Thursday, March 15, 2012

Page 1

Daily

Herald

the Brown

vol. cxxii, no. 35

Thursday, March 15, 2012

UCS eliminates media services fee By Margaret Nickens Senior Staff Writer

James Hunter / Herald

University administrators discussed the upcoming housing renovations during Wednesday’s UCS meeting.

City credit rating falls three grades

continued on page 9

Rosh Hashanah, a Jewish High Holy Day, will coincide with the second and third days of class in 2013, a conflict that will directly impact many members of the Brown community. For many Jewish students and faculty members, Rosh Hashanah entails attending synagogue for two full days, which could prevent them from taking part in shopping period Thursday and Friday. Univer-

sity officials are currently meeting with members of the community to attempt to alleviate difficulties caused by the conflict. The scheduling conflict was approved by faculty members at their February meeting after months of debate. “For a school that’s 20 to 25 percent Jewish, that’s crazy,” said Lex Rofes ’13, president of Hillel. “It’s outrageous. We are making students decide between spiritual life and academic life.”

Several years ago, Interstate 195 ran through the heart of Providence’s Jewelry District. But since it was rerouted, city officials have been planning various uses for the now vacant land, hoping to see the neighborhood become part of a “Providence Renaissance.” Last year, the state created the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission to oversee the neighborhood’s renovation, and the group is now at the recommendation stage. Colin Kane, chairman of the commission, addressed the Fox Point Neighborhood Association Wednesday to inform the group, which represents land under the commission’s jurisdiction, about the

Hot stuff

A bill may overturn the state’s incinerator ban City & State, 9

By cAITLIN TRUJILLO Staff Writer

The first week of shopping period is a key time to attend class — students need to show up and show professors they want to be a part of their classes, Rofes said. “If it’s a seminar, you could be missing the only meeting of the entire week,” he added. To mitigate backlash, University officials are working to ensure no students are adversely affected by the scheduling conflict, said Dean continued on page 2

continued on page 5

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I-195 Commission discusses plans By Adam Toobin Senior Staff Writer

After area robberies, DPS steps up patrols The Department of Public Safety increased security around campus due to robberies in the area last month. In addition to increasing the number of DPS patrol routes, three contracted security officers have also been placed in the area to stave off crime. In light of Tuesday night’s robbery on George Street, DPS is also considering increasing the presence of security officers who patrol on bicycles, said Paul Shanley, deputy chief of police of DPS. DPS also works with the Providence Police Department for the area north of campus, and the Providence police force has also increased their presence there, Shanley said. Violent crime in the area has decreased in recent years, so the robberies that have occurred north of campus within the last three months are unusual, Shanley said. But cities occasionally experience spikes in crime at random intervals. Many of these incidents are crimes of opportunity — suspects taking advantage of people distracted or talking on their phones, Shanley said.

easy as pi

upcoming changes. Kane focused on his plans for the east side of Providence but also described his overall vision for the 20 acres. The commission’s work is immense and complicated, Kane said. “When we started, we had 25 projects embedded in the 20 acres, and we had to figure out how those projects worked with each other and with their surrounding neighborhoods,” he said. The logistics of trying to balance a number of conflicting interests has not always been easy, Kane said. “I will meet with preservation committees for lunch and unions for dinner,” he said. The I-195 Commission received a $250,000 state loan in January for continued on page 7

Emily Gilbert / Herald

Students enjoyed pie across campus Wednesday in celebration of Pi Day.

Post-

poses for Hef, paints air

Post-, inside

weather

By Adam Toobin Senior Staff Writer

Fitch Ratings dropped Providence’s credit rating by three grades from A to BBB yesterday, putting the city only two steps away from junk bond status. The city’s downgrade follows similar declines for Woonsocket and East Providence, which have both had their bonds labeled junk status in the past year. Central Falls, which had its status lowered to Caa1 — indicating that the city’s potential to default would continue to increase — in June, declared bankruptcy in July. “Fitch’s report is confirmation that Providence’s fiscal crisis is real,” said Providence Mayor Angel Taveras in a statement. The external review confirms the need for Providence to reform its pension system and ask for more from local nonprofits, he wrote. Fitch issued the downgrade because of the city’s $22 million budget deficit, said analyst Kevin Dolan, director at Fitch’s Northeast region public finance group. “There are no concrete solutions to eradicate that deficit at this time, and as far as the city’s future outlook, they’re looking

inside

The media services fee for all University-approved student groups will be eliminated, the Undergraduate Council of Students announced in a campus-wide email sent yesterday afternoon by Ralanda Nelson ’12, president of the council. David Rattner ’13, vice president of UCS, praised the decision during the council’s general body meeting Wednesday. The council has been working toward eliminating this fee for the past three years, Nelson told The Herald. Previously, the Undergraduate Finance Board would sign a contract with Media Technology Services each year, determining a fixed cost UFB would

pay to Media Services to allow Category III groups to use the equipment free of cost, she said. Under this new policy, Category S, I, II and III will receive free services, according to the email. UFB will now be able to allocate the funds used to cover the cost of media equipment to student groups, Nelson added. “It will greatly advantage student groups that never had access to those media services before for their weekly meetings,” she said. Michael Pickett, vice president of computing and information services, and Tim Wells, director of network technology, agreed to the fee elimination in a meeting with council members Wednesday

Rosh Hashanah, shopping period to overlap

By kat thornton City & State Editor

news....................2-7 CITY & State........8-9 editorial............10 Opinions.............11

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Thursday, March 15, 2012 by The Brown Daily Herald - Issuu