In a move that student journalists say could restrict their voice on campus, Catholic University of America's Michael Hendricks, vice president for Enrollment Management, decided to end institutional scholarships for the campus newspaper, yearbook and student government.
The student newspaper and yearbook have annually received one full scholarship each, worth the university's approximately $24,000 tuition, which is divided among the publications' student staffs. The Undergraduate Student Government has received one and a half full scholarships, with a half scholarship given to the president and a quarter scholarship to each of the vice presidents.
Peter Bowman, editor in chief of the yearbook, The Cardinal, said he was told the scholarships were going to be reallocated to the Financial Aid Department. He said he believed that in addition to financial reasons, the school may have also made the cuts to restrict the student voice on campus.
Ties between CUA's Public Affairs office and the school's newspaper, The Tower, became strained in October 2004, when the newspaper reported on CUA's rejection of a student application to form a campus chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, a decision that was later reversed.
The Tower also reported that CUA refused to allow actor Stanley Tucci to speak on campus in October as part of a film festival. Tucci's support of abortion rights is against traditional Catholic values, and CUA does not allow people whose opinions differ from these values to speak on campus.
"The Catholic Church does not like people questioning their policies, and with us being the Catholic University of America, I think that doctrine is starting to come down upon the school," Bowman said.
After the university barred Tucci from speaking, several professors spoke out against the policy. The Tower gave coverage to these professors.
Phil Essington, editor in chief of The Tower, attempted to contact Executive Director of Public Affairs Victor Nakas for a story in October. Nakas e-mailed Essington to say that due to The Tower's recent coverage, he will have "no more dealings" with Essington or Tower staff members. Since then, Nakas has not replied to any of The Tower's requests for comment on any stories, nor have Susan Pervi, vice president for Student Life, or University President Father David O'Connell.
"No one, from the president to the vice presidents to the director of public affairs, has ever told me that anything in any of the articles was inaccurate or unfair," Essington said.
Nakas declined to comment for this story.
Essington said that administrators indicated to him that they considered making these new cuts last August.
On Feb. 8, he and Kate McGovern, The Tower managing editor, met with William Jonas, director of student programs and events, Essington said. He was then informed of the possibility of cuts, Essington said, but Jonas told him nothing was certain at that point.
On Feb. 24, Essington met again with Jonas and his staff, as well as CUA Dean of Students Jonathan Sawyer. He was informed that the cuts were official and there would be no transition help. According to Essington, Pervi did not attend this meeting.
Pervi did not respond to repeated calls from The Eagle.
Yearbook editor Bowman was upset with the way administration informed students of the cuts.
"How I found out was disrespectful to me," Bowman said. "Their actions show a lack of respect for students and for the work that we do."
Essington said that of the 10 Tower staffers who received partial scholarships this year, six are not graduating in May and were counting on receiving scholarship again for the following year.
"If administration wants to review scholarships, I think that's healthy to do," Essington said. "But I wish I would have been consulted on this, just to tell them that in my opinion ... at a school that doesn't have a journalism program, finding people to do serious journalism is very difficult.
"In future years, I think it will be impossible to find enough people to be committed to The Tower, if they are not able to be compensated in any way."
Jonas indicated that the Office of Student Life would consider ways to find money elsewhere to help transition the student organizations from losing the scholarships, according to Essington.
However, "the Student Life Office has done nothing to help us," Essington said.
