Tuesday, August 28, 2001
Sunny High 88, Low 68 www.chronicle.duke.edu Vol. 97, No. 3
The Chronicle
Grand Slammed Former Duke women’s tennis player Ansley Cargill lost in the first round of the U.S Open Monday. See page 13
THE INDEPENDENT DAILY AT DUKE UNIVERSITY
Group may nix annual semi-formal Organizers say it may be too difficult to raise funds for the traditional dance that takes place homecoming weekend. By KEVIN LEES The Chronicle
ILANO/THE CHRONICLE
SIGMA ALPHA EPSILON FRATERNITY may lose 17 members after their national organization came to town last weekend to conduct interviews
Fraternities face alumni pressure The University notified three fraternities’ parents and alumni of their groups’ past judicial violations By
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Three fraternities are facing increased pressure to reform members’ behavior, after Student Affairs administrators sent letters this summer to parents and alumni informing them of past judicial infractions. As a result of the letters, fraternity presidents have been inundated with dozens of letters from alumni, and the three fraternities—Delta Sigma Phi, .
Sigma Alpha Epsilon and Sigma Nu—
are each formulating a plan to help satisfy their concerns. “The letters were designed to put everyone into the information loop and ensure that all parties were on the same page before the academic year begins,’ said Todd Adams, assistant dean of student development. “Each organization has a different circumstance, but by and large there were some behavior patterns that were not in keeping with the standards of Duke University.” The strongest reaction has come
from SAE alumni, who this weekend interviewed almost all chapter members to determine if any should be disciplined by the fraternity itself. In the end, they suspended 17 members, who are now banned from fraternity functions and could lose their housing depending on the results of an appeal. “I think in certain situations they’ve used poor judgment, but we’re confident better judgment will be used in the future,” said SAE alumnus David BuckSee FRATERNITIES on page 8
As administrators search for more non-alcoholic social alternatives on weekends, one of the most prominent such events—the homecoming semi-formal—is in danger.
The future viability and funding of homecoming are the two top issues Cam-
pus Social Board and Event Management face. “[They have] been doing a review of homecoming, the funding and the programming to see what direction we should take institutionally,” said Sue Wasiolek, assistant vice president for student affairs. The event in question is the annual semi-formal held one night of homecoming weekend on Main West Quadrangle. Campus Social Board, a programming group that was founded in 1997, has recently been in charge of organizing the event. Kelly Atkinson, a member of Campus Social Board, who is stepping down as president of the organization, said it was not the planning, but the fundraising See HOMECOMING on page 10
Bomb threat prevents House from voti g on tax hike From staff and wire reports
RALEIGH Putting an end to any thoughts of a vote on a tax increase Monday night, a bomb threat forced state lawmakers and lobbyists to evacuate the Legislative Building shortly before 6:30 p.m.
House Speaker Jim Black interrupted consideration of a patients’ rights measure on the House floor, and then announced that everyone inside should “quietly leave the building now.” Legislative security officials said a caller had phoned the bomb threat to the Wake County Sheriffs Department, which notified them. Black said he was told that the caller said “there was a bomb in the building and it would explode.” Sgt. R.T. Harris of the legislative security force said Raleigh police were searching the perimeter of the building about 8:15 p.m. and had not located any device. Black was forced to reconvene the House session at an outside mall area between the state museums of natural science and history, and then adjourn. Senate leader Marc Basnight followed suit, convening the Senate session then adjourning. The House had been scheduled to consider a proposal to raise the sales tax by a penny in a package that would also raise the income tax by
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0.25 percent on income above $200,000, and bump up the excise taxes on liquor. But to offset the increase’s effect on lower-income families, it would provide some tax breaks: the addition of a state earned income tax credit, the elimination of the marriage penalty, and an increase in the tax credit per child from $6O up
to $lOO. All told, the provisions in the bill would add up to $1 billion in new revenues over the next two years. The plan has the backing of the House Democratic leadership, as well as the governor’s support; Republicans favor spending cuts instead. It was unclear whether the slim 62-58 Democratic margin in the House would be sufficient to pass the bill. Black later said that he hadn’t decided whether a vote would actually take place when
the bomb threat occurred. About 150 legislators and lobbyists milled around the building for about an hour. Many of them were prevented from retrieving their cars, parked in a basement garage under the building. When Rep. Wilma Sherrill, R-Buncombe, asked Black about getting to her car, he responded, “Mine’s not worth that much.” Rep. Thomas Wright, D-New Hanover, said
Duke football coach Carl Franks knows his team is a long shot against Florida State this weekend, but views the contest as a chance to shock the nation. See Sports, page 13
KAREN TAM STRINGER/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
BUDGET PROTESTERS rally outside the Legislative Building earlierthis year. Budget negotiations were delayed Monday when authorities received a bomb threat. the bomb threat is more evidence that security needs to be beefed up in the building. Wright was among a group of lawmakers that pushed for a review of building security by the U.S. Secret Service. The review recommended a number of changes, but none have been implemented so far. “I know it’s too easy. This has to stop,” he said. “We owe it to our employees and the citizens that come to visit us.”
Robyn Wiegman is settling into her position as the new director of the Women’s Studies Program. She hopes to fill three new faculty spots. See page 4
University presidents may be speaking out less on political issues, as their jobs become increasingly dependent on pleasing donors. See page 3