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In Sororities, No Bad Hair Days--or Doughnuts--Allowed
Tweet Share on Facebook February 28, 2007 Comment (2)The DePauw University women whose waistlines seem to have gotten them evicted from their Delta Zeta sorority house might still belong to a wider sisterhood. "All sorority girls have, whether they will admit it or not, been told about the importance of either maintaining or improving their sorority's image," writes one sorority member at the University of Southern California in today's Daily Trojan. Last semester, for instance, a Kappa Kappa Gamma member sent her sisters an E-mail with tips on how to stay thin. "Attached," writes the columnist, "were inspirational photos of overweight sorority girls from other houses." As the E-mail writer explained, nobody wants to live in "Kappa Kappa Krispy Kreme"! So why bother to stay a member and face such judgments? The USC columnist describes two different worlds: Inside the house, "sorority members embrace quirks, tell you you're beautiful when you feel you are not," she writes. But outside, "We're told in order to ensure a good reputation that when wearing our letters we must look our best, for a sister wearing her letters on a bad hair day could potentially ruin a house's reputation."
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Rhodes Scholars Say Oxford's Overrated
Tweet Share on Facebook February 28, 2007 Comment (1)Two recent Harvard graduates say their battles to win Rhodes scholarships have not been worth it. High faculty attrition and meager budgets make research at Oxford frustrating, they argue in a Crimson editorial. In addition, though they are special, they do not get special privileges. "There are no breaks for Rhodes scholars," they write. Not even for Harvard-educated Rhodes scholars. "Expect the H-bomb to blow up in your face," they tell fellow Crimson peers. "Your undergrad alma mater can stigmatize you in your department and Rhodes House alike." Their advice: Do some research before you decide to apply for an elite scholarship--because if you're like these brainiacs, you may not realize until you get there that Oxford is not actually in London.
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How Duke Basketball Is Like Darth Vader
Tweet Share on Facebook February 28, 2007 Comment"Fans around the country either love or love to hate Duke, making it comparable to a certain other 'Evil Empire,' " writes the University of Maryland's Diamondback on the eve of the Maryland-Duke game. The article goes on to explain various theories of Duke basketball's notoriety, including the possibility that it is hated because it is so good as well as the possibility that it is hated because it is always on ESPN.
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Trail Mix
Tweet Share on Facebook February 28, 2007 Comment- The University of California-Santa Barbara wants to replace all dorm keys with computerized identity cards that would not only give students access to their rooms but also track their movement, the Daily Nexus reports.
- Foxes roaming around campus are no big deal, the Texas Tech administration is telling students, reports the Daily Toreador.
- A Southern Illinois University-Carbondale program for disabled students has reserved several slots for war veterans who need help transitioning to college life, the Daily Egyptian reports. The transition program will happen this summer.
- At Tufts, a Valentine's Day sex fair has started a debate about casual sex on campus. Last week, a condemnation of the fair; today, a defense.
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Who Do Young Voters Really Support in the '08 Race?
Tweet Share on Facebook February 27, 2007 Comment (1)The University of Nevada-Reno's Sagebrush has a new angle on the old politicians-joining-Facebook story. The paper counted all the political groups it could find, and then counted their members. Here's a rundown of the most popular:
- "Barack Obama (One Million Strong for Barack)" is the largest, with over 304,000 members this morning (and 288,388 when the Sagebrush counted).
- "Hillary Clinton for President--One Million STRONG" has 3,960. (A group called "One Million Strong against Hillary" has 7,490.)
- "Giuliani for President '08!" has 1,980.
- "John McCain for President--One Million for McCain" has 1,578.
PHOTO: KIICHIRO SATO--AP
Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama makes a stop to talk to reporters Monday, Feb. 26, 2007 after attending a fundraiser in Columbus, Ohio. -
Columnist Says He Was Fired for Facebook Comments
Tweet Share on Facebook February 27, 2007 Comment (6)A Penn State Daily Collegian columnist says he was fired unfairly for comments he posted on Facebook, but the paper's editor in chief seems to be confident in her decision. Zach Good was a member of a Facebook group opposed to "Thon," a popular dance marathon that raises money for cancer research. His membership--and comments he made on the group's Facebook page--led other students to start a Facebook campaign to "FIRE ZACH GOOD FROM THE DAILY COLLEGIAN." Yesterday afternoon, the Collegian's editor in chief--in a blog post titled "I'm no Donald Trump, but . . . "--seemed to acknowledge that she followed the group's advice. "Anyone has the right to free speech," she writes. "No one has the right to be employed at a newspaper. That is a privilege."
The blog PSU STOP! has an audio interview with Good.
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How to Celebrate a Student Government Election Win
Tweet Share on Facebook February 27, 2007 CommentFirst step: Call your mom. That, at least, was the priority for Mississippi State's new Student Association president, elected last week. You can find a very cute photo--along with some actual news items--in the Reflector.
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At Rochester, Tennis Gets Controversial
Tweet Share on Facebook February 27, 2007 CommentThe University of Rochester's tennis team is at the center of a controversy that has led nine of 11 men's varsity players to quit and two coaches to file reports to campus security. The resignations were a protest against one of their coaches, whom they said they had been complaining about for two years, the Campus Times reported earlier this month. Now, two tennis coaches have filed security reports with the university after receiving anonymous phone calls, the paper reports. The former players deny involvement and instead bemoan the fact that their spots on the squad already have been filled. "I'm extremely disappointed," one player says. "I feel like my tennis career is getting cut short by this and I am afraid that tennis players will be left behind."
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Study Abroad: Not So Safe?
Tweet Share on Facebook February 27, 2007 CommentA University of Minnesota student says catcalls, rape attempts, and unwanted groping were frequent occurrences she had to endure on her study abroad in Tanzania last year. She'd been warned about harassment, but the student tells the Minnesota Daily that university officials could have provided her more support.
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Trail Mix
Tweet Share on Facebook February 27, 2007 Comment- College students who are also parents could get more help with childcare if Washington state legislators approve a new bill, the Daily reports. Spots in on-campus daycare are so rare at the University of Washington that student parents often have to sit on wait lists for three years.
- A University of Maryland table tennis whiz could go to the Olympics--if his business and engineering double major doesn't get in the way, the Diamondback reports.
- The University of Texas's president yesterday challenged the state's "top 10 percent" law, which requires universities to reserve spots for high school students who have good grades and are state residents, the Daily Texan reports.
- The protester at the center of Berkeley's so-called Oakgate has been arraigned on charges of making threats to a police officer, the Daily Californian reports.