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Thursday, November 15, 2018
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Northwestern swept by No. 4 Illinois
Students respond to recent incidents Students criticize UP response, express fear By CAMERON COOK
the daily northwestern @cam_e_cook
Evan Robinson-Johnson/The Daily Northwestern
Weinberg freshman Margot Bartol and Communication freshman Arianna Staton. Bartol and Staton proposed the resolution calling for the University to take greater action in the wake of recent violent incidents.
ASG passes emergency resolution Senators call on University to provide more support for student safety By EVAN ROBINSON-JOHNSON
the daily northwestern
Associated Student Government passed emergency legislation Wednesday calling for Northwestern to make greater efforts to
protect its students in the wake of several recent incidents on campus. Proposed by Weinberg freshman Margot Bartol and Communication freshman Arianna Staton, the resolution attempts to create changes that will address students’ fears. This follows multiple
crime reports made to University Police by female students saying one or two men had come up to them and either said something or grabbed their arm or backpack.The resolution calls for an easier line of communication between students and UP, specifically in the form
Admins finalize ’18 deficit numbers
Board to hear report this weekend By ALAN PEREZ
daily senior staffer @_perezalan_
University administrators say last year’s budget deficit will close out in better shape than they previously expected, though it is much higher than what was originally projected earlier this year. Administrators had projected after the third quarter of last year that the deficit would reach $130 million, more than the $62.5 million privately projected before a January public announcement that administrators expected a deficit in the $50 million to $100 million range. New calculations after the public announcement gave a bleaker forecast, and Holloway told The Daily earlier this quarter that the numbers kept shifting until it stabilized in the spring. University President Morton Schapiro said in an interview on Wednesday that despite one-time $25 million unexpected expenses, the budget would be “$37 million better than expected,” though it was unclear what figure he was referring to. Top administrators will present
to the Board of Trustees on Friday a financial report for the 2018 fiscal year, which ended in August. The numbers for the year were finalized in recent weeks. But while the prospects are promising, administrators are cautious about repeating behavior that led to the shortfall. “We’re going to be delivering good news to the Board of Trustees about the year that just closed, which affects the year going forward, of course,” Provost Jonathan Holloway said in an interview on Wednesday.“But we still have to maintain some real discipline.” Holloway said the University has implemented some more permanent changes that will prevent the return of past issues, including a “robust and new” financial reporting system, accounting systems and financial practices. Northwestern’s financial standing could return to a surplus as soon as next year, he added, given the better-than-expected data that has rolled in since this summer. University leadership, however, will “reserve the right to readjust” this year’s budget once the year’s data is considered, Holloway said, which » See BUDGET, page 6
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of a more comfortable platform for students to report incidents of “gender-based violence.” “A lot of people were impacted by the events and are feeling very emotionally charged about it,” » See SENATE, page 6
Northwestern students have been put on edge by a number of incidents involving men grabbing women by the tops of their backpacks or arms or following them down the street. University Police have alerted students to five separate incidents of men targeting women, a figure University Police Chief Bruce Lewis said is unusually high. In a Nov. 8 email, Lewis alerted the community to three incidents of battery. Another email, sent Tuesday, reported two more incidents. Communication freshman Samantha Tapper said before the reports, she didn’t think these types of incidents could occur at Northwestern. Now, she said, she’s anxious. “I just felt a lot of anxiety, especially for the future,”Tapper said. “Campus is very dark, especially on the path by the lakefill, and walking through the trees can be scary if you don’t really know who’s around or who’s watching you.” Students have also criticized the timing of UP’s alerts, which
can sometimes take hours after the incident to reach the public. Tapper said she feels incidents weren’t addressed quickly enough, and that she heard about them from social media and other students several hours before the University said anything. Weinberg sophomore Gabriella Boone thinks UP should report incidents faster, so that students are aware as soon as possible, even if that means giving incomplete information. “I get that they’re wanting to make sure that what they’re reporting is accurate, but I feel like they should let us know in some capacity what is happening as soon as they can,” she said. “Even if it’s not an official report.” However, dispersing piecemeal information like what Boone described is usually reserved for more imminently dangerous situations, Lewis said. For things like assault, homicide or armed robbery, he said, information will be pushed out quickly, “at the risk of some degree of inaccuracy.” These incidents, he added, aren’t considered dangerous enough for a rushed, potentially inaccurate report. From the initial report by the victim to the eventual crime alert email, the process can take around an hour, Lewis said. » See INCIDENTS, page 6
Evanston sees record voting totals About two-thirds of eligible voters cast ballot in midterm elections By KRISTINA KARISCH
daily senior staffer @kristinakarisch
Evanston measured its highest voter turnout in over two decades during this year’s midterm elections, City clerk Devon Reid said at City Council on Monday. The total voter turnout of 34,505 for the Nov. 6 election was 67 percent in Evanston, which is the highest percentage on record since 1994, when about 50 percent of eligible residents went to the polls, Reid said. In total, over 52,000 voters were registered prior to the election. The clerk’s office conducted a texting campaign and used phone banking and social media outreach, as well as door-to-door and event outreach to inform voters about how to cast their ballots. Reid said early voting made up about 40 percent of votes cast, and that this election was the first in which Evanston ranked ahead of » See RESULTS, page 6
Graphic by Allie Goulding
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