March 5, 2014

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Local/National

University

MEET THE N.C. DIPLOMAT IN RESIDENCE

NEW CAMPAIGN SPARKS TALKS ON EATING DISORDERS

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The chronicle T H E I N D E P E N D E N T D A I LY AT D U K E U N I V E R S I T Y

WWW.DUKECHRONICLE.COM

XXXXXDAY, MMMM WEDNESDAY, MARCHXX, 5, 2013 2014

West Duke to remain closed for the semester

sunder elected president; 40% Plan voted down by Natalie Markowitz THE CHRONICLE

by Georgia Parke THE CHRONICLE

Students, faculty and administrators are displaced for the rest of the semester because of the collapsed ceiling in the West Duke building. Classes and business offices located in West Duke have been removed or relocated to other locations since the ceiling in Room 202 collapsed Feb. 19. The collapse was caused by a combination of the building’s aging and structural changes that have impacted the plaster ceilings. The building will be closed through the summer in order to replace many of the ceilings, as well as to simultaneously conduct some needed maintenance—such as repairing the roof—said Kyle Cavanaugh, vice president for administration and emergency coordinator. “We’re all over the place right now,” said Jan Riggsbee, director of the program in education and associate professor of the practice, whose department is now operating in the Carr building instead of West Duke. Cavanaugh said structural engineers completed a room-by-room examination and an overarching renovation plan is being developed. Some individuals were permitted to enter the building under supervision last week to retrieve belongings and materials. “A significant number of people have been actively involved in trying to mitigate the impact of what has occurred,” he said. “There’s also been a great deal of work and communication with individuals on how they can safely access materials they need both short term and long term.” The building—which is three stories tall, 43,000 square feet in area and more than 100 years old—houses many classrooms, as well as the education department, the Kenan Institute for Ethics and Army ROTC. All classes in West Duke were relocated by the registrar’s office shortly after the accident. Students like junior Sophia Staal now find themselves heading to class in multiple locations for the same class each week. Her Ethics 101 course meets in Carr, Social Psychology and East Duke for its three meetings. “I don’t mind it that much, but I definitely got lost the first couple of times,” Staal said. “At one point my entire class was standing in the foyer in Soc Sci because we didn’t realize the class we were looking for didn’t exist.” Although all classes have found a home for the rest of the semester, some offices are still looking for temporary space on campus. The education department has yet to find a place to house its faculty, even though its administrators have moved to Carr. Senior Kirsten Osborne is writing her education thesis under adviser David Malone, See UPDATE, page 5

ONE ONE HUNDRED HUNDRED AND AND EIGHTH NINTHYEAR, YEAR,ISSUE ISSUEXXX 94

SHANEN GANAPATHEE/THE CHRONICLE

Sophomore Lavanya Sunder was elected Duke Student Government president with 63 percent of the votes against junior Will Giles.

Sophomore Lavanya Sunder will be the Duke Student Government president for the 2014-15 academic year. Sunder, the current DSG vice president for services, defeated her opponent junior Will Giles, associate justice for the DSG Judiciary, in the election Tuesday. Sunder received 63 percent of the student body vote. Giles received 28 percent of the votes, and write-in candidates received the remaining 9 percent, said sophomore Syed Adil, DSG attorney general. Rence Nemeh dropped out of the election Tuesday morning and did not appear on the ballot. Seventy-one percent of voters voted no on the 40 Percent Plan. Additionally, 91 percent voted sophomore Abhi Sanka for executive vice president. Sanka has served as senator for residential life for the past two years. Ninetythree percent voted for sophomore Davis Treybig as Student Organization Finance Committee chair. He is currently DSG treasurer and a member of SOFC. “I am really excited,” Sunder said. “I am really happy that the race was clean and I’m ready to start planning.” A total of 3,742 ballots were cast this year, compared to 2,251 votes last year. The turnout, given the total number of undergraduates, was approximately 58 percent. “I’m really happy that we had a great turnout,” Adil said. “That’s pretty big for a student government election. I’m happy people are taking the time to think about their decisions.” Adil added that the campaigns this year were fair and of the type that “people should try to emulate in the future.” Sunder said that first action items on her agenda are tailgate and the creation of an allinclusive female mentorship program, both starting next Fall. She added that she looks forward to See DSG, page 5

Groups rally against discrimination in N.c. schools by Jen Chen

THE CHRONICLE

A coalition of civil rights organizations filed a complaint to the U.S. Department of Justice demanding an investigation of discriminatory enrollment measures of North Carolina public schools. The complaint filed Feb. 13 cites the cases of two immigrant youths who were denied enrollment into public high schools in North Carolina. It was a joint effort by Southern Poverty Law Center, Southern Coalition for Social Justice, Legal Services of Southern Piedmont and North Carolina Justice Center. Although the complaint called to question two specific school districts, it noted that discrimination in education system is an issue across the state. “Many districts across the state have de-

nied, delayed or discouraged enrollment based on immigration status,” said Caren Short, an attorney from SPLC. “The children that were noted in the complaint were brave enough to come forward, but this kind of discrimination is also happening to children in other districts.” According to the complaint, a 17-yearold immigrant from Honduras with initials C.V. was denied enrollment at Buncombe County Schools because she was too old. The complaint states that the action of the school board was against North Carolina law under which all students under the age of 21 are entitled to attending public schools in the school district in which they live. The complaint also referenced a 17-yearold immigrant from Guatemala with initials

F.C. that experienced difficulty enrolling in Forest Hills High School in Union County Public Schools. The student was first told that he was too old to enroll, and when attempting to enroll for the second time, he was asked to take an English proficiency test. Being a native Spanish speaker who did not speak English, he was unable to complete the exam. Although he eventually enrolled into the school because the person who administered the exam helped him submit an enrollment application, F.C. decided to bring the case to SPLC. “I only wanted to attend high school, study hard and make a better life for myself,” F.C. said in the media release provided by the See EDUCATION, page 3


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