Accessibility a must on Cabrini's campus

-Catharine Herson assistant perspectives editor

Public safety has recently been targeting athletes. This is somewhat similar to the police practice of racial profiling. Ordinarily I would care less about some random jock getting written-up for having a party, but things are starting to get out of hand.

This campus has the Residence Life staff go on rounds twice every night to make sure nothing outrageous is going on. Public Safety is supposed to be there just to back-up the RA's. There is no need for a P.S. officer to walk unasked into a relatively quiet building; this can only cause more of a rift between the students and

Now I don't agree with all the students. There have been many times that I feel people deserved to be penalized for stupidity. But there are definite instances that should have just been left alone.

The most targeted group on campus is the men's soccer team. Granted they can be loud, obnoxious and stupid, but they are usually quite easy to control. There is no reason that P.S. should go out to specifically look for a soccer guy with a beer.

Just a confession, I'm no angel. I like to party. It is very likely that I am out as much as the soccer guys, but I have never been written up. There are even times that I can say that I honestly deserved to get caught, and was lucky enough not to. The one time that I actually got to hang-out with my friends on the soccer team, P.S. just walked up to the room without even a knock and told everyone to leave. No one was written-up, but that was still an unfair situation for the men on the soccer team. The other week after a dance there was an abundance of P.S. officers on duty in the CAC. There was one stationed on every floor and two posted outside the soccer and women's lacrosse apartments. There was no reason for any of this. First of all, there was hardly anyone on campus. Secondly, there were definitely no problems in the CAC at all. There was no noise, there were very few people in the building, and no one was complaining about anything.

I do not remember last semester being very disorderly, but that may just be me. From my memories this campus has a pretty good record - no alcohol poisoning, a minimal number of arrests and not much damage to the campus. It is very hard to understand why P.S. is cracking down harder after a nice semester, it can only make things worse.

Love is just around the corner

it; they have their pick of who they want to "hook-up" with, while the only thing the women get are slim pickings. Don't be offended, guys; I'm not saying that you aren't good enough. I'm just saying that you are few and far between.

Geri Lynn Utter a&e editor

After reading Alexis's story on "hooking-up" and the infamous "walk-of-shame," I laughed out loud. A lot of what Alexis wrote + about is true.

If you haven't noticed there are not many male students wandering around campus. There are 432 male and 798 female, full-time students currently attending Cabrini according to Karen Karlsen, assistant registrar. Let's do the math. There are approximately two women to every one male at,Cabrini. The guys definitely seem to enjoy it. Let's face

So, what does all this have to do with "hooking-up?" The answer is simple. More women around campus tend to have a higher-risk of becoming a random "hook-up" or taking the "walk-of • shame" because there are not enough guys for all of us women. But, believe it or not, ladies, there is hope.

Most of us will meet our future husband or wife at college or within an eight-mile radius from our homes according to Dr. Young, English professor. Go ahead laugh, I did the first time I heard it in Dr. Young's 19th Century British Literature class last semester. You're 1>robabl:9asking how I went from "hooking-up" to marriage, only to prove a point, and restore hope for the single-females at Cabrini. I know for many of us the thought of marriage had never entered our minds. However, if Dr. Young is right, one of those random "hook-ups" we experience all too often may become a husband or wife. I don't want any of you guys to become panicstricken because I used the "M" word, but I had to restore the hope of the women on campus. eludes a handicapped student) meets in the Woodcrest lobby to compare notes? Simple little things like that. I mean, they were rebuilding the steps anyway. Why not make them handicapped accessible while they were at it? Just because they don'! have to does not mean they shouldn't.

Valentine's Day is right around the corner and I would hate to see anyone down in the dumps because they didn't have anyone special to spend it with. Even if you don't, remember, your love is either on this campus or within an eight-mile radius from your home. So, ladies and even guys, this might make you think twice about taking the infamous "walk-ofshame" at 9 a.m. Friday morning.

Katie Reing assistant photo editor

Let me preface this article by saying how much I enjoy being a student here at Cabrini. I enjoy living on campus and think I go to a great college. Really, I do. Honest. That being said, I have a complaint.

I think Cabrini is not conscious of the needs of the handicapped students that attend this institution. More than that, I think Cabrini does not plan for the needs of future handicapped students.

Now, don't get me wrong. I know Cabrini has made some great efforts in their new endeavors. The New Residence Hall, though lacking a name, has wonderful handicapped accessibility. Similarly, the Apartment Complex and the Dixon Center are also handicapped accessible. No, I'm talking about the older buildings on Cabrini's campus.

Take for example, Woodcrest Dormitory. This building was built before the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1992 required them to make the building handicapped accessible. Over the summer a new set of front steps was constructed for Woodcrest.

However, since the building is "grandfathered" and does not have to be handicapped accessible, when the new front steps were made, they were not made with a ramp. Now I know you are saying, "Katie, what's the point? The rest of Woodcrest is still not handicapped accessible, why bother?"

Here's why: What if in next year's incoming freshman class there is a student with a parent or sibling who is handicapped? What if next year there's a class project and the group (which in-

Second example: The new communications center in Founder's Hall. The only accessible feature is the doors to the radio studios can be powered by remote for handicapped students. Even that is small potatoes when you think about all that is in the wing: TV studios, editing bays, computer labs, graphic design Jabs, newsroom none of them are accessible. And what about the double doors leading into the wing or into the radio station? You guessed it, not handicapped accessible.

The rest of Founder's Hall has accessible features, why was this edition built without the features? It is rather presumptuous and ignorant of us to think that there will never be any handicapped communications students, don't you think?

Last March, the Loquitur published an article on handicapped accessibility on campus. One of the major stumbling blocks listed for making improvements to our campus' accessibility is money. Making the doors to the radio studios accessible was reported as costing $4,000.

Here's a thought: What if they did it right the first time and made it handicapped accessible instead of having to go back and redo it. I'm willing to bet it would be cheaper.

My point is, as a campus community we need to be aware of one another and of each other's needs. We should think and plan ahead before we go rushing into remodeling buildings and walkways. It is apart of the Cabrini Mission Statement. It is a part of "Education of the Heart." Now we just need to live it.