March on Georgetown

This past Saturday, 15 GW students engaged in what amounted to a pretty funny stunt by marching to Georgetown’s campus and demanding a basketball game between the schools. In the process, they also continued to promulgate their inferiority complex with Georgetown and represented the GW student body in that light. If a GW-Georgetown matchup is in the works, it is in the hands of administrators and athletic directors. It is not a problem between student populations – everyone knows that students and the city want to see the game.

Smaller tuition increase

GW’s astronomical tuition is still ridiculous, but it will be a little less ridiculous next year since the Board of Trustees voted for the lowest tuition increase in two decades. At only 3.9 percent, the increase is almost justifiable for inflation.

Housing bidding

Martha’s Marathon, an annual event in which wealthy students can bid on higher housing selection numbers, is an atrocity. Although the money goes to housing scholarships, it simply rewards students with the means and affluence to pay up to $7,600 just for better on-campus rooms. It is unclear which is worse: that the administration capitalizes on student desire for better housing or that students themselves for partake in this event.

Endowment growth

GW’s endowment grew by 12 percent this year while fundraising efforts continued a steady climb over the last three years to hit $62 million. The addition of eight to 10 fundraising staffers should ensure that GW’s financial outlook remains strong.

Ann Coulter

Ann Coulter is a bigot. During her visit to GW, she called Islam a “car-burning cult.” The College Republicans defended her visit because she was meant to spark a debate, even though few of them claim to agree with her outrageous statements. The College Republicans had every right to bring her to campus, but the students whose funds went to pay for her visit have every right to question whether she adds any value to campus political dialogue.

Application numbers

Though admissions officials don’t seem to think so, declining applicants, both for early and regular admission could be a sign that GW’s status as a “hot school” is growing cold.

Donald Kreuzer

Donald Kreuzer, the owner of the three townhouses next to Ivory Tower on 23rd street, is again battling the University in an impossible legal fight over the construction of Ivory Tower. While he has every right to pursue his case, he is just wasting valuable resources. Mr. Kreuzer: you can make back your legal expenses by charging exorbitant rates – slightly less than GW charges for on-campus housing – for students to live in your townhouses.