free
MONDAY
feb. 26, 2018 high 46°, low 28°
t h e i n de p e n de n t s t u de n t n e w s pa p e r of s y r a c u s e , n e w yor k |
N • Athletic activism
dailyorange.com
S • Winning in style
P • Seeing green
Former NBA star Etan Thomas will discuss athletes engaging in social justice efforts Monday as part of the Tanner Lecture series at Hendricks Chapel. Page 3
Syracuse women’s basketball head coach Quentin Hillsman doesn’t take his gameday attire lightly. He often wears eyecatching three-piece suits. Page 12
The annual Green Beer event at Coleman’s Pub paid tribute Sunday to Tipperary Hill’s longstanding Irish heritage with alcohol and a parade. Page 7
Granting access
on campus
SU won’t penalize applicants for protest Participation in protests won’t affect admissions By Jordan Muller asst. news editor
JOHN LIU, Syracuse University’s vice president for research, was hired by SU last year. He previously served as Auburn University’s associate provost and associate vice president for research. hieu nguyen asst. photo editor
Meet one of the driving forces behind SU’s efforts to fund STEM research By Shweta Karikehalli asst. copy editor
S
yracuse University’s new vice president for research will play a key role in obtaining more grants to support faculty and graduate student projects this year, as SU shifts toward the implementation of its major Academic Strategic Plan. Zhanjiang “John” Liu, in a University Senate budget report published Wednesday, noted that aspects of SU’s research portfolio can be improved. Liu was hired by SU last year as the vice president for research.
“SU has low levels of foundation and industry support grants (about $6 million per annum) and receives fewer grants from mission-oriented funding agencies relative to peer institutions,” stated the report by the Senate’s Committee on Budget and Fiscal Affairs. During a Senate meeting last spring, Vice Chancellor and Provost Michele Wheatly said the university needs to find “a niche” in terms of STEM research to brand itself in “a very crowded marketplace,” so it can provide academic experience to students, under the spirit of the Academic Strategic Plan. see liu page 4
state
SU professor leads race to challenge Katko By Sam Ogozalek news editor
Syracuse University Professor Dana Balter is now the frontrunner in a Democratic push to upset Rep. John Katko (R-Camillus) in cong ressiona l midterm elecBALTER
tions this fall. Balter, a visiting assistant teaching professor at SU, clinched the Onondaga County Democratic Committee’s congressional designation on Saturday. Balter did not respond to a request for comment Saturday. Balter received 73 percent of committee member votes Saturday morning. She has now won the endorsements of all Democratic committees in the four counties
I’ve decided to run for Congress because Donald Trump threatens everything I teach my students. Dana Balter
congressional candidate
that make up the 24th Congressional District, which Katko currently represents. Syracuse is part of the district. The professor launched her campaign in September. Katko is a two-term incumbent who’s particularly unpopular among local activist groups for voting to approve the Republican Party’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Anne Messenger, Balter’s see balter page 6
Syracuse University on Sunday joined a growing number of colleges nationwide that have promised not to penalize applicants for participation in peaceful protests. “Admissions decisions will not be affected by participation in or disciplinary action associated with peaceful, meaningful protest,” Syracuse University announced in a tweet Sunday afternoon. The announcement from SU and dozens of other universities comes as high school students nationwide plan protests and walkouts condemning gun violence. After 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, were killed on Feb. 14, students have taken to social media and the streets to push for stricter gun control legislation.National school walkouts protesting gun violence are planned for March 14 and April 20. A march in Washington, D.C., called the March for Our Lives, is scheduled for March 24. It’s expected to draw about 500,000 people, the Washington Post reported, and similar marches are also set to take place in cities nationwide. Some school districts, including two near Houston and one in Wisconsin, threatened to suspend students for participating in walkouts. “Please be advised that the Needville ISD will not allow a student demonstration during school hours for any type of protest or awareness!!” said Curtis Rhodes, superintendent of Texas’s Needville Independent School District, in a Wednesday Facebook post that has since been taken down. American University, Cornell University and Northwestern University are among the SU peer institutions that have put their support behind student protesters. “No student who is admitted or has a pending application will be affected by disciplinary actions arising from their right to protest,” American announced in a Saturday tweet. The national debate surrounding gun violence and gun control was reinvigorated when see protests page 6