THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
“Little good is accomplished without controversy, and no civic evil is ever defeated without publicity.”
da
Monday January 31, 2011
Volume 124, Issue 89
www.THEDAONLINE.com
One charged after fight in ’Lair garage BY TRAVIS CRUM CITY EDITOR
One West Virginia University student was taken to the hospital Saturday morning following an altercation which occurred in the Mountainlair parking garage. Joseph A. Jennings, 23, of Flushing, N.Y., was arrested and charged with malicious wounding in connection with the altercation. Jennings allegedly brandished a knife, although no one was stabbed, said WVU Police Chief Bob
Roberts. The injured student, whose name has not been released, was taken to Ruby Memorial Hospital and treated for wounds not considered life threatening, Roberts said. Jennings is not a WVU student. The altercation began at approximately 3:20 a.m. in the upper level of the Mountainlair parking garage after two groups of people began arguing about whose hometown was better, Roberts said. Roberts said all suspects have been identified, and the
investigation is continuing with other possible arrests to follow. There is no immediate threat to the University, and the altercation is considered an isolated incident, Roberts said. “As long as you avoid getting into altercations, either verbal or with people who are becoming aggressive, you’ll be fine,” he said. “The best thing to do is to walk away or call the police.” He addressed any student who will fear for their safety while traveling near the Mountainlair. “This is happening at three
in the morning after the bars close,” he said. “If you are not out at those hours, you don’t have much to worry about.” Similar altercations have occurred on campus in the past in which two groups of people began fighting late at night following a verbal argument. On Nov. 7, 2009, WVU sophomore Ryan Diviney fell into a coma following an altercation which occurred at 3:10 a.m. outside the Willey Street Dairy Mart. The fight allegedly began when two Newark, Del. resi-
dents began arguing with Diviney and his friends over the outcome of the World Series. Austin Vantrease, 19, and Jonathan May, 19, were arrested in connection with the attack and both sentenced to jail time. Vantrease was charged with malicious wounding and sentenced to 10 years in jail, with the eligibility of parole in two years. May was charged with battery and sentenced to one year. On Feb. 12, 2006, Ryan Johnson, a WVU student from Washington, Pa., died from
stab wounds following an altercation at 1:30 a.m at 131 Beechurst St. Tyler Baumann, of Alexandria, VA., was sentenced to one year in prison for involuntary manslaughter. The fight allegedly began after Baumann and his friends threw snowballs at Johnson’s friends. The snowball fight escalated into a physical brawl involving 12 students or more until Johnston entered the residence and was stabbed with a steak knife. travis.crum@mail.wvu.edu
Zumba founder teaches at WVU WVU usernames, passwords to be synced into one by nick ashley staff writer
Chelsi Baker/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
Zumba expert Erik Santana teaches a Zumba master class at the Student Recreation Center Sunday morning.
In 15th WVU appearance, $1,500 raised for WVU Children’s Hospital BY JOEL MORALES STAFF WRITER
More than 60 people filled Room B at the Student Recreation Center Sunday morning to attend a Master Class Zumba session led by Erick Santana, a well-known Zumba education specialist from Miami. Zumba is a fitness program combining Latin and international music with dance in an effort to make exercise fun which originated in Columbia, in 1990. West Virginia University has hosted Santana about 15 times. “West Virginia University gave me my first opportunity in West Virginia,” Santana said. “Coming back to WVU four years later is full circle for me.” Many of the Zumba instructors at WVU were at Santana’s
first Zumba class at the University four years ago, holding one of the highest levels of attendance Santana has seen. Zumba has grown from when it first came to WVU. “It began in Room A in the yoga studio, and then it expanded to the point where classes wouldn’t even fit in Room B,” said A.J. Huffman, a former WVU student from Charlestown, W.Va. “Now we fill up the basketball courts Monday through Thursday.” Santana has been to numerous places in West Virginia, as well as Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland. Santana has donated to many organizations including breast cancer, the epilepsy foundation in Miami, the American Heart Association
see zumba on PAGE 2
correspondent
Cold, numb-fingered and shivering swimmers will soon be diving into the Monongahela River. Registration is now open for the seventh annual Polar Plunge sponsored by the West Virginia Special Olympics. The event is Feb. 26 at Star City Park, in the Monongahela River. “Anyone who wants to take a dip into the Monongahela River is more than welcome to join,” said Janet Scarcelli, community relations coordinator for West Virginia University Hospitals.
Minimum participation is raising $50 for the plunge donation, said Brett White, special events coordinator for the WVU Center for Civic Engagement. All proceeds will be donated to the West Virginia Special Olympics, White said. “We average about 150 plungers,” Scarcelli said. “A couple of hundred people come out to watch the participants jump, and 50 or so come out just for fun. So there are usually 300 to 400 people at the event that day.” Prizes for the teams and participants who raise certain amounts of money include a T-shirt, towel and a gift cer-
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R-SKID
INSIDE
Check out our interview with the local rapper. A&E PAGE 5
MOSTLY CLOUDY
News: 1, 2, 3 Opinion: 4 A&E: 5, 7 Sports: 8, 9, 12 Campus Calendar: 6 Puzzles: 6 Classifieds: 10, 11
nicholas.ashley@mail.wvu.edu
Brothers open bar on High Street Friday in honor of late sister
Chelsi Baker/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
A group of women from the surrounding area do Zumba at a Master Class Zumba session in the Student Recreation Center Sunday.
Students, community prepare to take the plunge by emily spickler
West Virginia University has recently decided to implement a change in passwords for students and faculty to create more efficient computer accessibility. The Office of Information and Technology will have a single login for students and faculty, which will allow combined access to MIX, GroupWise and Master IDs, said Chet Cook, senior Program Administrator of OIT. “We have had GroupWise for 11 years now. We feel that collectively, all of the login systems should have the same password for easier productivity,” Cook said. GroupWise is WVU’s e-mail system for faculty and staff. Bishop said there are currently 250 students with different MIX and GroupWise account IDs, which was the first part of the problem. “We recognized the frustration students and faculty were experiencing with the login systems. Our goals were to improve our services to customers and (to have) better security,” said Sara Bishop, assistant Director of Enterprise Systems Development. Along with OIT, Administrative Technology Solutions, Health Sciences Center, Mountaineer Card Office and Student Systems Management
contributed to the change in accounts, Bishop said. “We are now in the process of creating a website where people will be able to change their password to one login for everything,” she said. In the next month, OIT will be reaching out to everyone on campus to keep students updated in the change that will be occurring over the year, Bishop said. Some students have already received e-mails regarding a password change for those with GroupWise and MIX accounts. Fall 2011 is the target date to have all the accounts synced for new and returning students, Bishop said. “Our priority needs to come from the users on what needs improvement,” Bishop said. The WVU Identity Management Project was proposed in October 2010 and included two phases. One is to enable users to have only one set of login credentials to access any and all central applications they are authorized to access. The other is to improve and secure the management of user identity for WVU systems, said an e-mail regarding a GroupWise ID. MIX and GroupWise e-mail addresses will not be changed, only usernames and passwords will be synced, according to the e-mail.
tificate for a local restaurant, Scarcelli said. A weekend getaway is the grand prize for the individual or team of four people that raises the most money for donation, she said. White said a costume contest will also take place before the plunge. “A lot of teams wear team costumes,” White said. “I’ve seen costumes like the Village People and even a Mario and Luigi. A lot of people just jump in shorts and a T-shirt.” A weekend getaway prize is also given to the most creative costumes for the individual and team, he said.
A post-plunge party will be held at Crockett’s with food and beverages where the prizes will be awarded, Scarcelli said. The Polar Plunge has two events – one in Charleston on Saturday and the other in Morgantown, she said. “This is a great way to get involved, and there is a sense of well-doing for the community,” White said. Registration will remain open until noon the day of the plunge, which is at 2 p.m., Scarcelli said. For more information, visit http://wvpolarplunge.com. danewsroom@mail.wvu.edu
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INSIDE THIS EDITION The West Virginia women’s basketball team struggled early against Depaul. See how the Mountaineers fared. SPORTS PAGE 12
by Melissa Candolfi STAFF WRITER
Brothers Bernie and Michael Sousa opened Ky’s Lounge and Ohana Beach Bar on High Street Friday, in memory of their sister, who was the victim of a violent attack last year. “Kyleigh would have loved it,” Bernie said. “We designed it with her looking over our shoulder.” In honor of Kyleigh’s birthday on Feb. 8, when she would have been 22, the bars will be holding weeklong events with drink specials. Kyleigh Sousa was a student at Arizona State University when she was robbed by a man in an IHOP parking lot on March 26, 2010. The man attempted to take her purse, but she became entangled in its straps and was dragged 20 feet. She suffered fatal head injuries and died shortly after. Bernie, who graduated
from West Virginia University in 2003, said proceeds from the bar’s earnings will go to a foundation established in Kyleigh’s name to help those who suffer from traumatic brain injuries. “Our sister was just one of those girls who was just gorgeous and was very outgoing and friendly to everyone,” Sousa said. Michael said Ky’s Lounge is more of a high-class bar, where people can come sit with their friends and have a conversation. “Ky’s Lounge is definitely different than all the other bars,” he said. “All the other bars here, when you go there it’s elbow to elbow, you can’t move, the music is so loud you can’t really hear the person next to you is screaming, we wanted a little more relaxed environment.” He said Ohana Beach
see victim on PAGE 2
WVU DEFEATS CINCINNATI Coming off a devastating loss to Louisville, the West Virginia men’s basketball team defeated Cincinnati 66-55 Saturday night at Fifth-Third Arena. SPORTS PAGE 12