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Serving James Madison University Since 1922
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Vol. 88, No. 41 Thursday, March 15, 2012
Alger for affordability, diversity In his first extensive sit-down interview with The Breeze, president-elect Jon Alger discusses his past experiences, his present work at Rutgers and his future plans for JMU. Get to know Jon Alger If you weren’t in the law system what would you do? When I was
really young, being a quarterback in a NFL team was one [of my goals]. I quickly learned that that wasn’t in my future in terms of my skills and attributes. I think teaching was one because we have a number of teachers in our family and is something I always had a passion for. Another area is the performing arts, and I’ve sung my whole life, mostly in choruses. Certainly there had been an opportunity to have a career in music that would’ve been a lot of fun. My daughter has caught that bug, so maybe she’ll be the one to do that.
What is your favorite book? A
LAURA WEEKS / THE BREEZE
President-elect Jon Alger plans to work closely with students once he assumes presidency, which should be in July. “I want the students to know I’m accessible and available to them,” Alger said.
By GEORGINA BUCKLEY and ALISON PARKER The Breeze
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. — Despite a full-time job at Rutgers University and an inauguration that’s four months away, JMU is in the front of Jon Alger’s mind. President-elect Alger, who calls himself a “lifetime student,” will be leaving his job as senior vice president and general counsel at Rutgers in New Jersey. He previously held the assistant general counsel post at University of Michigan before working at Rutgers and said he wanted to work at JMU because the school seems to be a good fit for him. “I think I immediately recognized it was a fabulous opportunity and one of great interest to me,” Alger said. Alger said he looked at several college presidencies before he was selected as JMU’s president, but he said JMU stood out from any
What’s the craziest thing you did as a 20-something? I would say
>> Video interview with Jon Alger at breezejmu.org other universities. He added that he wants to integrate himself into the student body and plans on attending many student events, even wanting to invite students to his home once he’s in Harrisonburg. “I want the students to know I’m accessible and available to them,” Alger said. Several student organizations have already reached out to him. Alger said the basket of JMU apparel and knick-knacks they gave him have been put to good use. “Our whole family is wearing the T-shirts when we get the chance, and we’ve already had people come up to us and ask how we know JMU,” Alger said. Alger’s first project at JMU will be his listening
Despite NCAA tournament rejection, team looks hopefully toward NIT By CARLEIGH DAVIS The Breeze
3/15 INSIDE
this isn’t crazy, but a great memory for me. My law school roommate and I, after law school, we went to Europe and we wanted to do something fun after all the stress of the bar exam and we signed up for one of these bus tours of Europe. You know nine countries in three weeks. It was a wonderful experience. We didn’t have a lot of money so we were always trying to find places to eat for only $. I think that instilled the travel bug in me.
What was your first job? I did a
lot of babysitting. My first summer job was taking care of families’ kids, but I had a variety of summer jobs. I worked in a daycare center, a liquor store and outdoor concert tent. I had a variety of different jobs. I worked at the navy yard in Philadelphia during college.
see ALGER, page A4
Student’s death ripples community
Dukes rebound after snub You’d think that a - season record and a trip to the semifinals would be enough to receive an atlarge bid to the women’s NCAA tournament. Wrong. It may not have received an NCAA nod, but the team did make the women’s National Invitation Tournament, securing a home game against Davidson University at p.m. tonight. “It goes to show you our administration and what they’ve done,” said head coach Kenny Brooks. “They gave us a home game, which gave us an advantage.” As Selection Monday unfolded, the Dukes watched Colonial Athletic Association foe Delaware get a bid and watch other teams, such as the - Middle Tennessee State University team, receive an invitation. Brooks wrote on his Twitter that he “wish we had played Middle Tenn St. head to head. Oh wait … we did”. “As teams were being announced in the field, I was pleasantly surprised how much knowledge the kids had about it,” Brooks said. “When the
guilty pleasure is that I still read with my daughter every night — not that she needs it. She’s a voracious reader, — but it’s something we do. Right now for example, we’re reading “The Hunger Games.” I have really enjoyed it because I look at it through a different lens than my daughter does and what it says about power and justice and authority.
Steven Knott, SGA member, hoped to change JMU By ALISON PARKER The Breeze
PAUL JONES / THE BREEZE
Kenny Brooks, the women’s basketball coach, expressed his disappointment at the press conference yesterday, but said he anticipates a successful future.
teams would pop up, I would get a text from Nikki [Newman] that said, ‘Why does Middle Tennessee get in when our [Ratings Percentage Index] is better and we beat them headto-head?’ … The feeling after that is disappointment.” Newman, a junior guard, shared Brooks’ feelings on being looked over. “It definitely was a big disappointment because I think we can sway with a bunch of teams in that
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NEWS Gearing up
SWAT team practices catching criminals through reenactment.
tournament,” Newman said. “Especially some of the teams that got in, I mean we beat Middle Tennessee State head-to-head. It was a disappointment, really.” The Dukes beat MTSU - in JMU’s fourth game of the season. Although MTSU had a - record and went - in the Sun Belt Conference, it lost the conference see BASKETBALL, page B5
A5
OPINION Right of the dial
Rush Limbaugh followers should turn off his radio show.
SGA’s meeting last night turned quiet to hold a moment of silence for fifth-year senior Steven M. Knott, who recently died unexpectedly. Police said there were no signs of foul play in their Feb. investigation of Knott’s home in Harrisonburg. Knott, a finance and economics double major, was expected to graduate this summer, said Kurt Johnson, an administrator in the registrar office. According to Patricia May, director of communications for the College of Business, Knott was enrolled last fall and at the beginning of this semester. “He had registered for spring classes, and he withdrew at some point in time,” May said. This is the sixth student death during this school year. Knott, a New York native, was an opinion columnist for The Breeze who focused on political issues, campus events and social media in his articles. He was also a member of SGA as the College of Business representative. The Breeze featured Knott in a writer’s
B1
LIFE Play it again
Student-composer Evan Duffy is a YouTube sensation.
FILE PHOTO / THE BREEZE
Steven Knott, a fifth-year finance and economics double major and SGA member, died on Feb. 29. He was expected to graduate this summer.
spotlight in March , where he discussed the importance of the Board of Visitors’ student representative, a see KNOTT, page A4
B3
SPORTS Lending a helping hand
JMU softball and baseball participate in a program that works with disabled children.