Author Archives: John Moritz

Crime Logs for the weekend of 06/21/13 through 6/23/14.

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Main Campus:

A bike theft was reported on the 1800 block of N. 10th St. on Friday, June 21 between 8 a.m. and 8:20 a.m., no arrest has been made.

There was a report of retail theft at the Progress Plaza Shopping Center on North Broad Street at 9:05 p.m. on Friday, June 21, no arrest has been made.

An incident of harassment was reported in the 1400 block of W. Norris Street at 4:30 a.m. on Saturday, June 22, no arrest has been made.

An arrest was made for disorderly conduct was made on the 1500 block of W. Cecil B. Moore Ave. at 12.15 a.m. on Sunday, June 23.

There was an incident of harassment reported on the 1700 block of N. Broad St. around 2 a.m. on Sunday, June 23.

Health Sciences Campus:

An incident of theft was reported at 1:48 p.m. on Saturday, June 22, at the Boyer Pavilion, no arrest has been made.

An incident of harassment by communication was reported at 11:45 a.m. on Sunday, June 23, at the Rock Pavilion, no arrest has been made.

Open House held for Visualize Temple

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Students and faculty met today with representatives from Smith Group, the design consulting firm in charge of developing a plan for Visualize Temple, in Mitten Hall to discuss their own ideas for a new campus profile.

More than 175 people showed up for the event, said James Creedon, senior vice president for construction, facility and operations, from as far away as Temple’s Harrisburg Campus.

Students sat down at a variety of round tables to speak with representatives from Smith Group and write down their ideas on a variety of topic-related white boards, Creedon said.

One of the most popular discussion areas, Creedon said, was transportation, where many students submitted ideas about more biking options on campus.

“It is like an extension to the Visualize Temple website, but with a little bit more interaction,” Creedon said.

Creedon said that administrators have not yet gone over the results from the event, and thus had not yet determined if it yielded any ideas not yet discussed on the website launched in May.

This is the second time Smith Group has come to Main Campus to meet with students and faculty about Visualize Temple. In May, they met with Student Government, athletics and other groups.

Yesterday, they met with the Faculty Steering Committee which includes Provost Hai-Lung Dai and President Neil Theobald.

Prior to this afternoon’s event, Smith Group met with the Council of Deans. Tomorrow they will meet with administrators to discuss items related to the new library, now set to be built east of Broad Street.

Creedon said that today’s event, held from noon to 2 p.m., was meant to provide a “more general open house” atmosphere.

Temple education programs insufficient, says one report.

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A national review of elementary and secondary college programs by the National Council on Teacher Quality has given both of Temple’s programs a mediocre rating in their 2013 review.

The undergraduate elementary program received two out of four stars , and the undergraduate secondary education program received two and a half..

While the undergraduate program received a lower score, it placed higher proportionally, scoring in the 70th percentile our of 594 programs. Temple’s secondary program placed within the 65th percentile out of 606 programs.

The NCTQ rated programs based on four categories: selection criteria, content preparation, professional skills, and outcomes.

Anthony Wagner, CFO, resigns

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Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer Anthony Wagner will resign from his post to take on a similar title at Georgia Regents University.

President Neil Theobald announced Wagner’s departure through a Temple Today statement on June 5.

“Tony has shown a tireless commitment to help Temple University flourish, even in difficult economic times,” Theobald said in the statement.

Wagner will take on the role of executive vice president and chief business officer at Georgia Regents, a health sciences research institution in Athens, Ga. that is part of the University System of Georgia.

Wagner and his wife Lisa were also active at the Newman Center, a Catholic community for students located on North Broad Street.

New dean for College of Education

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The university announced yesterday the hiring of the new dean for the College of Education, the third of six dean appointments expected this year.

Gregory Anderson, the dean of Morgridge College of Education at the University of Denver since 2009, will officially take over his new role on July 1.

Prior to his tenure in Denver, Anderson held a teaching position at Columbia University and was a higher education policy officer at the Ford Foundation in New York.

“Gregory Anderson’s combination of experience and vision has prepared him to lead Temple’s College of Education — a national leader in teaching and research — at a critical moment for education in the city, the state and the nation,” President Theobald said in a statement released by the university. “The College of Education’s future is bright, and its graduates have never been more in need.”

In April, Michael Klein, the interim dean at the College of Science and Technology was appointed to a permanent position. Joseph Lucia, formerly of Villanova University, was also announced as the head of University Libraries in April.

Searches remain in place for the heads of the School of Media and Communication and the College of Health Professions and Social Work.

Greek Week celebrates sorority and fraternity life

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Greek Week, a week that celebrates the various social fraternities and sororities on campus, ended with an awards ceremony held on Thursday night.  Throughout the week a variety of competitions were held that placed sisterhood against sisterhood and brotherhood against brotherhood.
Jessica Goldberg, a member of Alpha Epsilon Phi, reflected upon the experience.

“This week brings a lot of people together.  It’s not about who wins,” said Goldberg.

For many organizations Greek Week 2013 was their first time actively participating in the event.  Events included Greek Sing, Greek God and Goddess, Greek Olympics, and a Can Castle Competition.
Greek Sing, the annual song and dance competition between Temple’s Greek organizations took place April 10. Organizations belted out their best tunes and put their musical skills to the ultimate test.
Phi Sigma Sigma placed first and was able to edge out second and third place winners Delta Zeta and Delta Phi Epsilon in the National Panhellenic Conference division. Alpha Tau Omega took home first in the Inter-fraternity Conference division. Delta Chi Psi’s vocals were enough to earn them first place in the National Multicultural Greek Council division.  Kappa Alpha Psi took home first in the National Pan-Hellenic Council division.

The Greek God and Goddess pageants were held on April 6. Select members from each fraternity and sorority represented their chapters in the contest.

Delta Phi Epsilon was the champion of the National Panhellenic Conference division with Delta Zeta placing a close second.  Kappa Sigma and Alpha Tau Omega tied for first place Inter-fraternity Conference division. Iota Nu Delta took first in the National Multicultural Greek Council division while Alpha Phi Alpha triumphed in the National Pan-Hellenic Council division.

“Best Greek Week ever,” said Joseph Sebastian the president of Iota Nu Delta.
In the Greek Olympics organization members put their best athletic foot forward and competed for the coveted gold medal last Sunday on Temple’s athletic fields.  Delta Zeta was able to clutch the gold medal in the National Panhellenic Conference division.  Alpha Chi Rho placed first in the Inter-fraternity Conference division while Delta Chi Psi won the National Multicultural Greek Council division.

Greek Week’s annual Can Castle Competition took place on April 8. Cans of food were collected and used to build castles by the organizations.  All donations were donated to Philabundance. Delta Phi Epsilon and Phi Sigma Sigma tied for the best castle building skills in the National Panhellenic Conference division. Kappa Sigma and Sigma Alpha Mu also tied in the Inter-fraternity Conference division.  Iota Nu Delta took home first place in the National Multicultural Greek Council division.

Wayne Miletto, a member of Kappa Sigma, was thrilled with a tie.

“I feel great about the whole thing.  We got work done,” said Miletto.

The overall Greek Week winners were Delta Zeta for the National Panhellenic Conference division, Kappa Sigma for the Inter-fraternity Conference division, Alpha Sigma Rho for the National Multicultural Greek Council division, and Alpha Phi Alpha for the National Pan-Hellenic Council division.

The Greek organizations were also able to raise $500 through Relay for Life and two can shakes.

Threatening messages written on bathroom stall

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Two notes threatening actions similar to the infamous shootings at Columbine High School were found written on a bathroom stall in Gladfelter Hall, Fox 29 reported Thursday.

The station reported images of the messages which read: “April 20, 2013, I’ll bring honor to Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold,” and on the same date, “you will all learn the meaning of suffering.”

According to the report, the university first found out about the messages in March. No alert has been released through the TU Alert system.

Fox reported a statement from the university officials which read: “The safety of our students is a top priority. Temple Police have been conducting an investigation into the graffiti message, security has been enhanced on our campus.”

April 20 is the 14th anniversary of the Columbine massacre in Colorado which left 12 dead and 21 injured.

 

Students protest African American Studies chair

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Members of Temple’s African American Studies Department held a rally in front of the Bell Tower today in protest of the appointment of Jayne Drake, a white woman, as chairwoman of the department.

The rally, which was held between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m., featured undergraduate and graduate student speakers, as well as many speakers from the North Philadelphia community.

“We just hope to put pressure on the university so that they can have more respect for minority studies, and that’s all disciplines, africana studies, asian studies, women’s studies, queer studies,” said Sabrina Sample, a political science major who is minoring in African American studies.

One protester at the event stood in silence, waving two large Pan-African flags, one sign held by a protester read “save black studies.”

Ronald Amour, a local community activist, spoke at the event and helped introduce several of the other speakers. Amour complemented the crowd that had gathered in from of the tower, saying that the diversity of the students assembled showed solidarity with the people in the African American studies department.

The crowd was openly critical of Teresa Soufas, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, for appointing Drake to the head of the African American studies department. They called for Molefi Asante, the former chairperson and current professor in the department, to be given the appointment as the popular decision among the departments students.

The crowds repeatedly broke out in chants of “We want Asante,” and “Soufas must go.” Several speakers at the event, which was open mic, accused Soufas of being a “racist,” and irresponsive to the needs and wishes of the professors and students in the department.

Steps collapse at party

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A party west of Main Campus took a scary turn Friday night when the basement steps collapsed, leaving party goers stuck in the basement, said Deputy Director of Campus Safety Services.

Police and firefighters arrived at the party on the 1700 block of Arlington Street at approximately 11:35 p.m., Leone said in an email, and helped students out of the basement and to safety. No injuries were reported, Leone said.

The residents of the house on Arlington Street were unavailable for comment Saturday afternoon and Leone said the students will be in contact with their landlord.

Event features Snøhetta speaker

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Margret Carney, university architect, announced Craig Dykers of the Norwegian architectural firm Snøhetta, which is planned to design the next university library, at Temple’s Architecture Alumni Lecture on Thursday night.

Dykers delivered the keynote address at the event, which was attended by many alumni of the architecture school, as well as current students at the Temple Performing Arts Center.

Dyker spoke of his firm’s experience in designing libraries, such as the Alexandria Library in Egypt, Ryerson University Library in Toronto, and the James B. Hunt Memorial Library at North Carolina State University.

The libraries, keeping in trend with many of Snøhetta’s modern designs, served to incorporate social activity to create more interactive meeting spaces, Dyker said.

Carney, who along with Provost Hai Lung Dai visited the construction site of the Hunt Library, said she was excited to begin working with Snøhetta on the design of the new library.

“We have high expectations that it will be a great process to design a building that is everything we envision for great architecture and an iconic building,” Carney said.

Carney said that there are many challenges in designing a modern library, and that one of the factors the university looked at when choosing the firm is their experience in designing state-of-the-art libraries around the world.

“We can’t point to another building and say ‘we want that’,” Carney said, describing the the process to design the building would be a “invention.”

The event was held in honor Brigitte L. Knowles, a former professor of architecture at Temple who received a dedication for her career in the Philadelphia architecture community prior to the keynote address.