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Volume 47, Issue 76 | TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2013 | ndsmcobserver.com
UNIVERSITY CLOSED Winter weather warning shuts down all non-essential activity at Notre Dame and Saint Mary’s
Observer Staff Report
Notre Dame and Saint Mary’s closed due to inclement weather Monday and will remain closed until Tuesday evening. Only essential employees are required to remain on the College’s campus, according to its emergency announcement. In Notre Dame’s emergency notification email, the University instructed snow-essential personnel to contact their supervisors. As of press time, the dining halls at Saint Mary’s will remain
open during their normal operating hours. According to a campuswide email from University spokesman Dennis Brown, Notre Dame’s dining halls will operate on a limited schedule Tuesday. Brunch will be served from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Dinner will be served from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. The LaFortune Student Center and limited eateries will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. for students seeking shelter and food. South Dining Hall manager Marc Poklinkowski said the University’s closure challenged
dining hall staffs to maintain services. “The staff has been doing a really good job. … It’s an all-handson-deck situation,” Poklinkowski said. “We were getting killed today. Some student staff are staying from the breakfast shift [to help with] the dinner shift tonight. “There’s been a lot of confusion with the University closing. It doesn’t mean we don’t have to come in. We are emergency staff members.” The weather emergency that
St. Joseph County authorities declared Monday prompted the University’s closure, according to a message sent to students via ND Alert, the University’s emergency messaging service. Under the weather warning, drivers on the roads after 7 p.m. Monday, except for those with emergency reasons, will be ticketed and fined. According to a Jan. 7 report in The South Bend Tribune, South Bend Police Capt. Phil Trent said this fine might total 500 dollars if individuals are cited under the
state statute that says ignoring a city’s emergency declaration is a misdemeanor. Lt. Matt Blank of the St. Joseph County Police Department told the Tribune that drivers are more likely to be cited under a county ordinance violation, which carries a fine of up to 2,500 dollars. A representative from the South Bend Police Department said, however, that South Bend police officers plan to work off of the city ordinance regarding emergency declarations, which would levy a 25 dollar fine against drivers.
‘Purple Week’ raises Relay SMC alumnae volunteer in Ghana for Life funds, awareness By H A LEIGH EHMSEN News Wr iter
Listening to people’s stories is one of t he best g if ts Sa int Ma r y’s a lumna Monica Mur phy sa id she has received t hrough t he Col lege’s post-g raduate serv ice prog ra m. Mur phy, a socia l work major, sa id she a rrived in Gha na last Aug ust a nd w ill teach at Our Lady of Holy Cross School in Kasoa unt il mid-June. Mur phy sa id she decided to spend t he yea r in Gha na because she has a lways been a ser v ice-oriented person. “Ser v ing in A f rica has been a drea m for yea rs, as t he stories of t he children touched me in a persona l way,” Mur phy sa id. The prog ra m in Gha na a l lows Mur phy to ga in experience in ma ny dif ferent
aspects of school life, she sa id.“I a m teaching a few English classes to t he ‘Basic One’ students, a not her term for f irst g rade,” Mur phy sa id. “[I] a m a lso doing socia l work, which involves meet ing w it h students indiv idua lly a nd somet imes t heir pa rents.” Mur phy sa id she a lso ser ves as t he school’s libra ria n, w it h t he help of a not her volunteer. She a nd ot her volunteers brought suitcases f u ll of books when t hey a rrived in Aug ust to replace t he old, torn copies currently in t he school’s possession, she sa id. “In t he libra r y, I a m reading to students a nd a m helping t hem ex pa nd t heir reading vocabu la r y,” Mur phy sa id. ”The students love when I read to t hem.” see GHANA PAGE 3
By MEGH A N THOM ASSEN Ma nag i ng Ed itor
This week, Not re Da me’s club for t he A merica n Ca ncer Societ y w i l l host Pur ple Week, a series of events to ra ise f unds a nd awa reness for t he Ma rch 28 Relay for Life at t he Compton Fa mi ly Ice A rena. The Relay for Life is a n event desig ned to honor ca ncer v ict ims a nd surv ivors a nd to ra ise f unds for resea rch projects in t he pursuit of a cure for ca ncer, according to t he event’s website. Student orga ni zer Jack Sziget y sa id one goa l for Pur ple Week, na med a f ter t he sig nature color of t he A merica n Ca ncer Societ y, is to increase t he number of student tea ms sig ned up for t he race. “Pur ple Week is li ke our
STEPH WULZ | The Observer
pump up for Relay for L ife,” Sziget y sa id. “R ight now we have 23 tea ms. … We’re t r y ing to have a capta in
at each dorm, but we on ly have 11 reg istered so fa r, so see PURPLE WEEK PAGE 3
The State of our Union is... Viewpoint PAGE 5
scene PAGE 7
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M. Basketball PAGE 12
HOCKEY PAGE 12