Vermont Cynic Issue 16

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PRESIDENTIAL SEARCH

Focusing on candidates Randhawa and Hay

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VERMONT FALLS IN FROZEN FENWAY REMATCH

RELAX FOLKS - IT’S JUST A GAME

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Zach Despart’s opinion column

C YNIC THE VERMONT

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The University of Vermont’s independent voice since 1883

w w w . v e r m o n t c y n i c . c o m | T h u r s d a y , J a n u a r y 2 6 , 2 0 1 2 – Vo l u m e 1 2 8 I s s u e 1 6 | B u r l i n g t o n , Ve r m o n t

Bookstore buys back own textbooks in hoax Man brings titles from shelf to register By Kevin Santamaria Staff Writer

The beginning of a new semester brought in hundreds of students to the UVM Bookstore, but one individual took advantage of the book-buying commotion for personal profit. A person who is not a student was caught allegedly stealing books from the first floor of the bookstore and reselling them on the second floor, raking in a profit that could range from a couple hundred dollars to $2,000, according to Jay Menninger, director of the UVM Bookstore. “The red flag for us was that the gentleman started to sell a fair number of high-end books all at the same time,” Menninger said. The books were not in the same genre, ranging from electrical engineering to a psychology textbook from the Community College of Vermont (CCV) section, which also tipped off the wholesale buyer, Menninger said. The seller was making a lot

of money on every book, which Menninger called unusual.

“The red flag for us was that the gentleman started to sell a fair amount of high-end books all at the same time.” Jay Menninger Director of the UVM Bookstore “Normally, as most students know, you bring a big stack of hardcover books and a couple have no value,” he said. “That’s just the way the market is.” From what the bookstore staff could gather, the suspect

was taking the books right off the shelf and walking upstairs in order to resell them, but UVM Police Services are still reviewing the tapes. “We try to be vigilant during this time of the year,” Menninger said. “We want to trust our students and customers, but unfortunately someone like that is the reason we have to ask people to leave their bags at the front of the store.” The individual was seen twice at the store, and was approached by UVM Police the third time, he said. “The books he brought in the third time were compared to the beginning inventory, how many we sold that day and how many were supposed to be on the shelf,” Menninger said. “In each case, we were missing the exact number he had in his pile.” The suspect denied all the charges at the scene, he said. See on STEALING page 4

YDALMI ESTRELLA The Vermont Cynic

Junior Steven Menken purchases books from UVM Bookstore director Jay Menninger, at the UVM Bookstore on Jan. 24.

Pres. mansion plans still under construction

Renovation costs reach $2 million, trustees will decide on practicality of fixes By Mat Degan Staff Writer The debate over what to do with Englesby House, the brokendown UVM presidential mansion on South Williams Street, is inching forward.

In an email, Board Chairman Robert Cioffi stated that UVM trustees are still considering the issue and that a plan for the presidential mansion is expected in the coming weeks. Built in 1913, Englesby House has served many past University

JAMIE LENT The Vermont Cynic

Director of capital planning and management, Bob Vaughan, in his office on 109 South Prospect Street in Burlington, Jan. 25.

NEWS 1-4 Six empty seats prompt SGA election

LIFE 5-6 Dream is upheld

ARTS

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Azealia Banks impresses with fresh tracks

Want to work for The Cynic? We will train you. Contact cynic@uvm.edu

presidents, but has not been occupied since former Interim President Edwin Colodny resided there in 2001. Though the mansion’s status and all related costs of its repair came before the board as early as October, no specific timeline for renovations to the building has been established, nor has a firm declaration of how extensive those renovations will be. “We had really looked at two different elements for the building: one for the exterior work that needed to be done, and one for the interior as a separate review,” said Bob Vaughan, director of capital planning and management. “We have done the design work for the exterior and are waiting for a decision to be made.” Despite reports that trustees were dawdling and that plans to refurbish Englesby House have been stalled, no consensus had ever been formed regarding the future of the house, said Richard

OPINION 10-12 The disappearance of proper etiquette

Cate, vice president for finance and administration.

“There was never a declaration that we were going to do something about it. Some of the media coverage led people to believe that we were going to do a certain thing.” Richard Cate vice president for finance and administration “There was never a declaration that we were going to do something about it,” he said. “Some of the media coverage led

DISTRACTIONS Cat Tales

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people to believe that we were going to do a certain thing.” Cate also said the administration has done what the trustees asked, and now all there is left to do is wait. University officials said they have concerns that overshadow the aging house, such as the presidential search process, which has been narrowed down to five candidates. “The trustees have been engaged with the presidential search and that has taken priority,” Cate said. “[The Englesby House] was no sort of emergency.” According to Cate, last year’s preliminary estimates for renovation were running over the $2 million mark. Of the improvements, the most pressing is a solution to the flooding problem that initially rendered the building See on ENGLESBY page 4

SPORTS 14-16 Another awesome Aussie Open

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