STUDENT LIFE
THE INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER OF WASHINGTON UNIVERSIT Y IN ST. LOUIS SINCE 1878 We are the Knights who go ‘Nee! Why does the University spend so much money on their beloved shrubbery? Page 4.
Baseball stars open their souls to Student Life about life, love, and in-dugout relationships. Check it out in Sports. Page 8.
VOLUME 127, NO. 73
Scene reporter Christine Costa wanders down to Missouri’s wine country to see, swirl, smell, sip, and swallow. Page 3.
Ultimate Frisbee proves that they can do more than just pose naked for Studlife’s Sex Issue. Page 8.
FRIDAY, APRIL 14, 2006
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Ervin and Rodriguez: one year later By Elizabeth Lewis Staff Reporter The conclusion of the upcoming spring semester will mark the end of the first year that the John Ervin and Annika Rodriguez scholarships became open to students of all races. Originally, the programs were only open to students of African-American and Hispanic descent. James McLeod, the dean of Arts and Sciences, is the director of the Ervin scholarship program and has worked extensively with the Rodriguez scholarship program as well. “[Opening the programs to
everyone] has gone extremely well. We have a terrific class of wonderful young people working well together, and it has been a joy to get to know them,” said McLeod. The change came after a private group, the Center for Equal Opportunity, put pressure on Washington University in St. Louis to open the scholarship programs to all students, regardless of their ethnic background. The group filed a complaint with the U.S. Office of Education against the University, as well as against more than 100 additional schools nationwide, asking the U.S. Office of Education to institute an in-
vestigation at schools with minority scholarship programs. “At that point, the University decided that it could continue its objective with programs open to all groups,” said McLeod. When the idea of opening the programs to all races was introduced, it was met with hesitation. “There were a lot of discussions and questions. [Students] were trying to understand the need for the change, how it came about, and to understand the impact on the priority of the programs,” said McLeod. “We took time with the discussions, and they were valuable.” These discussions helped to
facilitate an easier transition for this year’s freshman class, the first scholars to experience the impact of integrated programs. Kavya Naini, an Indian Rodriguez scholar, felt that there were no racial divides or resentment from previous scholars who might have regretted the change. “I always felt really welcome, and since the beginning, I have felt like part of a family. They were accepting of anything I had to contribute about my own culture,” said Naini. Tiina Luning, a caucasian Ervin scholar, also feels as if she has joined a supportive group of people.
Gender-bending roadshow, ‘Tranny,’ visits Wash. U. By Shweta Murthi Contributing News Editor The second annual Tranny Roadshow, a multimedia showcase of art, poetry and song by “transpeople,” came to Ursa’s Café on Wednesday night to a crowd of over 100 students. The event, hosted by Pride Alliance, aimed to encourage students’ discussion of gender boundaries and demonstrate the talents of the transgender community. The Tranny Roadshow, almost entirely self-funded, is touring at several universities and theatres. All the performers self-identify as transgender—an umbrella term for transgender and transsexual people. Dylan Scholinski, author of “The Last Time I Wore A Dress,” addressed a common misconception about the transgender community. “One of the biggest misconceptions about transgender people is that you need to be one [gender] or the other—that you have to pick sides,” said Scholinksi. Scholinski is committed to challenging people to think and to entertaining his audience. “I’ve been speaking about issues around trans/ queer identity for over ten years. I feel it necessary to expose people to how talented we can be,” said Scholinski. “Transgender people are considered the freaks of the queer movement.” Guitarist Adhamh Roland said, “I try to be really intentional with my music. I feel like the Tranny Roadshow is an educating and empowering tool. I like the format with storytelling and multimedia.”
“The entire community has been awesome and has entirely embraced the integration of the program. Some of my best friends are in the Ervin program, and there has never been any effort to leave anyone out,” said Luning. Though there are many upbeat sentiments surrounding the openness of the programs, there are still some people who have not embraced the changes. Olivia Petitt, an AfricanAmerican Ervin senior, expressed her thoughts concerning the integration of the Ervin program. “I was thinking that [this]
See ERVIN, page 2
Student-run website offers place to buy, sell and trade By Helen Rhee
Roland, a St. Louis native, noted that although the transgender community is smaller in St. Louis than in other cities, it still maintains a strong sense of identity. As one of the first performance-based events held by Pride, Co-President Tom Giarla said, “[The turnout] exceeded my expectations. It was nice to see a lot of people from Wash. U. as well as the outside community. It was a diverse, eclectic group.” Several members of the audience came from the greater St. Louis area to experience the Tranny Roadshow and cheer on the performers. Shannon Knox, a resident of South City, said about the show, “There was more spoken-word than I had expected, but I think that gender is a complicated issue and people really do create these dichotomies.” Students agreed, as issues about campus inclusiveness came up during the show. Some performers cited the lack of gender neutral bathrooms as a problem that needed to be addressed. “I think that [the University] is trying to be more inclusive with the e-mail they sent out about the task force. I think the plan for a community center is a good idea. I think they’ve finally gotten on the bandwagon,” said sophomore Yetunde Ogunfidodo. The Tranny Roadshow will continue touring the East Coast until the end of this month. Wednesday’s event was co-sponsored by the Congress of the South 40, the Social Justice Center, and the Performing Arts Department.
year, we would have more Latino students and more Asian American students, but it was just white people and black people. I have white friends, but it is clear that the school system for higher education is privileged for them. I will support the Ervin program because it was good for me, but so far as the integration aspect, I do not agree,” said Petitt. Freshman Steven James, an African-American Ervin scholar, shares Petitt’s sentiments. “Since it happened, it seems that everyone has nothing but good things to say, and it all
Staff Reporter
Like many of his fellow students, senior Niarcas Jeffrey knows the frustration that often comes with seeing the price tags on course books at the University’s bookstore. After being told that one of his course books could only be sold in bulk with other pricy books, Jeffrey began to wish for an easier and less expensive way to get required course materials—and then created it himself. “At that time, I wished I knew somebody who had just that book,” said Jeffrey. “That led me to think of the site.” Jeffrey went on to create an online community, www.Srade. com (which stands for “student trade”), where students can sell anything from posters to C++ programming textbooks. The student-run Web site allows students from Washington University, Fontbonne University, St. Louis University and University of Missouri-St. Louis to post and trade items
with fellow students within their respective Universities. Users log in using their school e-mail addresses. Once registered, they can post or buy items such as textbooks, used computers and furnishings. “The Web site was created at fi rst to help students save money by allowing students to share and trade items that they have,” said Jeffrey. “It actually is a lot like eBay and Craig’s List in a sense that it’s only for university students and every section of the site has its own portion catered to that university.” Registration is free for university students. They can create a user profi le, which may include courses they have taken in the past. The Web site then links the students who are selling used textbooks with students looking to purchase those books. The concept is similar to Facebook.com, which links students enrolled in a particular course. In addition to trading items, users can search for places to
See SRADE, page 2
Roosevelt Institute raises social justice awareness on campus By Shweta Murthi Contributing Editor
ALWYN LOH | STUDENT LIFE
A member of the Tranny Roadshow talks to the audience at Ursa’s about his life’s trials and tribulations.
ALWYN LOH | STUDENT LIFE
A bass player performs as part of the Tranny Roadshow in Ursa’s Cafe on Wednesday night.
Students on campus are tackling the age-old problem of slavery in a new way with fi lm screenings, conferences and policy papers thanks to the Roosevelt Institute. S t u dents gathered last Wednesday to watch and discuss a documentary titled “Dreams Die Hard” about slavery in the United States. As part of the International Film Festival, the fi lm educated students on the reality of human trafficking even in developed countries. “I’m really happy with the turnout. I think a lot of people–-students included—think slavery ended with Abraham Lincoln,” said sophomore Landen Romei, a member of the Roosevelt Institute. Kelsey Buchanan, a graduate student in the Brown School of Social Work, said, “We’re going to be training graduate students to go to the different professional schools and talk about human trafficking. A lot of our projects are applicable to domestic violence and economic development.” The Roosevelt Institute is a national progressive “think
tank” for students. Members generate policy papers that are published and distributed to members of Congress. The Roosevelt Institute was founded in 2004 at Stanford and Yale Universities and has since grown to include 24 universities. It recently expanded to include Washington University in St. Louis, and has begun hosting public events in order to educate and raise awareness on campus on a range of issues from human trafficking to health policy. The Roosevelt Institute at Washington University includes five independent centers: the Center for the Economy, the Center for the Environment, the Center for Health Policy, the Center for Gender and Sexuality and the Center for International Diplomacy. Ten students from the University, including members of both the Roosevelt Institute and the Social Justice Center, attended a national conference on human trafficking and slavery at Northwestern University this past weekend. Sophomore Rena Stern, a member of the Roosevelt Institute, said, “We attended sessions with experts in all different forms of trafficking
See ROOSEVELT, page 2