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RUTGERS UNIVERSITY—NEW BRUNSWICK
THURSDAY, APRIL 14, 2016
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President Robert Barchi discusses choosing of Bill Moyers as speaker
More than 2,500 students could be impacted by the cuts proposed by Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) to the Educational Opportunity Fund budget. GRAPHIC BY SUSMITA PARUCHURI / DESIGN EDITOR
Adminstrators explain proposed cuts to EOF CAMILO MONTOYA-GALVEZ CORRESPONDENT
More than 2,600 students across the three Rutgers University campuses could be affected by proposed cuts to New Jersey’s Educational Opportunity Fund. On Feb. 16, Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) announced his administration’s state budget proposal for the 2017 fiscal year. Included in the governor’s budget summary is a suggested $2.57 million reduction
to the funding of “EOF grants and scholarships” state-wide. Since its establishment in 1968, the New Jersey Educational Opportunity Fund has offered financial support and academic services to economically disadvantaged students who attend institutions of higher education – both public and private – in the state. “We would still have a commitment to those students (in the SEE CUTS ON PAGE 4
Bill Moyers was announced as the 2016 commencement speaker by the University on April 6, but immediately received backlash from students hoping for another figure. WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
AVALON ZOPPO MANAGING EDITOR
On April 6, the University announced Bill Moyers as this
year’s commencement speaker, disappointing students who believed President Barack Obama would be the 250th anniversar y speaker.
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Annual research writing conference displays work
Students rally to support professor prior to hearing
NIKHILESH DE NEWS EDITOR
NOA HALFF ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR
More than 30 students rallied on the Old Queens lawn Wednesday morning to support Jennifer Warren, an assistant professor in the Department of Communication. Warren was denied tenure in April 2015, which prompted the Rutgers chapter of Black Lives Matter to organize “Challenging Institutionalized Racism,” a rally to support tenure for Warren. The rally began at 10:30 a.m., with Warren speaking of her past and her roots from Trenton, New Jersey, as well as her experience at Rutgers, an institution she said she loves teaching at. The group then chanted outside of University President Robert L. Barchi’s office and
Following the announcement, students took to Facebook with complaints, and a petition began circulating online. The petition, “The Class of 2016 Demands a new commencement speaker,” garnered 100 supporters in one day. “I spent nearly $100,000 on my education here and I would like my sendoff to be memorable,” wrote School of Arts and Sciences senior Carly Grossman on the change.org petition. Moyers was chosen due to the Senate Committee’s late start with the commencement process this year, President Robert L. Barchi told The Daily Targum in an interview on Tuesday. “You can’t start this process two months before graduation and expect that you’re going to get the result you would like to have if you did it two years before graduation,” Barchi said. “That is not in any way to denigrate Mr. Moyers. We were lucky he was there at such short notice.” Commencement speakers should normally be invited two years before graduation, Barchi said. First, the Senate Committee must gather, discuss, evaluate and rank nominees in a list that is sent to the Board of Trustees, who then begin inviting speakers in the ranked order. But this year, the Senate Committee presented the list to the Board of Trustees in January. By then,
Students protested in support of Jennifer Warren, an assistant professor who was denied tenure in April 2015. Some say this was racially motivated. DIMITRI RODRIGUEZ / PHOTO EDITOR proceeded to walk down the College Avenue campus. “Tenure for Jennifer,” was shouted amongst the protesters in unison, as they walked to the School of Communication and Information, where the school’s dean, Jonathan Potter, spoke to the crowd. The goal of the rally was to show the administration and encourage them to make a change regarding Jennifer Warren, the 4 percent
rate of tenure for black professors and institutionalized racism, said Taqwa Brookins, a School of Arts and Sciences sophomore and a member of Black Lives Matter. Students found the reasons Jennifer Warren did not get tenure were extremely biased, she said. Rutgers prides itself in being diverse, but when Brookins walks SEE HEARING ON PAGE 4
Nearly 50 students across ever y school presented independent research performed while taking different classes in the Department of English Tuesday morning at the Undergraduate Research Writing Conference. Only students who earned an A grade in one of four different writing courses were invited to submit papers to the conference, said Lynda Dexheimer, who organized the event. Dexheimer is an assistant director of the Writing Program. “It’s a good opportunity for students to share their exceptional work with the University community,” she said. “I want students to show off their accomplishments, I want them to show off their incredible projects, and it’s a great venue for them to highlight their work.” More than 200 students submitted papers for consideration, of
which 48 were selected to make presentations during the panels hosted over the course of the day. Eight were awarded for their efforts during lunch as well, she said. The eight awards, which included cash prizes and are granted by Rutgers libraries and several deans, only recognized some of the work presented at the conference. But just being a part of it is momentous for students, Dexheimer said. “For students on the practical level, it’s a way to distinguish themselves on a graduate school application. It’s quite a marker of success,” she said. “Just to be able to say ‘I was selected from this competitive pool of candidates’ … there’s thousands and thousands of students who take these courses.” To qualify, a student must have taken either “Research in the Disciplines,” “College Writing and Research,” “Scientific and Technical
VOLUME 148, ISSUE 47 • UNIVERSITY ... 3 • OPINIONS ... 6 • CLASSIFIEDS ... 7 • ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT ... 10 • DIVERSIONS ... 11 • SPORTS ... BACK
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