Issue 32, Volume 121
Friday, October 5, 2012
CCI Diversity Week aids in Top 25 goal RJ Vogt News Editor The College of Communication and Information’s Diversity and Inclusion Week concluded last night with a festival in Circle Park. Caroline Mullen, sophomore in journalism and electronic media, could not resist the most obvious attraction at the festival. “I was really hungry, and I saw free food,” she said. With burgers and hot dogs provided by CCI and a steel drummer performing in the background, the crowd slowly accumulated. Although the weather is turning colder, the atmosphere at Circle Park hearkened back to summer months. “It’s pretty hip and cool, I like it,” Mullen said. “The music is good … summer atmosphere even though it’s almost fall.” Ryan Webb, junior in political science, also showed up for the free food. He was impressed with the festival
and what it represents for diversity at UT. “I think they’ve definitely taken steps in the right direction,” Webb said. The festival serves as the final event for the week-long program that has focused on student input and education about diversity. CCI has hosted two panels per day since Monday, with topics such as “Diversity and Sexuality” and “Diversity and Sports.” “I’ve been to two of the panels this week, the health one and the sports one, and it was really informative. I feel like I learned a lot,” Mullen said. Part of UT’s quest for a Top 25 public university ranking centers on an increased awareness of diversity. The administration has created a new position, the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, to help facilitate inclusion. The first of four candidates for the opening, Rickey L. Hall, visited campus Thursday morning for a public forum and question and answer session. See DIVERSITY WEEK on Page 3
Emily DeLanzo • The Daily Beacon
Students get free barbecue at the evening festival, marking the end of the CCI Diversity and Inclusion Week, at Circle Park on Oct. 4. This year’s theme, “Expanding and Understanding our Diverse World,” featured panel discussions to highlight the range of diversity issues.
Publicity affects campus life David Cobb Assistant News Editor Former UT football head coach Lane Kiffin thought any publicity was good publicity. UT students aren’t necessarily that naive. ESPN’s “College GameDay,” CNN and NBC’s “Today” show highlight the rash of recent national media moguls to broadcast from the UT campus. A recent incident involving the alleged use of alcohol enemas at the Pi Kappa Alpha (PIKE) fraternity house prompted national media attention, including a live report by CNN’s David Mattingly from Fiji Island. “That’s pretty bad publicity,” Joe
LaCombe, undecided freshman, said, “As much I would like it not to affect the rest of the school, it kind of does. Because when one person or one big group does something wrong, it reflects off of every other person in the group.” LaCombe said that the presence of “College GameDay” provided positive publicity, but that Tennessee’s loss to Florida diminished its effect. “Coming to this school has just been a big adrenaline rush,” LaCombe said. “For all that has bounced at us, for two of the three to have gone right and for one thing to go wrong, as much as that one thing affects everyone else on campus, that’s not all that bad to be two out of three.” The “Today” show broadcasted its fourth hour in front of Ayers Hall on
Monday. Paul Troy, junior in history, believes that the event hosted by Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb falls into the category of positive publicity. “I think it’s good,” Troy said. “They weren’t tipsy. They were drinking sweet tea, which was kind of interesting. But the “Today” show, that’s awesome. That’s huge. I’m really excited to be here, and I think they were excited to be here. They showed with national coverage for UT, how great it is, and how great it is to be here.” Although Troy pointed to “College GameDay” as positive press for the school, he said the attention coming from the situation with PIKE is less flattering. See MEDIA COVERAGE on Page 3
Parker Eidson • The Daily Beacon
Lee Corso yells while dressed as Davy Crockett during ESPN’s “College GameDay” on Sept. 14.
Emily DeLanzo • The Daily Beacon Annie Freeland • The Daily Beacon
Attorney Dan McGehee, with his client Alexander Kathie Lee and Hoda talk with the crowd during their Broughton, addresses the alleged case during the show in front of Ayres Hall on Oct. 1. press interview on Oct. 2.
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Lady Vols travel to Columbia, S.C. page 6
UT commission fights for equal employee benefits Justin Joo Staff Writer It’s been more than a week since the Commission for LGBT People posted an open letter to UT Chancellor Jimmy Cheek and Agriculture Chancellor Larry Arrington requesting a discussion on equal benefits for all unmarried domestic partners, but so far there has been no response. “As of this time, we have received no communication from the university administration,” said Keith Kirkland, chair of the Commission and main writer of the open letter. The open letter was written to address Cheek and Arrington’s response to a resolution from the Faculty Senate. The resolution, which was originally presented April 2, stated that the Faculty Senate supported equal benefits provided to all domestic partners of UT employees. The resolution defined equal benefits to include, but not limited to health insurance, family leave benefits and education assistance for domestic partners and their dependent children. The resolution concluded by requesting written responses from Cheek and Arrington “ … on the
Administration’s plans for progress on benefit equality.” There was also an addendum that listed various benefits that the Top 25 universities provided to its employees’ domestic partners. On Sept. 7, Cheek and Arrington sent a three-paragraph response to Faculty Senate, which stated “ … it is incumbent upon us to act consistently with the public policy of our state. We believe that the three specific proposals for domestic partner benefit equality … are inconsistent with the public policy of our state.” Kirkland said that he was “dumbfounded” by the response of the chancellors. “How our leadership can reject the combined recommendation of the faculty, staff, graduate and undergraduate bodies without any more substantive reasoning is beyond my comprehension,” he said. Kirkland said that after the response, the commission monitored various listservs and news outlets to see how the campus and the world were responding. After the University of Georgia’s University Council approved a proposal to provide benefits to domestic partners, Kirkland began writing the open letter. See LGBT on Page 3
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