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NIJ grant to fund DNA research for sexual assault cases

With a grant from the National Institute of Justice in Washington, researchers at the University Health System are looking to improve scientific techniques used to identify offenders in sexual assault cases. Richard Rau, NIJ senior program manager for forensic sciences, said the project aims to decrease the enormous backlog of forensic evidence sitting in crime laboratories. Cell biologists, with the aid of $300,000 in funding, are looking at ways to pull male sperm cells away from cells of the sexual assault victim.


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DOJ releases campus rape statistics

According to a recent Justice Department report, nearly 3 percent of college women will experience rape or attempted rape each academic year. The researchers interviewed 4,446 women attending two- or four-year colleges. In the survey, 2.8 percent of women reported they had been raped or had escaped an attempted rape.


News

Report shows drop in doctorates

For the first time in 14 years, the number of doctorates awarded by American research universities decreased. The National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago announced the drop in Ph.D.s Monday after releasing the findings of its 1999 data. According to the released report, the decline in the number of Ph.D.s awarded affected almost every discipline at colleges and universities around the nation. The largest drop occurred in engineering, which experienced a 9.8 percent decrease, followed by the physical sciences, which showed a 6.2 percent drop. Social sciences, humanities and education were affected least. But the University did not experience the decreasing trend.


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Leadership center opens doors

The Leadership Resource Center opened its doors yesterday, encouraging both experienced and new leaders to take advantage of the University's newest assets. The new resource center will "provide students with the tools to become a good leader," Asst.


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Miller Center commissions election study

The University's Miller Center of Public Affairs and The Century Foundation, a public policy think tank, announced Tuesday the organization of the National Commission on Federal Election Reform. Former Presidents Carter and Ford will be honorary co-chairs of the bipartisan commission. The commission "will look at changes that could be made at the federal level to improve the voting process," said Margaret Edwards, director of external relations for the Miller Center.


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Council to defund four student groups

In an unprecedented move, the Student Council Appropriations Committee decided to follow appropriations rules that exclude religious and political student organizations from funding. Each year, the Board of Visitors charges Student Council with the task of appropriating funds from the Student Activities Fee to various student organizations on Grounds. In past years, Council neglected to follow the specific guidelines given for this process by the Board.


News

Hybris virus laughs its way into University computers

Melissa. I love you. Hahaha. These are the innocent-sounding names of some of the recent high-risk e-mail viruses that have paralyzed workplaces across the globe. Most recently, University students had unfortunate run-ins with Hybris, commonly known as the "hahaha" or "Snow White" virus.


News

Civil Rights Web site offers educators new teaching tool

Educators across the country will now have access to extensive Civil Rights movement documents, thanks to a Web site designed by Dorothy Vasquez-Levy, an assistant professor in the University's Curry School. Driven by a desire to educate students on recent history, Vasquez-Levy has embarked on a mission to make the expansive database available to teachers and students everywhere. Vasquez-Levy is now conducting research to develop a Web site serving as a "content-based curriculum" for teachers K-12. The database will incorporate a vast spectrum of multimedia resources.


News

Proposal aims to expand Nursing School

Nursing School Dean Jeanette Lancaster recently proposed a 30,000- square-foot addition to the Nursing School that will allow the school to enroll more students and address the pressing nursing shortage at University Hospital. The proposed expansion of McLeod Hall, introduced at the Board of Visitors meeting, will cost an estimated $13.2 million over the next three years. University Hospital's nursing shortage is part of a national trend in which medical facilities are struggling to retain full nursing staffs. "We have absolutely outgrown our building," Lancaster said.


News

Program gives law students time to teach

The courtroom can wait, at least for some aspiring lawyers. The Law School recently formed a partnership with Teach for America that will enable future law students to defer admission and teach full-time for two years as part of the program. TFA is a private national organization that offers college graduates with bachelor's degrees the chance to teach for two years at one of 17 low-income public schools around the country.


News

Can quakes hit Virginia?

They have leveled buildings, flattened cities and villages, killed people around the world and caused up to $20 billion worth of damage at once.


News

Honor Committee begins education campaign

Over the next few weeks, University students will be bombarded with information concerning four honor referenda that will appear on the Student Council ballot at the end of February. Honor educators are mounting one of the largest education campaigns in recent history to inform students around Grounds about the proposed amendments to the Honor constitution. The proposed amendments include changing the role of oral advocates at trial, removing consideration of seriousness in cases of academic cheating, changing the composition of juries and changing the vote required for a guilty verdict. "This education effort is unequal to anything the Honor Committee has attempted" in the past, Honor Committee Chairman Thomas Hall said. Throughout the month of February, honor educators plan to hold forums, meet with several student organizations, pass out informative pamphlets, and lobby faculty members for support of the referenda.


News

ITC plans new site for student portal

Information Technology and Communications planners and student leaders unveiled their plan last night for an interactive student portal to the University's Web site. The plan, discussed at a technology forum sponsored by the Student Information Technology Advisory Committee and ITC, will consist of a Web site designed to give students access to several different forms of individualized information. "The student portal will provide students with the information central to their everyday lives in one location," said Ben Hallen, student council chief technology officer. The student portal would give students an easier and quicker means of communication and giving them easy accessto all the information pertinent to their everyday lives, Hallen said. In its early phase, the Web site would be designed for each individual student and include access to e-mail, class information and a calendar of all the important University events. ITC staff members said they are unsure of the usefulness of the proposed Web site.


News

Council to amend election procedure

Student Council voted last night to change its election rules in hopes the process will increase student involvement. "These bylaw changes will clean up the bylaws and hopefully institute a set of election rules that spell out what candidates can and can't do," said Executive Vice-President Matt Madden. The election rule changes will focus on increasing the number of candidates in schools with a smaller student population. The number of signatures needed for a candidate to run in the upcoming election was lowered for every school except for the College in order to increase participation in Council elections.


News

Parking and Transportation selects White as new director

The University has a new face trying to solve the parking and transportation problems on Grounds, but parking regulations are likely to stay the same. Based on recommendations from a community-wide search committee, the University appointed Rebecca White as director of parking and transportation earlier this month. "Her knowledge and expertise in both the parking and transportation fields, her understanding and appreciation of the complexities of providing service in an academic and medical center setting, her commitment to improving customer service and her demonstrated leadership skills clearly distinguished Ms. White as the most qualified candidate," said Richard Kovatch, business operations assistant vice president. While the Department of Parking and Transportation has many plans to change parking areas, no changes will be made in regulations, White said. "I'm looking forward to building off the foundation that has already been laid," she said. One of White's main duties will be dealing with limited parking caused by Clark Hall renovations. There are plans to compensate for the loss, and the department is always looking for opportunities to expand parking, White said. "We're going to receive funding from [Clark Hall] to place more parking on Grounds.

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Since the Contemplative Commons opening April 4, the building has hosted events for the University community. Sam Cole, Commons’ Assistant Director of Student Engagement, discusses how the Contemplative Sciences Center is molding itself to meet students’ needs and provide a wide range of opportunities for students to discover contemplative practices that can help them thrive at the University.