THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
“Little good is accomplished without controversy, and no civic evil is ever defeated without publicity.”
da
Monday January 10, 2011
VOLUME 124, ISSUE 75
www.THEDAONLINE.com
Fraternity found not guilty of hazing BY TRAVIS CRUM CITY EDITOR
The hazing investigation into the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity at West Virginia University by its national chapter concluded in late December, finding the fraternity innocent of any wrongdoing. An investigation was launched by its national chapter after an anonymous call was made to the Greek AntiHazing Hotline on Nov. 30 about an alleged hazing in-
cident that occurred within a TKE residence the night before. “Nothing bad is going on at the chapter,” said Tom McAninch, director of communication for TKE’s national chapter. “They’re great men, and I have full confidence they’re going to be very successful.” The investigation determined that no act of hazing took place within a TKE residence. However, McAninch said the investigation found
some things about the fraternity that did not align with TKE principles. “When we investigate alleged incidents, we look at pretty much every process, every program and every member, to ensure that each of one of those aims to build better men, build a better world,” McAninch said. “More or less, some things were found that didn’t align with our principles – but none of them were serious in nature, and none of them were con-
sidered to be bad.” McAninch said he did not have the report in front of him, but the fraternity is taking steps to better align themselves with the principles and move forward from the alleged incident. The fraternity will hold more officer retreats for education on duties and responsibilities, develop a better judicial system, increase communication to its national chapter and improve its new member development program, he said.
MOVE-IN DAY SPRING 2011
“None of these things are being imposed on them,” he said. “This is something they see themselves as wanting to do to improve upon what they are doing now.” The fraternity inducted 23 new members last semester and hopes to win the award for being a “Top TKE Chapter.” The investigation marked the second report of an alleged hazing on campus in 2010. The Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity was found guilty of hazing on Dec. 10 and its members
Few governors give president and vice review STAFF WRITER
Chelsi Baker/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
Snowstorm prompts early move-in to dorms for those trying to beat storm by lydia nuzum correspondent
West Virginia University students and their families returned to the dorms this past weekend before the beginning of the spring semester, despite the threat of inclement weather. Pascha Adamo, resident coordinator of Bennett Tower, said students and families arrived to Towers before the doors were supposed to open. “People came early to avoid getting trapped by the snow,” she said. “We couldn’t just let people stay out in the cold, so we opened the doors early.” Jordan Mueller, a freshman management information systems major, said driving from his home in Ritchie County, W.Va., was difficult, but the conditions improved on the highway. “Things were pretty clear the closer we got to Morgantown,” Mueller said. New student orientation for
transfer students was Thursday and Friday, and those students were allowed to move in to their dorms depending on the day of the program. Spring semester movein day also includes moving out those students who withdrew from the University late and some who requested new room assignments. Jessica Tucker, a pre-forensic and investigative sciences major and resident assistant in Towers, said people moving in and out over the same weekend is difficult. As a resident assistant, she fills out the paperwork for someone moving out and assists students moving in with carts. Tucker said move-in day is always hectic, but the snow may have made traffic worse. Though most students do not take all of their belongings out of their dorm, she said some students take everything home with them, and it
see snow on PAGE 2
staff writer
West Virginia University’s WELL WVU Student Health division has several changes to protocol starting for the spring semester. The most notable change is the implementation of MyWVUChart, a secure online resource for students who have had lab tests performed at WELL WVU Student Health and are awaiting results. Dr. Jan Palmer, director of
the Student Health division of WELL WVU, said patients having access to their records without having to make a call to the office is a main benefit of the system. He also said communication and patient care for physicians will be more streamlined and coordinated. MyWVUChart will aid in lab testing information for the patients, as well as possible solutions for tests. “The physician or provider will arrange with the student what to do with an abnormal
30° / 22°
‘THE CAPE’
INSIDE
Check out our review on the new superheroe TV series. A&E PAGE 7
CLOUDY
News: 1, 2, 3 Opinion: 4 A&E: 7, 9, 10 Sports: 12-16, 18 Campus Calendar: 6 Puzzles: 6 Classifieds: 19
Members of the Board of Governors for West Virginia University’s Student Government Association completed forms assessing SGA President Chris Lewallen and Vice President Ron Cheng’s performance last semester. Although there should be 15 evaluations total, one from each BOG member, only five evaluations were turned in for both Lewallen and Cheng. “We gave everyone an opportunity to evaluate us, but I guess some people didn’t want to participate,” Lewallen said. Lewellan said the idea behind the evaluations came about after some members of the BOG expressed their displeasure with their own evaluations conducted by Cheng. “We thought it was only fair to give them an opportunity to evaluate us,” Cheng said. Last semester, Cheng conducted performance reviews for the 15 BOG members and two athletic council members. The evaluations outlined eight criteria, such as the ability to start a project, the ability to
follow through a project and the ability to work with other members of SGA. Cheng gave each member scores ranging from a high “excellent” to a low “satisfactory,” which spans their work from August to October. No member received the lowest rating of “poor,” Cheng said. The governors were given the same form used to evaluate their performances, and Gov. Allison Rollins collected them. The forms were not filled out in any particular manner. Some of the five governors choose to use a 1 to 10 rating system, while others used adjectives describing performance. Other governors chose to leave the majority of the form blank and left comments on the bottom. One evaluation was turned in with the names of both Cheng and Lewallen on it and “fine” written in for every category. Another form for Lewallen simply read, “President Swagger” while another said, “Chris is a rock star.”
see reviews on PAGE 2
Mattern resigns from University BOG
Long applies for permanent state school position BY JEsSICA LEPPAR STAFF WRITER
Chelsi Baker/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
Freshman engineering major Curtis Miers, left, and mother Heidi Miers, right, fit a suitcase into a cart at Towers Saturday afternoon during move-in day.
Student Health to undergo protocol changes by dustin hoffman
travis.crum@mail.wvu.edu
Student Government
BY CHARLES YOUNG
Freshman English major Amber Goodwin loads her luggage into a cart before taking it up to her room at Towers Saturday afternoon.
were placed on a three-year probation. Student Organization Services began investigating Phi Sigma Kappa after a University Police Department officer entered the Phi Sigma Kappa house, located at 672 North High St., at approximately 2:30 a.m. Nov. 14 after hearing music and seeing an open door, according to reports. There, they found pledges blindfolded and covered in food.
test, whether to come in for a follow up or not,” Palmer said. Palmer said there are certain lab tests which are performed immediately at Student Health that do not require being sent to regional labs such as United Medical Laboratories. Results from tests given at Student Health are available on site for patients with MyWVUChart. “MyWVUChart works to maximize the efficiency of the health care experience at WVU,” Palmer said.
Patients can also request prescription renewals through the system, without a trip to the pharmacy, or see a doctor. Patients can fax a form from the pharmacy to the physician and they can sign off on additional refills of the medication. Some of the other general protocol at Student Health include: zz Students will be asked to come in to Student Health if they have even the most
see changes on PAGE 2
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INSIDE THIS EDITION The West Virginia football team made some drastic changes over Winter Break. Check out the timeline. SPORTS PAGE 15
Ted Mattern, former member of the West Virginia University Board of Governors, stepped down from his seat in December to become interim state superintendent of schools this month. In early December, state school board members voted 5-3 to hire Mattern as the interim state superintendent of schools until a permanent replacement is hired. Mattern was asked to resign his position on the BOG before taking over as the interim state superintendent, due to conflictions with state law. The state law says no one is eligible for membership on the WVU BOG if he or she holds public office or employment within the state or federal government. West Virginia Governor Earl Tomblin will have approximately 30 days to ap-
point a new member to the WVU BOG, said Nigel Clark, Board member. “We certainly will miss Mr. Mattern,” said Carolyn Long, BOG chair. “He’s done a superb job, and he’s been an excellent Board member, but we appreciate him willing to step up to the plate for the children of West Virginia, and that’s what he has done.” Long said she has applied for the permanent state superintendent of schools position. “It’s been reported that I have applied for the state superintendent job, and I’m not going to deny that,” Long said. “Other than that, I’m not going to make any comments because it would be inappropriate to do so,” she said. State board members anticipate to fill the permanent state superintendent position by early March. Former West Virginia Gov. Bob Wise appointed Mattern to the WVU Board of Governors in 2002. Since then, he was reappointed twice by former Gov. Joe Manchin. jessica.leppar@mail.wvu.edu
WINNING ISN’T ENOUGH The Daily Athenaeum begins an in-depth look at West Virginia women’s basketball attendance. Today’s story discusses the problem. SPORTS PAGE 12