Student Activities Board has confirmed that this year’s Spring Fever headlining act will be ... (drum roll, please) ... Ben Folds!
The University News A Student Voice of Saint Louis University Since 1921 www.unewsonline.com
Vol. LXXXIX No. 17
Thursday, February 4, 2010
www.twitter.com/theunews
SGA candidates announced Come Together Ticket
Unite Ticket
President
“I’m running for president because I care … [and] because there are issues not being addressed by SGA or the administration. … If I didn’t think I [would] do a good job crafting solutions with the administration, I wouldn’t run for this job. I want to leave the University in a little better condition than we found it.”
VP for Internal Affairs
“I talk to at least a billion people a day … just to bring these people together and inform them what’s going on. It’s something that I do in my daily life, and I can easily bring that to Senate. [IA] is information between students, SGA ... and events that are put on by students. I’m part of that community.”
VP for Student Orgs.
“I’m the most involved with CSOs on campus out of our campaign team; I feel as though I have the most intimate knowledge of wants and needs of those CSOs. I am the most qualified to foster an environment of visibility, openness and collaboration for those CSOs and the whole student body.”
Financial VP
“I want to guarantee that we don’t go over budget, and that we have a surplus. I am a finance and accounting major so I have the business school knowledge; and I also just love finances, so I think I will bring passion that the students will enjoy.”
Academic VP
President
“I really enjoyed my experience at SLU, I believe in being an active member of the community. Because of that. ... I think that this is kind of just the next step for me. I think I can produce a lot of tangible results and build on the work I have accomplished already, and I am excited to possibly lead the student body.”
VP for Internal Affairs
VP for Student Orgs.
Financial VP
By JONATHAN ERNST News Editor
Interim-Vice President for Frost Campus Manoj Patankar and Vice President for Health Sciences Philip Alderson addressed issues concerning the administrative restructuring during the most recent meeting of the Faculty Senate on Feb. 2. Saint Louis University President Lawrence Biondi, S.J., was also invited to the meeting but was not in attendance. Calls to Biondi’s office for comment were unreturned at press time. According to Faculty Senate President Joanne Langan, most of the faculty members seem to be ready to “move on,” and she said only a small group is still dissatisfied with the Administration’s actions, which were seen as not properly consulting with faculty members before moving ahead with proposed changes. “I have heard from a small group of people who are dissatisfied; the others have either remained silent or are satisfied,” Langan said. “I just don’t understand how people are hanging on to this disdain, or this almost-hatred, and how we are not celebrating what we have achieved. Instead, people are hanging onto the
Academic VP
Diversity/Social Justice VP
Diversity/Social Justice VP
VP for Int’l Affairs
Some members remain unconvinced of the administration’s methods
“I’ve worked on the Finance Committee for the past two years, and I felt like my experience would make me well-suited. The student population and organizations are constantly changing with new members, and ... I would like to be able to make the financial process easy for all of them.” “SLU in so many ways has formed the person I am today. I have just learned so many things from all my experiences here, this is another way that I can learn from things and help others learn in an academic setting and from all the opportunities it offers.”
“My background is different; not a lot of people discuss things that international students would think about. In this position I can generally express my ideas … and also promote understanding, which I think is important between American students and international students.”
Faculty Senate indicates it wants to ‘move on’
“I’ve been involved with numerous CSOs on campus from a variety of different aspects, from performance to sports to Greek life. I know how CSOs function internally ... I know I could be a good liasion between SGA and CSOs on campus, … helping them grow and develop on campus.”
“The reason I want to run is [that] I have a definite passion to serve this University and my fellow students. ... I bring a sense of compromise, fairness and definitely the ability to work with the administration to increase our rankings and bring about a better dialogue between both parties.” “I want to run for the position to really continue to work for ... social justice in the SLU community. To create a space for individuals to share their stories so we can make this a better place to study and to live. To create and develop programs ... that fulfill the needs of our students.”
Ryan Giacomino/Photo Editor
Interim-Frost Campus Vice President Manoj Patankar addresses concerns raised by Michael May, S.J., chair of Mathematics and Computer Science Department.
“I’ve been a senator for two years … I found it so fascinating how much you can get done as a student. I have the layout of SGA down …and the Internal VP has to know the ins and outs of SGA. It’s become a passion of mine. … [It’s] not a resume builder, just something I really enjoy doing.”
“The biggest reason why [I’m running] is I’m very passionate about diversity and social justice. I have a past of working with people of different faiths, different cultures, different ethnic backgrounds. Working with those groups allowed me to enter into the realm of social justice.”
VP for Int’l Affairs
“It’s a diverse campus … We have to have a person to make things run smoothly. [As an international student], I’m really familiar with the international student situation on campus. I really want to help them get [more deeply] involved with American culture and this campus.”
negative.” A tabled motion from the Dec. 15 meeting calling for the removal of Patankar from his then-role of Interim-Provost never came up during the meeting, which Langan said was “because some of the reports were clarified by [Patankar and Alderson’s] presence here openly and honestly.” Patankar said the University would form a transition team to deal with the specific details of the transition process, and would work out any issues along the way. Michael May, S.J., chair of Mathematics and Computer Science, asked Patankar if he felt that this most recent process has been sufficiently consultative after the faculty manual had been “blatantly violated” originally. Patankar said yes, and added: “When the initial proposal was made, the president agreed to stop the process to take a break, and I think at that point the whole issue of consultative process, in my mind, was addressed.” On Jan. 25, Biondi called a meeting of his Executive Staff, the Faculty Senate Executive Committee and the chairs of the two Senate Task Forces See “Faculty Senate” on Page 3
Impeachment call sparks debate Speech to raise ‘racial awareness’ By KELLEY DUNN News Editor
On the heels of the Student Government Association election season beginning, controversy arose during the association’s Feb. 3 meeting. The most heavily debated bill was a proposal from Vice President of Internal Affairs Andrew Miller to impeach and remove Senator and SGA presidential-candidate JP Johnson from office. Miller said that senators get a total of two unexcused absences or three total absences before the impeachment process begins, which includes a review by the Committee for Internal Affairs. Once a senator reaches his or her allotted amount of absences, Miller will email that person to make him or her aware of the situa-
tion, though Johnson said he never received such an email. “Many times, people resign [after that many absences],” Miller said. Miller said that Johnson had told him that he would most likely resign. “The discussion of resignation had nothing to do with the impeachment,” Johnson said. Johnson said that he talked with SGA President Michael Harriss, in which Harriss told him that, historically, not much gets done in SGA during second semester. Johnson cited the Jan. 20 meeting as the point where he decided to continue with SGA, after multiple presentations, including one focused on retention. “It made me believe we’re actually going to do things this semester,” he said. “I care
about a lot of these issues that we talk about.” Johnson said that his unexcused absence occurred at the first Senate meeting of the fall semester, when he was in California for his 21st birthday. The second absence, an excused absence, occurred when he was meeting with a group as part of his SGA Finance Committee duties. The meeting, which Johnson said ran long, went into the SGA meeting time. The final absence, which was also excused, took place during the final meeting of the fall semester, when Johnson had to take his father to the hospital. “I’m not here to make excuses,” Johnson said. “If you think this makes me a bad senator, by all means, imSee “SGA” on Page 2
By KRISTIN MIANO Associate News Editor
Oghre-Ikanone said. “We hope individuals and students will come out and be enlightened about what [West] has to say.” West is currently a professor at Princeton University
In honor of Black History Month, Great Issues Committee and Black Student Alliance have teamed up to bring the esteemed writer and activist Dr. Cornel West to campus on Feb. 11 at 7 p.m. in the Busch Student CenI feel [West’s ter’s Wool Ballrooms. speech] will be a good As the keynote speaker for Black History Month, representation of West will be speaking about Black Histor y Month. race and democracy with Barack Obama in the White —Steve Della Camera House. BSA president Onosadavbeji Oghre-Ikanone ex- and is widely known for his pressed high hopes for the outspoken views on race and event. diversity issues. He is perhaps “In the light of recent best known for his book, Race events on campus, we wanted Matters, which deals with racto raise more racial aware- ism in America. He has pubness and talk more about lished 19 other books and has diversity and race issues,” taken part in the publishing of
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numerous others. West also appears in the last two movies of the Matrix Trilogy as Councilor West, and does a weekly commentary on the Travis Smiley Show on Public Radio International. GIC Chair Steve Della Camera also hopes that the night will be a tremendous success. “We’re working handin-hand with BSA. It was a joint decision to bring West to campus, and I feel it will be a good representation of Black History Month,” Della Camera said. “It will be a great learning experience to hear from West about what he does.” Members of the Saint Louis University community can pick up free tickets in BSC 319 for early access to the event. Doors open to the general public at 6:40.
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