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Campus Times
Greeks ignored
The recent decision by the Dean of Students Office to allow
only three fraternity parties each night has been met with
considerable dissent. The largest problem within this issue,
however, is not the result, but the process used to come to this
decision. The need for student security and safety, especially on
the weekends and during parties, should be the utmost concern
of the administration. But the fact that both the Students Association senators and Greek Life presidents were mostly shocked
by this decision illuminates the problems in the process.
Instead of going through the already established Fraternity
Presidents Council or the Panhellenic Council to work with
Greek leadership, the Dean of Students Office used the Standing
Council for Alcohol Policy and Education to make this decision,
which contains Greek and non-Greek student representation
during the academic term. SCAPE, however, continued to meet
on this policy over the summer, only receiving feedback from
students at one point during the summer not throughout
the entire process.
By neglecting students in this process, the Office may have
overlooked how thoroughly this policy may affect the student
population, in particular, Greeks for example, sorority mixers, which now also require registration, play a large role in
recruitment programming, and such policies could limit these
organizations growth.
While Assistant Dean of Students Morgan Levy did hold a
meeting with Greek members this semseter after the new policies were implemented, this attempt to work with students once
the rules were in place only serves to remind students that they
were not involved in the first place. Their ideas should have
instead been taken into consideration as an advisory role, not
solely in a feedback capacity.
For future decisions, especially those that greatly impact
a large proportion of students, the Dean of Students Office
should strive to hear the most relevant input throughout its
decision-making process. This will breed solutions that meet
the needs of the office and incorporate the concerns of the
student population at large.
Allow routers
Despite the Universitys efforts to expand its wireless network,
many places on campus have yet to see these expansions, including several dormitories yet UR prohibits the use of personal
wireless routers and on occasion reprimands students caught
using them.
The Universitys reasoning for this ban has to do with the
security risks involved and the possible interference of wireless
routers with each other as well as with the Universitys own
wireless network. In addition, unsecured wireless networks can
be accessed by anyone in the vicinity, and illegal activity done
under the router can only be traced back to the routers owner,
leaving that student liable. The more pressing issue, according
to Dean of the College Richard Feldman, is how wireless routers
hinder ITs ability to protect students computers that may be
infected with viruses.
Most issues of security and protection are easily addressed
routers that have firewalls built in, are password-protected and
restrict others from detecting them minimize such risks.
While it is true that students should be held responsible when
others using their wireless router engage in illegal activity, if
Information Technology Services offered assistance to students
to securely set up their routers, rather than overlook their current existence in dorms, this concern would be minimal if not
moot. In the end, it would be students responsibility to secure
their own routers, just as it is their responsibility to lock their
dorm rooms.
In terms of possible interference between wireless routers
and URs wireless network, routers are only necessary where
UR Wireless cannot be accessed, and that is exclusively where
they should be allowed.
While the Universitys ban addresses a legitimate security
concerns, students deserve wireless internet access through routers in areas that are not currently covered by URs wireless.
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Religion of scarcity
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