News

U.Va. professor receives MacArthur Foundation award

Terry Belanger, a history and engineering professor and honorary curator of the Special Collections Library, was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship yesterday. The award grants five-year fellowships to those who exhibit "exceptional merit and promise of continued and enhanced creative work" and includes a $500,000 stipend, according to the MacArthur Foundation. Belanger's MacArthur Fellowship is the first to be awarded to a University Professor since 2002.

SAE alleges violence at party

A group of 15 to 20 individuals swarmed the deck of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity house between 2:15 a.m.

Faculty release statement on intolerance

The Executive Council of the Faculty Senate adopted the "Statement of the Faculty Senate Against Intolerance" Monday. Executive Council Chair Houston G.

Virginia21 starts voter campaign

Virginia21, an organization which seeks to involve young Virginians in the political process, kicked off its Swing Generation Campaign yesterday to provide information to young voters as well as encourage them to participate in this year's gubernatorial election. "The Swing Generation Campaign is the effort in making sure students are getting to the polls," Virginia21 Communications Director David Solimini said. Solimini said this year's Swing Generation Campaign is especially important because the Commonwealth will elect a new governor. "Young voters are quickly becoming important, and they are voting in increasing numbers," Solimini said.

Bioethics in the house

ROTC holds annual POW vigil

After a 24-hour vigil on the Amphitheater stage, the University ROTC held a joint ceremony yesterday honoring all prisoners of war and soldiers missing in action. Beginning at 4 p.m.

Gang grant for City expected

This week, the Charlottesville City Council is expected to approve an extended grant to the Gang Identification and Prevention Training Program, Mayor David Brown said. Theprogram, run by the Charlottesville/Albemarle Commission on Children and Families, is an attempt to educate the larger Charlottesville community about the recent increase in local gang activity and the potential for further expansion, said CCF Juvenile Justice Coordinator Rory Carpenter. "The idea was to provide training that would identify and prevent gang activity," Carpenter said.

Department of Education creates new national strategy for colleges

U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings announced yesterday a new commission to develop a national strategy for post-secondary education, addressing "the economic and workforce needs of the country's future" and intending to attack issues such as access to and affordability of higher education. "We have a responsibility to make sure our higher education system continues to meet our nation's needs for an educated and competitive workforce in the 21st century," Spellings said. According to the release, Spellings said the commission will engage students and families, policy makers, business leaders and the academic community in a national dialogue about all key aspects of higher education. Samara Yudof, spokesperson for the Department of Education, said funding for the new initiative will come from the Department. Yusof said she could not provide any additional information regarding the specifics of the initiative because the program is in its pilot stage. The commission's charter provides a budget of $700,000, which is the same as the Title IV commission implemented a few years ago, she said. Vice President to the Provost J.

New crisis response set

The City of Charlottesville, Albemarle County and the University are part of an $18 millionproject that will improve communication between all of the emergency response agencies in each of the three jurisdictions, said Wayne Campagna, projects coordinator of the Emergency Communication Center. The project is a new single system that allows all agencies to operate independently, but in case of an emergency, multiple units can contact multiple agencies, Campagna said. Initiated in 1995, technical setbacks have previously impeded the program's progress.

U.Va. spearheads new approach to treating depression

University Medical Center doctors and University professors developed and are applying an innovative new depression-fighting technique using an implant connecting to the brain. The University doctors and professors, in conjunction with hospitals across the nation, developed the concept for the Vagus Nerve Stimulation Therapy System.

FBI seeks relationship with higher education

To strengthen relations between higher education institutions and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI Director Robert S.

Two first-year dormitories evacuated after ticking sound in package

Two dormitories in the McCormick Road Residence Area were evacuated Friday evening after a package emitting a mysterious ticking sound was received in the mailroom of Page dormitory. According to University Police Capt.

Medical School breaks ground on new $71 million research facility as Board of Visitors reviews new construction plans

The Medical School broke ground Friday on a new $71 million research center as the Board of Visitors Buildings and Grounds Committee met to discuss further expansion. The new Carter-Harrison Research Building will provide laboratories, research support and office space to medical investigators working in the areas of cancer, immunology and infectious diseases. The 102,000-square-foot facility will be located behind Jordan Hall and is expected to be completed in the summer of 2008. "This new building is for research where scientists and doctors will use their knowledge and findings to eventually help patients," University Health System spokesperson Peter Jump said.

Honor votes to combine appeals and grievances

The Honor Committee voted unanimously last night to approve a new post-trial procedure that will combine the appeal and grievance processes. The changes are largely procedural and will not affect students' rights of appeal. "It's just the restructuring of the post-trial process to make it easier for dismissed students to understand their rights and options regarding post-trial appeals," Vice Chair for Trials Stewart Ackerly said. Under the old procedure, expelled students could seek an appeal on the grounds of new evidence or good cause.

Special Committee on Diversity meeting ends with Casteen speech

The Board of Visitor's Special Committee on Diversity met Friday in a meeting that culminated with a hastily assembled address from University President John T.

BFC charters with national organization

The Black Fraternal Council announced yesterday that they have chartered and affiliated with the National Pan-Hellenic Council, Inc. in a move that will integrate the University's black Greek life with a national black organization. The BFC, now called the NPHC, is composed of eight African-American chapters, fraternities and sororities at the University. Aaron Laushway, associate dean of students and director of fraternity and sorority life, saw the move to the larger national organization as a positive one, saying the BFC has "taken a step to solidify their fraternal obligations here at the University and beyond." The NPHC student leadership also expressed enthusiasm about the group's future in the NPHC and the opportunities it would add to existing members. "Being in the NPHC gives a lot of leadership development opportunities for members," NPHC President Isaac Noye said.

Charlottesville officials discuss area housing affordability issues

The Charlottesville Chamber of Commerce, along with members of the Charlottesville City Council, Albemarle Supervisors and the Piedmont Housing Alliance, met Wednesday to discuss problems and policies connected to housing affordability, a subject which has the potential to affect students living off-Grounds. Housing affordability issues are not limited to the Charlottesville-Albemarle area, but stem from a nationwide problem, according to Larry Banner, vice president of the Charlottesville Chamber of Commerce.

Gubernatorial candidates consider education costs

Rising tuition prices, diversity and illegal immigration were just three of the topics discussed by the three candidates running for the office of governor of Virginia at a forum sponsored by Virginia21 Wednesday at Virginia Commonwealth University. The rising price of tuition took center stage at the forum, with each candidate proposing different ways to remedy the rising costs. "I know the people in higher ed.

Speaking Freely about Free Speech

iPods offer note-taking alternatives to lectures

The option for professors to record their lectures to iPods and upload them for student use is being tested in certain Texas universities as a pilot for a new program, called Coursecast, created by a company called Pick-A-Prof in collaboration with Apple. Pick-A-Prof is a Web site that began at Texas A&M University and the University of Texas at Austin in April 2000.