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(10/20/03 5:37am)
• A janitor thwarted an attempted theft at the IU School of Music Oct. 10. Kaylif Brad Bennett, the custodian, was injured during a scuffle with the would-be burglar as the suspect tried to gain access to a room that, until recently, contained a vault. The vault was moved in light of current security issues. The music school reported Oct. 6 that its master keys have been missing for over a month. IU Police Department Lt. Jerry Minger said there seemed to be no sign of forcible entry leading some officers to believe the burglar used a key to enter.\nA $500 Canon digital camera was also stolen from the music school Wednesday. The camera belonged to Paul Elliot, a voice teacher in the school. There were no signs of forcible entry in the theft.\nIU Risk Management also reported that students who had property stolen in the music school thefts will not be reimbursed by the University. Faculty members must have their property insured and will only be repaid for any amount not covered by their insurance.\n• Pi Kappa Phi fraternity was suspended Oct. 10, one week after a 19-year-old sophomore pledge was hospitalized for alcohol poisoning. Sophomore Lucas Temple, who was pledging the fraternity, was hospitalized Oct. 3, following an incident at Big Brother Night. The Interfraternity Council placed another suspension on the fraternity Tuesday night. Pi Kappa Phi is now suspended from all social and greek activities until the greek judicial council makes a ruling. \n• The Monroe County Clerk's office began questioning 200 IU fraternity and sorority members last week about mail-in ballot applications submitted for the upcoming election. Members of Acacia, Phi Gamma Delta, Alpha Chi Omega, Chi Phi and Delta Gamma claimed on their applications that they are working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on election day and therefore will be unable to go to the polls. Monroe County Republican Chairman Martin Stephans denounced local Democrats' questioning of the absentee ballots. At a press conference Thursday, Stephens said Democrats are calling the applications into question in order to help their Democratic City Clerk candidate Regina Moore. \n• The NCAA has proposed a new set of academic standards to address graduation rates at universities. The proposal will no longer count athletes who transfer from an institution in good standing against that university's graduation rate. Current federal standards consider anyone that has transferred to or from a college to not have graduated. If schools have poor graduation rates, the NCAA punishes schools with lost scholarships or a ban on postseason play.\n• The IU Physical Plant is developing new ways to establish job order contracts on campus, which has some workers concerned. The University is working with Gordian Group, a consulting firm that would help IU streamline the bidding process for hiring workers, said Physical Plant director Hank Hewetson. Randy Pardue, president of the IU Workers Union, said the outside contractors could cost IU employees their jobs. Hewetson said workers shouldn't be concerned about their jobs because the intent is to develop new methods of getting the same contracts.
(10/17/03 5:35am)
The national unemployment rate -- currently at 6.4 percent -- continues to drop, and IU economists expect this decrease to continue until sometime next year, causing some students to worry about finding a job after graduation.\nAlmost two years after the recession, the job market is still in the slump it was in after the information technology boom. \n"I think it'll be better this year than it was last year," said Willard Witte, IU associate professor of Economics and director of the IU Econometric Model Research. "But students are still going to have a tough time."\nHe added that the shift away from manufacturing industries and toward more service-based jobs has added to the slump in the market. \n"Nowadays people have to be more dynamic in that they probably won't be keeping the same job for the rest of their life," Witte said. "Jobs that are being created are for service-type industries like medical services, telecommunications and media."\nWitte said Indiana has been hit particularly hard because it is largely a manufacturing state.\nAngela Patterson, a graduate student studying journalism, said finding employment is still very difficult.\n"I think what they look for these days is experience," Patterson said. "It also really helps to know people in the industry."\nPatterson, 22, will graduate in December and has yet to find a job despite completing two internships.\n"It's a cycle," Patterson said. "If a blue collar worker loses his or her job then that will affect me because those are people who would buy my newspaper."\nIU offers several programs to help students choose and develop their careers. One of these is the Kelley School of Business' Undergraduate Career Services, which holds career fairs, posts student web resumes and offers counseling as well as a number of other services.\n"Most students think that once class is done we're done, but that's not true," Susie Clarke, director of Undergraduate Career Services, said. "We're here 12 months out of the year, so people have every opportunity to get in touch with us."\nThe center also has "virtual job fairs" in which employers post jobs on the Web site. UCS will be holding another "virtual job fair" on Nov. 7. Students who are interested may sign up at the UCS Web site at http://bpo.indiana.edu/bpo-cgi.\nClarke added that despite the job market slump, UCS is doing well. \n"This program has been consistently successful and we're doing as well or better than our Big Ten peers," Clarke said. "We've had roughly 80 percent of students find jobs even in the current tight market."\nHowever, Clarke said she is aware of the obstacles that students are going to face while looking for jobs for the next year.\n"The bar continues to rise and it's not just your classmates that are competition, it's much more global," Clarke said. "Students just have to find what they enjoy doing and have the skills for."\n-- Contact staff writer Obaid Khawaja at akhawaja@indiana.edu.
(10/15/03 6:05am)
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Suicide car bombers struck in Baghdad for the third time in a week Tuesday, this time outside the Turkish Embassy in yet another blow against those who would help the U.S. occupation. Witnesses said the driver and a bystander were killed, and hospitals said at least 13 were wounded.\n"This is the act of those who want to turn Iraq into a terror paradise," said Turkish Ambassador Osman Paksut, whose government has offered peacekeeping troops to reinforce the U.S. military presence here, a move strongly opposed by Iraqis.\nJust who is behind the bombings remained a mystery, although Iraqis converging on the scene Tuesday began chanting pro-Saddam Hussein slogans.\nMuch of the blast was absorbed by concrete barriers outside the embassy, U.S. officials said. The bomber might have caught U.S. troops if he had struck last weekend, when they were deployed outside the mission in northwest Baghdad, apparently because of a threat.\n"About three days ago, we received indications that there might be increased danger on the Turkish Embassy," said Col. Peter Mansoor of the U.S. 1st Armored Division. "We revved up security measures based on those indications."\nHe said the FBI and Iraqi police were investigating. Similar investigations of seven other vehicle bombings, killing more than 140 people across Iraq beginning in August, have made no known breakthroughs.\nIn the southern city of Karbala, gunmen of rival Shiite Muslim factions clashed and witnesses said several people were killed or injured. It appeared to be part of a power struggle between forces of the firebrand cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and followers of religious leaders who take a more moderate stand toward the U.S. occupation.\nFarther south, at his headquarters in Najaf, al-Sadr demanded the Americans set a timetable for withdrawal. "Whoever cooperates with the occupation forces is not a Shiite. Indeed, they are not Muslims," he said.\nPentagon officials said the U.S. military is concerned about al-Sadr but is uncertain whether he poses a significant threat. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they remain committed to disarming militias but declined to say whether they planned to confront his followers.\nTuesday's attack was the third car bombing since Thursday, when a driver detonated his vehicle in a police station courtyard in Baghdad, killing himself and nine others. On Sunday, a suicide bombing killed eight near the Baghdad Hotel, home to U.S. and Iraqi officials.\nThe string of attacks began in August with bombings at the Jordanian Embassy and the U.N. headquarters. All the targets have been institutions perceived as cooperating with the U.S. occupation.\nThe Turkish Embassy blast happened at about 2:45 p.m. as traffic streamed by the compound in the quiet, middle-class Waziriyah district.\n"I was in a building across the street. I rushed over and saw that a car had exploded in front of the embassy," said Ahmed Hashim, 30, a graduate student at Mustansiryah University. He said the suicide driver's dismembered body was blown down the avenue, and a second person was also dead at the scene.\n"I know that because I helped carry him into the ambulance," Hashim said. This was not immediately confirmed by U.S. or Iraqi authorities, but a painting contractor at the scene, Salah Khadhim, also said he saw a passer-by killed.\nMansoor, the American colonel, reported only the driver killed and two embassy workers injured. But officials at two hospitals said they received at least 13 wounded from the blast, including three seriously injured.\nAfter the explosion, about 50 Iraqis gathered and chanted a pro-Saddam slogan -- "We sacrifice our blood and soul for you!" -- and waving Iraqi banknotes with the ousted dictator's portrait. Police fired in the air to disperse them, and detained several.\nPopular suspicions in the bombings have focused on Saddam supporters, also blamed for repeated attacks on American troops, or on al Qaeda adherents or other Muslim extremists.\nAsked whether the bombing was related to the issue of Turkish peacekeepers in Iraq, Mansoor said: "I think it has everything to do with that."\nThe Turkish parliament last week approved sending in peacekeeping troops in the coming months. Iraq's Governing Council has opposed the idea, because of the bitter legacy of centuries of Turkish colonial domination of the region.\nThe Turkish Foreign Ministry indicated the attack would not affect an eventual troop deployment. "Turkey will persevere with its efforts with determination," it said.
(10/07/03 5:36am)
BrainOrbit, LLC was founded in spring 2002, by then 22-year-old MBA accounting student Justin Greis. The company was founded with the idea of helping clients with small-scale enterprise resource planning, creating CD-ROMs, Web sites, training and small business solutions. \nBut last spring, Greis and his four co-owners found themselves in quite a bind. The co-owners of BrainOrbit were about to graduate, which left Greis to manage the business on his own. He realized running a company and succeeding in school was an impossible task and needed to find a new staff in order to keep the company going.\nGreis began speaking to peers in his MBA class, hoping to find new team members that fit the mold of BrainOrbit. \nHe found exactly what he was looking for. \nIn April 2002, Greis selected a team of seven co-workers. Tom Coburn, chief financial officer, James Motter, chief operating officer, Mike Iwanski, chief marketing officer, Chris Hansen, chief web developer and Josh Simerman, chief technology officer joined Greis as co-workers to create new plans for BrainOrbit.\n"We started talking strategy this summer," Greis said. "I thought that BrainOrbit could be extremely beneficial to students a year below us if we formatted a plan to pass the company down each year." \nThe team began working with the plan this fall and they are still in the process of smoothing out wrinkles and finalizing ideas. So far they have made the executive decision to pass BrainOrbit on to younger peers, who they will train extensively in preparation for the co-owners' departure. \n"We started out with two information sessions targeting mostly MBA and Informatics students," Iwanski said. "Last week we had individual interviews with eight candidates in order to figure out whether or not they qualified for BrainOrbit, and if so, what position they would fill." \nThe team was highly impressed with the interviewees and added all eight to the associate group of BrainOrbit. \n"I'd like to start my own business one day, and BrainOrbit is a great place to get my feet wet and learn the reality of trying to be competitive in a market," said new associate Najeeb Ali.\nThe associate training will be very transitional as far as responsibility. The co-owners plan to gradually ease their new members in to the business so that they can run it on their own by the time graduation is upon them.\nThe co-owners also formed an advisory board for BrainOrbit consisting of three IU professors they selected.\n"The purpose of the advisory board is to keep our business going from year to year, to perpetuate business and job referrals and to just give us their experienced advice," Greis said. \nThe current advisers are Ramesh Venkataraman, chair of MSIS program, Anne Massey, chair of the Department of Information Systems and Dennis Groth, assistant professor of Informatics. \nBrainOrbit currently caters to 10 different clients, two that are extremely profitable. They provide service in Web design, custom Web applications, database construction and management, logo and graphic design, network installation and implementation, Intranet solutions and Web-based training.\nThe initial goal of the original BrainOrbit team was to maintain a short-term client relationship and get the job done as quickly as possible. \n"The ideal job no longer incorporates our original objectives," Greis said. "In the past, we couldn't make long-term contracts because we did not have continuity."\nBrainOrbit now upholds never-ending contracts that assure indefinite service to their clients.\n"If we build something for our clients, we'll be there no matter what," Greis said.\nIwanski focuses on obtaining clients and producing new ways to convince them to use BrainOrbit.\n"We target clients based on research that encompasses their particular needs," he said. "In the past, the clients were mostly referrals, but we are trying to move outward and target local, regional and surrounding business areas."\nThe participation of BrainOrbit alumni is still being finalized among the group. The co-workers know they want to be an accessible source to their partners, however, they are not quite sure of the extent of their involvement.\n"Normally in business, individuals are protective of their positions and try to push people down in order to work their way to the top," Motter said. "Here we're hoping they replace us."\nAs far as post-graduation plans, the co-workers gave different answers. Careers in IT consulting, public accounting, assurance services and even taking a year off were all mentioned. \n"I am so thankful to have had this opportunity," Kuebler said. "Being part of BrainOrbit was something I never imagined I would experience in college and I can't believe how much I have learned."\n-- Contact staff writer Lindsay Kaplan at lkaplan@indiana.edu.
(10/06/03 4:50am)
INDIANAPOLIS -- A proposal to raise the minimum age at which students can drop out of high school from 16 to 18 could help improve Indiana's high school graduation rates, education officials say.\nBut the proposal has raised doubts even among its supporters because it comes during tight fiscal times for the state.\nThe proposal is tucked inside a massive education reform plan intended to link early childhood learning -- elementary, middle and high school instruction -- and higher education.\nCalled Indiana's P-16 Plan for Improving Student Achievement, the proposed restructuring is being considered as state education officials implement a new way to calculate high school graduation rates.\n"We can't improve on the number of kids going to college if we lose them before they even get there by dropping out of high school," Stan Jones, the state's commissioner for higher education, told The Indianapolis Star.\nLater this month, Indiana's Education Roundtable is expected to make final recommendations on the P-16 proposal, which seeks to keep students in high school as long as possible to help them earn diplomas.\nHowever, it is a costly reform that has yet to have a price tag attached, and that bothers some who otherwise support the proposal.\n"The last time I looked, the state coffers weren't getting any larger," said Pat Kiely, president of the Indiana Manufacturers Association and a Roundtable member. "If we don't take it seriously, the legislature won't either, and it will be nothing more than a plan on paper."\nState education officials estimate that more than 20,000 high school students do not graduate each year.\nUnder current law, a student can leave school for nonacademic reasons at age 18. But state law also allows students to leave as early as 16 with permission from parents or guardians.\nThe P-16 proposal would eliminate that provision and raise the minimum dropout age to 18.\nSchool officials say a change is needed to make it tougher for students, often from low-income families who get full-time jobs because they say they need to help out at home, to quit prior to graduation.\nNational research shows that dropouts have fewer career options, are typically stuck in low-paying jobs and have limited opportunities to go to college.\nThe P-16 Plan states that student dropouts can cost taxpayers as much as $500,000 in public assistance, health care and incarceration costs over 30 years.\nBy contrast, a high school diploma can add nearly $500,000 in earning potential during a worker's career, the proposal says.\n"Every single child who has a better education has more earning power and a better lifestyle," said Sen. Luke Kenley, R-Noblesville, chairman of the Senate Education and Career Development Committee.
(10/06/03 4:50am)
INDIANAPOLIS -- A proposal to raise the minimum age at which students can drop out of high school from 16 to 18 could help improve Indiana's high school graduation rates, education officials say.\nBut the proposal has raised doubts even among its supporters because it comes during tight fiscal times for the state.\nThe proposal is tucked inside a massive education reform plan intended to link early childhood learning -- elementary, middle and high school instruction -- and higher education.\nCalled Indiana's P-16 Plan for Improving Student Achievement, the proposed restructuring is being considered as state education officials implement a new way to calculate high school graduation rates.\n"We can't improve on the number of kids going to college if we lose them before they even get there by dropping out of high school," Stan Jones, the state's commissioner for higher education, told The Indianapolis Star.\nLater this month, Indiana's Education Roundtable is expected to make final recommendations on the P-16 proposal, which seeks to keep students in high school as long as possible to help them earn diplomas.\nHowever, it is a costly reform that has yet to have a price tag attached, and that bothers some who otherwise support the proposal.\n"The last time I looked, the state coffers weren't getting any larger," said Pat Kiely, president of the Indiana Manufacturers Association and a Roundtable member. "If we don't take it seriously, the legislature won't either, and it will be nothing more than a plan on paper."\nState education officials estimate that more than 20,000 high school students do not graduate each year.\nUnder current law, a student can leave school for nonacademic reasons at age 18. But state law also allows students to leave as early as 16 with permission from parents or guardians.\nThe P-16 proposal would eliminate that provision and raise the minimum dropout age to 18.\nSchool officials say a change is needed to make it tougher for students, often from low-income families who get full-time jobs because they say they need to help out at home, to quit prior to graduation.\nNational research shows that dropouts have fewer career options, are typically stuck in low-paying jobs and have limited opportunities to go to college.\nThe P-16 Plan states that student dropouts can cost taxpayers as much as $500,000 in public assistance, health care and incarceration costs over 30 years.\nBy contrast, a high school diploma can add nearly $500,000 in earning potential during a worker's career, the proposal says.\n"Every single child who has a better education has more earning power and a better lifestyle," said Sen. Luke Kenley, R-Noblesville, chairman of the Senate Education and Career Development Committee.
(09/25/03 6:14am)
Throughout the warehouse-like interior of the IU art museum, sculpted faces peer out of the darkness, waiting for their turn to be exhibited. \nThe museum's three galleries, each devoted to different parts of the world, display the important works of IU's art collection, such as a 1934 Picasso, "The Studio," year round. Museum officials also rotate the exhibits of lesser-known works, attempting to ensure that every work in the collection is displayed now and then. \nBut most of the labor that goes into storing and maintaining the collection is invisible to students touring the galleries. Behind the locked doors of the museum's storage space, a host of staff members work to keep IU's artworks safe, easy to locate and looking their very best. \n"Basically our collection goes back to the beginning of the fine arts department," said Nan Brewer, one of the galleries' curators. "The early material was really for teaching purposes … a lot of teaching was actually drawing from it."\nIU began accumulating artwork intending only to store it for students' use. Brewer said that while some of the artwork IU purchased at this time was of museum quality, many of the pieces were not.\nWhen Herman B Wells became president of IU in 1937, he saw enough potential in the Department of Fine Arts and the tiny art collection that existed at the time to organize an expansion. His goal was to put IU on par with Ivy League schools that housed more extensive art collections.\n"Herman said 'we're going to be the Ivy of the Midwest,'" said Linda Baden, the gallery's Associate Director for Editorial Services.\nWells needed two things to jump-start his project: someone to help him bring important works of art to IU and a place to put them once they got here. He found the former in Henry Hope, who had previously studied with Paul Sachs at the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University. Wells appointed Hope as chair of IU's Department of Fine Arts in 1941, and Hope immediately began to collaborate with Wells on plans to expand the University's art collection. By 1962, Wells had also succeeded in his dream to build an art museum to house the new works.\n"(Wells) convinced the powers that be that it was important … to have a building that was an artwork in its own right," Brewer said.\nThe result of his determination was an imposing new addition to the campus, designed by the renowned architectural firm of I.M. Pei and Partners. The museum has almost 9,000 square feet of storage space and a similar amount in the galleries. It currently houses all of the works in IU's art collection.\nWith adequate facilities to care for and display its treasures, the IU art collection expanded rapidly. The museum now has a little of everything -- from ancient Greek and Roman pottery to installations by major artists of the 20th century.\n"We are encyclopedic," Brewer said. "It means that we're trying to cover all major geographic areas; all major movements."\nAccording to Brewer, Wells wanted students to have examples on hand of every major style and period in order to complement their studies of those eras. \n"It was really farsighted," she said. "(Wells) could have said 'We're only going to focus in a certain area,' (but he didn't)." \nApparently for space's sake it is easy to store similar items, such as the sculpted faces, together. Although this makes sense considering the vast size of the collection, it never quite relieves the eerie feeling of dozens of metallic eyes peering out from dark corners of storage rooms. \n"We used to have a guard that would not (patrol) … the African collection," Baden said, laughing. "There were too many spirits in there." \nMany of the major artworks are stacked three rows deep against the walls as though they were items of furniture in a wholesale emporium. With 30,000 total works in the collection and room to exhibit barely half that number, more than half of the museum's collection remains in storage for at least part of each year. \nWorks are arranged in the storage rooms by size. Any corner or bit of unused floor space is utilized. Paintings are hung on compressible storage racks that roll back to create aisles at the touch of a button. The ceramics are housed on the second floor in metal storage units with Styrofoam cutouts that surround each piece of pottery. The art gallery staff has been working to secure these in case of earthquakes.\n"Indiana is on an earthquake fault," Baden said. "We haven't had anything major, but the potential is there."\nSo far the gallery's precautions have been fairly rudimentary. For example, they have tying the storage units to one another, thereby making them sturdier.\n"When things are on display we (also) have weights in the bases," Baden said.\nIn addition to storing IU's art collection, the museum houses several departments that maintain the exhibits. \nIn the photography lab, pictures are taken of each new piece for documentary records.\n"Everything that's in the museum has to be photographed, at least for identification purposes," said Michael Cavanagh, the Art Museum's head photographer. "My favorite part is when you (work with) … an ancient piece... and you get to be alone with it in the studio."\nIn addition to documenting works for the museum's records, photographers occasionally take photos of a piece, or furnish photos for calendars or postcards of the museum's artworks. \nConservationists in the restoration workshop are responsible for repairing any blemishes that have marred the paintings and reapplying chipping paint. \nTheir workshop is a large open area with a high ceiling and wooden tables scattered around. Lying on the tables are damaged paintings with tiny pieces of white foam. A conservation technician for the art gallery explained that the foam markers indicate where pieces of paint have chipped off the artwork.\n"The big thing is that anything they do has to be reversible," Baden added.\nAlso included in the gallery's collection are works by Monet, Jackson Pollock and Picasso.\n"The Picasso is the most important painting in our collection," Baden said.\nBrewer said that the work by Picasso is much in demand among other museums.\n"(It's) highly requested for loan, although we don't often lend it," Brewer said, explaining that there is considerable wear and tear involved in shipping a painting.\nEqually interesting are some of the lesser known works. One 1971 installation by Claire Zeisler features metal slinkies suspended from the ceiling and partially wrapped in red cotton/polyester thread. From across the room they resemble brilliant red stalagmites.\nAnother interesting work, a 1912 painting by Emil Nolde entitled "Nudes and Eunuch", played a historical role during the World War II era.\n"It was in (a) famous show that the Nazi's put on (around) 1930 mocking contemporary art," Baden said. She said that it was the poster piece for the show, and as such has received a lot of attention.\nOne of the gallery's especially controversial pieces is a signed urinal that was one of several 'Duchamp readymades' -- pieces employed by the artist to question the concept of what art really is. \n"To really push that point you take a urinal, put it in a gallery, and sign your name to it," Brewer said. "It still generates controversy even (though it's) from 1970."\nBaden laughingly recalled the time one of the workers setting up a contemporary art show, named Estol, decided to create his own 'readymade' piece for exhibition.\n"Years ago … we had a show of contemporary art," she said. "Our shop guys thought it was funny that they could make art as good as anything that was up there."\nThe result? Estol's lunch bag, a crumpled piece of brown packaging, complete with mock label and signature by the 'artist'. After the hilarity subsided, gallery staff members removed Estol's creation from the show.\nBesides the full-time staff members, several fine arts students also work at the gallery. \n"They basically pay my tuition," said Kristen Moses, a graduate Art History student whose full scholarship requires her to assist at the museum. "It's always nice (as) an art history major to be here in the museum … (and) to see all that is involved." \nFor other IU students eager to see the gallery's collection, there are several options. The exhibits are open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and from noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. It is also easy to schedule a guided tour led by one of the gallery's volunteer tour guides. For more information, call 855-1045.\n -- Contact staff writer Elise Baker at elimbake@indiana.edu.
(09/24/03 4:41am)
Roy Graham describes himself as optimistic and cheerful. \nAnd he hopes those traits will help his chances in the 2004 Indiana gubernatorial election -- a race which he's entered without any political experience or campaign funding to his credit.\nAs an IU undergraduate in 1974, Graham studied music, later receiving a B.A. in criminal justice and a law degree. \nGraham, who has worked in numerous jobs ranging from a bakery doughnut-fryer to a representative of clients who sued IU over the firing of former men's basketball coach Bob Knight, cites his independence and diverse background as an attraction to college-aged voters.\nGraham, who hopes to run on the democratic ticket, said he would fill the job of governor well because he has strong ideas on state issues.\n"The current candidates are not saying anything on the issues, whereas I have," he said. "I was encouraged by my mentors. I have followed Indiana politics for over thirty years."\nEven though his campaign started a month late, he plans to attract voters through radio and by personal speaking engagements. \n"I must work full time in my job while I campaign; that is, I am not independently wealthy and have just started putting together an organization," Graham said.\nTo have his name included on the democratic primary election ballot, Graham needs to collect the signatures of 5,000 registered voters. He said he believes his chances of winning are the same as anyone else.\n"Governor Dean was not even considered when the presidential race started, was he? Remember, the November (primary) election for this year has not even been completed," Graham said.\nGraham said several of his proposals would benefit students, one of which is to increase the minimum wage to $7 per hour. \n"Increased wages not only mean higher income taxes for the state, but more spending money for low income workers, increasing consumer-driven economic activity," he said.\nGraham is also campaigning on extending voting hours and providing health care for all people under age 16. He wants to end the "brain drain" of Indiana graduates, students that leave the state after college, by providing various types of loan relief.\n"Indiana students are taking on more debt than ever before," Graham said. "To pay for higher debt, many of Indiana's best and brightest are being lured to higher-paying out-of-state jobs. Incentives, such as loan repayment assistance, extension or partial interest forgiveness will keep more graduates in Indiana."\nJenni Klose, law student and assistant to Graham's campaign, said she supports anyone who is willing to enter the political process from outside the establishment.\n"It is healthy for unexpected people to get involved and share ideas," she said.\nKlose said she believes Graham and his campaign appeals to college students.\n"He is the anti-politician," she said. "He is not campaigning on image or empty promises."\nGraham said he wants his platform issues to reach out to all Hoosiers as well as student voters.\nGraham opposes the death penalty and said he plans to repeal it. If elected, he would possess the authority to stop all executions.\n"The death penalty is immoral," Graham said. "The Indiana Constitution prohibits retribution as punishment. Execution is the purest form of retribution."\nGraham said he intends to increase the public works program by rebuilding and improving older schools and run-down libraries.\nIf elected governor, he plans to create new alternative penalties for drug crimes.\n"The current penalties for drug crimes are extremely unbalanced and unfair," Graham said. "Courts often punish drug offenders more harshly than violent criminals. I propose that all first-time offenders who can get through treatment and pass two years of drug screens should have their case dismissed."\nDuring his campaign, Graham said he does not plan to give up his private law practice. He has worked as an attorney for more than 12 years, focusing on family and criminal law. \n"I love my job," Graham said. "I am dedicated to every one of my clients. I will work through the election process."\nDavid Hunter, a local attorney, said he is impressed by Graham's personality and thinks Graham is academically-oriented with an ability to present the issues.\n"He is the only candidate willing to go on the record for what he believes," Hunter said.\nGraham said he differs from his political opponents because of his background and common sense ideas. \n"I have lived and worked here for almost 30 years," Graham said. "I know what Hoosiers think."\n-Contact staff writer Jessica Levco at jlevco@indiana.edu.
(09/23/03 5:24am)
The competition is fierce this fall as students struggle to get their foot in the door at any one of the hundreds of companies that are visiting IU. Many would argue that an internship will provide you with the best method for securing your first job in corporate America. Students, not wanting to become part of the 6.1 percent of Americans without jobs, are quick to take internships with the companies that appear at IU's career days and internship fairs. However, if the company you ultimately want to work for does not recruit at IU, then you're on your own.\nMany students, business and otherwise, would like to intern for an entertainment company such as AOL Time Warner or Sony, with the hope of beginning a career in television, film, performing arts, or music. However, these companies do not recruit at IU. \nDuring the summer of 2003, I was an intern for Turner Broadcasting, an AOL Time Warner company in Atlanta. I worked in a division of the company called Turner Network Sales, the division responsible for selling Turner programming to cable companies. \nMany students fear their major and choice of college is what will determine their job and success. Non-business majors will be pleased to know that very few of the Turner employees that I spoke to were business majors. In addition, their educational backgrounds ranged from community college to Big Ten universities. \n"The major doesn't really matter that much unless you're a lawyer or accountant," said Shannon Ponsell, vice president of operations at Turner Network Sales.\nVicki Venezia, legal projects manager, said the important thing is the skills graduates have.\n"There is no major in college that can fully prepare anyone for any job," she said.\nWhile knowledge of business concepts such as accounting, marketing, operations and strategy always sounds good, it really doesn't seem to be the focus of most of these companies' work. Such concepts are different from company to company, and you always have to relearn them. The most important skills every employee is expected to have coming in are written and verbal communication skills. \nStudents hear that their written and verbal communication skills are vital to their success, and the reason for it is because it's true. Many students laugh this advice off and assume that everyone already has written and verbal skills.\n"It is not until a student first experiences a professional job or internship that they will learn very quickly just how mediocre their skills are," administration manager Pam Cheatham said. \nThe importance of every e-mail, letter, package, conversation, meeting and conference is stressed heavily. If even the slightest mistakes are made in this vital communication, someone will notice the mistake very quickly.\nThe second most important set of skills to have today is computer literacy. Brian Ross, a sales assistant right out of college, commented how his knowledge of Microsoft Office has been invaluable to his time with Turner Network Sales.\nAnother emphasized skill to possess is humility, a skill many students seem to lack. \n"Be humble," Venezia said. "Don't go in as if you know everything because you just graduated from college. Big deal." \nShe said most people learn very quickly that all college does is prove you can be taught, which is a good thing, but it doesn't sell you for the position. \n"You have to exhibit the fact that you actually did learn something and you want to combine that humble knowledge with everything that you can learn from those who have been in the field for years," Venezia said. " You will learn 1,000 times more on the job than you ever did in school. Know that because the interviewer and potential co-workers definitely do."\nIt is also important to make it known that you are interested in learning everything the company has to offer. Let them know that you are not too good to do grunt work because wherever you go, that will be the first thing you get stuck doing. \n"Your attitude has to be 'I'll do whatever it takes,'" Executive Vice President of Marketing Coleman Breland said. "You have to really love what you're doing. You have to be a sponge and soak everything up."\nOf course these characteristics are only a part of the qualities that companies such as Turner are searching for in employees. A person must be able to conduct a good interview and be an innovative thinker. The ability to think innovatively requires four steps: vision, creativity, determination and charisma. \nLisa Richardson, vice president of partnership marketing, said everyone has the capacity for this form of thinking. But before an individual can even demonstrate these qualities he or she must perform well in the interview.\n"Do your homework," said Senior Vice President of PR/Communications Jim Weiss. "Find out about the company and position you're applying for. Know about the people interviewing you and be literate of the overall industry. The interview is a game." \nVenezia said it is an immediate turnoff when an applicant says they have no questions. \n"You are potentially about to change your life and you have no questions? Not a good sign," she said.\nMy internship at Turner proved to be an enlightening experience for me as I learned a lot about not only the entertainment industry but about the rules of the "real world." My father called it an investment in my future, and looking back, I couldn't agree with him more.
(09/15/03 6:09am)
I cannot adequately express how ecstatic I am about today's economy. The prospect of spending months unemployed while sending out resumes and conducting interviews thrills me to no end. Maybe I will get a job right after I graduate. But actually I hope I don't, because engaging in job-hunting activities is simply so much fun. Think of the risks involved! Think of the excitement! The way I see it, job-seeking is destined to become the next big extreme sport.\nIf I don't find a job, I know that I can always go to graduate school. This strategy bears the double advantage of driving myself into debt and making myself vastly overqualified for most existing jobs. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "If it falls your lot to be a street sweeper, sweep streets like Michelangelo painted pictures, sweep streets like Beethoven composed music, sweep streets like Leontyne Price sings before the Metropolitan Opera." To that I add, "If it falls your lot to be a janitor, scrub toilets like the Ph. D. you just might be."\nThe message we've soaked up for so long is "If you get a college education, you'll be assured of snagging a great job." Boy, how true that is! One of my older brothers graduated from college several years ago, and after a lengthy, adventure-filled job search, he secured not one, but two awesome jobs: working in a bookstore and delivering newspapers. It was so heartwarming to see his life-long hopes realized. I only hope I can be that lucky.\nAccording to a longitudinal study conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average person born from 1957 to 1964 held nearly 10 jobs from ages 18 to 36. Of jobs that the workers began while ages 18 to 22, 72 percent ended in less than a year. Even among jobs started by workers when they were ages 33 to 36, 43 percent ended in the first year and 76 percent ended in fewer than five years. \nAlthough some people might find such statistical indicators disheartening, I think they're fantastic. Why have one job when you could have 10, or even 20 or 30? More is better! Find something new every year or two. Be a temp and you can work someplace new nearly every day. Heck, why don't we take this trend to its natural extreme? We already have drive-through restaurants and drive-through weddings.\nWhy not drive-through jobs?\nI know millions of people still pursue traditional careers. What I don't understand is, "why?" Working at a respectable, comfortable middle- or upper-class job -- that's so bourgeois. Holding one stable job throughout one's adult life -- that's dull, so passé. But slaving away at a demeaning, low-wage job -- now, that's the really hip thing to do. Bouncing from one job to another -- now, that's daring. Ridding yourself of all emotional investment in your career and all loyalty to your employer -- now, that's true freedom.\nI am so totally stoked to graduate and taste these economic realities for myself. \nAlmost from the womb, we've been encouraged to aspire to greatness, to chase the American dream, to become anything we want to be. Now I realize we've been lied to. \nThe reality is so much better than anyone ever told me. Not only can I fulfill my dream of becoming a temp, a waitress and a telemarketer, but I can do all three at the same time!\nI love America.\nI love the economy.
(09/02/03 5:34am)
Finally, it was over.\nAfter 16 weeks of endless push-ups, junior Brett Rorem was ready to graduate.\nRorem forgot to put his name on a test one day; his superior officer helped him count out 20 push-ups.\nHe had to do 20 push-ups if he fell behind in the weekly run and 10 at the end of every day, along with the rest of the cadets.\nAnd if any of the cadets forgot to call someone "sir," 20 more push-ups were coming their way. \nIt wasn't uncommon for the cadets to do over 100 push-ups a day, and when graduation from the IU Police Academy rolled around Aug. 16, Rorem was finally able to smile.\nHe was an officer of the IU Police Department. He had fulfilled his dream.\nAnd he was done doing push-ups.
(09/02/03 5:30am)
NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- The Rev. Jesse Jackson and 13 people were arrested Monday after they blocked traffic on the Yale University campus in support of striking university service and clerical workers.\nJackson led more than 1,000 people on a Labor Day march and rally in support of the striking workers before he was arrested.\n"This is the site of national Labor Day outrage," Jackson said. "This is going to be for economic justice what Selma was for the right to vote."\nThe march ended in a rally at Yale's Beinecke Plaza and Woodbridge Hall, which houses university President Richard Levin's office. Police said 1,000 to 1,500 people marched with Jackson, including Connecticut Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz, who graduated from Yale, and state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, a Yale Law School graduate.\nJackson and about 30 others then blocked traffic. To the cheers of protesters, Jackson was the first to be handcuffed. The demonstrators were expected to be charged with disorderly conduct.\nIntermittent rain dampened the Yale demonstrators, part of a band of wet, stormy weather that stretched southwestward to Texas. Rain also put a damper on holiday beach outings in parts of Hawaii, which was on the northern edge of Tropical Storm Jimena, downgraded from a hurricane early in the morning.\nIn Detroit, union members and supporters faced the rainy weather to march downtown to celebrate Labor Day and call attention to the challenges faced by American workers in a struggling economy.\nThe parade ended at the recently unveiled Michigan Labor Legacy monument in Hart Plaza, which symbolizes the continuing spirit of organized labor and the importance of unions to the region's history.\n"We're very concerned about this economy," said Patrick Devlin, secretary-treasurer of the Greater Detroit Building and Construction Trades Council. "People talk about the economy picking up, but we don't see it."\nAt Yale, the service and clerical workers from two Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International locals walked off the job Wednesday in a dispute over wages, job security and pension benefits.\nThe unions represent about 4,000 clerical, technical and service and maintenance workers, but an undetermined number had crossed picket lines.\nUniversity negotiators and leaders of striking unions agreed to return to the negotiations on Wednesday.\nYale officials say their latest eight-year contract offer is generous, with pay raises of 3 percent to 5 percent, pension benefit increases and signing bonuses worth 50 percent of pay raises they would have received dating back to January 2002, when the last contract expired.\nThe unions want more substantial raises and larger pension benefits, as well as retroactive pay for the 20 months workers stayed on the job without contracts.
(09/01/03 5:09am)
Prithe Paul Singh, former co-director of the IU Cyclotron facility, died in his home Aug. 17 after battling with Alzheimer's disease since 1991.\nSingh's wife, Sudarshan, said her husband was caring and brilliant.\n"Really, all I can say is that he was a very good human being," she said. "He was not just a scientist, he was good in the sense that he touched many lives in the course of his life."\nSingh, born in what is now Pakistan in 1930, experienced a life of hardship as a child. The decade of the 1930s was a tumultuous time for India, as the nation was going through divisions by the British colony masters. When Pakistan was separated from India, Singh was literally a homeless refugee.\nSingh's son Adarsh said it was his father's poor background that motivated him to succeed despite his circumstances.\n"He thought an education could transform people and get them out of poverty," he said.\nSingh earned his master's degree in India from Agra College, and was awarded a scholarship to earn his Ph.D. from the University of British Columbia. It was there that he met his future wife, Sudarshan. From there, Singh did post-graduate work in Canada, and was hired to IU in 1964. He would stay at IU until his retirement in 1991, teaching students, researching, and running the Cyclotron for seven years. \nDan Miller, now retired, co-directed the Cyclotron facility from 1979 to 1986.\n"During that period, I worked very closely with him, day and night," he said. "And he was a pleasure."\nMiller said Singh had a drive that pushed him to excel.\n"He was very innovative, and he had lots of ideas he was always willing to push through," he said.\nAfter his post at the Cyclotron, Singh was appointed as associate director of the IU Center on Global Change and World Peace. Here Singh concentrated on peacekeeping issues and nuclear disarmament. Singh also created a National Public Radio Show called "A Moment of Science" to spread science and its opportunity to radio listeners.\nAdarsh said his father was an inspiration to him and his brother, Pradeep.\n"We saw how much he sacrificed to help people in need, and that influenced us in what we do professionally," he said. \nPradeep is now a doctor at the University of Iowa Medical School, and Adarsh recently left corporate law to become a social worker, a decision based on some of his father's influence.\nTo make sure his remaining family members had the chance to get an education, Singh sent for many of his and his wife's family members in India to come to the U.S., and many of them have gone on to receive college degrees.\nSudarshan said her husband knew nothing of greed, and always put others first.\n"No matter where he went he was looking for the opportunity to help others. That was his main mission in life," she said. "That was very gratifying for me as his wife and his partner."\n-- Contact senior writer George Lyle IV at glyle@indiana.edu.
(07/21/03 1:32am)
EDGEWATER, N.J. -- Jessica Keyes' classroom is an office in a condo directly across the Hudson River from Manhattan. Her lectern is a Hewlett-Packard laptop. Her students receive their lectures via the Internet, and -- increasingly -- are adult professionals.\n"There are people out there who work 80 to 100 hours a week, but they still want a degree," said Keyes, who teaches computer and management courses for the University of Phoenix.\nEducators say it is those students -- adults taking advantage of Internet technology to wedge undergraduate or graduate degree programs into their lives -- who are driving the growing popularity of distance learning.\nA study released Friday by the U.S. Department of Education found students enrolled in nearly 2.9 million college-level distance education courses in 2000-01, more than double the enrollment of 1997-98. While distance learning can mean taking courses through audio or video feeds, schools that offer such courses are most likely to use the Internet, the study found.\n"When it started, it was basically computer-type people. Now it's everybody," said Sally Stroup, assistant secretary for postsecondary education at the Education Department.\nSigns that distance education is gaining acceptance in higher education are everywhere, said John Flores, the president of the 4,000-member United States Distance Learning Association.\nFor instance, the national and regional accreditation agencies that certify academic quality now recognize many independent distance programs, as well as those attached to established colleges and universities, he said.\nJohn Bailey, who supervised the Education Department report, said he anticipated the boom. \n"We always believed that as the Internet became a bigger part of how people live, work and play it would naturally lead them to look for educational opportunities online," he said.\nAssisted by an aggressive marketing campaign, the University of Phoenix has used the technology to turn itself into the country's largest private university. Currently, 72,200 of the school's 163,300 students are enrolled online, while the remainder attend classes at learning centers located around the country.\nWhile Phoenix attracts older, nontraditional students, distance learning also is becoming part of traditional colleges.\nIn 1995, fewer than 50 Virginia Tech students registered for online classes at the Blacksburg, Va., school. In 2001-02, over 10,000 Virginia Tech students -- many of them full time and living on campus -- chose to take classes over the computer, said Sherri Turner, the school's manager for instructional program development.\nAs with adult learners, the distance education option provides "so-called traditional students" with a more flexibility in scheduling courses, said Jacqueline King, the director of the center for policy analysis for the American Council on Education.\nThe upsurge in distance learning has also come with growing pains.\nIn the rush to incorporate online learning into curriculums, educators say, some established schools underestimated the cost and problems implementing the technology.\n"It's similar to the experience with e-commerce," King said. "It's still shaking out."\nJohn Bear, a former FBI agent, said the sale of bogus college degrees poses one of the biggest threats to online learning's credibility.\n"The Internet, of course, is the dream of all diploma mills come true," Bear said. "It's a way to have a major presence, to be totally anonymous and to collect money in ways that people don't even know where it's going."\nBut the emergence of online programs at 90 percent of public colleges, universities and technical training schools and 40 percent of all private institutions has helped remove much of the stigma from distance learning.\n"One thing that everybody worries about when you start these online courses is that people are going to look at your degree and say, 'You bought that, didn't you?'" said Arline Lisinski, a Northern California court worker who graduated with honors last week from the University of Phoenix with a bachelor's degree in the science of management.\nLisinski, in her mid-40s, said the program challenged her both intellectually and academically. "You don't sit back and twiddle your thumbs, that's for sure," she said.
(05/21/03 10:59pm)
Matthew R. Smith came to IU to study history. Instead, he became a part of history.\nSmith, 20, of Anderson, a former student at IU, was killed in non-military action Saturday in Kuwait. \nHe was a radio operator reservist with Detachment 1, Communications Co., 4th Force Service Support Group based in Peru. Smith was driving a Humvee as part of a convoy when his vehicle hit a parked trailer, according to The Associated Press. He died instantly. \nDavid Smith, Matthew's father, said he believes his son was the first resident from Madison County killed in Operation Enduring Freedom. \nDavid described Matthew as "an excellent son" whose goal was to become a Marine officer. \n"Matthew felt that in order to be a good officer he had to to go through enlisted man's basic," David said. \nMatthew proceeded to join the Marine Reserve before graduating high school. "If he didn't do that before he went to college he believed he wouldn't get it done," David said. \nMatthew had to delay his education at IU when his detachment, based at Grissom Air Force Base, was deployed at the beginning of this semester. \nMatthew, the youngest of two sons of David and Pat Smith, came to IU because he considered it a school with a good history program. \n"He loved history and studied military history," David said. "In grade school, he would argue with fellow students on the Civil War." \nIn fact, Smith loved history so much that, according to his father, the "History Channel" was his "Cartoon Network" as a child. David said Matthew would get mad if the program was too entertaining and the facts weren't 100 percent correct.\nDavid also recalled his son competing on an academic bowl team in high school. \n"Matthew did the history part, of course," he said. "In one competition he answered 19 out of 21 questions."\nBesides being an academic, David said Matthew enjoyed athletics, playing many sports at Pendleton Heights High School -- where he graduated in 2001. \n"He played football in high school to help his rugby game," David said. Matthew's 25-year-old brother is now the rugby coach at his brother's alma mater. \nAt IU, Matthew continued to play rugby as a club sport.\nSenior Laith Shaaban, president of the IU Rugby Football Club, the Mudsharks, said the team was shocked by the death of their former comrade, but remembered him as "a very personable guy who was fun to be around."\n"He would always do his best for the team," said Laith. "He was a classic gentleman."\nSenior Matt Taylor, a member of the team, remembered Matthew as a hard worker.\n"He always gave 120 percent," Taylor said. "He tried to motivate everyone; he would pull them along and push them harder than they were already doing."\nTaylor also said Matthew took schoolwork very seriously. \nJunior Doug Fedich, another teammate, remembered Matthew as a man dedicated to his family and his girlfriend. \nWhen Smith's aunt Vicki Buck recalls memories of her nephew, she retells the story of her father. \n"(Matthew's) grandfather lost an arm at the age of 18 while serving in World War II," Buck said. "My dad never blamed anybody, because he knew what he was doing was right. The family was raised to respect the flag and the country."\nSmith's body, which was returned to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, is expected to arrive home late Friday or early Saturday, said his father. Funeral arrangements are tentative. \n"We were all proud of him being overseas," David said.
(05/19/03 11:59pm)
More recruiters conducted more interviews on some Indiana campuses this year, but the job market remains tough for recent college graduates.\nA recent report based on a survey of 1,170 employers by the National Association of Colleges and Employers showed companies plan to hire 39,000 graduates, about the same as last year.\nBut the Midwest, which includes Indiana and 11 other states, is the only region in which employers expect to hire fewer grads -- 12,900, or 4.2 percent fewer than last year.\n"It's going to continue to be a tough market for the next 12 months," Patrick Kiely, president of the Indiana Manufacturers Association, told The Indianapolis Star. "Graduates are going to have to be patient."\nKiely said new grads may also be at a disadvantage because employers can hire workers with several years' experience who are already in the job market.\nLarry S. Beck, associate director at Ball State University's Career Center, said students can find a job if they look hard enough -- though it may not be an ideal job.\n"It boils down to the flexibility of students, if they're willing to look at the whole of what's available, including out-of-state jobs," he said.\nThe undergraduate career services office at IU's Kelley School of Business reported 321 companies recruited on campus this school year, up 13 percent from last year.\nInterviews were up this year, too, by about 10 percent, to 12,800.\n"In this market, I'm pleased," said Susie Clark, career services director. "But it's still soft. I know there are still students out there struggling."\nAt Purdue University, the Center for Career Opportunities hosted 451 employers, up slightly from 448 last year.\nThose recruiters conducted 11,217 interviews, down from 13,642 last year.
(05/01/03 5:30am)
Around sunrise Saturday, an IU student with more than three years climbing experience prepared for an unconventional ascension -- up a 150-ft. crane in downtown Bloomington.\nJunior Liam Mulholland's climb was partially successful. He made it safely to the top but was apprehended by police and removed from the crane before he and his partner, Bloomington resident Collette Eno, could display a massive two-sided protest sign that read, "I-69: Trading Families, Farms and Forests for Pavement," and "I-69 Benefits Who? -- Them, Not You!"\nThe stunt was part of a peaceful protest held Saturday at the Monroe County Courthouse, called the "Day of Action to Stop I-69." Mulholland wore a safety harness and repelling gear. He said he felt under control throughout the climb with only height and high wind causing uneasiness. \nHe and Eno had been planning to climb the structure between Sixth and Seventh streets for about a month.\n"We knew the crane was located right in downtown Bloomington and towers over everything and would make a great locale to drop a banner." Mulholland said. "We weren't going after the workers or anything like that."\nCharged with disorderly conduct and trespassing, Mulholland said the duo's actions are aimed at the public, Indiana Gov. Frank O'Bannon and any other person or group "making the decisions that affect our lives."\nMulholland, 20, is part of Buffalo Trace Earth First, a local group he called a "broad umbrella movement." He said this will not be the last protest against I-69, but stressed the importance of remaining peaceful.\n"This is only the beginning of a long struggle," he said. "I don't know that it is going to manifest itself in the form of arrest."\nBloomington Police Department Capt. Mike Diekhoff said I-69 has prompted protests in the past and will do so for many years in the future. He said BPD recognizes protesting as a constitutional right but is forced to step in when safety is at risk.\n"If you would have fallen from that (crane) you would certainly have died," he said. "I am not sure it is the smartest or safest thing to do."\nIU communication and culture professor Robert Terrill will teach a graduate seminar this fall entitled "Problems of Protest in America." He said there are several reasons protesters such as Mulholland take drastic measures or risk harm.\n"Primarily these people were interested in getting their opinion heard in a highly visible way," he said. "In the case of this particular issue, there is a lot of feeling among those who oppose the route the governor selected. They feel their opinions did not receive a fair hearing during the process."\nMulholland said he does not consider his actions on the same level as lying on a field to block a bulldozer, but said actions could potentially reach the point where people physically block their house from highway construction.\nBloomington and IU have a well-documented past filled with protest and political action. Terrill said recent protests over I-69 and the war in Iraq is not a problem in the city, but a "healthy resurgence."\n"The actions and public interaction offered that is spurred by protests are essential in keeping our democratic culture healthy and lively," Terrill said. "The most dangerous thing is for there to be no protest."\nBPD has vast experience handling protests, and Diekhoff said he realizes I-69 is a volatile issue and hopes protesters continue to remain peaceful.\n"I don't think that it has caused us any problems in the past and hopefully it won't in the future," he said. "Do I anticipate that it will have an impact on the police department? Probably, yes."\nMulholland said he has strong feelings about the I-69 issue. He said he worries about the thousands of families he said construction will affect, economic impact and the ecological effects.\nBorn in Ann Arbor, Mich., Mulholland now lives in what he calls a residential community on the Bloomington's west side. He said he doesn't know whether he will stay in the city or move when he graduates. He said his eventual decision is irrelevant to him.\n"When you are part of a community, you do what you can while you are here," he said.\nHe said after climbing a crane, and being jailed and charged with two crimes, he isn't sure whether his efforts now and in the future will make an impact on I-69's final outcome. He can only hope.\n"You can do what you can do," he said. "And every effort -- no matter what everyone says -- every effort is not in vain. You can't sit back and let things happen"
(04/28/03 4:46am)
In a mirror image of corporate America, "chief executives" at Indiana University have garnered huge salary increases in recent years, while workers at lower rungs of the ladder continue to scrape by with cost-of-living increases. Currently, top administrators make as much as 30 times or more what entry-level, full-time employees make (a lot more, if you consider the package given to Coach Mike Davis). That gap looks to grow. How much should we accept?\nBefore his departure last year, former IU President Myles Brand earned well over $300,000 a year. Like many other top IU administrators, he also received a generous benefits package that included deferred compensation. To be sure, Brand was earning less than most Big Ten university presidents, so the firm hired to help in searching for the new IU president suggested that a highly qualified candidate could not be lured to IU for anything less than $600,000 -- and perhaps a good deal more. Meanwhile, the typical compensation package for top IU administrators increased substantially several years ago. While IU trustees have approved generous faculty salary increases in recent years, endeavoring to keep faculty salaries competitive, there have been no comparable increases in staff or graduate student pay.\nAt the same time, the University has sought to contain costs by limiting salary and benefit increases among both lower-end employees and graduate assistants and instructors. Beginning support staff and service maintenance staff make barely $16,000 a year, just over the poverty line for a family of three. After some 38 years of full-time service to the University, my departmental secretary, who has primary responsibility for a program area in addition to a sizable department, earns just $36,000. And graduate student employees continue to be treated as second-class citizens, even as they fill vital roles in university life. Graduate students with assistantships granting them (minimal) health insurance coverage must pay an extra $2,000 per year to have a spouse covered as well.\nThis kind of Big 10 "Keeping Up With The Joneses" can only be described as grotesque. Faculty, staff and student morale have been shaken by the news of high administrator salaries and benefits packages. As a public enterprise, the University can and must balance unregulated free market dynamics with the moral principles that undergird the public trust. It might be true that the local labor market permits IU to hire support staff at near poverty-level wages; it might also be true that national hiring trends have allowed a scarce pool of qualified administrators to command unreasonably high salaries. Yet I believe that we can and will do as good a job attracting administrators motivated to accomplish the job for less, even if that means more efforts to train leadership horizontally and promote from within. Moreover, a significant part of the salary load currently dedicated to hiring top administrators could be redirected to fund a greater number of decently paid staff positions and graduate assistantships supporting administrative functions. Such enhanced support could be used as a selling point for administrative hiring: less overall salary, but a less demanding work schedule because of ample support staff.\nThe Indiana state budget and Indiana University budget are not likely to witness significant increases in the foreseeable future, and current financial straits will severely limit faculty and staff salary increases and benefits. Principles of fairness and justice require a public university to limit excessive discrepancies in salary and benefits amongst its employees. I therefore recommend to the Trustees that all IU salaries be capped at no more than 20 times the salary of the lowest-paid full-time employee. In order to pay a "highly qualified" executive $600,000 to lead the University, we ought to be able to pay the lowest beginning employee $30,000. Anything less would be, to put it quite simply, obscene.
(04/24/03 4:21am)
It's not every day that a young singer wins the Metropolitan Opera's National Counsel Auditions. Upon receiving such a high honor, most would want to tell everyone they meet of their accomplishment, basking in all the praise and glory. But one of this year's winners, IU graduate student Christina Pier, remains humble. As colleague after colleague approaches her with enthusiastic congratulations, Pier shyly smiles and thanks them.\n"IU can be so overwhelming at first," Pier said. \nOriginally from Flagstaff, Ariz., Pier is currently working on her Master's of Music at the IU School of Music. \n"I came to IU because of the outstanding reputation of the music school," she said. "When you sit in the MAC and see a production, you can't think of any other place you'd rather study."\nBut the road to success has not been easy for Pier. Like many young singers, Pier has gone through years of intensive study to get where she is today. \n"As a young singer you have to be extremely patient," Pier said. "You really have to develop a solid technique before you begin to audition." \nPier began studying technique as an undergraduate with Professor Patricia Havranek, and later as a graduate student with Distinguished Professor of Voice Virginia Zeani.\n"I've always believed in her qualities," Zeani said. "Christina has one of the most beautiful voices in America today. She is a very hard worker." \nDuring her year off between her undergraduate and graduate program, Pier had the chance to study with Zeani while working as a babysitter: Her employers gave her singing lessons with Zeani as a Christmas present. She has now studied with the legendary soprano for four years.\n"Ms. Zeani has helped me to further develop my technique, as well as my dramatic connection to the music," Pier said. \nPier began her road to the winner's circle at the regional part of the competition, held at IU earlier this year. She and two other regional winners, IU students Christopher Burchett and Andrew Oakden, went on to the tri-state competition, held in Cincinnati, Ohio. Pier was chosen as a winner there and went on to New York for the semi-finals round, where she competed against 22 other students. IU students Stephanie Dawn Johnson, Jung Won Shin and Kate Mangiameli also sang in the semi-finals round. From there, Pier and Shin were chosen as two of the nine finalists.\nDuring the week before the final competition, the chosen singers were able to stay in New York for a week. While there, they coached with some of the staff from the Metropolitan Opera and worked with directors on auditioning techniques. Four winners, including Pier, were picked from the final round to sing on the Met stage.\nAccording to The Metropolitan Opera's Web site, the auditions are a nationwide competition in which up to five winners can receive $15,000 with remaining finalists receiving $5,000.\n"I have some future plans now, but this has brought me offers for more auditions," Pier said. \nPier travels to Florida next to compete in the Palm Beach Opera Competition and will go on to New York to compete in the Richard Tucker Foundation Competition. \nPier will spend the month of May singing with the Glimmerglass Opera Company and will go on to cover roles at Florida Grand Opera in the fall. \nPier's advice to young singers is to find a teacher whose technique is crucial in one's belief.\n"But it's very important to be musical, as well as technical," Pier said. "An extensive language background is necessary as well." \nAfter all her time studying at IU, Pier looks back thoughtfully. \n"I've watched so many people grow up here," she said. "I remember when I was an undergraduate and I watched great singers like Angela Brown win the Met Competition. I'd watch older singers in rehearsals, and aspire to accomplish what they were accomplishing. Seeing them succeed gave all the younger singers the hope that it was all possible"
(04/02/03 6:08am)
While he conducted research for an essay in high school, IU sophomore David Johnson uncovered the often-forgotten anti-miscegenation laws. Until the Supreme Court case Loving vs. Virginia overturned the laws in 1967, blacks and whites in 17 states couldn't marry.\n"Universities didn't allow interracial dating," said Johnson, who is black.\n"I didn't know about it," said freshman Stephany Juneau, his girlfriend at the time. Juneau is white. "I'm glad I grew up in this time when it's OK to do stuff like this."\nAlthough Johnson and Juneau's relationship was legal, the court of public opinion still had to accept it. Johnson said he was worried about telling his old-fashioned mother about the relationship, and Juneau said her grandfather would have a "heart attack" if he knew Johnson was black. The couple split up last week after four months because of personal reasons.\nDuring the last few decades, the United States has witnessed a gradual shift in tolerance toward interracial relationships. The progressive attitudes of younger generations is partially responsible for the growing tolerance, according to a 1999 survey by The Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.\nDespite increasing in popularity, interracial relationships still constitute a miniscule percentage of the general population. The 2000 Census showed interracial marriages made up about 3 percent of all marriages, compared to less than 0.5 percent in 1960.\nSociologists have struggled to explain trends in the interracial dating scene. Inexplicable patterns, such as the greater number of white women than white men dating minorities and the larger number of white-Asian relationships than white-black couples, remain a mystery because of insufficient research.\nEven with increased acceptance, some interracial couples continue to face problems as they strive to dissolve other people's deep-rooted stereotypes. Some have to deal with racial slurs and derogatory remarks. Others worry how their families will react. \nGraduate student Maggy Mendoza grew up with many Chinese and white friends in Pasadena, Calif. Her Colombian parents weren't ecstatic, but they supported her when she started dating a Chinese friend from a small, southern Indiana town.\nMendoza said she never thought ethnic differences could dictate relationships, but they created an unimaginable amount of tension.\n"It's not necessarily cultural clashes, but the things that resulted from us being different cultures," Mendoza said.\nThe distinction between their professions and ideals, for example, created stress. While Mendoza is working to earn a master's degree in elementary education, her ex-boyfriend is attending medical school to become a doctor. During their four-year relationship, she spoke to her ex-boyfriend's parents once. They repeatedly tried to break the couple up, she said. \nSociology professor David James said race continues to negatively affect relationships, although not to the extent it did 40 years ago. Since 1967, the number of blacks marrying other races has increased, leading to a similar trend among other racial groups, he said.\nJames said social scientists consider interracial marriages the most accurate indicator of social boundaries between groups. Sociologists also have studied why one gender more than the other might date a certain race.\nFor example, more white women date minority men than vice versa, according to Princeton University's Committee on Research in the Humanities and Social Sciences. Explanations for this phenomenon range from the archaic superiority status of whites to the changing concept of beauty.\n"Since the status of 'white' is higher than 'black' and 'male' higher than 'female,' African-American men with higher educations will be more likely to marry white women with lower educations than if the education levels were reversed," James said. \nWhile James looks at the social statuses of interracial couples, others take a more historical perspective. Some sociologists attribute the small number of black-white relationships to the historical struggle of slavery.\n"Years ago, it was both unthinkable and almost suicidal for blacks and whites, male or female, to date," said Akwasi Assensoh, a professor of African American and African Diaspora Studies. \nBut Martin Luther King Jr.'s work and effects of the civil rights movement allowed black-white relationships to grow, Assensoh said. Once blacks and whites were able to share accommodations, they could more openly date, he said.\nComplementing cultures\nWhile sophomore David Johnson and freshman Stephany Juneau were surprised to learn several states didn't allow blacks and whites to date three decades ago, other dating regulations and expectations were eased in recent history. Three years ago, Bob Jones University in South Carolina lifted its ban on interracial dating.\nYet to this day, some couples continue to endure the effects of discrimination.\nSenior Jazz Bagga, an Indian-American Sikh, worked with IU graduate Melissa Pavolka at Village Deli for nearly three weeks before he mustered up the courage to talk to her. The two finally met at a party for a co-worker.\nAlthough Pavolka said she hadn't dated someone outside of her race before, race was never an issue in her relationship with Bagga.\n"There's a certain amount of questioning that wouldn't have come up had I been dating a white guy -- like how to say his name, where he's from, his religion," said Pavolka, who is white. \nBagga, who said his parents are open-minded about him dating outside of his race, went out with a white woman for two years before Pavolka.\nAlthough people have directed racist comments at Bagga, even likening him to terrorists, the couple hasn't faced direct discrimination. Bagga said his dark complexion and black beard have led people to compare him to Osama bin Laden. \nOnce, the two were in a hospital waiting room when a man, who was trying to read letters on an eye chart, started complaining he couldn't see because "Osama over there was in his way," Bagga recalled. Initially, anger and frustration welled up inside Pavolka, causing her to feel helpless, she said. \nBut cultural differences haven't hindered the relationship. Pavolka's mother, a devout Lutheran, has accepted Bagga, but Pavolka said her mother probably would like her to date someone Christian.\nDeep down, Bagga said, his parents likely also want him to marry a traditional, Sikh Indian girl. But because both Bagga and Pavolka do not consider themselves religious, faith hasn't affected the relationship.\nBagga, who was born in Bombay, India, compares his relationship to that of the protagonist of "My Big Fat Greek Wedding." In the movie, a Greek Orthodox woman starts dating a non-Greek man, much to the chagrin of her traditional family.\nUnlike the parents in the movie, both Bagga's and Pavolka's families have been immediately accepting of the relationship. But their differences in cultures relate to the movie's wittiness. \nWhile Pavolka's family speaks English, Bagga's parents speak Punjabi, a Hindi dialect. Pavolka said Bagga's mom slipped into Punjabi once around her, but she couldn't understand a word.\nEnvironment affects racial \nperceptions\nSophomore Kenny General is still a Filipino citizen. He moved to the United States 10 years ago, but never took the time to receive his American citizenship.\nNevertheless, General has never gone out with a Filipino woman. He has spent most of his life between U.S. naval bases and white suburbia. His white stepfather worked for the U.S. Navy in the Philippines. He has a biracial younger sister, and his older sister is engaged to a white man.\n"I guess I'm oblivious to (race)," General said. "She's very conscious of it," he joked, gesturing toward his white girlfriend, junior Michelle Henning.\n"I never know I'm in an interracial relationship until she brings it up," he said.\nAsian-Americans are more involved in interracial relationships than blacks. According to the 1990 Census, 36 percent of Asian-American women and 45 percent of Asian-American men had white spouses. Four percent of black women had white husbands, compared to 8 percent of black men having white wives.\nNeither General nor Henning consider race a significant factor in the relationship. They both grew up in similar suburban environments. \nData from preliminary studies on interracial marriages support the idea that social class affects interracial relationships, but the idea remains only a theory, according to the Princeton study. Whites tend to date minorities of the same or higher social class.\nBefore Henning came to IU, she had an infatuation with Asian men, she said. General rolled his eyes at his girlfriend's explanation. \n"The first six months, she referred to me as 'the Asian,'" General said.\nHenning, her white skin and reddish-brown hair a stark contrast to General's deep olive skin and black hair, said their ability to joke about race implies its insignificance in their relationship. Henning leaned toward General, teasing him about his laziness in applying for citizenship. \n"You're just with me so you can stay in the country," Henning said with a giggle. "I knew it."\nBefore General knew Henning had an Asian fetish, he was nervous about Henning's reaction to dating an Asian man. Henning said she wouldn't have stayed with General for 17 months if he had turned out to be a jerk.\nFriends and family members have supported the couple's relationship.\n"When I told my mom, she probably thought (Henning) was white," General said.\n'Betrayal of the brothers'\nFreshman Amber McKee grew up in Danville, Ind., where no blacks and one Hispanic attended her high school. Living in Ashton, she met freshman Randyn Payne, and the two began dating. \nPayne graduated from Carmel High School as one of a handful of black students in a school crammed with white people. He said he didn't date a lot, but was always attracted to white women.\nA surge of black men have begun looking outside their race for women, according to the January 2003 issue of Ebony magazine. Some refer to this trend as the "betrayal of the brothers."\nIn fact, about 66 percent of black-white married couples were composed of black men and white women, according to the U.S. Census Bureau in 1992.\nPayne said interracial couples have always intrigued him, but he didn't consciously seek out McKee because she was white.\n"If I had grown up in a different environment, predominantly blacks and dating black girls, then maybe in college (dating a white girl) would have been a new experience," Payne said.\nPayne said he doesn't understand the negativity about black men dating white women. \n"Maybe it's hard to have a black guy that's good," Payne said. \n"That's a stupid excuse," he said, correcting himself. "I really don't know why."\nHe added that people's characters overshadow their race, and forming a connection in a relationship can surpass any racial barrier.\n"I was a little worried at first about what my parents would think," McKee said. \nBut after her family overlooked Payne's race, McKee said she hasn't reconsidered the issue.
