The Miami Student Oldest university newspaper in the United States, established 1826
VOLUME 137 NO. 48
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
MIAMI UNIVERSITY OXFORD, OHIO
In 1973, The Miami Student reported that university council endorsed an earlier semester calendar, with first semester ending Dec. 30 and second semester ending May 20. Nearly 1,000 universities had already implemented this system.
’Hawks prepare for Frozen Four By Erika Hadley Senior Staff Writer
Love and honor to the Brotherhood. One wellplaced shot by sophomore Alden Hirschfeld late Sunday night was all the No. 1 seeded Miami University hockey team needed to punch its ticket to the Frozen Four. Miami’s double overtime victory in the NCAA Midwest Regional Final marked the first time in program history the Red and White has beaten University of Michigan (UM) in the postseason in addition to the first time the RedHawks won an overtime game in the NCAA Tournament. With the victory, Miami secured its bid to play Boston College in the NCAA Semifinal in Detroit and moved one step closer to competing, again, for a national championship. “It feels like 10 years ago, but it’s hard to believe a year has gone by,” Miami Head Coach Enrico Blasi said, referring to last April’s national championship loss to Boston University. “We’re excited; ff you walk by our locker room you can tell. We’ll get a couple days rest
and then start preparing for Boston College.” Before Sunday’s nail biter, the Red and White had to get over another hurdle in the form of CHA Tournament champion University of Alabama-Huntsville (UAH). The Brotherhood outpaced UAH throughout most of the Midwest Regional Semifinal matchup Saturday. Exercising its signature puck possession style of play, Miami limited the Chargers’ shots on goal (SOG) to the single digits in each of three dominant stanzas and patiently established a controlled lead. The RedHawk defense smothered most of the Chargers’ offensive drives along the boards and protected the puck bin at all costs, making life easy on sophomore goaltender Cody Reichard. The CCHA Player of the Year and Hobey Baker Award Finalist did not face a single SOG until 8:58 of the first frame. The Chargers took several penalties early on in the contest, but UAH’s fifth ranked penalty kill (PK) used good neutral zone positioning to ward off any odd man SCOTT ALLISON The Miami Student
wSee HOCKEY, page 7
Freshman Curtis McKenzie and sophomore Chris Wideman embrace in celebration after Sunday’s victory over The University of Michigan.
CAMPUS
CAMPUS
MU faces $5M more in budget cuts University senate debates
By Garrett Wood For The Miami Student
Miami University will cut $5 million of their budget for the second fiscal year in a row. The key to balancing academic affairs despite the cut is giving out more scholarships and potentially increasing tuition three percent, according to the board of trustees. The board of trustees finance and audit committee will begin discussion of tuition increases in April, according to David Creamer, vice president for finance and business services. At the end of last fiscal year on June 30, 2009, the Ohio
legislature announced its decreasing expenditure for public schools including Miami. Because of the declining contributions from the state of Ohio, Miami established a budget plan and was forced to cut back roughly three percent of their entire budget last June. “Miami’s budget is a partnership between what the state gives and what tuition contributes,” Creamer said. In order to survive these cuts, Miami must recruit and obtain a strong incoming class Creamer said. One may find Miami’s new-tiered merit-based scholarship program paradoxical to the upcoming $5 million cut, beginning in July. Miami
will commit to four year, merit-based scholarships for the incoming class, ranging from $6,500 to $9,000. Indiana University and other schools nearby offer similar merit scholarships, Creamer said. “Keeping up with other options on the market is just one way to cope with the budget cuts,” Creamer said. The university strives to prioritize efficiently so teacher lay-offs are a last resort, according to Creamer. He said Miami works to avoid classes being cut and graduation inhibited due to lack of classes offered. One third of the budget cuts directly affect the areas of business
wSee BUDGET, page 3
transfer credits, hours
By Jessica Sink Senior Staff Writer
On Monday, Miami University senate members were presented with data regarding the increasing numbers of students transferring course credit to Miami University through advanced placement (AP) courses, online courses or courses taken at other institutions. A. John Bailer, chair of the Pathways Committee, offered committee recommendations on how Miami could respond to these increases in transfer credit.
INSIDESCOOP Six award winning journalists to discuss influential work April 7.
CAMPUS, page 2
HAPPILY EVER AFTER
Miami graduate named Cherry Blossom Princess for state of Oklahoma.
CAMPUS, page 3
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WWW.MIAMISTUDENT.NET
CHARITABLE CHERUBS
A group of students are working in Over-The-Rhine to renovate old buildings.
CAMPUS, page 4
NO KIDDING AROUND HERE
RAINING CATS AND DOGS As the school year winds down some Miami students abandon their animals before heading home.
Wed
73 q 47
MONEY WOES
A 14-year-old Hamilton resident is the young person to be tried as an adult in the county.
A look into the lives of two Miami students affected by unemployment.
COMMUNITY, page 8
Thu
75 q 49 p
HOCKEY HIGHLIGHTS Browse through a slideshow from the epic hockey games this weekend.
COMMUNITY, page 8
FEATURES, page 6
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wSee U SENATE, page 3
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FOURTH ESTATE FOLLOWERS
“As a committee, we were charged with the responsibility of considering the implications of the increasing number of transfer credits and to not only react to them, but be proactive in our response,” Bailer said. “We want to maintain the Miami experience, but also enhance it. Our goal is to provide students opportunities to encourage them to stay here to complete coursework.” According to Bailer, the goal of the committee is to work to
Fri
78 q 52 p
FUNK THE WAR Read a blog and check out photos from Jess Stringfield about a recent war protest in Washington, D.C.
CAN I GRADUATE?
See the proposal from university senate noting changes that could be made in the number of credits required to graduate.