Trinitonian SERVING TRINITY UNIVERSITY SINCE 1902 s WWW.TRINITONIAN.COM
VOLUME 109, ISSUE 27 s April 27, 2012
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS
Fulbright teachers get a taste of diversity
What’s Inside
n Sixteen educators from Germany attend two-week seminar on teaching methods at Trinity by Rachel Puckett Reporter
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From April 7 to April 21, 16 German teachers visited San Antonio as part of a Fulbright 2012 program hosted by Trinity University. The theme of Trinity’s Fulbright program was “Diversity in U.S. Education.” As explained by Peter O’Brien, professor of political science and Fulbright program coordinator, San Antonio is a prime spot for looking at diversity in education. “There’s no better place to do this than San Antonio. It’s got a very long history of diversity. It’s a unique city in the sense that a ‘minority,’ Latinos, actually makes up a majority of the population in San Antonio. That makes it a very unique city,” O’Brien said. The program is maintained by a team of Trinity faculty and staff who make travel and lodging arrangements for the teachers as well and develop a schedule of seminars and school visits that allow the teachers to get a feel for the learning environment around San Antonio. After arriving in San Antonio, the teachers began a busy schedule of visiting schools throughout the city as well as making a visit to Austin. They visited 11 schools in the 14 days that they spent in
photo by Purushottam Shah
German teachers took part in this year’s Fulbright seminar, “Diversity in U.S. Education,” hosted by Trinity.
San Antonio. Noah Tauche, a music and English teacher from Germany, recalled the warm welcome from students and faculty at each of the schools. Tauche was impressed that the students led tours of their schools, and he also found the genuine interest in learning about German education and culture expressed by the students refreshing. Angela Breidenstein, associate professor of education and Fulbright program coordinator, explained that a mix of public and private schools were chosen, but the program favored public schools for a number of reasons. All 16 of the visiting teachers teach at public schools in Germany. Because of their association with public schools, the group often discussed the
Softball wins Softball team wins last home softball game of the regular season against Southwestern Page 12
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the program. Program organizers worked hard to provide schools that deal with many different types of diversity. “We look at diversity in a real broad lens. Diversity in racial, ethnic and cultural – that’s where we talk about multiculturalism, and that’s where immigration comes in,” Breidenstein said. “We also looked at diversity in terms of economic diversity and what that brings. Learning diversity – that kids learn in different ways and they have different needs – and so we looked at that as diversity.” Among the schools the teachers visited was the Toltech Academy at Memorial High School in the Edgewood Independent School District.
n Administrative officials stand their ground on Greek issues during ASR town hall meeting on Tuesday
At the outset, ASR president Joe Moore made clear that the main purpose ASR had in mind when organizing the event was to better understand the hazing policy at Trinity and any future changes to implementation in light of the recent suspensions of Gamma Chi Delta, Chi Delta Tau, Bengal Lancers and SPURS. In regard to the suspensions handed down, Ahlburg made it clear that an appeals process is ongoing; however, the panel remained adamant that the punishments were necessary and appropriate, despite many contentious student questions on the issue. The panel maintained confidence in Moffett’s decision to suspend Gamma Chi Delta, Chi Delta Tau and SPURS for three years and the Bengal Lancers for two years.
Reporter
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photo by Moira Allen
Panelists answer questions from students as ASR president Joe Moore looks on during Tuesday’s Greek Life town hall meeting. During the forum, Dennis Ahlburg, university president, stressed that hazing would not be tolerated on Trinity’s campus.
n See FULBRIGHT Page 3
Panel stands tough by Aly Mithani
WEEKEND WEATHER Friday 88° Low
difference between German and American public school funding. The funding for German schools is primarily federal while American public school funding is determined based on property tax and a variety of other factors. Because of their equal funding, the quality of German schools remains consistent, and thus the overwhelming majority of German students attend public school. “People take advantage of [private schools] relatively less often. Because the schools are fairly even in quality, and they’re equally funded, people would probably not look to private school education. Most kids would attend a public school,” Breidenstein said. However, the difference in funding was only a small part of
The Association of Student Representatives hosted a Greek Life Town Hall forum at 6 p.m. on April 24 in the Fiesta Room in order to address the recent fraternity and sorority suspensions and the future of Greek life on campus. Panelists included David Tuttle, dean of students; David Ahlburg, president of the university; Jamie Thompson, assistant director of Campus & Community Involvement; and Raphael Moffett, director of CCI.
n See GREEK Page 3