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News

AU alum helps children in Madagascar

By Lauren Gardner | January 19

Dana Dunne, class of '99, decided to use her past work and volunteer experience to start a program for the hungry - in Madagascar, one of the world's 11 poorest countries, where half of the population is malnourished. Dunne, a former Peace Corps volunteer, started Project Smile with three teachers from the American School in Antananarivo in December to help improve the Home for Malnourished Children in the city.

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National briefs

January 19

Apple releases new 2006 laptop line The new year brings Apple fans two welcome gifts: a new desktop iMac and a new line of professional laptops called the MacBook Pro laptop, which Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled last week at an Apple trade show. The machines use new Intel chips, after Apple used IBM's PowerPC chips for years.

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News

Campus Calendar

By Kate Oczypok | January 19

Friday, Jan. 20 New Plays Workshop Series 2: "Happy.Go.Lucky" 8 p.m., Katzen Arts Center, Studio Theatre Through 21 Jan. "Happy.Go.Lucky" is an award-winning play by Chicago-based playwright Tania Richard.Richard has appeared at Chicago's Goodman Theatre and Steppenwolf Theatre, and on Broadway.

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News

Professors miss grade deadlines, frustrate students

By Kate Oczypok and Tiffany Heimbuch-Maybee | January 19

Some AU students are unhappy with the amount of time professors took to post their grades online at the end of the fall semester. "Grades are posted 72 hours after a student's last class," said Linda Bolden-Pitcher, the university registrar. "This has actually been one of our better grade submission periods.

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News

Police blotter

By Josh Goodman | January 19

Monday, Jan. 2 A Public Safety officer discovered that someone had written the American University logo in black marker on a wall in Anderson Hall. The phrase "Tammy is the woman" was discovered written on a different wall in Anderson Hall, also with black marker.

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Classroom laptop use stirs debate

By Kendra Garstka | January 19

Laptops can be a useful classroom aid for note taking or looking up facts as part of a class discussion, but some professors say computers also provide a potential distraction for students. "In the spring '05, I noticed that students were not using them to take notes but to use IM and exchange e-mail," said W.

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News

New teaching position for Mexican diplomats

January 19

With immigration and border control sparking national debate, university officials announced a new, permanent teaching position for Mexican diplomats at AU. After a successful trial run, a Mexican diplomat will start a year-long teaching and research residency at AU in fall 2006.

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News

D.C. Guns Aside Month promotes youth awareness

By Kelly Kerr | January 19

The D.C. City Council along with the gun violence prevention group Reaching Out to Others Together (ROOT, Inc.) declared this January as Guns Aside Month in the District of Columbia, following an 11 percent increase in gun violence in the District of Columbia.

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News

Programs encourages students to explore city

By Kate Oczypok | January 19

AU students have many options this semester to get out and enjoy the city in the Experience D.C. program. The program is based on student and staff input on the types of trips they would like to take, according to the Experience D.C. Web site, www.american.

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News

Low-cost airline permanently grounded

By Kate Oczypok | January 19

Low-cost airline Independence Air, which some AU students said was doomed from its beginning two years ago, permanently grounded all flights last week, disrupting travel plans for some students returning from the winter holiday resulting in fewer travel options and higher prices on other airlines.

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News

AU abroad students prepare for new cultures, countries

By Olga Khazan | December 12

In addition to the impending pressures of finals week, students planning on studying abroad in the spring have the additional task of preparing for a new culture. Although the semester-long process of applications, course selection and gathering official documents can be daunting, the AU Abroad office offers help and guidance to students preparing to go abroad.

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News

National briefs

December 12

Southwest airlines jet skids off runway A Southwest Airlines jet landing at Chicago's Midway International Airport skidded off a runway and slammed into vehicles on a nearby street, killing a 6-year-old boy and injuring 10 others Thursday night. Runway conditions were reported to be "fair to poor" by a pilot who landed just minutes ahead of the jet, according to www.

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Baby panda introduced to the public

By Brian Kalish | December 12

For the first time since his birth five months ago at the National Zoo, baby panda Tai Shan made his public debut Thursday. Timed tickets were required for entry into the Fujifilm Panda House where Tai Shan with his mother Mei Xiang and father. According to Mark Olear, director of Friends of the National Zoo, 10,000 tickets were distributed for special preview days Nov.

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Public Safety gets serious about parking tickets

By Kendra Garstka | December 12

Next year, American University's parking policy will use an independent collection company that will collect fines from parking tickets for students with outstanding accounts, but all other parking policies will remain the same. "The days of people thinking tickets mean nothing is over," said Josh Wilson, Transportation Operations Coordinator.

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Students put off academic work, study says

By Rebecca Kern | December 12

According to the results of a recent study, 70 percent of college students identify themselves as "academic procrastinators" who typically delay starting or finishing their assignments. Joseph R. Ferrari, a psychology professor at DePaul University in Chicago, conducted psychological research to define one who procrastinates frequently as a "chronic procrastinator.

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Semester's end brings room changes

By Tiffany Heimbuch-Maybee | December 12

The end of the semester brings about many changes for students, including the decision to switch residence halls and start over from scratch. Nov. 29 to Dec. 2 marked the "Open Room Change Process", where students were able to stop by the Housing and Dining Office in Anderson Hall.

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Louisiana students bribe registrar for grades

By Jason Oliver | December 12

Southern University announced that it plans to revoke the diplomas of 10 students who bribed a former assistant registrar to illegally change their transcripts, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education. Federal charges have been brought against Cleo Carroll for receiving $9,100 from former students to improve their transcripts between 1995 and 2003 after a two-and-a-half year investigation, according to The Chronicle.

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