Student Life Archives

Erika Massow

The mood at the party was electric. A tense feeling soon gave way to hope and thrilled anticipation. As election returns rolled in, Washington University instructor Jeff Smith seemed poised to capture the Democratic bid for Dick Gephardt’s former House seat.

“The results kept coming in and we were ahead-until the Jefferson County votes came in,” said campaign staffer Brian Ponton, a sophomore at the University.

The results were disastrous for the candidate. On August 3, Smith narrowly lost out to Russ Carnahan. Carnahan, the son of former Senators Mel and Jean Carnahan, won the Democratic nod with 23 percent of the vote. Smith, who carried both St. Louis City and County, lost with 21 percent of the district.

“It was an incredible run,” said Smith, now a senior advisor to Claire McCaskill’s gubernatorial campaign in Missouri. “I’m so proud of what we accomplished. We were the first campaign in St. Louis history to sweep the city without earning a single ward endorsement. That speaks to the strength of our grassroots movement.”

The party may not have ended with a bang, but campaigners said the experience was still worthwhile.

“It was such an incredible feeling because we started from nothing, no name recognition at all,” said recent graduate Mackinnon Webster. “As the time has passed, I think we’ve all seen how far we actually came. There’s been much more focus on, ‘look at this momentum we’ve created in Missouri and how can we carry this on to the November election.'”

An adjunct professor of political science and public policy in University College, Smith also teaches at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. He received the University’s Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence in 2002. Previously, Smith worked as a campaign manager and political analyst.

After taking Smith’s class, “Campaigns, Elections and the Policy Process,” several students were inspired to work on the professor’s campaign.

“I took Jeff’s class and we learned about the political system and how campaigns worked, but the experience of really working on a campaign was a great way to complement the class,” said Webster.

She said the abundance of students made the headquarters an energetic, if sometimes chaotic, workplace.

“It was really incredible how young everyone was but still really knowledgeable about the political process,” said Webster. “A lot of the people that were there, you could tell were there because of the message, which is kind of rare in politics today.”

Tuesday, August 3
8:14 a.m., BURGLARY, EADS HALL-A window was taken out and placed on the floor of an office in Eads Hall on August 3rd.ÿ Items on the windowsill were also placed on the floor beside the window. Nothing was missing from the office.ÿInvestigation to continue.

Friday, August 6
7:38 am., LARCENY-THEFT, ANHEUSER-BUSCH HALL OF LAW-Person(s) unknown stole a laptop computer from above location.ÿ Under investigation.

9:18 a.m., FRAUD/IDENTITY THEFT, UNDESIGNATED AREA OFF CAMPUS-Money taken from victim’s Bank of America savings and checking accounts through on line banking.ÿ Under investigation.

Saturday, August 7
7:44 p.m., ACCIDENT (AUTO), SHEPLEY DRIVE-Vehicle damaged by ballards when one driver tried to piggyback another vehicle over ballards. The ballardÿ raised causing damage to complainants vehicle. Investigation concluded.

Wednesday, August 11
11:47 p.m., SUSPICIOUSÿPERSON, MYERS DORM-Caller stated that an unknown male climbed up onto her balcony and entered her suite, leaving through the front door.ÿ Under investigation.

Thursday, August 12
1:24 p.m., FIRE, MUDD DORM-Fire contained in microwave oven due to use of metal cup.ÿ No damage other than to the microwave and clean up from the use of a fire extinguisher.ÿ Investigation concluded.

Wednesday, August 18
11:07 p.m., NONCRIMINAL REPORT, ELIOT DORM-Caller states that two females found on the first floor lounge area of the dorm were not students and were refusing to leave.ÿ Responding officer advised that the two women were helping their niece move in. Investigation unfounded.

Sunday, August 22
2:19 a.m., ASSAULT, PARKING LOT-After responding to check the well being ofÿa security guard he became violent and threatened a fellow security officer. When advised to go home the suspect became combative and uncooperative. Incident resulted in the arrest of the security guard for assault 3rd degree and resisting arrest. Investigation cleared by arrest.

11:22 a.m., LARCENY-THEFT, RESLIFE-Victim reported that his iPod had been stolen two weeks ago at Residential Life. No suspects at this time.ÿUnder investigation.

After climbing to a tie for ninth with Dartmouth College in the U.S. News and World Report rankings of undergraduate programs last year, Washington University has fallen to 11th place out of the 248 national universities surveyed, tying with Northwestern. In the “best value” category, however, the University moved up two spots to No. 12.

Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton expressed his pleasure at the University’s new position, noting that the University is stronger than it was a year ago.

“It is great to see that the University remains so highly regarded,” said Wrighton. “Recruiting great students and attracting and retaining talented faculty contribute to strengthening the University.”

U.S. News publishes its ratings of undergraduate programs yearly, ranking the top national universities, liberal arts colleges, undergraduate business programs and engineering schools.

The John M. Olin School of Business received a bump in the undergraduate business program rankings, moving up to 11th place from its 14th place spot last year. The finance program is ranked 17th.

The School of Engineering is ranked 39th, where it is tied with seven other schools, including Notre Dame and Brown.

In each specific category, the University posted strong numbers. These include fourth place in financial resources, ninth in alumni giving, sixth in faculty resources, eighth in selectivity, and 12th in best value. The University improved on its position from last year in the last three categories.

In addition to its position in the rankings, the University is featured prominently in several other articles in the magazine, including a college profile where the University is labeled a “hidden gem no more.” This piece highlights the low student-to-faculty ratio and the University’s campaigns to attract top students with merit-based awards.

Students also seemed pleased with the University’s position, especially considering that the school was barely cracking the top 20 a few years ago.

“It is disappointing to see that the rankings went down, but I’m glad that the business school moved up,” said senior Amanda Rauschkolb. “Overall, I think name recognition is more important in the end than the exact ranking.”

Freshman Danielle Davidson noted that the University remains a great place, regardless of the rankings.

“The school didn’t become any worse or change in any way due to the drop in the rankings,” Davidson said.

Parents also seemed pleased with the University on the whole, but noted that the drop is disappointing.

“Washington University should not be moving down in the rankings,” said Kiran Sikand of Colorado. “The school communicates well with students and parents and has an excellent faculty. Academically it remains well-known.”

The rankings are based on several key factors, with a significant portion of the information coming in the form of peer assessments from university presidents, chancellors, admissions deans and provosts. The publication assigns a specific weight to each of these criterion as well as retention rates, faculty resources, selectivity, financial resources, graduation rate performance and alumni giving rates.

The final scores are eventually rescaled, with the top school in the category receiving a score of 100. Other schools’ scores are recalculated as a portion of the top school’s score.

The top national universities in the survey were Harvard and Princeton. Other Ivy League institutions such as Yale and the University of Pennsylvania also placed in the top five.

According to Steve Givens, assistant to the chancellor, university administrators are pleased with the results and will continue to recruit the best faculty and students, regardless of the rankings.

“The drop from ninth to 11th place does not represent a drop in quality,” said Givens. “We are still an elite university, and this remains a wonderful institution.”

After nine years, the Campaign for Washington University has raised a total of $1.55 billion in gifts and commitments.

“Current students enjoy the benefits of work done throughout the course of the campaign, which started in what we call a “quiet phase” on July 1, 1995,” said Chancellor Mark Wrighton, noting that much of the funding for Olin Library’s renovations and the new academic buildings on campus was secured through the Campaign’s success.

In the time since the Campaign began, a total of 26 new buildings have been erected, including the Laboratory Science Building, Anheuser-Busch Hall, and the Lucy and Stanley Lopata House for students. More than $185 million from the Campaign has also been designated for scholarship endowments. According to Wrighton, this financial aid is already benefitting students that might not have been able to “enjoy the Washington University experience” otherwise. The University received its largest gift to date through the Campaign: a $25 million donation for the Enterprise Rent-A-Car Scholars program, which will help to ensure that deserving young men and women are able to attend the University regardless of their financial circumstances.

The Campaign’s original goal of $1 billion was announced in Sept. 1998-however, because of imminent achievement, the University’s trustees raised the goal to $1.3 billion in Oct. 2000. At the time of its conclusion June 30, 2004, the Campaign had surpassed its second goal as well.

“I believe this campaign will be looked back on as one that was a real contribution to a turning point in the history of the University. The campaign, in comparison with those of other universities…was the 6th largest of any fundraising campaign at that time,” said Wrighton.

As a result of this success, 165 new endowed professorships have been established at the University-a number believed to be the largest of any other university campaign to date.

“We’re very proud of that. It signals the attractiveness of Washington University,” said Wrighton, adding that donors were “obviously very enthusiastic about supporting [University] faculty.”

Professorships have been created in all of the University’s schools. When the campaign began, for instance, the School of Art had no endowed professorships. Now, as Wrighton notes, there are approximately three.

While not all of the money raised in the Campaign was received directly, the pledges that come in over time will fund projects such as the University Center.

“It’s been in the works all along,” Wrighton said, “But […] it’s been a planning exercise that has evolved over a longer period of time than I’d have liked. I haven’t seen the current plan yet [but] during this campaign we’ve received commitments to assist in the development of that facility. It will be finished in the summer of 2006.”

The Campaign was carried out under the direction of 25 local, national, and international volunteer leaders, as well as more than 5,000 volunteers. Former Vice Chancellor for Alumni and Development Programs David Blasingame, who served as executive director of the Campaign, was promoted to executive vice chancellor in recognition of his dedication to the University’s educational mission and successful execution of the Campaign.

“He’s just a fabulous person. What’s great about him is he’s very sensitive to what I’d call the ‘quality of the gift’-a lot of our campaign focuses on numbers, and we’re proud to say we’ve exceeded every goal, but he’s succeeded in fulfilling our mission as an educational institution, not just getting money,” Wrighton said of Blasingame’s ability to procure donations for all facets of the University.

While Blasingame’s principal responsibilities will remain the same, Wrighton explained the University’s next goal as one of quality control.

“Our success in the campaign is due to a very comprehensive planning process,” he said. “Having executed a lot of our plan, we need to decide what we have to do that we didn’t do, and focus on getting [those projects] done. What are our new challenges?”

Student Life Archives

With the presidential debates approaching, local and federal law enforcement officers are preparing to cope with a necessary increase in security. The presence of such prominent figures as President George W. Bush and Senator John Kerry raises concern that Washington University will become a target for terrorist groups during the debate on Oct. 8. While the main concern for police handling debate security in previous years was to prevent violent acts of civil disobedience, scenarios for the upcoming presidential debate include thwarting biological and chemical attacks.

Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge, however, has denied Missouri Governor Holden’s request that the debate held at the University be declared a “National Security Special Event” (NSSE). Designation as an NSSE would put organization of the debate security into the hands of the Secret Service. It would also allow additional federal law enforcement to be present for the duration of the event.

“We don’t know why the Department of Homeland Security turned the request down,” said Steve Givens, assistant to the chancellor. “We are moving ahead with all of our security precautions and are working closely with the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies.”

As it stands, the St. Louis County police-working in conjunction with University police-will organize all security efforts and allocate manpower as they see fit.

According to Chief of Police Don Strom, a unified structure of command “encompassing police, fire, and emergency medical assistance” will be coordinating security services so that the debate will run smoothly.

The other sites hosting presidential debates, such as the University of Arizona and the University of Miami, were also denied NSSE designation. Ridge commented, however, that federal agencies would continue to provide assistance to all three universities.

Security measures will be tight at the debates. A large group of federal agents, municipal law enforcement officers and officers from St. Louis County, the University, greater St. Louis and the Missouri Highway Patrol will be on hand to supervise and organize security at the event. Vehicular access is going to be severely restricted, and guests will be screened before entering the debate venue. A much wider perimeter than usual around the venue will be closed to the public. St. Louis County police will also be providing helicopters, canine squads and specially trained tactical units in addition to police officers.

With such precautionary measures being put into place, Givens said that the University has “every confidence that the presidential debate will go off well and safely.”

Jonathan Lane

Michael Moore may be joining the fray on campus this October. Student Union President David Ader confirmed that the Campus Programming Council is in the later stages of talks with the controversial documentary filmmaker to speak to students about the presidential election-though Moore has not yet signed a contract.

If he agrees to come, Moore will join a list of nationally renowned political analysts and activists slotted to speak at the University in anticipation of the debate Oct. 8. Indeed, for political junkies, debate preview events will start long before the first news truck rolls into town.

Among those events are those sponsored by Educate Yourself 2004, a student-run group, which has planned a series of forums designed to keep students abreast of the issues likely to play a major role in the presidential debates. Local specialists, University professors and national experts will share their expertise with attendees.

The series of forums will touch on hot-button issues like civil rights, the economy and trade and the political process. Students can attend forums every Monday at 4:45 p.m. in Rebstock 215, starting with a discussion of foreign policy on Sept. 7.

Also appearing on campus will be Mo Rocca, former senior political correspondent for “The Daily Show” and panelist on NPR’s “Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me,” who will be making his second stop at Washington University this October.

Rocca will speak in Graham Chapel immediately following the presidential debate. The Chapel will serve as a remote viewing site for students who are unsuccessful in obtaining tickets to the debate itself. Following the conclusion of the debate, Rocca will give a presentation in response to what the different candidates promised, argued, and declared, then hold a question and answer session.

After his positive reception by students on campus last spring, the Congress of the South 40 (CS40) decided that he would be a witty and informative speaker to bring back.

“He gives really smart political commentary, but he’s very nonpartisan,” said Mary Schindler, advisor to CS40. “He more than filled Graham Chapel [last March].”

After reporting for “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,” on which he offered viewers his “Mopinion” on the issues, Rocca indulged in his desire to visit the homes and graves of dead presidents and wrote a book concerning the pets that have lived in the White House. He recently served as the host of the Bravo TV series “Things I Hate About You,” investigating the imperfect relationships of married couples and their annoying habits.

Despite his unusual r‚sum‚, Mo-short for Maurice-is respected by some in the political arena.

Schindler noted that while he can be entertaining, Rocca usually gets the main point of the story across to his audience.

“While he seems to have a humorous approach, I don’t consider it to be really comedy,” said Schindler. “I consider him to be in the same category as Al Franken and Michael Moore.”

Student Union is also inviting a number of other speakers to campus in an effort to help students understand and become involved in the debate. A debate information session will be held the day before classes begin on Tuesday, August 31. Students interested in learning more about the debates can gather at Ursa’s Fireside from 8-9 p.m. and listen to a handful of speakers explain the different events occurring on or before October 8.

Steve Givens, chair of the Debate Committee, will talk about the event itself; Chief of University Police Don Strom will speak about campus security; and Vice Chancellor of Public Affairs Fred Volkmann will also speak. Sue Hosack, director of the Office of Student Records, and Stephanie Kurtzman, coordinator for community service and women’s programs, will explain how to apply for debate tickets; and Elizabeth Lukas, information specialist for the Career Center, and Jill Carnaghi, vice chancellor for students, will tell students how they can get involved as volunteers.

In preparation for the November elections, CS40 and Project Democracy are also combining forces to encourage students to vote. The organizations placed almost 1,500 voter registration cards in each freshman’s dorm room before the new residents moved into their halls. According to Chris Wray, internal operations chair for CS40, this represents “one of the biggest voter registration drives ever on campus.”

-with additional reporting by Rachel Streitfeld and Kelly Donahue