Author: Megan Herrera

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Person of the Year: Kristin Vallis ’11

By Olivia Seecof

Writer

Kristin Vallis ’11 from Ridgefield, Conn. originally came to the University to play water polo, but that is not what defined her during her time here. Vallis’ work in the Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Awareness (LGBT) has earned her a Person of the Year award.

“I started working there sophomore year because I didn’t know what else to do with myself after coming out freshman year,” Vallis said. This year, Vallis was the office manager and attended four different national conferences on behalf of the office.

“Kristin’s continued presence in the office this semester has simply been invaluable as we have been continuing the good work that began under Fran McDaniel’s leadership,” said Tracy Shaynak, director of the Women’s Resource Center.

Vallis is graduating with a bachelor of science degree in biology. In addition to her work in the LGBT Office, she is a member of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority, studied abroad through the Semester at Sea program and was a member and Junior Fellow of the Environmental Residential College.

Vallis’ efforts in all that she does have proved to be very inspiring to everyone she comes across. “She taught me to always ‘do you,'” Stephanie Walters ’11 said. “I don’t know if she even realizes but when we met during recruitment, she encouraged me to continue being myself.”

McDaniel had a significant impact on Vallis, and losing her was difficult. “Fran always gave me space to figure out who I was,” she said. “Fran did so much [for the office], but we couldn’t depend on her anymore. We’ve picked up the pieces and pushed the envelope of how to make Bucknell aware of more perspectives in general.”

“[Kristin] has become an effective facilitator of dialogue among students and has earned the respect and admiration of her peers, and of faculty and staff,” Associate Provost Robert Midkiff said. “It is always rewarding to see students become an effective self-advocate–it is even more rewarding when you see that student step out of their comfort zone and become an advocate for others.”

One way Vallis has educated the University community is through the Safe Space program. At each of the conferences she attended, she presented workshops on the Safe Space program. One conference Vallis attended was the Out & Greek National LGBT & Ally Fraternity & Sorority Leadership Conference at Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind. This conference discussed the position of LGBT in Greek life. “Since Greek life is such a big thing on campus, it was awesome to discuss issues with other LGBT greeks,” Vallis said.

“[During] presentations, she was an equal partner in our work,” Midkiff said. “Her peers from other institutions were clearly inspired by her work in Safe Space as they eagerly sought to speak with her in greater detail about her experiences, the obstacles she encountered and how they might bring a program like Safe Space to their own campuses.”

The Safe Space program has been in the University community for about 10 years, but approximately seven years ago, the University changed the program to have students engage with other students. This program is “unique to Bucknell because it is the only program with peer educators and a voting system,” Vallis said.

“Although [the program is] simple definitions, the real gold mine is that peer educators tell peer strangers, ‘Hey, this is my life here at Bucknell,’” Vallis said.

“I cannot think of a better woman to receive this honor,” Walters said. “Kristin is a friend to all and a best friend to me. She has the ability to free a little nervous sophomore, strengthen a junior and love a senior.  Congratulations to Kristin, the woman who taught me more than I can ever express. Bucknell will truly lack a certain ‘cool’ once Kristin graduates.”

“Kristin has conquered Bucknell in her four years and will leave it overflowing with cultural awareness, respect for all and the motivation for further change,” Chelsea Burghoff ’11 said.

Vallis has been extremely dedicated to educating the University community about the LGBT organization and Safe Space program.

“To quit water polo and leave the identity of an athlete was really hard for me,” Vallis said.

While it was a tough time, Vallis was able to think about what was truly important to her. She put all of the discipline she learned from being an athlete into giving something back to the University, and that is why she was selected as one of this year’s People of the Year.

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Few adjunct professors hired

By Meghan Finlayson

Staff Writer

A report recently released by the American Federation of Teachers suggested that adjunct professors teach many courses and are heavily involved in a wide range of disciplines, but are underpaid.

It has turned into a nationwide issue. By underpaying adjuncts, universities can lower their costs and tuition, but risk reducing the quality of education.

Although state universities tend to have more adjunct professors and have been called out on their abuse, private universities are now also being critiqued.

The University currently does not employ many adjunct professors.

“At Bucknell, we have only used 20 adjuncts this year, which is less than six percent of the size of the faculty,” Dean of Arts and Sciences George Shields said. “[They] tell us that our pay is better than the pay at universities in the surrounding area.”

The University stands out from many institutions in the fact that most of the professors are tenure-track.

“Bucknell is distinctive in focusing our hiring of faculty in tenure-track positions … the strategic direction is to continue to have the core of our faculty be tenure-track,” Provost Mick Smyer said.

In about the past eight years, the University has added 60 faculty positions, all of which have been tenure-track, to achieve the five-course teaching load.

There are many advantages of having a faculty made up of mostly tenure-track professors. The University hopes that by keeping the majority of the professors hired in these positions, close relationships can be built between faculty and students.

“We want to maximize interactions between our faculty and students, to increase the transformational opportunities of a liberal arts education, so we want full-time faculty working with our students whenever possible,” Shields said.

Another benefit of a tenure-track faculty is that the quality of overall education can be improved because of the long-term mindset.

“I have never had an adjunct professor here, but feel that since majority of the faculty is tenured, they are really committed to Bucknell and improving education as a whole,” Kristina Patrk, ’13.

That being said, adjunct professors can bring an interesting dynamic to the classroom.

“There are advantages to having an [adjunct] that complements, but does not replace tenure-track faculty and there may be instances where students would benefit from an adjunct,” Smyer said.

The University is committed and dedicated to keeping the faculty primarily in tenure-track positions as it moves forward.

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Holocaust survivor Alex Rosner inspires community

By Eliza Macdonald

Writer

The Holocaust was the culmination of great bigotry but, as one Holocaust survivor argues, the endings of World War II and the Holocaust did not eliminate it. It is alive and well all over the world, said the survivor who spoke as part of the University’s observance of Yom HaShoah Holocaust Remembrance Day sponsored by Campus Jewish Life and Bucknell Hillel.

On April 21 in Bucknell Hall, quiet settled over the crowd as people intently listened to Alex Rosner speak about his childhood and how he and his family survived the 10 long years of the Holocaust. His final words to the audience at Bucknell Hall were that ignorance caused the Holocaust, and that people can’t explain or justify ignorance, only fight it.

“The problem with speaking about the past and remembering the events is that the forces which were present then are brought into the present and while it may be interesting and it may have benefits, there’s nothing like confronting a real life witness; you dig in the ashes, the Devil comes and grabs you by the throat,” Rosner said after minutes of silence.

Once in America, Rosner learned English quickly and pushed the Holocaust and his childhood out of his mind. He didn’t talk about the events of those years for 40 years of his life until finally a rabbi asked him to speak to a group of people in Kansas. That is where his life as a speaker began.

Rosner, who was born in 1935 in Warsaw, Poland, was the only child to a shopkeeper’s daughter and a violinist. While he grew up in Kraków, Poland, Rosner says he has no real memories before the start of the war.

“[This story is important because] the Holocaust isn’t such a distant, far-away thing, and this man is a survivor living among us and these people have their stories to tell, and they live among us,” Hannah Kotler ’13 said.

In 1940 Rosner and his family were taken in a truck into the woods where Nazi soldiers had been given orders to shoot all the people who arrived. Fortunately for the Rosner family, the soldiers refused and the people were left in the woods to find their way back to Kraków.

Rosner commented on his good timing in another example where he happened to go for a walk one day out of the ghetto he and his family were living in when he was about six or seven years old and got lost for hours. In those hours, all of the other children in the ghetto were taken away to a concentration camp.

“Where did the knowledge come from for me to take that walk?” Rosner said. Remembering the events proved difficult for the speaker, as many times he had to pause and regain his composure.

The movie “Schindler’s List” did a decent job depicting the actual events, Rosner said. His own family was saved by Oskar Schindler. Although every event in the movie really happened, Rosner said the violence was toned down, a comment that was greeted by gasps and murmurs among the crowd.

After being freed from Auschwitz concentration camp by American troops, Rosner and his family moved to New York City in 1946. Rosner remembers that his understanding of human nature had been completely disrupted by the Holocaust.

“I asked my father to get me a riding crop, like the Nazis had had, to beat women with. I thought that’s what it meant to be a man. Until I met the American soldiers, who played baseball, laughed and played music. When I heard that music, I thought I was in heaven,” Rosner said.

Rosner also argued that the Germans were not uniquely qualified to start the Holocaust, that they weren’t born with any special talent to be cruel. He emphasized that young people today need to take away from the Holocaust that when you see bigotry in your face, you have to challenge and stop it. Although it may take some sacrifice, sitting quietly makes you complicit which, in his eyes, is worse.

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BSG forms Committee for Student Engagement

By Eliza Macdonald

Writer

Bucknell Student Government’s Committee for Student Engagement (CSE) released an online survey Monday, April 18 at midnight in the hopes of revealing students’ opinions and thoughts on various aspects of the University in order to serve students better.

The short survey of 14 questions is open-ended with dialogue boxes for students to fill in their own answers to the questions.

“[We] want to hear exactly what students have to say—we don’t want to cookie-cutter their answers,” Mike McGowan ’12 said.

The committee itself is ad hoc at the moment but is hoping to become a permanent part of BSG. It is currently made up of BSG members and other students, but these include student athletes, club presidents, Residential College members and students representing each class year.

“[This is the] first time BSG has ever asked these types of questions in a campus-wide survey. We’re making a huge push for students to respond because that’s what dictates where our committee goes and what issues we need to deal with first,” said Phil Kim ’12, President of BSG and chair of the CSE committee.

The survey asks for opinions on all aspects of student life: residential, academic and social. It also asks questions about how available students find resources on campus and allows space for writing about specific personal experiences.

The CSE reached out to many different administrators and faculty about the survey to get feedback on the questions and structure. The CSE also used the National Survey on Student Engagement (NSSE) as a platform for what they should explore and which ideas they wanted to look into.

“I hope that a lot students will respond and care about BSG wanting to make a difference, and we’re really just trying to reach out more as a student government,” BSG representative Caroline Coady ’12 said.

The committee’s biggest intention with the survey is to get the point across that the BSG needs thorough student feedback to most effectively serve the students.

Advertisements went up Tuesday morning and can be seen along with sidewalk chalk all over campus. BSG also hopes to spread the word through RAs, class presidents, table tents and the Message Center.

“[I’m on CSE] in hopes that I would better server the student body in a way that would unify student concern and bring about effect changes,” Rob McFeeters ’11 said.

The survey, available on myBucknell, will stay up until the last day of classes, May 3.

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Featured News

Panel discusses effects of natural disasters in Japan

By Christina Oddo

Writer

The Office of Civic Engagement, the department of East Asian Studies, the Japan Society and the Susquehanna Valley Japanese Community co-sponsored a panel discussion on Japan on April 19. Dr. Elizabeth Armstrong, associate professor of East Asian Studies, moderated the event.

Jim Orr, associate professor of East Asian studies, opened the panel with a discussion on the history of earthquakes in Japan, specifically the 9.0-magnitude earthquake that occurred off the coast of Japan, and the tsunami that followed, on March 11.

He spoke of the 1933 earthquake and tsunami, as well as the 1995 earthquake that resulted in 6,500 deaths. Orr described the role nuclear energy played after World War II and how this energy was seen as either a great good or a great evil.

As of April 14, 33,206 people have been reported dead, missing or injured as a result of the March 11 devastation, Orr said. In addition, 599,950 homes have been lost. He also stated that the Fukushima Plant released a Level Seven alert as a result of the natural disaster.

James Shields, associate professor of comparative humanities, discussed the religious and cultural responses to the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, which were positive, he said. He spoke of the history of spirituality in Japan in terms of nature, spirit and power.

Kami, meaning nature, has deeps roots in Japanese history. It can either be benevolent or malign, and is something that can be feared but greatly respected. Shields described the Buddhist outlook as “things change, deal with it.” Buddhists recognize that you cannot change change. Shields described Confucianism as well, saying that individuals only exist as part of relationships, and strength and determination are important to regard in the face of adversity.

Shields reminded listeners that, although this time the response to such devastation was positive (no single case of looting has occurred as far as Shields knows) there have been negative responses in the past. He used the Great Kanto Earthquake that occurred on September 1,1923 as an example.

Mizuki Takahashi, post-doctoral fellow in biology, covered most recent statistics; 14,867 people have been reported missing, and 13,439 have been reported dead, creating a horrible total of 28,306. Takahashi compared these statistics to those from 9/11 and from Hurricane Katrina in 2005; a total of 2,752 were reported dead after 9/11 while 1,836 were reported dead as a result of Hurricane Katrina. Takahashi also stated that the estimated cost of direct property damage was $160-250 billion.

Takahashi explored the precautionary measures taken in Japanese schools in the form of drills through real footage. The negative and positive results of the earthquake were discussed; the earthquake negatively impacted the already present economic downturn (which had already resulted in a number of suicides), while the economic downturn negatively impacted recovery. The earthquake also negatively impacted the concept of nuclear explosion (although the company is currently at fault), and this negatively impacted agricultural/fisher exports, which then added to the negative impacts on the economic downturn. Takahashi presented this cause-and-effect system through a visual web. Most importantly, Takahashi stated that so far, Japan has shown an overall sense of orderliness and mutual help which overrides much of the present negativity.

Kyoko Breczinski, a member of the Susquehanna Valley Japanese Community, spoke of how it feels to have her family living among the ruin in Japan. She discussed how difficult communication is and how she can only communicate with her family through the Internet, as the phone lines are useless. “It’s the radiation,” she said, “that upsets me the most.”

Anna Uehara ’12, president of the University’s Japan Society, described the account of Kota Suenaga, a University student currently on leave in Japan. They experienced the earthquake that occurred at 2:46 in the afternoon and lasted more then five minutes. The first tidal wave occurred 30 minutes later. Uehara showed striking images of the destruction, images of cars that had been carried onto the tops of buildings by massive waves.

The subsequent question-and-answer session involved a talk on discrimination in regards to those exposed to radiation. There was also discussion on how the electric company had made mistakes, regarding the positioning of the water tank and reactor, for example.

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Controversy surrounds ‘Three Cups of Tea’

By Olesya Minina

Writer

Greg Mortenson, author of the best-selling book and the University’s first-year reading experience selection “Three Cups of Tea,” has been accused of partly fabricating his inspiring memoir as well as mismanaging his non-profit organization, the Central Asia Institute (CAI). This institute builds schools and promotes education for girls in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The controversy has made University administrators, faculty, and students question whether the book should remain in place as the first-year reading experience as well as whether Mortenson should still be brought to campus.

On Sunday evening, “60 Minutes” aired a story making allegations about the credibility of Mortenson and “Three Cups of Tea.” The book recounts his descent from K2, the second largest mountain in the world, after a failed climb. Mortenson, weak and exhausted, came to Korphe, a small northeast Pakistan village, where he was nursed back to health. After witnessing the kindness of the villagers and the barley existent schooling systems, Mortenson promised to return and build schools in some of the most isolated areas in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Recent reports from The New York Times, The Bozeman Chronicle and a CBS report suggest that Mortenson’s book and charity could be misleading. Some of the moving stories in “Three Cups of Tea” are argued to be partly false. The CBS report, citing sources, stated that porters that accompanied Mortenson in 1993 said he did not actually visit Korphe until a year after the descent, falsifying a central story in the book.

Reports have also surfaced that Mortenson has been using the charity for personal interests, stating the CAI is spending millions to advertise Mortenson’s books. CAI’s public 990 tax form shows that in 2009 the charity had $14 million in income. It spent $3.9 million on schools overseas and $4.6 million on travel and guest lectures promoting the book. “60 Minutes” also reported that it checked on schools CAI claims to have built and found “some of them were empty, built by somebody else or simply didn’t exist at all. Many of schools said they had not received any money from CAI in years.”

Mortenson has issued a statement saying he stands by all the information his book as well as the value of the CAI and the work and help they provide. His publisher, Viking, an imprint of Penguin Group USA, is staying silent and standing by their client.

“Recent allegations against Mr. Mortenson have sparked a controversy on whether or not the book should still be the first-year reading experience,” Provost Mick Smyer said. “An advisory committee is taking the matter very seriously, considering the pros and the cons, and is going to decide in the next week or two.”

“Three Cups of Tea” was chosen as the first-year reading experience for this fall and copies have been offered to all new students as well as faculty. Mortenson is also scheduled to speak on campus this October.

“Like many on campus and beyond, I am deeply concerned about the questions recent media reports raise about the credibility of ”Three Cups of Tea’ and the range of activities funded by this charity through Mr. Mortenson’s work,” University President John Bravman said. “While all reports continue to underscore the meaningful difference he has made in Afghanistan and Pakistan, we all know these reports raise troubling ethical questions, especially for universities, where academic integrity is a fundamental value. The book selection committee and the Bucknell Forum Task Force have met already to examine these issues carefully, and I trust them to determine whether we should continue with this book as our first-year reading experience focus and whether Mr. Mortenson should come to campus as a forum guest.”

Bravman and the Operations and Management Group will also be debating the impact of the claims against Mortenson.

Mortenson’s goal was to promote peace through education in conflict-prone areas, which prompted him to co-found CAI, whose mission is to promote and provide education, especially for girls. The Institute claims to have established 170 schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan, partially or fully supported 687 teachers, and educated over 58,000 students.

“[I was] disturbed and disappointed that the author could have possibly abused such an inspiring story for personal gain which also invalidates other non-fiction writers who have used the power of the written word honestly,” Madison Stevens ’14 said.

Smyer stated that he is “torn between the value of the message in the book, and the value of the messenger.”

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News

Students seek to make Univ. Fair Trade

By Katherine Schotz

Writer

A group of 10 seniors is taking the necessary steps to make the University a Fair Trade University, which would make it not only the first Patriot League school, but the first on the east coast and sixth university overall to become certified fair trade. The group hosted alum Scott Leeder ’04, CEO of Ameica’s first fair trade clothing company.

According to Fair Trade USA’s official website, the organization strives “to empower family farmers and workers around the world, while enriching the lives of those struggling in poverty. Rather than creating dependency on aid, we use a market-based approach that empowers farmers to get a fair price for their harvest, helps workers create safe working conditions, provides a decent living wage and guarantees the right to organize.”

“Certified fair trade products ensure that everyone who is involved in making the product gets a living wage,” said Clayton Smith ’11, one of the members of the group. “There are higher social and environmental standards too.”

In order to gain certification, a school must offer two fair trade products at every food outlet. The University currently uses fair trade baking chocolate in the dining products, and there is also a fair trade coffee option.

“We are trying to get people to recognize and raise awareness that there is another option,” Bryan Seward ’11 said.

The students are working hard to get the attention of the student body. About 20 students attended Leeder’s lecture about the importance of fair trade.

“Most of our efforts concern informing students about fair trade, Dan Minnis ’11 said. “The social issues around the products and why they are better are important and not as well known as they should be.”

One of the ways that the group was able to raise awareness on campus was by creating a committee that will continue to raise awareness and increase use of fair trade products. Some of the possible ways they are trying to do this include working with Leeder to have the golf team wear fair trade polo shirts. If this happens, it would be the first official University team to wear fair trade uniforms.

The group’s long-term goal is to have the Dining Services company’s contract include a clause that requires the use of fair trade products, Minnis said. Because the group has formed a student organization, new members will take over where they leave off after May’s graduation.

The group hopes that by May 22, the University will officially be certified as Fair Trade. There are two main aspects left: the group needs to submit paperwork and also needs a faculty adviser.

“We are looking for someone who respects the social responsibility initiative,” Seward said.  “We set up the group so that it is student-run, so the adviser’s role would be a small time commitment.”

The seniors are confident that next year the students who take over will continue to raise awareness and work with the University.

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Greene discusses string theory

By Olivia Seecof

Writer

String theory could potentially bridge the gap between features of the micro-world and the macro-world and lead to further development of a unified theory, said a world-renowned theoretical physicist at a talk on Tuesday.

On April 19, Trout Auditorium was filled to capacity as Brian Greene delivered his lecture “Breakthrough Thinking: Challenging What We Know.” The overflow was directed to the Rooke Chemistry auditorium to watch a live streaming of Greene’s lecture. The talk, which was free and open to the public, was the sixth lecture of the ongoing Bucknell Forum series, “Creativity Beyond the Box.”

“Science is a dramatic story of adventure,” Greene said. He integrated the ideas of science and creativity throughout his lecture, saying that “everyone doesn’t need to be excited about science, but everyone can be,” and that “it is a great opportunity for the arts to be inspired by science.”  These statements received a long round of applause from the crowd of students.

Through narrated video clips and explanations in simple terms, Green gave background on why the study of the formation of the universe is so captivating.

“Math is not just symbols on a paper; it actually shows you something on how the world works,” Greene said.

An analogy that Greene included was to show how a 10th dimension is possible. He instructed the audience to imagine different dimensions curling up and being able to trace that curl–like an ant walking around a telephone wire. Another analogy was that of the universe being a big rubber sheet, and the sun is a bowling ball stretching the sheet. The Earth travels around the sun on the path determined by the curvature of the bending of the sheet like a marble travels around the sheet stretched by the bowling ball.

“I thought he made it really easy to follow with the analogies he used and the visuals. He was also really enthusiastic and engaging,” Kelly Burkhart ’14 said.

String theory is very complex, so it is quite possible that many non-physics specialists got lost in some of the terminology and concepts. Greene spent much of his lecture explaining how the strings that make up the quarks of protons, neutrons and electrons vibrate in different patterns. These different patterns create different kinds of particles. String theory sets up the framework to provide a unifying theory. Greene said that the string theory “suggests that maybe we are one of a multitude of universes.”

“[The lecture] was baffling and enlightening at the same time,” Nicole Diamantides ’14 said.

According to Greene, a scientific genius is able to look at what everyone else is seeing and see something else. Greene definitely satisfies his own qualifications and delivered an enjoyable and informative lecture to the greater University community.

Greene is a leading physicist in his field, and the Washington Post calls him the “single best explainer of abstruse concepts in the world today.” Green has published many books including national best-seller “The Elegant Universe.” In this book Greene explored how quantum mechanics and general theories of relativity transformed the understanding of the universe and introduced the world to the string theory. Green is the co-director of Columbia University’s Institute for Strings, Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics.

“It was really cool to have such a highly respected individual in his field give a lecture on his specialty,” Jeremy Shui ’14 said. “As a current student of physics it was interesting to follow along and test my own understanding.”

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Student govt. starts committee focused on diversity

By Meghan Finlayson

Staff Writer

March marked the birth of the Bucknell Student Government Committee on Diversity, the newest of BSG’s nine internal committees. Consisting of presidents from various multicultural clubs and organizations, it is the first committee to allow non-BSG members.

The committee is made up of presidents from the Afghan Student Club, the Bucknell African Student Association, the Black Student Union, the Caribbean Club, the Chinese Culture Association, Essential, FLAG & BT (Friends of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transgendered), Japan Society, SAAB (Students for Asian Awareness at Bucknell), OHLAS (Organization for Hispanic and Latin American Students), South Asian Students Association, International Student Orientation and Multicultural Team Membership Program.

The purpose behind the Committee is “to advise the President on diversity issues at the University and to promote effective participation by members of all racial, ethnic and under-represented groups in the civic life of Bucknell,” according to the committee’s by-laws.

In January, Joey Martin ’12, Chair of the Committee on Diversity, began revising the BSG Constitution. “Prior to this year, only BSG members could sit in on these committees, and we want to move towards a more inclusive model,” Martin said. He opened the committee so other student representatives and presidents of clubs could contribute.

“My hope is that this committee will serve as a forum for groups and clubs to collaborate on campus initiatives and programs, and for collective discussions on campus climate issues,” Martin said.

So far the response has been positive. “I think that the new Diversity Committee is a great step forward for our community. Nothing can be solved overnight, but the existence of the committee serves as a great way to open up lines of communication and provide a link between BSG and our campus’ multicultural groups,” said Michael Tonge ’12, president of the Caribbean Club.

Still in the planning phase, the committee has only held one meeting so far this semester.

“It is an effort on behalf of BSG to reach out to these student groups, especially to answer questions they have. Establishing a connection [between BSG and these groups] is a motivating factor,” Martin said.

Controversial radio-show host Tammy Bruce’s visit was discussed at the last meeting, and the committee is planning The Black Arts Festival and Friday’s Day of Silence for LGBT.

Other ideas to expand are being considered as well. “I believe the leaders of fraternities and sororities should also join this committee as well as a few others that are not considered diverse groups,” said Mahilet Oluma‘13, Treasurer of BASA and Chairman of Alumni Relations for BSU.

The BSG Executive board is focusing on the potential to open up more of their internal committees in the future.

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Female represents University in Barstool U competition

By Christina Oddo

Writer

Many University students supported Parinaz Hadi ’12 in a contest hosted by barstoolsports.com that placed female college students head-to-head in a March Madness-style bracket by frantically clicking in votes for her. The website promised a party, including a concert, to the champion’s school.

Clicking frantically on barstoolsports.com to support Parinaz Hadi ’12, many students of the University participated in a contest that placed female college students head-to-head in a March Madness-style bracket. The website promised a party, including a concert, to the champion’s school.

The competition included many universities, separated into four regions: north, south, east and west. Female students from each university were nominated and posted pictures on the site, and students voted to show their support. Hadi was the final contestant for the west but lost to the representative for Villanova, a school that is four times bigger than the University.

“I got a Facebook message from John Henry, one of the writers at Barstool U, saying that I got nominated by several students at Bucknell to represent Bucknell in NCAA tournament brackets,” Hadi said.

Morgan Kauffman ’11 did not hear about the voting until the University was in the Elite Eight. She was with her first-year hall, when Greg Stewart ‘11 coined the name “Vote For the Party.” Kauffman’s hall used her account to create a Facebook event and organize the logistics and invitations, making her the middleman in the ordeal.

According to Kauffman, four engineers made a program to allow students to continuously vote. In the end, Hadi received 215,000 votes, but Villanova’s representative won by only a small gap, with 220,000 votes. “The other match was between two other girls,” Hadi said, and “each got around 9,000 votes each.”

There has been talk that Barstool U’s site crashed twice, which has led to many rumors that perhaps Hadi could have won. “They then listed that Bucknell would be one of the top five schools that they wanted to host a party at, since we were so intense in our voting,” Kauffman said.

Barstool U contacted Hadi and said “that they will throw a party at Bucknell even though we lost, just because we got so many votes in,” Parinaz said. “The details of the party will come soon.”

The administration of Barstool U said that they have never ever seen anything like the competition between Hadi and her competitor. The amount of page views that they got from the two universities alone paid for the web master’s salary, he joked. This kind of support has never been seen.

According to Hadi, after the final four, it was no longer about the girls but more about the universities competing.

“I feel very honored in the first place that I got nominated among all these beautiful students at Bucknell, and I want to thank everyone who voted,” Hadi said. “I am very proud to be a part of this community.”