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Serving the Rutgers community since 1869. Independent since 1980.
rutgers university—new brunswick
ThursdAy, October 24, 2013
ONLINE AT DAILYTARGUM.COM
Breaches in U. residence hall security raise eyebrows By Shawn Smith Correspondent
Every now and then, various menus from local eateries appear underneath doors in residence halls. But what is stopping these people from knocking on the door to tell occupants about their “specials,” or even going into unlocked rooms? How do they get in the building in the first place? The Daily Targum visited various residence halls Saturday night to see how accessible they actually are, and the results are unsettling. Out of seven halls visited, only one denied access to outside visitors. While Buildings A and B of the Livingston Apartments have a desk that anyone entering or exiting the building must pass, Building C has a secondary door with swipe access into the lounge. The desks do not have anyone checking IDs until around 8 p.m., and no one is present during the day. From the investigation, most residents would allow anyone yelling a simple “Hold the door!” into the buildings, regardless of whether or not they live there. This breach of security opens up the possibility of
multiple problems for residents in the hall. Lt. Brian Emmett of the Rutgers University Police Department said in an email statement that safety within residence halls is a priority. During peak hours of traffic in and out of the buildings, Residence Life has staff stationed at the entrances to check Rutgers IDs and housing keys and also sign in guests. “Residence Life staff conducts nightly rounds to safeguard residents,” he said. At Quad 2 on Livingston campus, students again held the door open and allowed access to their building as well as the adjoining buildings through the tunnel system underneath the buildings. Multiple doors were open, some to rooms without occupants inside. Inside the Quads, instead of a check-in desk at the entrance, residents inside the buildings know the Resident Assistants walk around and check rooms. On the College Avenue campus, a student in Mettler Hall allowed an individual inside and held the door open for outside visitors. See HALL on Page 5
Out of seven residence halls visited by members of The Daily Targum staff, only Rockoff Hall in downtown New Brunswick denied access to outside visitors. THE DAILY TARGUM / SEPTEMBER 2012
Left: Bruce Schwendeman, a Rutgers alumnus, owns Schwendeman’s Taxidermy Studio on South Main Street in Milltown, N.J. His grandfather and father passed down their knowledge of the trade to him. Right: His store features many mountain specimens like polar bears and moose. SHIRLEY YU / ASSOCIATE PHOTO EDITOR
Renowned alumnus continues family taxidermy tradition By Alex Meier Associate News Editor
Flesh-eating beetles are not normally mentioned in dinner conversations, but when the cast and crew of AMC’s “The Walking Dead” broke bread with Rutgers alumnus Bruce Schwendeman, this was the main topic of discussion. With three generations of taxidermists, the Schwendemans have established a name for themselves — a reason for Hollywood to turn to
Schwendeman for expert advice on critters and crawlers. By definition, taxidermy is the craft in which the skin of a dead animal is removed, treated and repositioned over an artificial body to create an illusion of life. But Schwendeman wants to emphasize that his craft combines the visual aestheticism of art and the deductive knowledge of science. Schwendeman is technically a taxidermist, but prefers to call himself a “taxidermologist.”
“Taxidermist[s] — a lot of them just do the work, but I research and study its history and consult with museums and nature centers and other people — book writers, authors, artists,” he said. The family tradition began when his grandfather, Arthur Schwendeman, was nine years old. He would skip school to hunt, fish and trap outdoors. Afraid the hooky-playing habits would prevent him from graduating, Arthur Schwendeman’s teacher proposed a compromise —
if Arthur Schwendeman attended class, he could learn about taxidermy after school. Over the years, Arthur Schwendeman practiced mounting — the process of putting the skin onto a mannequin — in his friend’s studio until eventually he mastered the trade. When he married his wife, Lillian Falk Schwendeman, the two opened Schwendeman’s Taxidermy Studio on South Main Street in Milltown, N.J. — the same store Bruce Schwendeman works in today.
Lillian Falk Schwendeman was responsible for skinning the animals and handling customers, and her husband took care of mounting the treated skins. The couple worked side-by-side for 50 years. Arthur Schwendeman passed the trade onto his son, David Schwendeman, who Bruce Schwendeman said had a natural artistic talent for woodcarving, painting and sculpture. After gaining some See TRADITION on Page 6
VOLUME 145, ISSUE 158 • university ... 3 • metro ... 7 • ON The Wire ... 8 • opinions ... 10 • diversions ... 12 • classifieds ... 14 • SPORTS ... BACK