COLLEGIATETIMES
friday april 18, 2008 blacksburg, va.
www.collegiatetimes.com
Commission on Student Affairs hears SGA concerns ASHLEY OLIVER
ct associate news editor
sports SPRING GAME SET FOR SATURDAY Check out a preview and find out what Coaches Frank Beamer and Bud Foster think will be key matchups in Saturday’s spring game. page ten
MEN’S TENNIS WINS FIRST ROUND OF ACC TOURNAMENT PLAY
The issues regarding SGA elections were addressed at yesterday’s Commission on Student Affairs meeting, and while the elections will not be overturned, other problems with the organization’s official documents have yet to be discussed. The CSA is an organization designed to recommend policies to the University Council that affect student life and morale. Aside from the acknowledgement that the CSA does not have the authority to overturn elections, which had been determined during a meeting in 2005, no other decisions were actually made with SGA because there were not enough members from CSA present to vote on the matter. “The charters became more familiar with the actual issues,” said Joe McFadden, chair of the CSA, following the meeting. “We realized we need to act on them, but we don’t have quorum so we can’t act
on them just yet.” A quorum is the minimum number of members who must be present to make the proceedings of the meeting valid. Problems with the SGA originally came about when junior civil engineering major Bill Brubaker, along with others, disagreed with the process of removing a write-in option from the SGA election ballot; they argued that it wasn’t done according to SGA official documents, including the constitution. Adeel Khan, SGA president, recognized that there were contradictory parts of the SGA constitution and that he’d be happy to create a review committee to address the problems, although he’s confident that the write-in part of the ballot was removed properly. At one point during the meeting, Ryan Smith, undergraduate representative to the board of visitors, asked both Brubaker and Khan to retire their seats on the CSA because of their biases on the issues at hand; however Khan quickly declined his request. Among those present at the meeting were
AMIE STEELE/COLLEGIATE TIMES
Panhellenic President Angie Puryear, Vice President of Student Affairs Zenobia Hikes, CSA Chair Joe McFadden and CSA Vice Chair Jessi Brunson listen to a question at the meeting. McFadden, Brubaker, Khan, and Vice President of Student Affairs Zenobia Hikes. A future CSA meeting is in the process of being scheduled, even though the four newly elected SGA officers will
April 16 spurs changes in mental health legislation
Virginia Tech’s tennis teams played in the first round of the Atlantic Coast Conference Championships in Altamonte Springs, Fla., yesterday with the men beating the Clemson Tigers and the women falling to the University of Virginia. The men’s team, seeded No. 5, clinched the 4-3 victory over the No. 12 Tigers when Sebastien Jacques was able to pull out a three-set win over Clemson’s Kevin Fleck at No. 5 singles. The Hokies (15-7, 7-5) advance to play in the quarterfinals against No. 4 Wake Forest on Friday at noon. After losing the opening doubles point, the No. 10 Tech’s women’s team was not able to overcome the No. 7 Cavaliers and fell, 4-2. Jessica Brouwer and Holly Johnson, at No. 5 and No. 6 singles respectively, recorded victories for the Hokies. With the loss, Tech’s season ends and the women finish with an overall record of 14-13 and 2-10 in the ACC.
GORDON BLOCK
ct news reporter
news POPE BENEDICT SPEAKS WITH SEXUALLY ABUSED WASHINGTON — Pope Benedict XVI spoke Thursday with victims who as children were sexually abused by their priests, an unexpected gathering that was the Roman Catholic Church’s most dramatic step yet to acknowledge the harm caused by the clergy. — McClatchy Newspapers
weather SUNNY high 77, low 48
corrections “Bars plan own initiatives to respect anniversary,” (CT, April 16) was incorrect. Michele Minsterman was misspelled. The Collegiate Times regrets this error.
coming up TUESDAY’S CT One year after April 16, read a recap of the gun control controversy in the state of Virginia. If you missed Wednesday’s candlelight vigil on the Drillfield, check out a video online.
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An independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903 105th year • issue 52
be inaugurated into office next Tuesday. “We just want to get this to a final resolution,” said Vikram Narayan, SGA speaker of the senate. “That’s our main goal.”
SALLY BULL/SPPS
Thirty-two flags fly on Main Street in front of Blacksburg Baptist Church honoring the victims killed on April 16. Though the church did not recognize Seung-Hui Cho with his victims, they reaffirmed the importance of remembering Cho’s family.
Memorials take different approaches GORDON BLOCK
ct news reporter ONE YEAR LATER >> the debate
As memorials sprung up all over Blacksburg honoring the victims of last year’s shootings,
a debate followed over whether or not those memorials should include gunman SeungHui Cho, who also died on April 16 of a selfinflicted gunshot wound. Many Virginia Tech students and family members of Cho’s victims were adamant that Cho not be memorialized with or nearby his
victims. However, there were advocates for recognizing that Cho also died on that day, and that his family and those who knew him may have been just as aggrieved as those of his victims.
see DEBATE, page two
Race at Clemson to honor Jeremy Herbstritt LIZA ROESCH
ct staff writer Jeremy Herbstritt loved to run. He ran around Blacksburg whenever he got the chance and faster than most people. He ran ONE YEAR LATER up until the day his life was cut short on April >> the legacy 16, 2007. So when Jeremy’s girlfriend, Lex Bozzo, wanted to do something to honor his memory a year after the shooting, she knew just how to do it — a 5K run. “We went running together once, but he was too fast for me,” said Bozzo, who graduated from Tech in May 2007. “We had always planned to run a 5K one day together, and we never got to.” Since Jeremy’s death, Bozzo has taken up running. “It’s a really good stress reliever,” Bozzo said.
“But more than anything, it was something he was passionate about.” Jeremy grew up in Bellefonte, Pa., and graduated from Bellefonte High School in 1998. Upon graduation he attended Penn State University and received bachelor’s degrees in molecular biology and biochemistry in 2003, and civil engineering in 2004. Herbstritt came to Tech in 2006 to continue studying civil engineering. Faculty at Tech remember Jeremy as a friendly and outgoing individual. Andrea Dietrich, professor of civil and environmental engineering, said she knew Jeremy through various social gatherings within the department. “He was enthusiastic and very talkative,” Dietrich said. “He was well-liked by students, faculty and staff and is really missed.”
COURTESY OF LEX BOZZO
After Jeremy Herbstritt’s death Lex Bozzo, his
Of all of the legislative issues raised following the events of last April, one of the most prominent has ONE YEAR LATER been the state of the >> mental health mental health system in Virginia. Following the worst shooting by an individual in American history, many pointed toward an ineffective mental health system as part of the reason gunman Seung-Hui Cho was able to carry out his rampage. Cho himself, prior to last April, went through many areas of the state’s mental health system. According to the report from the Virginia Tech Review Panel, Cho began receiving mental health treatment during his middle school years, when he was first diagnosed with selective mutism and major depression, for which he received antidepressants. Cho continued his treatment throughout his high school years, where he excelled academically due in part to a combination of treatment and extra assistance from teachers and staff. Cho disregarded recommendations from high school guidance counselors, who recommended he go to a small school close to home to better adjust to college life, instead of coming to Virginia Tech for his post-secondary education. Once he arrived at Tech, though he exhibited antisocial behavior, Cho made it through his first and second year without incident. However, during his third year at Tech, Cho’s demeanor and actions began to raise flags with educators, advisers and fellow students. Following reports from teachers, along with repeated violations of school policy, Cho was sent to the Virginia Tech Police Department on the evening of Dec. 13, 2005, where he was examined with the help of a social worker from the New River Valley Community Services Board. The social worker, after interviewing Cho and the detaining officer, found him to be an imminent danger to himself or others, and recommended involuntary hospitalization. That night Cho was admitted to St. Albans Behavioral Health Center of the Carilon New River Valley Medical Center. The next morning, Cho faced a set of meetings and hearings with mental health officials, who directed him to enter outpatient treatment. Following the hearings, Cho was discharged in the afternoon of Dec. 14, 2005, with his discharge summary indicating the need for additional followup care through Cook Counseling Center. Following his discharge, Cho immediately went to Cook for an appointment, where a counselor at the clinic evaluated him for the first time person-to-person, as two previous contacts between Cho and Cook took place over the phone. As was the Center’s policy, it was up to the patient to set up a follow-up appointment, and following the meeting, there was no more contact noted between Cho and Cook. As a result of the failings that allowed Cho’s history of mental illness to go unchecked, legislators and mental health officials worked fervently to make improvements to the mental health systems during this year’s General Assembly. Gov. Tim Kaine worked in conjunction with the general assembly this year to take steps toward improving the system. Kaine’s efforts centered on increasing funding for the state’s current mental health system. Kaine agreed to add $41.2 million to the state’s two-year budget to be used for improvements across the board, though coming up with the money was the hardest part of the process. “It has been (difficult). This year revenues were very slow, and all of the new revenue would have been eaten up by the cost increases of K-12 education, the Medicaid budget, and the costs of running prisons and jails, so there actually was zero new dollars
see RACE, page two girlfriend, organized a 5K run in his honor.
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see LEGISLATION, page two