Check Inside For:
Amendments to NEWS coaches’ contracts to RHA and SAB hosting appear before Board “Winter Wonderland” today, page 4. of Sups, page 5.
Up in Flames
Local bands trying to recover from fire at The Caterie music venue, page 9.
THE DAILY REVEILLE WWW.LSUREVEILLE.COM
Volume 114, Issue 74
A ftershock
Thursday, January 21, 2010
SG SENATE
University and state feel effects of Haiti earthquake
By Sarah Eddington Staff Writer
People across the nation are feeling the effects of the devastating earthquake and Wednesday’s aftershock in Haiti, and the University is no exception. Myrtho Joseph, born in Haiti, came to the U.S. in 2005 and enrolled at the University in 2008 to pursue his master’s degree in geography. He had to wait two days before he found out his family had survived the worst natural disaster to hit Haiti in two centuries.
Joseph said he is grateful his family is alive, but he is still concerned. “I worry there will be a mismatch between availability and access,” Joseph said. “The landscape makes it difficult to reach the people in shantytowns who need help the most.” The situation is still very complicated for those who are alive, Joseph said. “Everyone is involved in a race for survival because of lack of the fundamentals,” Joseph said. “Even if you have money, there is no way to buy basic items.” HAITI, see page 19
“What can I do to help earthquake victims?”
ADAM VACCARELLA / The Daily Reveille
[Above] Mythro Joseph, graduate student and native of Haiti, shows a photo of his family, who were in Haiti at the time of the Jan. 12 earthquake. [Background] Earthquake survivors take goods from a collapsed building in Port-auPrince on Tuesday.
ONLINE: There are plenty of Web sites accepting donations, like www. haitirelieffund.org. People can donate cash, medical supplies, water and other relief supplies and needed goods.
ON YOUR PHONE: The Red Cross is allowing people to donate to disaster relief by texting “HAITI” to the number 90999. The money will come from a $10 fee on the phone bill.
ON CAMPUS: Amy Potter, a geography grad student, is heading “Tigers for Haiti,” which will be collecting donations. Students can bring $5 to their booth in Free Speech Alley today from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
RICARDO ARDUENGO / The Associated Press
$1K per year fee increase possible By Catherine Threlkeld Staff Writer
Like many other University outlet, the Student Government Senate discussed parliamentary procedures and budget cuts at its first meeting of the semester Wednesday evening. “The path [Gov. Bobby Jindal] has us on is going to hurt this University,” University Center for Freshman Year senator Cody Wells said. Wells also mentioned a possible $1,000 fee-bill increase per year and the state legislature’s ability to increase tuition. “These will be tangible to us one day,” Wells said. “I don’t want us to sit here and wait until we have that tangible cost for us to take action.” College of Arts and Sciences Senator Drew Prestridge also mentioned budget cuts and expressed concern for Tiger Band, which he said may experience a large personnel cut. College of Arts and Sciences Senator Chris Sellers said the SG Southeastern Conference exchange will host 55 participants from all 12 SEC universities. The participants will get to talk about issues facing their university and compare and contrast PROBLEMS, see page 19
RENOVATIONS
UREC completes repairs from Gustav damage Locker rooms restored, painted By Rachel Warren Contributing Writer
Students sticking with their New Year’s fitness resolutions were met by a pleasant surprise at the beginning of the semester — the men and women’s locker rooms at the University Student
Recreational Complex were recently completely renovated. Melissa Longino, associate director of recreational services, said the construction on the UREC was needed to repair damage caused by Hurricane Gustav in 2008. The first half of the construction project was the UREC gymnasium, Longino said. The gym was closed following Hurricane Gustav in September 2008 and did not reopen until November
2009. “Because this was an insurance claim, everything had to be returned to the exact state it was in,” Longino said. All construction on the gymnasium was covered by insurance, Longino said. The roof, floor and equipment were all replaced, as well as the indoor track hanging above the basketball courts. The second half of the project included repairs to the men and women’s locker rooms
and saunas. The lockers rusted when the power in the UREC went out and there was no air circulating to counteract the humidity of the swimming pool, Longino said. Michael Giles, Jr., associate director of operations and project management, said Gustav caused $180,000 worth of damage to the locker rooms, which was covered by insurance. But officials at the UREC also spent an extra $65,000 on aesthetic improvements.
The locker rooms received fresh paint, light fixtures and new partitions in the showers, Longino said. They were closed Nov. 19 and officially reopened on Jan. 2. Some students question the amount of time UREC officials took to get the gymnasium and locker rooms up and running after the hurricane. Longino said planning for construction began immediately CONSTRUCTION, see page 19