track at John Paul Jones Arena Tuesday against East Carolina (7-2) at 7 p.m.

STREAKS ARE MEANT TO BE BROKEN Tennessee during the 2013-14 season when the Cavaliers struggled on both sides of the ball, losing to the Volunteers 87-52. I remember what would later be coined as the “Tennessee Turnaround” when, after the loss, former-guard Joe Harris visited coach Tony Bennett’s house and talked about their vision for the season.

The rest is history — Virginia went on to post a 16-2 regular season record, winning the ACC regular season title and the ACC Tournament en route to earning a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Sometimes it takes a loss for a team to question its identity in the first place and better itself. The Cavaliers don’t have their go-to scorers from the past three seasons — losing Harris, Justin Anderson and Malcolm Brogdon to the NBA. This year will be different, and Saturday’s loss to West Virginia presents an opportunity to go back to the drawing board to figure out what works for this Cavaliers team. Part of that has to do with which schemes of players

Bennett decides to rely on.

“We have different strengths on our team, but I have to do a better job of finding them,” Bennett said.

Finding those strengths will be the mission of the remainder of the Cavaliers’ non-conference schedule.

It’s no secret that this year’s Virginia team is less experienced. The Cavaliers lost 45 percent of their scoring from last year with the loss of Brogdon and Anthony Gill — but what remains to be answered is who will step up.

The most obvious answer would be senior point guard London Perrantes, but for a player who has often elected to assist rather than shoot, the pressure to perform has proven tricky. The Los Angeles, Calif. native shot one-for-seven from behind the arc and two-for-10 from the field while recording seven assists against the Mountaineers.

“I feel like I get everybody’s best now, with Malcolm [Brogdon] and Anthony [Gill] being gone,” Perrantes said. “I just have to get used to it. It is early in the season and I’m not used

to it, but we have guys that can step up and help me and help the team, so I’m not worried too much about it.”

One player who has stepped up on the team so far is junior guard Darius Thompson. Thompson, a member of the 2013-14 Tennessee team that handed the Cavaliers their 35-point loss in 2013, is in just his second season in Charlottesville. He led the team in scoring against the Mountaineers with 14 points, and now averages 9.8 points per game.

However, finding the right personnel is but one of the several challenges facing the Cavaliers over the final exam break.

The Cavaliers know their margin for error this season is slim, and on Saturday they shot 7-13 from the line and committed 14 turnovers.

“We had some missed free throws and layups and some open shots as well,” Perrantes said. “I know I missed some shots, a lot of them, but with the teams that we are playing we can’t put ourselves in a hole that is going to be tough to get out of. I think we played well defensively and effort-wise. We

just have to find a way to cut down on the errors.”

Mistakes are something that the Cavaliers can work on, and Bennett and his staff know how to devise what combinations will work on the court. Considering Virginia’s ability to find their identity season after season, a broken streak and a loss to an impressive, nationally ranked team should not cause Cavalier fans to worry. Instead, they should heed the advice that Bennett gave his players after the game.

“Coach Bennett said ‘It’s not the end of the season. Learn from this, grow from this.’ He didn’t think the effort was poor,” freshman guard Ty Jerome said. “We just need to fix a few breakdowns, and we’ll learn from it and get better.”

MARIEL MESSIER is a Senior Associate Editor for the Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at m.messier@cavalierdaily.com.

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THE CAVALIER DAILY

SPORTS • www.cavalierdaily.com

Women’s basketball cruises past Bowling Green After losing a heartbreaking game to Northwestern Thursday, the Virginia women’s basketball team (6-2) responded by taking down Bowling Green, 6747, on the road.

The Cavaliers got off to a slow start against the Falcons (3-5), falling behind 18-13 in the first quarter while turning the ball over five times. The team hit its stride in the next two quarters, beginning with an 11-0 run to start the second, limiting Bowling Green to seven and nine points in each quarter. The Cavaliers heated up from the field to take a commanding 52-34 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Virginia capitalized on the Falcons’ mistakes with 21 points off turnovers in the two quarters, while limiting Bowling Green to only two points off turnovers. The team won the fourth quarter to put away the

game, snapping the Falcons’ three-game win streak.

Senior guard Breyana Mason led Virginia with 16 points, but the Cavaliers defense ultimately secured them the win. Bowling Green only had one player reach double figures in scoring and turned the ball over 24 times to Virginia.

The Cavalier victory marked head coach Joanne Boyle 300th career victory. The win was her 96th with Virginia in her sixyear tenure as head coach.

The Cavaliers finished the first leg of its season with a solid 6-2 record heading into the finals break. The team will open up play again at home against University of Illinois-Chicago (2-4) Dec. 16 as it continues its non-conference slate.

— compiled by Alec Dougherty

CALLIE COLLINS | THE CAVALIER DAILY

Senior guard Breyana Mason led the Cavaliers with 16 points as they took down Bowling Green 67-47.

Swimming competes in Georgia Fall Invite The Virginia swimming and diving teams traveled to Athens, Ga. this weekend to compete in the University of Georgia’s Fall Invitational. The meet featured some of the nation’s most competitive teams, including Georgia, University of California-Berkeley and Michigan.

After three days, the No. 5 Cavalier women’s team (3-0, 1-0 ACC) finished third with a score of 716. No. 10 UC Berkeley (2-1, 2-0 Pac 12) took first place with 914 points, and No. 2 Georgia (5-0, 2-0 SEC) took second with a score of 821.

On the men’s side, Virginia (2-1, 1-0 ACC) finished fourth, with a score of 608.5. No. 6 UC

Berkeley (1-0), No. 13 Georgia (5-0, 2-0 SEC) and No. 17 Auburn (5-0, 4-0 SEC) finished first, second and third respectively.

Despite what may appear to be lackluster performances when compared with the other teams at the meet, the Cavaliers used the Georgia Fall Invite to

PAUL BURKE | THE CAVALIER DAILY

Senior Kaitlyn Jones won the 200-yard butterfly, beating teammate junior Jennifer Marrkand at the Georgia Fall Invitational.

prepare themselves for the ACC and NCAA tournaments after the New Year that are sure to be hotly contested.

Many Virginia swimmers, including some freshmen, had season-best times at the event — many also made NCAA qualifying times.

Standout swimmers included senior Kaitlyn Jones and junior Jennifer Marrkand, who finished first and second, respectively, in the 200-yard butterfly.

Virginia will use its experience against faster teams at the Georgia Invite to its advantage in meets after the winter break, when it faces teams not as talented as those it saw this past weekend.

The Cavaliers’ next meet against Virginia Tech is scheduled for Friday, Jan. 13, at the Aquatics and Fitness Center in Charlottesville.

— compiled by Noah Kim

Wrestling picks up two wins during road trip The Virginia Wrestling team had a successful road trip this weekend, as the team moved picked up wins a pair of wins, with successes coming Friday against Gardner-Webb and Sunday against No. 24 Chattanooga.

The Cavaliers (4-2) opened the weekend against a scrappy Gardner-Webb team in a match where bonus points proved to be the difference, as Virginia emerged victorious 22-18. The Cavaliers built an early lead, but the Bulldogs came surging back to pull the match within three points with two matches remaining.

Sophomore Chance McClure came through with a clutch decision to clinch the dual match for

the Cavaliers. With the match closely contested, bonus points won by freshman Jack Mueller, McClure, junior Andrew Atkinson and senior George DiCamillo proved to be the difference in a huge win for the Cavaliers.

After the win, the Cavaliers had no time to celebrate because they had to immediately shift their focus to the match against Chattanooga.

Virginia kept up the momentum and put in perhaps its best performance of the season against Chattanooga with a 3411 win against a ranked opponent.

Virginia’s dominance was evident from the outset. The Cavaliers won bonus points from

five of the first six matches with three pins and two tech falls to lock up the victory with four matches remaining.

Mueller and DiCamillo have been especially strong performers for the Cavaliers all season, with undefeated records of 10-0 and 7-0, respectively.

The team has dramatically improved from the beginning of the season, and will now move on to a period of deserved rest.

Virginia’s next match is Wednesday, Dec. 21 against George Mason in the Rumble on the River hosted at the St. Christopher’s School in Richmond.

COURTESY VIRGINIA ATHLETICS

Senior George DiCamillo’s bonus points propelled the Cavaliers to victory.

— compiled by Hunter Ostad

MONDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2016 CORRECTIONS In the Nov. 21 edition of The Cavalier Daily, the article “Open Honor trial brings guilty verdict” incorrectly stated the trial took place Nov. 20. The trail took place Nov. 19. Additionally, the lead editorial, “Once agiain, our honor system proves unfair” incorrectly compared manslaughter with homicide, instead of with murder.

LEAD EDITORIAL

Mild enrollment expansion is a good idea If implemented well, the BOV’s proposal would benefit U.Va. The Board of Visitors is considering increasing enrollment by 400 students over four years. While enrollment increases may threaten our social climate — which is tight-knit for a state flagship school — the Board’s proposal offers a mild increase that, if accommodated appropriately, would allow the University to better serve itself and its students.

The University enjoys the privileges of a mid-size school, with just over 15,000 undergraduates. Students are afforded the opportunities of a large institution with strong research and scholarship opportunities, in addition to name brand recognition and a robust alumni network. At the same time, the University, with about 10,000 fewer undergraduate students than our

in-state rival Virginia Tech, is small enough to enable intimate learning and social environments for students. Our size allows us both to serve students from the Commonwealth and cultivate a personalized education for those who want it.

Significant expansion of enrollment would raise red flags, but this plan would only slightly increase the number of students — the introduction of 100 new students per year would probably go unnoticed by most. Expanded enrollment would likely increase the University’s tuition revenue. For current students, a mild enrollment expansion may push the University to support smaller majors or classes that do not garner enough interest, since there will be more students to fill those spots. As far as admis-

sions, the qualified students who the admissions office places on the waiting list due to enrollment limitations will have a chance to earn their education here.

As a state school, the University should adjust its size to reflect Virginia’s growing population. Some logistical considerations accompany this proposal, such as how Housing and Residence Life would accommodate an influx in students.

Moreover, classes such as introductory computer science which already cannot meet student demand may face further strain. So long as the University is able to ensure that the expansion happens smoothly, the Board of Visitors should pursue this enrollment increase.

THE CAVALIER DAILY THE CAVALIER DAILY The Cavalier Daily is a financially and editorially independent news organization staffed and managed entirely by students of the University of Virginia.

The opinions expressed in The Cavalier Daily are not necessarily those of the students, faculty, staff or administration of the University of Virginia. Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the editorial board. Cartoons and columns represent the views of the authors. The managing board of The Cavalier Daily has sole authority over and responsibility for all content.

No part of The Cavalier Daily or The Cavalier Daily online edition may be reproduced in any form, in whole or in part, without the written consent of the editor-in-chief.

The Cavalier Daily is published Mondays and Thursdays in print and daily online at cavalierdaily.com. It is printed on at least 40 percent recycled paper. 2016 The Cavalier Daily Inc.

HAVE AN OPINION? The Cavalier Daily welcomes letters to the editor and guest columns. Writers must provide full name, telephone number and University affiliation, if appropriate.

Letters should not exceed 250 words in length and columns should not exceed 700.

The Cavalier Daily does not guarantee publication of submissions and may edit all material for content and grammar. Submit to opinion@cavalierdaily.com or P.O. Box 400703, Charlottesville, VA 22904-4703

QUESTIONS/COMMENTS To better serve readers, The Cavalier Daily has a public editor to respond to questions and concerns regarding its practices. The public editor writes a column published every week on the opinion pages based on reader feedback and his independent observations. He also welcomes queries pertaining to journalism and the newspaper industry in general. The public editor is available at publiceditor@ cavalierdaily.com.

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MANAGING BOARD Editor-in-Chief Dani Bernstein Managing Editor Kayla Eanes Executive Editor Nazar Aljassar Operations Manager Jasmine Oo Chief Financial Officer Lianne Provenzano EDITORIAL BOARD Dani Bernstein Nazar Aljassar Ella Shoup Gray Whisnant Carlos Lopez JUNIOR BOARD Assistant Managing Editors Jane Diamond Michael Reingold (SA) Evan Davis (SA) Lillian Gaertner (SA) Trent Lefkowitz (SA) Ben Tobin (SA) Carrie West

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THE CAVALIER DAILY

OPINION • www.cavalierdaily.com

SIMPLIFY, CLARIFY AND VERIFY POLITICAL OP-EDS Politically charged columns require even greater attention to detail

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hoosing to write about politics is commendable and beneficial for the community, particularly in a time when many seem disillusioned with politicians and the political system more broadly. There is value in producing a well written, clearly argued article that expresses a political opinion. However, using The Cavalier Daily as a public platform to share ideas and information about politics comes with responsibility. Authors need to explain their position in simple, concise terms, and provide accurate information in their pieces. Some recent political Opinion articles have contained confusing language, grammatical mistakes and some inappropriate sources.

Bobby Doyle’s piece “Stop foreign actors from influencing our elections” centered on politicians’ responsibility to denounce recent attempts by other countries, particularly Russia, to shape U.S. politics. Some of the sentences are unclear, and

the article could have been edited more carefully. For example, the sentence “Once we start to accept foreign actors as legitimate and having the shared in-

In addition, the sources cited in the article are not entirely reputable, and are not appropriate for a college-level essay. Authors and editors should carefully

This is perhaps a small distinction concerning political process, but it is part of a broader pattern of unreliable and unclear statements in recent political Opinion pieces.

terests, we leave ourselves open to manipulation” is confusing for readers. What shared interests are being referenced here?

vet Opinion articles and their sources, especially those that discuss politics in this tenuous climate.

Last week, Matt Winesett’s article titled “Why we may not be completely doomed” discusses the potential bright side of a Trump presidency. Winesett argues Democrats will benefit from reactionary voting in 2018 midterm elections, specifically in the House. The author goes on to state that if there is a wave election, Democrats will be able to control the re-districting process and “reforge safe red seats in the House into safe blue ones.” This statement reinforces a common misconception that gerrymandering involves the party in power drawing “safe” districts for themselves. In actuality, the opposite is true. The majority party typically draws very safe districts for the minority party in order to reduce voter power in these districts. This is perhaps a small distinction concerning political process, but it is part of a broader pattern of unreliable and unclear statements in recent political Opinion pieces.

As the public editor for the Cavalier Daily, it is my job to serve as an objective third-party and critique issues I see within this paper. I believe that language matters, and maintaining high standards is vital in order to provide a high quality product for readers. The most important facets of effective and persuasive political writing are accuracy and readability. Writers must complete sufficient research and deeply understand the issues they decide to discuss in their pieces. It is particularly critical in the current political climate to clearly explain jargon, de-code rhetoric and use reputable sources to develop a strong argument.

JACQUELYN KATUIN is the Public Editor for The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at publiceditor@cavdaily. com.

THE PERILS OF A VOUCHER-BASED SCHOOL SYSTEM Trump’s education program will cripple public education

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ast week, President-elect Donald Trump officially announced his choice for Secretary of Education: Betsy DeVos, a wealthy school-choice activist from Michigan. DeVos supports Trump’s proposed plan to aggressively expand charter schools and voucher programs.

Though there are reasonable arguments to support increased school choice for kids in the nation’s worst schools, Trump’s plan is a dramatic overstep in the direction of vouchers, one that could have serious negative impacts on the public schools struggling the most.

One major criticism of school choice is when a student leaves his or her already struggling school, that school loses the funding that follows the child to his or her new school.

This occurs because school funding is based on enrollment.

“Per pupil funding” measures a school’s total funding divided by the number of students who attend. For instance, New York City spends $20,226 per student and Baltimore spends $15,287 per student. When students opt to leave resource-poor schools, those institutions lose valuable funds.

The philosophy behind Trump’s education plan is sound: He wants to close the

achievement gap that persists between kids from different racial and socioeconomic backgrounds. In September, when Trump unveiled his policy plan, he stated unequivocally, “I want every single inner city child in America who is today trapped in a failing school to have the

— Trump glosses over the fact his own voucher system would likely cripple those traditional public schools that are struggling rather than set them back on their feet. Despite Trump’s well-intentioned goals for education, his methods of ensuring that every child receives a quali-

School choice, though appealing on a surface level, is only a bandaid solution for meaningful public school reform.

freedom — the civil right — to attend the school of their choice.

This includes private schools, traditional public schools, magnet schools and charter schools which must be included in any definition of school choice.” Though the sentiment is respectable — no child should have to attend a failing school

ty education is deeply flawed.

The president-elect has promised to allocate $20 billion through a block grant in his first budget to create a voucher system for the nation’s poorest kids in the nation’s poorest schools.

Trump also plans to ask for $110 billion from all 50 states to fund the rest of the voucher

program. Trump hypothesizes this $130 billion will be enough to “provide $12,000 in school choice funds to every K-12 student who today lives in poverty.” Although Trump has not stated outright where these $20 billion will come from, analysts guess Trump will draw from Title I money — about $15 billion previously used to fund schools that serve the nation’s poorest kids. While Trump claims to be serving the nation’s poorest kids by creating a voucher system, the effort to do so could potentially drain the sum set aside specifically to provide the most underdeveloped schools with funding and resources.

For Trump to put his education policy plan into action, he needs to find the money for his block grant within the budget and successfully convince states to contribute their part. This already difficult task may be made even harder by DeVos, whose track record includes several school-choice related failures.

In 2000, DeVos led a failed ballot initiative to create a voucher program in Michigan, and 20 years ago, she pushed hard for a state law that allowed for the creation of a large number of charter schools with such little oversight that even failing charter schools were allowed to ex-

pand and be continually funded.

School choice, though appealing on a surface level, is only a bandaid solution for meaningful public school reform. Trump should scale back his ambitious voucher program, which threatens to drain much needed funding from the nation’s poorest schools, and instead encourage the creation and expansion of successful charter schools without creating a complex and costly voucher system. While charter schools do divert some funding from traditional public schools, they also have the potential, when held properly accountable, to serve as laboratories of innovation and improve traditional public schools. It’s possible for Trump to remain committed to closing the achievement gap while also ensuring that traditional public schools, especially those that are struggling, remain appropriately funded and continue to improve outcomes for all kids.

JORDAN ARNOLD is an Opinion columnist for The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at j.arnold@cavalierdaily.com.

MONDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2016

www.cavalierdaily.com • OPINION

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HONOR CASE SHOWS WE VALUE BUREAUCRACY OVER PEOPLE Key case details were missing in November open trial

T

wo weeks ago Saturday, the Honor Committee confirmed something I’ve long suspected about the University: we care more about bureaucracy than students. Sitting in the audience of the first public Honor trial in years, I watched for hours as Honor representatives and a jury of peers grilled an international student. Absent from this examination, though, were some key pieces of evidence.

According to the accused, she was barred from submitting her dyslexia as evidence. She may have been referring to the Contributory Mental Disorder policy outlined in Part IV, Section D of the Honor by-laws. If the student chooses to go the route of the CMD, they must prove to an independent Psychological Evaluation Panel that the mental disorder in question “(a) significantly contributed to the commission of an Alleged Honor Offense, and/or (b) renders such student substantially unable to understand the relevant Honor charges or to assist in his or her own defense.” If these criteria are met, then the Honor charges are dropped.

However, if the mental disorder is determined not to have “significantly contributed” to the offense, then the student’s case is turned back over to Honor, with an admission of act entailed. See, in order to even be considered for CMD, the student must

first admit to the guilty act — there is no way to admit learning disabilities as evidence without admitting guilt first.

What about if a learning disability is relevant to the case but not to the level of “significance” required by the CMD? Honor has a by-law stating that any “Psychological Evidence” is inadmissible in hearings, and can only be mentioned “at a Hearing on

only explain the act of the offense, but also constitute it — or they are so insignificant (or too difficult to verify) as to have no place in the hearing.

There is no space in between these extremes — no “contribution” short of complete causality.

Perhaps because of these rules, this student could not discuss how her dyslexia hurt her performance in a class without admitting to a crime

What happened that Saturday contradicts what I want the University to be: firm in its morals, fair in its judgment and above all, kind.

CMD.” This means that all “evidence relating to the mental state of the accused student” is excluded from Honor hearings, including “diagnoses on psychological or psychiatric matters.”

It seems this rule exists to prevent students from basing their defenses on things that are difficult to independently verify. However, these rules betray a dangerously binaristic understanding of learning disabilities: either they hugely contribute to the honor offense — enough to not

she may not have committed. Nor could she address in depth the fact that her fellow students refused to work with her in study groups because of this. Such relevant pieces of evidence should be welcomed during Honor hearings. Their omission encourages the unfair targeting of students with learning disabilities.

The student also claimed she was forbidden from sharing the fact that a guilty verdict could cause her to lose her student visa, meaning she would be forced to leave our country if she

could not manage to transfer. I would like to agree with Honor’s commitment to ignoring evidence that carries “unfair prejudicial” weight. But when data show guilty honor charges are disproportionately handed down to international students, we should ask ourselves whether the outcome of a ruling is actually irrelevant to the case. Why is it that a group whose inclusion at this school is so provisionary should bear the brunt of our outdated and unpopular single sanction? I should note that this student spoke with an accent, and referenced her British nationality at multiple points. If the jurors can already infer the sanction would carry particularly grave consequences for this student in particular, isn’t the omission of this evidence just a self-defeating attempt to ignore the elephant in the room?

I like to think the Honor Committee had good intentions when formulating these rules. But no matter the intention, the effect is evident: our honor system targets those students whose equal treatment ought to be a priority — international students and students with learning disabilities.

The exclusion of evidence is only one reason of many why this should be labeled a mistrial. Honor verdicts are determined by a four-fifths majority, meaning that as many as two out of the 10 jurors could have maintained this student’s innocence

(or at least, maintained that her guilt was not proven “beyond a reasonable doubt,” and the jury would still pass a guilty verdict. If this sounds wildly inappropriate, it’s because it is. Anything short of a unanimous decision should carry no power in these trials.

This peculiar divergence from the unanimity required by most federal and state juries truly lies beyond the pale.

Despite the intense embarrassment I felt for this school during the trial and which I continue to feel weeks later, I am so glad this student waived her right to a private trial. Being able to witness this hearing as it happened, I begin to wonder: How many international students has the Honor Committee unjustly expelled behind closed doors? How many students with learning disabilities were forced to choose between admission of act and total silence, the Scylla and Charybdis of guilt? I hope the Honor Committee takes a moment to recognize how their exclusion of data in this case unduly hurt the accused.

More than that, I hope Honor retracts its verdict and offers this student a retrial. What happened that Saturday contradicts what I want the University to be: firm in its morals, fair in its judgment and above all, kind.

DREW KISER is a fourth-year College student.

GIVE WES BELLAMY A BREAK Many people really do change as they use the platforms

O

n Thanksgiving, a blogger unearthed old tweets from the account of Vice Mayor Wes Bellamy in a post on his website. In his post, the blogger criticized the content of Bellamy’s old tweets, a few of which contained offensive and inappropriate language. In light of the discovery of these tweets, calls for Bellamy’s resignation have begun to surface. In response to this pressure, Bellamy has apologized and expressed sincere regret for his words, while qualifying the apology with the acknowledgement that he has matured since posting the tweets. He has since resigned from the Virginia Board of Education.

Although many of the statements and language in the old tweets are indefensible, the situation itself serves as a launching point for an important broader discussion about the lengths to which we should hold each other, especially public figures, accountable for past online posts.

The vast majority of Americans with regular Internet access have at least one social media account. Users share a wide variety of different information on these various platforms, including images, videos, text and more. For a lot of people,

social media is a way of documenting their lives, with years of online activity all stored on various platforms. While this can serve to satiate the nostalgic cravings of some, it can also have more sinister implications. Every person grows, matures

couple of years, only to be haunted by online posts of years past.

Even more concerning is the number of children and young adults who participate in social media. Some studies have shown over half of children under 16 use some

Nowadays however, there exists the possibility that some online mistake from the past may resurface and have negative consequences.

and changes over the course of his life, adjusting and developing new opinions, mannerisms and styles of expression.

For the first time in history, however, thanks to social media, there is a permanent record of activity stored online, much of it available for everyone to see. Even deleting old posts from your feed can be ineffective. This can be particularly unfortunate for individuals who feel as though they have changed for the better over the last

form of social media. This becomes an issue when children and teens, oftentimes lacking in maturity, experience and cognitive function, express themselves online without fully considering the future consequences of their posts. The ease of expression and speed of dissemination, combined with the persistent nature of online posts can be dangerous for those who post impulsively, or those who have since changed their opinions or styles of communication. Before, it was safe

for kids to occasionally make mistakes and be wrong, and generally follow the winding path of maturation. Nowadays however, there exists the possibility that some online mistake from the past may resurface and have negative consequences. As the social media generation continues to age, the catalog will only get more and more extensive, opening up further opportunities for past online activity to haunt people.

Above all, it’s important to look at past posts on social media with empathy. It’s safe to say most people would not still defend every single post they have ever made on social media in the last half decade or so. I know the vast majority of people would not want to be judged based on their 2011 Facebook wall.

It’s unfair to judge someone solely on their online persona from half a decade ago. That’s not to say that everyone should just get a free pass for flying off the handle or acting extremely inappropriately online.

We should be more holistic in our judgments, and take into account the continuous maturation and development of an individual’s personality. It’s okay to make mistakes online, just as it’s okay to make

mistakes in person, so long as we move forward as individuals. We must express sincere remorse for our more unfortunate words and actions, and display grace and maturity as we continue to grow. We should hold people accountable for what they have said online, to an extent, all the while with the understanding that nobody is perfect, and nobody is entirely proud of everything about their past selves.

When it comes to Bellamy, the same metric should be applied.

Judgments regarding his character should not be based solely on his old tweets from years ago. By taking responsibility for his past actions and resigning, he has made an important gesture, offering some measure of atonement for his mistakes. It’s important to keep in mind that he, like anyone else, is capable of significant personal growth. As we all do, he deserves the benefit of the doubt.

BRENDAN NOVAK is an Opinion columnist for the Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at b.novak@cavalierdaily.com.

THE CAVALIER DAILY

M RO R F ER ITO T T D LE E E TH

TO OUR READERS, FROM THE EDITOR As the Fall 2016 semester comes to a close, I want to thank you for picking up this copy of The Cavalier Daily and choosing us as your source of University-related news. In the pages of this edition, you will find a look back at this past semester, with its ups and downs, trials and triumphs.

As you reflect on the newsworthy moments of this school year so far, I hope to impress upon you the tremendous amount of work and pride that goes into crafting this paper. There are nearly 250 students behind the publication of these articles — from creating

graphics to designing pages to writing articles to taking photos and so much more. This semester’s editions are a testament to their hard work and dedication.

Though we’re all heading to different places for the coming weeks, The Cavalier Daily will continue to cover important developments in the University and Charlottesville community over winter break — the news doesn’t stop when school does! You can always visit www.cavalierdaily. com or download our app for breaking news updates, winter sports coverage, local reviews

and more. Be sure to encourage friends and family to subscribe to our e-newsletter to stay in the loop on University news.

We hope you have a wonderful holiday, and we appreciate your commitment to almost 127 years of student journalism. See you in 2017!

All best, DANI BERNSTEIN Editor-in-Chief

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EVENTS MONDAY 12/5

Shakespeare on the Lawn Presents: A Christmas Carol, 7-9pm, The Rotunda

TUESDAY 12/6

Men’s Basketball vs. East Carolina, 7pm, John Paul Jones Arena U.Va. Chi Omega Presents: The everGREEN Project, 5-6pm, Chi Omega ISA Presents: Chokher Bali, 7-9pm, McLeod Hall U.Va. Sustainability Presents: Solar Ribbon Cutting,11am-1pm, Newcomb Hall Madison House Volunteer Appreciation & Winter Social Event, 11am-1pm, Madison House Finals Week Pillow Fight, 7:30-9pm, Memorial Gym

WEDNESDAY 12/7

Alumni Association Presents: Study Break, 10am-12pm, Alumni Hall U.Va. Sustainability Presents: Coffee and Cookies in Clemons, 1-3pm, Clemons Library Challah for Hunger Presents: Finals Library Sale, 8-10pm, Alderman Library

NOW LEASING FOR 2017!

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MONDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2016

13

Top 10 headlines of the year 2016 in Cavalier Daily news

ABIGAIL LAGUE | LIFE COLUMNIST

1. RAT CREATES POWER OUTAGE IN OLD DORMS Always bringing the hard-hitting news, The Cavalier Daily ensured that all University students knew exactly why they may have experienced a brief power outage in old dorms.

While the 14 inch rat did not survive the incident, I like to think that it is resting in peace, satisfied with its infamy. Now if we could find an explanation for the notorious Rugby Road power outages, the University community would be able to feel a similar sense of peace.

2. VIRGINIA ATHLETES SHINE AT RIO GAMES While most students were relaxing and enjoying the summer, 18 current and former Virginia athletes headed to the 2016 Olympics in Rio. Fourth-year swimmer Leah Smith took home not only a bronze, but also a gold medal, in case you didn’t already feel bad about yourself. After these athletes competed in the Olympics, they returned to attend the same lectures and sit in the same desks as you — so by the transitive property you’re basically an Olympian too, right? Corrinne James

3. ROTUNDA, ‘ACTIVE HEART OF THE LAWN,’ RETURNS After $58 million and four years, the Rotunda finally opened to the public again. Streakers from all across Grounds were excited to complete the streak in its entirety, and Lawn room residents invested in even bigger spotlights. After all of that work, students knew keeping the Rotunda pristine was of the utmost importance, which is why everyone was shocked when a column was vandalized even before it opened. Well, maybe not that shocked.

4. VIRGINIA SURGES PAST CENTRAL MICHIGAN, 49-35 In the single home win of the entire football season — it’s fine, I’m not bitter — the University miraculously defeated Central Michigan. This one victory then proceeded to get everyone’s hopes up for the rest of the semester, resulting in false expectations for both our team and new coach. For those of you with siblings at universities with real football teams, this results in a lot of embarrassment when returning home and a half-hearted, “At least there’s basketball season.”

5. TRICK-OR-TREATING ON THE LAWN 2016 Adorable and non-controversial, there’s not much to say about Trick or Treating on the Lawn, which in this case is ideal given environment on Grounds at the time surrounding the election. With the University together on the Lawn, students were even more appreciative to have the Rotunda back for all their TOTOTL photos featuring random children. For a nice little pick-me-up during finals, you should watch the video and enjoy the cute costumes.

6. KHIZR KHAN SAYS U.VA. MADE HIS SON THE MAN HE WAS The father of late Army Captain Humayun Khan honored us with his visit and spoke at Old Cabell Hall. He received a standing ovation before and after he spoke. In light of incidents of hate speech on Grounds and across the country, his message resonates even stronger. Behind Clemons Library a garden is situated with a bench dedicated in the name of their son. The inscription reads, “From friends of Capt. Humayun Khan, whom he honored with his friendship.”

7. JURY AWARDS ERAMO $3 MILLION IN DAMAGES Ah yes, the story that just keeps on giving. For two years we have faced the consequences of that fateful Rolling Stone article — namely endless Cavalier Daily articles on the topic. As indicated by the headline, Eramo was awarded $3 million by a jury. (Cue sighs of relief from University administrators.) For those of you who took lecturer Sherri Moore’s Commercial Law I class, you know how difficult this case was to win.

8. TRUMP WINS PRESIDENCY IN UNEXPECTED UPSET This is about when the semester fell apart and everyone started hating the world. Many didn’t realize the sheer number of supporters Trump actually had, and liberals lamented the amount of racism and bigotry in the country. Conservatives then lambasted liberals for being “out of touch” and a bunch of precious snowflakes who can’t handle the real world. This mentality hasn’t ended yet, and moving forward, many are on the edge of their seat.

9. EDDY’S TAVERN CLOSES ITS DOORS If you weren’t certain that the apocalypse was upon us, the closing of Eddy’s Tavern gave us confirmation. Not just Eddy’s, but also St. Maarten’s. This was devastating to me. As I told a former employee, St. Maarten’s was one of the only places you could have a conversation, because there weren’t too many people. She looked me dead in the eye and said, “Yeah. That was the problem.” Oops.

10. LIGHTING OF THE LAWN GEARS UP FOR 16TH SHOWING Marking the official beginning of the holiday season, Lighting of the Lawn brought large crowds to the Lawn Thursday, Dec. 1.

This year the LOTL co-chairs targeted inclusivity as the theme, personally inviting all students in a University-wide email. The event did not disappoint, with Chief Tim Longo reading the poem and a marriage proposal on the steps of the Rotunda in the middle of an a cappella performance. With that, student focus shifted toward finals and their impending return home for winter break.

GRAPHICS BY CAVALIER DAILY GRAPHICS STAFF

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LIFE • www.cavalierdaily.com

THE CAVALIER DAILY

The Rotunda, once again a student hub Students reflect on first open semester of U.Va. staple since 2014 LUCY HOPKINS | FEATURE WRITER Originally designed by Thomas Jefferson in 1821, the Rotunda has always been the hub of the University. In its lifetime, it has undergone a number of transformations, much like the University it calls home.

Most recently, the Rotunda underwent a four-year renovation — for two of which it was closed to the public — to fix some of the more dilapidated portions of the structure. The latest project was finished this year, just in time for the Class of 2020’s entrance to the University.

The Rotunda still functions as a library open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. —just as it was originally intended to — and offers free historical tours three times a day.

“There’s been a really positive reception to the reopening,” Oliver Lopez-Gomez, fourth-year College student and Rotunda employee, said. “Students like being able to come and study here … [and] people like to plan events here too, so just trying to balance those two conflicting needs can be tough.”

Despite frequent tours, the Rotunda serves as a valuable study space, first-year College student Maya Lezzam said.

“Occasionally you’ll find people coming in and out, but it’s small, it’s quaint [and] you can get a lot done in there,” Lezzam said. “[From] my experience, my studying has never been interrupted by tour groups, but I’m sure that does happen sometimes.”

Because tour sessions start at 10 a.m., 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., a great deal of students are in class or are engaged in other activities. However, the frequency of the tours and the limited hours of the library do deter some students from using the Rotunda as a study space.

“There are closer places to go that are more convenient to me,” first-year College student Caitlin Dozier said. “A lot of the libraries are open for a longer time than the Rotunda is and they don’t have such strict schedules. I know with the Rotunda there are only certain times when it’s open-study and the libraries aren’t really like that, so I

can pretty much stay for as long as I’d like without having to relocate.”

The rather limited space in the library is split into fewer study spaces than most other libraries on Grounds. Coupled with fewer open hours than most libraries offer, these factors often shift students away from large groups and towards coming by themselves.

“Individual students mostly [come in to study],” Lopez-Gomez said.

With the return of the Rotunda, it can operate as a center of activity for events such as Convocation, Rotunda Sing, Lighting of the Lawn, Rotunda dinners, Board of Visitors meetings and graduation.

“I’m fine with going to a library that may not be updated most recently because it still serves its purpose, but the Rotunda is central to what U.Va. is and that makes it more important to keep in good shape,” Dozier said. “The Rotunda has been here since the school started basically, so why not make the most original parts look the best?”

CELINA HU | THE CAVALIER DAILY

After being closed for two years, the Rotunda reopened in the fall of 2016.

In its first semester open to students since spring of 2014, the restored Rotunda has not only once again provided a space for some of the University’s most hallowed traditions, but has also returned as a

reminder of both the school’s complex history and renowned beauty.

“All the history is visible when you look at the walls and the ceiling,” Lazzam said. “It’s just a beautiful place to be.”

Hoos abroad for January Term A preview of international course offerings JOSLYN CHESSON | FEATURE WRITER

COURTESY JOSLYN CHESSON

January term courses abroad offer students a unique opportunity to learn and explore.

With winter break rapidly approaching, University students are pressed to think about their future course load — especially if they are participating in one of 2017’s January Term classes. The University offers a wide array of academic courses both on Grounds and abroad in January.

University Study Abroad courses during the January term span from locations such as Argentina, Belize and Morocco and Ghana, Australia and New Zealand and are offered through the Commerce and Nursing Schools, the Anthropology Department and many others.

University alumna Holly O’Hara

traveled to Nicaragua with the Sustainability and Public Health Program last January.

“I would say that the experience for me could not have been more positive,” O’Hara said. “I honestly had this clicking moment while I was there that I don’t think I would have gotten in the classroom.”

The J-Term courses abroad offer students who many not have another opportunity to study outside the country during the school year or during the summer term the chance explore other countries.

“I’ve always wanted to go abroad, but didn’t want to miss out on things

at U.Va. because I love it so much,” fourth-year Commerce student Rachel Nelson said. “So the J-Term abroad was the perfect option for me.”

With a full course condensed into just a handful of weeks, January terms allow students the opportunity to foster close relationships with professors and other classmates.

“The professors are what made the trip,” O’Hara said. “The nursing professor, Emma Mitchell, was pretty much in charge of most of the trip and she was just so passionate about Nicaragua.”

University alumna Victoria Stetekluh studied abroad for a full semester during the fall of 2014 in Prague and also participated in the German Department’s J-Term in Berlin last January.

“As much as I love U.Va. I just wanted to be abroad again so I looked for another opportunity to study abroad,” Stetekluh said. “My grandmother is from Berlin and the fact that they have a class on the history of Germany, I thought it was the best class for me because it was something I was actually interested in.”

While semester long abroad programs offer an extended amount of time to explore other countries, J-Terms generally have a more structured schedule.

“We never really went off on our

own because of safety reasons and also we were so busy because our class activities were going out and exploring,” O’Hara said. “It was so hands on and in the field that our day-to-day class wasn’t in a classroom we were out and about exploring Nicaragua and learning as we kind of went throughout the day.”

Third-year Engineering student Shannon Grew is traveling to Argentina this January through the combined Systems Case Study and Commerce School program. Grew said the specifics of the January term course — which include working at a winery to improve its business — really drew her to the program.

“It’s a way different experience than you could get in a classroom here and I was looking for something different and worthwhile, maybe even fun, to add to and take a break from the usual U.Va. education,” Grew said.

Through the University’s January term study abroad programs students are able to learn about other cultures while simultaneously growing closer with professors and classmates.

For current University students, January term tuition for classes offered at U.Va. is $377 per credit hour for Virginia residents and $1,347 per credit hour for out-of-state students.

Study abroad program costs vary based on travel and lodging costs.

Programs like U.Va. in Paris cost $2,825 for Virginia residents and $3,113 for out-of-state students, while U.Va. in Argentina totals to $3,495 for Virginia residents and $3,783 for out-of-state students.

All current undergraduate students are eligible to apply for needbased financial aid, however there is not merit-based aid to supplement the cost. Grant funding is not guaranteed even if a student receives aid during the fall and spring due to the optional nature of January term courses.

“If you can afford it, I think everyone should almost be forced into going abroad because it is such an important experience,” Stetekluh said.

Despite the cost, one of the things that makes traveling abroad through a University program so special is that students are able to grow close with classmates they may have never had the chance to bond with otherwise.

“I really liked it because I felt like I could become friends with anyone on the program and I feel like I successfully did become friends with everyone,” O’Hara said. “It was cool because it was a lot of people from all different years and it was amazing to get to know everyone because it was so easy in that context.”

MONDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2016

www.cavalierdaily.com • LIFE

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Corks & Curls remembers the school year The making of the U.Va. yearbook ELIZABETH CORNICK | FEATURE WRITER Corks & Curls, the University yearbook, was founded in 1888 and consisted of a staff composed of one brother from each fraternity. After a seven-year hiatus in publication between 2008 and 2015, Corks & Curls released the 2014-15 edition, heralding its revival.

The University yearbook is a feature-driven publication that strives to memorialize the student and University connection in any given year.

Sarah Alexander, a second-year College student and managing editor-in-chief, said in order to keep the yearbook focus on student life at the University, the Corks & Curls staff brainstorms different story ideas and pays close attention to University conversations.

“When you’re reading the yearbook, we want to make you feel like you’re reliving the year,” Alexander said. “So you can look at this book almost like a coffee table book, so you can look back on the year and really reflect on what went on, what made this year special and what kind of events people went to that made this year great.”

Corks & Curls works to cov-

er all events around Grounds.

Though many are the same year to year — due in part to the many traditions at the University — staff members will specifically look for events that make 2016-2017 unique from the other years, Alexander said.

Notably, Alexander said this year’s edition will include a spread on the controversial presidential election and its impact on student life. Corks & Curls staff are approaching the election from various angles, including stories on the Eliminate the Hate Campaign and student voter turnout statistics.

Photography is another important component for the yearbook’s documentation of student activities at the University. Sarah Thomas, a second-year College student and photo co-editor, said Corks & Curls afforded her the opportunity to continue to be involved with photography while at the University.

“I really enjoyed the fact that I got to see all these different parts of the University that I never would have been able to see,” Thomas said. “When you’re a photographer I think that you really

get to see all the different aspects [of the University] and a lot of the behind the scenes that goes into the creation of the big events. It takes you random places, but in the best way.”

One of the main featured spreads of Corks & Curls this year will be the reopening of the Rotunda — an especially unique part of student life this year, Alexander said.

Before September, many current University students had yet to sit on the steps of the Rotunda or see it without other remnants of its reconstruction — like the black coverings that had been draped over the Rotunda’s columns.

Other spreads in the yearbook will focus on the Muslim Student Association, Double Hoos — students who attended the University in both undergraduate and graduate programs, Monticello, Special Collections Library, University athletics and other events.

Just as Corks & Curls aims to highlight what is unique about University student life for the 2016-17 year, the yearbook itself is a unique publication. In addition to the stories and photographs, Thomas said in past years Corks

& Curls has included poetry and drawings.

“We have some poetry that we’re trying to incorporate in the book.” Thomas said. “We try to make it somewhat creative … You

have to be careful because it’s not a newspaper article, it’s about the interesting parts of U.Va. life and you want to focus on that connection between the students and the University.”

MARSHALL BRONFIN | THE CAVALIER DAILY

After a seven-year hiatus, Corks & Curls resumed publication last academic year.

Holidays around the world International and foreign students share unique holiday traditions KATE EDSON | FEATURE WRITER With the winter holidays coming up, international students have the unique chance to experience traditions in both America and their home countries. Students from Germany, Turkey, Colombia and Costa Rica shared some of their unique holiday traditions.

“It’s been amazing … seeing the way different cultures in the United States are mixed,” fifthyear Batten student Julia Janka said. “You get to hear about everybody’s holiday traditions and what they do, and how their family gets together, and the foods they eat … [it’s] cool to hear about everybody else’s experience.”

Originally from Germany, Janka noted several differences

between

countries in holiday celebrations. “[In Germany] Advent is really important to us,” Janka said. “[A] big thing that has actually also taken root in the United States [after originating in Eu-

rope] are Christmas markets — those are huge.”

Christmas markets first became popular in Germany, Austria and Northern Italy during the four weeks of Advent. Usually in town squares, Christmas markets feature various standing selling Christmas ornaments, accessories, gifts, food and drinks.

Janka said another difference between German and American celebrations of Christmas is the importance of Christmas Eve. “We actually open our presents on Christmas Eve,” Janka explained. “Traditionally the story behind Christmas in Germany is that it’s not Santa Claus that brings the presents, [but rather] Christkind [or] Christ child … an angel basically that brings presents Christmas Eve.” Second-year College student Lal Toker, who comes from Turkey, said that New Year’s Day is largely celebrated in her home country instead of Thanksgiv-

ing or Christmas. They also celebrate Bayram, a national festival with religious origins.

“[On New Year’s Eve] the belief is that the way you enter the year is how the year will be,” Toker said. “Most families will play bingo on New Year’s night.

There’s a lot of lottery tickets being sold that day because there’s a huge price on New Year’s Day.” Fourth-year College student Maria Arango spends the winter holidays at her home in Colombia.

“We literally celebrate [Christmas] the entire December,” Arango said. “There’s always something to do. There’s a lot — a lot — of food.”

Arango said the month of December in Columbia is seen as an extended vacation and celebration, unlike the short holiday in the United States.

“We celebrate Candles Day on Dec. 7, basically with friends and usually family,” Arango

said. “You meet up at a house or somewhere with an open garden and then you light candles. It’s really pretty.”

Beginning with Candles Day on Dec. 7, the celebration culminates in a nightlong celebration on Dec. 31. Arango said it is tradition to eat 12 grapes before midnight and make a wish with every grape.

“It was kind of hard for me to get used to normal December in America … in Colombia the entire month you are on vacation, everybody’s on vacation,” Arango said. “It was hard to get adjusted to that.”

Fourth-year College student Maripaz Casas will head home to Costa Rica for the month. Casas said many Costa Ricans spend the holiday on the coast with large beach parties featuring fashion shows, concerts and fireworks.

Her favorite celebration is a weeklong festival in Zapote, Costa Rica. Throughout the

week, people can attend a rodeo and fair with carnival rides and traditional food. Participants can even sign up to test their fate in a bullfight.

“You become a torero [bullfighter],” Casas said. “They put crazy bows or prizes attached to the horns so the person [who gets] the little ticket … can get cash prizes. They bring celebrities from Costa Rica and everything goes to charity.”

Casas has enjoyed the opportunity to celebrate the winter holidays in two countries and enjoy two styles of celebration.

“It has been an amazing experience to get both of these completely different cultures, and has made me grow so much, because I’ve learned to appreciate my culture and value where I come from, as well as learn from an amazing culture here in the States,” Casas said. “It has given me the qualities and traits and skills that I feel like I need to become a better global citizen.”

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