Faculty hold closed forum on salary issues
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Michelle Oltman
Staff Writer
Faculty Award presented at Convocation
With summer around the corner, freedom
and fun aren’t the only things on students’
minds. There also will be plenty of fam-
ily time as students head home for the
summer. For members of HateBusters,
however, reunion times mean more than
picnic foods and multi-generational photos. HateBusters, an orga-
nization devoted to fighting bigotry and ignorance, will celebrate
its annual Human Family Reunion April 24 on campus. On Page
5, find out which members of this “family” will be honored for their
commitment to eradicating hate.
HateBusters sponsors Human Family Reunion, Page 5
Fighting Fear
While William Jewell College
students are used to hearing about
supernatural experiences on cam-
pus—such as meetings with Mona
the ghost in Brown Hall—one
College first-year makes his own
magic happen. Jason Steenstry, an
amateur magician, competed at a
regional magic show recently, prov-
ing his talents go beyond entertaining first-year men in Eaton
Hall. On Page 6, discover some of the many tricks Steenstr y
has hidden up his sleeve.
College magician competes at regional show, Page 6
Talented Trickster
Phi Gamma Delta begins disciplinary process, Page 6
Party Foul
After controversy follow-
ing an on-campus party
sponsored by Phi Gamma
Delta, the William Jewell
chapter of the fraternity
has begun the disciplinary
process. The party, which
occurred during FIJI Is-
land three weeks ago,
caused many members of the College community to question
the f raternity’s decisions. On Page 6, read about the members’
early disciplinary discussions and how the fraternity hopes to
move beyond the incident.
On the Inside
Friday, April 20, 2007
Volume 21 Issue 24
www.thehilltopmonitor.com
After defeating eight teams at their home
meet, the William Jewell College men’s
and women’s track teams are gearing up
for their final competitions of the semester.
The team already has a number of national
qualifiers, and numerous individuals and
relay teams are hoping to qualify for the
national tournament in California at upcoming
meets. On Page 8, learn which team members already are
preparing to compete for championships and which athletes
hope to join their peers at the national tourney.
Track team looks to set College records, Page 8
Picking up the Pace
Emily Wales
Editor-in-chief
William Jewell College’s Award-Winning Student Newspaper
For some members of William
Jewell College ’s faculty, payment for
faculty contributions is long overdue.
Faculty members met Monday
for a forum devoted to addressing
“resource allocation” issues, which
involves faculty salaries, merit pay and
departmental funds. After opening
the meeting, chairman of Faculty
Council Dr. Gary Armstrong noted
the sensitivity of the topic. Members
briefly discussed the issue of privacy,
and Monitor staff was asked to leave
the forum.
In a later inter view, Armstrong
said that Dr. John Westlie, vice
president for Academic Affairs and
dean of the College, made brief
comments about the importance of
allocation issues. Westlie then left the
room with Dr. David Sallee, president
of the College, and Dr. Anne Dema,
chief of staff to the President, so that
faculty members would be able to
express their concerns openly.
According to Armstrong, a
histor y of disagreement about
salaries and resources led up to
Monday’s discussion. “Increases
this year were—I think—2 percent
across the board, and the increase
across the pool for salaries was even
greater,” Armstrong said, noting
that the inflation index during the
same period was 3.5 percent. As
the College’s administration works
toward completion of the Strategic
Plan, the goal of “competitive
faculty salaries” has resulted in many
questions, according to Armstrong.
“ The administration says ‘ We want
to get more resources for our faculty.
We know there are not enough.’ But
they’re not comfortable committing
to an empirical goal at this point,”
Armstrong said. “ We want to
significantly increase resources. That’s
obvious. If we do that, though, what
will those resources go to—new
faculty, increased salaries, merit pay
or better programming resources?”
Monday’s forum, in Armstrong’s
opinion, was the beginning of a long
discussion. “ We have not had a good
conversation about this discussion as
a College in a long time, and a lot
of frustration has built up,” he said,
noting that this meeting provided a
chance for faculty members to “release
frustrations.”
“As I listened to my colleagues
[Monday], many people were
concerned that there have been years
of faculty raises that are below the
inflation index or don’t happen at all,”
Armstrong said. The second major
complaint that Armstrong observed
was the belief that “a culture of
secrecy has developed about salaries,
contracts and resources.” Although
not all faculty members agree, “some
of my colleagues believe it’s time to
publish salaries,” Armstrong said.
“A few years ago, department
chairs were given data for every
academic department. I’m sure it
provoked some jealousy…but at least
people felt that they knew what other
departments were receiving,” he said.
Armstrong said chairs also received
information about the salaries of
department members. All faculty
members also had more information
about average salaries at the College.
“Contract letters, which include
offers for a particular salary, used to
be given out to faculty members with
a range of what people were earning
at each academic rank. None of that
information is distributed anymore.”
For Armstrong, the solution to
a sense of unnecessary secrecy is
obvious. “It’s possible to fix that now
by going back to what we used to do,”
he said. Although faculty members’
“memories are different” about when
these changes occurred, Armstrong
Stor y continued on Page 4
Colloquium celebrates
undergraduate research
Danielle Mills
Associate Editor
Every year a committee of faculty
members picks an outstanding senior
to receive the Faculty Award. Emily
Wales was named this year’s Faculty
Award recipient last night at Honor’s
Convocation. Wales competed
with an impressive list of five other
finalists: Jenilee Morrison, Erin
Thess, Joel Bryce, Amanda Flanigan
and Elizabeth Hall.
Morrison, an Oxbridge molecular
biology and bioethics major, is excited
to continue to graduate school at
Indiana University after graduation.
She enjoyed the benefits that come
with attending a small college. “ You
get to know your professors. I’ve
gotten a lot of research experience
and they can really help me with
that,” said Morrison.
Thess, a communication and
Spanish major, also will receive
certification in American Humanics.
“My biggest contribution [to the
community] was involvement in the
American Humanics program. It’s a
fairly new program, but in the last few
years, we’ve worked hard to market it
and make it a legitimate program. It’s
been one of the best experiences of
my Jewell career,” she said.
Bryce is an economics and business
major with an emphasis in banking and
finance. Bryce believes the best part
about the College is “the willingness
of professors to take students on and
invite them into outside projects and
build relationships with students.”
Flanigan is a nursing major who
will be working as a registered nurse
at Children’s Mercy after graduation.
“Being involved in Student
Affairs and being an RA [are my
biggest contributions to the Jewell
community]. I feel like it has given
me an opportunity to mentor and
guide students,” said Flanigan.
Hall, a Spanish and education
major, was awarded a Fulbright and
will go to Uruguay for eight months.
“It’s an honor to be selected and go
through the process. The other five
are great people and I’m honored
to be in their company through the
process,” she said.
Wales is a communication, political
science and Spanish major. “For me
the best part had to do with getting
involved in organizations. I think I’ve
had a great academic experience, but
I’ve been most challenged by my work
with the Monitor,” she said.
Finalists for the Faculty Award pose after Convocation. Shown left to right are Amanda Flanigan, Eliz abeth Hall,
Jenilee Morrison, Joel Bryce, Erin Thess and Emily Wales. Wales was this year’s recipient. Kyle Rivas / Hilltop Monitor
Michelle Oltman can be reached at
oltmanm@william.jewell.edu.
Rather than attending classes
yesterday, students and faculty had
the unique opportunity to attend the
seventh annual David Nelson Duke
Undergraduate Colloquium.
“ This is a day to celebrate work
students do campus-wide, not just
department-wide, to allow students
to present their work,” Dr. Maggie
Brewer, assistant professor of physics
and Colloquium committee member,
said. “It allows other students to
know what can be done and what
scholarship is like in those fields.”
Students across academic
disciplines delivered presentations
about individual areas of study. “I
see this day as a celebration of what
students are doing on campus,” Dr.
Ray Owens, professor of psychology
and Colloquium committee co-
chair, said. “Although we are a small
college, we separate into groups of
particular interest. This is a day to
share what we have been doing with
the College community.”
Psychology students exhibited
research in poster displays in the
Union. “I really feel that students
benefit a great deal by knowing a
subject well enough to present it,”
Owens said.
Students also were honored for
individual achievements during
Honors’ Convocation. Academic
departments presented awards to
deserving students.
The David Nelson Duke
Undergraduate Colloquium named
to honor the memor y of the late
Dr. David Nelson Duke, former
member of the William Jewell
College religion department. “ There
was nothing better than to create a
day to celebrate the life of the mind.
That was what David was all about,”
Owens said.
In order to participate in
Colloquium, students were required
to submit applications and abstracts
to be reviewed by the Colloquium
committee. “ We had a couple less
slots this year than last year, but the
presentation quality is going to be
great this year,” Owens said. “People
are doing some exciting things.”
Danielle Mills can be reached at
millse@william.jewell.edu.
pg_0002
The Hilltop Monitor
Friday, April 20, 2007 • Volume 21 • Issue 24
Copyright © 2007. All Rights Reserved
The Hilltop Monitor is published by the students of William Jewell
College, Liberty, Mo. Subscriptions are available for $30.00 per year.
Entered as First Class matter Sept. 27, 1911, in the post office of
Liberty, Mo. 64068, under the act of March 3, 1880. Editorial
comment does not necessarily reflect the views and policies of
the College.
Editorial staff:
Emily Wales, Editor-in-Chief
Danielle Mills, Associate Editor
Vicky Hill, Assignment Editor
Andy Kirk, Entertainment Editor
Erin Thess, Business Manager
Kyle Rivas, Photo Editor
Jennifer McKnight, Distribution Editor
Jonathan Entzminger, Sports Editor
Rebekah Bouas, Copy Editor
Staff writers and photographers:
Ashley Billinger, Lindsey Blundell, Kristina Brase, Amanda Brasher,
Chris Carr, Lacey Crough, Mark Davis, Naphtali Faris, Stephanie
Gonzales, Josh Hastey, Emily Hyder, Amanda Joiner, Amanda
King, Andy Kirk, Jesus Lopez, Joy Mason, Michelle Oltman, Cattie
Price, Ajanta Raman, Aimee Smolczyk, Trisha Stan, Alison Ward,
Nathan Weinert
Contact The Hilltop Monitor
Letters to the editor, story suggestions, ad inquiries, subscription re-
quests, or other correspondence can be sent to the following addresses:
e-mail: monitor@william.jewell.edu
phone: (816) 781-7700, ext. 5426
mail: WJC Box 1016, 500 College Hill, Liberty, MO 64068
website: http://www.thehilltopmonitor.com
SPEAK O
U
T
Emily Wales
Editor-in-Chief
O
pin
ion
HM
2
www.thehilltopmonitor.com
Friday, April 20, 2007
. . . from the staff
Stephanie Gonzales
Staff Writer
B
ursting the Bubble
Danielle Mills
Associate Editor
Second Thoughts
First Place Awards
Editorial writing: Nathan Weinert “Bursting the
Bubble”
In-Depth repor ting: Emily Wales, Nathan Weinert,
Danielle Mills “Nebraska WesSalleean?” and
“Institutions in the Balance”
Sports Writing: Julia Nurse “Age knows no boundaries”
Enter tainment review: Andy Kirk “V for Vendetta”
Second Place Awards
Newswriting: Emily Wales “Sallee to remain at Jewell”
Sports Photography: Kyle Rivas “Shootout”
The Hilltop Monitor was awarded 15 certificates of
merit at the Missouri College Media Association
conference April 14.
This weekend Emily Wales, Dr. Lois Anne Harris and
I traveled to the Missouri College Media Association
conference. Earlier in the semester, Emily and I sent off
a number of Monitor articles, columns, photographs and
cartoons to be judged, and we hoped we would earn at
least one award. At the awards banquet Saturday night,
we received not one, but 15.
Also on Saturday, we had the opportunity to view
displays of entries sent in from across the state, as well
as our own. It was a little bit like a treasure hunt looking
for the pieces of our paper among all the others, and to
remember all the all the time we had spent working on
those issues. And then we found our cartoons, including
one that unfortunately is still true today.
Last year, around the time the FIJIs were in trouble for
illegal items found in their house, we ran a cartoon with
the caption, “Self-governance means never having to say
you’re sorry.” Given the lack of public (Greek) response
to the FIJI’s latest bad call, our observance from last year
is ringing true.
During the fallout caused by the front page Monitor
story, I heard f rom a number of Greeks that something
needed to be done to show explicitly that FIJI actions
were not acceptable to the William Jewell College
community, especially not to the Greek community. Well,
it is three weeks later and nothing has happened. It seems
as though with Greek self-governance– assumed to be
found in the Greek Judicial Council, Panhellenic and
IFC–something should have been done already. Alright
Greeks, whatcha gonna do? If Greek students, or any
student for that matter, are really as appalled by the
situation as they claim to be, there should have been an
immediate response from the community condemning
the actions of the FIJI’s. Instead, it has been three weeks
with no action.
The Greek Judicial system was created to make
needed, official responses to these sorts of issues, making
members of the system accountable for their actions.
Obviously, if the Greek Judicial Council is reluctant
to act formally and publicly, there is not much of an
incentive to abide by the rules. There have been rumors
of actions to be taken by the Greek Judicial Council, but
when will those be announced? These decisions need to
be made publicly so the entire College community can
rest assured that individual Greek organizations that do
not abide by the rules are punished just like any other
student or student organization would be. Anything less
is doing a disservice to members of the College who were
not involved in the latest FIJI situation but must still
contend with the stigma of attending a College where
activities like this take place and students are allowed to
get away with it.
In my three years at Jewell, I’ve seen and heard a
lot about Greek pride. Well, Greeks, it’s time for you
to take pride in your organizations and hold the system
accountable. Self-governance only works if you use it.
Third Place Awards
Investigative reporting: Nathan Weinert “Health
Department official confirms mold, poor air quality in
Marston, Brown”
In-Depth repor ting: Nathan Weinert “College to
pull plug on KWJC”
Page one design: “ Nebraska WesSalleean?”
Spor ts photography: Kyle Rivas “Men’s basketball”
Honorable Mention Awards
Spor ts writing: Julia Nurse “Hornback wins 200th
game”
Regular column: Andy Kirk “ Talk to the Andy”
Feature page design: “Institutions in the Balance”
Editorial/Op-Ed page design
News photography: Kyle Rivas “First-year
enrollment”
I have two weeks left at William Jewell College. Hmm. Weird.
As corny as it sounds, the College really has become my home for the
past two years, and I think that I will be lost for a while after leaving.
I would like to take this time to reflect what Jewell has taught me. Or
rather, what its people have taught me. To clear up any confusion, I
am not graduating, but transferring due to different reasons, mainly
financial ones.
I came here not knowing a single person, but I’m leaving with many
friends, who have been influential because they challenged me to step
out of my comfort zone and seek God. They supported me when I was
going through some rough times and showed me what true community
means. If I happen to be at Je well every weekend next year, this is why.
But my close group of friends are not the only ones who deserve
recognition. With only one exception, I genuinely have felt that all
my professors took a personal interest in my academic success. I am
admittedly not the most responsible student in the world, but several
times, I received grace from professors when I accidently slept through
a quiz or forgot to finish an assignment. However, they also encouraged
me several times to do better and told me that this is what was expected.
It worked into a nice balance, and I began to develop better skills for
learning.
What is also amazing to me is that Jewell’s support staff also cared so
much about me. Countless times I was asked by custodians and cafeteria
staff about my day. Becky Gerken, the cafeteria baker, learned my name
just by reading my card and always strikes up pleasant conversations.
While living in Ely, I was able to spill my problems to and get hugs
from Desi Gray, our custodian. When my car broke down, campus
security and maintenance figured out that my battery cables were loose
and proceeded to tighten them.
As any liberal arts education should do, my time at Je well also gave
me the opportunity to come in contact with people different than me.
Again, I know it’s corny, but this has taught me a lot about myself.
I came to college as a conser vative Christian from Western Kansas.
While I still claim to be a conservative Christian, I now know why I
believe certain things I do, and I am now able to recognize the certain
biases I have because of where I was raised and am able to examine
whether or not those still hold true for me.
So despite recognizing some visible flaws I see on this campus, I
confidently can say that I will reflect on at my time here with good
memories and an appreciation for how the community works together.
Usually, when I get kicked out of something, it’s because
I’ve done something wrong. When I was demoted from
my job as the narrator for Stone Soup in second grade, it
was because I refused to use the script, preferring to make
up my lines. When I was let go from my job as a store
clerk, it was because I gave my boss a piece of my mind
about her (lack of ) parenting skills.
This week, I was booted from the faculty forum on
salaries, and as far as I can tell, this one wasn’t my fault.
When article topics get touchy, it ’s not unusual for
people being interviewed to hesitate to go on the record.
With controversies this year in the Greek system and at
the administrative level, I’ve had more than my fair share
of conversations about what’s okay to print and what’s
personal. You can understand my frustration, then, when
faculty members think their discussions would be better
with me out of the way. (You can put it in nicer terms, but
walking out of the room in front of 70 College faculty
members feels about as comfortable as tripping down the
stairs in the Union. Awkward.)
For the first time this year, I’m openly disappointed
with the quality of a front page news story. Of course,
there are mistakes about which we obsess and stories we
wish we could improve upon, but in general the staff of the
Monitor prides itself on providing fair, accurate coverage
of the news that occurs on campus. I couldn’t help but feel
as though we weren’t given the opportunity to provide
that ser vice to the College community this week because
follow-up inter vie ws and casual descriptions of Monday’s
meeting don’t do this story justice.
Let me provide some background. Monday’s meeting
was intended as a forum for faculty members to discuss
some difficult issues about salaries. With College salary
increases hovering between 0-2 percent in the last five
years and national averages at 4 percent each year, it’s
no surprise people have strong opinions. Despite an
increasingly stable financial position, William Jewell
still is recovering from years of unfortunate investments
and insecurity. We lost the Missouri Baptist cash, had
a tornado and can’t seem to get prospective students
interested in what we offer. Times are tough. But then
again, aren’t they always?
This latest feeling of discontentment isn’t really all that
novel. College faculty members have heard for years that
improvements are coming down the pike, and better times
are around the corner. With limited information coming
to faculty members about how the College currently
allocates funds and will prioritize those commitments
with the Strategic Plan, I’d say our faculty has plenty of
cause for concern. (Disclaimer: Much of this is based
on the minimal information released to students and on
speculation because, as you may now know, I wasn’t at the
meeting Monday.)
I want to make clear, of course, that I do not take
this criticism lightly. I certainly understand that, in
William Jewell’s not-so-distant past, faculty members
had a legitimate fear of repercussions by speaking out
against administration policies. Although I appreciate
their concerns, I believe it’s important to realize there
can be middle ground. Working with the student press
in a productive way can be beneficial to both groups.
My productive and open interview with Dr. Gary
Armstrong, chairman of Faculty Council, was a start,
but we could do better.
Here’s what I wish I had been able to say in my column
this week: I’m backing the faculty. They deserve more
money. They shouldn’t have to wait until the Chronicle
of Higher Education is released to discover what College
employees are earning.
I completely support their efforts for increased
transparency, but I think they should be the first campus
constituency to begin that trend. At some point, faculty
members need to learn to trust College newspaper staff
to be thoughtful in their coverage of delicate issues.
Off the record, many faculty members are more than
willing to throw out suggestions for the newspaper,
particularly when they can benefit from the exposure
of some campus issue. “Cover this” and “Make sure the
administration hears about that” are statements I’ve
heard numerous times during my two years as editor-in-
chief of the Monitor. I’m supportive of faculty members’
rights to discuss these issues in confidence. The problem
of course, is that you can’t have it both ways. You can’t
tell me you need me to take a risk for you and then get
cold feet when the threat of a student reporter is too
great to chance.
It seems almost counterintuitive to write that the
administration has one-upped the faculty in my book this
year. When two other Monitor editors and I were present
at Dr. David Sallee’s interview at Nebraska Wesleyan in
November, Sallee didn’t hesitate to acknowledge that our
presence was justified. Although caught off guard and
obviously concerned with what might appear in print
soon after, Sallee didn’t ask that we leave, and the option
certainly was available to him.
Sallee understood that the short-term risks of having
Monitor staff cover his interview didn’t outweigh the
long-term benefits of open reporting. In my opinion,
that’s a lesson all members of the College community
need to learn.
pg_0003
Perspectives
H
M
3
Volume 21 Issue 24
www.thehilltopmonitor.com
Nathan Weinert is studying in
Hong Kong. He can be reached at
weinertn@william.jewell.edu.
Nathan Weinert
eading the ea eaves
R
T
L
When I was enrolling in classes
before coming to Hong Kong, I
decided to take a Mandarin class
because I thought it would be a
shame if I came to China (Hong
Kong, at least) and didn’t learn
some Chinese (even if it wasn’t
the local dialect). I’d pulled down
good grades in my college foreign
language classes and had convinced
myself that I could do well in
foreign language classes.
Big mistake. I should have
remembered that there’s a reason
that despite taking five different
Spanish classes in high school and
college I’ve never advanced past the
equivalent of Spanish II. I’m not
particularly talented when it comes
to foreign language. Unfortunately,
by the time I remembered this, the
add/drop period had passed and
I was stuck. GPA, I apologize—
again.
Really, there are only a few things
that make Mandarin particularly
difficult, but that’s like saying there
are only a few reasons why Don
Imus should have been fired. The
first, second, third and fourth of
these things is that Mandarin is a
tonal language. In English, the tone
you use on a word rarely matters.
In Mandarin, there are four tones,
and the tone you use can make the
difference between asking “How
much for the dumplings?” and
“How much for the night?”
In other ways, the class resembles
every other foreign language
class I’ve e ver taken. Earlier this
semester we gave a presentation
on what our parents’ occupations
were. The professor gave us a list of
occupations that included president
of a country, senator and party
central committee member (thanks
to a student from Russia years ago
whose father was a member of the
Russian Senate). For the assignment
I was going to tell the class that
my mild-mannered parents were
actually a spy and an astronaut, but
those professions weren’t listed and
I realized I couldn’t keep a straight
face while doing that.
My Mandarin professor is more
than a bit crazy—prim and proper
with a somewhat erratic teaching
style and a grading system that
makes me cringe. She taught the
class how to say “damn it” one
day, but ran into trouble while
tr ying to define that to students
who spoke English as a second or
third language and were
learning Mandarin as yet
another language. The
Americans in the class
were called on to try to
explain what it meant
and quickly discovered
that the easiest way to
define profanity is often
with more profanity.
She participates in tai chi
sword competitions (yet another
example of her secret sadistic side)
and, after winning one, brought
candy for the class. I think it was a
bribe to make up for the fact that
her teaching style makes very little
sense to some (most) of us. Her
approach to the material is less
than systematic, and as our class
is reaching the end of the book
I’ve been amazed at the number
of times I’ve thought “Wow, we
learned this two months ago and it
would have made a lot more sense
to learn that now.”
Our book is home to some of
the worst example dialogues ever.
Particularly amusing was this
dialogue, where a guy uses Chinese
zodiac signs and a rabbit to ask a
girl if she likes him. In deference
to local custom concerning the
ignoring of copyright law (but,
hey, the entire second season of
The Office for $6!), I’m copying the
section verbatim in its entirety:
Li Wenlong: (Giving a bundle of
flowers to Fang Xueqin) Happy
Birthday!
Fang: Thank you!
Li: (Bringing out a rabbit from
behind him) Here you are. A new
friend for you.
Fang: How lovely it is!
Li: What pet do you like best?
Fang: I was born in the year of
rabbit. Of course I like the rabbit
best.
Li: Do you like dragon?
Fang: (Feeling shy) You may ask
the rabbit.
Li: Bunny, do you like dragon?
Listen, it said: “Yes!”
Fang: (Feeling shyer) I didn’t
hear.
Book’s Note: Li Wenlong
chose a rabbit as a birthday present
for Fang Xueqin, because she was
born in the year of rabbit and she
naturally likes the rabbit best. Liu
took this opportunity to ask Fang
whether she liked the dragon. What
he really means is to tr y to find out
whether she likes him, because
he has in his name the character
long, which is a legendar y animal
symbolizing happiness and one
of the 12 zodiac animals.
(China
Panorama, Language and Culture
Press, 2001. p. 193-96.)
My note: HAHAHAHAHA
Our professor explained the
dialogue as being an example of
how Chinese people don’t like to
address things like that directly.
If the nation as a whole is that,
then China is well on its way to
being the most socially awkward
superpower ever, and summits of
Chinese and American leaders will
probably resemble this:
American official: Your country
should allow increased religious
freedom in your country.
Chinese official: (bringing out
rabbit from behind him) Do you
like rabbit?
American official: Uh, what?
Chinese official: Let ’s ask the
rabbit. Bunny, should we allow
increased religious f reedom in our
country? Bunny says no chance,
and we’re going to issue our own
report on American human rights
violations and start militarizing
space.
American official: (leaves table)
If China’s in trouble in the
future, my grade in the class is
in trouble in the present. I’m just
hoping that after this class likely
torpedoes my GPA I can staple
pictures of me at the Great Wall
to my transcript. Maybe grad
schools will find “I visited the
Great Wall—and it snowed!” to be
more compelling than whatever I
manage to earn in Mandarin.
SUMMER HOUSING 2007
Summer housing applications are online: www.jewell.edu. Click on Campus Life - Student Affairs – Resi-
dence Life – Summer Housing to download the summer housing application. Bring completed application to
Student Affairs, office hours are 8 to 5, Monday thru Friday.
Housing for William Jewell students will be provided this summer from Saturday, June 2, 2007
through Sunday, July 29, 2007 in Melrose Hall.
The cost will be $400 per four-week session, payable in advance ( June 1) to the Business Office. A $55.00
room damage deposit will be required and payable at signing of application/contract, in order for you to reserve
a room for the summer. Housing assignments will not be made until your deposit is received. Housing applica-
tions are due by April 20th.
In addition, if you move-in prior to the beginning of summer school ( June 4), the cost
will be pro-rated at $100 for that week.
It is important for you to realize that all residence hall policies remain in effect during
the summer months, and you will be expected to abide by these.
A kitchen facility is available in Melrose; you may furnish your own meals. Dining Services
will not be offering a summer meal plan.
Residence halls will open at 2 p.m., Saturday, June 2, 2007 and must be vacated no
later than 12 p.m. on Sunday, July 29, 2007.
Dear Editor,
This morning I woke up and started my early morning ritual here in
Ireland. This includes getting some breakfast and sitting down to the
computer to check my email and the BBC News website. I was alarmed
to see a headline that shouted something like “Over 30 Dead in Virginia.”
What!? First of all, how did I not hear about this yesterday? I am an ocean
away because I’m studying in Dublin this semester, but this was big news.
After reading a quote about how America has “a histor y of school shootings”
and after seeing a series of gruesome pictures, I utter a few audible sighs and
thought to myself, “Another school shooting? How is this possible?”
I pondered this story on my long walk to college. When I arrived, I talked
to my Irish friends Rob and Aoife about V irginia Tech. The first thing out
of Rob’s mouth was “ Why do they let people own guns in America? I can’t
believe that it’s in your constitution that you can own a gun.” Whoa Rob, I
thought! Couldn’t you express some sympathy for the 33 people that died
before you start judging my country? And then I thought, wait, he has a
really good point.
When I got home from class, I decided to do a little research. I wanted
to see the difference between the crime rate in America and the crime rate
in Ireland. Even though the shooting happened in Virginia, I wanted to
check out KC’s stats, because I figured they might ring more true with Jewell
students. According to Kansas City, MO’s Commission on Violent Crime
Final Report for 2005, there were 127 homicides in Kansas City in 2005,
and 119 of those were carried out by using a firearms (with handguns being
used in the majority of these fatalities). In all of Ireland in 2005, there were a
total of 54 murders. Irish authorities were very troubled because this number
was up 46% f rom the previous year’s 37 murders. For fairness I thought
I should compare population sizes for these two locations. In 2005, there
were an estimated 445,000 people in the KC area. In Ireland, there were
approximately 4,000,000 people in 2005.
If you are like me, you’ll see a huge difference in these numbers. One
hundred and twenty-seven homicides in a city with 445,000 people compared
to 54 homicides in a country with 4 million people? Gun violence seems out
of control in the states! So why is Ireland so different from KC and other
major US cities? It’s simple: they have laws against owning guns. The only
way you can obtain a gun in Ireland is by going through the superintendent
of the Garda (the Irish police) and asking permission. Basically, you will only
ever get a gun if you “deer stalk” (hunt), if you target shoot, or if you live on a
farm and need to shoot off perpetrating wildlife. In fact, not even the Garda
carry guns. How interesting!
So what’s my point with all of this research? Well, I feel that the VTech
incident cannot be separated from other gun crimes in the States. Surely this
“loner” killer did have some mental issues that provoked his behavior, and
there are probably other additional factors that I am forgetting to mention,
but the actual culprit for this series of crimes was a gun, just like it was the
culprit in 119 homicides in KC in 2005. I’m probably going to risk perturbing
my NRA-supporting friends by saying this, but the solution seems simple:
get rid of the weapons that are enabling all of these tragedies. Shouldn’t
we value life more than the right to own a gun? How many more school
shootings like Virginia Tech will the US have to endure before we revoke
or amend the constitutional right to bear arms? When can we get rid of our
reputation as a country with “a history of school shootings?”
Perhaps we should take some hints f rom the Irish. Or at least, we should
listen to their and other European and Asian countries’ perspectives on the
issues of gun control. We need to support VTech at a time like this, but let’s
not miss an opportunity to discuss the root of the problem. I will always be
an American at heart, but I’m with the Irish on this one.
Sarah Ebright
William Jewell junior studying in Dublin, Ireland
April 18, 2007
Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor,
Dr. Kauffman’s letter last week proved to be an inspiration. With the
return of the warm weather and sunshine, I was one of many students
who decided to politely ignore the signs and take a break on our beautiful
Quad. I assure you, the group of us were very harmless, simply sitting and
talking, and so you can imagine our annoyance when the sprinklers came
on suddenly and chased us off. We would have chalked up the occurrence
to bad timing, yet surprisingly, once we were back on the dry land of the
sidewalk, the sprinklers immediately turned off. You can imagine our sus-
picion.
So, let this ser ve as a warning to all students: feel welcome to take back