October 31, 2013

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The University of Maryland’s Independent Student Newspaper

T H U R S DAY, O C T O B E R 3 1 , 2 013

james levin/the diamondback

THE LIFE OF LOH By Yasmeen Abutaleb @yabutaleb7 Senior staff writer

W

allace Loh knows he has been on stage for the past three years. Whether he is buying a quart of milk or slogging through meetings during one of his 15-hour workdays, someone will recognize the university president. He’s often stopped everywhere he goes, whether it’s at a stationary bike at Eppley Recreation Center or at 11 p.m. at an off-campus grocery store. Since he became president on Nov. 1, 2010,

th is has been L oh’s l i fe. H is path here has been r idd led w it h st r ug g les a nd con sta nt cha nge. It’s i ncluded a ch i ld hood i n nea rpover ty. It’s i ncluded i m m ig rati ng tw ice. A nd it’s i ncluded rejection, whet her f rom law school, jobs or colleagues. But each roadblock has helped shape Loh’s presidency. T he u n iversit y u nex p ected ly leaped i nto the Big Ten, bega n ex plori ng a pa r t nersh ip w it h Wa sh i ng ton’s Corcora n

Museum of Art, partnered with the University of Maryland, Baltimore and started redeveloping College Park. Critics sti l l say he’s just a ma n from the outside. He’s just an impulsive person, they say, u n a f ra id to aba ndon t rad it ion at t he state’s f lagship university. “That’s true,” Loh said while eating dinner See LOH, Page 2

Ed Secretary: Dept moving forward on financial aid plan Presidential metrics-based proposal discussed By Jim Bach @thedbk Senior staff writer

del. alonzo washington (D-District 22), right, speaks to College Democrats group members Wednesday night about higher education. rachel george/the diamondback

‘The University of Maryland saved my life’ Del. Alonzo Washington uses life story to envision higher ed future By Talia Richman @talirichman Staff writer When Alonzo Washington was 8 years old, he and his five siblings lived in a homeless shelter across the street from what is now university President Wallace Loh’s $7.2 million University House. Now, about 22 years later, he’s a proud university alumnus serving as a state delegate in District 22, which includes Prince George’s County. He

spoke to this university’s College Democrats group Wednesday night about the issues the state faces regarding higher education. For Washington, who is the first person in his family to graduate from both high school and college, the problems are personal. “I want to do some great things and make sure kids who grew up in poverty like me have access to college,” Washington said. “My experiences help me empathize with people dealing with those issues.

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It made me want to work harder because I don’t want to ever be in that situation again, and I don’t think anyone should ever have to be in that situation.” When Washington, who sports dreadlocks and thick, black-framed glasses, entered the College Democrats meeting, he immediately asked about Saturday’s homecoming game against Clemson. As a student at this university, See washington, Page 3

Despite recent criticism and a packed agenda, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said his department is actively moving forward with a plan to tie some financial aid to student metrics. In a conference call with the media yesterday, Duncan said that in the next month, the department will host public forums to gather “ideas and suggestions from all stakeholders” on the best way to proceed with the creation of a system for ranking American colleges and universities. The system is intended to determine what financial aid will be available to colleges and provide information to prospective students that could in turn hold colleges more accountable. “One of the best ways to address the challenges to our higher education system is through shared input,” Duncan said. “We plan to engage as many stakeholder groups and individuals as possible to help us develop proposals that are useful to

BY THE NUMBERS

2.9 percent

Average increase in tuition for the 2013-14 school year

1975-76

The last school year tuition increases matched today’s numbers

500 percent Increase in the price of college tuition since 1985

students and take into account the diversity of America’s colleges and universities.” The forums will be held at George Mason University, the University of Northern Iowa, Louisiana State University and California State Un iversity, Dom i ng uez H i l ls throughout November. In August, President Obama unveiled a proposal that would develop a rankings system based on college affordability, access and outcomes in an attempt to make higher education more transparent See rankings, Page 3

SPORTS

OPINION

PG ALLEN OUT FOR 8-10 WEEKS

OBAMACARE COVERAGE MISSES THE POINT

Men’s basketball point guard Seth Allen will miss the next eight to 10 weeks after fracturing his foot in practice Tuesday P. 8

Erik Shell: Website’s flaws should not be the main story P. 4 DIVERSIONS

WHY DOES HOLLYWOOD HATE HALLOWEEN? October should be for cheesy horror, not Oscar bait P. 6


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