THE INdependent student newspaper at the university of cincinnati
Vol. CXXX Issue 76
thursday , may 6, 2010 double-duty Kevin Johnson takes the field as both a pitcher and first baseman. page 6
no no knots
staff ed Apathy is pervading the student body regarding campus issues. page 4
Newcomers grace local music scene with unclassifiable dance-pop. page 3
events
“[CAT] not only got me prepared for college but for the rest of my life.” —TASJANEA BIVENS
SECOND-YEAR CRIMINAL JUSTICE STUDENT
CAT’S FUTURE
genderf*ck drag show when:
9 p.m. to 11 p.m. Friday, May 7
where:
Catskeller
Students from the campus group GenderBloc will perform in the quarterly drag show in Catskeller. This year’s show is the keynote event of UC’s LGBTQ Pride week. For more information contact Emma Southard at southea@mail.uc.edu.
“cornhole: the movie” when:
7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Friday, May 7
where:
Madison Theatre 730 Madison Ave., Covington, Ky
The Madison Theatre hosts the premiere of “Cornhole: The Movie,” which was filmed in Cincinnati and follows four area teams in the degenerate world of competitive cornhole. The teams advance to battle a diverse cast of characters for the National Cornhole Championship. Tickets are $10 at the door. For more information call the Madison Theatre at 859-491-2444.
file art | the news record
Wires were crossed UCPD couldn’t specify where the 9-1-1 call originated from.
Phones caused turmoil
comedian patrice o’neal
7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Monday, May 10
where:
Great Hall, TUC
Comedian Patrice O’Neal, veteran of comedy specials such as “Def Comedy Jam,” “Comedy Central Presents,” “Opie and Anthony” and “The Office” will bring his act to campus. For more information call Nicole Lepone at 513-556-0896 or email leponenk@ucmail.uc.edu.
JAMES SPRAGUE the news record
The confusion regarding the location of the prank shooting call at the University of Cincinnati Tuesday, May 4, was due to a systems glitch with the telephone system and was no fault of police. The false 9-1-1 telephone call, which was made from a Cincinnati Bell payphone at the Shoemaker Center, reported a shooting on UC’s campus, said Gene Ferrara, director of UC Public Safety. The normal procedure for 9-1-1 calls received by Cincinnati Bell from UC’s campus is to transfer the call to the Cincinnati Police Department, which in turn transfers the call to the UC Police Division for emergency response, Ferrara said. Then UCPD can retrieve the needed information from the caller, such as the individual’s location on campus. In this occurrence, however, the call was so short — the caller hung up after stating there were shots fired — that Cincinnati Bell operators transferred the call to the Cincinnati police with the only information they had: 2634 Clifton Ave., the billing address for the university. “We’ve never gotten a phone call like this before,” Ferrara said. “We didn’t know what was going on.” The only phones with a direct line to the UCPD when used are the help phones located throughout campus, Ferrara said. The general address given by Cincinnati Bell with the call forced authorities to search various buildings on campus —such as Dyer and Dabney Halls — and off-campus at Hughes STEM Center High School. Cincinnati Bell later traced the call to a payphone in the Shoemaker Center. UCPD is working with Cincinnati
when:
shutter island
eamon queeney | the news record
when:
7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday, May 11
where:
Mainstreet Cinema
Shutting the gates The CAT reading room in French Hall is just one part of the dissolving Center for Access and Transition program, which will close its doors June 30.
Leonardo DiCaprio stars in the thriller directed by Martin Scorcese based on the Dennis Lehane novel.
Students attribute success to center
index
JAMES SPRAGUE the news record
The closing of the Center for Access and Transition will affect a variety of members of the University of Cincinnati community, but the group that could be the hardest hit is the students. The program will close its doors in June after six years of existence, due in part to directives from the University System of Ohio’s “Strategic Plan for Higher Education 2008-2017,” which calls for developmental education to be assigned to regional campuses and community colleges. Subsidies granted to universities from the state for access education were also ceased in 2009. “A lot of students would not be [at UC] if it wasn’t for CAT,” said a source wishing to remain anonymous due to fear of recrimination. Since its inception, 3,595 students have started their academic careers at CAT, with approximately 72 percent of those students remaining enrolled at UC. An additional 5,632 students in other colleges on campus have utilized CAT resources, according to the newsletter UC Achieves.
“Some kids are collegial and want to participate in a four-year program,” the anonymous source said. “They have a right to do so.” Five CAT students were also honored in May 2009 for winning awards in UC’s 12th annual student writing contest. CAT helped many students that would have not gone to college without it, said Tasjanea Bivens, a second-year criminal CAT Tales justice student. The final installment Bivens is a of news editor James former CAT student Sprague’s multi-story and is still involved series examining CAT’s with the center as a disintegration. student worker in the CAT reading room. “I don’t know why it’s closing,” Bivens said. “It’s going to leave a lot of people who have worked at UC for years without jobs.” CAT faculty is among the best in the entire university, Bivens said. “They really make an effort to help students,” Bivens said. The majority of students who
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SG examines its own spending gin a. ando the news record
O NLINE www.newsrecord.org
Student Government President-elect Drew Smith and Vice President Mark Rooney are looking to get to know the University of Cincinnati’s student body. Rooney, who was sworn in at SG’s weekly meeting Wednesday, recapitulated his idea of town-hall style meetings to the senate. “It’s one way we can get information students don’t hear about,” Rooney said. At the town hall style meetings, Smith and Rooney plan on speaking with approximately 80 students — with Subway as a lure. The idea was accepted unanimously among the present senators. Another idea, however, did not pass so smoothly. Several senators were questioning an annual UC student leader summit dinner in which heads of student
groups at the university can mingle over a meal and listen to guest speakers. At-large Sen. Andrew Koesterman questioned whether SG should foot the bill, which exceeded $1,000. SG as a whole, however, has thousands of dollars in unused funds that will not roll over to the 2010-11 year. Regardless of the surplus of funding, SG should not be buying dinner for the guests, which range anywhere from $31 to $41 per person, according to Sen. Alex Huron’s initial estimates. “I’m sure we have a lot of creative people in this room and we can find a better way to spend this money,” Koesterman said. “If we can’t, we don’t deserve to have the Student Government funding money.” The deadline for the event’s funding budget is during the weekend of May 8. “This is a very expensive budget, but keep in mind, it can be see money | page 2
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Senior send-offs
coulter loeb | the news record
oath of office New Student Government Vice President Mark Rooney stands for his inauguration Wednesday, May 5.
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