The Miami Hurricane -- November 19, 2009

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The Miami

Vol. 87, Issue 24 | Nov. 19 - Nov. 22, 2009

HURRICANE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI IN CORAL GABLES, FLORIDA, SINCE 1929

GRAPHIC: EMMA CASON-PRATT

BREAKING BARRIERS LGBT GROUP ATTEMPTS TO CHARTER THEIR OWN FRATERNITY PAGE 5

GIVE A LITTLE LOVE PEACE AND LOVE CONCERT OPENS ITS ARMS TO UM PAGE 11

TWO OF A KIND SISTER SUNSATIONS KEEP DANCING IN THE FAMILY PAGE 17

Green building earns LEED certification

BY AUSTEN GREGERSON | CONTRIBUTING NEWS WRITER

W

ith basketball season already under way, one of the University of Miami’s biggest off-season additions has already received national recognition– the UM Field House.

Roughly about 30,000 square feet, the structure that sits next to the BankUnited Center was recently certified with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system at the gold level due to its use of environmentally-friendly materials and energy conservation methods.

LEED, a set of energy-efficient building standards established by the U.S. Green Building Council, recognizes buildings that utilize ‘green’ building techniques in an effort to continue raising awareness of the impact made by buildings on the environment.

In the United States alone, buildings account for nearly one-third of all greenhouse gases emissions, according to Scientific American. Buildings are subject to a point scale during their design and construction and, if they meet the necessary requirements, they are recognized for their efficiency.

SEE LEED, PAGE 5

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Fifteen years of serving up smiles Niko’s manager favorite of many

BY NICOLE ADLMAN CONTRIBUTING NEWS WRITER

In the four decades that she has worked at the University of Miami, Essie Williams has seen a lot of changes on campus, including her patrons’ attire. Bellbottomed jeans morphed into punk rock apparel, which then shifted to the grungy plaid predecessor of the labelladen millennium.

One thing has remained the same through the cultural shifts: when students at UM get hungry, many head to the food court and find Miss Essie, as she is known by many, running Niko’s as she has for the last 15 years.

Before the Hurricane Food Court opened, Williams was one of the most popular and warmest people working in the residential dining halls.

“I’m a people person and that’s what keeps me going: the faculty and students at UM are great and they keep me here. I just love the work I do,” Williams said, followed by her signature chuckle.

After graduating from Coral Gables Senior High School, Williams tried secretarial work but longed for more interaction with people and landed a job with UM’s dining services.

She has become a constant in an ever-changing

campus community.

“I’ve been coming to Niko’s since I transferred here as a sophomore,” senior Brendan Murphy said. “Essie has one of the friendliest faces you’ll see on a campus.”

Williams even remembers when former UM President Edward “Tad” Foote, whom she regularly served food, came to her one day with a question often asked by students who eat at dining halls.

“He asked me if the meat was real and I told him, ‘Yes, it sure is,’” she said.

When asked if she plans to retire soon, Williams shrugs off the question.

“I hope to be here for another…well, as long as I can possibly go on,” she said.

Chartwells has recognized her many contributions to the university. Just a few years ago her supervisors nominated her as employee of the year for the entire southeastern region of the company.

Out of employees from more than 100 schools, Miss Essie won the title recognition and a trip to Las Vegas for her and her husband.

“It was my first time on a plane and probably one of the best, most exciting moments of my life,” Williams said.

Genevieve Stack’s photo slideshow of conservatory theatre majors practicing on the Rock provides a rare close-up look.

The men’s basketball team handled Nova Southeastern 108-58 on Monday. Check out Alex Broadwell’s photo slideshow.

Ben Cathey shares what Ultimate Fighting Championship President Dana White had to say to student-athletes on Monday at the Hecht Athletic Center.

Nicole Adlman may be contacted at nadlman@ themiamihurricane.com.

BRITTNEY BOMNIN // Photo Editor

LUNCH TIME MUNCHIES: Essie Williams works at Nikos in the Hurricane Food Court preparing a variety of sandwiches for the customers.

Flying home? Ride the UM airport shuttle Miami International Airport: $10 non-refundable fee

Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport: $20 non-refundable fee

November 24 & 25 Every hour from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

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December 15 & 16 Every hour from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

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November 24 & 25 8 a.m., 12 p.m., 4 p.m.

November 19 - November 22, 2009

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Miami football players will sport new Nike uniforms next Saturday against South Florida. Read Ramon Galiana’s sports briefs for more information.

Have something to say? E-mail editor@ themiamihurricane. com if you are interested in starting your own blog.

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WVUM extends voice

Undergraduate enrollment down According to Sapp, the last 10 years have seen a 78 percent increase in applications to the university. For the entering class of 1999, there were 12,265 applications submitted, compared to 21,845 applications

BY MEREDITH REILLY submitted for the entering class CONTRIBUTING NEWS WRITER of 2009.

This school year, academic “Every year the number of enrollment dropped 1.6 percent applications have been higher but it was not due to factors than the last, SAT scores have such as selectivity or the nation’s been going up steadily and recession. graduation and retention rates The reason for the decrease have also been going up,” Sapp is simple. The fall 2005 entering said. class was 2,276 students, which is The primary advantage approximately 276 more than the in having a larger university number of incoming freshman enrollment is the money that can that the university aims to accept be brought in from tuition. With every year. The number of the current state of the economy, incoming freshman for the three tuition costs years since are a primary 2005 has been factor in It’s a balancing 2,062, 1,991 the college act– having enough and 2,010, decision respectively. students to have process.

At Since the tuition income this stage of the majority to pay the bills, yet the application of fall 2005’s process for not over straining the entering next year’s infrastructure. class, the incoming class of 2009, - MARY SAPP class, the graduated this Assistant Vice President for number of past spring, planning and institutional applications is research it is only a still up– about natural that 75 students more, according to Sapp. undergraduate enrollment has “I don’t think that the fallen this year. economic crisis would defer “It was a ‘blip’ in the system,” students from applying to UM,” said Mary Sapp, assistant vice junior Alexis Branca said. “I president for planning and think where the university could institutional research. “Although run into problems is at crunch it wasn’t like we opened the flood time in April when prospective gates and let in a lot of unqualified students commit to a school that students.” is cheaper and maybe one that’s Thomas J. LeBlanc, the not private.” executive vice president and The university aims to provost of UM, was appointed continue raising UM’s standards in the summer of 2005. Since of admission, with each his arrival at the university, incoming class having a higher he has committed to keeping GPA and higher test scores than undergraduate enrollment as the previous. There are no plans close as possible to 2,000 entering to change the magic number of students per year.

2,000 incoming students.

UM aims to have an “It’s a balancing act– undergraduate enrollment having enough students to have between 9,500 and 10,000 the tuition income to pay the students. Currently, there are bills, yet not overstraining the 9,855 degree-seeking and an infrastructure,” Sapp said. additional 515 non degreeseeking undergraduate students.

Meredith Reilly may be contacted at

UM aims to average 2,000 new students

“

JACKIE SIMS // The Miami Hurricane

PLAY THAT FUNKY MUSIC: Sophomore Robert (Bobby) Goldfin, Training Director at WVUM, hosts one of his weekly shows. WVUM “The Voice” broadcasts from the UC on 90.5 FM.

Station’s signal will reach all of Miami-Dade

BY VERONICA PEREZ CONTRIBUTING NEWS WRITER

A triumph for music lovers across Miami-Dade County, the Federal Communications Commission approved a request made

by WVUM “The Voice” that will double the station’s range, providing music, news and sports programming by UM students to the entire county.

Beginning in January, a new directional antenna, funded by a donation from a WVUM alumnus, will increase the listening radius from the current 14 miles to about 28 miles, which means the signal will carry to the north and south ends of the county.

“There’s still a lot left to the process,” said Melanie D’Andrea, the station’s general manager.

“We have to work out all the engineering aspects, but the changes

should be final in January. This is such an incredible opportunity… we’re going to reach so many new ears, and a lot of the people that tune in online.”

The signal expansion comes at a time when the station is trying to recover from a technological mishap from earlier this semester.

After an anonymous Turkish hacker wreaked havoc on its online operation, “The Voice” hopes to finally roll out a new Web site next year.

“We aren’t sure if it was security errors or if it was the intrinsic nature of the server,” said WVUM’s faculty advisor, Paul Driscoll. “The attacks have been stopped and the staff is on top of the problem. The stream is back up and that’s the most important thing.”

A temporary site, which still includes the popular live streaming feature, has been put up while the station builds a new site from the ground up.

According to D’Andrea, there was no apparent reason why

the site was targeted.

WVUM 90.5 FM, the official radio station of the University of Miami, was founded in 1968, and is fully student-run and operated.

Its main office and broadcast station are on the first floor of the University Center.

Aside from covering sports, the station is best known for its focus on Miami’s underground music scene.

Due to its popularity, WVUM has been selected “Best FM station in Miami” by the Miami New Times for three of the last four years.

The team remains optimistic, with all the positive changes on the horizon, 2010 looks like a year of growth for “The Voice.”

“We have a North Star,” D’Andrea said. “And the cohesiveness of the group has shown through all of this that no amount of technical difficulties are going to keep us from delivering to our listeners.”

Veronica Perez may be contacted at vperez@themiamihurricane.com.

November 19 - November 22, 2009

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mreilly@themiamihurricane.com.

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Bringing news to a neighborhood in need Student Web site serves West Grove

BY REBECCA ZIMMER CONTRIBUTING NEWS WRITER

The University of Miami School of Communication, following the university-wide theme of giving back to the community, began an online community newspaper this semester to serve the mostly low-income residents who live in the western part of Coconut Grove.

The Web site, titled the Grand Avenue News, uses student reporters, photographers, videographers and web designers to document many aspects of life in the area now known as the Village West.

“There was a definite need for a paper like this,” said assistant professor Kim Grinfeder, founder of Grand Avenue News.

“It’s a unifying factor in a community.”

Jihad Rashid, president and CEO of Coconut Collaborate Inc. and a resident of Village West, agrees.

“The community will benefit and enjoy this new form of news.

We’re becoming more digital and keeping up with the wave of the new world,” he said.

Topics include news about families who live in the predominantly African-American community, education, politics, business and religion. There are also sections dedicated to photos and

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videos, as well as a village directory.

“We’ve had a positive reaction from the residents of the West Grove,” Grinfeder said. “They like being covered and businesses have enjoyed having articles written about them.”

The Web site, grandavenews.com, was launched about a month ago to cover the community, where unemployment ranges from 16 to 20 percent and approximately 80 percent of the residents do not own their own home.

Grinfeder said the idea to start the online community paper sprang from a visual journalism project last fall in which student journalists used the web to cover the joy and excitement in the Village West when Barack Obama was elected.

“When we went to interview them, we realized that the community was fragmented and needed information,” Grinfeder said. “Access of information provides a better life.”

Grinfeder and other communication professors teamed up their students to provide neighborhood news to the residents of the Village West, one of the oldest and most historic sections of Miami.

Some of the earliest settlers of the West Grove area were from the Bahamas. The Grand Avenue News, named for the main street that runs through the neighborhood, recognizes the strong ties to the island nation by carrying links to Bahamian news, as well

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SCREEN SHOT OF GRANDAVENEWS.COM HOMEPAGE

as local news from The Miami Herald.

“A project like this gives students a real sense of what the world is like outside of campus,” said associate professor Tsitsi Wakhisi, who is supervising the reporting teams. “It gives them a chance to deal with real people who have real stories that aren’t always pleasant.”

Paul Franz, a graduate student and grandavenews.com writer and photographer, said working off campus has been a great experience.

“It’s fun to do because it’s a challenge; the people there don’t trust outsiders,” he said. “People have come in and taken advantage of them and made them look bad

November 19 - November 22, 2009

in interviews, so we’re just interested in gaining trust and making them look good as a community.”

Franz is one of more than 50 contributing writers, photographers and videographers covering the Village West beat. Submissions from other students, faculty and even local residents are highly encouraged.

The ultimate goal, Grinfeder said, is to have grandavenews. com become a community-run Web site. For now though, the project is funded by a $17,000 ‘New Voices’ grant that Grinfeder received from J-Lab at American University in Washington, D.C. He is also seeking more grants to help expand the Grand Avenue News through advertis-

ing, sponsorships and community partnerships. Grinfeder says he is considering putting out an occasional print version in the future, because many of the residents do not have home computers.

UM students not only cover the news, but some of them also donate their time to teach some of the young residents of Village West about photography and videography.

“Journalism without a point or a cause is very unfulfilling,” Franz said. “We’re trying to make a difference and bring social change and attention to the people and places in the West Grove.”

Rebecca Zimmer may be contacted at

rzimmer@themiamihurricane.com.

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New fraternity hopes to eliminate stereotypes

LEED FROM PAGE 1 Miami’s Field House is just one of 35,000 projects using LEED standards across all 50 states and over 90 countries, according to a UM press release.

“The University is committed to energy conservation and the reduction of energy dependency,” Eduardo A. Lopez, senior project manager of UM Facilities, Design and Construction Department said in the press release.

The UM Field House, with it’s new basketball courts, will be the practice facility for both the basketball teams and will be utilized for various events at UM. This building was part of Miami’s Green U movement, a campus-wide initiative started in 2005 to make all parts of the University stay true to one of its school colors.

“The green building movement offers an unprecedented opportunity to respond to the most important challenges of our time, including global

climate change, dependence on nonsustainable and expensive sources of energy and threats to human health,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding chair of the U.S. Green Building Council.

Earning LEED gold certification may not promise that the building will successfully conserve energy. According to the New York Times, over half of the LEED-certified buildings through 2006 did not qualify for the Energy Star label, a program run by the Environmental Protection Agency.

What impact the Field House, rather than just the basketball courts, will have on the environment is yet to be determined. Fedrizzi still thinks the university is at the beginning of something big.

Austen Gregerson may be contacted at agregerson@themiamihurricance.com.

TANYA THOMPSON// The Miami Hurricane

GOING GREEK: Alex Suvall, Michael Sutphin and Vincent Foster, the three founders of Delta Lambda Phi, a new fraternity at UM work toward getting a charter for their frat.

LGBT organization hopes for official recognition

BY KATEY CECCARELLI CONTRIBUTING NEWS WRITER

The stereotypical image of the fraternity boy at many colleges and universities is that of overt masculinity, fueled by socializing and partying with members of the opposite sex.

However, a group of young men at the University of Miami are aiming to shatter these stereotypes by beginning a frat of a completely different nature: they are in the process of launching a chapter of a nationally established gay fraternity.

Seven UM students have begun the process of making what is now an officially recognized interest group a reality within the next several years. However, some major obstacles stand between these students and their goal to establishing the chapter of the Delta Lambda Phi fraternity.

“Contrary to how chapters of most traditional fraternities are established, chapters of Delta Lambda Phi are started from the ground up,” said Delta Lambda Phi member sophomore Vincent Foster. “A group of interested, like-minded students come together to create an interest group, the phase at which we currently are. After an interest group is established, they can proceed to apply for colonization. Then after the Alpha class is formally inducted by Nationals and the colony is recognized by their school and has rushed three classes, the colony can apply to become a chapter.”

However, Delta Lambda Phi has yet another obstacle to overcome before they can become a recognized fraternity in the eyes of the university administration.

“Currently, the biggest problem we face is getting over the university’s unofficial, yet quite

impeding, ban on new fraternities. We are recognized as an interest group by Delta Lambda Phi’s national headquarters, but we are not recognized by our university,” Foster said. “Other than this, we have astounding support from UM’s gay, bisexual and progressive community, so after we get over this ban, the rest of the colonization process will go smoothly.”

Associate Dean of Students and Director of Judicial Affairs Dr. Tony Lake clarified this ban and how it will affect the formation of the fraternity.

“We aren’t ‘banning’ the formation of new groups indefinitely; we simply aren’t recognizing new groups right now,” Lake said.

A founding father of UM’s chapter of Pi Kappa Phi, junior Zach Zelman, remarked on the difficulty even his traditional fraternity had in their formation last year.

“It seems like everyone’s against you.

The whole Greek life spectrum, they’re very to themselves. You have to break through the mold and all of the fraternities and sororities aren’t very happy with it,” Zelman said.

The future brothers of Delta Lamda Phi remain positive about the process and see the obstacles as worthwhile steps toward an entity that would be an important addition to the UM community.

“The student body, specifically the gay and bisexual student body, has expressed much interest in rushing Delta Lambda Phi,” Foster said. “UM’s LGBT community has one of the largest and most active student organizations [SpectrUM], yet we are the largest recognized minority on campus without a Greek outlet.”

For more information, details on rushing or advice and support, please contact Vincent Foster at v.foster@umiami.edu.

Katey Ceccarelli may be contacted at kceccarelli@ themiamihurricane.com.

November 19 - November 22, 2009

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Old cell phones find new homes in Cuba Campus organizations collect for island nation

BY JASMINE HENDERSON CONTRIBUTING NEWS WRITER

The Federacion de Estudiantes Cubanos (FEC) and CAUSA want University of Miami students to donate their old phones so that they can be sent to Cuba for a good cause.

Initially junior Alex Fonseca, the community service chair of FEC, wanted to hold a clothes drive for Cuba.

However, the president of CAUSA, senior Raul Moas, had heard of the change in communication rights in Cuba and he wanted the two organizations to take advantage of it. That’s how they launched the “Cuba Going Mobile” where students are asked to donate their old cell phones.

“FEC is more of a social organization and CAUSA is more political,” Fonseca said. “We had a meeting and decided to get together for the drive since we are the only two Cuban organizations.”

Moas believes it will also work to break the phone monopoly held by the Cuban government by issuing the free phones to Cuban citizens.

“The drive will provide a chance to empower communication within Cuba and its youth,” he said.

According to Moas, the average income in Cuba is the equivalent of $20 monthly, with the price of phones being $18 to $20. Not to mention, Cuba’s cellular plan costs a minimum of $30 a month.

“It’s almost impossible for a regular citizen to buy a cell phone,” he said.

Used, old and broken phones are accepted, preferably with chargers included.

Broken phones and those that cannot be used with Cuba’s phone service will either be refurbished or exchanged for calling cards that can be used to call family outside of Cuba.

Cuba has the lowest rate of cell phone ownership in the world, at somewhere between seven and nine percent. There is room for 11 million Cubans to be provided with cellular devices; this is their motivation behind the drive organizers said.

Before President Raul Castro lifted the ban on cell phones and other electronic appliances, only those working for foreign organizations working in Cuba, such as film crews and those holding high government positions were allowed to buy cell phones.

Others who could afford them bought them illegally.

Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Cuba S.A., the restricted cellular service, has been around since 1991 and decided it is ready for heavier traffic. The access to communication will not quite be on the level of Americans’, but it is definitely a significant change for the Communistgoverned island.

“I think if they saw how freely we talk on our phones, which is also a freedom of expression, they’d be amazed,” Fonseca said.

The drive will continue until the end of the first week of the spring semester. A $500 gift certificate to Best Buy will be given to the student organization that collects the most phones during the drive.

Donations are being taken in the UC room 205 and in the UC Breezeway at either a CAUSA or FEC table.”

Jasmine Henderson may be contacted at jhenderson@themiamihurricane.com.

STEVEN STUTS // Asst Photo Editor

LIFE LINES: A pile of phones sit in a cardboard box in the FEC office for the cell phone drive co-sponsored by FEC and CAUSA, two student organizations.

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November 19 - November 22, 2009

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In 2006 Florida was ranked 32nd in the nation for the percentage of the population over 25 with a high school diploma. That same year Florida was ranked 46th in the nation in average SAT scores.

Illiteracy peaks in Miami-Dade Organizations work to educate

BY LAURA EDWINS OF THE STAFF

In a city throbbing with diversity, music, art and culture, many residents are unaware that MiamiDade County has one of the lowest literacy rates in America. At the University of Miami, students who are too busy to do all of their required reading, much less pick up a novel to pass the time, often overlook the fact that they are part of a privileged population, a population that is able to function effortlessly in a word-driven society.

According to the U.S. Department of Education, in Miami-Dade County 52 percent of the population lacks basic prose literacy skills, the necessary reading comprehension tools needed to understand the written English language. Compared with other counties in the state of Florida, Miami-Dade has the lowest literacy rates by a margin of about 20 percent.

“Reading is just as important today as it as ever been,” said Ernestine Walls Benedict of Reading is Fundamental, Inc. in an e-mail to The Miami Hurricane. “Reading empowers children by providing a virtual passport to explore the world. They can learn about places, people and things very different from their own experiences, as well as see themselves reflected in other children’s lives.”

Reading is Fundamental is just one of the many organizations in Miami committed to decreasing the literacy achievement gap amongst African American,

Hispanic and American Indian communities.

The children with the lowest reading levels are usually the children in the lowest socioeconomic bracket. Without access to reading material or higher education, kids that speak another language or who may have a learning disability are often overlooked.

The University of Miami is one of the organizations that have developed literacy programs to cater to “at risk” kids in the community. The department of education’s Upward Bound program is designed to challenge high school students to develop the skills, study habits, discipline and attitude they need to succeed. The program’s ultimate goal is to prepare and motivate students to pursue a college education.

“I don’t feel like UM does much at all to encourage reading,” sophomore Allison Babes said.

“Even at the book store, they have way more clothes than books.”

The UM School of Education also does outreach to communities throughout Miami-Dade in order to strengthen literacy and encourage change. However, none of UM’s community education outreach programs target as many people or receive as much publicity as the Miami Book Fair International.

The book fair is sponsored by Miami-Dade College each year and is a huge outreach opportunity to get the community excited about reading. Vendors of all types come from around the world to cater to a diverse taste in literature.

One of the goals of the book fair is to present new ideas on educating children to parents and teachers.

“This is another tool to teach people how to learn to love to

20% of Florida residents lack basic prose literacy skills.

Florida ranks 39th in the nation in public school financing per pupil.

read,” said Alex Simmons of the Kid’s Comic-Con Road Show.

Simmons is the founder of Kid’s Comic-Con, a comic convention aimed at readers of all ages.

A comic junkie in his youth, Simmons became discouraged when comic conventions became geared more towards an older readership. He decided that a family-friendly comic convention was needed; a place where writers, illustrators and publishers could interact with their readers and kids could meet their real life heroes.

Simmons believes that comic books, a literary form that kids naturally gravitate toward, are often overlooked by teachers, when they could be used as a valuable tool to encourage kids not only to read, but to imagine a better life for themselves.

“The greatest teaser we have to knowledge is our imagination,” Simmons said. “When adults dampen that, kids are limited in the possibilities they can imagine for themselves. When you teach strictly by words and numbers you cripple them.”

At UM where every student has received enough education to not only understand what they read, but how to fake what they haven’t read, the importance of those basic skills, understanding and summarization, is often overlooked.

“Forty-four million adults in the U.S. can’t read well enough to read a simple story to a child,” Benedict wrote. “Awareness of these critical facts should motivate every college student to do their part in creating a literate nation.”

The county with the second highest illiteracy rate in Florida is DeSoto County with 34% and a population of 24,218.

In Miami-Dade County 52% of the 1,760,714 residents over the age of 16 lack basic prose literacy skills.

Laura Edwins may be contacted at ledwins@themiamihurricane.com.

November 19 - November 22, 2009

INFOGRAPHIC BY KIERSTEN SCHMIDT

All statistics are from the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Education.

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OPINION

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Those who oppose health care for all are basically watching helpless Americans endure the most heartrending of hardships and then callously saying, ‘I’m not paying for this.’

”

- Josh Kornfield, contributing columnist

The Miami

HURRICANE Founded 1929 An Associated Collegiate Press Hall of Fame Newspaper NEWSROOM: 305-284-2016 BUSINESS OFFICE: 305-284-4401 FAX: 305-284-4404

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Airport shuttle increase objectionable Students traveling home for Thanksgiving this year will be surprised to find that the fees for the University of Miami airport shuttles have doubled.

Last year, shuttles to Miami International Airport and Fort Lauderdale International Airport required $5 and $10 fares respectively, but now cost $10 and $20. In previous years, this shuttle service was offered free of charge. The continued increase in price could become a financial burden for students simply looking to share a holiday meal with their families.

For a service that was once free, why are shuttle prices increasing two-fold? Perhaps Stu-

dent Government and the Division of Student Affairs should look more closely at the ways in which funds are allocated. This is a service many UM students would use, so greater importance should be reflected in its amount of funding.

While it is beneficial to even have this service offered to students, there are ways in which it could be improved. The holiday shuttle service could supply transportation back to campus after the break. While students do return at different times, at least offering an arrival pickup service would be more practical.

Having such a shuttle ser-

vice is a privilege and not something that should be taken for granted by students. However, it is understandable to find such an increase in price objectionable.

For now, the best and least expensive method of airport transportation is to make friends with students who have cars. So next time you see that cute guy walk into history class with car keys hanging out of his pocket, flash a smile. Who knows, instead of a date maybe you’ll score a free ride to the airport.

Editorials represent the majority view of The Miami Hurricane editorial board.

Health care is a fundamental right NAVID AJABSHIR Sophomore “Pool boys and trophy wives.”

ELENA FAJARDO Senior “An ABC party- Anything But a Cup, it’s ridiculous what people will drink from!”

hen asked at the 2009 New Student Convocation whether health care is a moral issue, George Will said that “spending other people’s money for a program they would not spend money on is a moral hazard.” Will dodged the moral question at the heart of the national debate on health care by introJOSH KORNFIELD ducing the relatively shallow issue CONTRIBUTING of tax policy.

COLUMNIST The student who asked the question, like the rest of us, probably feels the central concern is whether it is moral for our society to allow the human suffering that results from citizens having limited access to health care.

Thomas Jefferson suggested in 1779 that Virginia provide free public schools for its children. He was ignored. But by the end of the 1800s, free public elementary schools were available for all students. Now, access to a free public school education is a fundamental right in this country. Americans would never do away with our public education system despite its deficiencies.

Our support of the education system is reminiscent of British support for their health care system. Despite

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massive flaws in their system, a majority of Brits refuse to privatize it. Why are we so squarely behind education as a right and not health care?

Arguments that pertain to equality of access and opportunities can be applied to both health care and education. High health care prices prevent households from making investments in education and businesses that could improve their collective futures. Not only does forcing families to “pay or suffer” threaten their economic security, allowing the free market to inflict physical pain on others in your society is merciless to an Orwellian degree.

Those who oppose health care for all are basically watching helpless Americans endure the most heartrending of hardships and then callously saying, “I’m not paying for this.”

Even if you don’t support universal health care, what should be clear for everyone is that something has to give. Health care spending at current rates will fiscally (not just morally) bankrupt this country. We should try to cover everyone, because if we don’t, the American economy will become a metaphor for the American Death Panel, systematically allowing our citizens to die.

Josh Kornfield is a sophomore majoring in international studies and political science. He may be contacted at jkornfield@themiamihurricane.com.

DOM CASTILLEJO Junior “CMT v. BET… no one’s ever done that before.”

Speak Up answers are edited for clarity, brevity and accuracy. compiled by Kyli Singh

8

OPINION

POLL RESULTS: Has the use of the Emergency Notification Network (ENN) on Sunday improved since last week’s incident?

Yes

Total Voters: 53

32%

No

64%

Unsure

4%

ARE YOU UPSET BY THE UM AIRPORT SHUTTLE FEE INCREASE? LOG ON TO THEMIAMIHURRICANE.COM AND LET US KNOW.

THE MIAMI HURRICANE

November 19 - November 22, 2009

EDITOR IN CHIEF Chelsea Matiash

BUSINESS MANAGER Jessica Jurick

MANAGING EDITOR Christina De Nicola

WEBMASTER Brian Schlansky COPY CHIEF Laura Edwins

ART DIRECTOR Felipe Lobon

COPY EDITORS Heather Carney Alexa Lopez

NEWS EDITOR Ed S. Fishman

ADVERTISING EDITOR Emma Cason-Pratt

PHOTO EDITOR Brittney Bomnin SPORTS EDITOR Justin Antweil

PUBLIC RELATIONS Jacob Crows

EDGE EDITOR Hilary Saunders

ADMINISTRATOR ASSISTANT Maria Jamed

OPINION EDITOR Danielle Kaslow MULTIMEDIA EDITORS Matt Wallach Lauren Whiddon ASST. NEWS EDITORS Lila Albizu Megan Terilli ASST. SPORTS EDITOR Ramon Galiana

ACCOUNT REPS Shoshana Gottesman Misha Mayeur Katie Norwood Brian Schuman Jack Whaley GRADUATE ASSISTANT Nick Maslow FINANCIAL ADVISER Robert DuBord

ASST. PHOTO EDITOR Steven Stuts DESIGNERS Allison Goodman Steve Pierre Demi Rafuls Kiersten Schmidt

FACULTY ADVISER Bob Radziewicz

©2009 University of Miami The Miami Hurricane is published semi-weekly during the regular academic year and is edited and produced by undergraduate students at the University of Miami.

The publication does not necessarily represent the views and opinions of advertisers or the university’s trustees, faculty or administration. Unsigned editorials represent the opinion of The Hurricane’s Editorial Board.

Commentaries, letters and cartoons represent only the views of their respective authors. The newsroom and business office of The Hurricane are located in the Norman A. Whitten University Center, Room 221.

LETTER POLICY The Miami Hurricane encourages all readers to voice their opinions on issues related to the university or in response to any report published in The Hurricane.

Letters to the editor may be submitted typed or handwritten (please make your handwriting legible) to the Whitten University Center, Room 221, or mailed to P.O. Box 248132, Coral Gables, FL, 33124-6922. Letters, with a suggested length of 300 words, must be signed and include a copy of your student ID card, phone number and year in school.

ADVERTISING POLICY The Miami Hurricane’s business office is located at 1306 Stanford Drive, Norman A. Whitten University Center, Room 221B, Coral Gables, FL 33124-6922. The Miami Hurricane is published on Mondays and Thursdays during the university’s fall and spring academic terms.

Newspapers are distributed free of charge on the Coral Gables campus, the School of Medicine and at several off-campus locations.

DEADLINES All ads must be received, cash with copy, in The Miami Hurricane business office, Whitten University Center, Room 221B, by noon Tuesday for Thursday’s issue and by noon Friday for the Monday issue.

SUBSCRIPTIONS The Miami Hurricane is available for subscription at the rate of $50 per year.

AFFILIATIONS The Miami Hurricane is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press, Columbia Scholastic Press Assoc. and Florida College Press Assoc.

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Sportsmanship key to athletic arena ll avid sports fans cherish the opportunity to support their favorite teams in person.

Originally from Cleveland, I was excited to watch my hometown Cavs take on the Miami Heat on Thursday night in my first experience at an opposition’s venue.

I quickly realized that visiting fans are not afforded the same rights as their home team counterparts and my ability to peacefully cheer for my team was stifled by both the surrounding fans and

A

JACOB CROWS

CONTRIBUTING COLUMNIST

officers of the law.

From the moment my friends and I arrived at the AAA we were verbally attacked by Heat enthusiasts simply for rooting for the opposing team. The ruckus quickly attracted the attention of a police officer who forcefully confronted us and instructed us to “keep it down,” while holding her taser as a sign of intimidation. As paying customers we continued to cheer for the Cavs, making sure to never attack the Heat or respond to the barrage of verbal insults hurled our direction.

The police continued to follow our every move, even as we stepped out of our seats during halftime to visit the concession stands. After returning in the third quarter, we were surrounded by six police officers who proceeded to escort us out of the stands and claimed to have heard complaints from other fans. The officers repeatedly used profanity and one yelled at me to stand against the wall while he informed me that he was in possession of a gun. Following a brief discussion which included the threat of arrest, my friends and I decided to cut our losses and leave voluntarily to prevent any

I’M STUCK IN A COMIC!©

further police action.

I have never experienced such discrimination and I never would have thought being a fan could cause it all. This horribly unjustified use of force is far more than police misconduct but a profound statement about the state of sporting events around the country. Sports broadcasters put great emphasis on fans’ influence on the game and their ability to create a “hostile” environment that is difficult for opposing teams to compete in. Fans often wear this hostility as a badge of honor. Lost in the spectacle of the game atmosphere is the sportsmanship that should be an essential part of every athletic event. I think screaming for your team makes you a good fan but yelling at others because of the team they root for only makes you a coward.

Nearby Landshark Stadium was the first major venue to use text messaging to report unruly fans to stadium security. This was hailed as a great advancement and an easy way to improve the fan experience. But before blindly supporting this measure we must understand the difficulty in preventing the disturbance of others while providing justice to fans. The texting system can easily be abused and become a witch hunt for fans that disagree with the majority.

As our basketball season begins here at UM, we must remember to respect the rights of visiting fans. Hostile environments are not achieved through hatred, discrimination or ejection of others, but through a loud and healthy support of your team, whichever it may be. Oh, and that game the police forced me to leave early from? The Cavs won 111-104.

Jacob Crows is a junior majoring in public relations and psychology.

He may contacted at jcrows@themiamihurricane.com.

MATT ROSEN // The Miami Hurricane

November 19 - November 22, 2009

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edge

Wall to Wall Opera for All Festival presented by the Frost School of Music $5 for students Friday and Saturday at The Weeks Center for Recording and Performance

UM spreads peace and love through music

BY CARLA KERSTENS CONTRIBUTING EDGE WRITER

“Free hugs and high-fives!” shouted senior Kemy Joseph while walking around the Rock approaching bystanders. Joseph seems to be all about having a positive attitude and he wants to share it.

For the second year in a row, Joseph, the special events chair of Hurricane Productions, has been the drive behind the University of Miami’s Peace and Love Concert.

On Friday, HP and Random Acts of Kindness will co-sponsor a 12hour “mini-festival” on the UC Patio that seems to be anything but small.

“We’re doing it as big as possible,” Joseph said.

More than 10 bands are currently in the lineup for the concert beginning at 11 a.m. and ending at 11 p.m. The dual-stage event will feature local Miami and UM talent, including Tristan & the Juice, Jahfe, Beckham County Trainwreck, ArtOfficial, Time Machine Executives and Mr. Awesome and the Grove, which happens to include Kemy Joseph himself.

And Joseph is Mr. Awesome indeed, having collected more than 11,000 articles of clothing for the U R Awesome Clothing Drive.

Additionally, the Peace and Love Concert will offer a variety of entertainment options, all free to students. For this, the HP team

went all out. There will be face painting, henna tattoos, an art gallery, an oxygen bar, a drum circle and free food.

Zach Morillo, drummer for the popular local band Jahfe, described last year’s Peace and Love Concert as exciting and said that it had great energy. Last year’s event was expected to last only two hours but was so popular and well-received that it lasted twice as long.

This year, the expectations are even higher and Morillo wants people to leave the concert with a sense of awareness.

“A lot of our songs are conscious as to find solutions to problems in the world,” Morillo said. “We want everyone to feel a part of a conscious movement” and to “spread awareness and solutions for the problems that the world faces.”

This is precisely what the Peace and Love Concert is all about. Its purpose is to bring people together, because as Joseph says, “spreading love brings peace.”

Carla Kerstens may be contacted at ckerstens@ themiamihurricane.com.

IF YOU GO WHAT: Peace and Love Concert WHO: Time Machine Executives, Tristan & the Juice, Jahfe, Artofficial, Bekham County Trainwreck, Mr. Awesome and the Groove and many more!

WHERE: UC Patio WHEN: Friday from 11 a.m.-11 p.m.

COST: Free Image source flickr.com, Illustration by Allison Goodman

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY CHELSEA MATIASH // The Miami Hurricane

November 19 - November 22, 2009

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Idan Raichel Project brings soulful, cross-cultural music to Miami

BY SARAH B. PILCHICK SENIOR EDGE WRITER

COMMONS.WIKIMEDIA.COM

MAZEL-TOV: The Idan Raichel Project brings its worldly music to UM Saturday.

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EDGE

The Idan Raichel Project changed the face of world music when it burst onto the scene in 2002. The Israel-based band, led by front man Idan Raichel, combines African, Indian, Latin American, Middle Eastern and European rhythms to create an unprecedented blend of sounds. The group’s makeup and music read like a list of minority groups within Israel, most notably Ethiopian Israelis. The Idan Raichel Project will be performing at the Knight Concert Hall at the Adrienne Arsht Center Saturday, Nov. 21 at 8 p.m.

The Idan Raichel Project’s following has steadily grown since 2002 and its three albums since then have sold around 300,000 copies, a feat in such a niche market. Raichel, an Israeli citizen, invited over 70 musicians to participate in his band's recordings. The band, as of now, features Ethiopian Jews, Arabs, traditional Yemenite vocalists, a toaster and percussionist from Suriname and a South African singer.

Most of Raichel’s songs are in Hebrew, but other languages featured prominently are Amharic, Arabic, Zulu, Yemenite Hebrew, Spanish, Swahili and Hindi.

THE MIAMI HURRICANE

November 19 - November 22, 2009

Jewish liturgy is often referenced in the Hebrew lyrics, but the songs are accessible to all regardless of nationality and religion.

The Idan Raichel Project’s third album, Within My Walls, was released in the U.S. in February 2009.

Sophomore Naomi Levy grew up surrounded by Israeli culture and music, and her love of Raichel’s music grew when she spent a year in Israel. She has seen The Idan Raichel Project perform twice, once in New York City and once in Israel.

She loves the band’s music because it is “chill and relaxed,” naming “Mima’amakin” and “Bo’ee” as two of her favorite songs. “[Raichel] is so special because he takes refugees, just real people he finds and

likes, and gives them a chance. It is different and something cool. I have never heard of another artist doing this. It’s clear that he not only has music goals but also social justice ideals,” Levy said.

Hillel Rabbinic Director & Campus Liaison Robyn Fisher is also a longtime fan of the band’s music, citing the music’s “great beat.” She saw Raichel perform in front of thousands at an outdoor concert in Jerusalem this summer and was very impressed.

“He’s a major rock star… [The Idan Raichel Project is a] very hot band right now in Israel,” Fisher said.

Sarah B. Pilchick may be contacted at spilchick@ themiamihurricane.com.

IF YOU GO: WHAT: The Idan Raichel Project WHEN: Saturday at 8 p.m. Hillel’s group leaves at 6 p.m.

WHERE: Knight Concert Hall at the Adrienne Arsht Center COST: $25 for students through UM Hillel. Cost includes concert tickets, pre-show tour and transportation to and from the concert, leaving from the Hillel building.

For more information, contact Alyse Bessell at aabessell@miami.edu.

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UM students and Shakespeare "Shake it Up"

BY JEREMY ROSENTHAL CONTRIBUTING EDGE WRITER

Maybe our English professors are right, though comprised of words from a bygone era, William Shakespeare’s works are culturally relevant today.

That’s what “Shake it Up,” a night of cocktails and Shakespeare-inspired monologues by UM creative writing students, is looking to prove on Friday.

A cocktail reception will begin at 6:30 p.m. and the curtains will rise at the AE District at 8 p.m.

For the event, 23 monologues were written based on lines from the repertoire of England’s most celebrated writer. Ten were ultimately chosen for performance.

“Shakespeare is totally bawdy, funny, tragic and completely relevant,” said Vanessa Garcia, a graduate of the MFA program in creative writing at UM. “Shake it Up” will also have these trademarks.

Garcia, who is the director of The Krane, a visual and dramatic arts company, is co-producing the event with the director of New Light Studio/Gallery, Wendy White. With the help of AE District, Schnebly Redland’s Winery and the MFA program at UM, they hope to use the event to share their vision for a close-knit artist community in Miami and at UM. Both Garcia and White will be contributing monologues for the event.

UM English Professor A. Manette Ansay is

also contributing a piece to the “Shake it Up” lineup, “The Ides of March.”

“I just love the wild variety of contemporary interpretations he continues to inspire,” said Ansay of Shakespeare’s enduring relevancy and legacy.

Megan Casella Roth, a James Michener Fellow in creative writing and a current MFA candidate, is excited for the event. She will be performing her original monologue, “Multi-Purpose Solution.”

“The show pulls together writers from all over, and I think the monologues will be diverse in style and theme and provide a really dynamic show,” she said.

Jeremy Rosenthal may be contacted at jrosenthal@ themiamihurricane.com.

IF YOU GO WHAT: “Shake It Up” WHERE: AE District, 3852 N Miami Ave. WHEN: Friday at 6:30 p.m.

TICKETS: $15 For more information and advanced ticket sales please call Vanessa Garcia at 305-450-9931.

COURTESY VANESSA GARCIA

ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE: Actress and writer Marilyn Gresh performs a creative monologue entitled “RED.”

November 19 - November 22, 2009

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SPORTS

32

the average number of points per game for ACC Player of the Week Riquna Williams

14

the number of the three point baskets UM made Monday night; it was the most in 16 years

FOOTBALL

Goal to secure notable bowl game Jacory Harris expected to play despite injury

BY LELAN LEDOUX SENIOR SPORTS WRITER

Don’t tell the Hurricanes that there isn’t anything to play for.

With Georgia Tech clinching a spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship game, the Hurricanes 7-3 (4-3) will look to take out their frustration on the Duke Blue Devils 5-5 (3-3) at the final game at Land Shark Stadium Saturday at 12 p.m. The Canes will look to boost their resume in order to go to a notable bowl game.

“Duke is our last game in the conference, our last at Land Shark Stadium this season,” head coach Randy Shannon said.

“It’s also the seniors’ last opportunity to play at home. It’s a special time because of the seniors. This class has done a lot for us.”

In spite of throwing a career high with four interceptions last week against North Carolina and wearing a soft cast on his throwing hand this week, sophomore quarterback Jacory Harris is ready and expected to play against Duke.

The Hurricanes need Harris to forget about the Tar Heels and worry about putting on one of his best performances of the season against Duke.

“People want to see how we bounce back from this tough loss at North Carolina and you want to win your last game at home,” Harris said, who will wear a protective wrap over his right hand against Duke. “We want to win out.”

The blame for the two interceptions that were return for touchdowns should not all fall on Harris. Inconsistent senior right tackle Matt Pipho allowed his defender twice to get a shot on Harris and affected his pass on the two interceptions.

Last week, Harris was sacked twice and was hit or pressured 11 times. The offensive line must step up on pass protection to protect Harris.

“We have to protect Jacory,” senior center A.J. Trump said. “We cannot afford for him to get hit or anything that

BILLY GILBERT//THE MIAMI HURRICANE

BOUNCING BACK: Sophomore quarterback Jacory Harris passes the ball during Saturday’s game against UCF in Orlando. can affect his play.”

Miami holds a 5-1 series lead against a Duke team that hasn’t won a bowl game since 1960. Steve Spurrier was the last coach to bring Duke to a string of consecutive winning seasons, back in the late 1980s.

However, in the past two years, second-year head coach David Cutcliffe has made Duke competitive and they are one win away from being bowl-eligible.

But Harris refuses to let Duke become eligible to play at a bowl against the Canes. Last season, Miami picked up a 49-31 win under the arm of Harris as he threw a career-high four touchdowns and had his first coming-out party.

The Blue Devils will come in ranked ninth in the nation in passing offense with 297 yards per game and will be lead by quarterback Thaddeus Lewis, who is a

Miami native.

“I told [Lewis] he can’t expect to get a bowl appearance win against us,” Harris said. “We’re not going to take it easy on him.”

The Canes defense has stepped it up in the past two weeks. The Hurricanes are allowing only 239 total yards in the past two weeks.

“The last two weeks we have played

very well on defense,” Shannon said. “We can only care about how much better we get week to week. Duke is our only focus right now.”

The game will be broadcasted live on 90.5 FM or it can be streamed across the globe on wvum.org.

Lelan LeDoux may be contacted at lledoux@ themiamihurricane.com.

ACC Championship Game on Dec. 5th in Tampa Bay Coastal Division Champion Georgia Tech 10-1 (7-1)

November 19 - November 22 2009

Atlantic Division Champion Clemson 7-3 (5-2) with win over Virginia this week.

OR Boston College 7-3 (4-2) with wins over North Carolina and Maryland and Clemson loss to Virginia.

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WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Impressive opening

ANDREW TWENTER // The Miami Hurricane

RISING TO THE OCCASION: Sophomore guard Riquna Williams set a career high by scoring 34 points in the regular season opener Friday night.

Guard carries team to victorious weekend

BY JUSTIN ANTWEIL SPORTS EDITOR

The University of Miami men's basketball team is not the only basketball squad off to a hot start.

The UM women's basketball team (2-0) beat its first two opponents by an average of 20.5 points. An unlikely sophomore, superstar guard Shenise Johnson, is leading the way and has played well, but guard Riquna Williams has carried the team to victory.

Williams was named ACC Player of the Week after tallying 34 and 30 points

against UC Riverside and Cal State Bakersfield respectively. In the contest against Cal State Bakersfield, Williams set a school record making eight threepointers.

She became the first Hurricane to record back-to-back 30-point games since Tamara James in 2006.

Last year, Williams only averaged 8.7 points per game and had more than twice as many turnovers as assists. This year, the Pahokee, Fla. native is determined to rise to the occasion and take the team to the next level.

Information compiled from Hurricanesports.com.

Justin Antweil may be contacted at jantweil@ themiamihurricane.com.

MATCHUPS: MIAMI VS. DUKE POSITION

ADVANTAGE

POSITION

Quarterbacks

Defensive Line

Running Backs

Secondary

Wide Receivers/ Tight Ends

Special Teams

Offensive Line

Coaching

ADVANTAGE

Ian Hest may be contacted at ihest@themiamihurricane.com.

LOG ON TO THEMIAMIHURRICANE.COM FOR IAN HEST’S ANALYSIS OF EACH UNIT.

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MEN’S BASKETBALL

DANCE

Shooter in command Sunsational sisters For UM dancers, it’s all in the family

BY EMILY WINGROVE CONTRIBUTING SPORTS WRITER

ALEX BROADWELL//The Miami Hurricane

ON POINT: Point guard Malcolm Grant runs down the court during the game against Nova Southeastern last Monday at the BankUnited Center.

Transfer player adds value, drive to team

BY LELAN LEDOUX SENIOR SPORTS WRITER

Doubters are always welcomed by Malcolm Grant.

“People are doubting me all the time,” the six-foot-one redshirt sophomore said.

“People are doubting my team. We don’t get a lot of notoriety that we deserve so I use that as motivation. People doubting me motivates me. That keeps me going.”

Grant even questions himself to add more fuel to his motivation to perform to the best of his capacity. He uses the reverse psychology approach.

“I tell myself that Malcolm Grant is not good,” Grant said, who wears No. 3 to honor Dwyane Wade. “Or I tell myself that there are 1,000 other better players than me.”

Last year, UM missed having a true point guard.

“He’s a complete point guard, very talented,” head coach Frank Haith said.

“He is like an old-school player. He is a leader and has great command. He is vocal and I love it.”

Off the court, Grant spends his time watching comedy movies featuring Martin Lawrence, Eddie Murphy or Bernie Mac. Grant truly loves watching the television show Martin and eating jerk chicken, a few acts that humble him all the time.

To keep his mind busy and active, Grant spends as much time as he can on word find puzzles.

Growing up in Brooklyn, N.Y., Grant had a basketball in his hands at all times.

“Basketball is in my family,” Grant said. “My brothers played and my father bought me a Fisher Price hoop so I would play in the house all day.”

That Fisher Price hoop eventually turned into an official 10-foot hoop, where Grant excelled and then received a scholarship to Villanova though Miami was recruiting him.

At Villanova, Grant drew national attention on ESPN as a freshman when he scored 18 points in the final seven minutes of a 21-point comeback victory over LSU. With Villanova having a crowded backcourt, Grant transferred to the Hurricanes.

After sitting out last season because of NCAA transfer rules and seeing his former school go to the Final Four without him, Grant is determined to succeed.

“I want to be a great leader and, most of all, a winner,” Grant said. “I don’t want to leave hearing people saying Malcolm Grant was 'okay,' I want people to say Malcolm Grant was 'great' or 'the greatest.'”

The Hurricanes (2-0) opened their 2009-2010 season in impressive style this past weekend beating North Carolina Central and Nova Southeastern by an average of 40 points each.

The competition gets tougher as they head to South Carolina for the Charleston Classic Thursday to play Tulane at 1:30 p.m.

Lelan LeDoux may be contacted lledoux@ themiamihurricane.com.

Sometimes female athletes consider their bonds with their teammates to be sisterly, even though they aren’t really related. For two members of the University of Miami’s Sunsations Dance Team, however, they actually are.

Nicole Bradley and younger sister Rochelle have been dancing together since the age of three. Together, they followed their dancing dreams to UM's Sunsations Dance Team.

Senior Nicole, double majoring in print journalism and sports administration, joined the team her junior year, while sophomore Rochelle, a psychology major, joined her freshman year.

“Its kind of weird now because I am a veteran but my sister is older than me,” co-captain Rochelle said. “But we get along just fine.”

For the Bradley sisters it was a nobrainer to choose to attend UM- their parents, as well as three other relatives, are all alumni.

“They are wonderful girls and wonderful teammates,” head coach Kristine Stevenson said. “They help everybody out and they offer a lot to the team in terms of support.”

Rochelle and Nicole were both members of their high school dance teams.

They attended Miami Northwestern Se-

nior High and Miami Norlands Senior High respectively. They also danced competitively through dance programs such as Hip-Hop Kidz of Miami and Children’s Dance Theatre of South Florida.

“We’ve always supported each other, no matter what teams we are on,” Nicole said.

They also support each other through each try-out process, which occurs at the beginning and end of every spring. The Sunsations set up tables in the University Center to recruit before each try-out.

What most people don’t know about the Sunsations is that they do a lot of promotional events on top of dancing at home football games and most of the men and women’s basketball games. This year they have gone to approximately six different elementary schools to help out for Red Ribbon Week, a week devoted to drug prevention and awareness. They also volunteered at the second annual BasketBowl, the men’s basketball fundraiser at Splitsville.

“We are ambassadors of the university,” Stevenson said. “So we try to do as much community service as possible. I’m a firm believer in diversity and positive female image.”

The Bradley sisters said that for them, dancing doesn’t stop with their graduation from UM. They each have the dream of dancing for the Miami Heat or the Miami Dolphins.

Emily Wingrove may be contacted at ewingrove@themiamihurricane.com.

ALEX BROADWELL//The Miami Hurricane

DANCING QUEENS: Sophomore Rochelle Bradley performs with the Sunsations at a basketball game against North Carolina Central Saturday.

November 19 - November 22 2009

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dear ...

Dear V: Looking for relief from a comic...

Dear Sally, , Dear V, My boyfriend has a very bizarre sense of humor. I know that a lot of guys like to be funny, but this one takes it to a whole new level. He plays stupid pranks all the time. He puts a fake fly in peoples’ drinks when we go out, he carries around a plastic snake to freak people out, and one time he even put a fake dog turd in bed, which I discovered after what I thought was a romantic date. Oh, and let’s not forget the fake hillbilly teeth he likes to bust out and tries to kiss me with- regularly. Is there something wrong with him? Or am I just being too uptight?

Sincerely, Serious Sally

Everyone enjoys basking in a little attention—especially guys. Most men love making people laugh in order to get attention. But unfortunately, the “funny gene” does not always come with a Y-chromosome.

This is one of those situations during which you must trust your own judgment. You’ve already determined that your beau’s comedy routines do not sit well with you. Now you need to decide whether or not he can manage in public without his plastic snake.

Keep a watchful eye. Rather than insisting omission of the fake f ly from your dinner plans, suggest that he leave it at home. Tell him you’ve seen it before. See how he reacts.

I usually don’t advocate revenge, but I am giving you the go-ahead to consider this in your case.

Nothing too serious, though. A strategically Saran-

wrapped toilet might get his attention.

He shouldn’t be dishing it out if he can’t take it back.

A stubborn reaction on his part suggests that he uses gags as a social crutch. Maybe he has some deeper issues at hand. At this point, you need to decide whether you’d like to work at these issues, or leave them alone and go your separate ways.

Don’t be so quick to get down on yourself. Constant pranks would be annoying to anyone. A romantic night, sans plastic dog doo, should never be an expectation too high for any woman.

Best, V Have a question for V? Hit up DearV@ themiamihurricane.com.

GOT AN ACHY, BREAKY HEART? WRITE TO DEARV@ THEMIAMIHURRICANE.COM FOR ADVICE. Sexual Assault Response Team Seeks Telephone Volunteers The Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) is looking for warm, empathetic, and mature individuals to serve as telephone advocates for victims of sexual assault. Advocates typically respond to calls and assist callers, which may include providing emotional support, providing referral information, and creating a safe and supportive environment. If you are a faculty member, staff member, administrator, or graduate student and would like to become a part of this important team, please call:

305-284-5511

November 19 - November 22 2009

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DEAR V

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