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(11/02/06 5:58am)
JASPER, Ind. -- Candidates in the 9th District Congressional race used the second and final debate before Tuesday's election as a platform to deride the negative campaigning that has come to dominate the race.\nRep. Mike Sodrel, R-9th, came out swinging in his opening remarks, embracing the nickname "Millionaire Mike," which he has been dubbed in ads run by Democratic challenger Baron Hill. \n"Oddly enough, that's one of the few things my opponent has said about me that's true," Sodrel said.\n"If you play Hoosier Millionaire everyone cheers for you ... If you work 60 to 80 hours a week for 30 years and make thousands of people middle class, you're a dirty guy." \nSodrel made his fortune as head of a trucking company. \nDespite Sodrel and Hill signing a clean campaign pledge in August, both candidates and the parties representing them have run television ads and mailed fliers portraying each other in a negative light.\nHill said he only started running attack ads when Sodrel ran his first ad, which Hill claimed attacked him.\n"I tried to stay positive as long as I could," Hill said.\nHe also offered to take down his ads for the remainder of the campaign if Sodrel did so as well. Sodrel did not respond to his request.\nLibertarian candidate and IU-Southeast economics professor Eric Schansberg criticized both of his opponents' tactics, accusing them of being more concerned with gaining power than issues.\n"A vote for Sodrel and Hill is an endorsement of their campaign tactics," he said. "Why should you reward either of them for acting like 4-year-olds?"\nWrite-in candidate Don Mantooth, a private detective and Indianapolis police officer who also participated in the debate, also expressed dislike for attack ads.\n"Maybe neither of them are right," he said. "Maybe they're both right. That's scary."\nThis is the third time Hill and Sodrel have faced off for the 9th District seat. Hill served as representative from 1998 to 2004 when Sodrel defeated him by fewer than 1,500 votes.\nDuring the debate, Hill made several references to corruption in Congress, promising changes in Congress if re-elected. He has said that he will work to establish a new House Ethics Committee made up of former members of Congress, but both Sodrel and Schansberg took aim at that stance.\n"I think what Baron's offering is spare change, pocket change," Schansberg said. \nSodrel agreed.\n"In all these issues you hear my opponent talk about how Washington is a mess. One of the reasons for that is I haven't been there long enough to clean things up," Sodrel said.\nTopics covered in the debate included Social Security, tax reform, energy independence, the Iraq War and immigration.\nHill said time tables need to be set for when the Iraqi government can take control and troops can be withdrawn in an "honorable way," while Sodrel said a firm time table will provide insurgents with too much information. \nSchansberg promised to work for an immediate troop withdrawal, and Mantooth said the problem is that no clear conditions have yet been set.\nOn immigration, Sodrel said more needs to be done on imposing border security rather than imposing penalties on small businesses that employ illegal immigrants.\nHill advocated the opposite, saying that going after employers will give people less incentive to cross the borders. He said he believed fences are not going to keep everyone out.\n"I've seen the videos," he said. "They're very agile. It's unbelievable the way they can get under or over fences"
(10/31/06 8:30am)
MARTINSVILLE -- It took a jury of his peers 50 minutes to find John R. Myers II guilty of the 2000 murder of IU sophomore Jill Behrman.\nMyers remained stoic, as he had throughout most of the 11-day trial, as Judge Christopher Burnham read the verdict. Myers, 31, hugged defense attorney Patrick Baker and, as police led him out of the courtroom in handcuffs, winked at his family, clicked his tongue and said simply, "Love ya."\nJill's parents, Eric and Marilyn Behrman, told reporters afterward they were relieved the trial was over.\n"We're pleased with the jury's decision," Eric Behrman said. "We know it was hard for them to make."\nJill Behrman vanished during a morning bike ride May 31, 2000. Her bicycle was found two days later in a cornfield outside Ellettsville, less than a mile from the trailer Myers was living in at the time. Hunters found her skeletal remains in March 2003 near Paragon, Ind. Forensic evidence suggested Behrman was shot in the back of the head at close range with a shotgun.\nProsecutors had no direct evidence to make their case. Myers and Jill Behrman had no known relationship, no murder weapon has been found and there were no witnesses to the crime.\n"The state offers no physical evidence, no DNA, no fingerprints, no shotgun, no clothing fibers, no hair samples, no footprints," Baker said in his closing arguments. "The facts are circumstantial evidence. They're not even circumstantial evidence. They're speculation, guesswork, suggestion."\nIn his rebuttal, Morgan County Prosecutor Steve Sonnega admitted the evidence was largely circumstantial but said the comments Myers made to family and friends strongly indicated he was involved in Jill Behrman's murder.\nDuring the trial, Baker tried to sway jurors, suggesting Jill Behrman might have been pregnant with an older man's child and the unwanted pregnancy was motive for someone else to murder her. \nInvestigators found several books about pregnancy in Jill Behrman's room, but friends and family members said they were for a human sexuality class she took her freshman year.\nJurors did not buy the defense's argument.\n"I did not feel those books proved she was pregnant," juror No. 40, a woman, said. "She may have been, but I didn't feel the proof was there."\nFive members of the six-man, six-woman jury spoke to the media after the verdict was read but declined to be identified by name.\n"The group went around the table one time, and everyone explained their opinions and gave their reasons why," said juror No. 85, a man, about the jury's decision process. "Going around the room one time, it was unanimous."\nJurors said the most convincing testimonies they heard were from Myers' ex-girlfriend Carly Goodman, his aunt Debbie Bell and his grandmother Betty Swaffard.\nGoodman testified that Myers drove her to the spot where Jill Behrman's remains were found several months before she disappeared.\nBell and Swaffard testified about conversations they had with Myers that they said implicated him in Behrman's disappearance.\nSwaffard testified Oct. 21 that Myers told her, "Grandma, if you just knew the things on my mind ... if the authorities knew, I'd spend the rest of my life in prison."\nIndiana State Police Detective Rick Lang, who has worked on the Behrman case since 2003, praised Bell and Swaffard for coming forward.\n"When I met Debbie and Betty, I knew these were the kind of people who don't come around anymore because they do the right thing just because it's the right thing to do," he said.\nSonnega echoed that sentiment.\n"(Swaffard) told me she cried until she had no more tears left, but she had to do it to clear her conscience," he said.\nDefense attorneys and Myers' family left the courthouse within minutes of the verdict being announced without speaking to reporters.\nThe trial was expected to last as many as four weeks but was cut short when the defense only called two witnesses to testify and performed little cross-examination of many of the prosecution's 53 witnesses.\nMyers' sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 1. He faces 45 to 65 years in prison. Myers had previously been convicted on charges of battery and receiving stolen property, according to The Associated Press.
(10/30/06 3:29pm)
SELLERSBURG, Ind. -- In a stump speech for Rep. Mike Sodrel, R-9th, President George W. Bush told several thousand Republican faithful Saturday that Democrats do not know how to deal with terrorists or win the war in Iraq.\n"We face an enemy which is brutal," he said. "There is no negotiating with these people. They do not believe in freedom. They hate America because we believe in freedom. The best way to protect America is to bring them to justice before they hurt us again."\nThe president praised Sodrel's National Guard service and commitment to the armed forces but spent most of his 40-minute speech defending the war on terror and the conflict in Iraq.\n"Five years later, Democrats just don't get it," he said. "The best way to protect the homeland is to find the enemy and defeat them overseas."\nThe crowd members cheered, stomped their feet in approval and waved fliers with occasional shouts of support like "You're the man, George!" as Bush promised that a Republican-led Congress would continue to cut taxes and aid economic growth.\nBush also criticized the New Jersey Supreme Court's recent decision to recognize same-sex marriages.\n"We believe marriage is a union between a man and a woman," he said as the crowd booed the court's ruling.\nThe president's visit was not \nwithout protest, however. While many local businesses put up signs welcoming Bush, two protestors stood several blocks away holding up signs questioning the government's involvement in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.\nAbout five minutes into Bush's speech, several women unrolled two pink banners with the words "Troops home now" while chanting "No more war."\nCampaign volunteers attempted to cover the women from the president's view with articles of clothing while the members of the crowd attempted to drown them by chanting "U-S-A."\nPolice escorted the protestors from the rally.\nHaving the president campaign for him a little more than a week before the Nov. 7 election is a potentially risky move for Sodrel. In the past few weeks, polls have put Bush's approval rating below 40 percent. John Hostettler, R-8th, who is embroiled in another close Indiana congressional race with Democrat Brad Ellsworth, told the Chicago Tribune last week that he felt a visit from the president could hurt his campaign.\nSodrel, however, seemed unconcerned with the president's popularity in introducing him Saturday.\n"Here with me is a man we Hoosiers voted for twice," he said. "It's an honor to have the president of the United States visit Indiana, and I'm proud to stand here with him today."\nThis is the third time Sodrel has faced Democrat Baron Hill for the 9th District seat. Hill served as the district's representative from 1998 until 2004, when Sodrel defeated him by fewer than 1,500 votes.\nLibertarian and IU-Southeast economics professor Eric Schansberg is also running.\nFirst lady Laura Bush also campaigned for Sodrel at a rally in Columbus, Ind., Wednesday.\nPresident Bush previously stumped for Sodrel in March at a $1,000-per-plate luncheon in Indianapolis, which earned the Congressman's re-election campaign more than $500,000, according to a March 27 Indiana Daily Student article. The president's speech Saturday was free and open to the public on a first-come, first-serve basis.\nAfter speaking to the IU College Democrats and Indiana Public Interest Research Group on Tuesday, Hill criticized the number of well-known politicians who have come to Indiana for Sodrel, which also include Vice President Dick Cheney, Cheney's wife Lynne Cheney and former first lady Barbara Bush.\n"I've only had Bill Clinton and Barack Obama speak for me," Hill said. "One's a former president, and the other's a sitting senator. I'm not beholden to either of them. He's got all these major leaders and Washington insiders coming here. He needs to make sure he's not beholden to them because they've helped him out so much"
(10/25/06 3:38am)
Democratic candidate for Indiana's 9th District, Baron Hill, spoke to members of the Indiana Public Interest Research Group and the IU College Democrats about environmental issues Tuesday night.\nHill reiterated his position on energy independence, saying that if elected to the House, he will work to invest money into ethanol and biodiesel, as well as offer tax incentives for buyers and sellers of hybrid cars.\n"This Congress and this White House is beholden to big oil," Hill said. "George Bush and Dick Cheney are both big oil people."\nHill will be facing Rep. Mike Sodrel, R-9th, at the polls for the third time Nov. 7. Hill served as the district's representative from 1998 until 2004 when Sodrel defeated him by fewer than 1,500 votes. \nLibertarian Eric Schansberg is also running.\nIn introducing Hill, Indianapolis lawyer Gregory Silver, who was representing the League of Conservation Voters, which has endorsed Hill, blasted Sodrel's environmental record.\n"Baron wants to reduce global warming," Silver said. "He has worked hard for energy independence. His opponent doesn't believe people are contributing to global warming. He's the polluter's polluter."\nHill also advocated clean coal technology and wind power as viable energy sources in the future. \nAccompanying Hill at the meeting was Birch Bayh, a senator from Indiana for 18 years and father of current Sen. Evan Bayh. Birch Bayh has been accompanying Hill on the campaign trail for the past six days to stress the importance of this particular race.\n"This is about leadership of the House," he said. "This is not just about electing a Democrat to the house. This could change the course of the country."\nBayh denounced the steps the Bush Administration has taken in the war on terror such as wire tapping, referring to the president as the "wild man on 1600 West Pennsylvania Avenue."\n"When I think about the way he has violated civil liberties in this country and laid down a platform for it to get even worse, I get very upset," he said.\nAs Hill and Birch Bayh spoke to the IU College Democrats, Sodrel's campaign announced that President Bush will be speaking for the congressman in Sellersburg, Ind. this Saturday. This will be the second time Bush has campaigned for Sodrel. \nFirst Lady Laura Bush will also be speaking at a campaign rally for Sodrel today in Columbus, Ind.\nHill criticized the number of well-known politicians which have come to Indiana for Sodrel, which also include Dick and Lynne Cheney and former First Lady Barbara Bush.\n"I've only had Bill Clinton and Barack Obama speak for me," Hill said. "One's a former president and the other's a sitting senator. I'm not beholden to either of them. He's got all theses major leaders and Washington insiders coming here; he needs to make sure he's not beholden to them because they've helped him out so much"
(10/24/06 7:58pm)
MARTINSVILLE -- Prosecutors continued to build their case against murder suspect John R. Myers II Saturday by calling his family to testify against him.\nMyers' grandmother, Betty Swafford, broke down in tears while recounting a conversation she had with him in November 2004.\n"I said, 'What's on your mind to upset you so much?'" Swafford said, wiping away tears. "He said, 'Grandma, if you just knew the things on my mind ... If the authorities knew, I'd spend the rest of my life in prison. He said 'My dad knew, and he took it to the grave with him.'"\nMyers showed no visible signs of emotion during Swafford's testimony, but the 12 jurors and three alternates appeared to be taking many notes on her testimony.\nMyers, 31, of Ellettsville, is on trial for the murder of then IU sophomore Jill Behrman. Behrman vanished during a morning bicycle ride May 31, 2000. Her bicycle was found two days later in a cornfield outside Ellettsville less than a mile from the trailer Myers was living in at the time.\nBehrman's remains were found in a wooded area near Paragon, Ind. in March 2003.\nThe November 2004 encounter was not the first time Myers had made disturbing comments to Swafford. She testified that her grandson had mentioned he was a suspect in Behrman's disappearance as early as June 27, 2000, when he called to ask her for $200. She told him she only had $10 to give him, and he would have to come to her home to pick it up.\n"He said he couldn't come get it," she said. "He said they have road blocks on Maple Grove (near where he lived), and he said, 'Don't you know, grandma? I'm a suspect in the (pause) Jill Behrman murder.'"\nMyers' aunt, Debbie Bell, who took the stand earlier in the day, described a conversation she had with Myers that left her "distraught."\nShe asked how he was doing, and he said, "I'm scared ... There was a girl abducted near here, and I'm afraid they're going to blame me," Bell said. She then asked why he would be scared if he had nothing to do with Behrman's disappearance, and he changed his tune, saying "I'm not really scared."\nDuring the conversation, Bell asked if the girl was still missing, and Myers answered, "Yeah, they haven't found the body yet," Bell said.\n"I said, 'You mean she's dead?' He said, 'Yeah, uh, I guess ...'" Bell testified. \nThe defense did not cross-examine Swafford or Bell but asked they be kept under subpoena to possibly be recalled when the defense presents its case.\nEarlier that morning, Myers' mother, Jodie Myers took the stand. She testified that her son, along with his two brothers, Lucas and Sam, were very upset May 31, 2000, because their father had undergone surgery the previous day to treat his cancer.\nBut while she was on the stand, prosecutors asked Jodie Myers to read a portion of her grand jury testimony in which she was asked what she remembered of that day and replied, "Not a thing."\nJodie Myers also said that when she visited John May 31, 2000, she noticed blankets covered several windows on his trailer, but he told her it was because he was growing marijuana.\nThe youngest Myers brother, Sam, testified that he kept a 12-gauge shotgun at his parents' house, but when he came back to Bloomington in the summer of 2000 for an internship, he was unable to find the shotgun. He said to this day he does not know where it is.\nMorgan County coroner Dan Downing said Monday that Behrman was killed with a 12-gauge shotgun\nFriday morning, before the jury was summoned, defense attorney Patrick Baker motioned for a mistrial on the grounds that Eric and Marilyn Behrman spoke to the media after Thursday's trial. \nProsecutor Steve Sonnega argued the Behrmans did nothing wrong and were merely trying to defend their daughter's reputation. \nBaker had told reporters last week that he thought Jill Behrman was pregnant and was running away from home when she was murdered in 2001.\nJudge Christopher Burnham denied the defense's motion.\nDr. Stephen Radentz, the forensic pathologist who conducted Jill Behrman's autopsy, testified Friday that he believes Jill Behrman was raped and then shot with the gun less than an inch from her head. The scenario of a young female being killed and dumped without clothing in a remote area is classic in a rape-homicide case, he said.\nBloomington Police Detective Rick Crussen testified Friday that he interviewed Myers on June 28, 2000, to see if Myers had an alibi for the day Behrman disappeared after receiving a tip that shifted the focus of the investigation.\nMyers told Crussen during the interview he had been "'here and there,'" during the week of May 31, 2000, Crussen said. \nBurnham denied the defense's second request for a mistrial Friday, this time because of Indiana State Police Detective Rick Lang's use of the term "polygraph" during testimony.\nPolygraph tests are not admissable evidence in court.
(10/24/06 3:52am)
The next generation of console gaming is almost here.\nNext month, Sony and Nintendo will release their newest consoles and, with them, a slew of new games and innovative control schemes.\nThe other major console manufacturer, Microsoft, released its own console, the Xbox 360, last November. Microsoft sold nearly 5 million Xbox 360s as of June 30, according to a Microsoft quarterly earnings report. The Redmond, Wash.-based software giant is banking on its one-year head start to sell 10 million Xbox 360s by the end of 2006.\nThough it will be several years until the winner of this console war is decided, Sony's PlayStation 3 easily wins in pure horsepower with its cutting edge 3.2 GHz cell processor.\nThe system also comes with a HDMI port, which allows for "true" high-definition 1080p graphics. \nThough Nintendo and Microsoft are sticking with the standard DVD drive for their systems -- Microsoft will release an HD-DVD add-on in the coming months for movie playback -- the PS3 comes standard with a Blu-ray disc drive. \nSingle-layer Blu-ray discs are capable of holding 25 gigs of data, while dual-layer discs can hold up to 50 gigs. What that means for gamers is that programmers can create games with more textures in high definition, allowing for potentially breathtaking scenery.\nThe PS3 will also be backward-compatible with games for Playstaion 2 and the original Playstation.\nAll that new technology, however, will come at a higher cost. The premium PS3 package, set for release Nov. 17 in North America, includes a 60-gig upgradable hard drive and built-in Wi-Fi -- and will retail for $599.\nThe basic package, which costs $499, cuts the upgradable hard drive's size to 20 gigs and leaves out the Wi-Fi support.\nIn the past, game consoles have been sold for much higher prices soon after launch on Web auction sites such as eBay. And Sony recently cut North American launch shipments to 400,000 units, so PS3s could be going for well over $1,000 this holiday.\nMeanwhile, Nintendo is banking on an innovative controller design to sell its relatively underpowered system.\nSpeaking to the Japanese Nintendo Dream magazine in August, Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of the Mario and Zelda franchises, admitted that Nintendo's new Wii is technically only a slight step up from the company's current system, the GameCube.\n"We'll be upgrading the development tools, but GameCube code can be used for the most part as is," Miyamoto told the magazine. "In that sense, I believe that it would be good to remake GameCube games for Wii and that some titles would become better with the change to the Wii remote controller."\nThe selling point of the Wii, which will also be backward-compatible with all GameCube games, is its controller -- the "Wiimote." Rather than a traditional gamepad, which has been the standard for more than a decade, it's shaped like a TV remote and can be moved through the air to perform actions on screen, such as slicing a sword or aiming a gun.\nSony announced a similar function in its "Sixaxis" wireless controller several months after Nintendo first showed off the Wiimote.\nThe Wii is set for release Nov. 19 with a suggested retail price of $249.\nSenior Alton Clark, the campus representative for Electronic Arts, the world's largest video game publisher, has seen demonstrations of both the PS3 and Wii. He says the PS3's sports games look great so far and most of the gamers he talks to at EA events seem to be most interested in that system. \nBut he doesn't think people should count out Nintendo just yet.\n"When the Wii drops, it might pick up in sales because it's so cheap," he said. "It might take over, or at least force the PS3 to drop in price"
(10/20/06 4:43am)
Rep. Mike Sodrel, R-9th, has raised almost $500,000 more than his opponent, Democrat Baron Hill, in the hotly contested district, according to the latest filings from the Federal Elections Commission. \nAs of Sept. 30, Sodrel's campaign had raised $1.98 million, compared to $1.5 million raised by Hill.\nSo far, Hill has spent just less than $620,000 of the money he has raised, according to the FEC. The amount Sodrel has actually spent was not available.\nAssistant professor of political science Michael Ensley, who is currently working on a book that deals in part with House fundraising, said the extra money Sodrel has raised could be a worrisome sign from the first-term congressman's campaign.\n"Incumbents typically only raise and spend money when they are in danger of losing (which Sodrel is), and challengers only can raise money when they have a shot of winning," Ensley said in an e-mail.\nThe nonpartisan political Web site The Cook Political Report and the New York Times Web site currently call the race a "toss up."\nThis is the third time Sodrel and Hill have faced off for the 9th District seat. Hill served as the district's representative from 1998 until 2004 when Sodrel defeated him by fewer than 1,500 votes.\nBoth candidates have had high-profile guests stump for them in the months leading up to the election, including popular Illinois Senator Barrack Obama and former president Bill Clinton for Hill and President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush for Sodrel.\nSodrel has already surpassed the amount of money he raised in 2004, and Hill is poised to do the same.\nIn that election, Hill received about $1.6 million in contributions but spent about $10,000 more than that. Sodrel received $1.6 million as well but only spent $1.5 million, according to the FEC.\nWhen the two met in 2002, Hill received $1.1 million in contributions but spent about $44,000 more than he raised. Sodrel received $1.6 million in contributions, spending nearly all of it on his campaign.\n"This is certainly one of the most competitive races in the country with an incumbent running for re-election," Ensley said. "It is atypical\nto have both candidates raise that much money. However, given that Hill is a former Congressman, the 9th District is fairly well-balanced between the two parties, and this is a high-profile election. It is not surprising that both candidates have raised this much."\nHill's campaign has been especially critical of the amount of money his opponent has raised, running TV ads in recent weeks referring to him as "Millionaire Mike Sodrel."\n"We're getting into the home stretch now," Hill told the IU College Democrats at an Oct. 9 meeting at the Indiana Memorial Union. "I don't know if we're going to win or lose it. The money coming in is unbelievable. It's not going to be easy, but we're going to do it by outworking him."\nLibertarian 9th District candidate and IU-Southeast economics professor Eric Schansberg has raised significantly less than Hill and Sodrel. FEC filings show he had raised $14,500 as of Sept. 30, with $1,000 coming out of his own pocket and the rest coming from individual contributions. Last week, however, he said that number is now closer to $20,000.\nThough Hill and Sodrel have run ads in many different markets and media outlets, Schansberg has focused more than half of his spending on more affordable radio ads.\n"TV is far too expensive," he said. "We were told we'd need to move into six figures before even thinking about TV."\nWhile both candidates will surpass the amount of money they have raised in their past meetings, their war chests are still in the middle of the road compared to other close Hoosier House races.\nThe Cook Political Report currently calls races in the 2nd and 8th districts "toss ups" as well.\nRep. Christopher Chocola, R-2nd, has received $2.7 million in campaign contributions, while his Democratic opponent, Joseph Donnelly, has raised $1.1 million.\nMeanwhile, in Indiana's "Bloody Eighth," known for its history of close elections, Rep. John Hostettler, R-8th, has only received $450,000 in campaign contributions. Democratic challenger Brad Ellsworth has received $1.4 million in campaign contributions.
(10/20/06 1:05am)
MARTINSVILLE — Defense attorneys in the murder trial of Ellettsville resident John R. Myers II attempted to deflect attention from their client Wednesday by portraying the victim, Jill Behrman, as a scared young woman who may have been pregnant and killed by a jealous lover.\nIn opening arguments Monday, defense attorney Patrick Baker claimed Behrman might have been involved with a married coworker at the Student Recreational Sports Center shortly before she disappeared while riding her bicycle May 31, 2000, outside Bloomington. Baker put forth the theory that the man — not Myers — might have had something to do with Behrman's death.\nBehrman was a 19-year-old IU sophomore when she vanished. Her bicycle was found two days later in a cornfield outside Ellettsville, but her remains were not discovered until March 2003 in a wooded area near Paragon, Ind., in rural Morgan County.\nWhile cross-examining Marilyn Behrman, Jill's mother, Baker questioned her about condoms, emergency contraceptive pills, a pregnancy test and books about pregnancy investigators found in her daughter's room days after her disappearance.\nMarilyn Behrman raised her voice several times during this line of questioning, but she otherwise did not show emotion. She said she was not aware of what exactly was in her daughter's room or why but said Jill had completed a human sexuality class her freshman year and the objects in question might be related to that.\nBaker went on to question her about her daughter's menstrual cycle and possible signs of morning sickness, but Marilyn Behrman said she did not believe her daughter showed any signs of pregnancy in the weeks leading up to her disappearance.\n"I think if she knew she was pregnant, I think she would tell me," Marilyn Behrman said.\nLater, prosecutors called to the stand IU alumna Becky Shoemake, Jill Behrman's cousin and freshman roommate.\nThis time Morgan County Prosecutor Steve Sonnega asked about Jill Behrman's love life, whether she was dating anyone, had men over to spend the night or was known to be "promiscuous."\nShoemake said Jill Behrman had gone on a few dates their freshman year but did not have much more information to offer about the murdered student's love life. She did say Jill Behrman had been asked out to lunch by an older man in the weeks leading up to May 31.\n"She was concerned because he was over 21 and she was not old enough to drink," Shoemake said. "She was not sure if she should go ... I don't know if they went out."\nThe final witness prosecutors called Wednesday was Wes Burton, Jill Behrman's supervisor at the SRSC. \nBurton said he did not know whether Jill Behrman had a relationship outside of work with her coworker. He also said that at the time Jill Behrman is thought to have disappeared, the man in question was helping him move an ice chest.\nMyers, 30, pleaded not guilty to Behrman's murder after being indicted by a Morgan County grand jury in April.\nThe trial is expected to last two to four weeks.
(10/18/06 4:48am)
Faculty members expressed concerns about the confidentiality surrounding the search for IU's next president Tuesday.\nSpeaking at the bi-weekly meeting of the Bloomington Faculty Council, law professor J. Alexander Tanford said keeping the names of possible candidates secret until the new president is announced keeps faculty members from learning important information about the University's next leader.\nHe said he only heard from colleagues about current IU President Adam Herbert's leadership style after he had already been named president and felt that information could have been important to the selection process.\n"We were concerned that information that comes from normal faculty to faculty communication was not getting to the search committee," Tanford said. "If the process remains closed, I urge the search committee to find ways in their closed to structure to facilitate that information." \nSeveral other faculty members and IU Student Associate Vice President Andrew Lauck echoed those sentiments.\nTrustee Sue Talbot, chair of the presidential search committee, said she sympathized with Tanford's comment, but it was also important to keep a certain level of confidentiality so that potential candidates would not jeopardize their current positions.\nTalbot encouraged faculty members to forward the names of possible candidates to her via e-mail and said there was still no target date for naming the next president.\n"Our current president has stated he will be here until 2008, and if it takes that long, it will last until 2008," she said.\nBFC President Ted Miller said he sent e-mails to members of the council asking what they would like to see from a new leader but received only "a handful and a half of responses."\nStill, he said, from those replies he gathered that faculty members are hoping for a president who understands the unique administrative structure of IU and one who will work more closely with the state.\n"A number of comments said this relationship is not what it needs to be, and the next president needs to work to improve this," Miller said.\nBrad Rateike, a spokesman for Gov. Mitch Daniels, said the governor is aware of the presidential searches at IU, Purdue University and Ivy Tech Community College. He has offered to help any way he can but is not directly involved in any of the searches.\n"He appointed the trustees," Rateike said. "That's enough."\nHerbert announced in June he would step down when his contract expires in 2008 or sooner if a replacement can be found. He came under heavy criticism from faculty last year after a lengthy chancellor search failed to name a candidate.\nThe BFC also discussed the first draft of a new policy on intellectual property. That 18-page document hopes to answer complicated questions about the ownership of patents and copyrights filed by faculty members.\nThe policy will be reviewed again next week at the University Faculty Council meeting, with a reading of the second draft scheduled for the Nov. 14 meeting.\nThe BFC will next meet Oct. 31.
(10/18/06 4:12am)
IU does not yet have a replacement for the Read Center McDonald's, Bob , a real estate manager for the hamburger giant, said Monday night.\nThe University would like to become a McDonald's franchise owner, but the company usually only allows individuals to run a franchise, according to an Oct. 13, 2005, Indiana Daily Student article. \nMcDonald's sent a "request for proposal" to IU several months ago, but that was not accepted, Lach said. \n"IU's conclusion was that it would not award based on a (request for proposal)," he said. "What that means is McDonald's is trying to figure it out. It means they will either renew McDonald's lease, which is what we're hoping, or they could run something themselves."\nLach, who graduated from IU-Purdue University Indianapolis in 1993 with a degree in general studies and was a SPEA student at Bloomington before that, came to campus Monday night to discuss the real estate aspects of McDonald's with the IU Real Estate Club.\nHe advised students to take a wide variety of classes and let employers know they possess a diverse array of skills. He also told the several dozen members of the club in attendance that mentoring is a good way to learn more about the real estate market.\n"There are always people in my field or plenty of other people always willing to tell people what it's like," he said.\nLach, who started working for McDonald's in 2004, said the company is a little different from others since people view the restaurant chain as a convenience rather than a destination. \n"People are driving along, and they see McDonald's and say, 'OK, I want to eat there,'" he said.\nThe company's strategy for success is to purchase property in developing areas that have the potential for long-term growth, he said. \nThis poses something of a problem because the restaurants are not always located on corner lots, which pharmacies and banks are willing to pay a premium for.\n"We can't buy prime corner property because we can't raise the price of hamburgers," Lach said. "We're not going to sell more hamburgers because of our location."\nAnother challenge facing the real estate side of the company is that many towns have passed ordinances requiring certain styles of architecture or landscaping, which has forced McDonald's to build several different types of restaurants.\nFreshman Andrew Braun, who is majoring in accounting finance said the presentation was useful.\n"Just analyzing how to acquire each site was interesting," he said. "It was more real-life than classroom work."\nSenior Dan Hum, president of the club, said corporate real estate is an important part of the market for students to consider.\n"Most people don't think of McDonald's as a real estate company, but they're the second largest in the country behind the (Catholic) Church," he said. "Companies like McDonald's offer an excellent opportunity to learn about real estate"
(10/18/06 3:29am)
Rep. Mike Sodrel, R-9th, expressed displeasure Tuesday with the influence outside groups are exerting on his closely contested race.\nSpeaking to the Bloomington Rotary Club, Sodrel slammed so-called 527 groups, tax-exempt organizations not affiliated with specific candidates that try to sway voters with their own ads.\n"I don't think they have any place in American politics," he said. "Whether they're for me or against me, I wish they would all go away. I don't like 527s."\nBoth Sodrel and his opponent, Democratic challenger Baron Hill, signed a clean campaign pledge in August, but that does not apply to 527 groups and other political action committees.\nThis week the Indiana Republican State Committee sent out mailings to Bloomington residents claiming "Democrats want to end programs that stop terrorists."\nAnother mailing turns a photo of Hill on its head and claims "Baron Hill will turn our values upside down."\nOther 527 groups have been accused of making automated phone calls in the district against both candidates, which led to lawsuits from Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter. Those lawsuits are still pending.\nThis is the third time Sodrel has faced Hill for the 9th District seat. Hill served as the district's representative from 1998 until 2004, when Sodrel defeated him by fewer than 1,500 votes.\nLibertarian candidate and IU-Southeast economics professor Eric Schansberg is also running for the seat.\nThe nonpartisan political Web site The Cook Political Report currently calls the race a "toss up."\nBecause the race is so close and control of Congress could go to either party, the ads being run by 527 groups are even more negative than usual, Sodrel said.\n"527s go out, and buy the ugliest, nastiest ads," he said. "And if they didn't work, people would stop \nusing them. That's part of the problem -- they work."\nJohn Vanderzee, a chaplain at Bloomington Hospital who attended the Rotary Club meeting and discussed the clean campaign pledge with Sodrel, also criticized the 527 ads.\n"Some of the ads, they've been borderline, but they certainly haven't gone as far as the ads from the Republican Party and the (political action \ncommittees)," he told the congressman.\nHill spoke to the Bloomington Rotary Club last week about ethics reform in Congress, as well as several other issues.
(10/17/06 11:33am)
MARTINSVILLE -- IU student Jill Behrman was killed by a 12-gauge shotgun blast to the back of the head, Morgan County Prosecutor Steve Sonnega told a jury on the first day of the high-profile murder trial Monday.\nSeveral media outlets, including Fox News, had reported that as the cause of death since Behrman's remains were recovered in March 2003, but this was the first time an official close to the case revealed the information publicly.\nBehrman, who was a 19-year-old IU sophomore at the time of her disappearance, went missing May 31, 2000, during a morning bike ride. Her bike was found two days later in a cornfield outside Ellettsville.\nEllettsville resident John R. Myers II, 30, is on trial for the murder. He has pleaded not guilty after being indicted by a Morgan County grand jury in April.\nProsecutors opened the trial by calling Tim Gentry, an Indianapolis Power & Light employee to the witness stand. Gentry and his son found Behrman's remains in a remote wooded area near Paragon, Ind., while hunting turkey in March 2003.\nGentry said the first thing he noticed was a jaw bone that appeared to be human, which lead him to retreat from the area and call the police.\nThe second and final witness for the day was Morgan County Coroner Dan Downing, who repeated Sonnega's claim that Behrman was killed by a gunshot wound to the back of the head and said Behrman's remains had to be identified through dental records.\nIn his opening arguments, Sonnega showed jurors a slide show of the events leading up to Myers' indictment, portraying the accused as upset over a recent breakup with his girlfriend at the time of Behrman's disappearance.\nSonnega told the court Myers made cryptic comments to his family members and co-workers about Behrman's death, worried that he would be blamed because her bike was discovered less than a mile from his house.\n"The evidence will show, ladies and gentleman, that May 31, 2000, John Myers, the defendant, showed up at his parents' house crying, in hysterics, ready to leave town," Sonnega said. "We will show evidence that he was paranoid."\nMyers, wearing a light blue dress shirt, black slacks and no tie, kept his eyes on the slide show during Sonnega's opening arguments, never looking at the prosecutor but occasionally conferring with lawyers.\nIn his opening remarks, defense attorney Patrick Baker said that phone records would prove Myers could not have killed Behrman.\n"This is an attempt to solve an unsolved crime with a grand finale," Baker said, motioning toward Myers. "That's not your grand finale. The state didn't talk about what they have to prove. They have to prove Johnny Myers knowingly killed Jill Behrman."\nBaker said there is no evidence or witness to tie Myers to the crime scene, and there are many other plausible theories for who killed Behrman.\nThe defense also said that a co-worker of Behrman's at the Student Recreational Sports Center at IU who was known to skeet shoot with a 12-gauge shotgun could have been responsible for her death.\nEarlier in the morning, Judge Christopher Burnham ruled in favor of a defense motion to preclude several of the prosecution's suppositions about Myers' state of mind and previous alleged criminal acts. \nIn arguing against the defense motions, Sonnega said he intends to show the jury that Myers led police on a game of cat and mouse before Behrman's body was discovered. Myers, Sonnega said, fed investigators small bits of information, including a map that Sonnega said would have led police on a path from Myers' Monroe County home to the place where Behrman's remains were later found in Morgan County.\nBurnham also denied a defense request to preclude the testimony of Myers' grandmother. Sonnega said she told police that Myers said: "If the authorities knew what I have done, I would go to prison for the rest of my life." \nMyers' trial is expected to last three to four weeks.\n-- Indiana Daily Student Editor in Chief Michael Zennie contributed to this report.
(10/12/06 6:18pm)
Two candidates with two different types of past experience in public life -- one at the state level, the other at the county level -- are vying for the state auditor's position.\nThe state auditor serves as the chief financial officer of Indiana and "has four primary duties, including accounting for all of the state's funds; overseeing and disbursing county, city, town, and school tax distributions; paying the state's bills; and paying the state's employees," according to current state auditor Connie Kay Nass' Web site.\nNass, a Republican, is not seeking re-\nTIM BERRY - REPUBLICAN\nRepublican Tim Berry has served as Indiana's state treasurer since 1998. \nDuring his tenure, Berry has seen the creation of the College Choice 529 investment plans. The plans, which go into effect in January, allow students and their families to set aside money in a tax-exempt account for a variety of college expenses.\n"You can put that money in and use it when you need it rather that be on books or room and board and the earnings you have on the college saving plan are now tax free," Berry said.\nThe treasurer said he has also made a point of helping college students avoid credit card debt.\n"The biggest problem area is the Midwest," he said. "The average credit card debt for college students is $3,500. The average college student will arrive on campus with one credit card and leave freshman year with four and graduate with nine."\nBerry says part of the reason Hoosiers have fallen into the traps of credit card debt is because the state, which posted its first balanced budget in eight years this past year, has set a bad example in the past. Berry hopes to avoid this trend in the future.\n"As auditor my primary goal is going to be to report to taxpayers how we're spending our money so we can better manage state government. If we are better able to manage state government, then we can free up dollars for other priorities that the legislature and administration might have, whether that be higher education, full-day kindergarten or other programs."
(10/11/06 4:21am)
Like most university lectures, Angelo Pizzo's began with a lengthy introduction with an academic lauding of the speaker's accomplishments Tuesday night.\nBut Pizzo, the screenwriter of the beloved 1986 movie "Hoosiers," about a small-town high school basketball team's journey to the state-title game, delivered a speech that wandered far off the path of the usual academic lecture.\n"Pizzo shows us how very unsimple these times were for men and women who wanted to make something of themselves," said Director of the Institute for Advanced Study Alfred Aman in his description of the film's 1950s setting.\nPizzo seemed unimpressed with his own work as he took the stage of the School of Fine Arts Auditorium to address more than 100 students and faculty members.\n"People who do creative things don't try to analyze their own work," he said. "I think you're in trouble if you do."\nAs part of the Branigan Lecture Series, Pizzo, who grew up in Bloomington and received a bachelor's degree in political science from IU in 1971, gave a speech titled "Running the Gauntlet: From the Movie in My Mind to the Movie on the Screen." Pizzo, who also wrote the screenplay for the 1993 movie, "Rudy," about Notre Dame football, described his writing process, which has earned him much acclaim ("Hoosiers" was recently ranked by USA Today as the greatest sports movie of all time) but has also cost him jobs in Hollywood.\nAfter graduating from IU, Pizzo studied film at the University of Southern California for three years and even wrote his master's thesis but dropped out when he was offered work on a sitcom.\n"I went to tell my counselor, and he said, 'I'll never see you again. This has happened too many times,'" Pizzo said. "I thought there's no way. I'll be back. I've done too much work. So I packed everything in a box, and I've never opened it since."\nPizzo said that during this period, he spent so much time analyzing films he wasn't able to fully enjoy them. He said he doesn't think screenwriting classes are necessary, as long as writers' work is about something they love.\nWhile writing "Hoosiers," Pizzo said he found himself unable to get past the first 15 pages of his screenplay. He had outlined the plot as he had told writers who worked under him in the past to do when a friend suggested another route.\n"Never look back," Pizzo said. "Never reread anything you've ever written. That way I don't have to second-guess myself."\nNow, he writes films starting with only the most basic premises.\n"I know where the movie is going to go," he said. "I know what the protagonist wants, but I don't know what's going to get in his way."\nAnother problem screenwriters face is that the movies they write are often changed by directors and producers into something completely different unless screenwriters are willing to take on those roles as well, Pizzo said.\nPizzo suggested that aspiring screenwriters write about what they know and avoid sticking to the traditional formula of three acts with rising and falling action.\n"I've seen so many screenplays that are written from the outside in," he said. "The structure is dropped in on the story rather than letting it grow organically. Good writers write from the inside out. They don't write from the head; they write from the gut."\nPizzo will be on-hand for a special presentation of his latest film "The Game of Their Lives" at 7 p.m. today in the Whittenberger Auditorium.
(10/11/06 2:52am)
Democratic hopeful for the 9th District Congressional seat Baron Hill spoke for the second time in as many days to a Bloomington audience Tuesday afternoon.\nAddressing members and guests of the Bloomington Rotary Club, Hill alluded to recent political scandals involving former Rep. Mark Foley, R-Fla., and lobbyist Jack Abramoff and said that if elected, he will work for ethics changes in the House to restore the public's faith in Congress.\n"The problem is that the ethics committee is made up of sitting members of Congress," he said. "They're reluctant to investigate their friends and colleagues, and they never get anything done." \nHill said he will work to abolish the committee and replace it with one made up of former members of Congress.\nHe also said the nation is in urgent need of health care reform, and the House needs to engage in discussion about whether affordable health care is a right or a privilege.\n"If we establish that it's a right, then we have to do something about it," Hill said. "Forty-five million Americans without health insurance is unacceptable."\nThe Democratic candidate again stated the need for energy independence by encouraging more research on biodiesel and clean coal technology. This will also help the environment, he said.\n"Anyone who believes man is not contributing to global warming is not being honest with the scientific facts," Hill said.\nFinally, Hill commented on the controversial No Child Left Behind Act, which he voted for in 2001 but now says makes schools too federally regulated.\n"I've never liked it, and I still don't," he said. "Given an up or down vote on it, I would vote it down. It sounds like a good instrument to punish schools." \nHill's wife Betty is a public school teacher.\nThis is the third time Hill has faced Rep. Mike Sodrel, in the closely watched House race. Hill served as the district's representative from 1998 until 2004 when Sodrel defeated him by fewer than 1,500 votes.\nLibertarian candidate and IU-Southeast economics professor Eric Schansberg is also running for the seat.\nSodrel will address the Rotary Club at their next weekly meeting Tuesday.
(10/10/06 4:27am)
Democratic challenger for the 9th District congressional seat Baron Hill met with the IU College Democrats Monday afternoon to stress the importance of voting in the closely watched race.\n"This is not just about Baron Hill any more," he said. "This is about getting the majority in the House and getting balances back in Congress. There's no checks and balances in Washington right now. It's all one-party rule."\nMuch like when Hill's opponent, Rep. Mike Sodrel, R-9th, met with supporters last week, the hot topic for those in attendance was the fallout from the resignation of Florida congressman Mark Foley. The six-term Republican resigned more than a week ago amid allegations he sent sexually explicit Internet messages to underage male pages.\nHill said he did not believe the allegations were politically motivated, but said they could help Democrats in next month's election because the Foley situation has the potential to turn away the most ardent conservative Christians of the Republican Party.\n"I think it's maybe going to keep them at home," he said.\nHill served as the 9th District's representative from 1998 until 2004 -- which includes the time period Foley allegedly sent the messages -- but said he did not know Foley and had not heard any rumors about inappropriate conduct on Foley's part.\nSodrel said Thursday he called for an FBI investigation into the matter after it came to light, but Hill has asked Sodrel to go even further and return any campaign contributions he has received from the Republican leadership this campaign cycle, which Sodrel has declined to do.\nHill also commented on the current situation with North Korea, which announced that it conducted a successful nuclear test Monday morning. \n"We've got to be involved, but part of the problem is we can't do it alone anymore," he said. "It's important to build relationships with international allies, and right now those relationships are not very good."\nStill, Hill said that if re-elected, he would want more information before voting for any new military action. Hill voted to authorize the war in Iraq in 2003 but now says the Bush administration lied to him about the urgency of the threat.\n"I (would) want it confirmed and confirmed and confirmed until I believe it, and that's the lesson I've learned from being lied to the last time," he said. "So I won't take anything at face value unless it's confirmed at least a couple times. It would have to be confirmed by someone other than the secretary of defense, (Donald) Rumsfeld. I would have to hear it from generals that I know that, in fact, what I've heard is true."\nHill said he now believes the Iraq vote was the worst decision of his three previous terms in Congress, he said. Rather than pulling out, however, he said he supports negotiation, using the withdrawal of American troops as incentive to force the Iraqi government to stabilize quicker.\n"The biggest mistake I made was the vote on the war resolution giving President Bush the authority to go to war," he said.\nThis is the third time Hill and Sodrel have faced off for the 9th District seat. Sodrel defeated Hill by fewer than 1,500 votes in 2004. \nLibertarian Eric Schansberg is also running.
(10/09/06 4:13am)
Rep. Mike Sodrel sat at a corner table with a handful of supporters at Smokin' Jack's Rib Shack, carefully picking at the half slab of sweet BBQ ribs before him.\nThe first-term congressman didn't get a drop of sauce on his pinstripe suit.\n"This is one of his favorite places to eat in Bloomington," Sodrel's Bloomington office manager Chris Crabtree said. "He made sure we stopped here."\nEven among the party faithful, the topic that came up again and again was Mark Foley. The six-term Florida congressman, a Republican, resigned last week amid allegations he sent sexually explicit Internet messages to underage male pages.\n"I didn't work with him. I didn't serve on any committees with him," Sodrel said. "There are 435 members of Congress ... I recognized his face on TV, and that's about the extent of how I knew him."\nSoon after the allegations came out, Sodrel said he contacted House Speaker Dennis Hastert, asking for an FBI investigation into the matter.\n"I want people to be comfortable that someone outside the House is conducting the investigation," Sodrel said. "I don't think people have any real level of confidence in the ability of the House to investigate itself. Look at their track record. The (House) ethics committee in the past two years has had a problem just organizing themselves, so they couldn't investigate any complaints."\nSodrel said he didn't think Hastert should resign, but his campaign was in negotiations to have the speaker stump for him next week, and those negotiations have now fallen through.\nBaron Hill, the Democratic challenger in the closely watched 9th District race, issued a press release Monday calling on Sodrel to return campaign money he received from the National Republican Congressional Committee, a group which itself received funding from Foley.\n"Here in Indiana, we judge people by what they do," Hill said in a statement. "Mike Sodrel cannot simply say that he denounces the actions of former Congressman Mark Foley. He must return the immoral money that he has received from Foley via the NRCC and those in Congress who worked to cover up a sexual predator."\nSodrel has declined to return the money.\n"My opponent would be happy if every Republican in the House of Representatives resigned and they sent all their contributions back, but it's not going to happen," he said.\nThis is the third time Hill and Sodrel have faced off for the 9th District seat. Hill served as the district's representative from 1998 until 2004 when Sodrel defeated him by fewer than 1,500 votes.\nLibertarian Eric Schansberg is also running for the seat.
(10/06/06 4:06am)
Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter has filed two lawsuits against groups placing automated calls to voters in the 9th District.\nAmerican Family Voices, Inc., a Washington, D.C.-based group that advocates "a strong voice for middle- and low-income families on economic, health care and consumer issues," according to its Web site, made automated phone calls attacking the record of Rep. Mike Sodrel, R-9th, Carter said.\nCarter sued the Economic Freedom Fund, a Sacramento, Calif., organization that works to "educate the public concerning issues related to the preservation of economic freedom, the promotion of economic growth and prosperity for the people of the United States of America," according to its Web site, for making similar automated phone calls about Sodrel's Democratic opponent, Baron Hill.\nAmerican Family Voices, Inc., might have also made automated calls in the 8th District about the race there, Carter said.\nThe suits accuse the groups of violating the 1988 Regulation of Automated Dialing Machines Act, a state statute that makes it illegal for companies to place automated calls unless the recipient agrees to receive the call beforehand.\nViolators can be fined up to $5,000 per infraction, Carter said.\nThe attorney general's office received six complaints about American Family Voices calls and seven about calls from the Economic Freedom Fund. Carter said his office is now investigating the exact number of calls made.\nAn injunction was issued in Brown County Monday that prevents the Economic Freedom Fund from making any more automated calls.\nNo injunction has been filed against American Family Voices, Inc., so it does not plan to cease automated phone calls, said Joe Sandler, a Washington, D.C., attorney for the group who also works the Democratic National Committee.\n"This is a law we don't believe is enforceable," Sandler said. "It's pre-empted by federal law, and it's never been enforced for political calls until the last couple weeks."\nJames Bopp, a Terre Haute attorney representing the Economic Freedom Fund, said he did not think the group had done anything to break the law.\n"When making the calls, we thought it was legal," he said. "We relied on our vendor with respect to that."\nThe fund has not revealed who its vendor was.\nCarter would not say if there were other complaints under investigation in regards to calls both groups made in other Indiana districts but said he "wouldn't rule it out."\nHe also said he wants to make the public aware that none of the calls appear to be tied to either political campaign.\n"We don't have any evidence that any campaigns or political parties are involved in this," Carter said. "It's easy to assume that if a call is made, the other political party is responsible, but we don't make that assumption."\nSodrel spokesman Cam Savage said he only found out about the calls attacking Hill when he read about them in a newspaper. He also said Sodrel has been a victim of such attack calls since he took office after winning the seat from Hill in 2004.\n"For about a year and a half, these liberal 527 groups have made phone calls attacking us," Savage said.\nHill spokeswoman Melanie Morris also said members of that campaign were not aware of the calls until they made the news.\n"Back in August, (Hill) denounced all automated calls, whether they attacked us or our opponent," she said.\nThis election is the third time Hill and Sodrel have vied for the closely watched 9th District seat. Hill served as the district's representative from 1998 until 2004 when he lost the seat to Sodrel by fewer than 1,500 votes.\nLibertarian Eric Schansberg, an economics professor at IU-Southeast, is also running for the seat.
(10/05/06 4:18am)
The Bloomington Faculty Council approved sweeping new general education requirements for IU students Wednesday.\nThe requirements include "common ground" courses that all students will be required to take regardless of major and "shared goals," which will be made part of current coursework.\n"Common ground" courses include three credits in English composition, three to four credits of mathematical modeling, six credits of arts and humanities, six credits of social and historical studies and five to six credits of natural and mathematical sciences. There is also a requirement that students complete the second-year level of a world language, six credits in world culture or an approved study-abroad experience, according to a press release. \n"This recognizes that over the years it can create a problem when students start off in one direction and go in another later only to find their previous coursework doesn't fit," BFC President Ted Miller said. \nIt's unclear if this will increase or decrease the general education requirements of most degrees, Miller said. In addition, departments are free to add their own requirements.\nIU President Adam Herbert, who has lobbied for such changes since he took office in 2003, applauded the new requirements in a statement Wednesday.\n"I am very proud of our faculty," Herbert said. "These new standards will serve the Bloomington campus well. The quality, depth and breadth of this general education curriculum will become a major student recruitment tool. It will foster the intellectual growth and development of our students. It also will facilitate transferability and better accommodate changes in academic majors."\nThe goal of the new requirements is to ensure students are better educated about more subjects and thus better prepared for their future careers, said IU Director of Media Relations Larry MacIntyre. \n"This relates to seeing IU graduates fully grounded in the basics and to ensure graduates are intellectually well-rounded," he said.\nThe requirements will also enhance the attractiveness of an IU degree, he said.\n"This is not based on what students want, this is based on ensuring the value of an IU degree remains high in future years," \nMacIntyre said.\nThe new general education requirements will go into effect with the incoming class of 2011, which will also be the first class subjected to stricter admissions standards, also passed recently by the board of trustees.
(10/05/06 2:32am)
A building that has served several Christian denominations during the past few decades will be auctioned off to the highest bidder this November. The Center for University Ministry, located at 1415 E. Third St., will be sold after ceasing its operations late last year because of a decline in student interest.\nThose involved with the center hope it still has a future in serving the faithful.\nThe building could be renovated as a new ministry center that also houses students -- a growing trend on many college campuses.\n"Our hope is that, depending on the buyer, we could build a student residence and be an interfaith campus ministry program," said John Vanderzee, a chaplain at Bloomington Hospital and president of the center's board of directors. "Income from rent would then pay for the program." \nSeveral individuals have shown interest in such a proposal, but Vanderzee said nothing was set in stone yet, and he could not reveal any details.\nOne group which specializes in such plans, Partners Student Center Associates, conducted a study to discover the feasibility of such a project. The report found building a residence there could help rejuvenate the center, except city zoning does not allow it.\n"It's on a block where the zoning shifts into lower density, so in that context an argument could probably be made for the student residence project," said Charlie Oewel, co-director of Partners Student Center Associates.\nAnother possibility is the University could bid on the building, which is located directly across the street from University Apartments. IU regularly purchases adjacent property.\n"The University, at one point, was interested in purchasing it or perhaps (making) a leasing arrangement at one point," said Randy Baer, co-director of Partners Student Center Associates. "They may still bid on it."\nLynn Coyne, assistant vice president for real estate and economic development at IU, was out of town and unavailable for comment.\nThe building's owners, Presbyterian Synod of Lincoln Trails, decided to sell the property because of other priorities, Vanderzee said. The 1.36-acre lot will be auctioned off Nov. 10.