COLLEGE SHORTS

Author: Andrea Gissing

Bates Senior Killed in Brawl

Morgan W. McDuffee, a senior at Bates College, was stabbed to death in a street brawl in Lewiston, Maine, early Sunday morning. The fight involved almost a dozen Bates students and 10 local youths. Maine State Police arrested Brandon Thongsavanh, 19, of Lewiston less than 24 hours after the incident. They would not comment on the evidence leading to his arrest and are still investigating the crime.

Though not the first case of hostility between Bates students and local youths, this is the first killing in college memory. Bates' Dean of Students Celeste Branham said, "There have been sporadic problems in the past, [but] nothing on this order of magnitude."

McDuffee was captain of the Bates lacrosse team and in 2001 led the Bobcats to their best season in five years. He would have graduated in May with an economics degree. A memorial service for him will be held at the college this week.

Source: The Boston Globe and Yale Daily News

Alumnus Gives $150 Million to UT

John A. Jackson, class of 1940, and his wife, Katie, gave a $150 million estate endowment to the University of Texas (UT) on March 1. It is the largest donation ever made to a single public institution in United States history. The gift could be as much as $300 million by the time UT receives it at Jackson's death.

The university plans to use the endowment in the John A. Jackson and Katherine G. Jackson School of Geosciences, completed in December, for research in geology, geophysics, energy, mineral and water resources, earth sciences and the environment. It will also provide student scholarships, fellowships and support for faculty members and research projects.

Jackson graduated with a degree in petroleum geology and a double minor in anthropology and mathematics. He said the donation was not a gift but an investment in future generations of Texas. By investing in education, Jackson said he could give to the children he and his wife never had.

This donation allowed UT's 'We're Texas' capital campaign to surpass its $1 billion goal.

Source: UWireToday.com

Brown Divided on Arming University Police Officers

According to a recent poll conducted by The Brown Daily Herald, more than 37 percent of 222 respondents polled said they favored arming Brown Police. The same number of students was against the campus police carrying guns and 24.3 percent were undecided. This poll was taken in response to a proposed campus-wide referendum to arm the police officers in response to escalating crime rates in and around Brown campus. Students who supported arming the officers cited the safety of students and officers, saying that weapons would allow the officers to defend themselves and better serve the campus. Also, according to some students, not carrying weapons compromises the ability of the police to enforce the law.

Students who oppose the change feel safety could be compromised by the presence of guns on campus. They said that the university should look to other security measures, such as increasing the number of police, considering other forms of defense in order to resolve dangerous situations and improving campus security by increasing shuttle and escort operations. Other arguments against arming police include the possibility of mistaken shootings, ideological disagreements associated with the use of guns and the risk of violence initiated by Brown Police.

This would be the third of such campus-wide referendums on the arming of Brown University Police since 1992.

Source: The Brown Daily Herald

Hazing Rules Found Lacking By Fraternities

At least five selective houses are under investigation by Duke University for judicial violations, including possible breaches of Duke's policy against group initiated hazing. According to North Carolina law, the policy is intended to prevent physical, emotional or psychological harm. For many fraternity members who are rethinking their approach to hazing, the current policy is too broad and now it is being enforced more harshly than in previous years.

A main complaint with the current policy is that generally fraternity members do not understand the rules and much is left up to the deans' personal discretion as to what is or is not a hazing violation.

Administrators acknowledged that this year they have been following up on more allegations of hazing, mostly due to an increased number of tips. They have established a hotline for those with information about hazing to call and if there is evidence, the calls are followed up on. Many fraternity presidents say that the hotline has potential for abuse by those who would want to accuse fraternities without evidence.

Source: The Chronicle Online