News

News

National brief: Vote on Iraq War troop increase blocked in Senate

By Jimm Phillips | February 19

Supporters of a nonbinding resolution criticizing President Bush's decision to deploy an additional 21,500 troops to Iraq were not able to get the number of votes needed to advance the Senate version of the measure on Saturday, according to The Associated Press.

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First female prez elected at Harvard

By Kaitlyn Houston | February 19

The Harvard Corporation elected Drew Gilpin Faust as the first woman to serve as Harvard University's president in its 371-year history on Feb. 11. "This is a great day, and a historic day, for Harvard," James R. Houghton, the senior member of the Harvard Corporation and chair of the presidential search committee, said in a press release.

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News

Article says online sources diminish need for library

By Patricio Chile | February 19

Students prefer online resources and databases to traditional print sources in libraries, according to an article in Educause Review. This switch to online sources has led libraries to change the services they offer to meet students' more high-tech needs.

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News

Metro calendar

By Rebecca Kern | February 19

Monday, Feb. 19 George Washington's 275th Birthday 9 a.m.-4 p.m. George Washington's Mount Vernon Estates and Gardens, 3200 George Washington Memorial Parkway, Mount Vernon, Va. The event will be held 16 miles south of Washington, D.C., and eight miles south of Old Town Alexandria at the southern end of the George Washington Memorial Parkway at Mount Vernon Estate.

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News

E-package system shortens wait time

By Kyra Smerkanich | February 19

AU's new electronic package system is up and running successfully, according to Catherine Gannon, guest and public relations coordinator for Housing and Dining. Gannon described the system as a collaboration between the Office of Information and Technology, Mail Services and Housing and Dining.

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News

Sold-out Founder's Day a 'success'

By Andrew Gardner | February 19

The annual AU Student Government Founder's Day Ball proved a "great success," as more than 500 students packed into the historic Willard Intercontinental Hotel ballroom Saturday night in downtown D.C., according to Derek Torrey, deputy programmer for the SG and a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs.

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News

RAs in N.Y. fired for their video portrayal of Muslims

By Jewel Edwards | February 15

Five resident assistants from the C.W. Post campus of Long Island University were fired after portraying Muslim kidnappers in a homemade video. Some AU students said the video was indecent and insensitive to the Muslim community. The university fired the Brookville Hall resident assistants because administrators said the video violated their RA employment contract and reflected insensitivity.

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News

Bush's FY '08 budget increases federal loan limits for students

By Howard Perlman | February 15

AU students may soon be affected by the Bush administration's proposal to increase the federal loan limits for undergraduates and graduates. The proposed increases were first made public Feb. 5 with the release of President Bush's Budget of the United States Government for the fiscal year 2008.

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News

Health Center to offer HPV vaccine

By Kim Selman | February 15

The Health Center is expected to make available its first shipment of Gardasil, the Human Papillomavirus vaccine, by the end of this month, according to the Health Center's Web site. HPV, as the virus is more commonly referred to, is a sexually transmitted disease that will infect approximately 50 percent of sexually active people in their lives, according to the Centers for Disease Control Web site.

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News

Metro brief: D.C. government may pass law to ban job discrimination against ex-felons

By Jimm Phillips | February 15

Employers in the District will not be able to look at an applicant's criminal history until after a job offer is made if a proposed bill is passed by the D.C. City Council, according to The Washington Post. If enacted, the Human Rights for Ex-Offenders Act would also allow an employer to only look at the last 10 years of an applicant's criminal record.

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News

ANC asks AU to do more about off-campus disruption

By Robyn Slagle | February 15

Local community Advisory Neighborhood Commission 3D members voted at their monthly public meeting on Feb. 7 in favor of a proposed renovation and expansion of AU's McKinley Building. The ANC's favorable vote included a series of conditions, which were prompted by reports of disruptive behavior in off-campus houses.

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News

Civil rights activist says non-violence important

By Allie Feras | February 15

Non-violence is not just a technique or tactic, but a way of life, Rep. John Lewis told students, faculty and other members of the AU community Monday night. "War is obsolete as a tool of our foreign policy," Lewis, D-Ga., said in a speech at the Kay Spiritual Life Center.

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News

National brief: Kansas Ed Board repeals anti-evolution curriculum

By Jimm Phillips | February 15

The Kansas State Board of Education repealed a set of anti-evolution science curriculum guidelines Tuesday, which had earned the state worldwide notoriety, according to The Associated Press. The old set of guidelines, passed in 2005 with the strong backing of supporters of intelligent design, included language that suggested evolutionary concepts like the common origin of all life on Earth were controversial and were being challenged by newer research.

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News

Brooking project to track, encourage volunteerism

By Dyane Jean Francois Fils | February 15

Several AU students and staff are helping develop the Brookings Institution's Initiative on International Service, which aims to double the number of American citizens who volunteer overseas by 2010. The Initiative plans to do so by pulling resources from a diverse group of organizations, such as corporations, NGOs and higher education institutions.

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News

Campus briefs

February 15

Senate Republican to keynote WCL Conference on International Migration Senator Richard Burr, R-N.C., will keynote a Washington College of Law conference focusing on the legal aspects of international migration, according to a WCL press release. The conference, titled "A World on the Move: Legal Perspectives on a New Era of International Migration," will take place Feb.

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Campus calendar

By Brian Kalish | February 15

Thursday, Feb. 15 "A World on the Move: Legal Perspectives on a New Era of International Migration" 11:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Washington College of Law, room 603 The program will examine the multidimensional aspects of international migration, particularly the international protection of refugees and displaced persons, the economic implications of international migration and the linkage between state sovereignty, security and international migration.

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News

Gallaudet's retention increases to 'adequate'

By Jen Calantone | February 15

A year has passed since the federal Office of Management and Budget deemed Gallaudet University as "ineffective" in retaining and graduating students. This year, according to a report by the Office of Management and Budget, Gallaudet has been promoted to "adequate" status, despite its still low retention rate of around 40 percent.

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