The Miami Student Established 1826
FRIDAY, APRIL 24, 2015 VOLUME 142 NO. 51
WWW.MIAMISTUDENT.NET
MIAMI UNIVERSITY OXFORD, OHIO
MU distances from a ‘topsy turvy’ history with women HISTORY
EMILY WILLIAMS ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
In an issue of The Miami Student published December 1902, the editors published a poem entitled “Topsy Turvy:” “A new Miami’s risen, the Coed’s right on hand/To the old Miami fellows, it’s all topsy turvy land/ There’s women on the faculty… The men are perfect ladies/The girls are athletes strong,/Can all these topsy turvy things continue very long?” At the time, the university was experiencing its first substantial influx of female students since the university had started accepting women in 1887 — 78 years after the school was chartered in 1809. Although women have not always been a part of Miami’s history, the university’s female students and faculty members have and continue to assert their places as scholars and leaders in the community. Before women could attend Miami, Oxford was home to three women’s colleges, run by three separate Presbyterian churches. When Miami was forced to close its doors temporarily from 1883 to 1885, the women’s colleges remained open. Among them was the Western College, a school which was intended to emulate the prestigious New England women’s college Mount Holyoke. Just as Miami was meant to mirror schools like Yale University, this college was hailed by its founders as the Mount Holyoke of the West, hence its name. The reopening of Miami in 1885, now as a state-funded institution, ushered in the New Miami. Through the 1890s, the university
had no more than 16 women enrolled at a time, but after the turn of the century, women from Oxford and beyond enrolled, challenging the university’s status quo. Females now make up 52 percent of Miami’s student population. In an address former university president Phillip Shriver gave in 1996 about the history of women at Miami, Shriver explained that, shortly after women were first admitted to Miami, Oxford voted to become a dry town in 1905. “They honestly believed that only through prohibition could there be protection of a university community that was meaningfully and significantly coeducational,” Shriver said. The local prohibition was not lifted until 1980. One of the first women’s advocacy groups formed at Miami was a Suffrage Club. Its first meeting, a large gathering of eager young women in the living room of Bishop Hall, was described in the March 19, 1914 issue of The Student. According to the article, the club was established not in direct support of women’s suffrage but “to study the question of suffrage for women.” “The aim of the organization still proves that the Miami woman is never radical,” the reporter wrote. That same year, six female students met with Guy Potter Benton, the university’s president at the time, to discuss their idea of forming a social sorority. The Delta Zeta sorority was then founded that year and has since drawn in over 247,000 members nationwide. Miami’s Greek life has since grown to now include 21 sororities. According to an article in the March 21, 1969 edition of The
Student, Miami hosted a panel discussion entitled “Liberation: Can Women Swing It? Can Men Take It?” The article included a few statements from one of the panelists, a professor of English at the time at Miami, John Reardon. “I think women are wonderful,” he said. “I just can’t imagine why anyone would want to be one.” Only four years later, an article with a full-page spread bore a very different title and tone. “A woman’s place — wherever she chooses,” the May 27 headline read. The Oxford Women’s Liberation had just sponsored its first women’s conference, “Woman’s Free Space — Not Place.” Now, decades later, Miami is hosting its second annual Miami Initiative for Advancing, Mentoring and Investing in Women (M.I.A.M.I Women) Leadership Symposium as part of the M.I.A.M.I. initiative that works with alumni, campus offices and student groups to encourage and empower women who are taking on leadership roles. The event kicked off with a keynote address Thursday evening in the Armstrong Pavilion from Sheryl Wu Dunn and Nicholas Kristof. WuDunn, the first Asian American journalist to win a Pulitzer Prize and Kristof, a two-time Pulitzer winner, are both spouses and co-authors. They have written two books together, “A Path Appears” and “Half the Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity for Women Worldwide.” The remainder of the program, which will conclude Friday afternoon, will feature panel discussions and workshops with Miami faculty MU WOMEN »PAGE 9
A retraction and an apology In the April 21 issue, The Miami Student published a story titled “The Baron of Brick Street,” a profile of Will Weisman, co-owner of Brick Street bar. We have learned that we cannot vouch for the veracity of the story. Therefore, we retract it. The story was originally written for a journalism class. The Student has occasionally published articles written for classes, but only if the writer has informed his or her
M
TODAY IN MIAMI HISTORY NEWS
writer of the article has now told us that Williams did not say the words attributed to him. We have removed the story from our website. We apologize to those quoted in the story, including Will Weisman and Jay Williams, and we apologize to our readers for publishing a story that fails to meet our standards.
Reis Thebault Editor-in-Chief
’TIS BUT A FLESH WOUND Two LARPers do battle on Central Quad Saturday during the Renaissance Festival.
New Miami IDs to be printed with students’ birthdates UNIVERSITY
MARY SCHROTT THE MIAMI STUDENT
Miami student IDs will now have students’ birthdates printed on them, effective immediately. Any current or future students requiring a new Miami ID will receive one with a birthdate. According to Jeanne Via, manager of Campus Card Services at Miami University, the change began officially on April 6. “It took me about five minutes to add it,” Via said on changing
the printing of ID cards. Dean of Students Mike Curme said the decision arose in part from the work of the alcohol task force and their conversations with local permit holders Uptown. “There was a sense from these discussions that having the birthdate included on the Miami ID could be helpful to their operations,” Curme said. The technology to print birthdates has always been available. In fact, the printing of birthdates IDs »PAGE 5
Geography department plans memorial garden for Eldemire MEMORIAL
VICTORIA SLATER MANAGING EDITOR
It didn’t matter what it was to Rebecca Eldemire — if it was living, she loved it. Since her death on Feb. 1, the 21-year-old has left behind a passion for anything green, and a determined drive to protect it. Now, Miami University’s geography department plans to memorialize Becca’s ecological mission and commitment to nature, and sustain it for years to come. If everything goes according to plan, and enough fundraising is secured, the Native Landscape Garden in Memory of Rebecca Eldemire will be unveiled next spring along with the renovations to Shideler Hall. “Becca’s life and work enriched this university,” said geography professor and Becca’s former
adviser David Prytherch. “We hope the Miami community can join us in honoring her commitment to learning and the environment on this campus she loved so much.” Plans for the memorial call for a small garden to be planted in the west courtyard of Shideler Hall, a place where Becca devoted much of her time and work as a geography and geographic information systems (GSI) double major at Miami. Initial designs for the garden include many of Becca’s favorite plants, such as milkweed, to support a population of monarch butterflies and flowers fit for bees and hummingbirds. The garden may also utilize a storm water feature to collect rain, to commemorate Becca’s dedication to sustainability and ecology. “We want to build a place that everybody can enjoy,” Prytherch GARDEN »PAGE 4
On April 24, 2007, The Miami Student reported that Miami’s university senate voted to adopt a smoke-free policy on the Oxford and branch campuses. An ASG member reacted to the ruling, saying, “Students pay a lot of money to stay in a dorm that we now have to stay and live in for two years — how can they not smoke?” NEWS
SORORITY RETENTION RATES UNKNOWN »PAGE 2
sources that the story was to be published, and if the sources have agreed to be quoted for publication. The editors were led to believe the writer of “The Baron of Brick Street” had followed these steps with her sources. After the story was published, we learned the writer did not do so. Therefore, we cannot stand by any part of the story. In addition, the article attributed a quotation to Jay Williams of the Miami hockey team; the
IAN MARKER THE MIAMI STUDENT
FSB RAISES GPA REQUIREMENT »PAGE 2
Apartments
CULTURE
FASHION SHOW PHOTO ESSAY »ONLINE
OPINION
BOARD LAMENTS CAMPUS DEMOLITION »PAGE 6
SPORTS
BASEBALL LOSES IN EXTRA INNINGS »PAGE 10