S T OPPING THE SLIDE JAZZ BANDS’ BIG FINISH Terps break rough patch with easy win over local rivals
Three different university jazz bands close out the semester with a free performance
SPORTS | PAGE 12
DIVERSIONS | PAGE 8
THE DIAMONDBACK WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2008
THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER
98TH YEAR | ISSUE NO. 137
Men’s basketball scores low APR Team avoids penalties but poor NCAA report grades worst in ACC BY JEFF AMOROS Senior staff writer
The Terrapin men’s basketball team eeked out an Academic Progress Rate just above the minimum permissible score, but remained vulnerable to scholarship cuts if players leave the program while academically ineligible, according to a NCAA report released yesterday. The Terps scored 906 on a 1000-
ADAM FRIED–THE DIAMONDBACK
Newly sworn-in Student Government Association President Jonathan Sachs addresses a small crowd on McKeldin Mall as former SGA President Andrew Friedson and Vice President for Student Affairs Linda Clement look on.
Sachs sworn into office Staff writer
ADAM FRIED–THE DIAMONDBACK
Former SGA President Andrew Friedson (right) hugs newly sworn-in SGA President Jonathan Sachs shortly after his inauguration on McKeldin Mall yesterday evening.
Wiseman named dean of education Promotion comes after a year of guiding college
A crowd of more than 70 people gathered on the McKeldin Mall yesterday afternoon to watch Jonathan Sachs be officially sworn in as SGA president. Sachs took the stage and charismatically promised to help bolster student involvement and unity. He did not explicitly outline policies to implement next year in the same way that former Student Government Association President Andrew Friedson did last year, but Sachs made sure to emphasize the importance of hearing the voices of the students as individuals rather than a collective body. “We will focus on reaching out to the individual to attempt to personalize each student’s experience by actively seeking their input and participation in the SGA and life in this community,” he said. Sachs stressed that, to increase student involvement, the SGA will need to take a more proactive approach. “We must move from an open-door policy to a doorto-door policy, from an office hours mentality to time in dorms to address the day-to-day issues that we face,” he said. “As student body president, it is my job to know what’s best for my fellow Terps. But making these judgment calls can only be achieved by seeking
Please See SGA, Page 3
Please See APR, Page 9
New dining option may come to North Campus Venue would cater to proposed dorm
SGA pres. aims to bolster student engagement BY BEN WORSLEY
point scale, just a few points above the baseline minimum permissible score of 900 and two points lower than the team’s score last season. Teams falling below 900 face escalating penalties with each consecutive year below that score, including sanctions ranging from warning letters to practice and scholarship reductions to postseason bans.
BY CARRIE WELLS Staff writer
Details on the reopening of the long shuttered dining hall on North Campus emerged last night when a Dining Services official presented new plans for the space to RHA members, who will individually mull over the options before making recommendations to the department.
Northwoods, which previously served as Denton Dining Hall before closing down in 2003 due to cuts in Dining Services’ budget, will likely open in the fall of 2010 to accommodate students living in a proposed 650-bed dorm in the Denton community. Plans for the dining venue could still “go back to the drawing board,”
Please See NORTHWOODS, Page 7
FILE PHOTO–THE DIAMONDBACK
Northwoods could reopen in fall 2010 if a new dorm is built within the Denton Community on North Campus.
2018
Univ. Senate shows broad support for strategic plan BY KEVIN ROBILLARD Senior staff writer
The university’s strategic plan overwhelmingly passed in the University Senate yesterday after months of debate. The plan contains ambitious new initiatives to improve graduate studies, international programs and the community sur-
Vote rejects amendments, maintains provost’s power and CORE redesign rounding the university, as well as a new proposal to overhaul the university’s CORE curriculum. The overwhelming margin of the vote — 68 senators were in
favor of the plan and only five voted against it — gives Provost Nariman Farvardin and university President Dan Mote the green light to move forward with
the plan, which aims to make the university “world-class” and a top-10 public research university. “I’m ecstatic,” Farvardin said after the vote. “The most important thing is the university came together in the end.” Farvardin also chaired the strategic planning committee.
Please See PLAN, Page 7
BY JESSIE LANE For The Diamondback
Donna Wiseman, who served as interim dean of the College of Education this school year, was appointed dean of the school Tuesday. Wiseman was the college’s second interim dean in two years and worked to overcome her temporary status while Donna Wiseman guiding the college through the long-term strategic planning process. Wiseman held a number of administrative positions at Northern Illinois University and
City Council bemoans lack of involvement with plan BY BRADY HOLT Staff writer
Though the University Senate cast its final vote on the strategic plan yesterday afternoon, the College Park City Council didn’t begin discussing its stance on the plan until several hours later, poking holes in parts of the document weeks after it was initially
set to discuss the plan. The council expressed concerns about some language and content in the “Surrounding Community” section of the 10year plan, and intends to send a letter to university President Dan Mote that lists its thoughts. The council and City Planning Director Terry Schum took issue with many strategies they said
were vague in the plan, such as suggestions about police services and environmentally friendly building projects. The city also opposed a segment of the strategic plan calling for a private road to connect the campus to the Capital Beltway that would let visitors bypass Route 1. City officials said they opposed the connector road because it
wastes funds that could be used for Route 1 renovations. The council had been scheduled to critique the strategic plan earlier — the first draft of the plan was released in early March — but it delayed discussion in favor of other city business, Schum said.
Please See CITY, Page 7
Please See DEAN, Page 3
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