Thursday, April 18, 2013 Print Edition

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Thursday April 18, 2013

An independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903 www.collegiatetimes.com

COLLEGIATETIMES 109th year, issue 103 News, page 2

Weekend, page 5

Opinions, page 3

Sports, page 6

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Study Break, page 4

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WIDER HALLWAYS • IS THIS FACILITY EASILY ACCESSIBLE? • MORE PARKING SPACES • CAN EVERY INDIVIDUAL WHO NEEDS HELP RECEIVE IT? • LARGER JANITORIAL CLOSESTS • HOW DO THESE RENOVATIONS BENEFIT THE ENTIRE FACILITY? • HOSPITAL STANDARDS • ARE THESE FACILITIES CLEAN ENOUGH FOR MEDICAL PROCEDURES • HOW DID LEGISLATORS DECIDE ON THESE CHANGES?

WHICH PLANNED PARENTHOOD LOCATIONS WILL STAY OPEN? MELISSA DRAUDT news writer

On Friday April 12, the Virginia State Board of Health voted 11-2 in favor of finalizing regulations for health and safety standards of abortion clinics that opponents fear could force some facilities to close. Located just off of North Main Street, the local Planned Parenthood could face closure if they don’t comply with the new regulations. Read our previous coverage on these regulations. “They are an unfortunate and

unnecessary intrusion into patient services,” said Cianti Stewart-Reid, Executive Director of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia, of the law. The regulations will require that any facility where five or more firsttrimester abortions per month are performed, must meet the minimum standards for construction set for new hospital buildings. In 2012, the Blacksburg Planned Parenthood provided 104 induced terminations of pregnancy. Many pro-choice groups are concerned about the effect on Planned Parenthood facilities across the state, which provide a range of

Potter historian brings magic to Virginia Tech

BEN WEIDLICH/ SPPS

Melissa Anelli shares her experience with loyal Harry Potter fans. JESSICA GROVES features reporter

Melissa Anelli, New York Times bestselling author and webmistress, never had the chance to wait for her Hogwarts letter. She was in college when she fi rst fell in love with the Harry Potter series. Anelli is the author of “Harry, A History: The True Story of a Boy Wizard, his Fans and Life Inside the Harry Potter Phenomenon.” Th e book was published in 2008 and landed in the eighteenth spot on the New York Times’ paperback bestseller list in its fi rst 10 days on the charts. Anelli is now webmistress of The Leaky Cauldron, a Harry Potter fan website. J.K. Rowling has praised Anelli’s work on the website, and also wrote a foreword in Anelli’s book. Anelli presented an interactive presentation called “Harry: A History” Wednesday night at the

Haymarket Theatre. Anelli shared the story of her growing attachment to the Harry Potter series with the Collegiate Times. Collegiate Times: What was the fi rst moment you really fell in love with the Harry Potter world? Melissa Anelli: I read the books in the beginning of my last year of college. My sister stuck (Harry Potter) on top of a pile of books I was cleaning out of the bookshelf, and was like, “You need something to read.” A couple of months later, I read through a couple of the books, and I was hooked. I needed desperately to fi nd out when the fi ft h book was coming out. I went to the Internet — because the Internet has had the answer for everything since I knew it existed. There was no information about it. Th is was in September 2001, and that’s when I found the Leaky Cauldron. see POTTER/ page two

health services ranging from oral contraceptives, treatment of STDs and cancer screenings to abortions. “It has the potential to (cause health centers to close) if they’re unable to comply with the restrictions,” said Stewart-Reid. “As a result, women would lose access to all the other services that are also provided at those centers.” Among the regulations, those regarding design and construction could prove costly for many health centers. However, President of the Virginia Society for Human Life Olivia Gans Turner does not foresee Planned Parenthood facilities closing due to

the costs associated with regulated changes. “Planned Parenthood has made a lot of noise… and yet Planned Parenthood will not shut its doors,” said Gans Turner. “They make a great deal of money off this business.” Planned Parenthood, which receives money from the federal government, reported excess revenue of over $87 million for the 2011-2012 fiscal year. That same year, federal funding provided over $524 million to the organization. see ABORTION / page two

Mural aims to showcase local creativity DEAN SEAL news editor

At 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, the Town of Blacksburg unveiled its new LOVEworks mural on the side of the SheSha building on Draper Road, across from Bollo’s. The mural, designed by local artist Den Bento, was one of 16 sites chosen from across Virginia to be part of the Virginia is for Lovers social media marketing campaign. At the unveiling, Mayor Ron Rordam spoke about the mural and the impact he hoped it would have on Blacksburg’s relationship with the local arts community. Rordam expressed his enthusiasm about what had originally been an attempt to abate the abundance of graffiti around the downtown area but had turned instead into an effort to revitalize the area with public art by local designers. To the amusement of the crowd, Rordam told an anecdote about his 94 yearold mother, who still creates art with water paints to this day, saying that though the artistic talent had not

BRAD KLODOWSKI / SPPS

Den Bento, local artist, poses with her mural in Downtown Blacksburg on Wednesday at the reveal. been passed onto him, “If I can’t paint, I can enjoy looking.” Rordam described the mural as being representative of Blacksburg’s characteristics, with the deer and dogwood being symbols for the community, and that it represented the broad biodiversity of the area. He went on to express his hopes that,

with the mural, Blacksburgarea students would further embrace the town as their home. Lisa Bleakley of Montgomery County Tourism and Judy Watkins of Virginia Tourism Corporation also spoke alongside Rordam about the desire to bring more tourism to the town through the mural.

Den Bento, the mural designer, is a MexicanBrazillian graphic designer and art teacher who came to Blacksburg in 2011. Inspiration for the subject of the mural, Bento says, came not long after she was commissioned to create the design. see MURAL / page two

Former frat house to be demolished CAITY GONANO news writer

Just half a block outside of Blacksburg’s historical district sits a house that holds more history than its previous owners may have realized. Located right next to the old middle school property, 402 Clay Street, former home of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity for over 40 years, is in jeopardy of demolition. Within the past year, the fraternity has moved out and into another house on Virginia Tech’s campus in KEVIN DICKEL / SPPS Oak Lane. The former Sig Ep house sits abandoned on a 1.7 acre lot on Clay St. The controversy surround-

ing the house surfaced when recent research showed that the house holds significant historical value for the town of Blacksburg. It is currently scheduled to be demolished due to severe damage and safety issues. Kay Moody, chairwoman of the Historical Design Review Board in Blacksburg, has put a lot of time and effort into saving the property. “When I heard the house was to be demolished, I wanted to document the house and get as much history on it as I could,” Moody said. see HOUSE / page two


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Thursday, April 18, 2013 Print Edition by Collegiate Times - Issuu