News

What’s happening on campus and in D.C.



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City on a Hill: Cops, not Cameras

As the Metropolitan Police Department, Mayor Adrian Fenty (D), and the D.C. City Council consider another high-tech program for MPD–this time one that would put video cameras in police cars–they should think about whether they have begun to accept technology as a substitute for real police presence in D.C. communities.

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Riding on rays

Waiting for the Sun: The Solar Taxi, an experimental in sustainable transportation, rolled into D.C. this week. The brainchild of Raphael Chimes, the Solar Taxi runs on renewable rather than... Read more

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Bias incident in Burleith

Early Saturday night, a group of Burleith residents harassed a Georgetown student and his friend, shouting homophobic slurs at the pair from their lawn. The student they taunted, a senior in the College who wished to remain anonymous, said he was harassed by twelve to fifteen men, all of whom appeared to be drunk.

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Curbing Traffic

Georgetown could soon see some relief from its chronic traffic problems. A study by the District Department of Transportation, to be released by the end of the month, gives suggestions for how the neighborhood can better handle vehicles, pedestrians, and bicycles.

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Hardy: Hardly Recognizable

After three years of renovation, Rose Hardy Middle School in Georgetown reopened its new, bright blue doors on Monday. Along with the physical improvements, Hardy may be one of the schools used as a testing ground for a new program in which middle school students are rewarded for academic success.

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On the Record with John DeGioia

On Wednesday, University President John DeGioia held a sit-down with student reporters, who questioned him about campus news and issues. Below are excerpts from their conversation.

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Not so sub-prime

Georgetown and several other area colleges have agreed to a new Code of Conduct for dealing with student loan lenders. The agreement, put together by the D.C. District Attorney, prohibits universities and their employees from profiting from their dealings with student lenders.

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Saxa Politica: Rankled

What do the numbers 9, 23 and 76 have in common? They’re all rankings Georgetown has received recently. College counselors surveyed by U.S. News and World Report ranked Georgetown ninth, tied with seven other schools; the actual U.S. News ranking kept the University in its 23 spot; and Forbes, the newcomer in this year’s ranking bonanza, sent Georgetown crashing down to 76, behind the likes of Wabash College (12) and Kalamazoo College (57). No, I haven’t heard of them either.

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Court to ASK: the wrong answers

After more than 20 years of tutoring and mentoring juveniles in the D.C. court system, Georgetown’s After School Kids program is on hiatus this fall. The program’s five-year contract with the D.C. Superior Court ran out in May and has yet to be renewed, forcing ASK to cancel its programs indefinitely due to a lack of funds.

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On the Record: Sivagami Subbaraman

Sivagami Subbaraman is the first director of Georgetown’s new LGBTQ Resource Center. Raised in India, she came to the United States to study English and Women’s Studies at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. Before coming to Georgetown, she worked as the associate director of the University of Maryland’s Office of LGBT Equality.

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City on a Hill: Performance pay for DCPS

The announcement yesterday that the Washington Teachers’ Union has filed a lawsuit against the District of Columbia Public Schools for the allegedly improper dismissal of more than 70 teachers confirms that things really are getting ugly on the D.C. school scene. DCPS Chancellor Michelle Rhee heated things up earlier with the announcement this summer of a tiered pay proposal, which would introduce merit-based pay and extra bonuses for teachers willing to give up tenure for a year of probation.

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New DPS head has checkered past

Controversy hounded Jeffrey Van Slyke, Georgetown’s new Director of Public Safety, while he was the head of the University of Texas’s police department. He reacted flippantly to a racial profiling accusation, was charged in a sexual assault suit settled out of court, presided over the infiltration of a campus group, and armed his police with shotguns and semi-automatic rifles. Van Slyke’s past was first covered by the Voice’s blog, Vox Populi.

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DPS retools for fall

In response to numerous assaults and robberies, some armed, that occurred in LXR and Henle at the end of last school year, Department of Public Safety officers are now armed with batons and pepper spray. The University has also installed louder door alarms in East Campus and replaced the doors in Henle.

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New ANC kid on the block

Aaron Golds (COL `11) has always thought about running for public office. On November 4 his name will appear on the ballot—as a candidate for Georgetown’s Advisory Neighborhood Commission.

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First summer for Fellows

“Well, I got to work a murder case. I got to canvass a crime scene, which meant taking pictures and interviewing possible witnesses,” Natalie Punchak (COL ’11), who interned for the Public Defender of the District of Columbia this summer, said. Punchak’s work often took her to Southeast DC. “The funny thing is, people kept asking us if we were lost.”

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Assault case closed

Prosecutors ended their seven-month-long investigation into September’s bias-related assault of a Georgetown student after determining they lacked the necessary evidence to prove that their prime suspect, Philip Cooney (MSB ’10), committed the crime.

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Working group proposes alcohol policy revisions

After two semesters of debate and six meetings, the Alcohol Policy Working Group has unanimously approved five recommendations regarding Georgetown’s alcohol policy. The recommendations, including an increased keg limit in certain residences and the removal of the prohibition against beer pong, will be formally announced to the Disciplinary Review Committee this afternoon.

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GUSA and SAC clash over Club Fund

In the wake of criticism of the Student Activities Commission’s new funding guidelines, the Georgetown University Student Association will try to start a fund to allocate money to student groups independent of SAC. The “Fund of Second Resort,” which GUSA’s Funding Board will vote on this Monday, is designed to provide money to clubs who propose major events mid-year, after SAC, which funds most clubs and activities on campus, has approved its annual budget.

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Next stop: Georgetown?

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s Board of directors will discuss the possibility of building a new Metro line with a station in Georgetown at their meeting today. The proposed line would link Georgetown, Rosslyn, and parts of downtown and Northeast D.C, according to the Examiner.

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NEWS HIT: Fine time

With the May 1 deadline for taxicabs to switch from zones to meters approaching, a District of Columbia court ruled on Monday against cab drivers who challenged the legality of the switch.