The Daily Northwestern - April 2, 2014

Page 1

Junior’s Lego resume goes viral

sports Men’s Tennis NU drops two close conference matches » PAGE 8

» PAGE 3

opinion Cui NU enters the college “arms race” » PAGE 4

High 39 Low 36

The Daily Northwestern DAILYNORTHWESTERN.COM

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Find us online @thedailynu

Rutgers students protest Ludlow By Ciara mccarthy

daily senior staffer @mccarthy_ciara

Bailey Williams/The Daily Northwestern

SAFE HAVEN District 65 Board of Education President Tracy Quattrocki questions distinguishing between leggings and yoga pants. Quattrocki, shown laughing, elaborated and said the situation will not be resolved until the language in Haven Middle School’s dress code is clarified.

Board talks Haven dress code By Bailey Williams

the daily northwestern @news_BaileyW

District 65 school board members addressed concerns from parents and students over the Haven Middle School leggings policy Tuesday night

after the issue sparked protests and attracted national media attention. “Dress codes like these encourage educators to do the sexualizing (themselves) and put them in a no-win situation, frankly,” Haven parent Kevin Bond said at the meeting. “Telling girls that their rather dumpy clothes ... are inappropriate

or somehow too sexy for school is drawing attention to their bodies in an embarrassing and painful way.” Just a week after protests of the so-called ban on leggings and yoga pants began, the meeting held at the Evanston/Skokie School District 65 » See leggings, page 7

Students at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, are organizing to protest the hiring of Northwestern philosophy Prof. Peter Ludlow, a candidate for a position at the school. The campus group Women Organizing Against Harassment is spearheading efforts to protest Ludlow’s candidacy and change the University’s hiring process for new faculty. In February, a Medill junior filed a Title IX lawsuit against NU, alleging that Ludlow bought her alcohol and sexually assaulted her in 2012. Nearly two months since the suit was filed, Ludlow’s future is still uncertain. NU administrators canceled his Spring Quarter philosophy class after students protested Ludlow’s continued employment at NU. Now, students at Rutgers are protesting Ludlow’s potential employment, led by WOAH and supported by activists on NU’s campus. On Monday, the group organized a “phone jam” of Rutgers President Robert Barchi’s office. Members of WOAH and their supporters called Barchi’s office to request all potential faculty hires be vetted for sexual misconduct, said the group’s president and founder Sarah Beth Kaye.

A Rutgers spokesman declined Tuesday to comment on the planned phone jam. “We have nothing to say about it and we have nothing to add to what we’ve already said about the candidacy of Professor Ludlow,” he said. In February, Rutgers confirmed Ludlow was being considered for a job, but denied he had already been offered a position or Ludlow had accepted it. “This was not brought to our attention by either the candidate or his employer. We are looking into this matter thoroughly, including requesting all relevant information to fully evaluate his candidacy,” Rutgers spokesman Greg Trevor said at the time. A Change.org petition created by concerned faculty requested NU “make a commitment that professor who have been determined (by campus or legal processes) to have committed sexual harassment, violence or abuse shall not be ‘passed on’ to other Universities.” NU’s Title IX Coordinating Committee wrote in response to the petition that it is current practice to include “positive findings from investigations” in a respondent’s personnel file. Ludlow was reportedly offered a » See rutgers, page 7

UP officers allege NU Comedian DeVine to speak at NU discrimination in suit By Rebecca Savransky daily senior staffer @BeccaSavransky

By Patrick svitek

daily senior staffer @PatrickSvitek

Two University Police officers are accusing Northwestern of discrimination based on their race and sexual orientation, claiming they had no chance to fight an allegation of sexual harassment and are now in danger of losing their jobs. In complaints submitted in February to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the two officers allege the University treats white, straight They’re making officers difa professional ferently than other officers judgment on when dealing mere allegations with workgrievalone. We don’t place ances. The want to see two officers also accuse it happen to NU of failing anybody else. to properly investigate Peter Ross, the allegation attorney against them, which they said they did not learn about until they were punished. “There was no presumption of innocence,” one of the complaints said. “The burden of proof apparently required no more than a bald allegation, no presentation of facts or evidence.” The complaints, dated Feb. 5 and Feb.

26, put UP at the center of discrimination claims for the second time in less than two months. In a federal lawsuit filed Thursday, Sgt. Haydee Martinez alleges another sergeant sexually harassed her for being lesbian, among other claims that depict the department as a hostile work environment. The latest allegations against UP stem from an incident that occurred Sept. 21, 2013, during which the two officers claim they were joking with a third officer about one of them kissing her spouse on the drive to work earlier in the day. The two officers’ attorneys described the conversation as innocent banter among three friendly colleagues. A fourth officer overheard the conversation and reported it as sexual harassment, according to the complaints, which describe him as a gay colleague with a history of filing workplace grievances. Based on questions they were later asked about the incident, the two officers believe the fourth officer relayed what he overheard to the University as more explicit than it actually was. In interviews with an NU human services official, the two officers claim they were denied due process and not allowed to have any representation or review the allegation, any evidence or the accuser’s testimony. An appeal of their guilty verdicts to human services was unsuccessful, according to the complaints. The two officers say they were suspended for three days without » See complaint, page 7

Serving the University and Evanston since 1881

Next week, Northwestern will have one more workaholic than usual. Comedian Adam DeVine will perform Tuesday at Pick-Staiger Concert Hall as A&O Productions’ spring speaker. DeVine, a stand-up comedian, actor, writer and producer, is known for his roles as both a creator and He’s one of the ac tor on most loved the Comedy Cencharacters on tral shows the show so we “Workaholics” thought when and “Adam he came up, DeVine’s he’d be a good House Party.” He pick. was given a Demetrios Teen Choice Cokinos, Award for A&O chairman his role in the 2012 film “Pitch Perfect.” A&O chairman Demetrios Cokinos said the organization’s poll results and other data showed there was a large following of “Workaholics” on campus, making DeVine a clear choice through the process. “He is one of the most loved characters on the show so we thought that when he came up, he’d be a good pick,” the Communication senior said. The event will open with performances from Communication senior

Mike Schultz and Communication junior Alex Heller, followed by comedian Adam Ray. A&O spokeswoman Rosalind Mowitt said the members of the organization’s speakers committee attend several events on campus to find student openers who will engage the crowd and keep energy high leading up to the main performance. “Heller and Schultz are both really talented stand-up comedians,” said Mowitt, a Weinberg senior. “Heller is someone we’ve had our eye on for a while. She has a really great routine and then Schultz was also just an excellent candidate.” Mowitt said she was looking forward to featuring a comedian as the main performer for the event this year, noting it was important to vary the type of performers A&O uses in their lineup each year. “We traditionally, for our speakers do a blend between doing something like a Q-and-A like we did with Franco or doing a stand up show and we just really wanted to do that,” she said about the organization’s winter speaker. “So in addition to him being recognizable from his work in ‘Workaholics’ and ‘Pitch Perfect,’ he’s also a pretty talented stand-up comedian.” Last year’s scheduled spring speaker, Nick Swardson, was canceled due to a death in the comedian’s family. Cokinos said he is looking forward to the event and is excited about the group’s success in bringing speakers to campus that had demonstrated student support. “Whenever we can get who students want, thats always just makes us happy,” he said. “Coming back to

Source: A&O Productions

DEVINE INTERVENTION Comedian Adam DeVine will perform April 8 as A&O Productions’ spring speaker. DeVine is known for his roles on the Comedy Central shows “Workaholics” and “Adam DeVine’s House Party.”

campus, we’re only a week in and we just kind of get to kick off the quarter with a laugh.” DeVine has performed stand-up at several events, including the Montreal Just for Laughs Comedy Festival. He has also had roles in “Community,” “Arrested Development” and “Samantha Who?” He is currently starring in the fourth season of “Workaholics” and performing on the ABC sitcom “Modern Family.” Tickets go on sale at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday on the Norris Box Office website. rebeccasavransky2015@u.northwestern.edu

INSIDE Around Town 2 | On Campus 3 | Opinion 4 | Classifieds & Puzzles 6 | Sports 8


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.