The Hoya: Oct. 21, 2011

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GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD SINCE 1920 thehoya.com

Georgetown University • Washington, D.C. Vol. 93, No. 14, © 2011

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2011

SIGNALING THE WAY

Debuting this weekend at the Davis Center, “Visible Impact” starts a conversation on ability.

WEATHERING THE STORM The men’s soccer team battled high winds and rain to win at Marquette, 3-2.

GUIDE, G8

SPORTS, A12

Showtime: SeniorsVie for Crown SFS Email Discloses Private Student Data JONATHAN GILLIS Hoya Staff Writer

It’s Tuesday and long after dark, and GUSA President Mike Meaney (SFS ’12) is dancing in the Intercultural Center. Meaney pulls up the bottom of his mesh shorts, slides to the left and strikes a pose. He is trying to stay in sync with the track, LMFAO’s “Party Rock Anthem,” but he looks a little discombobulated. His dance instructor, Groove Theory’s Hannah Conn (COL ’12), nods her approval. “I think you’re starting to get it,” she says encouragingly. This isn’t just a casual dance lesson for Meaney; he has a performance in Gaston Hall scheduled for tonight. As Mr. GUSA, Meaney has to be ready to strut his stuff at the Mr. Georgetown Pageant, a Homecoming tradition that lets a handful of senior men duke it out to see who is the most talented, the most accomplished and, of course, the most glamorous. As The Hoya reported in 2005, the pageant made its debut during Homecoming weekend of that year with 10 contestants, who paraded around in thongs and eveningwear. The brainchild of the Georgetown Program Board, the event served as a charity fundraiser, with the winner deciding where to donate the proceeds. It was a huge hit — students loved the absurdity of seeing their See PAGEANT, A5

MARIAH BYRNE & GLENN RUSSO

such as the students’ Social Security numbers, were not disclosed. “I was pretty upset because I feel like Sensitive personal information of 305 personal data of that nature shouldn’t students, including names and universi- be in a file that could easily be sent ty identification numbers, was acciden- around,” said Emily Bertsche (SFS ’12), tally sent to 26 seniors in the School of whose information was included in the data accidentally released. Foreign Service Monday. “I wish I knew more information The SFS dean’s office released the information of the students, who were all about what happened,” said Doug Wolff seniors in the SFS, via an email attach- (SFS ’12), a senior whose GPA was included in the information. ment sent to 26 reThe school sent out cipients. Dean Mitch Kaneda informed the “We ... are taking steps a clarifying response to those requesting students whose infor- to prevent similar more information mation was disclosed by email Tuesday af- incidents from occur- about the error. Lucas Stratmann (SFS ’12), ternoon. According to ring in the future.” chair of the SFS AcaRachel Pugh, director of media relations, CAROL LANCASTER demic Council, said he Dean of the School of Foreign Service hopes that the dean’s those 26 students office will release the who received the data were asked to destroy it. All 26 have con- context of the incident. “[An explanation] should be sent out firmed doing so with the dean’s office to everyone so that there’s no uncertainas of Thursday. “We take the security of student in- ty [about] what happened,” he said. Some students, like Bertsche, feared formation very seriously, and we deeply regret this error,” Dean of the SFS Carol that other personal data of hers could Lancaster said. “We are reviewing the be contained in similar documents incident and are taking steps to prevent that could be similarly disclosed. She similar incidents from occurring in the suggested that the SFS outline policies future. This shouldn’t have happened, regarding the control and distribution of such information. and we apologize for it.” “It sounds like it was just carelessness Personal data, including students’ names, Net IDs and academic informa- ... which could easily happen again. It’s tion, such as GPA and major, were in- hard not to let this affect my perception advertently shared. More sensitive facts, of the dean’s office,” she said. Hoya Staff Writers

LEONEL DE VELEZ FOR THE HOYA

Nathan Epstein (COL ’12), the Pep Band’s contender in the Mr. Georgetown Pageant, strums at a dress rehearsal for tonight’s lighthearted contest.

University Intervention Interviews Link GU’s Past, Future Keeps Yearbook Afloat PAVAN RAJGOPAL Special to The Hoya

UPASANA KAKU Hoya Staff Writer

Ye Domesday Booke will continue to publish after being dropped by the Media Board as a student organization last month. The yearbook, which has been printing since 1905, will now be sponsored

MEAGAN KELLY/THE HOYA

The Center for Student Programs will now manage production of the yearbook.

directly by the Center for Student Programs, according to CSP Director Erika Cohen-Derr. “I don’t think that the Media Board was comfortable designating and selecting leadership for the yearbook, but they saw there was value in it,” she said. Due to declining interest and a dwindling staff, the Media Board voted to end the yearbook’s status as an organization under its purview with the intention that CSP would absorb the publication. Days before the decision, the board sent out an email encouraging students to apply to be co-editors of the tome. Cohen-Derr said that about 10 students expressed interest in working for Ye Domesday Booke, and she plans to hold the first meeting for the organization this month. While organized under the CSP, the yearbook will remain student run. Other student groups, such as the Senior Class Council and General Program Board, are

While thousands of Georgetown hopefuls finalize their applications, over 5,000 members of the Alumni Ambassadors Program are gearing up to interview prospective members of the class of 2016. “The interview adds another layer to the application and gives us a bit more insight into the applicant,” said Colleen Miltenberg, assistant director of undergraduate admissions and one of the program’s coordinators. AAP, founded in 1964 with

fewer than 400 interviewers, now includes members from all 50 states, ranging from six in Wyoming to the multitudes in the D.C. area. Since its inception, the program has grown to become an integral part of Georgetown’s admissions process. In its founding year, AAP’s members interviewed 32 percent of the total applicant pool. But last admissions cycle, according to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions, alumni interviewed more than 90 percent of applicants. AAP expects to match that number this year. Robert Adelberg (C ’59), who has

been involved with AAP interviewing since its inception, said that the program’s growth has not diminished its core mission — to bring the best students to the university. “That was the way we, as alumni, could give back in the finest measure,” he said of the group’s founding. “We were picking the next generation to succeed us at Georgetown.” Since joining the program, he has interviewed at least four applicants a year. In some seasons, his interviews number in the dozens. See INTERVIEWERS, A7

PROMOTING DREAM ACT, DURBIN RETURNS TO HIS ROOTS

See YEARBOOK, A6

The Final Exam: Landing A Job After Georgetown CHAD CARSON

Special to The Hoya

This is the second story in a three-part series on alumni journeys beyond the Hilltop. As this year’s seniors gather references, polish resumes and hit the pavement in search of a career, their predecessors’ stories are a testament to the uphill battle ahead. A WAITING GAME For Ben Zeidler (COL ’09), nailing down post-graduation plans was no easy task. During his senior year job search, Zeidler sent out nearly 100 applications, received five interviews and

was offered two jobs. “You can put in all the time in the world in building a solid resume and making yourself marketable, but in this job market, you still have to get lucky,” he said. Knowing how much was up to chance made the search nerve-wracking for Zeidler, who wasn’t offered employment until about one month before graduation. “I had the job locked down in April, but for a month there I was very nervous that I wouldn’t find anything. All of my financial friends knew what they were doing long before,” he said. Zeidler now works for Forrester Research, a

Newsroom: (202) 687-3415 Business: (202) 687-8350

See JOBS, A7

LEONEL DE VELEZ FOR THE HOYA

Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) (SFS ’66, LAW ’69) spoke about the DREAM Act Tuesday. See story on A9. Published Tuesdays and Fridays

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