Around Campus

Brian Morowczynski/Chronicle Featured disco-poet Khari B. performs poetry at the Hokin’s Big Mouth event, Thursday, Nov. 14.

All tied up and no place to go...
College activism chapter protests human rights abuses

Cold and rainy weather cut short an Amnesty International publicity stunt held in front of the 624 S. Michigan Ave. building on Nov. 14. Jon Knitter, a film and video sophomore and member of Columbia’s Amnesty International chapter, tied and chained himself to a lamppost at 9 a.m., with the intention of staying until 10 p.m., but ended up leaving shortly after 5 p.m.

The group tied up Knitter, 20, with both a chain and rope, with his back to Michigan Avenue. Knitter then slathered fake blood across his face and T-shirt. He said his goal was to make it from 9 a.m. until 10 p.m. without taking a single bathroom, food or water break.
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College financial cushion deflated by weak economy
Endowment suffers $13 million drop

Columbia’s nest egg took a beating in the last two years. The endowment experienced a major decrease, falling from a $59 million high in the fall of 2000 to its current estimate of $46 million, according to Michael De Salle, Colulmbia’s vice president of finance.
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Student government president steps down
Citing personal issues, Van Der Wey hands in resignation

Student Government Association President Klaas Van Der Wey resigned Nov. 12 after two months of leadership, leaving his position to be filled by Vice President Gina Jiannuzzi.
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Full-time faculty overloaded, say members
Faculty office hours and meeting times outside of the classrooms not affected under new proposal

Full-time faculty members at Columbia are saying they need more time out of the classroom and away from the college.
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Cell phones in class: teachers say regulations necessary
Many agree, answering phones in class has to go

“Can you hear me now? Good.”

These are the words of the black framed-wearing Verizon pitchman. They could just as easily be words spoken by a cell-phone-wielding Columbia student while class is in session.
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BSU revives for unity, longevity
Union serves as a link to all of college’s African-American groups

Columbia’s Black Student Union has made a revival on campus after being dormant for more than four years.

“Black students on this campus are not represented like they should be,” said BSU President Erin Robinson, 19, a music business management major. Robinson and 15 other students brought the group back this fall. “We aim to represent the presence of black students on campus,” she said.

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Panel gives tips on creative nonfiction writing
Panel discusses intricacies of writing as part of Creative Nonfiction Week

“Stop making sense!” That’s what Laurence Gonzales said he wrote on the blackboard during his creative nonfiction class at Northwestern University this semester in an attempt to get his students to “unlearn” three years of journalism school—if only for an hour or two.
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Professor goes overboard with anti-war sentiment
Controversial anti-war statement leaves professor and university administration apologizing

Saint Xavier University is contemplating disciplinary action against a professor who called a cadet at the U.S. Air Force Academy a “disgrace to this country” in an e-mail message, which also derided the military’s “aggressive baby-killing tactics.” Administrators at Saint Xavier forced the professor, Peter N. Kirstein, to apologize, and the university also issued an apology of its own.
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Students’ privacy in question nationwide

(U-WIRE) HANOVER, N.H.—A recent ruling by the New Hampshire Supreme Court in a case involving Dartmouth may limit the privacy rights of students attending private colleges and universities, according to Robert DeKoven, a professor at California Western School of Law.
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University of Illinois teach-in, rally address threat of war
Peace activists encourage students to become politically active

(U-WIRE) CHAMPAIGN, Ill.— War in Iraq could turn into “another Stalingrad,” said history Professor John Lynn during a two hour teach-in organized by the Illinois Teachers for Peace and Justice.
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SEVIS creates more difficulties for international studies
Immigration policies cause problems

(U-WIRE) NORMAL, Ill.—A new computer tracking system keeps up-to-date records of all visa holding students, tourists, diplomats, religious workers, international stars, politicians and others entering the United States.
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The Editor's Desk

Warning: Something terrible will happen at some unspecified time in some undisclosed location. Terrorists will commit some dastardly crime in a strange and unexpected way. Whether you’re ready or not, destruction is on its way.
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