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Concerns rising with bullying incidents
U OF M
MINNEAPOLIS
ST PAUL
TUESDAY
NOVEMBER 25, 2014
ONLINE EXCLUSIVES AT MNDAILY.COM
DINKYTOWN
Looking closer at the history
Surveys show that bullying of graduate and professional students has recently grown. BY CHRISTOPHER AADLAND caadland@mndaily.com
From verbal attacks to threats, graduate and professional students are increasingly experiencing harassment and bullying at the University of Minnesota, according to surveys. “… I’ve lost all desire for research because of the continual harassment and hostile environment I’ve experienced,” an anonymous student said in a recent survey. “I never thought I would give up on research, but I guess anything’s possible. I’ve given up.” For the past decade, Jan Morse, director of the University of Minnesota’s Student Conflict Resolution Center, has noticed an upsurge in graduate and professional students coming to her office looking for relief from bullies. And despite work over the last six years by a group of school administrators, faculty members and students that aims to tackle bullying, this year’s sur vey still shows graduate and professional students are increasingly experiencing harassment. But Morse said she doesn’t think the trend is due to the group’s work being ineffective, but rather it’s because its members have raised awareness surrounding the issue and have motivated victims to come forward. “You can’t really change culture,” she said. “You can only set the stage for culture change to occur.” When Morse began noticing the bullying issue, she created a sur vey to find out how prevalent it was among graduate students. The first Academic Incivility and the
JULIET FARMER, DAILY
Attendee Steve Pflaum listens to a speaker at the Dinkytown Reunion on Sunday at the Varsity Theater. Members of Preserve Historic Dinkytown hosted the event, in part to strengthen their case for zoning the neighborhood as a historic place.
More than 100 people turned out to a “Dinkytown Reunion” on Sunday, with many calling for the area to be deemed historic. in Dinkytown’s history.
BY ANNE MILLERBERND amillerbernd@mndaily.com
D
Olson was among more than 100 people
on Olson saw Dinkytown through
with ties to the area who gathered Sunday
some of its most memorable social
in the Varsity Theater to share personal
and political movements during the 1960s.
u See HARASSMENT Page 3
stories and to watch presentations about
As Vietnam War protests flared up at
the district’s history. The gathering was put
colleges across the countr y, the former
on partially in hopes of assisting the city of
student activist, who dropped out in 1967 to
Minneapolis with its historical designation
focus on activism full time, was at the front
study of the area.
lines of the University of Minnesota’s move-
If city leaders decide the district quali-
ment. Around the same time, a fast food
fies as historic, it could preserve about 30
restaurant called Red Barn was proposed in
buildings.
place of five businesses in the area. Olson
Preser ve Historic Dinkytown, an orga-
supported a protest of the establishment
nization that resulted from the historical
that would become one of the most famous
study’s announcement early last spring,
FACULTY/STAFF
u See DESIGNATION Page 3
Back to the lab for some To lead MSA, hundreds of signatures still needed dept. heads STUDENT GOVERNMENT
Professors who step up to lead departments often head back to research or faculty jobs.
u See RESEARCH Page 10
Dozens of fans fall victim to ticket fraud At Sunday’s Vikings game, 54 people reported being turned away for having fake tickets.
BY PARKER LEMKE plemke@mndaily.com
Chairing a University of Minnesota department takes acquired expertise — many years of practice in the field — and sometimes an ability to compromise personal research with the hope of bettering the entire program. Three University researchers transitioned back into research and faculty roles after ser ving as department heads, positions they said made it challenging to focus on individual research and teaching but are sometimes a part of the natural progression as an academic. “I get out of bed in the morning, happy to teach, happy to do research,” said David Kohlstedt, geology and geophysics professor and former chair of the Department of Earth Sciences. “I didn’t really get out of bed in the morning feeling, ‘I really want to be department chair today.’” Heading a department comes with many administrative tasks, like recruiting faculty, managing department budgets and interacting with donors — responsibilities that aren’t necessarily in the career plan for some scholars when they enter academia. “It’s not the type of thing I probably would have jumped at,” said Kohlstedt, who chaired his department from 2006 to 2011. The duties involved in running a department often diverge from the career aspirations of many faculty members, said Lawrence Gray, a professor and former head of the School of Mathematics. But sometimes becoming a department head comes down to being the best candidate when the position opens up, he said.
CRIME
BY NICK WICKER nwicker@mndaily.com
CORA NELSON, DAILY
MSA votes at its meeting last Tuesday in Fraser Hall. The group discussed lowering the signature requirement for candidates seeking presidential election from 450 to 100.
A proposal to lower the barrier to run for MSA president didn’t pass at a forum on Tuesday. BY HALEY HANSEN hhansen@mndaily.com
Some members of the University of Minnesota’s student government body question the level of accessibility for obtaining its president position, saying a requirement for those seeking election should change. But at a meeting last week, members of the Minnesota Student Association voted against the proposal, which would have lowered the number of signatures required to run for president from 450 to 100. MSA members who had hoped to cut
the number said the change would increase candidate diversity and give more students an oppor tunity to run. But others were skeptical of the reduced signature requirement, saying it would lower the quality of elections. “Setting the bar so low would open up the floodgates for anyone that was just trying to get some recognition and slap it on their resume,” said member Abdisamed Awed, who ran for president last year. He said getting 450 signatures for his campaign last year wasn’t difficult, and he’s worried lowering the requirement would result in more students running who aren’t necessarily dedicated to being a strong voice for the undergraduate study body. u See REQUIREMENT Page 3
A surge of fraudulent ticket sales left its mark Sunday, as 54 people were turned away from TCF Bank Stadium at the Vikings-Packers game. The fans bought the forged tickets from scammers online and in person, police said. They approached the ticket of fice after being refused at the front gates, according to a police report listing the dozens of victims. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen that many victims in one of our police reports before,” said University of Minnesota police Department Deputy Chief Chuck Miner. He said the game’s popularity attracted the falsified tickets, which the scammers sold on Craigslist. “It’s not a problem specific to the Vikings,” Miner said. “It happens less occasionally with Minnesota Wild tickets, or Twins, or whatever.” Miner said the department encourages fans to buy from reputable sellers and online sites with money-back guarantees. He also said police have a small group of suspects. “We’re working on it, and we’ve got some good leads,” Miner said.
Drug arrest in Territorial Hall Officers headed to Territorial Hall on Saturday morning when community advisers smelled marijuana coming from one of the third-floor rooms, according to a University police report. u See POLICE Page 10
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