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Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026
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Calif. students to vote on gay marriage ban

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AU students from California will be able to consider Proposition 8, an initiative to ban gay marriage in the state, on their Nov. 4 election ballot. In May, the state's Supreme Court ruled that individuals of the same sex had the right to marry and be recognized by the state, according to information on the California Secretary of State's Web site.

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National brief

Two individuals were charged Friday in a foiled killing spree in Tennessee that targeted 102 blacks and was meant to end with the assassination of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama. Daniel Cowart, 20, and Paul Schlesselman, 18, were charged with possession of a sawed-off shotgun, conspiracy to rob a federal firearms licensee and the threatened assassination of a presidential candidate, according to the Washington Times.

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Registration simplified with waitlist system

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AU students may not face the same difficulties they did with course registration in previous semesters because of improvements to the wait-list system, according to University Registrar Linda Bolden-Pitcher. A major change in the wait-list process was put in place last spring to apply to this fall semester's classes.

BLUE OUT - Sam Hagedorn, a freshman in the School of Public Affairs, speaks at the AU College Democrats' Blue Fest '08, encouraging students to sign up to canvas for Obama in Virginia so that he wins, bringing change to Washington.
News

Views move left in college

A study on how students' politics change over the course of their time in college has raised discussion at AU about what and who are the most significant influences on a person's political beliefs. College students are decidedly more liberal by the time they reach junior year than they were as freshmen, according to a recent study done by the University of California, Los Angeles' Higher Education Research Institute.


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Police blotter

Oct. 21 A Public Safety aide reported an unconscious student in a bathroom. When officers arrived, the student appeared to be intoxicated but was conscious and coherent. The student stated he was not intoxicated but was suffering from a severe stomach ailment.


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Baylor buys SAT scores

Baylor University's recent discontinuation of a policy to compensate students for retaking the SATs prompted discussion about the emphasis colleges place on nationwide rankings. The university, located in Waco, Texas, offered incoming freshman students $300 in bookstore credit to retake the SATs this past June.


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Core Survey shows AU drinks above national average rate

AU students drink alcohol more often and in greater numbers than average college students nationwide, according to results of a college drug and alcohol survey made available Friday. More than 50 percent of surveyed AU students reported binge drinking in the last two weeks, according to the Core Alcohol and Drug Survey, which AU administered in February.


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Economy spurs enrollment concerns for '09

AU professors are currently uncertain of exactly how the economic crisis will affect enrollment for the 2009-2010 academic year. "With parents' stock portfolios plummeting, it makes private schools look out of reach with their tuition," said Martha Starr, an economics professor in the College of Arts and Sciences.


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National brief

NEW ASSESSMENT TEST REVEALED FOR FALL The College Board, which owns the SAT and PSAT, announced Wednesday they will debut a new high school assessment test in the fall. The test is anticipated to better prepare eighth graders to face the challenges of high school and college-level courses, according to The New York Times.


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Bank robber still on the loose

AU Public Safety Chief Michael McNair sent an e-mail Oct. 20 to the AU community asking for assistane in identifying a suspect in connection with an Oct. 2 robbery at a Bank of America branch by the Washington College of Law. "The bank branch is one frequented by members of the AU Community and the neighborhood, [and] it was hoped that someone recognized the suspect," he said in the e-mail.


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Alpha Kappa Psi holds business competition

Alpha Kappa Psi, AU's professional business fraternity, held its first Pentathlon event Saturday in an effort to take the business skills they have learned in their Kogod School of Business classrooms and apply them to real life situations, according to the fraternity's President Myca Ferrer.


EVACUATION - The Metropolitan Police Department forced students, staff and family members to leave Bender Arena, Butler Pavilion and Mary Graydon Center on Saturday afternoon after an abandoned briefcase on the parking garage's fourth floor was suspected
News

Scare clears complex

A bomb scare interrupted AU's Family and Alumni Weekend, cancelled a Kennedy Political Union event and raised concern over AU's safety for several hours Saturday afternoon. An undisclosed person left a briefcase, which was later found to contain photo equipment, on the fourth floor of the parking garage adjacent to Bender Arena and the Butler Pavilion.


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Free speech forum angers AU audience

The AU Objectivists' free speech forum ended in boos and snickers Thursday as many audience members stormed out of the room and threw their hands up in disgust due to the comments the panelists made regarding Islam. The forum sought to discuss the role of free speech in a free society and how totalitarian Islam was a threat to that principle.


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S.E. Asian cultures celebrated

The South Asian Student Association celebrated AU diversity with a variety show of South Asian culture and a night of dancing at its first annual cultural show Friday night in the Tavern. Jalwa, held the weekend of the Indian festival Diwali, represented different aspects of primarily Indian culture, with acts including an ongoing humorous skit about arranged marriage, classical Indian dance and an energy-filled Bollywood performance.


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Metro brief

RED AND SILVER METRO BUSES DEBUT Metro's 15 new red and silver buses will debut Monday, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority officials told The Washington Post. The buses will run along the U8 line, which runs between the Capitol Heights Metrorail station in Prince George's County, Md.


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International brief

SWAZILAND EXPECTED TO ELIMINATE MALARIA Experts Wednesday predicted Swaziland to potentially be the second country in the Southern African Development Community to eliminate malaria, according to the Inter Press Service. The SADC Malaria Strategic Plan lists Swaziland, South Africa, Botswana and Namibia as countries in the area where elimination is nearly complete.


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AU pedals bikes onto campus

AU is shifting transportation gears with a free bike rental program, paralleling the recent trend among many universities to increase student bike use. Ryan Bodge, director of AU's Bike Share and a senior in the School of International Service, said the program started as a way to encourage alternate forms of transportation and to make city transportation easier for students.


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College Republicans top College Dems in Party Feud debate

The College Republicans came out on top of the College Democrats at the Kennedy Political Union's own version of "Family Feud," known as Party Feud, Wednesday in the Tavern. The game, a political spin on the game show, ended in an overwhelming victory for the College Republicans, 380-88.


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Campus brief

COMMUNITY CALLED TO GIVE INPUT ON STRATEGIC PLAN In an effort to gain the AU community's feedback on the strategic planning process, the Strategic Planning Steering Committee will hold its final town hall forum Tuesday. This will be the final community-wide discussion of the Strategic Plan before the board of trustees reviews the plan in mid-November, according to the Strategic Plan Web site.


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Public Safety response scrutinized

AU Public Safety and some university students disagree about whether officers responded appropriately to a medical emergency in Mary Graydon Center Wednesday evening. A male student fell and began having a seizure in MGC's lobby around 5:05 p.m. Public Safety officers arrived roughly five to six minutes after the initial call, according to University Center Assistant Director of Operations Patrick Ledesma who witnessed the incident.



Section 202 hosts Connor Sturniolo and Gabrielle McNamee are joined by fellow Eagle staff member and phenomenal sports photographer, Josh Markowitz. Follow along as they discuss the United Football League and the benefits it provides for the world of professional football.


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