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(10/21/04 5:03am)
For years, students have been able to plan their schedules by viewing grade distributions and professor reviews on www.pickaprof.com. Now the site is beginning to branch out and cater to professors, as it allows them to receive course evaluations from their students throughout the semester through the Student Feedback System.\nAccording to the Web site, the Student Feedback System allows professors to receive feedback from students at any point during the semester. The system does not require the professor to spend class time administering feedback forms. All feedback is kept anonymous and is statistically compiled for the professor's review.\nKaren Bragg, director of university relations for the Web site said these evaluations save time for professors, as the evaluations are completed outside of class.\nPolitical Science Professor Gerald Wright said www.pickaprof.com's mid-semester evaluations would be helpful. In the past, Wright has distributed evaluations during class, which often took a large chunk of time out of the course.\nBragg said students are more likely to provide feedback through the online evaluations rather than in the end-of-semester ones. Typically, she said, only students who either really love or really hate the professor will take the time to evaluate the course at the semester's end. \nWhen students assess the course mid-semester, they provide better answers because they know their feedback can affect them. \nSenior Emily Davis agrees that students are more polarized at the end of the year and admits that she evaluates a class if she has strong opinions either way.\nDavis said if the mid-semester evaluations were posted on the Web, students too shy to talk to their classmates could get a sense of the class consensus by comparing opinions online.\nBragg said www.pickaprof.com allows professors to choose whether or not the results are displayed.\nAlthough junior Alexander Baum would like IU to post the end-of-semester evaluations so he can determine which professors to take, he doesn't think mid-semester evaluations would help.\n"Usually they have their set ways, and I don't think they change them easily, especially mid-semester," he said. "I believe that end-of-semester evaluations are supposed to help the professor evaluate their performance so they can make changes."\nBaum thinks the more helpful features of Web sites like www.pickaprof.com are the student reviews for a professor. He takes these into account when registering for classes and uses them to prepare himself for instructors he has no choice in taking.\n"(But) these Web sites can only be more effective with more information submitted to them. I think you will see what I mean if you take a look at them. With only two comments on a professor, one can't get a good feeling about him or her," Baum said.\nBragg said when the Web site launched 4-1/2 years ago, it was mainly to help students review professors, but professors started to use it to look at their reviews. So, www.pickaprof.com created the course evaluations as a feature for professors.\nTo use this feature, all a professor has to do is complete the free registration. \n"He or she can create an evaluation once Pick-a-Prof confirms that they aren't a student passing himself off as a professor," Bragg said.\nBragg said professors form the evaluations by choosing from a list of questions provided by the site or by asking their own. Next, the professors enter their students' e-mail addresses, schedule the date they want the results and the surveys are sent to the students. \nStudents don't need to be registered members to complete the evaluation, Bragg said.\n"Before a professor sees the results, Pick-a-Prof gathers the responses and statistically compiles them," she said. "All answers are anonymous."\nBragg said www.pickaprof.com also lets professors post information like course descriptions, offices hours, contact information and personal biographies to share with students.\n-- Contact staff writer Ashley \nRhodebeck at arhodebe@indiana.edu.
(09/27/04 4:43am)
Senior Brett Warnke describes walking through Ballantine's halls as "boring, dull, isolating and alienating," but he's working to change that.\nWarnke is president of One for Diversity, a student organization that strives to add more artwork to the academic buildings, starting with Ballantine Hall.\nLast year, OFD formed with hopes to continue Herman B Wells' legacy of art but fizzled soon after its kick-off that united many campus groups to pursue this goal. The committee had "no budget, no goals, just the idea of getting more art on campus and tying it in with diversity," Warnke said.\nWhen most members of the OFD committee graduated in May, Warnke was asked to take over. This summer he and graduate student Emily Butwin searched the University's archives for artwork and were overwhelmed with the possibilities.\n"We visited IU Archives and realized the possibilities were endless. They collect photographs, student publications, anything relating to IU from its inception to the present," Butwin said. "It was hard to know just how to 'illustrate' diversity, and we were also unsure of the budget at that point."\nAlthough Warnke gave Butwin his input about the artwork, Butwin made the final decisions. \n"I have planned two large cases of archival materials -- one dealing with the importance of diverse artwork on the IU campus, and the other dealing with the power of students to express their opinions," Butwin said.\nButwin divided the exhibit into three phases so that each part can be installed as funding comes in. Funding, Warnke said, is the biggest obstacle for this $11,000 project. It actually costs more to frame the artwork than the cost of the artwork itself.\nHowever, Warnke is not looking for a handout from the administration.\n"I want this to be a student-led funded project."\nJunior Duane Ingram, vice president of the Black Student Union, joined OFD because Warnke contacted him about the project and he liked its goals.\nIngram said he believes the administration may think the art is diverse because its creators are people from diverse backgrounds but that people will understand the value for what it is when they see faces of different races in the artwork. \n"I feel since campus has taken a stand on diversity, campus itself should reflect it," Ingram said.\nCurrently the OFD is planning an event for Oct. 12 that will unveil the Ballantine floor plan, the pieces of art they have and their goals for the future. \nWarnke hopes the event will spark interest in the students and administration for the project so it can continue after this year.\n"Brett is an incredibly motivated and motivating individual," Butwin said. "If the launch of this exhibit is successful and there is demand for extension of the project, OFD will need more people like him to carry on the workload."\nWarnke wants more students to become involved so the project will stay alive and encourages those interested to e-mail him at bawarnke@indiana.edu.\n"If we get students involved for this first floor, people will realize we can add exhibits in other places around campus," Warnke said. "The first floor in Ballantine is a firecracker when there can be an explosion."\n-- Contact staff writer Ashley Rhodebeck at arhodebe@indiana.edu.
(09/17/04 4:43am)
Students strapped for cash can avoid long-distance telephone bills by purchasing phone cards now available through the University Information Technology Services support centers.\nBut in a campus where cell phones seem like a school supply staple, people might wonder why UITS started selling phone cards.\n"UITS is always looking for opportunities to provide more telephone and data services to housing residents and to students in general," said Melody Childs, manager of student residence support for UITS.\nPriced at $10 for 200 minutes, Childs said the cards "offer competitive rates when compared to other phone cards available from retail stores, and in particular, offer very low rates to international destinations."\nFreshman Andrea Tenorio explained that her parents called after her brother's football game to tell her how it went and that it's because of this tight family bond that she talks with her parents three times a day. \nSince Tenorio's parents live in Indianapolis, she doesn't want the communication to hike up her phone bill. Instead, she avoids long-distance charges by using phone cards. She buys her 670-minute cards at Sam's Club for $30 and said the phone cards from UITS wouldn't work for her. \n"I'd be done with that in a week," she said.\nSophomore Lauren Kaplan uses her cell phone to call long-distance on the weekends and after 9 p.m. but uses a phone card during the week if she's calling someone with a different cell phone provider.\nFor Kaplan, the cost isn't necessarily the deciding factor on whether she uses her cell phone or a phone card.\n"I have not fully been able to accept the technology of cell phones," Kaplan said. "I use them, but I don't necessarily love them."\nThe only disadvantage Kaplan sees with phone cards is the time it takes to make a call.\n"When you really want to talk to someone, it takes time going through the entire process," Kaplan said.\nIU affiliates, students, faculty or staff who want a phone card can purchase an unlimited amount from the Residential IT Services office in Teter Quad and at the UITS support centers in the Information Commons and Indiana Memorial Union, Childs said.\nSince the phone cards' debut during Freshman Orientation, about 250 have been sold. \n"There's really no deadline for purchasing the phone cards," Childs said. "We will keep selling them as long as there is an interest in this product."\n-- Contact staff writer Ashley Rhodebeck at arhodebe@indiana.edu.
(09/02/04 5:23am)
People dream of winning the lottery, but for off-campus students who depend on driving to classes on the south side of campus, losing the Atwater Garage lottery forces them to find alternative routes. \nLocated between Third Street and Atwater Avenue on Faculty Drive, the Atwater Garage is close to academic buildings, which makes it a popular parking spot among students who want to avoid using the bus systems. \nSophomore Adrianne Grenchik benefited from the Atwater permit last year and avoided using buses.\n"I find that the city buses are not reliable enough and that taking the stadium express can be a hassle at times," Grenchik said. "Plus, many of my classes are located along Third Street, so it is convenient to get to class."\nSenior John Waddell also has owned an Atwater permit in the past and hopes to receive one this year.\n"It makes my life a little easier," Waddell said. "I can park closer to campus and not have to wait on the bus."\nIn Waddell's case, having an Atwater permit saves him at least an hour each day, but Grenchik only saves 10 minutes if her class is near Third Street.\nStudents receive the often time-saving permit if they are selected from the lottery. According to the IU Parking Operations Web site, the primary lottery winners were announced Wednesday and a secondary lottery will occur Sept. 7.\nParking Operations Manager Doug Porter recommends that students who didn't receive an Atwater permit invest in an E permit and learn the bus schedule.\n"I compare it to students who live in Forest or Willkie who don't get a D permit," Porter said.\nPorter said the Atwater Garage has 650 parking spaces and parking operations gives 75 permits to students. \nThough one might suspect that the Atwater Garage has a problem with excessive illegal parking, Porter said the garage fills up relatively quickly with legal parking.\nCurrently Grenchik is prepared to "suck it up and ride the express" if she doesn't receive an Atwater permit this year, \n"They should decrease the number of permits they award in the lottery and also maybe have a lottery for Jordan," she said. "The Jordan lot is never full and would actually be more convenient for me."\n-- Contact staff writer Ashley Rhodebeck at arhodebe@indiana.edu .
(04/22/04 5:32am)
After the week of warm weather and blinding sunshine, many students are thanking Mother Nature for their sun-kissed skin and the chance to walk to class in shorts and tank tops. \nRain or shine, today everyone can pay their thanks during the Earth Day Celebration in Dunn Meadow, from 1 to 9 p.m. The event is sponsored by the Indiana Public Interest Research Group.\nSenior Lauren Fischer, organizer of the event, said INPIRG decided to plan the festivities because nobody was celebrating Earth Day, and the group wanted to "bring knowledge about conserving and preserving our Earth" to campus.\n"We also thought it'd be a great way to kick off Little Five weekend," she said.\nAlthough the events in Dunn Meadow don't start until 1 p.m., the Earth Day celebration opens with a parade sponsored by the Bloomington Circus Collective at 11:30 a.m. The parade will begin at the Monroe County Courthouse and end at Dunn Meadow.\nAfter processing down Kirkwood Avenue, the collective will give a circus workshop, which involves activities like juggling and stilts, said sophomore Vanessa Caruso, an INPIRG volunteer who is also an employee of the Indiana Daily Student.\nPeople won't clown around all day, though. Throughout the event, music will linger in the air.\nFrom 3 to 4 p.m., Caruso said the group invites all musicians or people with drums to join the poet and drum free jam.\nIf active musical participation doesn't strike a chord with attendees, they can enjoy the evening concerts featuring live bands from 5 to 9 p.m. The bands scheduled to perform are Undefeatable Beats, Perceival Potts, Members of the Ark Band and The Swell.\nThe bands will play even in the event of rain because INPIRG has a covering over the stage, Fischer said.\nAside from music, theatrical groups will perform during the afternoon as well. Groups from Collins and Harmony School will be in attendance, as well as a group from the School of Public and Environmental Affairs. The SPEA environmental management group's performance will focus on the importance of conservation.\nNot only can attendees enjoy the free performances, but they can also learn how to care for the earth.\n"There are a lot of opportunities to learn a lot of easy ways to change their behavior for the earth and to take action," Caruso said. "They can learn ways to do things they believe in instead of talking about it."\nSuch an activity is the 2 p.m. tree planting outing at Sycamore Land Trust, 10 miles outside of campus. A carpool will be available for those interested, Caruso said.\nShe added INPIRG's Hunger and Homelessness program is distributing yogurt cups filled with soil and seeds for people interested in growing plants.\nCaruso said the celebration includes an organic bake sale, and the proceeds benefit a group trying to create an organic garden at the Collins center.\nIn addition to supporting foliage growth, attendees can watch a solar oven demonstration and visit the compost exhibit, Caruso said.\nAttendees who own a hybrid car can display their contribution toward conserving the environment by driving it to Dunn Meadow and parking it in a designated place.\nFischer said between the organic bake sale and the information tables set up by educational, political and campus groups, there will be an exhibit about reducing consumerism.\nAttendees can also donate extra clothes or unwanted items to the Goodwill collection site on Dunn Meadow.\nOr, if students want to spread a specific message, they can bring old T-shirts and participate in a shirt-painting event.\nAlthough students may overlook Earth Day on the calendar, Fischer encourages them to take part in the celebration.\n"I'd really like for students to come," Fischer said. "It's a great way for the diverse (student body) to come together because we have one thing in common, and that's living on this earth."\n-- Contact staff writer Ashley Rhodebeck at arhodebe@indiana.edu.
(04/12/04 1:22pm)
Students concerned about life after graduation asked IU alumni for advice and sharpened their resumé skills during the Student Alumni Career Day Thursday in the Indiana Memorial Union. The Student Alumni Association and the Career Development Center sponsored the event.\nAttendance included 68 pre-registered students and some walk-ins during the three-hour period, said Mark Warner, the SAA's vice president of special events.\nAlthough the nice weather contributed to the low turnout, Warner said having fewer students at the panels was better because it allowed for more one-on-one interaction between students and alumni.\nThis interaction builds networks, which was one reason students participated in the panel discussions.\n"I think a lot of the students are wondering how to get their foot in the door, and the key to that is networking," said Rita Euers, 1986 alumna and vice president of marketing and sales for Central Credit Union.\nEuers said students she has met at previous career days have contacted her in past years.\n"Students contact me after a session such as what we're doing today, send me resumés, send e-mails to me, call me on the phone," she said. "I work with them as much as I can, and in some cases, we've hired students."\nAside from building networks, students received advice from the panelists, an aspect those panelists enjoyed.\n"I like being able to share my experiences with students and help them make their career decisions and answer questions that didn't necessarily get answered for me when I was a student," Euers said.\nGraduate students also helped undergraduate students considering graduate school. \nThis year, the career day introduced a graduate student panel, which was popular because it gave undergraduates an opportunity to hear student perspectives about graduate school rather than an adviser's, Warner said.\nBetween panels, students who brought their resumés could have them critiqued, and those who didn't could learn tips.\nAssociate Director of the Career Development Center Daniel Pascoe said it's important for students to understand "the value of researching the employer" so they can target their resumés for that person. \nOnce people customize their resumés, Pascoe said it's important they spend time focusing on the message they want to convey.\n"The most important (thing) is to help them clarify what they want to say in the resumés," he said. "It's important for how they want to market themselves."\nAssistant Director of Arts and Science Placement Office Amy Hume said the format and presentation of a resumé is also important, but Pascoe added communicating the message comes before appearance.\n"It's common that people think of format as aesthetics, but format really should be for clarity," he said.\nSince most employers spend less than a minute on a resumé, Hume recommended creating a resume that's easy to scan. She also suggested using formatted headings and paying attention to how employer names are used.\nLike most writing, editing is a must.\n"Top on my list for presentation is to be error-free," Hume said. "You can't have things in the wrong verb tense."\n-- Contact staff writer Ashley Rhodebeck at arhodebe@indiana.edu.
(03/29/04 5:54am)
Several years ago, doctoral candidate Sean McLennan would have been happy with the "live and let live" attitude toward gays, lesbians and bisexuals. Now, he sees it as segregation.\nSenior Jada Barbry agrees that despite the compassion gays and lesbians receive from the Bloomington community, many straight people distance themselves from homosexuals.\n"We probably have a lot of issues dealing with … sexual orientation in this town," she said. "There's still a lot of the idea of 'live and let live, as long as you don't come anywhere near me.'"\nMcLennan and Barbry explained what it's like to live in Bloomington as homosexuals and reflected upon the 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard during a panel discussion after Saturday's performance of "The Laramie Project" in the Wells-Metz Theatre.\nThe five-person panel attracted an audience of 70 members, who ranged from teenagers to senior citizens. Although some came only for the panel, most of the audience had remained at the theater after watching the performance. With the ongoing debate over gay marriage and a protest of the play planned for April 1 through April 3, the forum received considerable interest.\n"I was surprised that IU was doing the play," Barbry said. "It shocked me. I thought it was a little controversial."\nTom Shafer, an employee of the Department of Theatre and Drama, had an opposite reaction.\n"When we selected the play, we thought it was high-time we did do it," he said. "If we had any kind of conversation, it was, 'Why did we wait so long?'"\nMoisés Kaufman created "The Laramie Project" after the 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay student at Laramie's University of Wyoming. Kaufman and his colleagues captured the town's reaction by interviewing 200 Laramie citizens a year after the murder.\nBarbry said she remembers her own reaction to Shepard's murder. Having just begun college, she hadn't found the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender community until she attended IU's candlelight vigil.\n"All of a sudden, there were all of these people gathered together to mourn, to show each other they felt scared and to say, 'Could this happen here?'" she said. "I think what we came up with was, 'Yes, it could happen here.'"\nIt's six years later, but harassment still exists on campus. Panelist Bill Shipton, a member of the GLBT Anti-Harassment Team, said the team receives 60 to 120 harassment reports each year. \nDespite the harassment incidents, McLennan said he thinks Bloomington is a good place for homosexuals to live, at least for him.\n"I'm also very aware of the fact that it helps that I'm a 6-foot 5-inch blond male," he said, causing the audience to laugh. "That makes it a lot easier."\nMcLennan sports a gay-pride button on his bag and a rainbow sticker on his car. These items sometimes make him more conscious of his sexuality.\n"When I'm walking through a locker room with my bag, I'm very aware of the fact that I have that bag," he said. "It's a very vulnerable place to be. I'm also very aware of my rainbow sticker when I'm driving through Martinsville. It's still always there at the back of your head."\nBarbry's goal is to be out as much as possible.\n"If we hide, that's where we make it easier for people to commit violence against us," she said. "If we run, they're going to chase after us. If we stand strong, stand up, stand for something, then it'll be hard to break it up and fall down."\nPastor Fred Phelps from Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kan., opposes homosexuals and created www.godhatesfags.com and protested at Shepard's funeral, as depicted in the play. Shipton received a fax from Phelps about IU's production of "The Laramie Project," claiming protests are planned for April 1 through April 3, but Shipton said he has no idea whether they are going to happen.\nPanelist Rev. Mary Ann Macklin, co-minister of the Bloomington Unitarian-Universalist Church, said she thinks the best way to combat opposition is not to picket but to share stories.\n"Some of the best work I've seen … is people getting together not knowing where they stand on the issue but telling their story about how they arrived there," she said. "There's a time to take a stand … but there's also a time to hear each other's stories wherever we're from."\nAlthough Macklin calls herself a "reluctant radical," she refuses to compromise herself. \n"I will continue to walk in my truth," Macklin said. "What can I do -- what can any of us do -- but walk in our truth?"\n-- Contact staff writer Ashley Rhodebeck at arhodebe@indiana.edu.
(02/24/04 4:29am)
A $2.12 million gift from the estate of Louise McNutt will fund between 10 and 15 annual full-tuition graduate fellowships for students studying the humanities in the College of Arts and Sciences.\nMcNutt passed away in June 2000 and was the only child of the late Indiana Gov. Paul V. McNutt and his wife, Kathleen McNutt Watson.\n"She'd be very pleased (about the fellowship) in that it allows students in humanities to have the financial freedom to explore their interests," said her cousin, John L. Krauss of Indianapolis.\nThe full-tuition scholarships, which cover tuition and living stipends, are for all of the graduate students' years at IU, said Tom Herbert, the executive director of development for COAS.\n"It will provide much needed assistance for graduate students pursuing advanced degrees in our humanities department," he said.\nThe IU chancellor's office, which will match the interest income from McNutt's donation, is also aiding COAS.\n"With the matching money from the chancellor's office, that will mean (COAS will have) around $300,000 in income to be spent each and every year," Herbert said.\nAside from relieving the students' financial burdens, the fellowships will also assist IU.\n"Graduate education lies at the core of the intellectual and academic life of every great research university," COAS Dean Kumble R. Subbaswamy said in a statement "This gift from the McNutt estate will allow us to compete with other institutions to bring the very best graduate students in the humanities disciplines to Indiana University."\nThe effects of McNutt's gift will not only impact the lives of the students who receive the fellowships, but it will also leave lasting impressions on IU, Herbert said.\n"The longest lasting (effect) is by enabling the college to compete for and retain its students," Herbert said. "It will help perpetuate a true cycle of excellence for endeavors in departments like English and history."\nHerbert also said the fellowship will affect other universities since many graduate students become professors.\n"We are very grateful to Louise McNutt for her vision and her generosity," Subbaswamy said. "Many generations of graduate students who will in time become leaders in the academic world and beyond will also be grateful for this gift."\nThe woman who created these educational opportunities didn't even graduate from IU. \nAs a person who Krauss described as "constantly curious," McNutt began her college education at IU but earned her bachelor's and master's degrees at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. She left IU because her family moved to the Philippines once her father became its U.S. high commissioner, according to the press release.\nAlthough McNutt was not an alumna of IU, she had a "great deal of interest in IU and Hoosier history," Krauss said. \nHer family's involvement with the University might explain why McNutt was intrigued by its history. According to a press release, her father attended the IU School of Law and graduated with highest honors in 1913. Four years later, he followed other family members by joining the law school's faculty. He served as the law school's dean from 1925 until he became Indiana's governor in 1933.\nHer family namesake remains integrated in the University because of her, and her family's, involvement. \n"She's had a long history at IU with Dr. Wells and the state of Indiana over the years," Krauss said. "She supported the McNutt lecture, and her father is memorialized by the McNutt Quadrangle."\nMcNutt also remained in touch with the history department faculty and late Chancellor Herman B Wells. \n-- Contact staff writer Ashley Rhodebeck at arhodebe@indiana.edu.
(02/23/04 4:15am)
Water splashed and a plastic bottle flew through the air as 20 students battled to collect Tupperware floating in the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center pool at the Student Recreational Sports Center.\nThe Tupperware Bucket Dump was one round of the IU Survivor competition sponsored by the Residence Halls Association Sunday at the SRSC. Competing students had to collect Tupperware floating all around the pool in a plastic bucket without ever holding onto the Tupperware.\nSophomore Subhashini Prasad, who is a big fan of CBS's "Survivor," spent two months organizing the five-round event based on the popular television show. \n"My friend and I were on the same floor in Ashton-Johnston and came up with the idea and the events," Prasad said. "We wanted something that was mentally and physically challenging but also showed teamwork."\nFour teams consisting of five members each represented residence halls Willkie, Collins, Teter and Eigenmann and competed in events that involved trivia, puzzle solving and speed.\n"For round three, (the teams) had to spell words out of the phrase 'Fear is unknown,'" Prasad said. "The Eigenmann team made 136 words."\nOther contests favored physical activities, such as the Tupperware event, which included swimming, and a relay event in which participants made a basket out of newspaper and ran back and forth holding water bottles.\nJunior and Willkie team member Jordan Conover said he particularly enjoyed the Tupperware round.\n"I was a swimmer in high school for one year, and I've just swam all my life," he said. "It puts me in the spring mode."\nOther competitors liked the difficulty of the swimming round.\n"The pool was more challenging, and a lot more teamwork went into it," said freshman Robyn Behnke, who competed for Eigenmann. "We struggled, but everyone did a good job."\nAfter each round, IU Survivor reduced points from one team instead of voting a team out of the competition like the TV show does. This method involved strategy among the teams because they voted on who should lose the points.\n"It's a really tough competition," Behnke said during the fourth round. "We're in third place right now, but we're right behind the other two teams."\nWith a total score of 1206 points, Eigenmann ultimately won first place, receiving a trophy and $150. Willkie (1054), Collins (1052) and Teter (680) won second, third and fourth place, respectively. \nBehnke said she entered the competition because it sounded like fun but that "prizes are always appealing."\nConover said the whole event was worthwhile, even though Willkie couldn't pull out the win.\n"It was a very cool experience," Conover said. "It was a chance to hang out with my friends early on a Sunday morning."\n-- Contact staff writer Ashley Rhodebeck at arhodebe@indiana.edu.
(02/16/04 4:20am)
Members of the IU community who have discussed politics in student organizations were put on alert last week. According to a story by The Chronicle of Higher Education, four people who attended an anti-war meeting in November at Drake University received subpoenas, which were later dropped, that ordering them to face a federal grand jury. \nThe judge's actions stirred members of the Des Moines community, many of whom thought the demands were unusual and troubling. The New York Times reported that the subpoenas were dropped Feb. 10 because of pressures from civil liberties advocates.\nThe day following the antiwar meeting, 12 protesters were arrested at the headquarters of the Iowa National Guard.\nA former member of the now inactive IU group Coalition to Oppose the War in Iraq said he'd be "less than happy" if the government ordered him to provide information about COWI meetings.\nDjoko Wirosoetisno, an IU mathematics research associate, said in the event "a meeting plans to inflict serious physical harm to other people," the government has authority to request information from a meeting. \n"It certainly (doesn't have authority) to persecute people based on their political beliefs," he said.\nSenior Angel Rivera, chairman of the IU College Republicans, agreed with Wirosoetisno. \n"I think the First Amendment right is sacred and for no circumstances you should be punished for exercising it," Rivera said.\nThe Chronicle said at least one of the subpoenas was delivered by a man who "identified himself as a member of the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force."\n"I do believe if authorities have evidence of criminal activities, by all means they should pursue it," Rivera said. "Having a protest doesn't protect you from (the consequences) of illegal activities."\nLike the Drake University meetings -- which met at the student union -- Wirosoetisno said COWI meetings at IU were always public, even when major decisions were made. No formal membership existed, but the meetings' attendance was mostly comprised of IU students, some staff and a few Bloomington residents.\n"We had war sympathizers attend some of the meetings," he said. "They were quite well-behaved, though, for the most part."\nThe meetings' discussions consisted of the latest war developments and the planning for public events.\n-- Contact staff writer Ashley Rhodebeck at arhodebe@indiana.edu.
(09/10/02 10:43pm)
America stopped one year ago, and phones rang. Uncertainty gripped the nation and everyone wanted to hear a reassuring voice on the other side of the line telling them everything was OK. Family relationships changed as Americans reevaluated their lives and the world.\nBefore the attacks, typical American families had relaxed and informal relationships, said Robert Billingham, an expert on family relationships and IU associate professor in applied health science. Although Americans valued their relatives, they "took each other for granted and 'assumed' that they would always be there," he said.\nIn the weeks following the tragedy, families realized how uncertain life can be.\n"Our family members could disappear from our lives for no apparent reason as well," Billingham said. "We returned to an appreciation for our family and felt closer to them."\nTears were not the only obvious sign of change in family values. Instead of enjoying the semester breaks they had planned, some students canceled their vacation plans to be with their families while others called home more frequently.\nFor some students Sept. 11 hardly affected their family relations. \n"I don't think (my family relationships) changed at all (after the attacks)" junior Jeff Mansfield said. "They don't live here, but I talked to them every week and sent them e-mails back and forth."\nThe attacks also had little effect on the families that lived closer together. \n"My definition of family is a lot different than what most people's is," freshman Carolyn Chan said. "My immediate family includes aunts, uncles and cousins. We were close to begin with; I lived a few houses away from them."\nA year has passed, and students continue to call their parents. But the significance of family is fading.\n"Now students are interested in social life and 'family financial matters,' rather than thinking about social involvement," Billingham said. "For those whose lives and families were directly affected by the attack, their lives will never be the same, and how they view relationships and family relationships are delicate and fragile."\nThe majority of the nation was affected indirectly from the tragedy and will therefore recover easier than those who had direct ties.\n"The people I knew that had relatives or friends in the service made them afraid of losing many of their relatives," freshman April Lewandowski said.\nBut Billingham said these wounds are likely to heal with time.\n"The further away the rest of us get from the event (both in physical distance and in time, one year, two years), our lives, and the lives of our children will return very closely to the pre 9/11 attitudes and behaviors," he said.\nChan said he felt differently about the attacks because he was somewhat disconnected from New York.\n"I lived in California, so a lot of people didn't have family in New York," Chan said. "It was very surreal."\nForgetting and dismissing the events of Sept. 11 seems unlikely for those who experienced and remember that day, but time will pass and the world will return to normal, Billingham said. The younger children will remember the day as nothing more than another piece of history. \n"World War II had a profound effect on the lives of people who lived through it, but their children and grandchildren see it only as history," Billingham said. "Such will be the same with our children and grandchildren."\nIt is natural and acceptable to move past the pain that comes from tragic events, and the same is true about returning to normalcy. Sept. 11 brought some families closer together, but its regression does not mean the recovery process is decaying. \n"I think a 'return to normal' is both healthy and perfectly normal human development," Billingham said. "Think of all the major natural and man-made disasters throughout history. All of these are the cause of reflection and introversion early on, but that gives way to a return to 'everyday' behavior. This is as it should be"
