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The Merciad
Est. 1929 Vol. 88 No. 15
Mercyhurst university
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Christ the King restored By Nathan Turner News editor
Salina Bowe photo
The new lighting in the chapel increased the visibility of the central mural. The space is now three times brighter, according to Rev. Piszker.
Police and Safety equipped with new body cameras By Nathan Turner News editor
Mercyhurst University Police and Safety are now wearing body cameras to protect both the student body and its officers. The cameras also record interactions between the officers and students. The department currently has only one camera, which is shared by all the officers. Two more units have been ordered. The decision to wear the device came in the wake of the troubles in Ferguson, MO and the fallout from the Michael Brown shooting, Police and Safety Chief Robert Kuhn said. “It protects the officer against false accusations,” said Kuhn. “A lot of places are going to them now. It’s an emerging trend.”
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While the camera protects the officer wearing it, there are theories that it may also deter the officer him or herself from engaging in inappropriate or illegal behavior, Police and Safety Lieutenant Matthew Platz said. It would also change the behavior of the people with whom the officers interact. “There are schools of thought. There’s an officer who may not be operating in a completely correct fashion, he will,” said Platz. “In Pennsylvania, we have to notify anyone that they’re being recorded. So immediately you say ‘You’re being recorded on video,’ their attitude is likely to change as well. So it will mitigate and kind of take care of some of the situations right away.” The act of recording a person changes his or her
demeanor, said Kuhn. “When people know they’re recorded on the phone, whole demeanor changes. They’re not screaming at you, yelling, swearing. It’s just human nature. Hopefully that’s how it will be with these kids, if they’re drunk or belligerent,” Kuhn said. The department’s use of the cameras are limited by federal and Pennsylvania law. There are several situations and locations where recording is forbidden or limited. The use of audio recording is governed by the same regulations which govern the use of wiretaps, Kuhn said. “Under Pennsylvania law, and most states have the same law, video you can use anytime. You don’t even have to tell anyone you’re using it, except in places like bathrooms, things like that. The
audio, you definitely have to tell them. Chapter 56 in the crimes code, wiretap laws, explains all that. You need their permission,” Kuhn said. The cameras are not always recording, even in instances where the law does not forbid it. Routine occurrences around campus are not likely to be recorded, Platz said. “If I get a call for a jumpstart, I’m not turning the camera on. But if I get a call for a loud apartment, and there’s swearing and it sounds like someone may be fighting, it’s going on,” Platz said.
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On March 15, Mass was celebrated in the newly-renovated Christ the King Chapel. The restoration, which started on Jan. 5, was completed in early March. The most significant change to the chapel was an increase in lighting. The new fixtures and new lighting improve the visibility of the grand mural, Piszker said. “People were actually commenting [on Sunday] that the first time you can actually see the mural in its entirety because the sanctuary is probably three times brighter than it used to be. Someone actually said they had a hard time looking at me because they were too busy looking at the mural that they were then able to see,” Piszker said. More changes to the chapel include the addition of gold trim on the rafters and the beams of the roof, as well as painted boundaries around the stained glass windows to give them more definition. The pews were also removed and restored “It was really things that needed to be done. Painting certainly hadn’t been done in a long period of time. I don’t think anything had been done to the pews ever since the place was built. And lighting had been inadequate for a period of time,” Piszker said. The construction went relatively smoothly, but two noted problems were the choice of paint color and the treatment of the tile floor. “Either [the paint] was too dark or too light. This is sort of like a monastic chapel, you can’t change it. The trick was trying to preserve the semi-monastic style and still bring it up to date,”
Monsignor David Rubino said. The problems with the floor occurred after the workers increased separation of the pews by an half an inch to give people more space to enter and exit the pews. The repositioning left a series of holes in the floor, Rubino said. “There are 503 holes in the floor, where the pews were bolted in. They drilled the hole, once the pews were gone, and they filled it with a concrete stuff, and they put this speckled stuff on top. It’s fairly close to the original tone of the floor. That was a hard job and that took them forever,” Rubino said. The cost of the restoration totaled approximately $405,000 and private donors provided all the funds necessary. The remaining funds would hopefully go into an endowment or a reserve, Rubino said. “All of the money came from various donors, trustees, alums, friends. We ended up with about $407,000 and the restoration cost about $405,000,” Rubino said. With the restoration now completed, the student body’s respectful treatment of the chapel would be appreciated, Piszker said. There have been problems in the past with students mistreating the space and using it as a hallway between Old Main and Hirt. “It is sacred space and I can’t emphasize that enough. Even for people who don’t believe or want no part of it, that’s ok. It doesn’t make it any less sacred. This is not a classroom, this is not a concert hall, it is not any of the many things it could be, but first and foremost, it is not a hallway,” Piszker said. @TheMerciad
CTE accepting student nominations By Nathan Turner News editor
The Center for Teaching Excellence is accepting nominations from students for the Teaching Excellence Award. The award was established in 1990 and honors faculty members who have enriched the intellectual life of the university through their
teaching. Nominations from students are encouraged. Students wishing to nominate a professor can do so by going to the Mercyhurst Student Government Facebook page or to the Portal.
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Online Poll Results What did you do for Spring Break?
News Features A&E Opinion Sports Laker Living
1-2 3-4 5 6 7 8
35% I went somewhere warm and debated not coming back to Erie 19% I slept an entire week 26% Sadly, I stayed here in the Arctic Circle 19% What break? All I did was catch up on school work.
Be sure to vote in this week’s online poll: How has the temporary closure of the Student Union affected you?
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