Students responsible for future of D-DayI am writing to ask for help from student leaders and the student body with the planning of Dandelion Day this year. Scheduled for April 26, it is a much anticipated event on the school calendar that marks both the arrival of spring and the end of the academic year.
The formal part of the program is planned each year by the Campus Activities Board working with students from various groups and staff. CAB works hard to organize an enjoyable and safe program. Residential Life monitors activity in the halls carefully, as do staff and security throughout the day.
In spite of all of our efforts, there continues to be concern for the overall safety of students during that day.
For these reasons, the College is taking a serious look at the viability of D-Day for the future and at this point, is removing the event from the official College calendar for next year.
This will be a critical year in evaluating the program for the future. To that end, The College has asked CAB to look seriously at how they might begin to fundamentally change the nature of this day, but CAB cannot be expected to do this alone.
I am asking the student body to consider ways that they can help contribute to this program and to bring balance to the day’s activities. I urge all students with ideas to bring them forward and for groups to contribute their own programs and efforts to the day. I am counting on the student body to bring about the change that is needed to make it safe and fun.
I am interested at this point in other students assuming an equal share in making this day something better than it is. I encourage you to contact CAB’s Chairperson, Jason Smith, and their Student Activities adviser, Melissia Schmidt, with your ideas and proposals by April 11 in order for the day’s calendar of events to be finalized.
Any students who would like to discuss these plans or your ideas for the day are welcome to attend the CAB planning meetings on Monday at noon in the Wilson Commons 121.
Please remember that it is you, the students, who have the responsibility to make this happen.-Jody Asbury Dean of Students
Parking office should rethink policyI think that we can all agree that the parking situation has its flaws.I am fed up. I paid for a permit to park in Valentine. Sometimes, as many of you know, the lot is extremely crowded and there are no spots left.
At this time, many are forced to park in the grass or even make their own spots. There are no “no parking zone” signs in this lot, besides the ones next to the basement. I was forced to park beside a car in which there was not a clear spot due to overcrowding.
I received a ticket. Do you know what the parking office suggested I do in the future? I am supposed to park in the lot next door or the one across the street.
And yet, what do you think would have happened if I had done this? Yep, you guessed it – a ticket. The bottom line is that, if my lot is crowded due to a parking office error, then I will be forced to pay a ticket.
Regardless of this, parking spaces are expensive and I did not pay this money so that I could park next door to my own lot.
The parking office has oversold parking spaces because this school wants extra money. When this happens, the people who distribute the tickets need to show more understanding regarding their distribution.
The parking office should rethink their policy regarding the selling of parking permits. They should not sell more permits than there are spaces and if they do, the students should not be penalized.-Cynthia Allen Class of 2005
Support our troopsI am ashamed to be in Rochester right now. Protests have raged on even as American and British troops fight in Iraq.
People spout off how they are doing this because they are Americans, and that they have read the First Amendment and know what they’re doing is legal.
No one is arguing about whether they can protest, but if they should protest. U.S. troops would die for the people who are protesting, essentially, against them.
It’s time for people to stand up, be Americans and support the men and women that are fighting on our behalf.-David Van scott Class of 2006
Minority voiceI am a student living in Susan B. Anthony Hall and I am running a small club called Students for Saddam’s Destruction. We post daily flyers in the stairs and on the walls of Sue B. to let residents know that there is another voice on campus.
We abhor war as much as any person, but in cases such as Iraq, we support the president. We respect the anti-war majority sentiment on campus, but we do not agree with it, that is the cause for our flyer campaign.
For example, one of our flyers posted on March 25 was intended to bring to attention Saddam’s Fedayeen guard that is authorized to behead Iraqi women from households of political dissenters.
We are trying to educate students on the many atrocities that occur under Saddam’s regime and the pressing need for us to stop him. However, we have found that our flyers are ripped down in a matter of hours or even minutes of posting, while leaving flyers posted around ours alone.
We believe this act is disrespectful to those who are currently in the minority and does not allow us to make our voices heard.
We feel that those who take down our flyers are trying to censor us and to shield other students from our opinions. We will be heard. -Dan Boyar Class of 2006
