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THE INDEPENDENTDAILY AT DUKE UNIVERSITY
ONE HUNDREDTH YEAR, ISSUE 9
Pro-Israeli side preps for PSM
Bathroom card access put on hold
Kelly Rohrs THE CHRONICLE
Sophia Peters THE CHRONICLE
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SEE CONFERENCE ON PAGE 6
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season tonight at 7
(iiromdt* |
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2004
The weekend began with a rumor. Then it became a declaration of the University’s commitment to academic freedom. Now campus groups are working to ensure that for three days this fall, Duke will become the world’s center of discussion about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Dozens of experts and celebrity speakers on the conflict are expected to descend upon campus Oct. 15 to 17, when the Palestine Solidarity Movement will hold its controversial annual conference at the University. Jewish groups plan to sponsor a similar number of major speakers and scholars during the weekend. Although PSM’s schedule for the weekend will not be available for several weeks, many people expect the slate of speakers to be incendiary. Jewish groups are countering with a series of events that will set forth a strong pro-Israel position during the conference. Previous conferences have drawn large crowds of protesters, but organizers from Hiwar, the Duke student group sponsoring the event, have assured the community that the conference will be an opportunity for discussion. PSM declares that its primary goal is discovering non-violent means to end the conflict between Israeli and Palestinian people. But pro-Israeli and Jewish groups have accused PSM of tacidy condoning terrorist activity and promoting antiSemitism, and many people have voiced fears that all the discussion that weekend will focus on solutions that marginalize Israeli people. Jewish groups maintain that their goal is to make information
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easy. Your burden has not been light, yet you have displayed the peace that surpasses all understanding. We salute you.” Dole, a native of Salisbury, N.C., who returned to her home state and won election to the Senate two years ago, also touched on the legacy of party icons Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan, linking their accomplishments to those ofBush. She didn’t mention her Senate counterpart from
For now, late-night trips to the bathroom will still require fumbling around in the dark for a bathroom key. Early this August, all DukeCard readers that were installed last summer to give students access to the bathrooms in Kilgo Quadrangle and Southgate Dormitory were removed due. to technological difficulties in finding a feasible and functioning system. The pilot program, suggested by Campus Council in Spring 2003, was set to begin last fall as soon as the bathroom readers were ready to operate on a new wireless system that would enable the readers to connect to the University network without being hard-wired. A working wireless system, however, proved difficult to implement, and DukeCard access to the bathrooms was delayed throughout the 2003-2004 academic year. “We were not able to find a product that was satisfactory,” said Fidelia Thomason, director ofresidence hall operations. ‘This is a new way of using wireless readers and this kind of wireless technology has not been around for a long time.” Residence Life and Housing Services officials have not given up on DukeCardbathroom access and are planning a meeting in September to discuss alternative wireless system options from other vendors. Security concerns —heightened after reported sexual assaults in the Wannamaker and Randolph dormitories in 2002 —have been the driving force behind the push for bathroom DukeCard access. In theory, students would no longer need to prop open lavatory doors or jam locks if they had DukeCard access,
SEE DOLE ON PAGE 10
SEE DUKECARD ON PAGE 6
GREG WHITESELI7UPI
N.C native Elizabeth Dole addresses the Republican National Convention in New York City Tuesday night.
Dole praises Bush for leadership, principles THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth NEW YORK Dole defended conservative values and saluted President George W. Bush for his leadership in a time of crisis during a prime-time speech Tuesday at the Republican National Convention. ‘The presidency tests all who have been there,” said Dole, R-N.C., who briefly challenged Bush for the Republican nomination for president four years ago. “It has tested you, sir. Your road has not been
N.C SAT scores, participation rate hit high marks by
Laura Newman THE CHRONICLE
The state average SAT score for the 2003-04 school year rose to 1006 points—a record high for North Carolina. The boost comes a year after the state passed the 1,000point mark for the first time, Governor Mike Easley and State Superintendent Mike Ward announced Tuesday at a news conference at Enloe High School in Raleigh. The average SAT score for students in Durham Public Schools has also risen, reaching 1001 points. For the first time since 1991, the average DPS score has increased for three consecutive years. In addition, more North Carolina students are taking the test than in previous years, up to 70 percent from 68 percent last year. Durham had the third highest participation rate in the state, at 78.1 percent. Although the national participation rate remains at 48 percent, the state’s av-
erage SAT score falls short of the national average of 1026, according to the governor’s release*Tuesday. ‘The bottom line is more North Carolina students are taking the college entry test, and more are excelling each year,” Easley said in the release. Ann McArthur, teacher advisor to the governor, said the high North Carolina participation rate illustrates the growing interest that students have in taking the SAT and benefits from the opportunities the exam provides. ‘We are especially proud of the fact that DPS continues to have one of the state’s highest participation rates, a strong indicator of our students’ plans to investigate postsecondary educational opportunities,” DPS Superintendent Ann Denlinger said in another release published Tuesday regarding Durham. SEE SCORES ON PAGE 10