GW clarifies religious holiday policy

As the Jewish holidays approach, GW administrators are clarifying the University’s official policies on the missing of classes for religious reasons.

Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, falls on Sept. 21 and 22 and Yom Kippur, the day of atonement, is Sept. 30.

The Faculty Senate has recommended a campus-wide policy governing GW’s procedures for allowing students to miss class to observe religious holidays, according to a memo to GW faculty members and administrators from Vice President for Academic Affairs Donald Lehman.

According to the memo, students must notify professors of their intention to be absent during the approved religious holidays. In addition, faculty members must allow students to miss class on those days without penalty and must allow students to make up all work missed, including examinations.

Conservative services for Rosh Hashanah will be held in the Marvin Center Ballroom Sept. 20 at 6:30 p.m. and Sept. 21 and 22 at 9:30 a.m. Reform services will be held at Lisner Auditorium Sept. 20 at 8:30 p.m. and Sept. 21 at 10 a.m.

Conservative services for Yom Kippur will be held Sept. 29 at 6:30 p.m. and Sept. 30 at 9:30 a.m. in the Marvin Center Ballroom. Reform services will be held Sept. 29 at 8:30 p.m. and Sept. 30 at 10 a.m. in Lisner Auditorium.

-Alan Boal

SA extends application deadlines

The Student Association has extended the deadline for applications for two freshman Senate seats and two first-year graduate seats to Sept. 15.

“There has not been a shortage of freshman applications,” said Jesse Strauss, SA executive vice president.

As of Wednesday afternoon, 30 people had applied for the position of freshman senator.

“We are encouraging as many people to apply as possible,” Strauss said.

He said he hopes at least 10 more people will come to the SA office to apply for one of the two freshman slots.

Strauss said few first-year graduate students had applied for student senator. As of Wednesday afternoon, only one student had applied for the two available spots.

“A student senator is responsible for advocating on behalf of their constituents to the SA and to the administration,” Strauss said. All the available seats are non-voting.

Students interested in representing either the freshman class or first-year graduate students can fill out applications at the SA office until Tuesday afternoon.

-Sara E. Murphy

Wrong phone number printed in GW brochure

Officials in GW’s undergraduate admissions office discovered last Friday that the toll-free number listed on the back of the admissions viewbook, a piece of promotional material mailed out to prospective students, is incorrect.

Undergraduate Admissions Director Kathy Napper said approximately 50,000 viewbooks have been sent in the past two weeks.

The undergraduate admissions office works with Student and Academic Support Services Communication and Technology to produce the viewbook. Deborah Snelgrove, executive director of SASS Comm, said Napper informed her of the typo Friday.

“As part of the address information, we repeat (telephone) numbers used throughout the viewbook,” Snelgrove said. “(Napper) let me know on Friday of last week there was a typo on the mail panel.”

Napper said she intends to meet with her staff to discuss what, if any, action will be taken to inform people who receive the mailing that the toll-free number is incorrect. Napper would not comment on any possible actions that could be taken to rectify the error.

GW admissions literature lists the undergraduate admissions office’s local telephone number and fax number, as well as an 800 number for prospective students to call to receive more admission information.

The number printed on the viewbook, 1-800-447-2765, is not in service. The correct number, 1-800-447-3765, is printed on the prospectus, another piece of literature mailed out to potential students.

Napper said the mistake was pointed out to her by a staff member last week.

Napper said she does not know who was responsible for the error. Snelgrove said SASS Comm has a complex proofreading process for its printed materials, and the material also is submitted to the original department for review.

-Tammy Imhoff