With just more than four weeks until Commencement weekend, senior Natalie Wessel said she feels "cheated" by the conclusion to her four years at GW. About the selection of University President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg as Commencement's keynote speaker, the soon-to-be-graduate said, "I think because President Trachtenberg has spoken at every graduation prior, it feels like we're not having a speaker at all.
Posted Monday, April 16, 6:02 p.m. The University Police Department is on "heightened alert" in response to a mass shooting at Virginia Tech Monday morning, a University official said. The University sent a campus-wide e-mail Monday afternoon encouraging students to "exercise appropriate caution" and report any suspicious activity to UPD.
Posted Monday, April 16, 11:30 a.m. Dr. Peg Barratt, an official with the National Institutes of Health, will begin as dean of the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences Aug. 1, officials announced Monday. After an almost 10-month-long process, the CCAS Dean Search Committee selected Dr. Barratt following a series of interviews and deliberations with University President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Donald Lehman and President-elect Steven Knapp.
Updated Monday, April 16, 5:20 p.m. Bill Clinton, Bill Gates and Nancy Pelosi declined to speak at this year's Commencement after the University invited them to participate in the University-wide event on the National Mall, GW officials said.
Posted Monday, April 16, 6 p.m. Junior Maureece Rice is entering the NBA Draft but plans to keep his NCAA eligibility options open, according to a GW athletic news release. Rice, a Philadelphia native, has not retained an agent and has until June 18 to withdraw his name and keep his collegiate eligibility.
Last December, Emory University's student newspaper, The Wheel, reported that university president James Wagner would be the school's keynote speaker at the commencement ceremony. Within two weeks, 600 Emory students signed a petition and had convinced the University to start a search to find a new keynote speaker.
CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer will speak at Commencement in addition to keynote speaker University President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, GW announced Thursday.
Buzzing 4 Change held its annual event Sunday attracting nearly 200 participants to buzz or cut their hair for charity. The event raised an estimated $15,000 to promote awareness for cancer, organizers said. Although the event was moved from Kogan Plaza to Marvin Center Continental Ballroom due to rain, it still received support not only from GW students, but also from other area residents.
Spring Fling and its headlining act Regina Spektor drew thousands of students into Smith Center despite inclement weather outside Saturday. Maria Bea Querido, the executive chair of Program Board, said she, along with other PB members, decided to move the event to Smith Center Friday.
A GW student reported last week that Madison Hall posters were vandalized with swastikas drawn on University President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg's forehead. The posters publicized Trachtenberg's hall tour, in which he will take the GW trolley to Thurston, New Hall, Ivory Tower and the Mount Vernon Quad.
More than 1,000 global warming activists gathered on Capitol Hill Saturday afternoon as part of a nationwide effort to support legislation to combat what many are calling an environmental crisis. The crowd assembled themselves into a human postcard telling Congress to cut carbon 80 percent by 2050.
Hundreds of benefactors convened in the lavishly decorated National Building Museum's Great Hall Saturday evening to raise money and awareness for GW's expanding efforts in cancer research. The fourth annual GW Cancer Institute Gala raised money that will go toward a media campaign, promoting prostate, breast and colorectal cancer awareness and treatment.
Students taking the GREs are in for more changes. As of April 2, proposed changes to the format of the Graduate Records Exam, scheduled to take effect next September, have been canceled because the number of seats at test centers won't be enough to accommodate potential test-takers.
Baseball legend Frank Robinson marked the anniversary of Jackie Robinson's integration into baseball by recounting his 51-year journey in baseball during an award ceremony at Jack Morton Auditorium Thursday evening. Robinson was honored with the Jackie Robinson Society's Inaugural Community Recognition Award for his accomplishments in baseball and his special contributions to D.
The Mount Vernon Campus' annual Fountain Day concert and festival will feature singer Ben Kweller. The theme for the April 28 event, "Turning to Awareness," will focus on international issues such as the crisis in Darfur and the environment, its organizers said.
A former University dean was arrested twice last week for allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol and is on paid leave from his position as president of the University of Mary Washington, according to police and news reports. William Frawley, who led the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences from 2002 to 2006, was arrested at his Virginia home Wednesday afternoon after police pursued him with their lights on for 10 blocks, the police report stated.
The Elliott School of International Affairs followed in the footsteps of the Columbian College Friday as the faculty voted unanimously to postpone their vote on the four-by-four proposal. The administration-sponsored four-by-four plan would change the academic structure to a four-class, four-credit system.
As the hundreds of student organizations on campus hold elections for next year's groups' leaders, students are realizing that the size of the executive board can vary greatly from group to group. Apparently one size does not fit all. About 10,700 undergraduates participate in one of GW's 370 student organizations, according to figures from the Student Activities Center which oversees student life on campus.
A Faculty Senate report presented at Friday's meeting found that, on average, sponsored research loses GW money. The report states that the University and the Medical Center combined spent $54 million on research, which is not completely recovered in direct financial benefits.
With warmer weather coming to D.C., University officials are taking measures to warn students of flammable materials on campus. One of the University's biggest concerns is mulch. Although no serious damage has occurred from a mulch fire, Nancy Haaga, managing director of Campus Support Services, stressed the importance of implementing fire safety precautions in University-owned areas.
Construction crews repair a water main break on 22nd Street between F Street and Virgina Avenue Sunday afternoon. This is the second water main break on 22nd Street in the last month.
Monday Students for Hillary: GW Chapter Kick-Off Event Come meet fellow Hillary supporters and get pumped about the New York senator's campaign. 8 to 10 p.m. Alumni House Sponsored by Students for Hillary: GW Chapter Tuesday Christian Support for Israel featuring David Brog Executive Director of Christians United for Israel will speak about his book "Standing with Israel: Why Christians Support the Jewish State.
Vol. 106
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