Privacy issues,what Cabrini won’t say

MELISSA STEVEN

ASST. FEATURES EDITOR

MS727@CABRINI

EDU

FERPAprohibits the college from contacting parents without the student’s permission, even if the student is exhibiting self-destructive behavior, according to Tutaleni Asino, an area coordinator. Only with written permission from the student can the parents be contacted.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) is a federal law that protects the privacy of student educational records. Dr. Charles McCormick, dean of academic affairs, said, “FERPAtransfers the right to review educational records to students who are 18 years old.”

Asino said that every situa- tion is different and could not exactly give a situation in which it was necessary to contact the parents. His main concern was the student and their well being, “If they are in trouble, we will do everything to help,” Asino said.

Some students sign a consent disclosure form, which allows faculty, advisers or administrators to disclose academic information to parents or guardians.

George Stroud, the director of residence life, said, “Student judicial files are not typically shared with anyone without the students written consent. There is an exception though. The college is permitted to inform the parents of those students, who are under the age of 21, that have been found to be responsible for violating the drug or alcohol policy.”

Deborah Maloney, a sopho- more history major, said her parents were contacted when pictures were found on the web of her drinking alcohol in the Xavier dorm rooms. Maloney is under the age of 21 and a letter was sent to her parents from Residence Life explaining what had happened, what the punishment was and it included the pictures found on the internet. “We were told that a letter would be sent home to our parents with the photographs when we met with George,” Maloney said.

According to Asino, whenever there is a violation with the alcohol policy, whether the student is under or over the age of 21, some type of judicial hearing is held. That hearing comes

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The theater inside Grace Hall is no longer meeting the needs of theater director Neal Newman’s ambitious goals for the communications department in the area of performing arts. Newman said, “I would love to work with Cabrini students on productions like ‘Noises Off,’‘Black Comedy’and ‘Romeo and Juliet,’but I can’t.”

According to Neal Newman, the director of theater, due to a lack of money to fund a new theater, Cabrini faculty, students and the surrounding community can only enjoy productions at the college that don’t require second floors, stairs or trap doors.

President Antoinette Iadarola, who is a major fan of the arts, has included a new theater in the college long-term strategic plan; however, a donor has yet to be found to fund the theater, leaving the project’s commencement date to be determined.

Senior Tanya Tumaian, an English and communication major, sympathizes with Newman. “I think that is sad because there are probably plenty of secondary education and English majors who will teach ‘Romeo and Juliet’in their future classrooms, but will never have the opportunity to work with or see a production of it in their own school’s theater,” Tumaian said.

Iadarola empathized with the fact that talented students might choose to go elsewhere because of Cabrini’s outdated theater and therefore under-developed program; however, Iadarola believes, “Prospective students continue their education at Cabrini in order to be a student first.”

But are performing arts not just as essential and integral to an educationally-based institution as academics?

Karen Harlin, a Cabrini alumna with a degree in professional communications and vice-president of Cultural Interchanges, an arts-oriented non-profit organization in Wayne, said, “Involvement in the performing arts