Category: News

By Allie Mongan

Writer

John C. Bravman, recently inaugurated as the University’s 17th president, has been warmly welcomed by most on campus.

“I appreciate that he treats students as he would treat any other adult member of the campus community and asks for student opinions,” said Sonali Basak ’12, an undergraduate executive intern who works closely with the Office of the President.

Bravman has already started trying to improve many aspects of campus.

Several years ago the Board of Trustees started working on plans for Academic West, and this fall Bravman was able to drive a front loader at the groundbreaking ceremony.

With the recent events pertaining to campus climate, President Bravman has made changing our campus climate one of his platforms.

Some students have expressed concern about his decision to focus so much attention on this controversial and difficult subject matter. Having a new president come in and decide to start tackling a large issue is surprising to some, but others like that he is not afraid to take initiative.

“He has also been direct about things that need to be changed. You can see that in the way he approached issues of campus climate,” Basak said.

While on campus, Bravman has worked with the Board of Trustees in the planning of new student housing. Plans involve the creation of four new residence halls and a commons building on the “Farm” south of Bertrand Library.

The plans have yet to be approved by the University or the Board, but University representatives are trying to work out a strategy to make the building of the residence halls accompany the building of Academic West.

A special committee on athletics and recreation has also been one of the president’s new initiatives. This committee was put in place to evaluate various dimensions of athletics and recreation on campus and its role in campus life.

The University’s relationship with the Patriot League and the role of merit aid has also been discussed by the committee and in a forum held on Oct. 8.

Students have expressed their approval of the President and his various visions for our campus.

“I think President Bravman has approached his presidency with an appropriate amount of deference and respect for tradition as well as innovation. He has made significant and visible efforts to become acquainted with the student body,” undergraduate executive intern Lindsay Machen ’11 said.

Bravman has met with students in the Bison, at their downtown houses and in his office. Having this open communication with the student body has had a positive impact on many and he seems to “prize the student perspective and seeks out opportunities to hear about Bucknell affairs from the students directly,” Machen said.

News Briefs

Bucknell in Northern Ireland Applications accepted on rolling basis

The applications for Bucknell in Northern Ireland 2011 (May 14-June 4) are due Monday, Nov. 15. Admission is on a rolling basis and the program is capped at 20 students. Program administrators encourage interested students to apply sooner rather than later because if the program does not run this year, it is likely to not run in the future. Students can apply for the Bucknell in Northern Ireland program even if they are planning to study abroad this spring as long as the program dates are compatible with their study abroad host university’s. The program includes a 1.5 credit Bucknell course, EDUC/PSYC 330, “Conflict and Peace in Northern Ireland,” and has no prerequisites. Application forms and program information can be found at the program website: http://www.bucknell.edu/x2139.xml.

University engineers place third in National ChemE Car Competition

University engineers placed third in the national ChemE Car Competition in Salt Lake City, Utah last weekend—the University’s best finish since the national competition started in 1999. The competition is a test to design, build and power a vehicle using alternative fuels and innovative materials. Cornell University and Florida State University placed first and second, respectively. The event was sponsored by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE). Approximately 32 colleges and universities competed in this year’s competition.

University teams compete in “Battle of the Brains”

Four University teams battled head-to-head in the regional “Battle of the Brains” computer programming contest last weekend. The teams traveled to Wilkes University in Scranton, Pa. The Bucknell team called “Team” finished best, placing second among 25 local teams and 17th out of 157 teams from the mid-Atlantic region. 
Only the first place regional team advances to the world finals in Egypt. The Association for Computing Machinery International Collegiate Programming Contest (ACM-ICPC) is considered the most prestigious computer programming competition of its kind, challenging teams of three students to use their programming skills and rely on their mental endurance to solve complex, real-world problems under a five-hour deadline.

By Olivia Seecof

Writer

Members of both the campus community and the greater Lewisburg area participated in a 5K (3.1 mile) race last Sunday with one goal: to make it Managua, Nicaragua.

The Bucknell Brigade sponsored the race to raise funds to support the free health clinic the group established in the community of Nueva Vida, Nicaragua.

Event coordinators Danielle Alaimo ’12, Carolyn Breden ’12, Devin Geary ’12 and Katie McAvoy ’13 decided the fundraiser needed an attractive theme to unite all involved communities. They decided to have the greater Lewisburg and Bucknell communities literally run or walk the distance to Managua, according to Alaimo and Breden.

The exact distance between Lewisburg, Pa. and Managua, Nicaragua is 2073.9 miles, which amounts to 669 people running or walking a 5K.

Participants could either attend the race or pledge to run a 5K on their own time in the gym or at home. Combining at-home and day-of participants, over 200 participated in the race, amounting to one-third of the distance to Managua.

The event raised over $2400, which will go directly towards the Bucknell Brigade’s work in Managua—specifically the free health clinic.

“To have so many people from both the Bucknell and greater Lewisburg communities come together to support the health clinic that benefits so many of our friends in Managua, Nicaragua was a very inspiring sight,” Breden said.

Alaimo said that the race was a success.

“We are so thankful that this event was successful in both raising awareness and funds to support the Bucknell Brigade’s mission in Nicaragua,” she said.

Though the formal race is complete, interested campus and community members can participate by completing a 5K by Nov. 14.

By Allie Mongan

Writer

The University will assume formal financial responsibility for the Campus Theatre building on Market Street in downtown Lewisburg. Announced Nov. 1, the purchase extends the University’s previous relationship with the theater.

The University has provided financial support to the theater in the past, according to a press release on the University website. In 2006 , the University provided Campus Theatre Ltd. with a no-interest loan to purchase the building from its previous owner. Campus Theatre Ltd. is the local nonprofit group in charge of the theatre and will continue to run its programs.

Despite the University’s new ownership of the theatre, Campus Theatre Ltd. will remain responsible “for overseeing the day-to-day operations of the theater” because they are “the expert in running a theater,” said Tom Evelyn, senior director of news and media relations.

Through the transfer of  “controlling ownership interest” in the Campus Theatre building, the University can now apply for state economic development grants, according to the University website.

Under the new ownership, the University is looking to give the 530-seat Campus Theatre a facelift. There are “much-needed repairs and improvements to the theater’s infrastructure” that can now take place, Evelyn said.

In addition to the building construction, the University aims to update the heating and air-conditioning system, but will also protect the historic features of the 69-year-old building.

“I have gone to movies downtown many times, and having Bucknell supporting the theater now is a positive. If they are able to update the Campus Theatre but still keep its older and historic feel, I think this will be a huge positive,” Brenna O’Neill ’12 said.

The University’s purchase of the Campus Theatre is another way in which administrators are trying to work with Lewisburg and improve the relationship between the campus and town.

The Campus Theatre Ltd. hopes to expand its programming and include more academic talks, film discussions and smaller music performances at the downtown locale. They also hope to be able to bring in musical groups that are too small for the Weis Center for Performing Arts, according to Evelyn.

Representatives of Campus Theatre Ltd. were unable to be reached for comment by press time.

Students must pick their dining preferences for next semester by choosing their meal plans by Nov. 29 on myBucknell.  First-years have the option of choosing from the Silver, Gold or Platinum plans. Upperclassmen can choose from the dining dollar plan or the block meal plan. The Dining Dollar Plan allows students to use their money at any campus dining location including the Bison, Seventh Street Café, Bostwick Marketplace and more. The block meal plan is based upon a limited amount of meals at Bostwick and the Terrace Room and a standard amount of dining dollars.  Additional dining dollars can be added at any time androll over every semester until graduation.

Last week, The Bucknellian reported on a sexual assault case involving Reed Dempsey ’13. On Sept. 5, Dempsey was accused of physically and sexually assaulting a 19-year-old student. The criminal charges against Dempsey have since been dropped.

The Bucknellian received two Gold Circle Awards from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association this year. Greg Stevenson ’12 earned a Certificate of Merit for Sports page design for color broadsheet. Erica Schiffres ’10 won a Certificate of Merit for First Person Experience for her study abroad piece about France.

Correction: In last week’s article about the Bison Stomp Out, the “Hip Hop style performance groups” were actually Step Teams that perform to hip hop music. The Bison Stomp Out was the first show of its kind at the University, so there were no returning champions. The Howard University Step Team referenced was actually the New York A-Team, including members of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. The team did not dance like gorillas, but stepped like apes since apes are the symbolic animal associated with Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. The member of the Howard University Step Team who bled on stage was hit in the nose by a member of his fraternity. The informal dance-off at the end of the event was not associated with the Step Competition.

By Tracy Lum

Editor-in-Chief

In the 2010 midterm elections, 12,040 of the 22,383 registered voters in Union County cast ballots Tuesday, according to the Union County Bureau of Elections.

The approximate 54-percent voter turnout rate was comparable to that of the 2006 midterm election, said Greg Katherman, director of elections and voter registration in Union County.

“Almost the same number of voters voted,” he said in a phone interview, though he could not provide a definitive percentage comparison. The voter turnout was up from roughly 33 percent in the spring primaries, he said.

For the presidential election in 2008, Union County polls reported an approximately 72 percent voter turnout rate. Though Katherman anticipated a 60 percent turnout for the midterm elections, he said some people did not come out to vote because they did not perceive this election to be as important as the presidential election.

“My guess is that … younger voters didn’t come out in this election, whether it’s college kids or young working people,” Katherman said.

Looking at the age demographics from voters in the election, he said a more senior group came out to vote. Full data on voter demographics in Union County will not be available for two weeks, but according to a national exit poll conducted by CNN, about 11 percent of the electorate was between the ages of 18 and 24 and about 23 percent was age 65 or over.

Students from the University registered to vote in Union County cast ballots in one of four polling locations: Larison Dining Hall, the Weis Center for the Performing Arts, the Donald Heiter Community Center or the Union County Courthouse. The proper voting location depended on where students lived on campus when they registered to vote, unless they notified the government center of the address change.

Some students were confused about where to vote. Elliot Franz ’11 did not figure out his polling location until two hours before the polls closed. He noticed a lack of information and discussion about the election on campus, especially compared to the array of posters, signs and pamphlets that decked the campus two years ago.

“Nobody really talks about it,” Franz said, “but I think this election makes more of a difference than the presidential election in some respects.”

Other students believe that people were not well informed about this election.

“I feel that because of the Bucknell Bubble and the disconnect between many Bucknell students and the people of Lewisburg, many students were not even aware until it was too late to register that midterm elections were taking place,” said Sarah Coppock-Pector ’13, an intern at representative Chris Carney’s office in Lewisburg. Coppock-Pector and fellow intern Lucy Christensen ’12 focused their efforts on Snyder and Union counties instead of on campus.

Daniel Murphy ’11 said he did not vote in the election because he did not know who was running in the area.

“I didn’t want to vote when I don’t know the issues being discussed and what each candidate stands for, which comes off as irresponsible,” he said. “I know more about the candidates running in my hometown just from being home for three days … than I do of the candidates in this area.”

Scott Meinke, associate professor of political science, said the lower turnout of younger voters for midterm elections could be explained by their mobility.

“They’re more mobile, less likely to be motivated by the kinds of local connections that help get people to the polls,” he said in an e-mail.

Still, he said young voters participate in elections when candidates make serious efforts to engage the younger demographic.

“We didn’t see as much of those trends in this year’s midterm election,” he said, “so it’s not surprising that the electorate skewed older as the campaigns spoke more to older voters in issues and in organizational efforts.”

By Christina Oddo

Writer

Sexual assault is the current priority of the recently formed campus climate task force, President John Bravman said at a University open forum on Tuesday in the Elaine Langone Center Forum. The forum was sponsored by the President’s Office, the Committee on Complementary Activities and the Women’s Resource Center.

Bravman reacted to the “shocking events” that occurred over the “first few weeks of term.”

“It is a matter of addressing a very real problem,” Bravman said. According to Bravman, asking the task force to take on the subject of sexual assault is, in fact, asking them to take on a very difficult topic.

George Shields, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and co-chair of the task force said the goal of the task force is to “assess data to document the climate.” The task force is in its “beginning stages,” he said.

Tracy Shaynak, director of the Women’s Resource Center, said that the Transition to College course required for first-year students has incorporated a sexual assault unit into its curriculum for the past five years. The course promotes the awareness of resources and encourages ideas regarding consent, dialogue and prevention, according to Shaynak.

The idea of a continuing dialogue is ideal according to Shaynak and the majority of the Forum participants and attendants. Walks and marches held around campus throughout the year are part of the attempt to continue this open dialogue. Shaynak said that the participation and enhancement of a continuing conversation as well as preventative efforts are critical in order “to make Bucknell as safe as possible for everyone.”

Shaynak also said that the campus community must create opportunities for students to communicate with other students, reiterating the idea that a “continuing dialogue” is essential.

Participants in the forum said that University students and faculty members will soon be able to access the Public Safety crime log through myBucknell. In accordance with the Clery Act,  or the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, crimes like murder, non-negligent manslaughter, aggravated assault, robbery, forcible sex offenses, forcible rape, forcible sodomy or sexual assault with an object and burglary must be logged, disclosed and made public by the University.

Participants said that many sexual assaults do not appear in the crime logs located in The Bucknellian in order to protect the rights of the victims. If the assailant is unknown, the entire campus community is notified via e-mail. If the event or situation is not an ongoing risk to the community there is no need for notification.

The task force acknowledged that sexual assault was only one piece of a big puzzle involving the general campus climate.

According to Shaynak, we have come a long way, especially in the University’s relationship with the hospital and with the district attorneys.

Students interested in learning more about the task force and its goals can attend an Empowered Peer Education Interest meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 16 at 5 p.m. in Langone Center 217.