GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD SINCE 1920 thehoya.com
Georgetown University • Washington, D.C. Vol. 98, No. 4, © 2016
TUESday, september 13, 2016
STUNNING VICTORY
The women’s soccer team triumphed 3-2 against No. 3 Virginia Cavaliers.
EDITORIAL Lauer’s moderation failed to challenge the presidential candidates.
STUDENTS PROTEST PANEL Students demonstrated during a panel discussing Netanyahu.
OPINION, A2
NEWS, A5
A10
Endorsement Policy Disputed TARA SUBRAMANIAM Hoya Staff Writer
With 55 days to go until the Nov. 8 general election, the university’s stance on political endorsements has come under the spotlight for its ambiguity; while the Student Activities Commission has stated that no student groups are able to publically endorse presidential candidates, official university policy allows such student group endorsements.
COURTESY HKS, SHALOM BARANES ASSOCIATES JV
The conceptual drawings from the Sept. 1, 2016 Old Georgetown Board hearing, above, show the plans for the proposed $567 million medical and surgical pavilion for MedStar Georgetown University Hospital which received concept approval last week.
MedStar Pavilion Concept Approved cecia soza
Hoya Staff Writer
MedStar Georgetown University Hospital is set to move forward with constructing the proposed $567 million medical and surgical pavilion by the end of the year after it received concept approval from the Old Georgetown
Board and other key community organizations last week. The new facility will encompass a 477,000-square-foot medical and surgical pavilion that will house 156 private patient rooms, a new emergency department, larger operating rooms, a rooftop helipad with direct access to the emergency room and three levels of un-
derground parking. The approval came after MedStar Georgetown made alterations to the pavilion’s design at the request of the OGB, an advisory committee of architects who work on behalf of the Commission of Fine Arts to review pending projects in Georgetown. These alterations included adding
more green space and walkability around the entrance. The design initially called for two ramps leading from the underground parking lot to the entrance, which would bisect the greenspace. However, this was reduced to only one ramp in negotiations with See EXPANSION, A6
TAs Lead Discussion on Unionization william zhu Hoya Staff Writer
A group of doctoral students is exploring the option of forming a union to negotiate better work contracts for graduate students serving as teaching assistants and research assistants after an Aug. 23 ruling by the National Labor Relations Board, which
enabled student assistants to unionize and collectively bargain. The NLRB ruled last month that teaching and research assistants at private universities are employees with the right to unionize. The NLRB ruling did not cover undergraduate TAs and research assistants. The Georgetown Doctoral Student Coalition — a group
FILE PHOTO: KATHLEEN GUAN/THE HOYA
Doctoral students are considering the possibility of unionizing for negotiating work contracts and health care options.
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advocating for better working and learning conditions for doctoral students — formed a working group earlier this year to investigate the implications of unionizing doctoral students. The working group was formed this summer in anticipation of the NLRB ruling. Jake Earl (GRD ’17), a member of the working group, said the group has not made a decision on whether to support a move to unionize and is waiting for more student input. The working group also plans to hold a broader dialogue on the issue among both graduate and undergraduate students and other staff members at the university. “The working group is not committed one way or another about unionization. We think it needs to be a democratic decision among the sort of people who would be represented in a union,” Earl said. “We’re just encouraging open conversation among Ph.D. students, undergraduates, administration and faculty.” A forum will be held by the DSC in October where students will be able to voice questions and concerns about the possibility of unionization, according to Earl. Senior Director for Strategic Communications Rachel Pugh said the administration is currently examining the NLRB ruling, but that the university is committed to providing an optimal educational experience for the entire campus community “Georgetown is reviewing
the ruling. Student employment is an important component of our learning and living community,” Pugh wrote in an email to The Hoya. “We continue to seek opportunities to make the experience a positive one for all concerned.”
“The working group is not committed one way or another about unionization.”
“Student political groups can endorse candidates, but it must be clear that it is them and not the university because of our tax-exempt status.” RACHEL PUGH Senior Director for Strategic Communications
Student representatives with Georgetown University College Republicans said it has not endorsed in current and past election cycles because of the university’s nonprofit status. A representative from Georgetown University College Democrats said it is endorsing democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. As a taxexempt nonprofit, Georgetown is unable to endorse political candidates. However, official university policy indicates that student groups are able to endorse political candidates. Senior Director for Strategic Communications Rachel Pugh said the university expects student political organizations to endorse their party’s candidates and organize activities to support them, so long as the students or student organizations make it clear that they are not speaking on behalf of the university. “Student political groups can endorse candidates, but it must be clear that it is them and not the university because of our tax-exempt status,” Pugh wrote in an email to The Hoya. “We recognize that student political groups are political and do not restrict the College Democrats and College Republicans (and other recognized See ELECTION, A6
JAKE EARL (GRD ’17)
Compensation for Georgetown doctoral students varies considerably. Science doctoral students have free tuition, but their stipend is usually determined by research grants, their doctoral advisor spends — funding provided by faculty advisors — and time spent teaching classes, according to Evan Gardner (GRD ’20), a doctoral student in the chemistry department. Gardner said unions could potentially allow doctoral students at Georgetown to obtain better job benefits and healthcare plans not currently covered by Georgetown. “Unions in some sense — in terms of health care or services — would allow for collective See TAs, A6
FILE PHOTO: MICHELLE XU/THE HOYA
The university has given contradicting direction on student club’s right to endorse.
NEWS
NEWS
OPINION
Statehood Yes! Launches The campaign to persuade D.C. residents to vote for statehood in November’s referendum has begun. A4
GUSA Releases Housing MOU GUSA published a memorandum of understanding with the university about housing requirements. A5
Editorial By protesting during a panel discussion, students disrupted the ability of others to learn by listening. A2
NEWS Addressing Sexual Assault
OPINION 2016: The Year of Rhetoric
SPORTS Shocking Comeback
The Sexual Assault and Misconduct Task Force held its first weekly meeting this month. A5
This past year has displayed a variety of speaking techniques that value passion and personality. A3
Published Tuesdays and Fridays
The football team overcame a weather delay and a defecit to win on Saturday. A10
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