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Volume XIII No. 17
January 17, 2005
The Scarlet Letter is published weekly except during break periods
during the academic year for St. Lawrence employees by the staff of the
University
communications office. Submissions, comments and questions can be addressed
to the scarletletter@stlawu.edu; deadline is Wednesday at 5 p.m. for
the following Monday's edition. To find The Scarlet Letter on
the University's Web site: www.stlawu.edu/scarlet/scarlet.html.
Major Campus Events, 2005
• Second Semester Begins: Monday, Jan. 17
•Alumni Council Winter Meeting: Thursday-Sunday, Feb. 3-6
• Board of Trustees Meetings:
Feb. 24-26 and May 12-14
•Spring Break: Saturday-Sunday, March 12-20
• Scholar Days (Admissions): Monday, April 11; Monday, April 18
• Admitted Student Open Houses: Saturday, April 9; Saturday, April 16
• Moving-Up Day: Saturday, April 23
• Spring Semester Finals: Monday-Saturday, May 2-7
• Commencement Weekend: Friday-Sunday, May 13-15
• Alumni Reunion Weekend: Thursday-Sunday, June 2-5
Announcements
Spring Semester Enrollments: While final numbers for spring semester enrollments
will be more reliable after classes begin, two preliminary benchmarks from
Vice Presidents Cornwell and Cowdrey are available. Grant Cornwell has shared
information about fall-to-spring retention, noting the University-wide efforts
to improve in this area. At the end of the fall semester, there were 10 academic
suspensions and five expulsions. This compares with 39 suspensions and four
expulsions at the end of the fall semester in 2003, and 28 and six, respectively,
in 2002. From Terry Cowdrey is the news that 20 new students are expected,
including 10 first-time, first-year students, four transfer first-year students
and six upper-class transfer students.
A Fortnight of Non-Violence Events: Are you concerned about world affairs?
Do you want to learn more about non-violence? Consider attending some or
all of the upcoming opportunities to learn, pray and help heal our broken
world. The chaplain’s office, with others, is sponsoring a “Fortnight
of Nonviolence Events” from January 17 (the commemoration of Martin
Luther King, Jr.’s birthday) through January 30 (the anniversary of
Gandhi’s assassination and the date of elections in Iraq). During this
two-week period, a series of lectures, films, rituals, discussions and other
activities are scheduled to highlight nonviolent ideas and actions from a
variety of disciplines and faiths. The Master Calendar of Events will reflect
specific plans, as will Dateline in the Scarlet Letter each week. As this
issue of Scarlet Letter went to press, some schedule details were still being
worked out; check the Master Calendar or contact Chaplain Kathleen Buckley,
kbuckley@stlawu.edu or 5256, for updates.
Safe Walks: A reminder that Safe Walks are available “24/7” on
campus, and Friday and Saturday nights, 11 p.m.-2:30 a.m., from downtown.
Call 229-5554 for assistance.
Students in South/Southeast Asia and Africa Safe: In early January, University
officials were in contact with students from areas affected by the December
26 tsunami, and confirmed that all were safe. Students, faculty and staff
in the Kenya program were also all safe and accounted for, as were some students
and faculty who were conducting scheduled research in the region during the
semester break.
Logo Design Contest: Organizers of the second annual Canton-St. Lawrence University Race Weekend, April 30, 2005, announce a contest to help in the design of race t-shirts and posters. Entries must be received by Monday, January 31, 2005. For information: Bill Burns, 5391 or wburns@stlawu.edu.
Intramural Sign-Ups: Sign-ups for spring intramural sports continue through January 24. Sports offered are basketball, broomball, ice hockey and indoor soccer. Entry forms can be found on the Intramurals Web site or on the bulletin board in the Augsbury lobby.
Lunch Bunch: Laurentian Women’s Association Lunch
Bunch meets on the first Wednesday of the month at noon in the Eben Holden
Conference Room.
Dates for the spring semester are Feb. 2, March 2, April 6 and May 4. Reservations
must be made by noon the preceding day with Mickey Williams, 386-8781. Lunch
Bunch is open to all women faculty and staff and wives of faculty and staff,
including retirees.
Retirees Luncheons: University retirees gather for lunch on the second Tuesday
of the month at noon in the Eben Holden Conference Room. Dates for the spring
semester are Feb. 8, March 8, April 12 and May 10. At the Feb. 8 meeting,
Margaret Kent Bass, associate dean of faculty affairs, will be guest speaker
on the topic “A Novel Way of Dealing with Campus Controversy.” Reservations
must be made by noon the preceding day with Mickey Williams, 386-8781, or
Wanda Renick, 386-3474.
Job Openings
(For all openings, St. Lawrence University is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative
Action employer. Complete position descriptions are available in the human
resources office or at www.stlawu.edu/resources/job.html. If a deadline is
not given, review begins upon receipt of applications.)
Biology: Academic support specialist, part-time, spring semester appointment.
Economics: Visiting assistant professor, sabbatical leave replacement positions.
Education: Assistant professor, tenure track in teacher education; visiting
assistant/associate professor, counseling.
Security Report for 2004
In compliance with the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act of 1990 (Public Law 101-542) and in an effort to encourage safety within the St. Lawrence community, the following is a report of security policies, suggestions and criminal activity for calendar year 2004.
Security Policies
St. Lawrence provides a 24-hour-per-day, seven-day-per-week, professional security
staff to help assure the safety and security of our students, employees and
guests. Our department is composed of a director, an associate director,
an assistant director, seven professional security officers licensed by the
State of New York, and five professional dispatchers. Security officers are
on patrol at all times; they monitor the campus by walking through its buildings
and grounds and by driving through its roads and around its perimeters. The
staff is accessible through a central dispatcher, who may be reached by dialing
campus security at 5555 or by using one of the 53 emergency phones strategically
located around campus. Some of these phones are recognizable by a blue light
or yellow call box at entrances to buildings.
Security staff are campus enforcement authorities. They work closely with the
Canton Village Police, the St. Lawrence County Sheriff's Department and the
New York State Police as need occurs. The campus security vehicles and central
dispatch office are accessible to and tuned to the radio frequencies of the
civil authorities so that immediate communication is possible.
Campus security staff make presentations during Orientation and in residence
halls and fraternities and sororities. Such presentations often include personal
safety, crime prevention, fire safety, sexual assault and harassment as well
as poster and pamphlet campaigns. The security staff also instruct students
on proper procedures to follow during emergency situations.
Formal reports are completed upon communication with security. These reports
are shared regularly with civil authorities. Further, if a student, employee
or guest wishes to meet directly with local police, St. Lawrence security will
encourage such a meeting and help in any way possible.
All academic and administrative buildings are locked by security or custodial
staff by 11 p.m. each day. Residence halls have a card access system; each
student is responsible for locking his or her room upon leaving and while in
residence. Campus landscaping and lighting have been redesigned to improve
the attractiveness and the safety of the grounds. Regular inspection by the
University proctor and the director of Facilities Operations help assure continued
safety. The University proctor or his staff, with the director of Facilities
Operations or his staff, regularly makes safety inspections of all campus buildings,
including University-owned fraternities and sororities and theme cottages.
While serious crimes happen rarely on the St. Lawrence campus, we are not immune
to the problems found in our society. Should a crime occur, campus officials
immediately notify the community, usually in the form of an all-campus memo,
e-mail, poster or notices on University TV, and meetings with or notices to
residence hall staff, with campus and area news media cooperating to help inform.
The weekly campus newsletter The Scarlet Letter and the other campus media
may also carry information on crimes which are not considered serious or violent.
Security Suggestions
St. Lawrence is in a geographical setting removed from the threats to personal
safety common to large urban campuses. Nevertheless, basic precautions are
prudent. Listed below are some suggestions which all are asked to observe.
1. Keep your office locked when it is not occupied.
2. Avoid working alone in academic or administrative buildings.
3. Report all suspicious or criminal activity to the security office at 5555.
4. Don't leave valuables visible in your office or vehicle.
5. Walk with friends or colleagues, especially at night.
6. Question strangers in your office.
7. Avoid unlighted areas at night.
Security Report
We hold the members of the St. Lawrence community to standards higher than
those in the general public. Therefore, many violations of the campus code
of conduct will be reflected in this crime report, violations which would not
be considered crimes under federal, state or local law. Further, for the purposes
of education, we will define those acts which are considered crimes, using
the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting system.
The following 2004 statistics show that crime is a relatively infrequent challenge
at St. Lawrence. The respect all members of our community show one another
is proven in the statistics we offer.
Arson 2
Assault 0
Burglary 22
Drug Abuse Violations 126
Liquor Law Violations 571*
Motor Vehicle Theft 0
Murder/non-negligent manslaughter 0
Negligent manslaughter 0
Sex Offense
Forcible 1
Non-forcible 0
Weapons Violations 5
*includes 316 reported by Residential Learning Communities
Arson: To unlawfully and intentionally damage, or attempt to damage, any
real or personal property by fire or incendiary device.
Assault: Causing an injury to another person, either intentionally or recklessly.
Burglary (breaking and entering): The unlawful entry into a building or other
structure with the intent to commit a felony or a theft
Motor vehicle theft: The theft or attempted theft of a motor vehicle.
Murder: The willful (non-negligent) killing of one human being by another.
Negligent Manslaughter: The killing of another person through negligence.
Sex Offense: A forcible sex offense is "any sexual act directed against
another person, forcibly and/or against that person's will; or not forcibly
or against the person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent," and
includes forcible rape, forcible sodomy, sexual assault with an object, and
forcible fondling. Non-forcible sex offenses are acts of "unlawful,
non-forcible sexual intercourse," and include incest and statutory rape.
Depending on the circumstances, acquaintance rape could be in either category.