March 31, 2014

Sports

University

Duke sweeps unc for first time since ’94

duke holds annual hackathon

Page 7

Page 3

The Chronicle 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

xxxxxday, monDAY, march mmmm 31,xx, 2014 2013

Acceptance a windfall for Class of 2018

www.dukechronicle.com

ONE ONEHUNDRED HUNDREDAND ANDEIGHTH ninth YEAR, YEAR, Issue Issue xxx 104

McCrory wins fourth NCAA title

Duke diver becomes first 4-time NCAA platform champion

by Kali Shulklapper The chronicle

Last Thursday, Khalouk Shahbander was at a gas station in Scottsdale, Ariz. filling up his car when his watch beeped, signaling it was 4 p.m.

He got out his phone, fumbled to type in his password and nervously watched the screen as the login proceeded to fail. On the second attempt, it opened straight to the letter.

“I freaked out, had a mini-heart attack, read the letter and celebrated,” he wrote in a Facebook message to The Chronicle. “I spilled gas everywhere as I got ready to speed home.”

Shahbander revved the engine for a whole minute before he realized the car was still in park. He finally put it in drive, hit 70 mph, and ran several stop signs on his way home to tell his parents that he got into Duke.

During his junior year, Shahbander had emailed 57 Duke professors with the hopes of attaining an internship.

Despite the 57 rejection emails he received, the professors’ responses ultimately led him to apply to the University.

“Every single professor was so genuine, easy to approach and interested in helping me carve my future path in research,” he said.

Following his recent acceptance to Duke, Shahbander will join 2,640 students who were accepted through regular admission to the Class of 2018, marking a record low acceptance rate of 9 percent. As Duke and its peer institutions continue to accept smaller and smaller pools, admitted students are reveling in the joy of nabbing one of the University’s coveted spots.

Meghana Rao, another recently admitted student from Florence, S.C., applied to Duke thinking she would not get in.

See admissions, page 12

by Ali Wells The Chronicle

special to the Chronicle

Senior Nick McCrory won the NCAA championship in the 10-meter platform by a mere 2.45 points, becoming the first diver in NCAA history to win the event four times.

Nick McCrory’s laundry list of diving accolades could probably stretch the 10-meter distance from the platform to the surface of the diving well.

In an illustrious career that includes an Olympic bronze medal and 11 AllAmerican selections, McCrory, a senior, learned to conquer competitions big and small. Saturday the Olympic bronze medalist found himself in unchartered territory: forced to come from behind in pursuit of his fourth NCAA platform title.

Needing 92.10 points on his final dive to surpass sophomore Rafael Quintero of Arizona, McCrory executed his most difficult dive to near-perfection.

When he resurfaced after his back twoand-a-half somersault with two-and-ahalf twists, McCrory saw only 9s and a 10s at the judges’ table.

His total: 94.50.

Winning the national championship by a mere 2.45 points, McCrory became the first four-time national champion See mccrory, page 9

DSG Senate wrestles with participation

by Hayley Trainer The Chronicle

More than half of the Duke Student Government Senate this year was appointed by the DSG Executive Board, rather than being elected by the student body.

The senate consists of 60 representatives who advocate for students in the larger context of the University, plus seven elected vice president positions. Each year, additional senators are selected by the DSG Executive Board to fill at-large

D ance with the Pen

Located on 15-501 15 mins from Duke!

(919) 282-4401

Founded by Helena Venakides, Trinity ‘01

positions. The appointed senators have the same powers and responsibilities as elected senators, said Executive Vice President Nikolai Doytchinov, and this year, 37 out of 60 were appointed. He explained that this disparity may have been caused by too few upperclassmen running for the position and students deciding to study abroad.

“The student body should be a little disappointed that more upperclassmen haven’t run for office, and students who would like to get involved should strongly

Now Hiring Tutors!

- K-12 - For all subject areas

www.dancewiththepen.com

consider running,” Doytchinov said.

Student-elected senators are preferred by the executive board but student interest is the most important factor in determining a student’s place in the senate, said newlyelected Executive Vice President Abhi Sanka, a sophomore.

“We ideally would love to have elected senators instead of appointed senators, but if we have people who are eager and See DSG, page 4

www.dukechronicle.com

2 | monDAY, mArCh 31, 2014

What’s happening at Duke

The Chronicle

Darbi GriFFiTh/ The chronicle

The Dance Program held its annual Spring concert, ChoreoLab, which featured works by faculty and students.

Khloe KiM/the chronicle

The Duke NPHC hosted their annual Black Student Alliance Invitational Step Show at Page Auditorium Friday.

iZZi clarK/ The chronicle

DukeAFRICA’s annual cultural showcase, Jabulani, included performances from Defmo, Nakisai and other student groups.

Meet AwArd-winning nAture PhotogrAPher FeAtured in docuMentAry Chasing iCe

James Balog 2014 Duke LeAF™ AwArD recipient griFFith theAter bryAn center, Duke cAmpus A reception and open house will follow the event in the new Duke environment hall (circuit Drive)

photo by Jeff Orlowski/Extreme Ice Survey

2 PM sat., aPril 12

Photo by Mary Cybulski

Free and oPen to the PubliC, but tiCkets to the leaF CereMony are required.

tickets.duke.edu • 919.684.4444

niCholas.duke.edu/leaF

yuyi li/the chronicle

DESTA, Duke Ethiopian/Eritrean Student Transnational Association, performed at Jabulani Saturday evening.

The Chronicle

www.dukechronicle.com

monDAY, mArCh 31, 2014 | 3

French Science Center Hall Duke hackers team with to be named after Bonk Kenan to ‘code for good’

by Imani Moise The ChroniCle

chronicle File phoTo

One of the classrooms in the French Family Science Center will be remaned in honor of the late Professor Bonk.

by Iris Kim

The ChroniCle

French Family Science Center room 2231 will be named James S. Bonk lecture hall in memory of Duke chemistry professor James Bonk.

Bonk taught chemistry at Duke for more than 50 years, starting in 1959, and was known for teaching introductory chemistry classes. Bonk died in March 2013 of prostrate cancer at the age of 82. The Board of Trustees approved the naming on March 1 and a naming ceremony is anticipated in early october, said vice president and University secretary richard riddell. “[Bonk] loved Duke. Basically Duke was his whole life after he came here,” Professor of Chemistry Steven Baldwin

said. “he did a spectacular job teaching, and lots and lots of students remembered him. it was almost a rite of passage for a lot of kids.”

Baldwin said Bonk touched the lives of many people, including more than 20,000 students that he taught, and one of his foundational courses fondly came to be known as ‘Bonkistry.’

“Faculty and alumni alike have felt for some time that Bonk’s unparalleled contributions to the quality of our undergraduate program and his impact on so many students deserved a tribute of this magnitude,” wrote Stephen Craig, professor and department chair of chemistry. “Bonk set the standard for

Student hackers from across the country gathered in Gross hall this weekend to explore the intersection between technology and social good. hackDuke 2014: Code for Good was Duke’s second 24-hour hackathon. The conference, which was a collaboration between the hackDuke team and the Kenan institute for ethics, brought student programmers together with technology and non-profit mentors from companies and organizations including Google, eSPn, Urban Ministries of Durham and The emily K Center. More than 300 student participants came to the hackathon, completing 48 projects together.

“We wanted to foster relationship

building between the students and the mentors. one of the big things we did this year was eliminate prizes,” said hackDuke founder Dennis li, a senior.

All prizes came in the form of donations to charities, as opposed to the $5,000 prize that was given to the winner of the inaugural hackDuke last semester. Teams were awarded based on their project’s applicability in three different categories—health and wellness, education and inequality.

“The fact that there’s no prizes means that everyone is actually interested in the outcomes of their projects and helping people,” li noted. only half of the participants were Duke students this semester, li added.

See HacK dUKE, page 4

anThony alVernaZ/ The chronicle

See BonK HaLL, page 4

Student coders and hackers came together Saturday for a 24-hour hackathon.

Traveling?

Understand your health risks.

Please visit the Travel Clinic at the Student Health Center as early as possible for a FREE consultation before your trip.

Vaccines are available for a charge.

Call 681-9355 for an appointment.

4 | monDAY, mArCh 31, 2014

dsG

from page 1

willing to work on projects and policy ideas then we’ll take them through the at-large process,” Sanka said.

The problem, Sanka noted, is that the senator position does not have enough responsibility and autonomy. Sanka explained that students would be more likely to run for a senate position if they had more resources to affect change on campus and pursue projects. As next year’s executive vice president, Sanka plans to strengthen the senator position and ensure that senators are aware of the resources available to them.

“Part of this is simply educating them of the resources we already provide, part of it is empowering them with greater sense of responsibility and ownership over their projects by giving senators greater access to administrators,” Sanka said.

Freshman Betty Chen, an at-large senator, defended the at-large process. She said the application and interview process for selection is rigorous, adding that the executive board ensures that students selected to the senate are invested in the position.

DSG President and senior Stefani Jones noted that senators typically drop out due to other time-consuming activities and study abroad, but this year is atypical with the large number of students who withdrew from their positions mid-semester.

Sophomore Craig Vincent said he decided to withdraw from his senate position in February because he had a class

The Chronicle

www.dukechronicle.com

conflict with the senate meetings. he felt his time would be best spent advocating rather than legislating for the changes he wanted to see on campus. “last Fall outside of the Senate, i started a project to try to change the way UCAe [University Center Activities and events] disburses money for student groups,” Vincent said. “i decided that i wanted to focus the limited time i had in advocating for those changes and other special projects.”

According to the DSG Consitution, at least 50 percent of the senate, referred to as “quorum,” must be present at a senate meeting in order for legislation to be passed.

Doytchinov noted that senator absences can halt DSG initiatives and budgeting, which in effect can limit the senate’s ability to represent the student body. “if we were to fail to make quorum, this would be a huge problem, as time-sensitive legislation—including budgeting—would grind to a halt,” Doytchinov said. “But the problem is broader. When senators skip, DSG loses its input, and constituents lose representation.”

Doytchinov said five to 10 senators miss each meeting, but more senators than usual have been missing the senate meetings this semester.

“This [absenteeism] may be in part because of senators’ greek life obligations and in part because i’ve not been as proactive with enforcement,” Doytchinov said.

yuyi li/ The chronicle

This year, 37 of the 60 DSG senators were appointed as opposed to being elected by the student body.

HaCK dUKE

from page 3

“Some were from Penn, some were from MiT, and we had some California drop-outs, of course,” he said.

Another new addition to the conference were mandatory brainstorming sessions—a difference from the typical model of 24 hours of straight hacking.

“Usually with hackathons, there’s an opening ceremony and then people just start hacking until closing ceremony,” li said. “if you’re a technical person, you don’t have a lot of contact with these kinds of social issues, so we wanted to postpone hacking until after they’ve had these experiences.”

Fifteen non-profit organizations individually presented their organizations and missions to the student hackers. “[The non-profit experts] presented exactly what their missions and goals were and how technology can make their operations more efficient, analyze more data and help make them better,” said junior Ashley Qian, another coordinator of the event.

Throughout the conference, hackers had access to caffeine stations featuring coffee, Coca-Cola, red Bull and a DJ, as well as a hardware station stocked with $3,000 worth of donated hardware items programmers could use for their hacks, said hackDuke staffer logan Su, a junior.

Although this year’s hackDuke was smaller than the last semester’s—which had more than 500 participants—it still made for an enjoyable experience, said Chinmay Patwardhan, a junior who has participated in both hackathons. “it was an awesome idea to connect non-profits with passionate developers to implement solutions,” he said. “Both the students and the non-profits definitely benefited from that setup.”

Senior nihir Patel noted that collaborating on this event with hackDuke was a experiment for Team Kenan. “it hasn’t really been done on a college campus before, and we were really happy to see a heightened sense of collaboration and purpose amongst hackers as compared with our last hackathon,” he said. “Kenan and hack Duke compliment each other well in terms of goals and knowledge base.

We’ll be cooking something exciting up for this fall”

BonK HaLL

from page 3

introductory chemistry courses.”

Craig added that several introductory chemistry courses, including Chemistry 101, 110, 201 and 202, are taught in that lecture hall.

Baldwin described the room to be named Bonk hall as “beautiful” and said it has a capacity of 165 people, the only room in FFSC with a capacity more than 25. he said Bonk tended to teach larger classes, including freshman chemistry classes of approximately 300 students and Chemistry and Society, a course Bonk developed intended for 100-200 students. “if you’re going to name a room after him, it seems reasonable that the room would reflect the kind of teaching that he did,” Baldwin said.

Craig emphasized how studentcentered Bonk’s approach to teaching was. “he was a master lecturer that could engage a room of hundreds of students, while also being one of the best one-oneone advisers our department has ever had,” he wrote.

Baldwin said Bonk was very studentoriented and a very caring man. he said Bonk was also very involved in the tennis program at Duke, often providing housing for some of the tennis players on scholarship. he was also responsible for the earlier versions of the athletic tutoring programs that exist currently.

Bonk left a gift of two million dollars supporting the chemistry department and one million dollars to support Duke’s tennis program in a bequest last year.

“Befitting of Jim’s legacy, his gift will ultimately touch hundreds of Duke students each year and many others across the country and the world,” Craig wrote.

The funds will provide direct support for teaching innovation in addition to contributing towards training graduate students in their teaching careers.

@dukechronicle

Looking for a summer job or extra spending money during summer school?

The Offic e o f Un d e rgra d u a te Ad m is s io n s is hirin g tw o fu lltim e pa id s u m m e r in te rn s . The po s itio n is 40 ho u rs /w e e k M -F fro m M a y 12 – Au gu s t22. Prim a ry re s po n s ib ilitie s in c lu d e le a d in g to u rs o f W e s tC a m pu s , gre e tin g vis ito rs , a n d he lpin g w ith va rio u s a d m is s io n s e ve n ts thro u gho u t the s u m m e r.

C u rre n ts tu d e n ts o r re c e n tgra d u a te s a re b o th e n c o u ra ge d to a pply!

W e ’re a ls o hirin g pa rt-tim e pa id s u m m e r to u r gu id e s . G u id e s ha ve fle xib le s c he d u le s , s o this is a gre a to ppo rtu n ity to e a rn a little e xtra m o n e y if yo u ’re o n c a m pu s w ith c la s s e s o r re s e a rc h. Be in g a c tive o n c a m pu s , e n thu s ia s tic a b o u t Du ke , a n d a gre a t pu b lic s pe a ke r a re a ll he lpfu l.

In te re s te d in d ivid u a ls s ho u ld c o n ta c tW ill Nive r, Ad m is s io n s Offic e r, a t919 684-0665 o r W ill.Nive r@ d u ke .e d u

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

“

calling it like we see it Football players at Northwestern University won a major victory last week when a regional director of the National Labor Relations Board determined that the players were employees of the university. The ruling enables the players to form a union and could set an important precedent for other private universities, including Duke. As we wrote last month, student-athletes deserve fair representation in the NCAA, and the NLBR’s ruling promises to give athletes more control over the multibilliondollar industry they work to sustain.

Peter Ohr, the NLRB director who issued the ruling, argued in his decision that the traditional student-athlete model is no longer consistent with the character and function of big-time college athletics. We agree. Not only do student-athletes prop up a commercial edifice that draws in billions of dollars in television contracts alone, but these players also devote more time to their sport (sometimes upwards of 50 hours a week) than many salaried employees commit to their work.

For so-called “revenue” sports, like football and basketball, student-athletes often find it difficult to balance a demanding practice schedule with intensive study. As a result, not every revenue sport

onlinecomment

athlete receives the maximal benefit from his or her college education. Student-athletes may attend classes, but in some cases the “athlete” seems to be crowding out the “student.”

For this reason, calling student-athletes “employees” does not represent a radically new

Editorial way of understanding college sports. It simply exposes college athletics for what it is: a lucrative industry that relies on the unpaid labor of nearprofessional athletes. Insisting that college athletes are employees not only gives the lie to the student-athlete model, but it also forces us to reckon with the possibility that the NCAA’s treatment of student-athletes is exploitative. In calling student-athletes employees, Ohr, like any good officiator, is simply calling it as he sees it.

Given that many student-athletes are functionally employees, why do the NCAA and universities with big-time athletics programs remain wedded to the student-athlete model?

The likely answer is that college sports programs generate huge sums of money, and only by

B edit pages

Thank you for voicing this as a guy yourself. I share the same opinion but as a girl it’s discounted as my being prudish.

—“Quinn Steven” commenting on the article “Entitled Men and Guilty Women”

Letters PoLicy The Chronicle welcomes submissions in the form of letters to the editor or guest columns. Submissions must include the author’s name, signature, department or class, and for purposes of identification, phone number and local address.

Letters should not exceed 325 words; contact the editorial department for information regarding guest columns.

The Chronicle will not publish anonymous or form letters or letters that are promotional in nature. The Chronicle reserves the right to edit letters and guest columns for length, clarity and style and the right to withhold letters based on the discretion of the editorial page editor.

Est. 1905

The Chronicle chronicle

www.dukechronicle.com

commentary

10 | monDAY, march mArch 31, 2014

”

Direct submissions to: E-mail: chronicleletters@duke.edu Editorial Page Department The Chronicle Box 90858, Durham, NC 27708 Phone: (919) 684-2663 Fax: (919) 684-4696

The chronicle

Inc. 1993

Danielle Muoio, Editor Sophia DuranD, Managing Editor raiSa chowDhury, News Editor Daniel carp, Sports Editor elySia Su, Photography Editor Scott briggS, Editorial Page Editor caSey williaMS, Editorial Board Chair jiM poSen, Director of Online Development kelly Scurry, Managing Editor for Online chriSSy beck, General Manager eMMa baccellieri, University Editor carleigh StiehM, University Editor elizabeth DjiniS, Local & National Editor georgia parke, Local & National Editor anthony hagouel, Health & Science Editor tony Shan, Health & Science Editor julia May, News Photography Editor eric lin, Sports Photography Editor kelSey hopkinS, Design Editor rita lo, Design Editor lauren feilich, Recess Editor jaMie keSSler, Recess Managing Editor eliza bray, Recess Photography Editor thanh-ha nguyen, Online Photo Editor MouSa alShanteer, Editorial Page Managing Editor Matt pun, Sports Managing Editor aShley Mooney, Towerview Editor caitlin MoyleS, Towerview Editor jennie Xu, Towerview Photography Editor Dillon patel, Towerview Creative Director kriStie kiM, Social Media Editor julian Spector, Special Projects Editor lauren carroll, Senior Editor Derek Saffe, Multimedia Editor anDrew luo, News Blog Editor anna koelSch, Special Projects Editor for Online glenn rivkeeS, Director of Online Operations yeShwanth kanDiMalla, Recruitment Chair julia May, Recruitment Chair Mary weaver, Operations Manager rebecca DickenSon, Advertising Director Megan Mcginity, Digital Sales Manager barbara Starbuck, Creative Director the chronicle is published by the Duke Student publishing company, inc., a non-profit corporation independent of Duke university. the opinions expressed in this newspaper are not necessarily those of Duke university, its students, faculty, staff, administration or trustees. unsigned editorials represent the majority view of the editorial board. columns, letters and cartoons represent the views of the authors. to reach the editorial office at 301 flowers building, call 684-2663 or fax 684-4696. to reach the business office at 2022 campus Drive call 684-3811. to reach the advertising office at 2022 campus Drive call 684-3811 @ 2014 Duke Student publishing company

clinging to the student-athlete designation can the NCAA justify not letting the players in on the action. The NLBR ruling is likely the first step towards monetary compensation for studentathletes. Given that other student employees— like undergraduate teaching assistants and sports managers—are paid for their labor, it only seems fair that student-athletes should receive more than a scholarship for their work.

We support players’ unions but recognize that compensating student-athletes threatens to undermine aspects of the current college sports model. The NLRB’s ruling may invite athletes of revenue sports at other private schools to petition for employee benefits, like salaries. If universities were to cave to those demands, students who participate in non-revenue sports could see cuts to their programs. Universities might not be able to award as many athletic scholarships, and revenue sports might have to institute competitive pay schemes to attract high-quality players.

Despite these potential drawbacks, designating certain student-athletes as “employees” better reflects these students’ contributions to their school and to the NCAA. It promotes fairness and protects the rights of student-athletes.

talk freshman to me

lue Devil Nation, March is coming to a close, and because Jabari “I don’t owe this school a championship” Parker lost us an NCAA title, we must look elsewhere for our dose of madness.

Since we can only use the pain of pledges for our amusement for so long, we have to look to even younger, more impressionable youths for our entertainment. I am, of course, referring to

Owen’s sexcapades while at Duke, our school has been intertwined with the idea of sex instruction. And if you already feel like you have your physical bearings set, then you are already set to join the prevalent “hook-up culture” that our school is proud of. Unlike some schools where students are under pressure to form a stable long lasting relationship, Duke prioritizes a sort of Catcher in the Rye mentality of bodies

Monday Monday right wing the Class of 2018.

Flooding the interweb with Facebook statuses about their acceptance to Duke, the perspectives have congregated to the Class of 2018 page to connect with their possible classmates. It is important to note that I say “possible” because some students are on the fence as to whether or not Duke is the right choice for them. It is here where we can keep ourselves busy until our amazing LDOC line-up. It is our duty to prepare the incoming class for what lies ahead of them, and although the list of reasons to be excited about Duke is long, I’ve tried my best to synthesize the top issues that the young impressionables should know about: First, our love of other cultures. As we learned from Asia Prime, our fraternities have a great appreciation of East Asian culture. Whether wearing traditional grab or mimicking the accent, one of our fraternities has allowed the Duke public a glimmer into the types of racially themed parties that many of our Greek groups love to indulge in.

This isn’t to say that the only fun happens in greek life. Our women’s lacrosse team has had a past in over-indulging in Black History Month by finding their finest shoe polish and making themselves darker than Wesley Snipes in a black hole. And since we’re Duke students, you know that these parties all have creative names like Indian Bros and Nava-hoes, Eskimos and Ice-hoes or black people and sluts. We also know that we like to flex our ethnic muscles with the Black Student Alliance Invitational. Although I’m normally against BSAI because it gives all the black kids their own Blue Devil Days that is three times longer, I see it as a great time to show off the fact there is black culture on campus for a week before it recedes back to Central Campus.

Also, we prioritize sexual health at Duke.

Whether in the form of instructional videos of Duke students having sex (thanks, Belle Knox) or a PowerPoint presentation charting Karen

just colliding for a brief moment before parting indefinitely. Except in this case, the field of rye is Shooters.

And if you’re a fan of colliding bodies, then you’ll love our sports scene. We’re really good at sports. We have an awesome football team.

We call ourselves the Wade Wackos, and we all love supporting the team. For more questions regarding sports, feel free to contact Jabari Parker, the president of Duke Mormons. I hear he hangs out with the athletes sometimes.

Oh, and don’t forget to mention the mentality that comes from going to Duke. Sure, there are the consistent quotes that float around like, “They’re probably [the] number one [Douchiest College in America]…but we’d rather not rank Duke number one at anything” or “We’re the most hated school because we’re so perfect and aware of it.” But people rarely touch on the isolationism that Duke breeds. Perfectly made for introspection, Duke creates this sort of outof-placeness that makes you feel like you’re surrounded by people with no one to talk to.

Luckily, the underlying need to reach a sort of “effortless perfection” makes it so you don’t have to face your problems. You actually don’t acknowledge them because you know that no one else has these problems, so you learn the first rule of the real world: Nut up or shut up.

Remember, it is essential that we share our knowledge with the freshmen, because it is our duty to tell them what they are in for. Imagine all the precious surprises you made while at Duke. Wouldn’t it have been great to find out ahead of time what was on the horizon so that you could really plant your feet and be ready to enjoy four of the best years of your life? Am I Right, or am I right?

Right Wing has a long list of things to turn down for, such as taxes, bedtime and elections. Ball is in your court, Little Jonathan.

The Chronicle chronicle

www.dukechronicle.com

commentary

monDAY, march mArch 31, 2014 | 11

selina is not free

O

n Thursday, March 27, a 17-year-old student from Southeast Raleigh High School named Selina Garcia was released from prison after being held there for 21 days—long after a judge ordered her release— because the state foster care system couldn’t find a place for her. Why was a 17-year-old girl being held in an adult prison for three weeks in the first place? She got into a fight on a school bus. What was so special about this fight that landed Selina in prison? Well, nothing. There were absolutely no reported injuries or damage. The official charges Selina pleaded guilty to were “disorderly conduct and communicating threats.”

At first, Selina received a five day suspension, which is considered a standard administrative

of Social Services scholarship money for attending community or technical college once she graduated.

Wake County’s response to a girl who was abused when she was younger and was cut off from foster care counseling was not to provide in-school counseling or help—it was instead to hire a security officer who would place a young girl in prison with adult criminal offenders.

This shouldn’t come as a surprise, especially to all black and brown youth who are disproportionately criminalized by school police officers daily. In January of this year, a federal civil rights complaint against Wake County Schools was filed in North Carolina claiming “school police have ‘violently tackled’ students, pepper-sprayed teens

Adrienne Harreveld as if response to misconduct of this nature. After this suspension, the School Resource Officer determined that a five-day suspension was not enough punishment, and even though she posed absolutely no threat to the safety of any student at the school, Selina was arrested.

By making the choice to criminalize Selina’s actions, this officer stripped a 17-year-old girl of resources, a somewhat stable environment and agency. Rather than trying to target the root causes of why a 17-year-old Latina in foster care might have difficulty managing her anger, this officer made the choice to even further imprison her in the systems that disproportionately discriminate against her and strip her of opportunities and resources.

In a letter Selina wrote from prison to NC HEAT, a youth advocacy and organizing group, she stated: “In here I am no longer Selina Marie Garcia.

I am #34! Not a human being but a caged animal with the number.” Being in foster care and adult prison presents its own compounding challenges. She is both an adult and a minor. By North Carolina’s legal system, she is an adult, automatically put into the adult legal system if she is charged with any sort of crime. But according to the Department of Social Services, she is still a minor and can only be released into the custody of the county. She was caught in, among, under, between the systems that simultaneously legally define her as a human, yet dehumanize her as a poor, black, Latina youth. Because she was arrested, there was no one from North Carolina Social Services who had to come get her. So she sat there, waiting in criminal custody indefinitely, falling desperately behind in school, at risk of losing Department

and handcuffed, interrogated and arrested students on baseless accusations without informing them of their rights or calling parents.” Jahbriel Morris, a black student at Enloe High School, was not arrested, but was bruised and scraped in multiple areas over his body when he was grabbed by a police officer and shoved to the ground.

Most of the abusive behavior that was recounted involved black students. The federal complaint further asserts “the unregulated use of law enforcement officers to address school discipline matters has resulted in thousands of Wake County Public School System students, predominantly African-American students and students with disabilities, being deprived of their educational rights and sent to juvenile or criminal court as a result of minor misbehavior that occurs at school.”

Although community members and members of NC HEAT gathered on Thursday to successfully demand the release of Selina Garcia from prison, Selina is not free. She will not be free until Wake County, the state of North Carolina and the country revolutionize the public school system and create an environment where students’ public safety is protected and best interests are promoted.

She will be free when we put our resources into adequately funding all public schools and provide social services to abused, at-risk youth.

She will be free when she can walk onto her campus and feel like her existence and identity are validated.

Interesting in reading more Opinion?

Check out the Backpages blog at http://www.dukechronicle.com/blogs/backpageblogs/posts

Bus talk

T

he first time I went to West as a Duke student.

The first time I met her.

The first time I met him.

The first time I had an interview.

The first time I sat feet away from a Duke basketball legend.

Bus culture is Duke culture, and for my three years here, Duke buses set the scene for many of my memories Duke buses have seen me at my best, as I primped and prepped for interviews, and at my worst, as I mourned the death of a loved one. They have seen me succeed as a Duke student and struggle as a Duke student.

Duke buses have seen me make lasting relationships, and they have also seen me lose them.

Duke buses have traveled with me as I did my own traveling, to discover who “me” is for myself and for others. But, along the way, I’ve done my own observing on Duke buses.

I’ve seen students transform a Duke bus into a mobile Shooters.

I’ve seen countless rides in silence. (Is it really hard to say thank you?)

edit pages

Adrienne Harreveld is a Trinity senior. Her column runs every other Monday. Send Adrienne a message on Twitter @AdrienneLiege.

Leena El-Sadek (dis)eased (re)presentation

I’ve seen students use words to destroy others.

I’ve seen Duke students transformed into different beings the moment they step foot on the bus as if we bear crowns of entitlement.

The only difference between a Duke bus and a DATA bus is the Duke logo.

I’ve seen a lot of this, so why was I so affected last week when the role of entitlement was reversed?

Last week, I encountered an incident on a Duke bus that has remained on my mind every day since. Partly because I don’t know what will happen. Partly because I can’t help but blame myself for whatever will happen. I was coming back from class on East when a Duke bus driver stopped the bus and yelled, “I assume you know English, I said get out of the doorway” to a group of young, hijabi girls. He made an assumption about the group’s physical appearance, albeit a false one, and unfortunately, a very common one. I’m not sure what enraged me so much, but I immediately put on my Duke shades and stepped into a role marked by inequality rants that Duke has wired into me.

I saw evil, and I had to fix it.

I talked to the driver: The girls needed justice. And justice is what I got. Justice is what I thought I got. At least, I think that’s what I wanted when I stormed to the front of that bus. But if I did right, why do I feel guilty walking onto every Duke bus?

I was told that the situation was “taken care of” and knowing the power that Mama Duke holds, I can’t help but wonder what this means.

Unfortunately, Duke transportation would not disclose any information because of “employee confidentiality,” although I am the student who initiated the report. This lack of transparency is evident in many of Duke’s policies, and although I respect the University’s laws to protect employees, I feel obliged to know if I caused permanent harm to an individual whose life story I barely know.

I have witnessed the damaging effects of words, of both drivers and students. Last week, I was enraged by that driver’s words to a vulnerable group of guests. What the bus-driver said to those girls was offensive and humiliating, so my position on the harm of his words remains the same.

But I was only a traveler on his bus. I have no idea how other travelers on other trips treated him on that day. Bad days happen. Mistakes happen.

Who am I—who is Duke—to say students’ mistakes are less damaging?

Unfortunately, the reality remains that you can fire or severely financially injure an employee for such remarks, but you cannot fire or as severely reprimand a student for the same remarks. It’s in this double standard that I’m facing an internal struggle.

I am working my best to make amends for the way I reacted to that situation, and I hope the administration will be responsive and support reconciliatory rather than punitive action. Duke has a way to go before having these talks, so I share this with you in hopes that you will learn from my wrongs.

Respect is a two-way relationship, and it takes bus talks like this to remind us we are ALL Duke.

Leena El-Sadek is a Trinity junior. Her column runs every other Monday.

www.dukechronicle.com

12 | monDAY, march 31, 2014

admissions

from page 1

“It was almost painful to write the supplement because I fell in love with the school so much, and the thought that I could get rejected was absolutely heartbreaking,” she wrote in a Facebook message. “But when I saw the magical ‘Congratulations’ light up my screen, I sat back, stunned. It’s crazy how one letter can suddenly validate all the work I’ve done these past four years of high school. I’ve never been so happy.”

This year’s regular decision admission rate dropped by almost 1 percent

from the Class of 2017, which accepted 2,897 students, a rate of 9.9 percent. The overall acceptance rate for the incoming class is 10.8 percent, as 47 percent of a smaller pool of applicants were admitted in December through the early decision process.

“It feels good because it means we’re able to find and choose the most interesting and talented and thoughtful and diverse students for Duke,” Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Christoph Guttentag told The Chronicle last week. “At the same time, the idea of turning away 91 percent of applicants feels a little

odd.”

Despite Duke’s record-low admit rate, the percentages at some other top institutions and Ivy League schools were already below 10 percent and are getting even lower. Columbia, Harvard and Yale universities had acceptance rates this year of 6.94 percent, 5.9 percent and 6.26 percent, respectively. Stanford University accepted 5.07 percent, the lowest of all top-10 universities that have already reported this year’s acceptance rates.

Shivaan Tandon, a recently admitted student from India, said that among the

The Chronicle several top schools he applied to, Duke was his dream school.

“I didn’t check my Duke decision for a day,” he wrote in an email. “I got rejected by two Ivies that day and even Tufts and Carnegie Mellon. I totally gave up on Duke.”

He added that after getting in he could not control his excitement and changed all his profile pictures to the Duke logo on social media.

Recent admit Amelia Cheatham, of Orlando, Fla., said the spirit and sense of community at Duke are unparalleled at other institutions.

“I can’t wait to get to know such an interesting mix of people and engage in all the campus camaraderie,” she said in a Facebook message.

Admitted students have been invited to attend Blue Devil Days, which will be held April 6-7, April 17-18 and April 2122.

“Getting accepted to Duke was both incredible and surreal,” said recent admit Sarah Bales from Los Angeles over Facebook. “I cannot wait to attend Blue Devil Days and have the privilege of meeting the dedicated and compelling people who make up the Duke community.”

Make qduke.com your homepage

Graphic by elysia su/The chronicle

ASK US YOUR QUESTIONS. GIVE US YOUR OPINIONS.

Connect with Duke University Stores!

Give us your feedback on any of our operations via our online question/comment page, DevilSpeak.

Just visit www.dukestores.duke.edu and click on the DevilSpeak link.

Duke University Stores.

We are the Stores that Work for You! OPERATION: Stores Administration PUBLICATION: Chronicle