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Butler University Drops Suit Against Student Blogger
Tweet Share on Facebook October 30, 2009 Comment (80)Inside Higher Ed has chronicled the intriguing case surrounding Butler University student Jess Zimmerman, originator of a blog that was sued by the university two weeks ago for allegedly making libelous and defamatory statements about school officials. The suit, which had been denounced by faculty members and students on the Indianapolis campus, was dropped today, according to an item in Inside Higher Ed's Quick Takes feature and the Butler Collegian's website.
Zimmerman started the TrueBU Blog in 2008 but wrote it anonymously. According to Inside Higher Ed, Butler did not name Zimmerman directly in its suit, suing instead the anonymous writer. Butler University President Bobby Fong said repeatedly that since Zimmerman wasn't named in the suit, the school wasn't suing him. That caused the uproar on campus.
With the suit withdrawn, the aftermath of the incident and how the parties move on will be in focus, especially after the incident garnered so much national attention from media outlets such as the Indianapolis Star and the Huffington Post.
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Knight Won't Show at Indiana Hall of Fame Induction
Tweet Share on Facebook October 30, 2009 CommentHe's easily one of the most famous—and controversial—coaches in college sports history. And he's a legend in the state of Indiana. Former Indiana University basketball coach Bob Knight recognizes how much hoopla would surround any appearance he makes at his former stomping grounds in Bloomington, which is exactly why he won't be coming to his 2009 Indiana Athletics Hall of Fame induction ceremony, the Indiana Daily Student reports.
Knight says he doesn't want to take anything away from the other inductees, whose inductions would be overshadowed by anything that included the legendary coach, who led Indiana to three national championships during his time at IU.
"Coach Knight expressed his tremendous appreciation for the support his teams were given by the IU student body and fans all over the state of Indiana and the contribution that support made to the success of his teams," Indiana Athletics Director Fred Glass said in a statement. "Coach Knight also noted that there is no one he appreciates more than his players, who he said were the most responsible for the success the program had during his tenure."
Knight was fired by then Indiana University President Myles Brand in 2000 because of run-ins with players and students. The school and Knight have been on rocky terms since then, and the Daily Student reports that Knight's Hall of Fame induction is the "first move to bring the two sides together." Knight will be represented at the ceremony by his friend and 2008 IU Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Bob Hammel, the report says.
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University of South Carolina Tops Sexual Health Rankings
Tweet Share on Facebook October 29, 2009 CommentIn its fourth annual Sexual Health Report Card, the condom maker Trojan rated the University of South Carolina as the nation's top university in sexual health, the Gamecock reports.
The ratings are based on the information and resources available for students at each school. There were 141 NCAA colleges and universities included in the survey, which used data from on-campus student health centers and student polls, among other places. More than 6,000 college students nationwide responded to Trojan's Facebook campaign that asked five questions about a school's sexual health resources.
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Budget Cuts Might Hurt Student Jobs at Yale
Tweet Share on Facebook October 29, 2009 Comment (1)The well-chronicled troubles weighing down the economy have hit colleges and universities across the country, even in the Ivy League. To stay financially afloat, many college students get part-time jobs. And if jobs off campus are scarce, work-study and other on-campus opportunities provide an employment safety net.
That may change at Yale, the Yale Daily News reports. Yale administration officials say there's a chance that they'll reinstate a preferential hiring policy that would ensure that students receiving financial aid get the best shot at on-campus work. If the number of financial-aid students without work surpasses 30—there are 10 now without work—the policy will be reinstituted, the report says. The policy was repealed almost 10 years ago.
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Major Security Breach at Wisconsin Exposes Social Security Numbers
Tweet Share on Facebook October 28, 2009 CommentHackers compromised 40 computers in the University of Wisconsin chemistry department, and that's not the worst part. The computers had personal information—like Social Security numbers—of 2,920 people affiliated with the school, the Badger Herald reports.
The hacking is believed to have started in 2001, the report says. The Office of Campus Information Security discovered the breach when it installed new protection software on August 31. But the people whose information was compromised didn't receive notice of the incident until October 12. The report says that although the information was exposed to hackers, it may not have been taken or used. It's believed that the computers were being used more for what the report calls "an underground network" that distributes movies, television shows, music, and software.
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University of Maryland Diversity Plan Faces Sharp Critiques
Tweet Share on Facebook October 28, 2009 Comment (2)At the beginning of the school year, University of Maryland officials decided that they needed to do something about diversity on campus. A panel called the Diversity Plan Steering Committee was charged with "developing a road map to a more multifaceted campus," the Diamondback reported in September.
But when the plan came out, critics came out in droves, arguing that the plan was flawed in nearly every facet. Last night, students, faculty, and staff aired their concerns at a campus town-hall meeting that drew more than 300 people, the Diamondback reports.
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James Madison University Charges Student Journalists With 3 Violations
Tweet Share on Facebook October 28, 2009 CommentTwo student reporters have been charged with trespassing, disorderly conduct, and noncompliance with a school official by James Madison University and its police department, the Breeze reports. The Student Press Law Center says the school will decide if it will take disciplinary action at a hearing on November 5.
The incident took place on October 18. According to the Breeze's accounts of the story, Breeze reporter Katie Hibson came to Hillside Hall, a residence hall on JMU's campus, to report on a trespassing incident that had occurred the day before. A resident of the dormitory invited Hibson into the building after Hibson identified herself, Hibson says. After she interviewed students inside the dorm, Maria Lane, a resident adviser in Hillsdale Hall, asked Hibson to leave. Hibson says she left immediately.
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UCLA Students Lobby for DREAM Act
Tweet Share on Facebook October 27, 2009 Comment (17)It's a sensitive subject on all sides, and it's one of the many issues entangled in the ongoing immigration policy debate in the United States. It's the DREAM Act, and some UCLA students want the legislation passed.
Several UCLA students spent last Thursday and Friday lobbying for the passage of the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, the Daily Bruin reports. The act would allow undocumented college students to receive financial aid and move along the pathway toward citizenship.
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NCAA Begins Official Investigation of the University of Michigan
Tweet Share on Facebook October 27, 2009 Comment (1)The NCAA officially began its investigation of the University of Michigan football team today, the Michigan Daily reports. The Detroit Free Press originally reported the possible violation, saying the team had surpassed the allotted mandatory workout hours, which prompted the investigation.
A letter sent to the university by the NCAA maps out where the investigation will go, according to the Daily.
Possible violations "primarily involve the matters under review by the institution and the enforcement staff concerning the football program," the report says. The NCAA plans to finish the investigation by the end of the year.
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Racism Controversy Swirls for Washington University in St. Louis Students
Tweet Share on Facebook October 27, 2009 Comment (8)The story of six African-American Washington University in St. Louis students and a Chicago bar that wouldn't let them in has consumed the leafy west St. Louis campus, reports Student Life, the school's student newspaper.
The FBI and several other groups are investigating an incident that occurred earlier this month at the Original Mother's nightclub in the Windy City. The six students, who were traveling with some 200 other seniors from Washington University, were denied entry to the bar on October 17, the report says. One of the students, Regis Murayi, is the treasurer of the Senior Class Council, the group that arranged the trip to Original Mother's. Murayi filed complaints with the Chicago Commission on Human Rights, the Illinois attorney general's office, and the U.S. Department of Justice, the report says.