The Daily Northwestern Wednesday, January 9, 2019
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Mother of Jordan Hankins files complaint against sorority
Complaint alleges hazing during pledge process caused anxiety and depression that led to her death By ELIZABETH BYRNE and CATHERINE KIM
daily senior staffers @lizbyrne33 and @ck_525
The mother of former Nor thwestern basketball player Jordan Hankins, who died by suicide in 2017, filed a complaint Tuesday against the Northwestern chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. The complaint alleges that hazing incidents during the pledging process caused Hankins to suffer severe anxiety
and depression, which led to her eventual death. The complaint, filed by Felicia Hankins in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, lists AKA and 11 other defendants –– including student members and advisors at the time. Hankins was subject to physical abuse, emotional abuse, sleep deprivation and financial exploitation, the complaint claims. The complaint alleges the defendants knew or should have known the hazing
activities were “extreme, outrageous and unlawful.” “Defendants’ conduct was intentional and done with the purpose of causing Hankins to suffer humiliation, mental anguish, and emotional and physical distress,” the complaint alleges. Representatives of the sorority and the University were not immediately available for comment Tuesday night. The complaint also claims the defendants were informed that Hankins was mentally
unstable and expressed that she was suicidal after the hazing activities. After being hazed, “it was foreseeable” that Hankins would kill herself, the complaint alleges. The complaint brings counts of negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress against defendants. AKA has been suspended on campus from May 2016 to Fall 2019, according to the Northwestern Office of Student Conduct. The alleged hazing occurred in late 2016.
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Hankins was a Weinberg sophomore and a guard on the women’s basketball team. Those close to her remembered her as a warm and selfless friend. “They say that character is what you’re doing and what you do when no one else is around. When nobody else is looking,” Chris Giffin, Hankins’ high school basketball coach, said at a 2017 memorial. “If you use those definitions to assess Jordan in her life and what she meant to so many people out here
Practicum on hold for students amid standstill
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daily senior staffer @ck_525
Report: Evanston rents rise 2.3%
Despite efforts to create more affordable housing, living costs grow By CASSIDY WANG
the daily northwestern @cassidyw_
Though Evanston has strived to create more affordable housing, rents have increased 2.3 percent over the past year, according to a January 2019 report conducted by Apartment List. Between 2004 and 2013,
Evanston lost 40 percent of its affordable housing units to high-priced developments, according to the report. Although City Council passed measures in 2018 to support affordable housing, rent prices continued to increase. The report also said that comparable cities nationwide had more affordable housing than Evanston, and rents have been rising across
the Chicago metropolitan area. “(The report) provides evidence of why we have an affordable housing problem in Evanston,” Ald. Eleanor Revelle (7th) said. “When people say, ‘I can’t find anything I can afford,’ this report documents that’s true. There’s bigger demand for housing in Evanston at all income levels than there is a supply.” Revelle, a member of the
By SOPHIA SCANLAN
the daily northwestern
Students searching for a latenight snack won’t be able to grab an inexpensive burrito at Taco Bell on Sherman Avenue anymore, after the branch closed last month. City of Evanston economic development manager Paul Zalmezak said Taco Bell notified the local branch’s property manager that the corporation wasn’t renewing its lease at 1743 Sherman Ave. at the end of December. The restaurant hadn’t received as much traffic as other locations and wanted a bigger space, Zalmezak said. “Typically, Taco Bell is in a free-standing, higher automobile
traffic area or in an urban center near transit — this is more foot traffic,” Zalmezak said. “I would argue they were in a good space, but these corporate chains have formulas and consolidate to focus on it.” However, Zalmezak pointed out that Evanston has other taco restaurants serving higher quality food, and he said that residents have lots of options for other types of food, too. Taco Bell’s old property is still vacant, but a sign on the door thanks the city and directs patrons to other locations in downtown Chicago and Skokie. Zalmezak said the property has a new tenant coming in February, but he’s not sure who it will be. When news spread that the
Serving the University and Evanston since 1881
restaurant had closed, Communication sophomore Lucia Boyd received several texts from concerned friends. “Everyone knows I’m obsessed with Taco Bell, and I got like 20 texts from people asking if I was okay,” Boyd said. “It was kind of funny in my mind that everyone was texting me, but I was really sad and shocked.” Instead of Taco Bell, Boyd said she might go to Chipotle more, but she’ll miss the Mountain Dew Baja Blast, a frozen drink that she usually ordered at the restaurant along with her tacos. Communication sophomore Rishi Mahesh, said he liked the » See TACOBELL, page 6
» See RENT, page 6
elizabethbyrne2020@u.northwestern.edu catherinekim2020@u.northwestern.edu
As the partial U.S. government shutdown continues, some School of Education and Social Policy students are facing difficulties completing their mandatory practicums. These field work internships, which are required for SESP students, usually include positions at government agencies, but such options are no longer viable this quarter. Three students have been affected by the shutdown and have the choice to either move their practicum to another quarter or scramble to find another site. Such obstacles were unexpected, said practicum director Nathan Frideres. “At first I was hoping that the shutdown would end, that it
wouldn’t impact our students,” he said. “There’s been so much uncertainty with the situation.” Since the shutdown, Frideres said he has been helping the affected students reach the “best course of action.” Some government agencies are without funding as President Donald Trump refuses to sign a spending bill without money for a border “wall,” despite an earlier agreement between the U.S. House and Senate before the new year. Negotiations between the House, now under control of the Democrats, and Trump have stalled as both sides refuse to budge from their stance on the wall. SESP junior Meg Pisarczyk, who was originally going to work at the Chicago office of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, decided to push her practicum to the spring. She chose to do so to avoid scrambling to find a new site, she said. While reapplying for new positions in the spring, she will be a part-time student on » See PRACTICUM, page 6
Propel Program kicks off
No más Evanston Taco Bell
Sherman Avenue store closes doors for larger space
city’s Affordable Housing Plan Steering Committee, said residents with more money displace low-income people because of the housing shortage, putting more pressure on the market as a whole. The city has lost affordable housing over the years, Revelle said, due to the conversion of rental housing
If you are in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800273-TALK (8255), or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741
Shutdown impacts student internships By CATHERINE KIM
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today, including myself, then you quickly realize there isn’t anybody who had a stronger character than Jordan Hankins.”
The Garage initiative inspires female entrepreneurs By MEGAN MUNCE
the daily northwestern @meganmuncie
After its inaugural quarter, The Garage’s new Propel Program aimed at empowering female entrepreneurs has inspired a generation of entrepreneurs. Katherine and Steve Elms (Kellogg ’92) made a donation to The Garage with the intent of promoting female inclusion within entrepreneurship. This donation gave rise to the Propel Program, headed by Hayes Ferguson, an entrepreneur-inresidence at The Garage. The program provides both financial assistance and mentorship to female students at NU
who are interested in entrepreneurship and innovation. “The key part of the program is, of course, for the students to receive stipends: money that they can use to pursue their projects,” Ferguson said. “But we also give support for them to be exposed to women leaders and entrepreneurs to show how, to show that this has been done before.” Eight NU students traveled to New York City in early October with the program to meet with representatives of various fields. These students, who were invited to join the program based on their prior involvement with The Garage, served as ambassadors for the program to help spread the word. Weinberg sophomore Emily Winterhalter said she felt
encouraged by the people she met while in New York. “I was just in awe, and, I guess, inspired to take risks, step forward, step up, take advantage of opportunities, create opportunities, kind of not sit back and wait for things to come to me,” she said. Winterhalter is currently working on a project called Track Trainer, a device that helps rehabilitate stroke survivors by having them complete simple tasks, such as flipping switches or turning knobs. McCormick sophomore Aishwarya Jois, who also went on the New York trip, said the experience exposed her to non-traditional examples of » See PROPEL, page 6
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