Vol. 79 No. 28

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THE SIGNAL THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY SERVING THE STUDENTS SINCE 1933

VOLUME 79 | ISSUE 28

WWW.GSUSIGNAL.COM

TUESDAY, APRIL 10, 2012

Georgia State accepts Sun Belt invitation BRIAN CROWE Staff Writer

❚ SpORtS

Georgia State formally accepted an invitation to join the Sun Belt Conference yesterday during a press conference at the Georgia Dome. The university’s athletic programs will begin conference play in the Sun Belt during the 2013-2014 academic school year, although they will not be eligible for bowl games or conference titles during their first year as transition members. A founding member of the Sun Belt, Georgia State’s return was wholly embraced by both Sun Belt commissioner Karl Benson and Dr. Jack Hawkins Jr., the Troy University chancellor and Sun Belt president. “Welcome home,” Hawkins said at the press conference. President Mark Becker and Cheryl Levick, Georgia State’s director of athletics, made the transition official at a press conference in the Dome. “We’ve taken a big step up to the Sun Belt conference,” Levick said. She cited the opportunity to play in bowl games and garner national television exposure as benefits to joining the Sun Belt along with the proximity to neighboring conference members, such as Troy University, South Alabama and Middle Tennessee State University. Since 2005, Georgia State has competed in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA), a Division I Football Championship Series member. In contrast to

▲ Athlete Spotlight: Senior Ben Marshall finds his groove p. 25

❚ NEWS ▲ Finals study hours: It’s that time again. Freshman Dining Hall will be open for all your cramming needs. p. 6

&lIVING

❚ ARtS

▲ panther palooza: An eclectic blend of pop, hip-hop, techno, funk and R&B brings powerful and electric performance at annual event p. 12

Continued on p. 3

Counseling Center woes, part 2

&

▲ music movie reviews: Nicki Minaj and The Shins kick-start the hot season; “Titanic” and “Pie” and 90s nostalgia p. 16 and 17

❚ SpORtS ▲ making the grade: student-athletes have managed to maintain a combined GPA of at least 3.0 p. 23

DAILY ONLINE EXCLUSIVES AND EVENT COVErAGE

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Spring events bring April colors

aySha JohnSon | The SignaL

With events like the Color Run and Wig Out, Atlanta celebrates spring with a pandemonium of vivid colors. See full spread on pages 14 and 15

$Georgia $ $State’s $$$$$ paid $highest $ $ $ $ $ $ $ professors and $administrators $$$$$$$ $$$$$$$$ See the breakdown on p. 4 and 5

*Paid for by taxpayers

Documents reveal a four-month long confl ict within the center SABAStIAN WEE Senior Editor

Documents detailing the conflicts between former Counseling and Testing Center staff and its director reveal the center’s five-month internal struggle prior to the university’s decision to outsource its staff. As reported in last week’s article in The Signal, the center eliminated nine clinical staff positions on March 3, which led to the layoff of six psychologists. Three of the nine positions were vacant, though at least one of those positions was the result of a resignation from former interim clinical director Yared Alemu in protest of the leadership’s direction. According to documents obtained from Legal Affairs, a Reduction in Force request was made on Feb. 29, even though Opportunity Development/Diversity Education Planning Office was still conducting an internal investigation into complaints filed by five of the six former staff members against the center’s director Jill-Lee Barber. ODDEP, along with Provost Risa Palm and Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Douglass Covey, ap-

Continued on p. 7


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