serving the uc davis campus and community since 1915
www.theaggie.org
volume 131, number 20
monday. february 13, 2012
GASC brings sexy back BDMS workshop to kick off Generation Sex Week By MICHELLE MURPHY Aggie News Writer
Curious about sex, sexuality or gender? Well, Generation Sex Week kicks off today, as students have the opportunity to attend workshops, exhibits and presentations that highlight sexual positivity. For over four years, the ASUCD Gender and Sexuality Commission (GASC) has collaborated with other organizations on campus, including the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Resource Center (LGBTRC) and Women’s Resources and Research Center (WRRC), to put on Generation Sex Week. The week provides an opportunity for students to gain a wider range of knowledge about sex and sexuality issues that are typically avoided. Additionally, it provides a platform for which students can converse with one another about all things sex related in a free and open manner. “It’s an opportunity to communicate with other people, because often times topics about sex, sexuality and gender are often seen as taboo,” said GASC Chair Caitlin Alday. “People tend to stick with what they know, and sometimes that can create a lack of knowledge, which can lead to fear or uncomfortable situations. It’s important for people to be exposed to new ideas and to the gain confidence to talk about them.” The first event of the week is a bondage, discipline; dominance-submission; and sadomasochism (BDSM) workshop, which starts today at 6:30 in the Student Community Center Meeting Room D.
Last year, this workshop was extremely popular, and this year’s should contain even more interesting information. Students can come and learn about different forms of sexuality and different ways of experiencing pain and pleasure, Alday said. “There
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will be time to walk around, look at different toys, ask questions and there will be a free raffle too. The workshop also talks a lot about consent, which is important because it can be applied to any sort of sexual situation that people encounter.” The week will conclude with keynote speaker Leah Lakshmi, a queer disabled Sri
Claremont McKenna College inflates SAT scores Aggie Staff Writer
An admissions official for Claremont McKenna College (CMC) admitted to reporting false SAT Reasoning Test score statistics to increase the school’s place in national college rankings. In a media statement released on Jan. 30, CMC stated the admissions official took full responsibility and resigned from the school. “Claremont McKenna College has a deep and unwavering commitment to the integrity of its academic activities, including its academic reporting,” said CMC in its statement. “We were saddened and disappointed to learn of this matter.” Currently, the college is engaged in legal counsel to prevent this type of conduct from happening again. Kaplan Test Prep commented on the case, saying there have been other cases of schools inflating SAT scores to influence their rankings, but CMC’s is the most egregious. “The reality is there are a number of ways schools have been able to influence their statistics around rankings,” said Jeff Olson, vice president of data science for Kaplan, in an e-mail. “When a school goes SAT optional, it will offer legitimate reasons for doing so, but realistically, one effect of going SAT optional is
that it boosts that school’s reported SAT scores. Another example might be if a school gets rid of its early admissions policy — this increases applicant volume, which makes it seem more selective and more competitive.” Olson said the problem with rankings is that they’ve had a negative effect on colleges because it forces colleges to focus on statistics around perceived status. “What rankings data can offer are certain statistics that give some insight around the edges as students research schools,” Olson said. “Ultimately, while rankings have been a traditional part of the college search narrative, they should really play a minimal role in the college applications process.” Walter Robinson, UC Davis assistant vice chancellor for undergraduate admissions and recruitment, said he believes rankings are the forensics of the outcome of the year’s efforts, as well as a way schools can tailor their efforts to achieve an outcome that satisfies the criteria for rankings. “I, for one, don’t have time to play the ranking game,” Robinson said. “There’s plenty of enough work to do. But there are some people who are very rank-conscious: parents, students and counselors.” In response to CMC’s reporting of inflated SAT scores, Robinson said he thinks CMC is one of the last institutions that would need to resort to that type of conduct. “Playing the college rankings game is a dangerous game to play,” Robinson said. “I think the reality of public universities is different than private universities.”
See KAPLAN, page 2
Irisa Tam / Aggie
Today’s weather Chance of rain High 53 Low 39
events and workshops, an art exhibit showcasing various expressions of gender and sexuality will be on display at the LGBTRC all week long. Furthermore, Generation Sex Week showcases the different resources about sex, sexuality and gender that are available on campus.
“We want to provide resources to people, and this week is kind of a fun way to do it,” GASC commissioner Ivan De La Torre said. “There’s a lot of resources on campus that students are not aware of. Even if [students] don’t come out to the events, by just going online and browsing, you might find something you didn’t know existed.” The collaboration between various organizations to make this week possible has opened up opportunities between different communities on campus. “There’s a good queer community represented on campus,” De La Torre said. “However there’s not much of a bridge between that community and say for example, the heterosexual community. GenSex week is a good way of bridging that gap between those two communities by providing information on sexuality and everything related to sex in an open way.” Rachael Valler, another GASC commissioner, emphasized that the week is geared toward learning about diversity in sexuality and embracing that diversity. “There is no limit in sexuality. Generation Sex Week shows a broad range of people’s sexual experiences, desires or interests,” she said. “Sex is a huge part of many students’ lives, and it should be celebrated. Generation Sex Week is probably one of the only weeks that really showcases sex positivity.” MICHELLE MURPHY can be reached at campus@theaggie.org.
Donations to UC Davis rise in spite of pepper spray incident
College rankings’ significance become debunked By CLAIRE TAN
Lankan writer, teacher and cultural worker, discussing queerness and disability. Students can find more information about events taking place throughout the week on the Generation Sex Week event page on Facebook. In addition to the
Monetary gifts increased by 20 percent in 2011 By STEPHANIE B. NGUYEN Aggie News Writer
With the pepper spray incident in November, UC Davis was put on the map nationally and internationally. However, despite the negative attention, monetary gifts to the university seems to have increased in recent months, bringing UC Davis closer to its fundraising goals. The Campaign for UC Davis effort, which began in October 2010, is the university’s first comprehensive fundraising campaign that aims to raise $1 billion from 100,000 donors by 2014. So far, the university has raised more than $750 million from more than 85,000 donors. “We’re a little more than threequarters of the way there,” said Kevin Bacon, the chair of the UC Davis Foundation Board of Trustees. “People continue to make gifts despite the pepper spray incident. The people who give money to UC Davis are pret-
ty committed to the campus. The incident was not a reason to stop supporting the university.” Last year saw a 20 percent increase in monetary gifts from donors. In December 2010, the university received $14.9 million in gifts. In December 2011, right after the pepper spray incident, the university received $19.2 million in gifts. “It is an extraordinary achievement to reach this milestone a little more than one year into the four-year public phase of this fundraising campaign,” said Shaun B. Keister, vice chancellor for development and alumni relations in a press release. “This important milestone gives us the momentum we need to reach our $1 billion goal.” Bruce Edwards, a member of the foundation board agreed. “Connecting those 100,000 people to the university is just as important to the future as raising the $1 billion,” Edwards said. In addition to Campaign
for UC Davis, the UC Davis Foundation Board started fundraising efforts for a matching fund for scholarships for undergraduate and graduate students. “We’re trying to raise $1 million to develop a matching fund,” Edwards said. “If a donor gives $25,000 or more, they’ll get a match from the fund of $25,000.” According to Edwards, the board has already raised $450,000 with hopes to reach the $1 million goal by May or June. The 2011-12 fiscal year is 40 percent ahead of the 2010-11 fiscal year in terms of gifts, according to Julia Ann Easley of the UC Davis News Service. The donations collected for Campaign for UC Davis goes toward funding student scholarships, financial aid, faculty support, research programs, campus facilities and medical care. STEPHANIE B. NGUYEN can be reached at campus@ theaggie.org.
UC Office of the President holds town hall regarding campus police New recommendations on police procedures to be released in early March their use of force. “Our project is largely about looking forward,” Robinson said. The continuation of Occupy protests at various UC campuses has become a daily issue for administrators struggling to bal-
By RICHARD CHANG Aggie News Writer
Charles Robinson and Christopher Edley are on a mission: they want to know how administrators should deal with protesters. Under the direction of University of California President Mark Yudof, UC General Counsel Robinson and Edley, dean of UC Berkeley’s law school, are on a listening tour. The pair arrived at UC Davis last Friday to host a town hall meeting and hear what students had to say about police and
Forecast This whole rain thing is really throwing a sword in my plans for outside activities. One can only remain inside for so many hours before losing his or her mind. Alex Neigher, atmospheric science major Aggie Forecasting Team
Jasna Hodzic / Aggie
ance freedom of speech while minimizing campus disruptions. In November, campus police at UC Berkeley used force against student protesters and UC Davis cam-
Tuesday
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pus police used pepper-spray on student demonstrators on the Quad. A wide range of voices was represented at the meeting with students, faculty and staff attending. But the persistence of the Occupy movement on campus had some students wondering when the university’s patience would finally run out. “The protesters are disrupting our education,” said sophomore biochemistry major Quyen Le. Some disagreed. “I support civil disobedience,” said Shaun Geer, a sociology graduate student.
See POLICE, page 2
What could have been construed as the apocalypse, was actually just a three-day, pre-teen dance competition in Freeborn Hall. No one at The Aggie got served Jason Alpert