Category: Opinion

The ongoing revision process of University of Wisconsin System non-academic misconduct policies (UWS 17 and 18) has elicited a prolonged and lively debate on the merits of these amendments. In addition to a campus forum co-hosted by the Offices of the Dean of Students and the Associated Students of Madison, there have been numerous editorials and individual discussions. While I am glad the university community engaged on this issue, I feel through the course of this discussion, participants have lost sight of a few of key points about the revisions.

I never thought Iâ??d hear myself say this, but given a recent discussion with Associate Dean of Students Kevin Helmkamp â?? one of the key figures in the revisions to the Student Academic Misconduct Policy â?? Iâ??ve had something of a change of heart on the controversy. Thatâ??s not to say I donâ??t object to a vast number of the proposed changes; I most certainly do. But given Helmkampâ??s statements on the policy, there are a number of points that deserve clarification.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison continued its pledge to provide students with the opportunity to explore new avenues of learning with three important decisions in the past week. History and Engineering department curricula will be augmented with the addition of several new professorships, while an agreement with Tikrit University in Iraq will expose students to academic resources halfway around the world.

Both candidates for the open seat in District 8 are University of Wisconsin juniors. Both have track records of involvement with important issues. Bryon Eagon has been elected to the ASM Student Council and has served on the Student Services Finance Committee. Mark Woulf has served on UW’s Alcohol and Other Drug Task Force, and he’s got some good ideas about how to promote public safety by having the police change policies on raiding bars and house parties.

We’re convinced that either Eagon or Woulf would serve ably on the council, and that each would give voice to the important concerns of students.

Following up on recent Herald coverage and a campus forum held on March 10, we write today in the hopes of furthering campus dialogue on the subject of sexual assault.

In lieu of the recent article, â??Victim comes forward, reveals shocking story,â? published on March 4th in the Badger Herald regarding the alleged rape at Sigma Chi, the Office of the Dean of Students (ODOS) received much flak regarding its role in the investigation and its pursuit of action. In many respects, ODOS was accused of belittling the incident and trying to suppress the inception of an investigation into the case.

With our country’s health care system at a crossroads and fewer physicians going into the area of primary care, one of the best places to look for answers may be today’s medical students â?? our future health care providers. I have been fortunate to work alongside one of these dedicated students recently, and I thought she may be able to provide a glimpse into her world â?? and into the world of health care in the United States.

Freedom native Abby Schuh is in her final year at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine. I’m confident that many medical students across the country share her thoughts, which follow.

â??We arenâ??t going awayâ? wrote an anonymous commenter on The Badger Herald website last week Friday (â??SSFC votes down increased seg feeâ?).

It has been more than three years since the inception of the Student Union Initiative saga â?? during which students have endured systematic deception, incredible theft and blatant infringements on the jurisdiction over their segregated fees â?? and not once has the good side come out ahead. Every effort made to uphold student democracy and defend accessibility to this university has failed. The student voice has been bruised and then battered, while our pocketbooks have turned emptier and then empty. Ultimately, the valiant efforts of countless and diverse students proved to be too little, too late or both, and now the powerful Wisconsin Union appears destined to get away with it all.

I am in an uncomfortable situation when it comes to discussing the horrendous acts of which brothers of the Sigma Chi fraternity have been accused. On one hand, I am a staff writer for The Badger Herald; I pride myself above all else on giving a perspective, regardless of whether or not anyone agrees with me, that will make people talk and make people think outside the box. On the other hand, the extracurricular activity I care most about is my role as president of one of the biggest fraternities on this campus, Alpha Epsilon Pi. My house is located almost directly across the street from Sigma Chi, and we have a very good relationship with them. When it comes to the extraordinarily unfortunate situation facing the victim I want to be able to write a completely unbiased piece, but unfortunately my proximity to the situation does not allow me to do that.

PAVE (Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment) was saddened by the front-page article, â??Alleged Rape at Sigma Chi,â? published Wednesday, March 4 in The Badger Herald. While the report of the assault itself was extremely disturbing, some of the comments posted by UW students on The Badger Herald website in response to the article were equally troubling. Many of these responses reveal we live in a culture in which we are more apt to blame sexual assault victims than to hold perpetrators accountable.

I would like to thank The Badger Herald for Tuesdayâ??s coverage of a critical campus issue (â??Alleged rape in Sigma Chi,â? March 3). This article provides a powerful reminder of the toll of sexual assault on a survivor.

“I just came home, the door was bashed in and my girlfriend has been shot.”

Those were the words of Jordan Gonnering, speaking to a 911 dispatcher last April after he found the body of Brittany Zimmermann in the downtown Madison apartment that he shared with her.

Increasingly, the media use transcripts and audio of 911 calls as part of their coverage of public safety, a strategy that some applaud but others fear harms crime victims and violates their privacy.

A statement released Wednesday by the University of Wisconsin indicated a sharp decrease in the amount of in-state applications the University has received compared to years past. Roughly 1,000 less applications were received by the Feb. 1 deadline. University officials could not offer any explanation for the dwindling numbers other than the sagging economy. This notion may be a good rationalization, but biased funding among the universities departments â?? among other factors â?? is the likely culprit.

A few days ago, Chancellor Biddy Martin announced the University of Wisconsinâ??s intent to end business relations in March with Russell Athletics, a clothing manufacturing company contracted to supply apparel donning UW-Madison logos. The reasoning behind the termination of this relationship was the companyâ??s aggressive action against workersâ?? movements to unionize, particularly shutting down a plant in Choloma, Honduras, where workers were beginning to form a union.

Last week, UW Chancellor Biddy Martin announced her decision to terminate UW-Madisonâ??s Russell Athletics contract over worker rights violations in the apparel companyâ??s Jerzees de Honduras factory. The factory was the subject of an investigation by the Worker Rights Consortium, which confirmed that Russellâ??s union-busting behavior clearly violated not only UW-Madisonâ??s Code of Conduct for apparel producers, but also Honduran law and internationally recognized labor standards. Chancellor Martin made the right call.