Volume XXIV, Issue 10

Photo by Sean Cooley Professor Natarajan-Marsh and Marilyn Cormier lead an informal discussion about the devastating effects of the tsunami. Natarajan-Marsh, a native of Southern India and and Cormier, a native of Sri Lanka share

their perspectives and discussed their efforts to help victims.

SMC educators help tsunami survivors

By Thato Ratsebe Staff Reporter

After the devastating tsuna- mi struck the shores of South Asia on Dec. 26, the world was gripped with the desire to provide help to the countless victims of the natural disaster. The St. Michael’s community is no exception.

South Indian native and eco- nomics professor Tara Natarajan- Marsh started working on plans for local relief before students returned to campus in January. With the help of fellow members of Burlington’s Friends of Indian Music and Dance, Natarajan- Marsh has been trying to raise money for all affected areas, with an emphasis on Sri Lanka. She knows many people in the area and felt an emotional attachment.

With the help of Burlington Mayor Peter Clavelle, Natarajan- Marsh and her Indian dance group formed the Village to Village project under the Sarvodaya Movement, a 47-year- old relief organization in Sri Lanka. Instead of simply sending whatever relief it can, the project works with Sarvodaya to find out exactly what victims need. The

project is a three-year venture through which Natarajan-Marsh hopes to incorporate students. Students must be conscious of the disaster and not forget about it, Natarajan-Marsh “While the impact of such a disaster will span several life- times for the affected people, here in the U.S. the memory is already fading,” said Natarajan- Marsh, who was born in the coastal city of Madras in the Tamil-Nadu state of India. “However, it is vital that we not let the memory fade, and a sure way to stay focused is by involv- ing ourselves in any way we can to help rebuild their lives and empower them in the process.” Campus aid widespread First-year and Amnesty International member Elise Tully was not discouraged when only seven people showed up to a meeting called to discuss aid options. She and Amnesty, with the advice of the Rev. Mike Cronogue, are planning to organ- ize a benefit concert for spring and donate all money raised to CARE, a relief organization that works with poor communities in more than 70 countries to find lasting solutions to poverty. She

said they want the money to go directly to tsunami relief.

Tully and the group of stu- dents from her meeting have been setting up a table in the Alliot Hall lobby every day to collect donations. The first day, they raised $50 in two hours. Tully said she hopes that with more advertising, people will donate more. Plans include a din- ner, door-to-door fund raising in

townhouses and asking the Student Association for a dona- tion.

Director of Community

Relations and Sri Lanka native

- Marilyn Cormier has also been

taking initiatives to help out. Cormier was born in Kandy, Sri Lanka, and lived outside the cap- ital city Colombo for 18 years.

In collaboration with Village to Village, Cormier has organized a fund-raiser at the Echo Center for Lake Champlain in Burlington on Feb. 16. Cormier said she hopes St. Michael’s President Marc vanderHeyden, the governor and other state law- makers will attend.

The beauty of this project is to pull in communities, not just the Burlington area,” Cormier said.

Chlamydia rumors spread more quickly than the infection

Nervous students look for answers

By Arly Scully Staff Writer

The most recent Campus Health Newsletter devoted its cover story to the rumors of a chlamydia outbreak on campus.

Head of Student Health Services, Susan Jacques, explained in an e-mail inter- view that this year’s numbers have been no higher than in years past. While her staff has diagnosed and treated chlamy- dia cases this school year, it hasn’t reached the epidemic proportions campus gossip has made it out to be. Jacques wouldn’t release specific num- bers of treated cases.

“First, we treat people who don’t have positive cultures because their sexual partners have a positive culture, and that is an indication for treatment. Second, we sometimes treat symptomatic people who dén’t have positive cultures. Third, students go to home medical providers and/or other local providers so that the numbers we see are not representative of the whole student body,” Jacques wrote.

Jennie Cernosia, head of Student Activities and confi- dant of many students, said the biggest problem was the rumors spreading more than the actual infection.

“T thought the most unfor- tunate situation that resulted because of word-of-mouth alle- gations was the scapegoating that occurred,” Cernosia said. “Houses, teams and floors were unfairly targeted. It brought out the worst in people.”

While students all seemed to want to know the who and why of the outbreak, many were not aware of the serious- ness of the problem. When asked to comment on the sub- ject, the most common response among students was, “All I know is I don’t want it.”

Chlamydia, an STI (sexu- ally transmitted infection) caused by bacteria, is contract-

‘ed through oral, anal or vaginal

Informational meeting

What: A representative from Health Services will give a presentaion on sex- ual health and lead a group discussion.

When: 6p.m. Monday, Feb. 28

Where: 2nd-floor lounge, Joyce Hall

sex. Symptoms can be minimal or absent completely. Three- fourths of women and one-half of men with the disease don’t know they have it. Roughly 6 million new cases are reported annually, with young women at a high risk.

According to the Center for Disease Control’s fact sheet on chlamydia, “Because the cervix (opening to the uterus) of teenage girls and young women is not fully matured, they are at particularly high risk for infec- tion if sexually active.” That means chlamydia will always be a problem for college cam- puses.

The campus reaction to the alleged outbreak was varied. Senior Mike McCaffrey said the way the information pre- sented was slightly alarming.

“I read it as, “There’s not more than usual. It happens every day,” McCaffrey said.

He was glad to see that information was being released to quell the rumors. “Unedu- cation is scary,’ McCaffrey said, “especially when it comes to our health and well-being.”

Many students reacted to the rumors as just that.

“T just laughed,” said soph- omore Matt Monteiro. “I remembered the gonorrhea out- break of last year. Just wait, next year it will be syphilis.”

Effects of the bacterial infection for men and women include abnormal discharges, burning and itching in the geni-

See Chlamydia, Page 2

FEATURES: Nationally renowned

SMC audience. Page 8

speaker portrays the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. for

SPORTS:

UVM'’s T.J. Sorrentine isn’t the only one in his family making a splash on the Vermont sports scene. Page 12

INDEX

News

Opinion

Features

Columns & Calendar 10 Sports 14

2 THE DEFENDER * Wednesday, February 2, 2005 * Issue Number 10

NEws

St. Michael’s College Security Log

Excerpts from the January 21-27 security reports, courtesy of the St. Michael's College Office of Security

Monday, January 24 Physical Plant assistance at Alliot Hall * Physical Plant assistance at Ross Power outage at Founders Hall Vandalism at Townhouse 200s

9:35 a.m. Honeywell alarm at Alliot Hall

11:02 p.m. Alcohol violation at Founders Hall 11:20 p.m. Physical Plant assistance at Ross 11:25 p.m. Disorderly conduct at Founders Hall

Friday, January 21 12:40 a.m. Noise complaint at Alumni Hall 1:15 a.m. Drug violation at Alumni Hall 5:46 a.m. Escort/ride at Townhouse 300s

4:21 a.m.

4:29 a.m.

5:34 a.m.

1:23 p.m. Saturday, January 22

12:08 a.m. Drunkeness at Ryan Hall

12:23 a.m. Heat call at Joyce Hall

1:05 a.m. Alcohol violation at Ryan Hall

2:51 a.m. Noise complaint at Lyons Hall

3:13 a.m. Noise complaint at Hamel Hall

6:07 a.m. Alarm at Cheray Hall

7:02 a.m. Honeywell alarm at Cheray Hall

7:03 a.m. Suspicious person at Hamel Hall

7:30 a.m. Honeywell alarm at Founders Hall

7:40 a.m. Motor vehicle assistance at Ethan Allen

7:55 a.m. Honeywell alarm at Alliot Hall

8:08 a.m. Physical Plant assistance at Ross

Sunday, January 23 Alcohol violation at Ryan Hall Suspicious person at Canterbury Hall Escort/ride at Ryan Hall - Suspicious person at Ryan Hall 4:29 a.m. Suspicious person off-campus 8:30 a.m. Suspicious person at Canterbury Hall 9:45 a.m. Escort/ride at Lyons Hall _ 11:31 a.m. Heat call at Hamel Hall 9:44 p.m. Noise complaint at Cashman Hall 11:04 p.m. Heat call at Ross 11:23 p.m. Heat call at Cheray Hall

Tuesday, January 25 12:16 a.m. Suspicious person at Alliot Hall 7:27 p.m. Motor vehicle accident at Alliot Hall 10:53 p.m. Heat call at Lyons Hall :

1:06 a.m. 2:20 a.m. 2:36 a.m. 3:45 a.m.

Wednesday, January 26 = 9:30 a.m. Larceny/theft at Jeanmarie Hall

_ Thursday, January 27 12:24 a.m. Suspicious person at Cashman Hall 1:34 a.m. Suspicious person at Ethan Allen = 9:39 a.m. Meidcal assistance at Ryan Hal

CHLAMYDIA: Lack of STI information concerns students

Continued from Page 1

tals. In both cases the infection can spread to the rectum.

Women who _ contract chlamydia can have problems with pregnancies, especially if the bacteria spread from the cervix to the uterus and fallopian tubes. If left untreated, the bacte- tia could cause infertility. A woman infected with chlamydia is five times more likely to con- tract HIV if exposed than a woman who does not have chlamydia. The infection can also be found in the throat, trans- ferred from an infected party dur- ing oral sex.

Some students say a problem exists in the way sexually trans- mitted disease information is pro-

DEFENDER STAFF. © Executive Editor

Christine Danyow cdanyow@smcvt.edu

News Editor Matthew Lyons

Features Editor Kayla Scally

Columns & Calendar Kate Ouellette

Sports Editor Rory Doyle

Photo Editor Sean Cooley

Ad Manager Katie Mazurek

THE DEFENDER Office:

Bergeron 114

Phone number:

(802) 654-2421 E-mail address: defender@smcvt.edu Mailing address:

P.O. Box 275

St. Michael’s College Colchester, Vt. 05439 Printed weekly by: B.D. Press (Georgia, Vt.)

iT “T think that

college students need to know the risks and become educated at a time when they are experimenting with their sexuality.”

— Arik Mortenson Sophomore

79 vided.

Sophomore Jameson Aubut said there was no Campus Health Newsletter at his table in Alliot by the second week of the semes- ter.

Sophomore Emily Lewis suggested Health Services send out informational e-mails rather than just having pamphlets in the office where students can be seen picking them up and possibly be embarrassed.

Sophomore Arik Mortenson, who is a resident assistant in Joyce Hall, said in light of the misinformation that has been spreading, he plans to have an educational meeting. In honor of “Sexual Health Month” this February, he has invited a repre- sentative from Health Services to give a presentation on sexual health and facilitate a discussion on the topic. All are welcome, he said.

“T think that college students need to know the risks and

Giving a pint, not drinking one

ABOVE: A large number of students turn out to donate

blood on Jan. 25.

Students were given cookies to help

boost blood sugar levels back to normal.

RIGHT: Sophomore Graham Jesmer donates an extra pint of blood because of his rare blood type.

become educated at a time when they are experimenting with their sexuality,” Mortenson said. Jacques recommended all sexually active students get a yearly screening due to the lack of symptoms and relatively high rate of infection in young adults. Health Services recommends students protect themselves by abstaining from sexual activity (anal, oral or vaginal) as it’s the only way to guarantee that an infection will not occur. Being in a monogamous relationship in which both part- ners have been tested and know their status regarding STIs is another recommended safeguard. Finally, limit sex partners and use barrier methods (condoms/dental dams) for all types of sexual

intercourse.

In addition to practicing these prevention techniques, sex- ually active people should be aware of their sexual health sta- tus. For $15, Health Services can test students for chlamydia and gonorrhea. For $30, the test includes HIV and syphilis screen- ings. Health Services can per- form tests for all testable STIs, although some, such as herpes and hepatitis, are tested for only if symptoms are present. Health Services can provide the antibi- otics that treat chlamydia.

Although students may find it intimidating to set up the appointment, in the long run the peace of mind pays off. As

McCaffrey said, “In this case,

ignorance isn’t bliss.”

Photos by Sean Cooley

pt ee

ae ie ae | = 8

THE DEFENDER + Wednesday, February 2, 2005 * Issue Number 10

NEws

IT struggles with constant flow of complaints

By Matt Ryan Staff Writer

Phones continued to ring as Rick Murphy, Information Technology assistant director of networking and computer servic- es, worked to return a student’s laptop to the network. After installing the necessary compo- nents, Murphy closed out one final window to reveal a buxom swimsuit model on the comput- er’s desktop.

“The Internet has become a dirty place,” Murphy said. Other technicians fielded calls concern- ing IT’s latest demand that stu- dents re-register with the network to gain online access.

“We’ve probably fixed a couple hundred computers since the vacation break,” Murphy said. “I’ve done about 50 to 60 this past weekend alone.”

As of last Jan. 19, more than 100 students were still unable to access the campus network. Most of those logged-out were seniors with outdated versions of Windows, Murphy said.

However, even sophomore Eileen Attridge was unable to get online though her Gateway com- puter, which features Windows XP. Students at St. Michael’s are encouraged by the school to pur- chase Gateways.

“I can’t get on the Internet ever,’ Attridge said. “I called IT three times and they gave me three different solutions, but none of them worked. I'll have to call IT again, but I’m not going over there.”

Murphy discouraged stu-

By Rikki Lombardi Staff Writer

As the weather conditions hover at below-freezing tempera- tures, parking seems to be nearly impossible for students.

“T don’t even have a car at school,” sophomore Katie Hankinson said, “but I’ve driven my friends’ cars and it is a rare occasion if I find a parking spot close to my dorm.”

The parking situation has changed this year. Spots were added with the addition of Pontigny and Canterbury Hails, but this doesn’t seem to be satis- fying students.

“I feel that the only thing Security does a good job of is putting a ticket on my car,” soph- omore Mary George said. George is one of many St. Michael’s stu- dents who have paid $45 for zone parking and are dissatisfied with it.

“T still have to park in gener- al parking,” she said. “They don’t want us to, but what are we sup- pose to do?”

Photo by Sean Cooley

Bill Anderson, the CIO of Information Technology and Rick Murphy, the assistant director of net- working and computer services, discuss recent IT problems with students.

dents from bringing their com- puters to IT in St. Edmund’s Hall, especially during the winter months.

“It’s not good for the stu- dents, and it’s not good for their machines,” he said.

The IT staff has been trying to repair computers over the phone with their owners. When necessary, technicians also set out in pairs for residence halls to keep students from having to leave their rooms.

To pass registration, comput- ers must meet the requirements of IT’s updated system. - This semester heralded the addition of

the Computer Aided Translation. .

Murphy said CAT costs only $1,500 but improves upon the

previous scanning system.

The tool does not require e- Trust Anti-Virus, so students can use other anti-virus software. The tool scans to ensure a com- puter’s security patches are up- to-date with Microsoft recom- mendations, and that the machine has either Spybot — Search & Destroy or Pest Patrol to protect against spyware. Contracted from online sources, spyware secretly monitors computer use. It can then report this information to individuals, companies or advertisers online.

Murphy said spyware was accountable for most of the diffi- culties pertaining to the recent registration process, but also acknowledged IT was under-

staffed, with only four full-time employees and 19 student techni- cians servicing roughly 2,000 students.

“We can use a lot more stu- dent help,” Murphy said. “Not too long ago we had as many as 40 students working here.” Murphy said students interested in working at IT need only famil- larity with computers.

Although the registration process caused frustration on campus, junior Paul Harper, an IT employee, preferred the situa- tion to a possible alternative.

“When I was a freshman, a student came in after Christmas break with a virus on his comput- er so bad that it shut down the. entire school,” Harper said.

What zone are you in?

Despite charges per semester, students don’ see positive results in new parking policy

Security Director Peter Soons said. He said the parking situa- tion is much better. Security could ticket more, but if students are complying with the restric- tions, there is no reason to, Soons said. However, zone parking holders such as George say pay- ing $45 for a pass and having to park as far away as the Tarrant-lot is not worth it.

“We are college students,” George said. “Some people are

~» Complaints have been’ frac-. paying. their own .way .to go

tion of what they were last year,

here.”

Photo by Sean Cooley Signs can be seen around campus designating parking lots into different zones.

Sophomore zone pass owner Allan Smith said that parking is a little better this year, but the $45 fee should be per year rather than per semester. Soons said that with the maintenance charges, the cost of the physical zone per- mit, and enforcement, $45 is a fair price.

Some students don’t know what their money is - going towards, however. Both George and Smith said they didn’t know.

Smith said he thinks security does not do a viable job keeping

I feel the only thing Security does a good job of is putting a ticket on my car. I still have to park in general parking. They don’t want us to, but what are we supposed to do?

— Mary George Sophomore

cars without permits out of zone parking.

“T think it needs to be more controlled,” Smith said. “People should not be parking in zone parking if they don’t have a pass.” Smith said he waits an average of 15 to 20 minutes to get a spot in a zoned area.

Sophomore Kenneth Mitsui

Harper considered the regis- tration process of last semester more harrowing than the current one.

Murphy said the ordeal of registering would be smoother if students took better care of their computers.

“It’s not enough to have the tools, you have to use them, too,” he said. “Students should scan their computers for viruses and spyware at least a few times each week.”

Murphy suspected other schools shared similar registra- tion problems.

Tim McLaughlin, a first-year at the University of Vermont, said he hears students at the universi- ty talk about registration delays.

“I’ve only been here for two weeks now, and I don’t have any problems myself,” McLaughlin said, “but I’ve already heard other students complaining about having to wait for their comput- ers to pass the registration scans.”

Students at Champlain College said their IT service is reliable and helpful.

“Tf the system does go down it usually gets fixed within the day, and that only happens maybe three times a semester,” sopho- more Randy Hazelton said. “Because our school’s small, the network doesn’t crash frequent- ly.”

“The service is definitely great,” Champlain first-year Zach DiSilvestro said. “We got this computer help desk, and the guys there are geniuses. They’re real- ly on top of the whole Internet thing.”

said he thinks non-zone parking is just as big a problem. The changes made this past year only benefited the zone parking areas, Mitsui said. He received an $80 ticket for parking in a zone when he did not have time to wait for a spot.

“If you have 20 minutes to wait for a parking spot, two- thirds of the time you'll get one,” he said, “but, if you don’t, park- ing is impossible.”

Adriana Borra, a professor of Itallian, said parking is not so bad. She arrives on campus every morning at 7:30, even though her first class is at 9:30, just to secure a parking spot.

“T arrive early because | feel it’s going to be a hassle later,” she said. Borra normally parks close to her office and walking is not a problem. “This is a dream come true compared to UVM, where | have to walk 15 minutes to get to class.”

Parking isn’t ever going to be perfect, Soons said. “If there are violations we have to address them. In a perfect world there would be no tickets,” he said.

THE DEFENDER * Wednesday, February 2, 2005 * Issue Number 10

NEws

Tennessee student votes in Iraq election

By Jason Cox Sidelines (Middle Tennessee State U.)

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. -- Voting in Iraq’s first free elections in recent memo- ry turned out to be both an exciting and confusing experi- ence for some voters.

Zaid Altalib was among the Iraqi expatriates who voted in Iraq’s first multi-party elec- tions in a half-century this weekend. Immigrants who retained Iraqi citizenship were able to vote worldwide.

Altalib, a graduate student in computer science and presi- dent of Middle Tennessee State University’s Muslim Student Association, said he was enthusiastic about voting for the first time, but the lack of information available made the experience a bit of a let- down.

“Well, I was very excited to go vote,” Altalib said. “I like politics, personally, so I was very excited to do it, But after voting, I was a little dis- appointed.

“T want a democratically elected government that’s hopefully going to serve all the different ethnicities that are in Iraq,” he said. “That’s what I was looking for, but I was not able to find enough information personally.

“There were more than 100 parties that we had to choose from and more than 7,000 people that were spread out throughout the parties,” he said. “But unfortunately, I had tried to do my research and could not get any information except the party name -- the party name doesn’t give you very much information.”

Altalib said what he saw were people voting on ethnici- ty and region instead of who best represented their ideas.

“Iraq is one country, and I think personally I've never felt there's a difference between Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish. | think most of that was the Baathist party, and _ the Kurdish have always wanted an independent state. Saddam (Hussein) always fought them and rejected them.

“(This election) is creat- ing separation between people instead of uniting them,” he said.

Nashville, Tenn., was one of five sites in the United States where expatriate Iraqi citizens were allowed to vote for members in a 275-seat council. This council is

responsible primarily for drafting a constitution by Aug. 15. The Iraqi people will then vote to ratify the constitution.

The National Assembly, as it will be called, also will be charged with the duty of elect- ing a president and selecting a cabinet, serving as a parlia- ment.

Security was tight at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds, where voting took place.

“There were roadblocks in place. They didn't allow us to have bags or cell phones. We had to go through metal detectors, also, but I don't think it was any discomfort or anything like that,” Altalib said. “We understood the situ- ation.”

Altalib was born in Kirkuk, Iraq, in 1980 and lived much of his life in Mosul prior to his family’s move to Washington, D.C., in 1992 after the Gulf War and United Nations sanctions against Iraq.

His father was a banker in Iraq and had lined up a job in the United States prior to mov- ing his wife and four children to the United States. The fam- ily moved to Georgia in 1994, where his father now works as an accountant.

Much of his family remains in Mosul, which has been an epicenter of insurgent activity since coalition forces took back Fallujah.

Altalib said he keeps in regular touch with his rela- tives, who have recently been forced to leave Mosul and are staying elsewhere.

Altalib attended North Georgia College and State University, but decided after graduation to follow his wife to Middle Tennessee State University and seek a master's degree.

As it turned out, he was also an instrumental part of reviving the university’s chap- ter of the Muslim Students Association.

“When I came to this school, I saw that they didn't have a Muslim Students Association. This is a national organization that most univer- sities in the United States have,” he said. “So I got together with the people who were going to reactivate it (and) worked together. This was last year, and this year I was elected president.”

Altalib is still not able to work except for on-campus jobs, but he has applied for residency and is awaiting approval,

Contact The Defender SMC BOX 275 defender @smcvt.edu

FP APSF FE EDI LEP OO AI EOD POP POPE TPO PSS |

SMC stiffens academic policy

New rules raise bar on below-average students

By Ryan Dulude Staff Writer

New academic regulations regarding probation and dis- missal take effect this semester. As part of the new changes, stu- dents who received below a 1.0 GPA in the fall were dismissed automatically. In addition, first- year students with a GPA below 1.6, as opposed to 1.4 last year, will now face probation.

The changes will apply to the Class of 2008 and future incoming classes, Associate Dean of the College William Wilson said. The classes of 2005, 2006 and 2007 will be “grandfa- thered” under the policy in effect when they enrolled.

Professor Jeffrey Trum- bower, chairman of the religious studies department, said he thinks the new system will work well.

“A student who has such a poor performance in multiple classes their first semester proba- bly isn’t ready for college, for

whatever reason anyway,” Trumbower said.

‘Sophomore. Erin Plude agreed.

“T think the school is just try- ing to maintain its reputation for academic excellence,” Plude said. “Hopefully, it’s going to be extra motivation to do well. If you’re serious about coming here, it shouldn’t be difficult to stay above a 1.0 or 1.6.”

BOSTON |

UNIVERSITY INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS

First-year Mark Pierce didn’t see value in the change.

“It’s kind of useless,” Pierce said. “There’s no sense in chang- ing the requirement by 0.2 grade points just to put more people on probation. You'll weed out five, maybe 10 more per semester. I can see the college getting tougher, but it really won’t make that much of a difference.”

These changes were brought about by the Faculty Assembly during a meeting in November 2003. The Curriculum and Educational Policies Committee recommended these changes.

Twenty-seven students were on probation during fall 2004, Wilson said. Twelve of those stu- dents came before the Academic Review Board, and six were dis- missed.

Each student’s academic record is reviewed. The board then votes by paper ballot. The results are sent to the dean and associate dean and are reviewed before decisions are made.

Wilson said three members of the Class of 2008 were eligible for dismissal. One student was dismissed, one withdrew and one received a waiver from the dean.

Due to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, no names were released by the college.

-Professor Peter Tumulty of the philosophy department said the tougher standard helps bring St. Michael’s closer to its peers.

“I do support the changes,” he said. “In fact, I believe that they are in line with what other colleges of our quality require.”

Schools comparable to St. Michael’s have similar academic regulations in place. First-year students below a 1.7 GPA their first semester at Merrimack College in North Andover, Mass., are put on probation. This num- ber rises gradually until the fourth semester, where students must achieve at least a 2.0 until graduation.

Regulations at Stonehill College in North Easton, Mass., are even tougher. First-year stu- dents who receive below a 1.75 their first semester are put on probation. The minimum average that has to be maintained in all other semesters is a 2.0.

Tumulty said he thought the impact on most students would be minimal.

“T don’t believe it will have much impact since I believe the typical SMC student is more than able to meet these standards,” he said. “In fact, they typically do

~ much, much better.”

Trumbower said it will help students take college more seri- ously from the moment they arrive.

“I think the new policy impressed upon students at orien- tation helps reinforce the serious- ness of the college endeavor for each incoming class.”

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THE DEFENDER + Wednesday, February 2, 2005 * Issue Number 10

OPINION

Editorial. IT’s not that bad

The Information Technology department has received 340 complaints or concerns since Jan. 17, according to Rick Murphy, assistant director of networking and computer servic- es. Of those, 258, or 75 percent, had been resolved as of Jan. 27. About 1,400 to 1,500 users are connected to the St. Michael’s network at any given time, with only four full-time employees at the Help Desk to deal with campus computer needs.

Students should be happy to hear that not only has IT made some changes, but we are in the same situation as Middlebury College.

As we all know, we have'to register our computers to make sure they meet IT’s requirements. In the past all students were required to have e-Trust anti-virus protection. As of this semes- ter, students no longer are required to have e-Trust, but rather can have their own anti-virus software if approved by IT. And thanks to new software called Computer Aided Translation (CAT) installed in January, students simply plug their comput- ers into the network, and the software automatically scans for an anti-virus program. Students no longer have to lug their computers over to St. Edmund’s to find out if they have IT’s minimum requirement.

This system still isn’t perfect, but Murphy said many diffi- culties come from computers using operating systems older than Windows XP.

Murphy acknowledged that a larger IT staff could resolve problems more quickly, but more people cost money. Middlebury College’s IT staff is the same size as ours, and it has 5,000 to 7,000 users connected at any given time, said Amy Hoffman, Middlebury library and information services user support specialist.

Middlebury has four employees at its Help Desk and two to four students working at any given time. They deal with at least 50 to 60 requests for help each day. St. Michael’s has 19 work- study students and usually has only two to four working throughout the day. Middlebury also uses a new system it pur- chased in January called Media Access Control, which operates in the same way our CAT system does.

This doesn’t mean those students who are still experiencing problems should feel better, it only means that perhaps students should not be so quick to judge IT as a whole. Hoffman and Murphy said there was only so much they could do in a day. Perhaps the St. Michael’s administration should take this into consideration when it raises students’ tuition and budget in _ another one or two IT technicians.

In the meantime, here are a few quick and easy solutions:

@ Send an e-mail to the Student Technology Committee —

which has received only 20 to 25 complaints since it was formed in November. It evaluates and presents computer/IT problems to the St. Michael’s board of trustees. The committee also had its first bi-monthly meeting with IT on Jan. 25 and both sides said there was a need for better communication. So, let’s start communicating. You can e-mail the committee at studen- tassociation@smcvt.edu, or drop by the S.A. office and fill out a written complaint.

@ Make sure your anti-virus and spyware software are updated,

@ If you have a Microsoft Windows operating system, make sure you keep the system updated. These improvements are essential to keep your computer running at a healthy pace and can usually be found on the Internet at no charge.

Christine Danyow Executive Editor

THE DEFENDER —— MISSION STATEMENT ———

As the editorial staff of The Defender, the student-run newspaper of St. Michael’s College, we strive to accurately, professionally and ethically report the news affecting the lives of students in the commu- nity.

The decisions we make with regard to content and style are our own, and are influenced only by our goal of both informing and enter- taining our readers.

We believe in the freedom of expression. We encourage our read- ers to express their views at any time.

The Defender publishes letters to the editor in response to articles that we have printed in the paper and issues on campus. The Defender

does not publish anonymous letters. Letters will be edited cpp bsg!

grammar, spelling and good taste.

Photo of the week

Photo Sean Cooley

Senior Ben Epstein goes up for a shot in a pick-up game Monday, Jan. 31 against professors and staff

including Michael Battig, computer science professor; Seth Cole, sport information director; Dave Cutler, head of physical plant; Corey Laster, women’s assistant basketball coach; and Scores Ashline,

math professor.

Tsunami children will face more battles ahead

By Katie McClendon The Lariat (Baylor U.)

WACO, Texas — As the one- month anniversary of the South Asia tsunami passed, I found

_ myself wondering if any tangible

progress has been made. I have heard about the aid given and the funds raised, but I've also heard about the “tsunami generation.” The most heartbreaking piece of news I have heard regarding the tsunami are the stories of the children who have lost their par- ents.

Many children have been left stranded and unable to locate parents or relatives of any kind. Many of these orphaned children are being taken by couples who have lost their children and claim orphans to be theirs. Even worse, many children are being kid- napped and sold for adoption, sex or labor. According to an arti- cle in Christianity Today, the International Organization for Migration in Indonesia reported seven counts of. trafficking between Dec. 26 and Jan. 7

“***-

alone.

Many are calling this large group of orphans the “tsunami generation” — children who will face more emotional and psycho- logical battles in the future.

Some children who have lost their parents might not find the proper psychological care they need to deal with their tragedy. These children may grow up psy- chologically damaged because they weren't raised by their par- ents during crucial developmen- tal times in their life. This will create a generation of adults who might not be able to lead proper lives or raise children with the attention they need.

Although many of these children are experiencing terrible situations many groups in the area are trying to ease their pain. Many people have been sent in from other countries to train doc- tors in psychological treatment for the victims.

Mission agencies are trying”

their best to help the orphans, but some are going too far to convert these children to Christianity. A

Jan. 13 article in Christianity Today reported about a mission agency based in Forest, Va., called WorldHelp. This group plans to take 300 Muslim orphans from Banda Aceh to Jakarta. Once in Jakarta, they will build a Christian children's home to house the orphans.

The president of World Help does not have custody of the chil- dren but says he got permission from the Indonesian government. However, a spokesman for the Indonesian Foreign Ministry denied it. Later the president retracted his statement but didn't say he would stop the adoption plan.

Many organizations are rushing into the act of helping these children. While we may want to see immediate progress to. tend to these children’s wounds, we must also remember their lives are delicate and we need to think any plan through before trying to administer it.

— U-Wire

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