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Campus calendar

By Brian Kalish | February 8

Thursday, Feb. 8 "Forced Labor and Slavery: The Other Side of Trafficking" 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Washington College of Law, room 603 This event will explore the causes of forced labor, common scenarios of slavery, the consequences victims face and what is being done to combat slavery.

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Kogod Case Competition devises business strategies

By Howard Perlman | February 8

The 15th annual Kogod Gartenhaus Financial Case Competition began Tuesday when 26 teams were first allowed to view a business problem and devise a strategy on how to solve it. This year's question was announced Feb. 6 at 11:59 p.m. and involved a Latin American handmade goods exporting firm that is experiencing negative cash flows.

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MGC summer construction aims to make Tavern 'student center'

By Brian Kalish | February 8

Newly updated architectural plans have recently been delivered to the university for the reconstruction of the Mary Graydon Center's first floor, which will take place over the summer. The architectural plans for the renovations are currently 50 percent complete, according to Mike Elmore, senior director of the University Center.

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Conference says journalism dangerous career

By Dyane Jean Francois Fils | February 8

According to Reporters Without Borders, 140 journalists were incarcerated and 81 died while working in 2006, meaning there has never been a more dangerous time to be a journalist. Journalists from several countries discussed the current status of freedom of the press in the international arena at a conference sponsored by Reporters Without Borders at the National Press Club last Thursday.

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Sudan should focus on north- south relations, diplomat says

By Jewel Edwards | February 8

Repairing the uneasy relationship between the northern and southern regions of Sudan is essential to ending the ongoing conflict in Darfur, U.S. Ambassador to Sudan Cameron Hume said in a speech Monday at the University Club of Washington, D.C. AU students also said it was important to mend the relationships within Sudan before the United States intervenes.

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National brief: Suspect in Boston terror scare videotaped bomb squad removing device

By Jimm Phillips | February 8

One of the men arrested and charged in connection with the terrorism scare in Boston last week did not tell bomb squad officers the devices were fake, even as he videotaped them removing one, according to The Associated Press. Surveillance camera footage shows Peter Berdovsky, 27, videotaping bomb squad officers removing one of more than three dozen blinking electronic devices he and Sean Stevens, 28, had placed earlier around the city as part of an advertising campaign for the Cartoon Network's "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" television show.

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Expelled student to appeal ruling

By Allie Feras | February 8

A second-semester senior expelled from AU for discrimination, physical abuse and conduct that endangers others will be submitting an appeal to the Judicial Affairs and Mediation Services and is considering suing the university. Rick Kamdar, formerly a senior in the Kogod School of Business, was expelled for an incident that occurred Nov.

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Author recounts his religious conversions

By Tomer Konowiecki | February 8

It is unlikely to find a Jewish-born American working for a radical Islamic charity group that supports terrorism. While discussing his new book, "My Year Inside Radical Islam," Daveed Gartenstein-Ross said he falls into that improbable category. Gartenstein-Ross spoke at the bookstore Politics and Prose last Sunday.

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AU Catholic priest leaves for new post in Maryland

By Kaitlyn Houston | February 8

Father Zygmunt Kurzawinksi, a priest serving AU's Catholic community, left AU to take another post in Maryland. Kurzawinski announced his reassignment, effective immediately, at Mass on Jan. 28. "Father Zygmunt's sudden departure is shocking to all of us in the Catholic community, but we most certainly understand the importance of his vocation," Danielle Imhoff, president of AU's Catholic Students Association, said.

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Campus brief: Library penny drive raises $500

By Kyra Smerkanich | February 8

The Friends of the American University Library completed its penny drive fund-raiser in December, collecting over 1,300 feet in pennies, according to a Friends of the AU Library press release. The drive asked teams of students, faculty and staff to donate spare change in an effort to buy more books for the library, according to the press release.

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Metro brief: Four students charged in Wilson High gym fight

By Jimm Phillips | February 5

Four students are facing charges after a gym teacher was injured in a fight at Tenleytown's Woodrow Wilson Senior High School Thursday, according to The Washington Post. Approximately 15 people were involved in the fight, which happened during a lunchtime basketball game in the school's gym.

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Some politicians banned from Pa. college

By Elizabeth Royall | February 5

The president of Duquesne University banned Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz, and Barack Obama, D-Ill., as well as Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., from speaking at its law school commencement ceremony, sparking a student-initiated petition. Students at AU expressed mixed reactions about the speakers not being offered speaking invitations.

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AU helps first private college open in Nigeria

By Kaylor Garcia | February 5

The American University of Nigeria-ABTI, or AAUN, will be the first university in sub-Saharan Africa styled after American universities, partially because of the efforts of AU faculty members who have been working with Nigerian Vice President Atiku Abubakar to create the university for the past four years.

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Interns compete for summer jobs

By Jewel Edwards | February 5

Over 25,000 people from across the nation come to the District each summer to intern, according to the Heather Ball, an internship adviser in the Career Center. The large number of hopefuls increases competition for the same internship positions with some of the nation's top companies and agencies.

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Campus briefs

February 5

Undergraduate Senate confirms three positions The Undergraduate Senate confirmed the appointments of two new senators and a new deputy director of design for the Student Government on Sunday. Sarah Weinstein, a freshman in the School of International Studies, filled the vacant Class of 2010 seat, and Adrian Ghisoiu, a senior in the School of Public Affairs, filled the vacant Class of 2007 seat.

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Competition features modular dorm rooms

By Alyssa Geisler | February 5

Nothing will keep dirty dishes and clothes from littering a typical dorm room, but a competition held by the Association of College and University Housing Officials-International last week focused on what changes will be made in the future to improve college housing, just as some new housing options are coming to AU.

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Students "don't trust" Health Center

By Ali Goldstein | February 5

Frustrated by the Student Health Center's inconvenient hours and less than extensive care, some AU students said they are now seeking health care elsewhere. Caroline Basile's frustration with the Health Center peaked when she ended up in the hospital a month after being told by a Health Center official, "take these [pills] and you'll be fine.

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