Hogs Get Head Start page 10A PAGE 1 A WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27, 2011
Vol. 105, NO. 28 UATRAV.COM
Rain Closes UA for First Time by MATTIE QUINN Staff Writer
BEN FLOWERS Staff Photographer A student walks down a staircase on Old Main Lawn at the corner of Arkansas Avenue and Dickson Street after the campus closed because of flooding April 25.
After nine inches of rain hit the Northwest Arkansas area in the past three days, UA officials canceled class at 3:30 p.m. due to areas of severe flooding on campus, Fayetteville and Washington County. “We were confronted with rising water and localized flooding, which impacted the Tan, Blue and Red bus routes, because they travel the farthest away from campus,” said Mike Seither, associate director of Transit. “We sent out an operations supervisor to survey the areas, and it became obvious that travel was just going to get worse as the day went on. We then notified UA officials that there were going to be lengthy delays on those routes, but then shortly after we learned that Fayetteville officials had closed certain roads, which would
mean certain routes wouldn’t be able to run at all,” Seither said. “We didn’t feel it was fair to have students staying on campus who needed to get home, so we contacted administration to hold an emergency meeting to close the university.” Looking at issues pertaining to public safety and the ability to get to and from campus are important factors in deciding to close the UA, all of which were a problem yesterday, said John Diamond, associate director of university relations. Diamond confirmed that the UA had never before been closed due to excess rain. Once the UA closed, making sure all students who rely on buses to get home became first priority. “We sent officials up to Union Station, and from 3:305 p.m. we continued to operate services to make sure students got home. We made students
group up according to where they were going and officials would decide when buses would leave,” Seither said. “We ran on an emergency schedule and dispatched para-transit vans in addition to buses.” Housing officials saw little bits of flooding in a couple of dorms around campus. “The basement of Holcombe did flood, which was an issue that we were aware could happen before the flood, but just were not able to address in time,” said Reggie Houser, assistant director of UA housing. “Beside Holcombe and a couple of isolated rooms in Humphreys flooding, which was a great inconvinence for those girls who live there, our dorms were able to withstand the conditions very well. Our students are resilient, they can laugh about anything afterward,” Houser said. While on-campus housing remained relatively unscathed,
students living off-campus were not always as lucky. “When I got home I opened my bedroom door and I realized it must have been flooding because it smelled awful. At that point the closet, and all of my shoes, were completely soaked,” said senior Sheli Grooms, who lives in an apartment off Garland Avenue. “When it finally stopped raining the water stopped coming in the kitchen, but by then the water in the bedroom had spread to pretty much the entire room. I now have to move everything except my bed out of my room so that the carpet can dry.” Even those who did not have damaged homes were taught the dangers of traveling during floods. “Going home I had to take
see FLOOD on page 2A
Major Issues Change with Student Body ASG Senate Passes by SABA NASEEM Staff Writer
Just as students come and go, fashions regularly change and people go from wearing Livestrong Bracelets to Silly Bandz, major issues on campus come and go. What were once major issues on campus eventually die down and become part of campus life. Three years ago, the UA banned tobacco on campus. Two years later, the state prohibited smoking on campus through the Clean Air on Campus Act. Smokers were enraged and even some non-smokers fought for the individual rights of smokers. One year later, however, the talk has died down and the university rarely receives complaints from students, said Daniel Pugh, dean of student affairs. The question now is whether the law has been effective. The reason for the ban is to help mitigate the health risks posed by second-hand smoke on campuses across Arkansas, according to the law. “We’ll definitely see a curb in those few people who violate the policy, because now there’s a fine attached and that hits people in their pocketbooks,” said Scott Flanagin, in a 2010 interview. Flanagin is the director of communications and outreach for the division of student affairs.
There has been a considerable decrease of smoking on campus, said UAPD Lt. Gary Crain. “Last semester we only had to give out four or five citations and received around 19 complaints,” he said. However, in an interview in August of 2010, health officials said that the UA community was missing the point of the policy. “I think that people are taking more the letter of the law rather than the spirit of the law,” said Susan Rausch, health educator at the pat Walker Health Center and co-chair of the FRESH committee. The FRESH committee educates students on the tobacco policy and strives to help people lose the smoking habit. Students and staff who want to smoke now tend to go across the street to get off of school property, Pugh said. This, however, creates problems for the community. There have been complaints from community members about students who smoke on sidewalks where children going to school need to walk. One such area is the sidewalk in front of the Sunshine Place Apartments, next to Leverett Elementary School. “We have to send housing staff there to clean up the mess people leave behind,” Pugh said. Another issue is enrollment, which brings many other con-
Gender-Blind Housing by MATTIE QUINN Staff Writer
SARAH CHAMPAGNE Photo Editor Students take a smoke break Sunday night after long hours of studying. Once a contentious issue, the debate about smoking on campus has died down. cerns such as housing, parking and classroom size into the picture. In 2007, there were 18,648 students enrolled, in 2008 there were 19,194, in 2009 there were 19,849 and in 2010 there were 21,405. While, the numbers have been steadily increasing since 1999, according to the office of institutional research reports, the general trend ranges from 500 to 700 added each year. However, last year, student enrollment increased by 1,556 students, more than twice the average. In 2008, when enrollment hit 19,000, an increase in traffic was noticed on campus, especially in regard to scooters and bicycles, said Andy Gilbride, program advisor at the UA Transit and Park-
ing Department. In 2008, students using scooters were required to purchase permits and were only allowed to park in allocated scooter parking locations. By the next year, the Parking Department had seen an almost 300 percent increase in scooter and motorcycle permit purchase and added scooter parking areas across campus to accommodate this increase. In 2009, a surge of bicyclists led to Parking Department officials requiring permits for bicycles. They “wanted to figure out where the bicycles are and how many there are so we can get
see ISSUES on page 3A
Staff Writer
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27, 2011 VOL. 105, NO. 28 UATRAV.COM
WEATHER FORECAST
TODAY 56°
THURSDAY 67°
see ASG on page 3A
Drug Arrests Increase with Student Population by HAILEY RAY
ANDREW HAGOOD Staff Photographer Sgt. Aaron Mahan of UAPD talks to a driver involved in a traffic stop Friday afternoon in front of UAPD headquarters. With an increased student population expected, crime at the UA is expected to increase proportionally, officials said.
Amid concern and praise, the Residents’ Interhall Congress and Associated Student Government passed a bill that will begin investigation of the possibility of gender-blind housing at the UA, which would allow students to live with whomever they wanted, no matter the gender. “The idea of the bill came about two years ago from RIC Sen. William Hogan. It’s been something we’ve been talking and thinking about since then, and we just decided that we needed to be proactive,” said Kaleb Cox, co-author of the resolution and former RIC president. “So we finally wrote the resolution and have brought it forth for the students to see what they think.” Despite being located in what is considered by some a socially conservative state, the UA seems to be on track with other colleges and universities around the nation with the gender-blind housing trend. “Most of the talk of genderblind housing started in 2008, and has been growing rapidly ever since. So we are not exactly trailblazers, but we are not lagging behind the rest of the nation either,” Cox said. Many colleges and universi-
ties across the nation that have adopted gender-blind housing, though they all have approached the subject in different ways. “At Harvard it is only open to trans-gender students, at Michigan it is treated as a case-by-case basis and at George Washington University it is open to everyone, for example,” Cox said. “Personally I would like to see it open to everyone, but how realistic that is, I don’t know. We don’t have to make that giant leap just yet, really any kind of progression in this area is good progression.” The newly-elected RIC executive board for the 20112012 school year is also planning on pushing for the bill to become a reality for students. “Why is it that our freshman year we can’t have anyone we choose be our roommates, but the second we move off-campus we have that freedom?” said Cameron Mussar, newly-elected president of RIC. “People who are afraid of this resolution coming into effect need to realize that even if students have the option, most students are still going to live with someone of the same sex.” Other students found the idea of gender-blind housing a step in the right direction.
Although the number of thefts on campus remained consistent during the last year, other types of crime have seen dramatic increases, according to UAPD records. In the fall semester, only three more thefts were reported than in the previous year, and this semester’s average is almost one less theft per week than the spring 2010 semester, according to UAPD crime logs. Theft is consistently the most common crime on campus. “That never changes,” said UAPD Lt. Gary Crain. “Most are crimes of opportunity,
FRIDAY 77°
WEEKEND 67°
[residence hall doors] are left open, students leave items unattended.” Burglaries were almost twice as common last semester than the previous year, however this semester shows a decrease in burglaries so far. The amount of crime from year to year is pretty steady, Crain said. “Raising the student population by a 1,000 or 1,500 students doesn’t mean you’re getting 1,000 crooks.” Because of societal norms, this will add very few people who would commit crimes, he said. The undergraduate population increased by 1,412 students, almost nine percent, according to the university’s reports for the 2009-2010 school year, and the 2010-2011 school year. Arrests for possession of controlled substances, commonly marijuana, showed a sharp increase this school year. Fall 2010 had 40 arrests, while
the previous fall only had 12. This semester has already surpassed the 22 arrests in spring 2010 with 36 arrests. The number of Driving Under the Influence/Driving While Intoxicated arrests also decreased in both semesters this year, and 23 arrests have been made so far this spring compared to 51 arrests in spring 2010. Public intoxication arrests have also increased. Fall arrests increased from 82 to 99 this year, and spring arrests have been slightly more common on average. “More crimes occur when alcohol is involved,” Crain said. “People make poor decisions when they drink too much.” Students can protect themselves by avoiding drinking too much, and avoiding others who drink too much.
see CRIME on page 5A