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
Monday, February 1, 2010
ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTH YEAR, Issue 85
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Freshmen robbed at gunpoint by Samantha Brooks THE CHRONICLE
Three freshmen were robbed at 1 a.m. Saturday morning in the Wachovia bank parking lot at the corner of Ninth and Main Streets. Although one student, John Besa, was shot twice in the leg by a BB gun and had to be treated by emergency medical services, none of the victims were seriously injured. The freshmen, Besa, Mike Coggins and Melanie Weingart, told Duke University Police that three black men wearing black winter coats and bandanas over their faces approached them in the parking lot and demanded money. One suspect was armed with a BB-gun and another was armed with a knife, according to an alert on DUPD’s Web site. The victims reported that the suspects took between $125 and $130 in cash, but no other property was taken. Besa said the suspects demanded his money and told him “they weren’t kidding.” “At the time I was freaked out, it took me a while to process what was happening,” Besa said. “The first shot was to get my attention, the second shot was probably because I hesitated... after I understood what was happening, I just handed him the See Robbery on page 15
SNOWSTORM SLAMS DUKE courtney douglas/The Chronicle
A worker clears the snow on the West Campus Plaza Sunday afternoon. A snowstorm hit Duke Friday evening and left Durham covered in 6 inches of snow, prompting the University to activate its Severe Weather Policy Friday night. The blue-tenting kickoff party was canceled and grace is in effect until Monday morning.
Duke, Durham ‘well-prepared’ by Toni Wei
THE CHRONICLE
A burst of uncharacteristically cold weather blanketed Duke and the surrounding area Friday with 6 inches of snow, turning the Gothic Wonderland into a winter wonderland. With substantial snowfall a rare occurrence in the area,
both the University and the city of Durham have taken measures to respond to the severe weather. “I mean, there’s not a lot we can do—we were ready with crews to clean as fast as we could, but it’s very difficult to clean because of ice pellets on See snowstorm on page 4
MEET THE graduate YOUNG TRUSTEE FINALISTS Adrienne Clough, second-year graduate student in the Fuqua Health Sector Management program Involvement: Co-Chair and Executive Fellow for Fuqua Dean’s Distinguished Speaker Series, colaunched alumni mentorship program for HSM students, coordinating recruitment across graduate schools What do you hope to accomplish if you are elected Young Trustee? “My goals are to increase cooperation among Duke’s graduate programs, to make the Duke graduate schools top-tier recruitment pools by enhancing career-building opportunities, and to provide greater transparency for the University’s decisions.” Alethea Duncan, fifth-year Ph.D. candidate in chemistry Involvement: Graduate and Professional Student Council president, President’s Council on Black Affairs, Board of Trustees Representative on Institutional Advancement Committee What do you hope to accomplish if you are elected Young Trustee? “If selected as Young Trustee I hope bring my views and experiences—including my experiences as a graduate student—to the work done by the Board, while representing the University as a whole.” Jeremy Block, seventh-year Ph.D. candidate in biochemistry Involvement: Graduate and Professional Student Council Strategic Planning Committee chair, Duke University Health Systems Institutional Review Board Member, Liaison to Duke University Police Department, Duke University Alumni Assocation: Alumni Interviewer for Duke applicants. What do you hope to accomplish if you are elected Young Trustee? “Overall, I believe the goal of the young trustee for the graduate and professional schools is to continue the strong tradition of developing academic and professional leaders from Duke by working arm-in-arm with other members of the board and the broader Duke community to develop creative solutions to problems, identify exciting new areas where the university can go, and provide the foundation for using knowledge in service of society.”
Tenting kickoff parties called off by Lisa Du
THE CHRONICLE
Cameron Crazies may be prepared to face any force of nature during tenting, but this weekend proved that snow won’t be one of those challenges. Krzyzewskiville tenters have yet to start tenting duties following kick-off celebrations Jan. 30, when grace was
called because of the 6 inches of snowfall Durham received Friday night, said Head Line Monitor Zach White, a senior. The grace period will be in effect until Monday morning and could be extended depending on weather conditions, White added. See K-ville on page 6
Historic Hoya shooting buries cold Blue Devils by Gabe Starosta THE CHRONICLE
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Washington Wizards weren’t playing until Saturday night, and with Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton already suspended by the NBA, there was a good chance there weren’t any guns at the Verizon Center this weekend. 77 DUKE But Saturday afternoon, GTOWN 89 Georgetown shot the lights out against No. 8 Duke. In one of the best offensive performances in school history, the No. 7 Hoyas (16-4) shot 71.7 percent and led nearly the whole way as the Blue Devils (17-4) lost their fourth road contest of the season, this one with an 89-77 scoreline that could have been much worse. Duke is now 1-4 in true road contests this year. See G’TOWN on page 10
ONTHERECORD
“I don’t have any dry socks.” —Senior Cass Goh on the impact of the weekend snowstorm. See student sound-off page 5
Women’s Tennis: Still Undefeated Duke is headed to the ITA Team Indoor Championships after two wins this weekend, PAGE 8
The Chronicle presents: ‘The Chronicles of K-ville,’ KVILLE.DUKECHRONICLE.COM