News

Single sanction committee sets goals for semester

A new committee charged with investigating alternatives to the single sanction held its first meeting Wednesday night. The ad hoc committee, called the Committee for the Investigation of the Single Sanction, was formed after 59 percent of the voting student body in last spring's elections supported a referendum calling for the Honor Committee to seek alternatives to the single sanction, a policy in which students found guilty of an honor offense are automatically expelled from the University. During the meeting, members of the ad hoc committee attempted to establish the committee's purpose and set its goals. "The charge as I understand it is given by the vote last year, to investigate alternatives to the single sanction," ad hoc committee member Matt Miller said. According to ad hoc committee Chair Sarah Outten, most of the investigation will take the form of research. "This committee is wholly research-based," Outten said.

Kung-Fu Fighting

Gas prices soar after Katrina

Gas prices in Charlottesville and around the country shot up dramatically yesterday due to Hurricane Katrina's impact.

Students report bridge graffiti

A group of students reported offensive graffiti on Beta Bridge to Charlottesville Police Monday, Student Council President Jequeatta Upton said yesterday. The graffiti images included a woman in a spread eagle pose and a pair of breasts, Upton said, as well as a bloody face with the words, "We'll be back," as well as "GSociety," "GWizard" and "G-Bug." "That's how it appeared on Monday," Upton said.

Local group pushes for D.C., C'ville rail connection

If the citizen action group Charlottesville Citizens for Better Rail Alternatives gets its way, University students from Washington, D.C.

Hylton gets $150,000 in civil rape trial

After more than four hours of deliberation, the jury in the trial of former University student Anne Hylton delivered its verdict at 8:30 Wednesday night.

Groups fear free speech restrictions

A pending Supreme Court case -- Garcetti v. Ceballos -- could threaten the First Amendment rights of public university professors, according to the American Association of University Professors and the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of the First Amendment. The plaintiff, Richard Ceballos of the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office, filed a lawsuit against his employer after he was demoted and relocated.

Hurricane Katrina affects students, families

"Things that are so normal and routine to me are gone," third-year Education student Katie Van Horn said. The effects of Hurricane Katrina, a category five storm that has caused catastrophic flooding in New Orleans, will be felt all over the nation and already are being felt at the University. Many University students who are from New Orleans said they are unable to contact family and friends and are left to wonder about the conditions of their homes and neighborhoods because communications systems based in New Orleans are unreliable, if existent. "You have no way of knowing if the people you love are okay," second-year College student Lauren Tilton said. The students said they could only guess about the condition of their homes. "We're fairly certain that the first floor of the house is gone," said third-year College student Stephanie Mastrangelo, whose house was located three blocks from the 17th Street levee that broke earlier this week. "A lot of friends have sent messages [saying] that their homes are destroyed," third-year College student Julie Guider said. Students also said their families were evacuated successfully, but the families are struggling to find a temporary place to stay. "The whole community is so scattered," Van Horn said.

Starting salaries rise for recent graduates

Over the previous year, there has been an increase in employers' salary offers to college graduates in all career fields, according to the Salary Survey, a quarterly report published recently by the National Association of Colleges and Employers. The average starting salary offered by accounting firms increased to $43,370 as compared to $42,797 last year; followed by engineering services firms which increased to $47,161 from $45,807 and consulting services employers which increased to $46,856 from $45,278.

Poverty level increases in Charlottesville community

While the poverty rate in rural central Virginia has decreased, poverty among the urban population in Charlottesville has increased, University sociology Prof.

Hylton trial decision expected

A decision is expected tomorrow in the civil lawsuit University alumna Anne Hylton filed against alumnus Matthew Hamilton for an alleged rape that occurred in December 2001, seeking $1.5 million in damages. Hylton brought a complaint against Hamilton to the University's Sexual Assault Board in March 2002, according to The Hook.

A Work in Progress: Women at U.Va.

Men may no longer stamp their feet to intimidate women when they enter the classroom or answer a question in class, but today at the University a variety of challenges still exist for many women ranging from self-esteem issues to a limited number of female faculty to a controversial procedure for reporting sexual assaults. Raising the bar? Though the University was one of the top schools in the country prior to 1970, it still enrolled a significant number of students who were less academically inclined.

Black Student Alliance holds town hall meeting

In light of recent racial incidents on and near Grounds directed toward University students, the Black Student Alliance opened its first meeting of the year to University administrators and student leaders in order to discuss the recent events and related issues yesterday. While the meeting did not outline specific plans of action, it gave community members a chance to voice their concerns and share their experiences. "We should feel good about what we are doing, not good about what has happened," said Leonard Sandridge, University executive vice president and chief operating officer. The meeting highlighted education and awareness within the University concerning hate incidents and crimes. "I think this year we are really focusing on education," BSA President Aaron Blake said.

Charlottesville airport turns 50

The Charlottesville Airport is celebrating 50 years of service to the local area. The airport, now half a century old, looks much different today then it did fifty years ago, and more changes are in the works, airport officials said. "There are many changes in the past 15 years I guess," said Bill Kehoe, a University Commerce professor and former chair of the Charlottesville Airport Board.

Exhibit reveals off-Grounds housing history

Turns out the demand for off-Grounds housing is not a new trend in Charlottesville. In fact, a new exhibit looks at the history of accommodations available to student beyond University Grounds. An exhibit highlighting the history of off-Grounds student housing is scheduled to open this Friday at the Albemarle-Charlottesville Historical Society located downtown and will run through December. The exhibit, entitled "Boarding Houses: Living off Jefferson's Lawn," is a product of a year-long research project by students in Assoc.

Council groups set goals, plans for school year

Student Council kicked off the new school year last night with what Council President Jequeatta Upton described as "a makeshift substitute retreat" to review Council procedures. Council representatives, committee chairs and administrative cabinet members convened to discuss and review their respective responsibilities and duties. Council as a whole will officially discuss the budget next week, Vice President of Administration Okey Udmaga said. Upton said she is looking forward to working with the new governing body. "I'm really excited about the upcoming year," Upton said.

Free Food draws a crowd

U.Va. accepts architect submissions for art center

Architecture firms and notable architects from all over the world are contending to design a new Arts Center for the University.

Netbadge seeks to eliminate multiple logins

The NetBadge software is changing the way students and faculty utilize University Web services, requiring users to submit their computing I.D.

University's College at Wise sees increased enrollment

The University's College at Wise continues its trend of increasing enrollment this year, reaching 1,960 students as of yesterday. "We had set out an institutional goal to reach 2,000 students by 2010, but we may break the goal this fall," Director of College Relations for Wise Jane Meade-Dean said. The number has increased greatly from the 1,836 enrollment for last year's census.