Daily Helmsman
The
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Better late than never... Tigers stand up against the test of time in numerous lastsecond thrillers
Vol. 78 No. 080
see page 8
Independent Student Newspaper of The University of Memphis
LGBT ‘Safe Zone’ aims to provide more welcoming U of M campus
courtesy of berlino
Adult Education
Back on track BY ERICA HORTON News Reporter For adults whose college experience ended without a degree, The University of Memphis has created a program to help them finish what they started. “The idea is that there are a number of people in the Memphis area who have started a degree and not completed it,” said Dan Lattimore, part-time instructor and spearhead of the Back on Track program. Lattimore said anyone is welcome to the program, but invitations were sent out to former students who attended The University 10 to 15 years ago, had no holds on their account, maintained at least a 2.5 grade point average and earned at least 90 credit hours. “On an undergraduate degree, there is no time limit on credits,” he said. Ken Hall, marketing director for Leadership
see
Track, page 3
www.dailyhelmsman.com
BY CHELSEA BOOZER News Reporter When teachers call roll at the beginning of class, it’s common for students to clarify the pronunciation of their names. University of Memphis senior Tenisha Harris has often had to clarify her gender. Harris, an English major, is a lesbian who wears “boy-like clothing” and a short haircut. She said she is often perceived as a man. “I constantly reminded (my professor that I am a girl), and it got to a point where he was calling me ‘he’ because that’s what he looked at me as, I guess,” Harris said. “I stopped wasting my time trying to tell him. It didn’t really bother me because I looked at him as being the idiot.” Harris said her parents, who are both straight, are supportive of her lifestyle, but other students in the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community have seen their parents “turn their back on them when they mention the word gay.” The U of M has 12 peer institutions, including University of Alabama at Birmingham, Florida International University and University of Louisville. All have an LGBT Safe Zone. The Safe Zone program is a nationwide effort that identifies LGBT-friendly faculty, staff and students as resources to LGBT students. Several individuals from University departments are currently working on a collaborative effort to bring the Safe Zone to The U of M and have formed a Safe Zone Committee.
Lorna Horishny, administrative secretary in the Career and Psychological Counseling Center and Safe Zone Committee editor, said she hopes the initiative soon garners support from all departments on campus. The committee, dedicated to implementing the zone, will seek support from faculty, staff and students before this semester’s end. “For the last five years, we have been trying to figure out the best way to approach it and give (the program) credibility and show how important it is (to have a Safe Zone on campus),” Horishny said. When the Safe Zone was first suggested five years ago, it was dismissed because “administration” felt there was no need for it at The U of M, Horishny said. Tim Smith, student coordinator for Safe Zone Committee and a senior majoring in teaching all learners, said The University lacked information about the Safe Zone at the time and didn’t realize its peer institutions had already implemented the program. “We live in an area, which is reflected on The University, where being gay isn’t always OK,” Smith said. The 2009 National School Climate Survey, released last year, reported high numbers of bullying and abuse toward the LGBT community on college campuses nationwide. Compiled by the Q Research Institute for Higher Education, the survey reported that 84.6 percent of LGBT students said they were verbally harassed, 40.1 percent
see
Safe, page 3
Campus Construction
News Brief
One step at a time
The stairs outside The University of Memphis’ Patterson Hall were built in 1967. A section on the east side of the building is roped off with caution tape due to crumbling and decay. According to Brian Wilcox, carpentry manager with The U of M’s Physical Plant, the stairs have endured many freeze and thawing cycles, which has caused the concrete to crack. The Physical Plant has sealed off the sections of the stairs to protect the users of Patterson Hall. After the analysis by structural engineers is performed, a more accurate timeframe on the construction process will be revealed, Wilcox said.
The University of Memphis’ Career Services and College of Education will host an education career fair today from 1 to 4 p.m. in the University Center Ballroom. The fair, free to all U of M students and alumni, will allow students seeking careers in education to meet with representatives from several local school districts, including the city of Memphis, Tipton County, Desoto County, Shelby County and Marion, Ark. Alisha Henderson, director of Career Services at The U of M, said the fair will be “very beneficial” to students who attend. Henderson said that school district representatives search primarily for students to fill teaching positions, but counseling and administrative positions are available as well. “Sometimes they even perform interviews on the spot, which may lead to follow-up interviews for a job opportunity,” she said. Henderson suggested that students dress professionally and bring a resumé to the fair.
— by Chris Daniels News Reporter
by Mike Mueller
Education career fair in UC today
— by Joshua L. Bolden and Chris Daniels News Reporters