Faculty defeats removal motion

Sean Oakley - Faculty Senate Beat

In a close vote preceded by a heated discussion, the Faculty Senate narrowly defeated a motion to recommend allowing a faculty member to remove a threatening student from his or her class.

“[The motion] gave the faculty member the power to determine the facts and the sanctions, regardless of due process,” said Dr. Patrick Rardin, associate professor of philosophy and religion who was one of the opposing voters at the Monday meeting.

Senators supporting the motion argued faculty members should be granted the authority to intercede before violence occurs.

Rardin said there were problems with the rationale included in the language of the motion.

First, the motion stated there was no policy currently in place, he said. However, there is a policy already in place for cases of threat in the classroom.

Under the current policy, Appalachian faculty members are supposed to report the incident to the Office of Judicial Affairs, which will in turn conduct a hearing to decide which, if any, sanctions need to be pursued.

Under the current rule, the faculty member has the right to ask the student not to attend the class until the situation is settled at the hearing.

Second, the motion stated there have been a number of such incidents, he said. However, Rardin disagreed and said there has only been one in the last semester.

“I’ve had three occurrences [reported to me], one just yesterday afternoon, in which faculty have felt their lives were threatened,” said Dr. Steve Simon, professor of history.

“They’ve had one case this semester that went through the process,” said Rardin in response. “The fact that it happens, and goes unreported, makes it unaccountable.”

The way the motion was worded, it would have given faculty members the ability to more actively prevent an incident before having to deal with the consequences.

Yet the motion also allowed faculty members to permanently expel students from their classes regardless of hearings.

“In a threatening situation, you have the right as faculty to permanently remove a student, regardless of hearing,” said Dr. Chip Arnold, professor of English.

Upon further debate of the motion, members of the senate then focused the discussion to the term “permanently” in the language of the motion.

“I can’t vote for this because it’s allowing a professor to permanently remove a student from class regardless of a hearing,” said Dr. Deborah Crocker, assistant professor of mathematical sciences.

Under the current policy, “a complaint can be placed with town police, University Police or [the Office of] Judicial Affairs,” said Rardin. “I see this as an end run around the due process. This is why I must vote against it.”

Kristina Egger - Chancellor/Student Development Beat
Catherine Quill - Associate Editor

The Appalachian State University administration is proposing a new student fee of $142 for the 2002-2003 academic year to fund a yet-to-be-constructed university recreational facility.

This new charge falls under the category of indebtedness fees, according to a university-provided document entitled “Historical Data Relative to Fee Increases.”

With the addition of the new fee, students would pay a total of $285 for indebtedness fees, nearly doubling from this year’s $143 total, according the document.

If this fee, along with other tuition and fee increases is approved, the total cost for in-state students living on campus would rise to $6,825.50, up from this year’s $6065. Out-of-state residents living on campus would pay $14,916, a rise from 2001-2002’s $14,147.

Proposed tuition increases include a $150 campus-based tuition increase that is the second installment of a $300 increase for faculty salary improvements and a $49 system-wide hike handed down by the University of North Carolina system Board of Governors (BOG).

Other proposed fee increases include a $44.50 increase in general fees and an $8.50 increase in miscellaneous service charges.

Room and board costs would also increase $375, under the proposal.
Final approval will be given at the BOG’s annual March meeting.
“ Student fees increase every year to keep up with inflation, but Appalachian State University is still the seventh lowest in the UNC System overall for expense,” said Dr. Gregory Blimling, vice chancellor for Student Development, at the Nov. 6 Student Government Association Senate meeting.

Xan Harrington, SGA president, said the new recreation facility will be built on the corner of Bodenheimer and Stadium drives and will have an Olympic-size swimming pool, basketball courts, and a two-level parking deck primarily for student use “At first I wondered if there were more important things than a recreation facility, but if it is built, we will be able to offer recreational swimming to all students, and intramural basketball games won’t be scheduled until 1a.m,” said Harrington.

The only major argument against the facility is that some students feel the funds for the recreation facility should be generated through private funds instead of student fees.

Freshmen John Barefoot, SGA senator, said, “The university raised some $79 million dollars over the past few years which I thought was in part for building expenses.”

The $44.50 general fee hike includes a $15 increase for athletics, a proposal generating some controversy among the student body. For the past two years, the athletic fee has increased by nearly $100, according to the aforementioned document.

“Basically I feel that all of the proposals are part of a necessary evil,” said senior SGA senator Jennifer Brannock. “Even though not all students take advantage of the money they spend on athletic fees, football games are still an integral part of the college experience.”

Dustin Bayard, a junior and SGA senator feels quite differently about the athletic proposal. “ Not all students are athletes or participate in athletically-sponsored events,” said Bayard. “I don’t think those students should have to pay the athletic departments salaries.”

Moreover, Bayard is concerned with the proposed $6 increase for education and technology, also included in general fees.

“ This money used to be used for printing in the ACF labs, but starting next semester we are going to the pay for print system,” said Bayard. “ I’d just like a breakdown of where the money is going.”
There has also been a proposed 5 percent legislative increase, which means an additional $50 for students, said Blimling.

In response to the overall proposal, senior and SGA senator Chad Oakley said, “No one likes to hear that tuition is increasing but it’s necessary. With the state going through a budget crisis and the cost of living going up we need more support from students.”

Funds to protect international efforts

Kristin Davis - Academic Affairs Beat

A $250,000 donation from Wachovia Corporation to the Walker College of Business will help safeguard current international program endeavors, said Beth Alexander, director of development for the college of business (COB).

The grant is part of Campaign for the Second Century, an Appalachian State University fund-raising effort seeking to “forge a future worthy of our past,” according to its mission statement.

The venture began in 1996 with a $50- million goal.

The current $70-million campaign goal has already been surpassed, with its coffers now totaling more than $77 million, said Alexander.
“We rely on private support to make programs possible for students,” she said.

Alexander called Wachovia a long-time supporter of Appalachian State.

A large part of the recent grant would support the William R. Holland Fellows program, an exchange program between Appalachian and Fudan University in Shanghai, China, she said.

A small portion of monies will sustain student and professor travel to conferences and in-class speakers in the COB, said Alexander.

“Experience in international programs gives business students a competitive advantage in job interviews,” she said. “Company recruiters are looking for graduates with exposure in the international arena.”

Dr. Kenneth Peacock, dean of the COB, announced the donation at the Harlan Boyles Distinguished CEO Lecture Series in October, which featured Wachovia CEO L.M. Baker, Jr.

Peacock expressed his appreciation of the donation, which came just days after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. He noted the heightened significance of the gift, given in a time of budgetary turmoil and uncertainty for the university.

Of Campaign for the Second Century, Peacock said, “Private support of the Walker College and our programs advances students both in their personal and professional lives and enhances the reputation of our graduates around the world.”

Peacock was out of the country at press time and unavailable for additional comment.

Other campaign objectives sought by the COB include a $3-million goal for Summer Institute for Global Leaders of Business and Society, and $1-million goals in endowed professorships, excellence in business, student scholarships and the Latin America Initiative.

‘Sex & A Six-Pack’ promotes
alcohol-awareness on campus

Carrie Baker - Greeks Beat

The fourth annual Sex & A Six-Pack program at Legends on Nov. 7 raised issues about alcohol awareness among Appalachian State University students.

Marlee Glass, co-coordinator for this year’s program and corresponding secretary for Panhellenic Council (PHC), said Sex & A Six-Pack is an interactive alcohol-awareness program dealing with issues such as date-rape and alcohol consumption.

“In the past, the program has been directed by the Alcohol Awareness Committee,” said Glass. This year, the program was more independently directed, she said.

The event involved several different parts, said Glass.

“We started out with a skit performed by Hunter Thor, Mindy Lohead, Jessie Hanley and Jonathon Stovel, all members of the ASU theatre department,” she said. “[The skit] showed a party with two guys and two girls who are drinking and go back to one guy’s apartment. The skit ends with a date-rape situation.”

After the skit, those students attending the event were given chances to participate in the Red Ribbon Pledge, which was new this year, said Glass. “Participants … signed a piece of paper, pledging not to drink on either [last] Thursday, Friday or Saturday night,” said Glass.

Local attorney Scott Casey also spoke to participants about the legal issues involving date-rape. “The audience then created a panel and made suggestions on how different choices could have been made in the skit to prevent the date-rape, and the actors performed a different skit using the audience’s suggestions,” said Glass.

“The second skit ends more positively.”

She said approximately 500 students attended this year. “Attendance has steadily increased – from 400 students last year and 200 students the year before that.”

The Appalachian State Wellness Center, Greek Life, Resident Student Association (RSA), Freshman Seminar, University Police and other organizations sponsored the event.

“I think we are definitely doing a great program to create alcohol awareness,” said Glass.

“We had a huge turnout this year, and that is something I hope to see continue.”

Students get opportunity to meet Appalachian authors

Kristin Davis - Academic Affairs Beat

Word formation is the only prerequisite for writing, said Schuyler Kaufman, author and communication instructor, during Meet the Authors on Monday.

The session offered students, faculty and staff an opportunity to talk with writers from the Appalachian State University Department of Communication. Authors signed and sold their books at discounted prices.

Kaufman’s novel “Dear Mouse …” is a murder-mystery set in fictional Beller County, situated between Watauga and Avery counties.

“The protagonist, Matt Logan, is a has-been movie actor working on a low-budget film,” said Kaufman.

He keeps a secret journal in the form of letters to his lost daughter, until “ruthless starlet” Crystal Beller steals them to sell to the tabloids. Later, she turns up dead in Matt’s closet, strangled with his tie.

Kaufman said she has not always wanted to write. In fact, she spent six years at a drama school in New York, only to learn she was not that good an actress. “Writing is more fun than acting, and it lasts a lot longer,” she said.

Kaufman said the idea for the novel began as made-up stories in her head during the night. At first, she shied away from transferring the stories to paper.

But then Kaufman thought better of it. “Who’s going to die if it’s bad? Don’t ever worry if it’s bad,” she said.

The most important thing is to get the story down on paper, said Kaufman. “Write whatever scene you feel like writing,” she said. The pieces will fit together later, she added.

Kaufman said it is important to belong to a writer’s group that will read and critique the author’s work. “Sooner or later, someone will know a place to send your manuscript,” she said.

Katerina Whitley, author of “Speaking for Ourselves: Voices of Biblical Women” and an international studies instructor, suggests a different route to publishing.

“Read, read, read. Learn how the language works,” she said. Whitley called writing a craft – a sport, even – one that will not improve without exercise.

Whitley’s book focuses on the women in the Bible whose lives have been told by men. “I always wondered how women would tell their stories,” she said. So Whitley wrote them.

“I’m basically a storyteller,” said Whitley, who spent 10 years traveling to the developing world to tell the lives of its women and children.

Between teaching her students to learn and love the language, Whitley is working on a novel and part two of Biblical Women, “Seeing for Ourselves.”

“Writing is the happiest thing I do,” she said.

Borkowski: Appalachian will not cut
athletic ties with Liberty

Sarah Newell - SGA Beat
John T. Bennett - Editor-in-Chief

In a move contrary to faculty and student recommendations, Appalachian State University will not sever athletic ties with Liberty University, according to a written statement issued late Tuesday evening by Chancellor Francis T. Borkowski.

“I acknowledge and appreciate the views expressed by Appalachian’s Faculty Senate and Student Government Association resolutions,” Borkowski said in the statement. “While I obviously do not embrace Rev. Falwell’s initial assessment of events on Sept. 11, we must respect his right to free speech and freedom of religion guaranteed by our Constitition.”

Borkowski’s statement was made public after Xan Harrington, president of the Appalachian State University Student Government Association (SGA), told the SGA Senate he will neither support nor veto the recently-passed resolution of support not to renew athletic contracts with Liberty University.

By neither supporting nor vetoing the legislation, Harrington’s move still allowed the bill to move to the Appalachian administration for final decision, a mandate that was quickly handed down in the form of the Borkowski statement.

However, because it lacked Harrington’s signature, the resolution was merely the position of the SGA Senate and not as the position of the entire student body.

“I firmly believe that the student body is split on this issue and both sides must be heard,” said Harrington.

In his opening statement, he told the SGA Senate in defense of his decision, “I do not agree with the statements made by Jerry Falwell on ‘The 700 Club’ [a Christian Broadcasting Network television show] about the tragedies of Sept. 11. Nor do I agree with condemning him or Liberty University for making a non-violent statement pertaining to his religious beliefs.”

Part of Appalachian’s mission statements states “Appalachian seeks to promote the intellectual, cultural, and personal development of its students.” Appalachian’s vision is “to ensure that all groups be represented and cohabitate effectively on campus and in the Town of Boone.”

Harrington said he believes passing this bill as the voice of the entire student body would be contradicting the university’s mission statement.

“We are not a private institution that has the liberty to restrict speech in any form. We are a place where freedom of thought is encouraged and has to be tolerated,” said Harrington.

Harrington gave a number of reasons why he did not sign the resolution of support. “This legislation is, in my mind, a restriction of speech. It silences our own. It says if you are of a certain religious viewpoint, you will not be tolerated,” he said.

“I do not believe it is in the best interest of our university to sever athletic ties with Liberty University on the basis of the beliefs they hold and because a majority of our community disagrees with them.”

After meeting with the Student Athletic Advisory Board (SAAB), it was clear the group felt student-athletes were being used as pawns in efforts to cut athletic ties with Liberty, said Harrington.

He also felt SAAB was not adequately consulted about this piece of legislation prior to its passage by the SGA Senate, he said.

The SGA president also provided the legislative body with two additional reasons as to why he would neither sign nor veto the bill.
“First, it is a stance the senate wishes to make. I will propose that it be considered as a position of our senate and not of the student body as a whole,” said Harrington.

“Second, there is compelling evidence that shows that a veto would not be overridden by the senate. If the veto stands, Student
Government will have failed to accomplish its task of representing the students because adequate student input would be limited,” he said.

Ian Mance, a senator who co-wrote the legislation with senator Paul Funderburk, said he somewhat expected the decision, although he was disappointed with it. “I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit disappointed that he chose not to stand with the student body.
However, ultimately, we were just looking for the bill to stay alive, so, in that respect, we’re satisfied with his decision.”

Funderburk said, “I disagree with Xan’s personal decision, [but] I’m glad that he didn’t veto the bill and that he respected the senate’s opinion.”

At press time Mance and Funderburk were unavailable for comment on Borkowski’s decision to not sever Appalachian’s athletic ties with Liberty.

Billheimer: Afghan people would welcome
return of exiled former king

Robyn Dailey - Business Affairs Beat

The exiled former king of Afghanistan, Mohammad Zahir Shah, has entertained very few people in the 29 years since he was removed from his homeland, said Appalachian State University Department of History instructor Jonathan Billheimer.

Billheimer, an instructor who has taught world civilization classes at Appalachian State University for nearly three years, was able to meet and interview Shah and some of his family members.

Billheimer’s focus is on modern European history, and because of Afghanistan’s involvement in the struggle during the Cold War, he has studied the nation extensively, he said.

“That’s why I felt that Afghanistan was interesting — from the Cold War perspective,” said Billheimer.

The professor first heard about the former king while interning with the United Nations in Switzerland. Billheimer spent a year trying to gain access to him.

He eventually succeeded and spent 10 days in Rome interviewing the 88-year-old exiled king and the royal family.

“I wanted to interview him because I thought he brought an interesting human perspective,” said Billheimer.

The former king took the throne when he was 19, after his father’s assassination, and reigned for 40 years.

Zahir Shah has lived on the outskirts of Rome ever since being overthrown by his cousin, who declared a republic with himself as president, said Billheimer.

He said the Afghans love Zahir Shah and want him to return because they enjoyed relative peace throughout his reign, contrasted with the current turbulence in the nation.

“Since he left, there has been an escalation of violence and bloodshed,” said Billheimer.

Zahir Shah primarily delivers declarations, such as a recent declaration he issued condemning the recent violence in his homeland, said Billheimer.

“[The former king] has been fairly irrelevant during his exile,” he said.
Billheimer said Zahir Shah would have probably died in obscurity had it not been for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Zahir Shah has been visited by delegations of United States congressmen, the British Parliament and a United Nations envoy, said the history instructor.

The exiled king is currently promoting an agreement called The Rome Plan, in which he is attempting to establish a ceremonial Afghan head of state from one of the 70 individual tribes, said Billheimer.

Zahir Shah is trying to bring the tribes together and put a public figure over them, said the instructor.

The former king has stated he will take the ceremonial position if it is offered to him, although Afghans are concerned with his elderly age, said Billheimer.

The Taliban, a largely imported power, is highly opposed to the re-establishment of Shah in any sort of authority position because of his respect for many Western ideas.

“Mullah Omar, the head of the Taliban, has stated that if His Majesty returns, he will be signing his own death warrant,” said Billheimer.

“[Zahir Shah] has not seen his homeland for almost 30 years,” he said.

Billheimer is planning a trip to interview him again during winter break.

The professor has been interviewed by many news sources since Sept. 11 because of his association with the exiled king, receiving calls from Paris-based organizations, the Associated Press and many regional news stations and newspapers.

“I have received a lot of e-mails from scholars and graduate students from New York City and other places in the U.S.,” said Billheimer.

Although the professor has never been to Afghanistan, he said the recent crisis has piqued his interest in the nation, and he would love to go, especially if the exiled king returned.

The professor intends to collect more information over the break between semesters to put together an article or book.

ACLU head, writer debate civil liberties

Chris Bohle - Multicultural Beat

The heated topic of racial profiling dominated discussions Tuesday evening during “A Debate on Current Challenges to Civil Liberties,” featuring well-respected civil liberties experts Nadine Strossen and Jonah Goldberg.

“Race cannot become a proxy for … individualized suspicion,” said Strossen. “[Racial profiling] is not only an unwise use of resources, but it is a counterproductive and overall ineffective method of law enforcement.”

Strossen, current national president of the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union), said the organization has made profiling one of its main concerns and called it a “serious violation of civil rights.”
Goldberg’s opinion differed.

“If there is one slot-machine in a casino that is known to pay off 10 percent more than any other, then that’s where the people will turn their attention toward,” Goldberg told the Farthing Auditorium crowd.
“It is a horrible truth in our society that certain people can often be attributed to negative actions in many neighborhoods.”

Strossen, a Harvard Law School graduate, was elected president of the ACLU in 1991, becoming the first woman to head the nation’s oldest and largest civil-liberties organization. She is currently a professor of law at New York Law School.

Goldberg, editor of the National Review Online as well as author of the popular column “The Goldberg File,” is a well-known conservative journalist and a media critic for Brill’s Content. He is known for injecting his keen wit and terse insights into his political and social analyses.

The debate was waged on a variety of topics, from the civil liberties of Afghans to racial profiling, the latter being the most hotly contested topic of the evening.

Many of the questions moderator Dr. Glenda Treadway, associate professor of communication, asked were answered in general agreement by the two panelists, although the two orators split on opinions about profiling.

When asked how the nation’s civil liberties were affected by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, both responded similarly and said American society should not have a problem retaining its civil liberties as long as its citizens remembered what their rights are.

“We have to be careful, because we will not necessarily have any rights taken away directly, but we might lose understanding of what our rights are,” said Goldberg. “And if we are not aware of our rights, then it’s quite easy for the government to take them away.”

Other points addressed by Strossen and Goldberg included the non-existent dilemma between national security and freedom, and the dangers of free speech.

“We as Americans do not have to choose between our national security and freedom,” said Strossen. “They are mutually re-enforceable and we must remember that, especially with the country at a time like this.”

In response to a question concerning trouble that some journalists/television hosts have recently gotten into due to some ill-advised comments, Goldberg said simply because you have the right to say something, doesn’t make you a hero for saying it.

It’s all about the way you phrase it, he said.

As Goldberg put it, in his often-humorous way, “I’m a conservative—I think the federal government is incapable of tying their own shoes.”