Wednesday, April 3, 2013
94th year • Issue 28
Songfest!
UT’s annual song and dance competition / 10 Serving the University of Toledo since 1919
Inside
www.IndependentCollegian.com
Student Government Executive Branch
A job with hefty perks
Student government president, vice president receive benefits totaling almost $18,000 each By Lindsay Mahaney News Editor
Bob Nichols: Remembering a legend / 6
Scuba diving students attempt world record in the Student Union /9
In a typical year, the Student Government president and vice president are chosen by fewer than 3,000 students. That means less than 15 percent of students are deciding who gets a list of benefits
equaling almost $18,000 per person for the year. Both the president and vice president receive free tuition and general fees as well as room and board for the academic year, according to university records. Additionally, they both receive a $375 book scholarship
and share a reserved parking space on campus. The current tuition and fee benefit is $9,054; the room and board is currently $8,246. The money for tuition and on-campus living is given as See Benefits / 8
In brief Discounted Bob Dylan tickets available for students Artist Bob Dylan will be performing at Bowling Green State University Stroh Center on Sunday, April 21, at 6:30 p.m. Los Angeles-based folk-rock band Dawes will open the show at 7:30 p.m. and Dylan will take the stage at 8:30 p.m. Tickets are available for $25 with a student ID, regardless of school, and can be purchased only at the Stroh Center box office. General tickets are available at the Stroh Center box office and ticketmaster.com for $35 and $45.
n $9,054 to cover tuition and general fees n $8,426 to cover on-campus room and board. If the candidate does not live on campus, he or she will receive a cash stipend equivalent to that amount. n $375 for an annual book scholarship n A shared, reserved parking spot on campus (approved by Chuck Lehnert, vice president of administration) Information courtesy of the University of Toledo
Student Government Elections
Senator: SG needs radical change
Election rule violations result in two strikes against Dykyj/Wilson By Lindsay Mahaney News Editor
News Editor
Student Government might face startling changes in policy if they adopt a new resolution to completely revamp the group’s constitution. Public Relations Chair Clayton Notestine presented the legislation at the April 2 SG meeting, though it was tabled until next week. If passed, his plan would limit the number of Senate seats, removing college caucuses and fuse the executive and legislative branches.
A ‘corrupt’ history
Notestine said UT students need a new government to fix the “corrupt” nature of SG. “How can we stand as one single body and represent the students if we are too busy
Bob taylor / IC
Public Relations Chair Clayton Notestine asked Student Government to consider a resolution Tuesday that would revamp the organization.
fighting ourselves?” Notestine said. “We’re too busy having petty arguments and squabbles and personal vendettas against groups within our own organization than actually getting to the root of the problem and doing what is our goal – our purpose.” He said in the past, pieces of the constitution were not explicit, which led to several problems. One problem was that
steering committee, the group that approves legislation before it is given to Student Senate, was never mentioned in any official SG documents. Notestine said this created a body that acted on its own terms and without guidance. Also, one former loophole made it possible for the SG president to veto their own impeachment. See Change / 8
Both presidential tickets were accused of two violations at an election board hearing held April 2. The charges against the Emily Kramp and Lauren Jencen campaign were dismissed, while the charges against the Christ Dykyj and Nikeya Wilson campaign were sustained. Kramp said the violations against her campaign were over flyer postings. The first stated the campaign had unapproved flyers in the college of business and the second stated there were unapproved flyers on the health science campus. “We were within the rules for both,” Kramp said. The Health Science Campus does not require approval for flyers, she said. And the flyers hung in the Stranahan building were approved through the office of marketing which supersedes the rule against hanging flyers in the
kramp Her ticket had two official complaints filed, but were ruled not guilty
dykyj His ticket faced to official complaints and was found guilty of both infractions
college of business. Kramp said she personally filed the chalking complaint against the Chris Dykyj and Nikeya Wilson ticket because they were filing numerous complaints against her own ticket. “We felt we had to make a statement to say that we’re not really standing for this,” she said. Both of the Christ Dykyj and Nikeya Wilson violations dealt with chalking. The rule See Violation / 8
Medical center
UTMC criticized by anti-abortion group for transfer agreement By Kevin Bucher Staff Reporter
Corrections Last week in a photo titled “‘Big Day’ event,” we incorrectly spelled the name of Mary Page Dalrymple and misidentified the Big Event. We regret the error. In the March 20 issue, the photo titled “Match Day for medical students” was taken by Kyle Tate, not by Bob Taylor. We regret the error.
The University of Toledo Board of Trustees approved the following benefits last year for the Student Government president and vice president when they assume office.
Restructuring
By Lindsay Mahaney
Veralucia Mendoza: The same-sex marriage debate / 4
Perks of being SG president and VP
Bob taylor / IC
The University of Toledo Medical Center, pictured above, is being criticized by Ohio Right to Life for an agreement with an abortion clinic.
Anti-abortion group Ohio Right to Life is criticizing the University of Toledo Medical Center for an agreement which the group says amounts to providing taxpayer support for abortions. An abortion clinic that is not a full-service medical facility cannot legally operate unless it has a transfer agreement with a hospital that would accept the clinic’s patients in the event of complications. UTMC signed a transfer agreement with the Capital Care Network of Toledo’s clinic in August, and Ohio Right to Life says that
violates the spirit of state law. John Coats, executive director of Ohio Right to Life, is upset with the terms of the agreement. “Our problem was, and is, that the transfer agreement was signed by the University of Toledo, a publicly funded university, and is totally tax payer funded,” Coats said. “We know if the transfer agreement did not exist then this abortion mill would not be able to legally operate.” Capital Care is an ambulatory surgical facility, meaning the clinic is not a full service medical facility. When the University of Toledo signed the transfer agreement it
allowed the clinic to operate legally because there was an agreement with a full service hospital, UTMC, to handle any complications during the procedure. According to Ohio Department of Health records obtained by Right to Life, the clinic performed 1,033 procedures in the 12 months before a March 2012 state inspection that found it did not have a transfer agreement as required by law. “The 1,033 lives that were aborted at this abortion mill could have been in the future anything,” Coats said. “They See UTMC / 3