HOW TO WIN AN MSU PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION Campaigning for the students union’s top job starts Sunday EDITORIAL, PAGE A6
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McMASTER UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER
THURSDAY, JANUARY 17, 2013 VOL. 83 NO. 18
Part 1
Now in his final year before retirement, Dr. Phil Wood looks back on 30 years at McMaster JESSIE LU ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR
Aissa Boodhoo-Leegsma Senior News Editor He has seen chickens scrambling across the JHE lobby, attended 29 out of 30 Welcome Week concerts and has his own soul-rock and basketball radio show on CFMU. In his three decades at McMaster, Dr. Phil Wood has seen and done it all. Dr. Wood celebrated his 30-year teaching anniversary on Jan. 2 this year, having arrived at McMaster in 1982. On Jan. 13, the SRA passed a motion to
give Dr. Wood honorary MSU membership. John McGowan, General Manager of the MSU, stated how rare a distinction this is; Dr. Wood one of only 16 honourary members of the students union since 1965. Dr. Wood, who is revered in McMaster’s Engineering department, came from a teaching post at Michigan State University to join McMaster’s Chemical Engineering Department. STUDENTS, A4
INDEX Why Hamilton shouldn’t have a casino: Mel Napeloni weighs in on the detriments of a gambling house in an economically struggling city. CRACKING, A7
Calligra-me: Learn how the subtle nuances of your handwriting speak volumes about your personality. An expert tells you why and how. INK’D, B9
What you’ll be eating in 2013 INSIDEOUT, B7
A celebrity venture into nuanced literature: Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s take on classic children bed-time books hits home and hits hard. JOSEPH, C8
A basketball for a brighter tomorrow: Scott Hastie delves into the evolving nature of the men’s Marauders and gleams insight into their near future.
Where is Mac investing
$519
BUILDING, B1
Balancing the books: A first-hand look at how major McMaster athletes manage the divide between practice and projects. THE “A”, B1
Million? PAGE A3
Taking off the gloves: The warm-up is over. Easy sudoku is out and we’ve ramped up the difficulty just because we can. SERIOUSLY, B8
MAPS to host general meeting on Feb. 5 Part-time students association has remained silent on spending allegations Sam Colbert Executive Editor The board of the McMaster Association of Part-time Students will meet with its members on Feb. 5 for an annual general meeting. And at this year’s gathering, they’ll have a little more to answer for. McMaster University launched a probe of MAPS last summer following allegations of irresponsible spending. It has been withholding a portion of part-time student fees collected for the organization while the investigation is ongoing. The University made the de-
cision “in light of significant concerns that were raised regarding MAPS’ business practices,” it said in a December public statement. MAPS represents all McMaster students taking fewer than 18 units in an academic session, as well as continuing education students. Although it is incorporated separately from McMaster, the University charges fees on the Association’s behalf. “McMaster took this extraordinary measure to protect the interests of part-time students,” read a December statement from the University. MAPS currently charges
part-time students membership fees of $7 per unit. The Association requested an increase to $10 per unit in June, but was denied by McMaster’s Board of Governors. The Board pointed out that the fee had risen from $5 per unit three years prior, and felt that there was insufficient evidence presented for the need of this second increase. “That’s not usual,” said McMaster assistant vice-president of public and government relations Andrea Farquhar of the denied fee increase. “There are some times, certainly, when requests for fee increases are sent back;
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MAPS director Sam Minniti and president Jeanette Hunter have declined interviews with the Silhouette on multiple occasions. it’s not that it never happens. But it doesn’t tend to be the norm. I think that probably began with some people starting to ask questions.” The 2011 earnings of MAPS executive director Sam Minniti appeared on Ontario’s 2012 public salary disclosure list at $126,152.
It was the first time since he became executive director in 2005 that his salary has shown up on the ‘sunshine’ list, which discloses the salaries of all employees on public sector payroll making more than $100,000 annually. Although MAPS is not a public organization, Minniti’s earnings were listed because McMaster University processes MAPS’ payroll. Minniti and MAPS president Jeanette Hunter have declined interviews with the Silhouette on multiple occasions. BOARD, A5