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University of Wisconsin-Madison
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FOUR-YEAR PHENOMS: Angie Keseley and Erika Lawler make one last championship run for the women’s hockey team. SPORTS
dailycardinal.com
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Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Ensuring campus safety Police, ASM and students take steps to prevent crime at UW
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JACOB ELA/CARDINAL FILE PHOTO
SAFEwalkers escort a UW-Madison student home at night.
t was early Tuesday morning, and he was sleeping. It was an average day—nothing seemed unusual or out of the ordinary. He was not causing a commotion or even the slightest disturbance. And yet, when he awoke, there was a man standing above him, knife in hand, demanding money. This UW-Madison student fortunately did not sustain any injuries, but his perpetrator remains at large. When senseless acts such as these happen so close
to home, it is hard not to wonder what the university, the police and the rest of the Madison community are doing to ensure they do not happen again. According to UWPD Sgt. Jason Whitney, crime and safety issues are always being addressed. “We work very closely with the administration and key departments on campus,” Whitney said. “We have weekly, monthly, daily communication. We’re all focused on the main goal of keeping the university a safe place to work and learn.” Troy Ruland, the newly appointed SAFE supervisor, agrees with Whitney. After beginning in December, Ruland has recognized a level of heightened awareness
toward safety. “I believe there are many safe- guards in place that the campus provides and educational opportunities available for students, faculty, staff and guests,” he said. “Like all urban campuses, safety is an important and necessary component.” That necessary component often comes in the form of SAFEwalkers. “[SAFEwalkers] do regular rounds throughout campus during their shift,” Ruland said. “This includes staging at locations of high student density and riding the campus bus routes routinely.” safety page 4
Lawmakers wary of stimulus distribution By Jessica Feld THE DAILY CARDINAL
With an estimated $4.3 billion of the federal economic-stimulus bill allotted to Wisconsin, state lawmakers are insisting on legislative oversight of expenditures made by Gov. Jim Doyle’s administration. In a WisPolitics statement, state Sen. Tim Carpenter, DMilwaukee, described oversight as an essential responsibility of all lawmakers. “A dollar misspent is a lost opportunity,” Carpenter said. “As legislators, it is our responsibility to ensure that the funds are spent wisely, on programs and projects that will put Wisconsinites to work and provide us with the services needed in these troubled times.”
Carrie Lynch, spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker, D-Schofield, said Democrats are in favor of targeting money toward infrastructure projects because they provide instate jobs to Wisconsin residents. To assist in decisions about the allocation of federal stimulus money, Doyle developed the Office of Recovery and Reinvestment. According to Carla Vigue, spokesperson for Doyle, he and the office are considering a long list of projects that have been determined to be “trouble-ready.” “The governor is going to be looking at the list, determining how to move forward and how to spend the money in a way stimulus page 3
Regents to receive annual growth report By Hannah McClung THE DAILY CARDINAL
The Growth Agenda for Wisconsin will take precedence at the UW System Board of Regents’ meeting this week as members discuss the document’s proposed “action steps.” The regents established the Growth Agenda in response to Advantage Wisconsin, the strategic planning process that works to “improve Wisconsin’s competitive edge, nationally and globally,” according to the Growth Agenda document. “The overall Growth Agenda is not just to set a budget initiative, but an overall plan of economy development and job growth,” UW System spokesperson David Giroux said.
According to Giroux, several of the 11 action steps are already occurring because of shared goals with other existing programs adopted by the UW System. “[The action steps] are not budget updates of budget-funded initiatives,” Giroux said. “They are a separate set of things that are largely self-funded.” According to Giroux, several of the action steps relate back to initiatives funded in the last biennial budget, but the programs are not the same. The “Transforming research into leading-edge jobs and economic vitality for Wisconsin” step plans to form collaborations with industries to encourage undergraduate regents page 3
LORENZO ZEMELLA/THE DAILY CARDINAL
Mayor Dave Cieslewicz led debate over Acacia’s house renovations at the Common Council meeting Tuesday.
City Council disagrees on Acacia renovations By Amy Rosenfeld THE DAILY CARDINAL
The Common Council motioned to place the discussion of UWMadison’s Acacia fraternity house renovations on file to be discussed at a later date Tuesday night at a City Council meeting. The initial renovation proposal consisted of remodeling the existing Acacia house, located at 222 Langdon St., and converting the backyard parking lot into a new 16-unit apartment building. The contractors, Alexander Company, will now have time to revise the plans for renovation before the
proposal is discussed again at a later date. Many residents who oppose the construction spoke about their reservations at the meeting. Opponents of the plan believe the remodeling to be a hazard to the well-being of the neighborhood. After hearing from many residents of Langdon Street about their reasons for opposing the plans, Ald. Brenda Konkel, District 2, was discouraged from voting in favor of the reconstruction project. “In the end, when you add all that up, I can’t find a way to support this project,” Konkel said.
“What I heard from the people in this area tonight is important to me.” Ald. Michael Schumacher, District 18, was in favor of the renovation proposal. “Getting rid of types of places such as Dumpsters and parking lots is desirable and ultimately fits into the Madison community.” Goals of increasing density and having a “welcoming neighborhood” were in conflict throughout the discussion. This debate prevented the Common Council from making a decision on the renovations to the Acacia house.
“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”