Volume 21 Issue 6 September 25, 1998 |
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Contents:
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NEWS |
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Faculty fight published review
Metro's Faculty Senate voted Sept. 23 to hire an attorney in a potential bid to protect professors from having their evaluations by students widely distributed. All but two of about 60 members of the senate voted to retain attorney Bruce Bosky, asking him to obtain information on Colorado's open records law. "The attorney is being hired to interpret open record law in a way that will not defame faculty," said Monys Hagen, Faculty Senate president. Metro's Student Government Assembly pledged last spring to publish a book listing the evaluation results. "We were having a meeting to decide ways to keep lines of communication open, while they were having their meeting determining ways to close them," said Alvis Montgomery, chair of the assembly's Student Survey Committee. Some in Faculty Senate say they
worry the evaluations wonât fairly portray professors, especially
if the data is summarized, rather than presented raw. "We plan to use the same information that the Office of Institutional Research has compiled," said Jim Hayen, another member of the survey committee. "It really disappoints me. I don't understand why the members of faculty don't want students to know how other students feel about them as an instructor." The Faculty Senate not only wants to keep results of the evaluations quiet, in some cases members won't even talk about it publicly. The Faculty Senate Executive Committee discussed the issue of student evaluations in a closed-door session Sept. 16. "It was a general discussion about student evaluations," said Jerry Boswell, a Metro finance professor and member of the committee. "We talked about using faculty evaluations for the purpose they were intended to be used. I don't remember what the need for a closed session was." Hagen said information about student evaluations should be kept confidential, but a journalism professor and Metro's Office of Institutional Research say she's wrong. "I can find no exemption in state law that allows a state-level body to go into executive session to discuss evaluations," said James Brodell, a Metro journalism professor, in an e-mail to Hagen. Student evaluations of individual professors are already easily available to students. They're open for viewing at the Institutional Research department on the ninth floor of the Terracentre office building across Speer Boulevard from campus. "All you need to do is come on over," said Tracy Carlson, a statistical analyst for the department. The difference is that student government members want to publish evaluation results on their Web site. The University of Colorado at Denver publishes a handbook every year detailing the results of the evaluations. "It does help steer students when a tremendous amount of faculty are teaching (the same subject)," said Bill Wall, a CU-Denver senior. "I find it to be 75 percent accurate. A lot of the teachers really earn the grades that are posted in there." Montgomery said the faculty's resistance won't get in the way of the assembly's goal. "It is our right to publish, and we will go forward," Montgomery said. |
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MetroBriefs Auraria access applauded The magazine sent out questionnaires to disability offices at 50 public universities and colleges and talked to students about accessibility concerns. Other institutions rated high on the list were the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the University of California at Berkeley, Edinboro University of Pennsylvania and the University of Wisconsin at Madison. SGA names new vice president Whitaker-Krcik said he plans on holding an open forum for all work study and on-campus employees to find out what kind of concerns those students have. He said he also plans on traveling to Metro North and Metro South so students there can learn more about what Metro offers those students. Christian festival seeks awareness The festival will offer bands, celebrity speakers and information that will bridge the gap between the religious and the secular. The speakers include Janet Elway, Steve Kelly of KOA radio, former Denver Bronco Karl Mecklenburg and Miss Colorado Gina Waegele. Jed McClelland, a member of Mentors in Life, one of six groups sponsoring the event, said the event is a coming out for Christians on campus. "There's not a lot of awareness of Christian resources on campus," McClelland said. The first half of the event will be held in the southwest corner of the Tivoli from 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. The second half of the event is in the Tivoli Turnhalle from 4:30 to 9:30 p.m. |
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Mexican author, diplomat to visit A Mexican novelist and member of Mexico's National Commission on Human Rights will visit Metro as the college's Chicano/Latino Distinguished Professor. Carlos Fuentes will visit Denver Oct. 20-22 and will facilitate a seminar discussion for faculty and students in the Tivoli Oct. 22. "He's an international figure," said Luis Torres, chairman of the Chicano Studies Department. "If there is anything as a citizen of the world, it is Fuentes. His insights really speak to Chicanos in the United States, and his insights about Mexico are the most interesting and complicated of any today." Fuentes, who received several international literary awards including Mexico's
National Prize in Literature and the Fuentes also served as Mexico's ambassador to France. "He is an expert in U.S. and Latin American relations," said Olivia Lopez Hartenstien, associate dean of the School of Letters Arts and Sciences. "He will come to this campus not only as a novelist, but as a person who understands the culture of Latin America and the United States. He is very much into making a difference in relationships between the United States and Latin America." Fuentes will make several stops in Denver, beginning with a reception at the Museo de las Americas, 861 Santa Fe Drive, Oct. 20 at 5:30 p.m. He will also speak at the Donald Seawell Ballroom at the Denver Performing Arts Complex from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Oct. 21. All events are free and open to the public. Before his visit to the campus, Metro will hold a series of events including films, a library exhibit and lectures that will discuss Fuentes' topic, multiculturalism in the 20th and 21st centuries. |
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DUI suspect lost Auraria police arrested a man suspected of drunken driving Sept. 10 and turned him over to the Denver Police Department. From there all traces of him vanished. At 6:32 p.m., a parking lot attendant called Auraria Police to report a possible drunken driver. The police stopped the car and found the driver, Carlos Espinoza to have, "(A) strong odor of alcohol, slurred speech, unable to maintain balance, (and) a constant licking of lips." All were cited as probable cause in the report filled out by officers Paul Rulla and Tony Lucero, who arrested Espinoza on suspicion of driving under the influence, according to a report by Auraria Campus Police and Security. "We called Denver (police) for transfer and DUI processing," said Chief Joe Ortiz. "Everything was in accordance with established procedure between DPD and us." Sometime after that, the suspect disappeared from the system. "We don't know where he is," said Ortiz. "We have no record of him," said Darlene Besser of the Traffic Investigations Bureau of the Denver Police Department. "We spent four to four-and-a-half hours looking for it Friday, if not more. I also spent time on Thursday." She said her office receives records of all traffic stops in Denver, whether an arrest is made or not. After checking with Denver Police District Six, the district with jurisdiction over Auraria, Ortiz said, "The prisoner was not processed to the best of my knowledge. We asked DPD to account for why he was not processed, incarcerated, or accounted for that matter." He went on to say District Six was doing an internal investigation but wouldn't comment further. No one from District Six was available for comment. Denver County Jail also had no record of Espinoza. |
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Friendship festival brings a world of food and musica A festival to celebrate different cultures from around the world will be held at Auraria Campus Oct. 1 on the Lawrence Street Mall. Auraria's World Friendship Day will highlight ways the campus connects to different cultures, said Zav Dadabhoy, director of Student Activities at Metro. The "very successful tradition on campus," according to Dadabhoy, was held for many years, went dormant for a few, then returned and is now in its fourth year running. Unique features of the festival highlighted by Dadabhoy include plans by some faculty members to open their Oct. 1 classes so students not enrolled in a class can hear about topics of global interest. A job fair with more than 60 employers and organizations will provide information on employment and internship opportunities. The festival will also showcase accomplishments and diverse forms of entertainment of different ethnic communities, said Yvette De La Cruz, student chair of the entertainment committee. The roving "Human Ethnic Jukebox" will play from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. From 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., accordionist Ron Tomocik, the Human Ethnic Jukebox, will perform as International Fever with a tuba player. Rhythm X, in its third year at the festival, is scheduled to play reggae at 10 a.m. at the flagpole. At 11 a.m., the Flying Aces are scheduled to play swing music for lessons or listening. Combo Calliente will play merengue, salsa, mambo and rumba from 12:45 p.m. to 2 p.m. The Human Ethnic Jukebox said he plays music from several areas, including Iceland, Ukraine, Mexico, Germany, Ecuador, Norway, Sweden, Ireland, Scotland, Peru, Argentina, Colombia, Poland, France and Croatia. Tomocik said, "If you give me a week, I can do at least one hour of non-repeated music from at least 15 different cultures." A "Parade of Countries" led by a Scottish bagpiper is scheduled from 11:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., starting at the southwest corner of the Tivoli Student Union. Ethnic cuisine at the festival is scheduled to include Dutch funnel cakes, spicy sesame chicken wings, jalapeno poppers, roasted corn, crab pita, pad Thai, brisket, clam chowder, bratwurst, spring rolls, and catfish, according to festival directors. Diversity-intelligent workshops, multicultural arts and crafts and display booths are also planned. "I hope people will take this opportunity to come out and experience this campus tradition and take advantage of seeing new and exciting cultures showcased," said Dadabhoy. The event is sponsored by Metro, the Auraria Higher Education Center, Community College of Denver, University of Colorado at Denver, Spring International Language Center, Auraria Book Center and the Tivoli Student Union. |
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Fees pay for new labs Fewer Metro students will have to wait to use computers at Metro's computer labs, thanks to a 100 percent increase of Metro student fees for information and technology that started this fall. "We spent $750,000 dollars last summer updating and purchasing
new computers. The lab we just finished in The fee increase is spread equally over this current fiscal year and 1999. The information and technology fee was $17 dollars for a student enrolled for 12 credit hours last spring. This semester, the information and technology fee was increased to $25.50. The next increase in the information and technology fee will be during the fall 1999 semester. It will bring the total to $34. In the past, Metro students have faced time-consuming waiting lists when wanting to use on-campus computer labs. "When it comes down to finals week, just forget it," said Jeremy Buck, a Metro senior, commenting on the availability of computers on campus during the spring 1998 semester. |
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Nuclear fears might still be reality The Indian subcontinent is threatened by a possible nuclear war, said a professor from the University of Denver at a meeting in the Tivoli Sept. 21. The professor, Minu Palani, said the bordering countries of India and Pakistan have a history of conflict and their underground nuclear bomb tests brings them closer to war. The countries in close proximity to each other adds a greater risk of nuclear war. Palani, one of three hosts of the meeting, "Who Will Nuke The World", said each country has less than a minute to retaliate with its nuclear weapons when confronted by a threat. That time is not sufficient to make an intelligent decision, she said. And a threat may only be a false alarm, said Scott Thomas, a political science professor at University of Colorado at Denver, who was also a panelist at the meeting. A few years ago, Russians mistook a Norwegian satellite rocket as a possible missile launch from an enemy and came close to striking back. "The stakes are still very high, if (the United States and the Soviet Union) had a nuclear exchange during the peak of the Cold War, roughly 140 million Americans and 113 million Russians would have died," Thomas said. "That would've been the end of life as we knew it." These emerging nations are practicing a policy of deterrence as did the super powers during the Cold War, he said. "You have to be willing to destroy the world in order to save it," Thomas said. Niels Schonbeck, a Metro chemistry professor and third co-host, said countries with nuclear weapons can no longer go to war and expect to survive. "Unfortunately, technology is more advanced than social management," he said. Schonbeck said he was dismayed when India detonated five underground nuclear tests in the Pokharan mountain range between May 11 and May 13. "The irrationality of nuclear conflict is still possible and (the United States) is responsible because we allowed them to get nukes," he said. The Indian Embassy in Washington D.C. released a post-detonation statement on May 11, which confirmed the country's possession of nuclear weapons. "These tests provide reassurance to the people of India that their national security interests are paramount and will be promoted and protected," the release said. India and Pakistan refuse to sign nuclear disarmament treaties, Palani said. Pakistan will not dismantle its nuclear program until India complies first, and India will consider a policy change once their national security is no longer threatened. The peace process will be difficult, Palani said. Derek Boyd, 19, a Community College of Denver freshman, said after the meeting, "Suddenly I don't feel too safe anymore." |
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New disability director to start Oct.19 A new director of Disabilities Services for Metro and the University of Colorado at Denver will join the Auraria Higher Education Center staff Oct. 19. Lisa McGill is a former director of Disability Support Services and International
Students and Scholars for Oakland Dean Wolf, executive vice president for Administration, said it was necessary to hire a full time director because the previous director made commitments to work part time and because there has been a rise in enrollment of students with disabilities. Wolf said he believes McGill will do a fine job. "She comes to us well prepared and well qualified," Wolf said. |
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China facing problems and promise China is becoming more of a major figure in the world's economic, political and cultural scene, said a Metro history professor. "You simply can not isolate one quarter of the world's population," said history professor Xiansheng Tian. "U.S. leaders have paid a lot of attention to China: Nixon, Ford, Carter, Regan, Bush and now Clinton." In his Sept. 17 speech, "China in the New Millennium", Tian outlined two problems facing China: Population and democratic reform. "Many politicians and religious groups criticized (China's) one-child policy," Tian said. "China was forced to follow this policy." Tian said while China has approximately 22 percent of the world's population, it only has 7 percent of the world's land that is suitable for farming. Tian added the job market in China is also under strain. He said the Chinese government cut 12 million jobs last year and it is expected to cut an additional 11 million jobs this year. The official figure for unemployment in China is 3 percent, he said, while unofficial estimates place the unemployment figure at 7 percent. Tian said scholars estimate the Chinese government must come up with 180 million jobs by 2000. "Do you think any government can do that in such a short time?" he asked. The large population also has an impact on the environment. He said the United Nations estimates out of 125 rivers in China, 62 are so polluted they can not sustain any type of life. "Wildlife is wiped out in many areas," he said. "In many areas you can't hear birds chirping. I had a friend come to the United States, and I told him to look at the sky. He said, 'Oh my goodness...a blue sky.'" Tian, who left China in 1988, said the country is on the road to democratic reform. He said the Chinese government called out 300,000 soldiers to end the Tiananmen Square uprising in 1989, but in recent years a lot of changes have taken place. "The government is more tolerant to criticism," he said. "People are criticizing the government openly, at least to friends." He said the younger generation of Chinese is no longer interested in politics, but making money and improving their social status. "China's younger generation is like the average Metro student." The speech was sponsored by the Metro History Department and the Metro History Club. |
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German philosopher to speak at CU-Denver in Oct. A prominent German social theorist and philosopher is scheduled to speak in Denver this October, said Catherine Kemp, assistant professor of philosophy at University of Colorado at Denver. Jurgen Habermas will speak at a session of the annual meeting of the Society of Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy. The society will meet in Denver, Oct. 8-10. Habermas is the most important living member of the Frankfurt School, started in the 1920s by a group of neo- and post-Marxist scholars, Kemp said. Some of his works include: The Theory of Communicative Action, Legitimation Crisis, and Knowledge and Human Interests. Rosi Braidotti, author of Patterns of Dissonance and Nomadic Subjects, is scheduled to address a second session of the meeting. The presence of Habermas brings considerable prestige and status to the CU-Denver Department of Philosophy, Kemp said. The Society of Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy provides the largest audience for European philosophy in the United States and is second in size only to the American Philosophical Association, according to Kemp. The meeting is expected to draw about 500 people. Mitchell Aboulafia, CU-Denver philosophy department chair, said he and CU-Denver philosophy professors Catherine Kemp and Mark Tanzer were instrumental in bringing the society meeting to Denver. Students may register for the conference for $10, Aboulafia said. Further information may be obtained from professor Aboulafia or professor Kemp at the CU-Denver philosophy department at (303) 556-4868. |
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Student Health Center offers high-tech X-ray Cutting edge medical technology made its way to Aurariaâs Student Health Center with a new digital X-ray machine. Auraria's Student Health Center held an open house Sept. 23, promoting the film-less X-ray machine to students. Stephen Monaco, director of the Student Health Center, said this is the first student health center in the country to have a computerized radiography system. The new equipment allows students to stay on campus to be X-rayed and treated for fractures, instead of traveling to University Hospital at 4200 E. Ninth Ave. when they're usually immobile, Monaco said. Michael Padilla, a radiology technician at the center, said 40-45 students have already been X-rayed by the machine, most of which involved sport related injuries. The equipment consists of a moveable X-ray table with an overhead X-ray, a monitor that allows for precision adjustments, an X-ray cassette and computers that digitally enhances the images. Stacy Johnson, medical assistant at the center, said the X-rays are taken on a cassette that downloads the images onto the computer. The images are then developed in the computer and the cassette is reusable, she said. Monaco said the images are then sent to radiology at University Hospital via a modem line where they are analyzed by a radiologists. The radiologists report their findings on a dictation phone line, which takes 45 minutes after the images are transmitted, he said. David Odell, a staff physician at the center, said the equipment was installed over the summer and has been in use for a couple of weeks. Monaco said he decided the clinic would purchase the equipment after students consistently asked for one in student surveys for the last four years. He said the equipment was paid for by the clinic saving internally-generated revenue over several years. |
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COMMENTARY |
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What do faculty fear? News: Views: Metro's Student Government Assembly wants to distribute the data compiled from student evaluations of professors. Fair enough. The more information available to students, the better. Of course, students should remember these evaluations aren't especially reliable, and extremely quantitative. It's likely that students who get high grades will evaluate a professor highly. Conversely, low grades are likely to result in a poor evaluation. That said, the evaluations are clearly open to review by the public according to Colorado law. If the student government ever completes its task of distributing the evaluations, students should make use of them, but with caution. Faculty Senate should support releasing the information. The only ones who have anything to lose are professors who don't connect with students. Those professors shouldn't be teaching anyway. |
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Good service is an illusion Maybe Iâm deluding myself to think we have somehow lost any hope of getting decent customer service. I know I am deluded. Recently, I actually did get good customer service. That service caught my attention, and that irritated me. I tried to buy tires, shocks and struts at Sears, but was confused in thinking that along with quality parts came quality service. Three trips to Southwest Plaza and 13 hours is all it took for me to get the right size tires installed on my car. I was delusional, to be sure, after burning that many hours at the mall. I did actually purchase the shocks and struts there also, but the shocks were "in the mail" for nearly three weeks before I realized that they mailed them to the wrong address. I thought that the two-and-a-half hours at the counter that first day would
have prevented that sort of mistake, but apparently not. Let me tell you about a belly full... Welcome to customer service - '90s style. So, in my quest for a new suspension, I called a standout among parts stores. Randy's Stuff in Arvada knew exactly what springs to order and got them to me on time. I was shocked. Not that Randy's has a bad reputation among parts people, because they don't. Even the guy at Sears recommended them. The car service nightmare continued with the brakes. At this point, I still only have the tires on, remember. I put the brakes on. Oops. Everything was fine until the rear brakes wouldn't fit. The parts store said there was only one possible part, and that was it. The dealer, when I called, asked me if I was sure it was actually an '82! What the hell sort of idiot do they think I am? They have no idea, but they still wouldn't give me any measurements or specs on the parts. Apparently now, the customer is always wrong. I had wished this was just an acid trip at that point, but it continued... Disgusted, I called Midas. Surely these brakes professionals would happily take a look at the idiot things. Wrong. Sure, they would look, but not happily. The man on the phone sounded irritated that I bothered him in the middle of his coffee break ... 10 minutes after they opened. I was livid. Would no one be able to get me the right part, be friendly, and perhaps do it this year? That's not much to ask. I then called the people I have turned to several times for service on my trusty, old VW: Blazer Automotive. Larry Blazer said, "Sure, we'll look at it. "Bring it in and we'll see. "You probably just mixed up the springs, or something. "We have an appointment open on Thursday." I could hear the smile on his face, and his price was right. Now, I've never thought it particularly convenient to set appointments to get urgent things like this done, but after 13 mind-numbing hours waiting for Sears to get their act together, I gladly said, "Thursday will work great." So, I sat waiting for the last of the work to be completed, content at making the choice I should have made in the first place. Then, Wednesday, I tried to catch the bus downtown. The driver waited at the light 30 feet from the stop. I ran up and knocked on the door. A cold glare and a stern shake of the head was the reply. I'm definitely not imagining it. Good service is nearly gone, if it ever really existed, and I'm still delusional. John Swift is a Metro student and photo editor of The Metropolitan. |
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100 percent of Metro Jive columnists polled ... Everyone probably expected me to come out with guns blazing. "Where the hell do they get off!?" you expected me to scream. Maybe you were looking for a long diatribe on the importance of open records and fully disclosed meetings. Maybe you were hoping to see a few volleys of acerbic, cutting shots fired at the heads of those embroiled in this controversy. Maybe you just want blood. Not this time. The Faculty Senate has good cause for alarm. Not because I feel students don't have the right to see faculty evaluations. Not because I think it was right for the group to hold a secret meeting
to discuss the matter. I talked with a Metro part-time professor whose opinion I respect as much as my own father's. Actually, it was my own father. He pointed out several reasons why, as faculty, the proposition of published evaluations are less than desirable. "They're misleading as hell," he said. The problem is in the statistical analysis itself. To begin with, in a class of 25, say two students give a bad review of the teacher. That's 8 percent of the population. What says more? That 8 percent of those polled hate the guy, or two people hate him? The process has been quantified and simplified way too much, just to provide an easily attainable average. "Is an average what we want?" Pop said. "Evaluations mean much more to me when the students actually sit down and write something." Student government President Andy Nicholas said that's not what the Faculty Senate wants. "Monys (Hagen, president of the Faculty Senate) said if we publish any of the comments, she would sue immediately." Seems to me, that's pretty stupid. Written comments are what the reviews should focus on. That's what they used to do. Back when The Met was what we called the newspaper on campus and Metro was the name of the school. "I was actually able to change and update my curriculum based on the
feedback I received from those students," How can it? To be fair, Pop said having everything open and public keeps people honest and is the overall best policy. And Nicholas backed him up on that point. "This isn't the end all way to pick your professor," Nicholas said. "But it's a damn good start." And yet it still isn't that black and white. The Faculty Senate needs to understand that students are simply consumers, and in the American marketplace, it is against the law to misrepresent your product. The only way to keep things honest is to keep them open. But, at the same time, there must be a complete overhaul of the whole process. It's time to get back to basics, and make each student write a couple of paragraphs explaining why he or she liked or disliked the professor in any given course. Sure, that probably means a lot more paper for publishing, but, then again, there's always our lovely new Banner System and the Web. Whatever the means, the ends must support a thorough and comprehensive review of the professors in this school. The opportunity to provide feedback in the form of prose has all but been obliterated by the evaluation process. Numbers mean nothing but to statisticians, physicists and bookies. And only one of those three will bust your kneecaps. Or is that 33 percent? |
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Capitalism = exploitation Editor: We write in response to the letter, "Marxism is no solution" (The Metropolitan, Sept. 11). There's a saying: One third of the world are followers of Marx; two-thirds do everything they can to discredit him. The importance of this is two-fold: 1. The "first world" hasn't known a threat to its strength; 2. Criticism of Socialism is supposed to serve as a defense of Capitalism. Is America "better" because it's rich? We should ask what a "high standard of living" is. Is it because we exploit for profit? Is it because we depend upon welfare to keep the poor quiet? Is it because we are Christians? Surely, we won't confuse the debate of "Capitalism or Socialism" with the debate over the virtues of U.S. policies. The Capitalist game is to expedite the process of globalization through extensive use of fables. The myth of wealth and individuality is prominent. No truth exists in the statement: "I'm an individual in society." The needs of the many always outweigh the needs of the few. Individualism has its setbacks when attempting to build an identity in which to live. You believe in capitalism yet believe in autonomy? The author of the letter in question would have us believe that the U.S. is for those who think like he does - the American way. We not only depend daily upon the labor of others, we depend upon their kindness. The form of discourse in (the) letter undermines any sense of "freedom," as in "free speech." It undermines the integrity that each of us strives for as human beings. Relating Socialism to the atrocities of totalitarian regimes is nothing more than a cheap trick in which to gain favor for the policies of the U.S. Remember: It's cheap labor we enforce upon the third world that allows us the ability to delay economic recession. What will we do when there are no foreign markets left to exploit? It is good to be thinking about these social and political issues. Don't get carried away though. We're "free" only because we're bound to exploitation. Ines Rodrigues, Metro student |
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Protest recalls a history of conflict Metro students and professors marched on the state Department of Education Sept. 16 to protest a perceived exclusion of their history from public school curricula. Ellen Lavroff, a Metro Spanish literature professor, participated in similar protests in Denver and California more than 25 years ago. The Metropolitan - What were the activists in Denver fighting for in the late 1960s and early 1970s? Lavroff - Well, just dignity. The same that they're still fighting for. People want to be recognized as being important in society. Q - How did you become involved? A- Because of my Spanish background. I became aware that there's a huge population of Spanish-speaking people in this country. And in the '60s and '70s they became more self-aware and so that helped the rest of us who were interested in social change. Q - Is the situation any better today? A - When they decide to cut back their budget, and I know the Denver Public Schools are pinched, they cut back things like music, art, and Chicano studies, and sometimes sports, but that goes last. The things that go first are all the things that the majority culture thinks are not important. Q - Colorado's commissioner of education, William Moloney, said teaching ethnic minorities basic literacy should come before teaching them about their culture. What's your perspective on that? A - What he's saying is we want to put all our resources into basic education. He has a point. That's what you call the bottom line. But are we down to that? Bottom line only? I don't think so. Q - At the protest, some were calling for a sort of economic self-sufficiency on the part of ethnic minorities. What do you think of that? A - You cannot disassociate yourself from the economic system because you're tied to it. So you have to learn English and you have to learn how the system works. But I don't think Latinos want to bow out of the culture. I think what they want is for people to say, "Yes, you're here and you're fine. We like you. We respect you." But they feel that they're working at a tremendous disadvantage. I don't blame them for being discouraged because we're talking about what happened in the sixties and seventies and we see that things haven't changed very much. Let me tell you a little story. Yesterday I went to see a friend. She's telling me about a friend of hers out in California who lives in a Spanish-speaking area. Her friend learned to speak Spanish. What happened was that this Anglo woman who learned Spanish began to enjoy the people she lived with. And she could communicate, and she began to appreciate the warmth of the Mexican people, the affectionate way that they have of dealing with others and the qualities, the good things that they have. Until you start to open yourself, get into the culture, you don't understand that because you can't get to know them. So you see them as "others." So that's called racism, and it's accompanied by prejudice. So that's what they're saying. "Just stop seeing us as 'those, those ones over there.' We're part of your culture but you've got to learn us enough to respect us. Because we give you a lot." |
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FEATURES |
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Visions of Nature Some of the artists' work at the Emmanuel Gallery was left outside...that's where it belongs. The exhibition opened Sept. 23 and explores nature through paintings, photographs, art installations and environmental works. Lisa Stanley, interim director of the gallery, said bringing the art out of the gallery engages a viewer in a different way. Nature Re-Visited presents works from nine artists, mostly from Colorado, on the theme of nature and landscape. Kimberlee Sullivan's Between Nature and Culture is a dominant piece in the show due to its size and interactive construction. A green forest is painted on several paper strips that hang from the ceiling side-by-side and form a semi-circle. They each measure approximately 3 feet wide by 10 feet long. Three pedestals, each with a book, stand in front of the panels and invite the viewer to step into the artwork. Sullivan said the books consist of journal writings from her grandparents, old family photographs and a few X-rays. "I hope to entice the viewer to enter the drawn landscape and to linger over the books," she said. Upstairs, David Sharpe's black
and white photography presents nature as an ever-changing landscape and
conveys a sense of time. Sharpe's theme of combining different photographic
images was present throughout his work. "It's a technique that I've been working with for over a year, and it's a method of setting up a dialogue," Sharpe said. Sharpe used a pinhole camera, made out of oatmeal boxes and tea cans, to capture these images of barren fields, urban landscapes and cows. Jake Wilson's pieces are left outside. He features four bowl-like structures that measure approximately 2.5 feet in diameter and are covered with rust and broken mirrors. The bowls are scattered across the lawn, east of the gallery. The bowls are successful in getting curious passersby to stop and traverse the grass to investigate. A re-visitation to nature doesn't come from the actual structures, but from the curious action generated by them. "I like the exhibit because of the outdoor sculpture," said Tara Lindsy, a Metro senior. Other artists' work featured at the exhibit are: paintings by Jerry Johnson and Barbara Hinnenkamp, an indoor installation by Kim Steele in collaboration with Jan Longwell, an outdoor installation by Phyllis Constransitch in collaboration with Yvette Dede. Nature Re-visited runs through Oct. 22 at the Emmanuel Gallery on Auraria Campus. |
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A realization of oppression This one goes out to all my white brothers out there. It wasn't until I came to Metro that I truly realized just how oppressed my Aryan brothers are. Now, hear me out on this one. I'm not going to pull an Uncle Clarence Thomas on you, but I do feel for white men. It seems to be open season on the white male majority, and it ain't pretty. I, like my non-Nubian brothers, was originally ignorant as to the extent of the white male majority oppression in our country today. I made sure that I didn't grow up like Martin Lawrence in Boomerang or Homey the Clown finding a white conspiracy behind my every shortcoming. But then I took a class to fulfill my cultural diversity requirement. After finishing a few readings from prominent authors, including Malcolm X and Robert Rodriquiez, my fellow minorities and I were thirsty for blood. The selections told of countless years of white majority rule, and minority and female persecution. We wanted some emotional restitution and a little institutional empowerment. Meanwhile, my white male counterparts squirmed helplessly in their seats, itching to shake free these school-sanctioned chains of oppression and resume their dominate positions. I really did feel for them. As more issues were raised on how the country had suffered so long on white male rule, more minorities chimed in and suppressed their white slave masters' ancestors into submission. They couldn't help the fact that they weren't ebony like me. That didn't make them inferior. But I guess someone has to be oppressed in our society; better you than me. I want to reach out and hug you, my fine ivory friend. You've traveled a long, hard road. I wish Maya Angelou was here to write a poem or two about your struggles. After all, in a few years, with the continuing surge of immigrants entering this country increasing, you'll be a minority just like me, and I can tell you're not ready. So, here's a few suggestions to help you on your way:
"I feel your pain..." Michael Byrd is a Metro student and a reporter for The Metropolitan. His e-mail address is byrd@.mscd.edu |
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3 steps to Absurdity When talking about Metro's latest theater production, you might call it absurd. Hell, go ahead and label it all-out absurd. Director David Kottenstette does. "People say: 'Why do you do such plays?' Well, my answer to that is: We have an obligation to the students to produce work from the huge cannon of literature that is available to us," said Kottenstette, professor of theater in the Speech Department. And so he ventured, thinking what to direct this year. And what he decided on is commendable: The Stronger by August Strindberg, The Man With the Flower in His Mouth by Luigi Pirandello and The Review Sketches by Harold Pinter (together called Life & Death & ...). His choices are commendable because they are all late-18th century, early-19th century works that are intellectual and, in some cases, absurdist in its truest theatrical meaning - one that implies severe hidden meaning within seemingly trivial dialogue and staging. To give you an idea, two of the one-acts contain two characters - only one of which talks. Kottenstette has taken a subdued approach to the two, he said. But to keep things interesting, the review sketches are going to be done with vibrant lights and attitudes reminiscent of the 1970s. In a nutshell, The Stronger looks at life caught in the middle of a hateful dichotomy. It's a two-sided conversation, even though only one character speaks, and it urges the audience to find the stronger of the two. The Man With the Flower in His Mouth is similar, yet the protagonist is terminally ill. He talks about how people take advantage of life's most wonderful pleasures. And The Review Sketches are racy. Filtered and unfiltered sexual innuendo weaves its way throughout the skits, along with a look at interpersonal relationships that have become inane. All this performed by a college theater company? This is no small task. "The actors say they can't figure it out," Kottenstette said. "Well, that's the problem. They're not supposed to figure it out. They're supposed to experience it." And experience it they will. Thomas Wilkowski, a 28-year-old Metro junior, has a couple roles in the sketches and said he was having problems with the confusion of it all. "We were having a hard time developing the absurdity of our situation," Wilkowski said . "Then we started beating it out to complex jazz rhythms, and it took on a new life that suddenly worked and allowed us to see what Pinter was saying about people." Pinter is the most radical of them all, having written most recently, he employed many absurdist techniques. "They're not always people's cup of tea, but they'll always get something out of it," Kottenstette said. He went on to say the plays won't singularly entertain you or make you think - one or the other. "I hope they make you do both. They all carry similar themes within them, and they are universal to us all. Sometimes it's comical, and sometimes it will make you think-hopefully." Life & Death & ... plays at the Metro Theater at 7:30 p.m. |
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SPORTS |
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Familiar ground Poof. It's an apt description of what has happened to the Metro women's soccer team's national ranking the past two times the Roadrunners have earned such an honor. This season, poof more accurately describes the suddenness of Metro's appearance at No. 9 in the Sept. 22 national poll. The team hadn't even garnered a single vote only one week earlier. Metro earned the ranking after two wins over Midwestern and Angelo State during a Sept. 18-20 weekend trip to Texas. "Our approach this year is we are not even going to look at the rankings," coach Ed Montojo said, after the Roadrunners' winning streak was snapped Sept. 23 at Colorado Christian by a 0-0 tie. Metro (8-0-1) had its share of opportunities to score in the game but never could finish. Senior midfielder Julie Ray slammed a shot off the left post of the Cougars goal in the first half. It was the Roadrunners best scoring opportunity to that point, but far from the best chance of the game. "I thought I could beat (the goalie) to it and just poke it past her," Ray said. "Bad luck I guess." Another chance slipped away when senior Ariana O'Neill centered a pass only a few feet in front of the goal line but just inches out of the reach of juniors Kari Pierce and Pam DeLuca, both of whom slid into the play in an effort to score. Late in the second half, DeLuca dribbled by the Cougar's goalie, but fired a shot wide left of an empty net. It was enough to send the Roadrunner sideline spinning in pirouettes of frustration. "You have to think there will be teams who play us tough," Ray said. "We can't skate-walk through all of them." Senior Katie Pierce missed the game at CCU after tearing her anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee Sept. 16 during a game with Regis University. Montojo said Pierce could have helped. "We missed Katie a lot," Montojo said. "She is a motor and a team leader." Pierce played in the weekend games in Texas despite the injury. She said she could have played against the Cougars but was held out as a precaution. She said she intends to play out the season. Montojo said he spoke to his team about its surprise appearance in the polls, but he doesn't intend to mention it again. The coach said he doesn't put much stock in the polls, pointing out that several teams hadn't reported scores for pollsters to consider. One of those teams is Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference foe Mesa State College, which fell out of the top 10 when Metro broke in. Metro plays at the University of Northern Colorado Sept. 27 at 1 p.m. Player of the Week |
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Helman to retire after 17 years as AD "There is this one ball player I had on my team that I will never forget. His name was Bellizzi. During practice one day, Bellizzi walks out on the field and asks 'So this is a college baseball team?' I looked at him and said 'Yeah, it is.' "He told me that he had some eligibility left so we checked and sure enough he did. And from that point on, he was our catcher for the season. "One day, Bellizzi comes up and says 'Coach, you need a nickname... Mayo, like Helman mayonnaise.' My response was, 'Ok... then yours will be Dizzy Bellizzi' He pulls out this match box, something that he was proud of, and the writing said 'Dizzy Bellizzi.' He said, 'Coach, you nailed it right on the head.' "Mayo" is William Helman, who once coached baseball at Metro and is the athletics director. Now that too is coming to an end. Helman announced his retirement Sept. 23, effective Nov. 1. "I've loved my association with the college and enjoyed the challenges the job has presented," Helman said. "I'll miss college athletics, yet, it has been a passion to move to the beach." Helman said he chose to leave now because he became eligible to collect nearly 80 percent of his retirement over the summer and he and his wife recently purchased a condominium in St. Augustine, Fla. Helman has been the athletics director for 17 years. During that stretch,
he helped move the Roadrunners from the Before becoming the baseball coach or athletics director, Helman was the director of campus Recreation for Metro (1977-1981). "I would work here for the summers," Helman said. "I was in charge of outdoor recreation and the drop-in programs." Two years into his campus-recreation directorship, he met with the baseball coach and that would start an odyssey. "I met with the coach at the time and told him that I wanted to be a volunteer coach and he said that it would be OK," Helman said. "He started not to show up as much in the fall and by the time fall had ended, he had resigned." In his 14 seasons of coaching, Helman's overall record was 338-293-2. Helman's best season was in 1988, when his team went 34-15, the best season mark in Roadrunner baseball history. Helman recalled one of his favorite games that year, 1988, against a Division I school. "We played Long Beach State, who I think the year before won the national title, two games while we were out in California," Helman said. "In the first game the night before, they beat us badly, but the next day, one of our pitchers, who had a good curve ball, Casey Ryan, went out there and shut them down. "In the ninth inning, we were up 3-2, one of my relief pitchers, Mike Scarpella, who was known to be a little wild, kept saying 'Put me in coach, put me in.' I finally put him in and he got the three outs and we won." Coaching baseball was something Helman enjoyed more than anything. "There are times that I would walk on the baseball field and say to myself 'I would come out here and do this (coaching) for free if they would let me.'" |
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Hanlon kills the Rangers In a flash, Kelly Hanlon of Metro knew what it would take to overcome the second-ranked volleyball team in the country. It's a good thing she and her teammates chose the right flash Sept.19 as the Roadrunners defeated cross town rival Regis, 15-10, 14-16, 15-8, 10-15, 15-13. The win propelled Metro to No. 18 in the current Division II polls, while Regis dropped to No. 3. Hanlon, in her first year at Metro, has seen her team put forth a wide spectrum of abilities this season and was counting on a solid performance against Regis. "In flashes, we've played great this year, and in flashes we've played poorly," Hanlon said after the Roadrunners ended the Rangers 21-game home winning streak, collected over the past two years. "If they were going to beat us, it was going to be our mistakes. "We knew if we played our game we'd beat them." Metro made very few mistakes when it counted most, jumping out to a 2-1 lead. They trailed most of the fifth game, down by as much as 8-4, before coming back to tie the score at 9-9. After exchanging points to 13-13, Hanlon scored on a dink shot and then served a match winning ace. She finished with a match high 29 kills and added 25 digs, which led to being named the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's East Division Player-of-the-Week. It was the first time Metro had beaten Regis on the Ranger's home court since 1993, and it was only the second RMAC loss for Regis in the past two years. It almost had head coach Joan McDermott speechless. "For us to win here is ..." she said. "It was a great defensive match. Neither team hit very well, but our blocking and defense was a big factor." McDermott has had little to celebrate so far this year. Metro had lost three straight matches going into last weekends play and had won only one game in those lost matches. The Roadrunners now seem to have regained the confidence needed to handle the rest of the league schedule ahead of them after defeating Chadron State Sept. 17 in three games, 15-1, 15-5, 15-5, and then pulling off the upset over Regis. "We've been struggling the first part of the season, so this is good for us to get back on track," McDermott said. Metro continued its winning ways Sept. 22, disposing of the Colorado School of Mines in three straight games, 15-11, 15-7, 15-1. The Roadrunners are now 3-1 in the RMAC and 6-6 overall. They host Fort Hays State and Nebraska-Kearney at 7 p.m. Sept. 25-26 at the Auraria Events Center. |
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The rowdies rocking at Regis for rivalry For years, rivalries that have begun on the playing field or the hardwood have carried over into the stands. There is the classic Denver Broncos and Oakland Raiders battle, for one. And, of course, the heated rivalry between the Metro Roadrunners and the Regis Rangers. At the volleyball game Sept. 18 played at Regis, the tension between the teams was obvious, and that fire spilled over into the bleachers in the gymnasium. Although there was not a large showing of fans for either team, those who did show up were passionate. The Rangers had almost 30 fans in their student section called "The Pit," many with little yellow cups to amplify their sound. But Metro countered with a group of about 15 men, cheering for the Roadrunners. They infiltrated "The Pit" and deemed the Regis fans "nothing." As the entourage of men walked into the gym, one could tell that they were together and going to be a force to be reckoned with. Indeed, this force was the Metro men's basketball team plus "two suckers," said one basketball player. Lead by junior Michael Alcock, the hoopsters helped cheer the volleyball team to victory over the No. 2 ranked Rangers. Alcock is said to be the leader and "choreographer," beginning the chants of "M-E-T-R-O: METRO" and "Let's Go Metro." They were often heard stomping on the bleachers and creating all sorts of sound to distract the Regis team. But the main reason the men's basketball team showed up to the volleyball game was to offer support, said Jody Hollins, a basketball team member. The players said they try to come to every game — all sports included — that they can. Being that Metro is a commuter school, it is hard to get support at sporting events, even if the game is with a bitter rival. And it must be added that the Metro volleyball team did not disappoint any of its fans Sept. 18 in a thrilling five-game upset over its most bitter rival. |
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Money VP earned solid gold In 1964, at age 16, Joe Arcese was in a car accident and lost the use of his legs. In 1968, the basketball team he played for won an Olympic silver medal, and in 1976, his team won an Olympic gold medal, both for wheelchair basketball. Today, Arcese bikes, skis, golfs, swims and runs but doesn't compete professionally anymore. He has been Metro's vice president of Administration and Finance since 1989, and has overseen the athletic director since 1994. In that time, he has become a fixture at Metro sporting events. At his New York high school, before the accident, Arcese played soccer, wrestled and did track and field. When Arcese graduated from high school in 1968, his choice for college was the University of Illinois, because it was the only college that was wheelchair accessible and had wheelchair sports. "I had a lot of peers," he said, because anyone who was physically challenged and wanted to play college sports had little choice but to attend the University of Illinois. The basketball team made it to the Olympics in 1968. He explained, in his office on the 13th floor of the Terracentre, how someone in a wheelchair plays basketball and pointed to a magazine photo of a team at play. The chairs' wheels are more angular, jutting out more, to give the players more mobility. The squeak of the shoes is absent, but Arcese said there are lot more collisions. People smash into each other a lot more in wheelchair basketball, Arcese explained. Normally, the wheelchair competitions in the Olympics compete in the same country as the regular Olympics, but at a different time. In 1968, the summer Olympics were held in Mexico City. But the wheelchair divisions were held in Israel, and the Six Days War was just ending when Arcese got to Tel Aviv. "When we landed, the airport had just been bombed, and our terminal was still smoking," Arcese recalled. "We had to exit the plane outside, and we were assigned to a group of armed female soldiers who stayed with us the whole time." The trip shocked Arcese, who said he never imagined how terrible the war would be to see, especially for a 20-year-old. Thirty years later, he still recalls the emotions. "We traveled all over the country," he said. "We went to the kibbutzes (communal farms) and the people would show us where the Syrians were bombing from, just over the hill. "We would be driving and get stopped. A soldier would poke a machine gun into the car and ask us questions. Coming from this country and seeing that..." his voice trailed off. In 1968, his team won the silver medal in basketball. Ninety countries competed: Israel won. The Israeli prime minister and all his cabinet came to the game. The war was over, but bombings continued. Israel was still suffering. "It was very emotional," he said. Israel's winning the gold was such an emotional boost for the spectators, Arcese said. The joy of the country outweighed coming in second for Arcese. Eight years later Arcese's team won the gold in basketball, this time in Toronto. The 1976 Olympics were the last for Arcese. He played for several national teams after that and retired from competitive sports in 1985. He began to focus on his family life and coached teams that his son played on. "When my son was younger, I coached baseball," he said, pointing
to the photos of himself with his young teams. He pulls out a magazine, explaining how he can ski and golf and bike. To golf he has a golf cart, which looks like a regular golf cart, with a seat that swivels to the right or left so he can swing. To ski he has a chair with a small ski on the bottom, and poles with skis at the base; it's like having three short skis instead of two long ones. Arcese snow skis a lot, but said he hasn't been water skiing in a while. "OK, here's something I haven't done," he said, pointing to a hang glider built for people in wheelchairs. "Whew, no way." Keeping in touch with his sports history, Arcese loves his work with Metro's athletic department. Metro's sports are highly respected, Arcese said. Eight out of 10 teams were in the top 25 in the nation. The national attention has brought in thousands of inquiries from students wanting information about Metro and its athletic department, according to Arcese. "We get requests from all over the world," he said. The success of the department can be attributed to increased tuition scholarships, top notch coaches, and great facilities, he said. "In four years, we've gone from being a good program to being a great program — a nationally recognized program," he said. |
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My hodgepodge of streaks, freaks The death of FloJo; McGwire and Sosa rewriting the record books at a time when baseball needs a boost; Cal Ripken Jr. ending a consecutive game streak that will never be broken; and big news at Metro where the volleyball team beat second-ranked Regis and athletics director Bill Helman announced his retirement. And who could forget the bands from Southern University and Prairie View A&M being suspended for a half-time fight. Here is my hodgepodge of thoughts for the week:
We live in a society where many people, not just athletes, back out when
things that are tough or don't go well. Not Ripken. Part of big salaries
come from fans who pay money to see the stars, and for 2,632 consecuitive
games they have seen a star shining brightly.
A 20-minute brawl between the two bands will always keep the fans coming back for more. I guess it gives a new meaning to the term fight song. The rumor is the tuba players didn't take too many body blows.
It was great to see Metro bring a loud group of fans across town. The men's
basketball team organized the noise making, and the volleyball team took
care of business on the court.
He will close the door on a career that has spanned 21 years as a coach and an administrator. We will be losing a man who has been in charge of the Metro athletic department as it developed from a program with, at best, moderate resources, into a nationally recognized force in Division II athletics. He has been a well-liked fixture on this campus for the majority of the time there has been an Auraria campus. Now all he has to look forward to is a beach-front condo and a lot of golf. Wish him luck when you see him on campus over the next month. Brian Crookham is head coach of the Metro men's soccer team. His column will appear weekly during the fall soccer season. |
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