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(10/18/07 3:54am)
Tempers flared at Wednesday night’s Monroe County Public Library board meeting as library trustees and community members sounded off about the possibility of unionizing the library. \nTrustee Randy Paul called the rest of the board “biased” against the union issue in light of a recent proposal to require a 75 percent voter turnout in order to form a union. In almost all other cases, and in the original “proposal for a proposal” the union organizing committee presented to the board, the requirement is a simple majority, librarian and union organizing committee member Dory Lynch said. \nBut board President Stephen Moberly said the proposal was a suggestion, not “written in stone,” and it was based on a similar union movement at Marion County Public Library \nHowever, Paul said the board’s bias has been clear from the beginning, from “secret meetings” originally held about the issue to a recent attempt to “block” the subject from a vote. \n“No way someone could objectively look at this and say we’re not biased,” Paul said. \nMoberly also said he believed most of the board had not yet made up their minds about the union, and called Paul’s comments “unfortunate” and made it difficult for the board to deal with a “very difficult issue.” He requested “everyone lower the rhetoric and their posturing,” and said the board will give the issue the “same thoughtful consideration” they did for the budget issues. \nInterim director Sara Laughlin, the replacement for controversial director Cindy Gray, who resigned last month, did not take sides. Instead, she said she’d be “happy to work” with the library and the board, regardless of what decision is made. \nThe new resolution is a “mirror” of the Marion County Public Library’s union proposal, which ultimately took two years to pass, said David Warrick, executive director of the AFSCME council that represents works in Indiana and Kentucky. He said in his 17 years experience, it was the only time he had to deal with a 75 percent required voter turnout. \n“It is biased because even if 74 percent of the workers came and they all vote ‘yes’ for the union, the union still fails because they did not have 75 percent of the vote,” Warrick said. \nWarrick also said the 75 percent requirement was damaging for the Marion county library because the board was “not cooperative,” and more “butting of heads” after the union resolution was overwhelmingly passed. \nStill, Paul is hopeful that ultimately the 75 percent requirement will not stand, largely because of the input of several audience members, all of whom requested the requirement be returned to a simple majority. \n“I urge you to put integrity back into the resolution and make it 50 percent,” said Valerie Merriam, a local resident and member of the Monroe County School Board.
(10/09/07 3:58am)
The days of the police auction held behind the station house are over, at least in Indianapolis.\nPolice departments across the nation are looking to the Internet to help clear their store rooms of unclaimed goods, said P.J. Bellomo, chief operating officer for Propertyroom.com, a Web site that caters to this need. The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department recently decided to use the site to sell goods recovered throughout the Indianapolis metropolitan area. \n“It helps us to rid ourselves of the items we don’t have room to store,” said Lt. Thomas M. Bruno, property section supervisor. “Our most valuable commodity is space.” \nSelling items over the Internet also saves time for officers, Bruno and Bellomo said. Previously, organizing police auctions required man hours for the property section of the police department, Bruno said. Now, Bruno said he calls Propertyroom.com whenever the store room has accumulated enough goods and the company sends a truck for everything. \nThe Web site also gives shoppers, both locally and across the country, better access to the sales. Traditionally, police auctions have had low attendance, Bellomo said, and pawn shop owners buy most of the goods cheap and mark up the prices. But 20,000 people visit the site every day, Bellomo said. \n“The largest city in the country could not get 20,000 people to show up to a police auction, even if they only held it once a year,” Bellomo said. “We can pick up goods in Indianapolis and take it to New York, and Indiana residents still have better access.” \nThe money generated from the sale of the goods goes into the police pension fund, Bruno said. \nThe Web site makes money every time an item is sold, but Bellomo could not disclose what percentage of the price Propertyroom.com takes. The site will sell between $25 and $30 million worth of goods in 12 months, Bellomo said. \n“We have a revenue-share relationship, so it is always in our best interest to promote the goods,” Bellomo said. \nThe most common items for sale are bicycles, Bruno said. Many bikes are lost or stolen, especially during the summer months, and they tend to pile up in the store room. But shoppers can find almost anything on the site, including safes, televisions, tanning beds and ladders, Bruno said. \nAnd if anyone is looking, Bellomo said they also have a 7-foot fiberglass shark.
(10/02/07 4:10am)
This month Bloomington is celebrating peace Tibetan style, straight down to the roots. \nIn honor of the Dalai Lama’s upcoming visit, October is “Be Peaceful Bloomington” month, Mayor Mark Kruzan said at an afternoon press conference Monday at City Hall.\nKruzan described the Dalai Lama as “a global icon of peace,” and emphasized his desire to celebrate peace to enhance Bloomington residents’ quality of life. \nAs part of the peace initiative, the announcement featured musical performances and an art gallery, which will be displayed at City Hall for the rest of the month alongside a “peace tree.”\nBloomington residents are encouraged to write down their “peaceful wishes” and tie them to the peace tree. At the end of this month, the tree will be planted on city property.\nThe exercise is similar to the Tibetan custom of prayer wheels, called Chokhor in Tibet. According to the China Tibet Information Center’s Web site, Buddhist worshipers place long strips of paper with mantras written on them inside slotted lanterns and hold or hang them in the wind. Worshipers turn the wheels, which are cylindrical, while saying the mantra. When the paper flies away in the wind, it spreads blessings to all beings and invokes good karma in the next life, according to the site. \n“We are writing on recycled paper, so when the paper falls to the ground it will just become part of the earth again,” Kruzan said, echoing the belief of balance and karma.\nDuring the Dalai Lama’s visit later this month, he will give a series of seminars at the IU Auditorium, said Sudha Koneru, executive board member and treasurer for the Tibetan Cultural Center. The seminars are titled the “Path to Enlightenment,” and will be held Oct. 24 through Oct. 26. \nOn Oct. 27, the Dalai Lama will give a public talk titled “Compassion: The Source of Peace.” More than 10,000 visitors from across the country are expected to flock to Bloomington to attend the events, both Koneru and Kruzan said. \nThroughout the month, 15 framed photographs and 20 colorful scrolls depicting life in Tibet will be displayed in City Hall as part of the “Experience Peace” exhibit, said Lisa Morrison, director of media and public relations for the Tibetan Cultural Center. \nThe vibrant images provided a cultural backdrop to Kruzan and the Tibetan Cultural Center announcement yesterday, accompanied by three Mongolian students singing and playing traditional instruments. \nBloomington local Janiece Jaffe, a Buddhist, also performed, singing along with the low, haunting melody she created by playing a crystal bowl. \n“Crystal bowls are new age, but to me they surpass all religion,” Jaffe said “It’s a sacred sound.”\nJaffe is not officially involved with the Tibetan Cultural Center, but said she regularly attends events there. If she were to place a wish on the peace tree, she said, it would be “for Bloomington to be a model for how to live in diversity and peace.”\nKruzan said the Dalai Lama visits Bloomington because of the Tibetan Cultural Center and because of his older brother, who lives in the city. However, Kruzan said the Dalai Lama is also drawn to the “strength of character and vibrancy” of Bloomington. \n“(Bloomington) is a microcosm of the world,” Kruzan said. “It is a small community with a global feel.” \nThe Dalai Lama – won the Nobel Peace Prize and will be awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honor in the nation, shortly before his arrival in Bloomington – is “not just a religious figure,” but has a message that can appeal to all, said Arjia Rinpoche, director of the Tibetan Cultural Center. \nThe last time the Dalai Lama visited Bloomington in 1999, the IU Auditorium was completely sold out, Koneru said, adding that he expects even more people to attend this year.
(09/12/07 11:29pm)
On Sept 11, 2001, World Trade Towers One, Two and Seven all collapsed via controlled demolition, according to Richard Gage of the Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth. \nGage is the founding member of the group, and spoke about this theory at the Bloomington 9/11 Working Group’s Monday night presentation in front of large crowd at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater. The group was created in an effort to encourage further probe of the Sept. 11 attacks. \n“It is important to understand it because it was a pretext for the invasion of two countries in which almost a million people have perished,” Gage said. \nThe group, along with others who believe the Sept. 11 attacks were part of a broad conspiracy, have often been questioned and criticized by others. \n“If it is a conspiracy, it is hard to believe they could pull it off,” said Spencer resident Scott Ackerman, who attended the conference. However, he added that getting to the truth was important, especially on the eve of the tragedy’s anniversary. \n“I don’t think truth is ever disrespectful,” he said. \nKevin Ryan, former site manager of Environmental Health Laboratories, who spoke at the event, said the “official story” has changed several times in the past six years, but originally it was reported that “super-heated jet fuel melted the steel super-structure of these buildings and caused their collapse.” However, this theory has long been debunked, Ryan said. Both Ryan and Gage argued that fires have never before or since Sept. 11 caused a high-rise building to collapse. Gage said the fire is not consistent with the type of collapse of the Twin Towers and Building Seven. \nGage also spoke about reports that allegedly showed evidence of explosions, including eye-witness reports of typical signs of demolition. Gage presented multiple videos of demolitions to demonstrate the key signs of the methods used, then showed how the same signs could be seen in the collapse of all three World Trade Towers. \nThe group said the “smoking gun” of Sept. 11 is World Trade Tower Building Seven, which was never mentioned in the 9/11 Commission Report published after years of investigation. Though Building Seven had been hit by some debris from the North Tower, only the seventh, 12th and 13th floors were burning, Gage said. In Caracas, Venezuela, a building burned for 17 hours on 26 floors and did not fall down, he said. \n“It is virtually impossible, no, it is impossible, I’ll say it,” he said. \nRyan, a former site manager for Environmental Health Laboratories, also spoke at the event. Environmental Health Laboratories is a division of Underwriters Laboratories, which had done tests to confirm the fire-resistance of the steel. Ryan said he was fired from his job after he wrote a letter to a government scientist pointing out flaws in the government scientist’s theory of how the towers collapsed. \nRyan also questioned the appointment of Phillip Zelikow to head the committee creating the 9/11 Commission Report, saying he was not objective. He had co-authored a book with Condoleezza Rice and worked with both George W. and George H.W. Bush. \n“His self-described area of academic expertise is the ‘creation and management of public myths,’” Ryan said. \nZelikow “controlled the 9/11 commission, picking areas of investigation, briefing materials, topics for hearings, witnesses … he set the agenda,” Ryan said, stressing the amount of power Zelikow was given. Sen. Max Cleland, formerly a member of the commission, resigned in protest of the group’s methods.\nNeither Ryan or Gage cared to speculate as to who might have orchestrated a demolition of the towers, instead preferring to talk about the inconsistencies of the government reports. \n“Tonight we are concerned with science,” Gage said. \nStill, Gage called on the audience members to contact their local legislators and demand a new, objective probe into what happened on Sept. 11. \n“Twenty-seven hundred people were murdered in what we can now safely called the demolitions,” Gage said. “We need to honor them by getting at the truth of what happened.”
(08/30/07 4:29am)
After months of controversy, Monroe County Public Library Director Cindy Gray has resigned, effective Aug. 31. \nStephen Moberly, president of the board of trustees, made the announcement at a board meeting and public hearing on the 2008 budget. At the same time, he also announced a plan to reinstate the over-60 benefits program the board had decided to cut in August 2006. \nThe plan, which offered 90 percent medical coverage for employees aged 60-65, was initially cut in an effort to save money and prepare for 2012, when it was expected to lose a considerable amount of tax funding. \nInstead, a library committee examined the benefit program and found that keeping it would save money, Chief Financial Officer Bonnie Estell said at the meeting. Assuming that every employee eligible retired at age 60 and that every new hire was paid the entry-level salary, the library could potentially save $202,000 by 2017, she said. \nThe number is a far cry from the $293,359 loss that, as recently as last week, the library said it would experience if it kept the benefit program. That number didn’t account for the amount of salary saved by these employees’ early retirement, trustee Randy Paul said. \n“This is the first time the board has looked at both sides of the equation,” Paul said. \nPaul has been an outspoken critic of the benefit cuts since he joined the board in early 2007. He said for months he has been stressing that the over-60 benefit plan is a cost-saving measure and only now has the board listened. \n“There is one difference, and that is Cindy Gray,” Paul said. \nPaul said he believes the policy was initially set up as a vindictive attempt by Gray to “clean house” of employees she believed were working against her. He said any time he tried to bring up the positive aspects of the benefit program, Gray consistently shot down his arguments. That the benefit reinstatement and her resignation were announced the same day “was not a coincidence,” he said. \n“It is really hard to find the truth if you are close-minded to the facts. But finally tonight they did,” Paul said. “It is not that complicated – it is a good way to save money.” \nReinstatement of the benefits package came with one caveat. The health benefit package was “capped” at $5,000 per year, Estell said. However, Paul said most people would never reach that sum. \n“It is more of a symbolic cap than anything else,” Paul said.\nThe board did not previously consider this option because no one had presented it, Moberly said. \n“I appointed a working group to see if there was a sound fiscal solution and this is what they came up with,” he said. \nThe working group included Paul and Estell, among others, Moberly said in the meeting. He said there is no way to be certain of how much money the library will save in the future because of the program. \nHowever, Estell said the library will not lose money as long as new employees are given a salary at least $5,000 less than the retiree they replace. Since most people taking retirement are at the top of the pay scale, the library would likely save considerably, Paul said. \nChildren’s services assistant Kathy Starks-Dyer said she was glad to hear the benefits had been reinstated, even though her own retirement is far-off. \n“I certainly plan to be here when I retire, and I would be dependant on the health care benefits I get from working here,” Starks-Dyer said. “I hope it is there for me.” \nIf all goes according to plan, the program should be there for employees like Starks-Dyer in the future. Estell said the only way the program would not work would be if salaries did not rise incrementally with years worked at the library. \nStarks-Dyer said Gray’s resignation didn’t come as a surprise.\n“I’m more surprised that she didn’t resign sooner,” Starks-Dyer said. \nPaul, who is at the library five days a week, said he believes Gray’s resignation will greatly boost morale at the library. He said the issues during the last 12 months have been “distracting” and have polarized employees. \n“What we need to do is focus on serving the community,” Paul said. “Cindy Gray has been so distracting, but now we can get back to doing what we do best.” \nAn interim director will be announced on Saturday, Paul said.
(08/29/07 4:11am)
The second-best library in the nation may become only the third library in the state to unionize its workers. \nIn the wake of benefit cuts at Monroe County Public Library, ranked No. 2 in the nation last year for libraries of its size by Hennen’s American Public Library Ratings, a group of employees has teamed up in an effort to create a workers’ union. \n“They were looking for a voice they didn’t have,” said Randy Paul, a member of the board of trustees and an out-spoken critic of many library policies. \nPhil Eskew, a committee leader and technology trainer at the library, said the union movement began partially in response to benefit cuts at the library. Last August, the board of trustees voted to cut some worker benefits, including lowering the amount of sick pay employees can accumulate and, more controversially, cutting a health care program that allowed employees age 60 and older to retire early with 90 percent of their medical care covered by the library until the age 65.\nIn the spring, the committee presented the trustees a petition requesting they authorize collective bargaining, said board of trustees Treasurer John Walsh. On Sept. 19, the board will have a work session to decide how the library will proceed on the union issue. \nThough certainly current issues play a role, Eskew said the union effort is not about problems people have with other people. Nor does the union ask for a role in administrative decisions, he said. \n“The role of the union is about worker pay and benefits and working conditions,” Eskew said. “Right now, all those decisions are made by the board and the director. We want to have bargaining rights at that table.” \nSince she was hired in 2004 hiring, Director Cindy Gray, who is at the center of the controversy, has tried to bring people into the decision-making processes by creating a number of different committees, she said. \n“When I came on board, everything was top down,” Gray said. “I’ve made several attempts to bring people in and I’m proud of that.” \nEskew said people appreciated the chance to get involved, but the lack of feedback was frustrating. \n “It was great that we had an opportunity and fair for administration not to implement all our recommendations,” Eskew said. “But there was not enough feedback as to why a specific recommendation was not implemented.”\nGray said she believed a union could mean mixed results for the library. The union would allow management to deal with one voice instead of several, and employees would have a designated person to go to if they wanted to see changes made. However, she also worried about the “cultural environment” a union might bring, as well as the mandatory dues. \nThe union issue has added to a tense atmosphere at the library right, Gray said. Eskew disagreed the issue had polarized employees, however. \n“I think there are some people very much against it, but to try and talk about it in black and white terms is an unfair characterization. There are lots and lots of shades of grey,” Eskew said. “When you sit down and talk with most of the people in the library about what our goals are, everyone is behind them. They want a voice in the decision making process.” \nEskew said unionizing could help settle some of the problems at the library right now. \n “There is a perception of favoritism and I think that perception can be cleared up by having clearer policies,” Eskew said. “Any perceived favoritism is probably rooted in the ambiguous language of policy.”
(08/29/07 3:59am)
–A small group approached the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and talked with a representative.
(08/28/07 4:32am)
Monroe County Public Library is cutting employee health benefits to save money, but not everyone is convinced this measure is strictly financially motivated. Trustee Randy Paul sees the benefit cuts as a ‘symptom, not the problem.’ \nThe MCPL is cutting benefits in preparation for 2012, when it will lose between $350,000 and $500,000 in funding. Board of trustees president Stephen Moberly said one program – which offers 90 percent medical coverage to employees between the ages of 60 and 65 who retire early – could cost up to $293,359 in 2016. \nPaul said the move does not make financial sense because Moberly’s figures do not account for the money saved by not having to pay those retiring employees, who have usually left at the top of the pay scale and would be replaced with entry-level salaried employees. Paul believes the library, specifically library director Cindy Gray, is using the benefits to force one faction of library employees into retirement. \nThe library offers no protection to whistle blowers, he said. \n“It has turned into a vindictive attempt to ‘clean house’ on people who had expressed legitimate concerns,” Paul said. \nThose concerns include Gray’s questionable use of library credit cards. Gray was told the library would cover half her moving expenses, up to $4,500. Gray charged all her moving expenses on the library credit cards, then when she could not pay back her half immediately, told the library accountant that she would pay back the bill in installments, Paul said. \n“She essentially gave herself an interest-free loan with taxpayer dollars,” Paul said. \nGray said she was “90 percent sure” she had permission from then-Board president Pat Steele to charge her entire moving expenses on the library credit card. But Paul said permission was granted after the fact. \nGray said she had financial difficulties, because her house in Texas did not sell for a year and a half, requiring her to pay for its upkeep and for that of her new home in Bloomington. She said she instructed the bookkeeper to take $300 to $400 out of her paycheck each month to pay back the expenses. \n“The entire thing was paid off by the end of the year, which was the important thing for bookkeeping purposes,” Gray said. \nAccusations of favoritism also arose when the staff member who gave Gray a personal loan was the first to receive a stipend for a special project. However, Gray insists the loan was not a secret and that the stipend was awarded before she took a loan. \n“Was there a connection? I don’t know,” Paul said. “But it is the appearance of impropriety that is hurting her right now.” \nHowever, Treasurer John Walsh said he had not seen any evidence giving credence to allegations of favoritism. \n“The official policy is that stipends are available to all staff, and I’m not aware that anyone has ever requested extra work for a stipend and been turned down,” Walsh said. \nGray concurred. \n“Several people were given stipends who I would not consider to be in my ‘fold,’” she said. “I think it is petty.”\nRegardless, stipends will no longer be an issue in the coming year. Because of complaints about the system, the board did not include a budget for stipends in the next year, Gray said.\nGray said she’s tried to be fair during her tenure. \n“I’ve tried to install some things that bring in all staff and doesn’t single people out,” Gray said. \nMoreover, Gray said she was not responsible for the final decision to cut the benefit program entirely. The board of trustees discussed various ways to cut the budget, and it was a decision she had no control over, she said.\n“I’ve apologized for my mistakes, but I can’t apologize for the information that I presented to the board,” Gray said. “I had the best interests of the library in mind, it was certainly not malicious.”\nStill, Paul is not convinced.\n“I’d challenge someone to look at any problem we currently have and not trace it back to Cindy Gray,” Paul said.
(08/27/07 4:51am)
By Kasey Hawrysz \nkhawrysz@indiana.edu \nCome Jan. 1, the Monroe County Public Library will cut some benefits for employees in preparation for an expected loss of revenue in 2012. That is, unless one library committee has its way. \nIn the early 1990s the library issued a bond to cover the cost of an addition to its building, said Treasurer John Walsh, a member of the library’s Board of Trustees. Libraries are funded by taxes from the county option income tax funds, and establishments with more debt receive a larger amount of revenue per year. However, by 2012 the bond issue will be entirely paid off, and as a result the MCPL will lose between $350,000 and $500,000 in revenue each year. \nIn preparation for the expected loss of revenue in 2012, the MCPL Board of Trustees decided to cut parts of the employee benefit plan Aug 16., 2006, effective Jan. 1. MCPL has cut the maximum number of sick days employees are allowed to accrue from 180 to 130, and workers can now receive compensation on only 30 unused sick days, as opposed to 60 in the past. But the most controversial issue is the cutting of a benefit that allowed employees to retire at age 60 and receive 90 percent medical coverage from the library until Medicare kicked in at age 65. \nAlthough the issue has been declared “dead” several times since the decision was made over a year ago, a committee was recently created to try and compromise, Trustee Randy Paul said. The committee is considering “grandfathering in” the program for those who have worked at the library longest. For example, one plan suggests that everyone age 55 and older be eligible for the plan upon turning 60. \n“It is a nasty thing to do to people, because we’ve had the promise to our employees who have stayed for 30-odd years,” Paul said. “We are really subjecting them to a huge risk if we don’t stop this before January.”\nDirector Cindy Gray, who is at the center of the controversy, said the idea of “grandfathering in” the benefits package does not appeal to her because it favors some employees over others. \n“Whether you’ve been here one year, five years, 20 years, you are all equal,” Gray said.\nDepending on the number of retirees, the over-60 health care program could cost anywhere from $14,395 in 2008 to $293,359 in 2016, said Stephen Moberly, president of the Board of Trustees. \nThe benefit program is one of the most generous in the state, Moberly said. MCPL does not compare itself to other libraries – nationally or within Indiana – because nowhere else offered this kind of benefit package, he said. \n“Sixty nine percent of our budget goes to salary, and that budget is higher than any other library we’d compare ourselves to,” Moberly said. “I’ve also urged the Board to accept a three percent wage increase across the board. We haven’t been skimping.”\nHowever, not everyone is positive cutting benefits is the answer. Paul sees the measure as both vindictive and economically irresponsible. Gray, he said, is using the benefits to “clean house,” encouraging those she sees as “troublemakers” to leave. \n“All these Chicken Little, ‘the-sky-is-falling’ scenarios for if we continue the benefit program are nonsense,” Paul said. “She is using the politics of fear to make people afraid they are going to lose their jobs.” \nOriginally, the benefit plan offering employees the chance to retire early with 90 percent health coverage was instituted as a cost saving measure, Paul said. Employees at that age have usually reached the top of the pay scale, he said. If an employee is paid $50,000 a year, but instead retires and the library pays $5,000 in medical care, the library gains $45,000 a year it would otherwise still pay to the employee. And since the library starts all employees at the same entry-level salary, even if it hires someone to replace the retiree, it is still saving thousands of dollars. In calculating the possible expenses of the benefit program, Gray leaves out half of the equation, Paul says. \n“(The benefit plan) was a legitimate way to cut costs, but now they say this plan will bankrupt us,” Paul said. “No one can convince me they don’t \nknow this.” \nGray disagreed. Though in principle that might be how the benefit program would work, she said with the decline in revenue and the size of the staff the future is unpredictable, and the library must prepare.\n“With the decline in revenue, the only way to make it up is to cut materials and cut staff,” she said. “And it wouldn’t be prudent to take our $1,000,000 materials budget and just cut the nearly $600,000 we’ll lose from there.” \nGray said the plan is necessary to prevent the library from having to cut staff in the future. Walsh agreed. \n“We’re preparing so we don’t have to cut services or programs, lay off staff or cut our hours of operation,” Walsh said.\nHowever, Paul said he believes cutting these benefits will “come back and slap us in the face.” \n“What we ought to be doing is to put a committee together of people experienced in money and fund raising to do strategic planning for the future,” Paul said. \nGray is cutting benefits to try and force a group of long-standing employees she considers to be “troublemakers” to quit, Paul said. In a widely circulated e-mail to the board of trustees, Gray makes this clear, he said. \n“Part of me wants to be benevolent, but on the other hand, these same folks are the very ones who didn’t bat an eye at accepting five to seven percent pay increases in recent years, which is why they’re topped out in their salaries now, and is at least part of the reason MCPL is currently in this position – because we didn’t stop giving – or taking as the case may be. To be blunt, losing some of these folks could indeed be healthy for the organizational culture,” Gray said in the e-mail. \nGray said there is a faction in the library that does cause problems, including making personal attacks on her. \n“It is well known in the library that there is a group of staffers from the early 90s who have worked against authority and against overall policy and the overall agenda of the library,” Gray said. “But up until the last six months, I didn’t think they were doing it maliciously.”\nGray says the personal attacks on her have taken a toll. \n“It is fine to have a voice, but when you get personal, it discredits the whole thing,” Gray said. \n“It is wearying. It causes you to second guess yourself when you know what you are doing is right, just maybe not the right method.”
(08/24/07 5:12am)
Bloomington residents eager to see Bloomington’s Fourth Street post office stay downtown have one more day to voice their opinion, said Bloomington city councilman Chris Sturbaum.\nThe U.S. Postal Service has leased the downtown Bloomington location since the 1959, and from the First United Methodist Church since 2002. However, when the lease ends in 2009 the church will not be renewing the contract, said Kirk White, chairman of the church’s strategic planning committee.\nOriginally, the post office was likely to move out of downtown because of size considerations, Sturbaum said. \n“The U.S. Postal Service had a set formula for getting a five-acre property but that was incompatible with finding a location downtown,” Sturbaum said. “The input they’ve heard from the community across the board is ‘keep the post office downtown.’”\nThe U.S. Postal Service seems to be listening, Sturbaum said. He said it looks like the post office may not go as far as previously anticipated, thanks to the U.S. Postal Service reaching out to the community and considering its needs. \n“It is more of a collaboration than a dictatorship,” Sturbaum said. “Still, it is ultimately up to the bureaucracy of the U.S. Postal Service.” \nSturbaum encourages concerned citizens to contact Richard Drury of the U.S. Postal Service, who will be taking comments through Saturday, and urge the office to consider a downtown Bloomington location. \n“People make trips downtown and do lots of their errands together, which leads to less gas consumption and also means that people can get downtown in ways other than automobiles,” Sturbaum said. “It’s one of the civic buildings that holds the downtown together.” \nFirst United Methodist Church purchased the post office building and land in 2002 to accommodate for projected growth of its congregation, currently numbering about 1,500 members, White said. \n“Fifteen years ago, First Methodist Church as a congregation decided we wanted to stay an urban church downtown,” White said. “One of our goals was to have enough land available to be able to accommodate our future growth in facilities and parking.” \nAt the time of the purchase, the lease agreement with the post office was already in place, White said. \n“Soon after we purchased it in 2002, we told the post office that we would probably be looking at building on the land after 2009,” White said. “We told them that they should be looking for other options in case we decided not to renew, so they’ve had several years to consider.” \nIn the short term, the building will mostly likely be razed to provide parking for the church’s members, White said. Long-term plans include possible construction of additional function space for church activities. \n“Churches grow and change and we are not quite ready to build,” White said. “But it is a land bank to have ready for future development.” \nEighty-five percent of post office facilities are leased, usually for five years at a time, said Al Eakle, communications program specialist for the greater Indiana district of the U.S. Postal Service. Location is an important aspect of any post office, he said. \n “It is important to keep retail operations close to the community that we serve,” Eakle said. “Proximity to the customer is paramount to us.” \nTo contact Richard Drury, either e-mail him at Richard_Drury@sbcglobal.net or call 972-740-1872.
(08/23/07 3:34am)
After five years of enrollment increases, Ivy Tech Community College has surpassed the “mystical 5,000” mark for the fall semester, said John Whikehart, chancellor of the community college’s Bloomington campus. \nThis fall, 5,018 students enrolled in classes at the Bloomington campus of the college, according to a press release. The school’s enrollment has been steadily increasing over the last five years, but the school was initially not expected to hit the 5,000 student mark until 2011, Whikehart said. \nThe increased enrollment has forced the college to lease additional space to accommodate its students. Last March, the campus received permission from central administration to lease an 8,500 square foot facility on Liberty Drive in Bloomington, located a short distance away from the main campus. \n“We have a great relationship with Rural Transit,” Whikehart said. “They’ll be transferring students to and from the building throughout the day.” \nNinety-four course sections will be held in the new building, which was remodeled to create seven new classrooms, Whikehart said.\nThough the building is leased for several years to come, plans are already in place to accommodate the continued increases in enrollment expected in the next few years. Further down the road will be “Phase Two” construction which is likely to begin in 2009, Whikehart said. \n“We are going to break ground on a new life sciences facility, which will have four additional computer labs and three classrooms,” Whikehart said. \nEnrollment has increased by a “double-digit percentage” every semester since it completed renovations to the Bloomington campus in 2002, Whikehart said. He said the campus’s close relationship with IU since then has been one factor in the growth of Ivy Tech. \n“Three hundred students are enrolled here and living in the IU residence halls,” Whikehart said. “We have 14 degrees and 400 credit hours that transfer, which has been a factor.” \nNumbers of students enrolling full-time are also up 11 percent, according to the press release. Whikehart attributes this change to the rising number of “traditional age” students enrolling at Ivy Tech. Fifty-five percent of students enrolled at the Bloomington campus of Ivy Tech this year are under the age of 24, a shift away from the past when the college catered mostly to “non-traditional” \nstudents. \nAlong with younger, full-time students comes an expectation of traditional student life, said Brian Newton, dean of enrollment services and student activities.\n“We’re seeing many more students between the ages of 18-25 and they have a different expectation of student life and student activities,” Newton said. “They want some of the same activities you’d get from a four-year institution.” \nDespite passing the 5,000 mark, Whikehart says Ivy Tech will continue to encourage enrollment growth. \n“The state of Indiana ranks 46th or 47th in the nation in terms of the number of residents with college degrees,” Whikehart said. “And we know that for first generation college students and in many cases minority students, their access to education is through community colleges systems. So we have a responsibility to grow.”
(12/08/06 8:05pm)
Mr. Big, professional midget wrestler, leaps off the top rope of the ring and tackles cruiser-weight wrestler Bobby Black in his signature move, the "drop kick off the top rope." All 4'9" and 135 pounds of Mr. Big knocks Black onto the mat with a slam, but soon Black and his tag team partner have managed to pin Mr. Big. \nEnter TVZ.\nThe tag-team comprised of brothers Tom and Troy Van Zant rushes into the ring, though whether it is to help Mr. Big or beat on their chief rivals, tag-team Bobby Black and Donny Idol, is unclear. The crowd cheers for TMZ and Mr. Big or boos their opponents, shouting "Opie" at Idol because of his baby face. Wrestlers fly out of the ring right and left, occasionally pausing to clobber each other on the way.\nDing, ding, ding — the bell rings and an early match of last Saturday's show is over for the time being. But at Hoosier Professional Wrestling, it ain't really over until founder Jerry Wilson says so. \nWhen I first set out for Wilson's wrestling ring in Columbus, Ind., I was a little nervous, given that I don't know the difference between any of the many acronym-ed wrestling associations. Nevertheless, Hoosier Pro Wrestling turned out to be entirely more entertaining than I expected. The wrestlers constantly interacted with the crowd. Usually the crowd insulted the wrestler's ability or his sister, while wrestlers responded with comments about the crowd's choices of hairstyle.\n"I'll knock the rest of your teeth out," one wrestler, Dr. Love, hollers at a heckling fan. \nOthers play to the crowd. "The Bouncer" emerges from behind the tarp marking off a "backstage" area carrying a keg of beer on his shoulders and yells, "Who wants some beeeeeeeer?"\nNot surprisingly, the fans approve of the Bouncer, who ends up winning his match. \nWilson has hosted fights in the Family Arts Center at the Bartholomew County 4-H Fairgrounds every month for almost the last nine years. He uses about 40-50 wrestlers every year and even fights them once in a while.\n"I occasionally get beat up," he corrects.\nAfter the Mr. Big-Idol-Black-TVZ fight, Wilson decrees that the best is yet to come. He orders Idol and Black to find a third partner and face Mr. Big and TVZ once more before the night is out. The crowd cheers, and Idol and Black snag Big John Wall as their partner. The challenge is on.\nAs more matches take place, I grow used to the loud smacking sound every time the wrestlers hit the ground. And I was growing to be just a tiny bit curious when suddenly someone noticed me flinching at each throw.\n"You don't know anything about wrestling at all, do you?" \nApparently not. But does that mean that it sounds a lot worse than it is, or that it isn't real? \n"We don't do fake," Wilson says. "It's real, the punches are good. If you aren't trained right and you fall wrong, you could break your neck." \nAfter I see one wrestler twist his knee, this seems fair enough. And the wrestlers? \n"It's as real as you believe it is," Mr. Big says. "If the crowd says it's real, it is. And I've had cracked ribs, a broken leg and a bruised kidney. I was in the hospital for 30 days, pissing blood."\nWalking through the crowd — and seeing two-year-old Jayden attempt to tackle his father, smack-down style — I start to feel more comfortable. I easily dash around scattering chairs as wrestlers tumble into the crowd, and I settle down next to a row of particularly intense fans to watch the melee.\n"I've been watching since childhood — I watch it on TV every Thursday and come here every month," Jennifer Eckiwaudah says. "I cheer for TVZ, always. Those other guys (Black and Idol) disrespected me personally."\nThe "show" — everyone is very careful to refer to it this way, not as a competition — is held in the Family Arts Center, which on other days holds activities such as the Saddle Club. And it certainly is a family event. Along one row sat four generations of a family, all screaming and heckling the wrestlers without mercy.\n"I've been watching since — shit — since the 1960s," Beverly Rumple, who attended with her mother, daughter and grandson, says. "I've been coming here every month. They have good matches." \nFor her part, Rumple, who is married to the son of wrestling legend Dick the Bruiser, says HPW wrestling is real. And a veteran of almost 50 years of wrestling fandom, she'd certainly be someone who'd know. \n"It's not like its fake, they're really wrassling," Rumple says. "Some places you go its staged. But to me, this is real."\nWhich brought up another point: the "wrestling" versus "wrasslin'" dilemma. As a wrestling (wrasslin') newbie, I have no idea what the difference is.\n"It's 'wrestling,' but down South you say it 'wrasslin,'" Wilson says. \nWilson also trains fighters, he says, and he has about four in training right now. He once trained Jillian Hall, a female wrestler who made it to "WWE Smackdown!" On this note, he mentions that he could certainly train me. An option I briefly consider before finding out that beginning wrestlers make about $30 per fight, which is only slightly better than a career in journalism and with considerably more pain involved. \nBut TVZ and company have returned for the three-on-three match, and I go back to paying attention. By this point, any semblance of rules have been abandoned, and though it is supposed to be one wrestler fighting at a time, soon all three are smacking each other. And apparently the ring was just a guideline, because most of them have totally abandoned it, fighting in the crowd and walloping each other with chairs. The more painful looking hits include Big John Wall — at least 300 pounds — jumping on top of the comparatively diminutive Van Zant brothers. \nBut ultimately, TVZ emerge as victors and seemingly all 185 members of the crowd erupt. Unfortunately for TVZ, however, Tom Van Zant twists his knee and is taken out of competition. Still, the show goes on as brother Troy teams up with someone else for remaining fights.\nMore fights follow, including a final "bloodbath" between Diceman Ronnie Vegas and Ox Harley, with Wilson himself getting involved. It ends in double disqualification after the contenders violently scattered most of the chairs and tables around the ring. But it garnered loud cheers — though one little girl hid in the bathroom to avoid the wrestlers. \n"'The Hammer' didn't show, but we gave them a good show anyway," Wilson says, mopping his forehead. "Nobody is leaving disappointed, and they'll be back next month."\nThe next show will be Jan. 6. Though I can't promise that I'll have committed to a future in professional wrestling by then, the important thing is that I have options.
(12/08/06 6:13pm)
Her arms already overflowing with knitted neckwear, senior Lauren Culp counts out nine of the handmade accessories and realizes that she needs one more. She scoots back through the throng of women crowded into B Boutique and snags one more of the colorful scarves. \nIf Amanda Gibson and Tara Jones' design becomes the next trend this season, all of Culp's friends and family will be prepared. \n"I called my dad and he wants to buy them for my mom and stepmom and sister and aunt -- basically all my girl relatives," Culp said.\nCulp was just one of more than 50 women who crowded into B Boutique for the opening of her friend and sorority sisters' line of scarves, called "The Nic."\nNamed after the women's best friend, Nichole Birky, who passed away in April, The Nic is an abbreviated version of a scarf adorned with vintage buttons.\n"It's a really unique product," IU senior Lindsay Cole said. "You could wear it for function -- to keep you warm -- or for fashion."\nThursday marked the first time Jones and Gibson sold the scarves in Bloomington -- they are already selling in a Louisville store -- and was scheduled to start at 8 p.m. But 15 minutes before, women were already lined up outside, Jones said. Latecomers who arrived even a half-hour after the opening faced slim pickings, as the punctual or early already snagged the majority of the neckwear. \n"We'll definitely sell out," Gibson said, only 20 minutes after the event started. \nSeveral customers noted that the product appeals to women across the age gap. \n"Some of the girls are buying one for their mothers or grandmothers, and also for themselves," said Tammy Gibson, Amanda Gibson's mother. "It looks nice on any age group." \nJones, a senior, had just taken up knitting again when she and best friend Gibson came up with the idea, she said. The two stayed up all night perfecting the idea, and The Nic was born. The two quickly set to work creating their company, Groundless Youth Designs, to market the design. \nJones and Gibson also hoped to commemorate Birky both by naming it after her and by providing 5 percent of the profits to Birky's financially strapped family for as long as the product sells.\nFor now, The Nic will be sold exclusively at B Boutique, 601 N. College Ave., a new apparel and gift store that opened last August in Bloomington. The store offers a mix of designers and unique and affordable pieces, said owner Brooke Magdzinski. When Jones and Gibson approached Magdzinski about selling them, she agreed.\n"I feel really lucky that I'll be exclusively selling them," Magdzinski said. "I think they're going to be huge. They are fashion-forward and that's what people are looking for." \nMagdzinski will offer the neckwear for $45 each, she said, though she hosted the opening, where all scarves were offered $30 because Magdzinski did not take a profit Thursday night. \nBut having nearly sold out of the product within the first half hour of the opening, Jones and Gibson have set their sights even bigger: They hope to mass produce The Nic by next year. \n"This is basically to create a buzz," Gibson said. "We are going to send our idea to Saks and other boutiques." \nAnd if the success of the opening is any indication, The Nic could be the next big trend, several customers said. Culp, still grappling with an armful of Nics, agreed. \n"The Nic is coming," she said.
(12/08/06 5:00am)
Mr. Big, professional midget wrestler, leaps off the top rope of the ring and tackles cruiser-weight wrestler Bobby Black in his signature move, the "drop kick off the top rope." All 4'9" and 135 pounds of Mr. Big knocks Black onto the mat with a slam, but soon Black and his tag team partner have managed to pin Mr. Big. \nEnter TVZ.\nThe tag-team comprised of brothers Tom and Troy Van Zant rushes into the ring, though whether it is to help Mr. Big or beat on their chief rivals, tag-team Bobby Black and Donny Idol, is unclear. The crowd cheers for TMZ and Mr. Big or boos their opponents, shouting "Opie" at Idol because of his baby face. Wrestlers fly out of the ring right and left, occasionally pausing to clobber each other on the way.\nDing, ding, ding — the bell rings and an early match of last Saturday's show is over for the time being. But at Hoosier Professional Wrestling, it ain't really over until founder Jerry Wilson says so. \nWhen I first set out for Wilson's wrestling ring in Columbus, Ind., I was a little nervous, given that I don't know the difference between any of the many acronym-ed wrestling associations. Nevertheless, Hoosier Pro Wrestling turned out to be entirely more entertaining than I expected. The wrestlers constantly interacted with the crowd. Usually the crowd insulted the wrestler's ability or his sister, while wrestlers responded with comments about the crowd's choices of hairstyle.\n"I'll knock the rest of your teeth out," one wrestler, Dr. Love, hollers at a heckling fan. \nOthers play to the crowd. "The Bouncer" emerges from behind the tarp marking off a "backstage" area carrying a keg of beer on his shoulders and yells, "Who wants some beeeeeeeer?"\nNot surprisingly, the fans approve of the Bouncer, who ends up winning his match. \nWilson has hosted fights in the Family Arts Center at the Bartholomew County 4-H Fairgrounds every month for almost the last nine years. He uses about 40-50 wrestlers every year and even fights them once in a while.\n"I occasionally get beat up," he corrects.\nAfter the Mr. Big-Idol-Black-TVZ fight, Wilson decrees that the best is yet to come. He orders Idol and Black to find a third partner and face Mr. Big and TVZ once more before the night is out. The crowd cheers, and Idol and Black snag Big John Wall as their partner. The challenge is on.\nAs more matches take place, I grow used to the loud smacking sound every time the wrestlers hit the ground. And I was growing to be just a tiny bit curious when suddenly someone noticed me flinching at each throw.\n"You don't know anything about wrestling at all, do you?" \nApparently not. But does that mean that it sounds a lot worse than it is, or that it isn't real? \n"We don't do fake," Wilson says. "It's real, the punches are good. If you aren't trained right and you fall wrong, you could break your neck." \nAfter I see one wrestler twist his knee, this seems fair enough. And the wrestlers? \n"It's as real as you believe it is," Mr. Big says. "If the crowd says it's real, it is. And I've had cracked ribs, a broken leg and a bruised kidney. I was in the hospital for 30 days, pissing blood."\nWalking through the crowd — and seeing two-year-old Jayden attempt to tackle his father, smack-down style — I start to feel more comfortable. I easily dash around scattering chairs as wrestlers tumble into the crowd, and I settle down next to a row of particularly intense fans to watch the melee.\n"I've been watching since childhood — I watch it on TV every Thursday and come here every month," Jennifer Eckiwaudah says. "I cheer for TVZ, always. Those other guys (Black and Idol) disrespected me personally."\nThe "show" — everyone is very careful to refer to it this way, not as a competition — is held in the Family Arts Center, which on other days holds activities such as the Saddle Club. And it certainly is a family event. Along one row sat four generations of a family, all screaming and heckling the wrestlers without mercy.\n"I've been watching since — shit — since the 1960s," Beverly Rumple, who attended with her mother, daughter and grandson, says. "I've been coming here every month. They have good matches." \nFor her part, Rumple, who is married to the son of wrestling legend Dick the Bruiser, says HPW wrestling is real. And a veteran of almost 50 years of wrestling fandom, she'd certainly be someone who'd know. \n"It's not like its fake, they're really wrassling," Rumple says. "Some places you go its staged. But to me, this is real."\nWhich brought up another point: the "wrestling" versus "wrasslin'" dilemma. As a wrestling (wrasslin') newbie, I have no idea what the difference is.\n"It's 'wrestling,' but down South you say it 'wrasslin,'" Wilson says. \nWilson also trains fighters, he says, and he has about four in training right now. He once trained Jillian Hall, a female wrestler who made it to "WWE Smackdown!" On this note, he mentions that he could certainly train me. An option I briefly consider before finding out that beginning wrestlers make about $30 per fight, which is only slightly better than a career in journalism and with considerably more pain involved. \nBut TVZ and company have returned for the three-on-three match, and I go back to paying attention. By this point, any semblance of rules have been abandoned, and though it is supposed to be one wrestler fighting at a time, soon all three are smacking each other. And apparently the ring was just a guideline, because most of them have totally abandoned it, fighting in the crowd and walloping each other with chairs. The more painful looking hits include Big John Wall — at least 300 pounds — jumping on top of the comparatively diminutive Van Zant brothers. \nBut ultimately, TVZ emerge as victors and seemingly all 185 members of the crowd erupt. Unfortunately for TVZ, however, Tom Van Zant twists his knee and is taken out of competition. Still, the show goes on as brother Troy teams up with someone else for remaining fights.\nMore fights follow, including a final "bloodbath" between Diceman Ronnie Vegas and Ox Harley, with Wilson himself getting involved. It ends in double disqualification after the contenders violently scattered most of the chairs and tables around the ring. But it garnered loud cheers — though one little girl hid in the bathroom to avoid the wrestlers. \n"'The Hammer' didn't show, but we gave them a good show anyway," Wilson says, mopping his forehead. "Nobody is leaving disappointed, and they'll be back next month."\nThe next show will be Jan. 6. Though I can't promise that I'll have committed to a future in professional wrestling by then, the important thing is that I have options.
(12/08/06 3:58am)
Years from now, the legacy of IU student Nichole Birky, who died in April, will still help financially support her family.\nBirky's best friends have made sure of that. \nSeniors Amanda Gibson and Tara Jones have produced an innovative ear and neck warmer, called The Nic, that will go on sale in Bloomington tonight. About 5 percent of the profits will go to Birky's family for as long as the accessories are selling, Jones said.\nAnd with them already selling well elsewhere at nearly $50 each, Birky's family -- left financially strapped by loans taken out to pay her school fees -- may be in for some relief.\n"One of (Birky's) main motivations for going to college was to make money so that she could help her family," Jones said. "As her best friends, we wanted to make something that would fulfill that dream." \nThe accessories, already selling at Clodhoppers in Louisville, Ky., will go on sale at 8 p.m. tonight at B Boutique, 601 N. College Ave. The opening will be the one chance to get The Nic at a discounted price of $30, with prices expected to be almost $50 after the opening. In Louisville, they sell for about $47 apiece. \nJones and Gibson dreamed up The Nic as Jones was knitting a scarf one night. The pair stayed up all night perfecting the idea, and once it was created the two received an overwhelming response, Gibson said. \n"The first time I wore mine out, within 10 minutes I'd already had three people ask me about it," Jones said.\n"Whenever I'm out I always get asked about it," Gibson said.\nAfter all the positive feedback, Jones and Gibson realized the commercial possibilities of the neck-warmers and created Groundless Youth Designs to sell them. So far, they have not sold any in Bloomington but did give a few away to friends.\nWith a patent pending, Jones and Gibson are already looking to expand. After being approached by workers in several different department stores, the two are hopeful they will be able to sell the product to Neiman Marcus, Von Maur or Nordstrom, Gibson said. \nBut the best part of their entrepreneurial endeavor, Jones said, is honoring Birky.\n"I used to call her Nic," Jones said. "And now we are going around saying her name, and so are other people"
(12/06/06 6:03am)
On Sunday, Ladyman's Cafe cook Jack Covert will rise at 4:30 a.m. and head to work. He will arrive at the restaurant by 5 a.m. and light the stove, heat up the sausage gravy and prepare what he will need for the breakfast rush, the same way he has for years.\nBut when Covert's shift ends at 1:30 p.m., he will hang up his apron for good after 49 years in the Ladyman's kitchen.\nNow 72, Covert has worked at Ladyman's, a Bloomington landmark, since it first opened in 1957. On Dec. 10, a little less than a year after Walnut Street Development purchased the building housing the restaurant, Ladyman's Cafe will close for good. Ladyman's building will be torn down next spring to make way for Finelight Strategic Marketing Communications offices. And Covert, for the first time in nearly 50 years, will be out of a job.\n"I'm going to be fighting for unemployment," he said. "They tell me I should have no problem, but I don't know." \nA part-time job is not out of the question, Covert said, but at this point, he wants to stay home and take care of his ailing wife, Pat. \n"I don't like to go into places I don't know," he said. "I'd have to learn a new routine and new people. I'm too old to go through that again." \nCovert says he is not much of a talker, gesturing with a long, serrated knife he used to cut up ham for ham salad. Most of the customers know the man by his food, not his face.\nBut owner Dana Reynolds intended to see Covert get the recognition he deserves, which included dragging him out to meet some of the customers last Sunday morning. "When I went out there, they all started clapping, and I tell you, I must have been red as a beet," Covert said.\nDoug Hatton, part of a large "coffee group" of older, mostly retired men, has visited Ladyman's several times a week for the last 10 or 15 years but has not met Covert. But he knows his food.\n"Everybody has their own favorites," Hatton said. "I come in for lunch a few times a week. I usually get a low-fat cheeseburger, or the biscuits and gravy or a bacon and egg sandwich." \nOf course, Covert has had years to hone his skills. He started working in a Bloomington restaurant as a 17-year-old high school senior, washing dishes in the back. Later, a Ladyman's cook took it upon himself to teach Covert the trade, and soon Covert was an assistant chef.\nIn 1957, when Tom Ladyman, who worked with Covert, decided to buy the restaurant that would become Ladyman's Cafe, he asked Covert to come along as his cook. He was just 23 at the time and had no idea he'd be there for the rest of his career. \n"I never learned how to do anything else," Covert said. "I never knew anything about electricity or plumbing or cars." \nToday, not learning another trade is a source of regret for Covert, who has no medical insurance. If circumstances had not closed the restaurant, Covert does not know how long he might have postponed retirement. \n"It depends on how long I could keep going," he said. "I have a breathing problem; too much exertion and I get out of breath." \nStill, he will miss the people he works with, he said, especially Reynolds, who purchased the restaurant five years ago. \n"She's a real sweet person, and she's always been good to me," he said. \nFor the first 35 years of his career, Covert worked six days a week, he said. He moved down to five days a week later, and now for the last several years, he has been working Monday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday.\n"It's a good shift because I always get off when it is still the daytime, even in the winter," he said.\nThough Covert down plays his role in Ladyman's history, Reynolds, who has worked at Ladyman's for 17 years and owned it for five, disagrees. \n"When I think of Ladyman's, I think of Jack Covert," Reynolds said. "Jack is Ladyman's. Without him, I could have never done it." \nStill, by next week, Covert will have all the daylight hours he wants. He'll just have to try break his habit of rising early. \n"It'll be weird," Covert said. "I'll have to see if I like it"
(12/04/06 6:05am)
Holding a body-shaped shroud on their shoulders, graduate student Giri Krishnan and IU researcher Suresh Marru followed a seven-person funeral procession down Indiana Avenue as the procession's leader slowly banged out a funeral cadence with a pot and spoon. The rest of the group carried posters depicting deformed children and other grisly images. \nKrishnan and Marru, members of the IU Association for India's Development, held the mock funeral to mark the 22nd anniversary of one of the worst industrial accidents in history and to send a message to the the group they say is responsible for the action, Dow Chemical Company. \n"We didn't choose to be graphic to get attention, but this is what happened," said Krishnan, the president of AID. \nIn 1984, 3,000 people in Bhopal, India, died after a chemical leak occurred at a Union Carbide factory, which has since been purchased by Dow Chemical. More than 50,000 people are said to have permanent disabilities as a result of the accident, according to a 2004 article on the British Broadcasting Corp.'s Web site.\nThe leak also poisoned the ground water in Bhopal, and today, an estimated 150,000 people are still suffering because of it, Krishnan said. Birth defects have occurred in children born of parents exposed to the toxins, he said. \nThe Union Carbide Corp. has stated the company worked diligently to provide immediate and continuing aid to the victims and set up a process to resolve their claims, according to a statement on the corporation's Web site. It also states all claims arising out of the chemical release were settled 17 years ago with the explicit direction and approval of the Supreme Court of India.\nDespite the $470 million in reparations paid to the victims in 1989, AID representatives said the settlement is not nearly enough since it works out to only $500 per affected victim. \nThe group is demanding that Dow Chemical clean up the site of the accident, provide long-term health care for the thousands affected by the accident and provide a new livelihood for those displaced or disabled by the leak, Krishnan said. AID also wants Union Carbide and its former CEO Warren Anderson to face trial in a Bhopal criminal court. \nMost people are not aware of what happened, said IU optometry professor Jenni Wilkinson, who stopped to look at the protest. She said she knew about accident but believes she is probably in the minority. \n"It goes across the news, and then it just flips to the next thing," Wilkinson said. "It is basically in one ear and out the other." \nAID has protested Dow Chemical's presence on campus in the past, such as recently at November's Life Sciences Career Fair.
(12/04/06 5:46am)
If the IU Health Center sees a surge in cases of the flu next week, it might look to this year's "19 Party." About 1,600 women spent most of the weekend trekking between IU's 19 different sorority houses in freezing weather for the first stage of women's recruitment.\n"If they are going to be making you stand outside for 20 minutes at a time, they should at least do it when it isn't 10 degrees outside," potential sorority member and freshman Lizzie Oliver said. \nThough the weather was far from ideal, the rest of recruitment went smoothly, despite changes in the recruitment rule book, said senior Kelly Jones, vice president of recruitment for the IU Panhellenic Association. Previously, sorority members were not allowed to talk about men or partying during recruitment.\n"Everyone is acting really ethically and making (potential) new members really comfortable," Jones said. "I've been expecting my phone to be ringing off the hook with problems, but that hasn't happened." \nThis year, sororities were encouraged to develop their own recruitment policy regarding what members could talk about with potential members, Jones said. \n"What we're trying to do at IU is to get recruitment to be less strict and lower the rules each year," said junior Lauren Rectanus, assistant recruitment chairwoman at Kappa Delta. "We want to really bring a moral-based recruitment, where people at each chapter can make their own \ndecisions." \nBut the change in rules did not necessarily mean booze and boys were the only topics of conversation, recruitment chairwomen at several sororities said. \n"The standard I set was that we want to put a positive vibe out about our house, and we don't want to attract people who only want to join for the social aspect," said senior Alex Bernardi, recruitment chairwoman for Delta Delta Delta. "You don't have to completely brush over those topics, but you don't focus on it."\nStill, others chose to keep the same recruitment standards as before the ban. Delta Zeta recruitment chairwoman Molly Wright, a junior, said Delta Zeta did not relax the policy at all. But she said she found the change in rules to be positive because members did not have to worry about getting in trouble if potential members brought it up. \nOthers agreed the changes made the process more natural. Last year, rules included restrictions on vocabulary, which sometimes made conversations awkward, said senior Liza Iaccarino, recruitment chairwoman for Pi Beta Phi. Previously, for example, women had to refer to sororities as "chapters," not houses, and dorms as "residence halls." \n"Girls in my house feel like they can let their guard down, don't have to worry about getting your house in trouble," Iaccarino said. "Typically, it didn't happen often, but you were so worried about it, it was constantly in the back of your mind. But with the new rules being more relaxed, people are having much better conversations."\nFor the most part, freshmen did not typically ask about the previously forbidden topics, Bernardi said. \nWhile sophomore Dawn Dassell, a potential sorority member, said she did not talk about those topics, she said she felt more at ease about the process with the new rules. \n"You don't feel so uptight," Dassell said. "If you mention, 'Oh, my boyfriend did this,' that shouldn't be a big deal." \nFreshman Liz Pinkham said the social aspect played a role in her decision to participate in recruitment but was not the only reason. She said for the most part, neither potential members nor sorority members brought up drinking or men during recruitment.\n"If you're are thinking about that, you probably already know that's what it's going to be like," Pinkham said.
(12/01/06 9:50pm)
Pedestrians beware: Third Street and the Jordan Extension might be a little crowded this weekend.\nWhen freshman Stefanie Bassler throws on her recruitment t-shirt Saturday morning, she will join more than 1,700 identically clad women searching for a second home on campus during the first round of women's recruitment. For Bassler and the rest of the potential members, finding the perfect house this winter might be a little easier than in years past.\nThis year, the Panhellenic Association repealed a number of old rules, including those outlawing discussion of men and alcohol during recruitment. \nThe changes come as a relief to Bassler. \n"You basically only have half an hour with each house, and maybe seven minutes with each girl," Bassler said. "In that seven minutes you should be able to talk to the girls to find out what it is all about."\nThe Panhellenic Association hopes repealing these rules, which also include a ban on touching potential members, will make the experience more relaxed, Panhellenic Association President Brittany Cohen said. \n"Whatever your conversation is about, everything is going to be more laid back," Cohen said. "People are not going to be fined for little things, and we aren't looking to get people in trouble. We are looking for everyone to have fun." \nBassler signed up for recruitment in hopes of finding a chapter that suits her personality, she said. \n"When I got to IU I was so overwhelmed because it was such a big school," Bassler said. "But maybe if I find the perfect house that is a perfect fit for me, the school will seem just a bit smaller."\nSaturday will mark phase one of Bassler's search: 19 party. From 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday, groups of about 80 to 90 women will visit every sorority house for about 30 minutes. Potential members will listen to cheers and meet members of the chapters.\nAfter 19 party, members will rank the houses based on preference and will return for First Invite Jan. 4, the first of three more rounds before bids are given.\nJust more than 50 percent will ultimately join a house, Cohen said. Some will drop out of recruitment, while others will be cut because they do not meet the grade requirement, which has also changed, she said. This year each house will set its own Grade Point Average standards instead of following a flat requirement set by Panhellenic Association.\nA few hundred more women have signed up for recruitment this year compared to last, Cohen said. Though she cannot pinpoint an exact reason for this year's increase, she said she believes the benefits of greek life draw women to the process.\n"I think it's just that the greek community is so well established on campus and we do offer great philanthropy organizations," Cohen said. "People want to see what it is all about." \nThe increased numbers might present a challenge for houses because they might be forced to "double rush" potential members, which means one member will talk to two potential members at a time. However, Cohen said she is confident the houses will not have a problem.\n"It is pretty much the same process even with more people," said Leah Miller, recruitment chair for Sigma Delta Tau. "But the biggest challenge is just making room for our 100-plus members and 90 potential new members. We've had to get more furniture so everyone can sit down."\nDespite the numbers of potential members going through recruitment, Bassler is confident that of the 19 houses, she will find one that suits her personality. Heather Kornick, 19 party chair for Alpha Delta Pi suggests that to do this, Bassler and other potential members should ignore what others say about houses and focus on what they experience themselves. \n"Keep an open mind and go with what you feel and not what others think," Kornick said. "Your best friend might love a house, but you might not care for it at all. Just because somebody doesn't like a house doesn't mean it isn't okay for you to like it"
(11/20/06 4:04am)
After a $28 million sale, the former University Commons has changed its name but little else. Rechristened "College Park at Campus Corner," the apartment complex will eventually undergo some renovations, though the new owners are unlikely to make specific plans until January. \n"Management is different, the staff is different, but as far as leasing goes, everything is the same," said Lori McGee, property manager for the complex. \nThe 252-unit "resort-style" apartment complex was sold Oct. 4 to Pennsylvania-based College Park Communities, which owns and manages 96 properties across the country, said Marlene Sahms, director of marketing for College Park Communities. \nFuture changes will include "interior and exterior upgrades," Sahms said in an e-mail. \nBut McGee said the company probably will not decide what exactly will change until January because that's when the complex will get its budget. \nSenior John Alo, a resident of University Commons for the last two years, said most residents were not aware of the sale right away. Alo was aware of the situation because he knows people who work in the apartment's management office, but residents were never sent a formal letter announcing the sale, he said. \n"It was a slow transition, like they didn't want to let us know what was going on," Alo said, adding that he was skeptical about the sale at first because they were not notified.\nFortunately for Alo, who said he chose University Commons because of its amenities and its affordability, the sale will not affect rent -- at least, not right away. McGee said rents, which currently range from $395 to $599 a month, have already been fixed for next year. In the future, rent might rise slightly because of improvements, she said. \n"With every company, there is an increase in rent for every year they do that little bit," McGee said, referring to renovations that could be made. \nSince the sale, management has become stricter about enforcing community rules, such as not leaving garbage on the balconies, but otherwise nothing else has changed, Alo said. Residents have not been asked to sign a new contract with the new owners of the property. \n"We just got a letter about violations, and at the bottom it had a new company's name," Alo said. "They are much stricter because some people weren't responsible about cleaning up. They were real lazy and just put their bags of garbage out on the balconies." \nOverall, he said, the sale did not seriously affect the residents of College Park. \n"(Other College Park residents) didn't express any concern about the change in management, and some didn't know it happened," he said.