Excitement and civility

This is a wonderful time to be a student and a college basketball fan. The early-season games are over and the quests for conference championships begin. The Atlantic 10 Conference has always prided itself on providing the very best in intercollegiate athletics. Not just on the basketball court, not just on a baseball or softball field, but on all fields of play and in all aspects of the event. That includes the behavior of our fans.

When you go to Atlantic 10 venues, you see the finest that sport has to offer: a great event and a great atmosphere. That is one of the many reasons why attending events at Atlantic 10 institutions is always fun and exciting.

Last season, we had an unfortunate incident regarding the men’s basketball team at St. Bonaventure University. We can all agree that what happened does not reflect the spirit of competition of Atlantic 10 institutions. Despite everything that occurred, it is time for all of us to move forward and enjoy the season.

I would hope that the spirit of athletic competition will continue as it has in the past. As I mentioned earlier, one of the reasons I enjoy attending games on our campuses is the excitement generated by our fans and the civility in which it is expressed. I ask that you continue to root with passion for your school and to conduct yourselves in a manner in which we can all be proud. Best of luck to you and the Colonials this winter.

–Linda Bruno
commissioner,
Atlantic 10 Conference

Effective publicity

I wanted to respond to a letter to the editor written by Andrew Weiss, featured in the Jan. 26 issue of The Hatchet (“Albright hypocrisy,” p. 4). Weiss noted in his letter that Elliott School events are not publicized very well to non-Elliott students. Most events sponsored by the Elliott School and its research centers and departments are free and open to the public. We make every effort to publicize events to the entire GW community. We regularly send notices of our events to The Hatchet calendar as well as the City Paper and other community publications. We post flyers not only at 1957 E Street, but in other heavily trafficked buildings on campus, and on our home page at http://www.gwu.edu/~elliott. Anyone is free to sign on to our “event alert” and receive weekly listings of upcoming events. Our Web site also has a calendar of events. We invite and encourage all who are interested in our programs to look at our online calendar or sign up to receive weekly event alerts. Thank you for your time and attention.

–Marianne Oliva
associate director of public affairs
Elliott School of International Affairs