T H E I N D E P E N D E N T D A I LY AT D U K E U N I V E R S I T Y
The Chronicle
THURSDAY, JANUARY 17, 2013
ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTH YEAR, ISSUE 80
WWW.DUKECHRONICLE.COM
Duke plans study abroad in Cuba by Nadia Hajji THE CHRONICLE
Administrators are in the early stages of making Cuba an accessible study abroad locale. In light of loosened government travel restrictions implemented in 2011, the Global Education Office for Undergraduates has initiated an exploratory group to consider a study abroad program in Cuba, said Margaret Riley, director of the GEO and assistant vice provost for undergraduate global education. The United States has imposed travel restrictions to Cuba since 1960. Currently, independent travel to Cuba by Americans remains prohibited, but some students and individuals taking part in educational and humanitarian tours are allowed to visit the country. “[A Cuba study abroad program would] enhance our portfolio and geographic distribution of our programs,” Riley wrote in an email Tuesday. The program administrators are discussing what would be an expansion of an existing study abroad program in Cuba through Brown University. The program would offer students the opportunity to
Obama unveils new gun policies by Tiffany Lieu THE CHRONICLE
The battle to reform gun control laws will soon emerge in Congress. In response to the recent mass shootings that have ravaged the nation, President Barack Obama announced a proposal Wednesday to reform gun control laws. The proposal to Congress included both action items for legislators as well as executive actions that the president plans to enact unilaterally. Local school administrators have also taken steps to increase security, so far resisting calls to arm teachers as a defense against violent attacks. Twenty children were killed in the Newtown, Conn. school
shooting in December, and 12 were killed and 58 injured in the July shooting in Aurora, Colo. The following national outcry, however, may still not provide enough momentum to ensure policy reforms, Philip Cook, senior associate dean for faculty and research at the Sanford School of Public Policy, wrote in an email Monday. “Public opinion is in support of these measures, but that is unlikely to be enough to overcome the [National Rifle Association] influence,” Cook said. Among the proposed reforms is a requirement for criminal background checks for all gun purchases, a restriction SEE GUNS ON PAGE 4 PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY CHRIS DALL
SEE CUBA ON PAGE 3
President Obama presented a series of gun control measures Wednesday. NRA President David Keene has advocated arming teachers for school safety.
Uni picks student Lemur Center to open new office in Madagascar health director by Danielle Muoio THE CHRONICLE
The Duke Lemur Center recently acquired office space in Sambava, Madagascar, to house their latest conservation project. Since it began in January 2012, the center’s SAVA Conservation Initiative has not had a physical location to consolidate its efforts. SAVA—named for the region Sambava, Antalaha, Vohemar and Andapa in northeastern Madagascar—uses a multifaceted approach to promote environmental progress in areas suffering from rapid deforestation. The Duke Lemur Center rented a space—expected to open in about a month—to house researchers and serve as an office space in the region. SEE LEMURS ON PAGE 4
SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE
The Duke Lemur Center will soon open offices and living space in this building in Sambava, Madagascar to house the SAVA Conservation Initiative.
Dr. John Vaughn has been appointed as the new director of student health of Duke University. Vaughn will be bringing experiJohn Vaughn ence gained from working Ohio State University’s Student Health Services and improving its health promotion activities and technologies, according to a Duke statement. Apart from being involved in Ohio State’s Student Health and Services and Department of Family Medicine since 2007,
ONTHERECORD
Exhibit celebrates 50 years of black students, Recess page 4
“One part of SLG life has always made me deeply uncomfortable—the “selective” part......” —Elena Botella in ‘The sticky ‘S’ in SLGs.’ See column page 8
Vaughn is the chair-elect of the clinical medical section of the American College Health Association and chair of the social networking subcommittee of the Council of Scientific Editors. Vaughn is interested in the use of programs that use social media and technology to improve health care delivery within the student community and in the medical humanities. Vaughn earned his degree in English literature at OSU in 1993, where he later graduated from medical school in 1997. He is a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians. —from Staff Reports
Blue Devils trample Virginia Tech, Page 5