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Thursday. May 4,2000 - Page 16 COMMENTARY Staff Inconsistent honors requirements are unfair Co-Editors-In-Chief Do you know what the requirements are Francesca Saylor comments on tions known. For instance, chair of the art! Laura Beth Kelley '01 to receive honors in your major upon gradu- the varying ways to receive art history departments Susan Bloom said Jenifer D. Sirkis '01 ation? If not, you're not alone. Many ofthe departmental honors by major. that as a freshmen each major student is given people Iasked had no idea what the answer a department handbook made "in house" News Editors to this question is. And several of them were ment of a project in addition to the senior which outlines all important dates, deadlines Staci L. George '03 seniors, even seniors with excellenl grades seminar paper/project is not. Some depart- and requirements. She said she thinks this Francesca Saylor '00 that probably would have been eligible. ments, like history, base their decision to give helps make the students feel more at home. Yet, they didn't even know, or care to a student honors on GPA and the senior semi- Requirements for honors in art/art history Features Editor· know, if they were eligible. Perhaps this is nar paper itself. Also, the faculty as a whole seems to be the most stringent, however. One Kate Esposito '01 because. some might have trouble even find- decides whether or not the student is deserv- must have a 3.5 GPA in their art courses and ing where the requirements are listed. When ing of honors by taking into account the type a cumulative GPA of 3.0 and must either Assistant Features Editor I asked for them at the registrar's office no of course work the student has completed. compile a substantial body of work for a Shauna Dominguez '02 one could help me. A secretary quickly In fact, all departments seem to decide show (art) or give a public lecture on their flipped through a guidance bulletin and told as a group, but the stipulations beyond that extensive research (art history). Also, a re- me that would be of no help. I looked on the range from two semesters of an independent sume, a recommendation, and a statement of Commentary Editor school's web page, but weren't all compiled study totaling four credits with an hour lee- Edward Schultheis '03 (here either. So, Icalled the chairs of several eligibility must be submitted for honors con- to Bloom, only one According sideration. departments (since even many secretaries student applied this year. Assistant Commentary Editor weren't sure of them) in order to find out, Some departments seem to That may not seem like a lot, but I Matthew Hurff '03 and some of them referred to the guidance be more fair than others couldn't find even one who applied for de- bulletin. partmental honors in communication. In fact, Photographers The variation between departments is when it comes to making everysingle major r asked had no idea, and I Trang Dam '00 amazing! Now, don't get me wrong, I obvi- their [honors] couldn't get reach any of the faculty. One Erin Owen '01 ously understand that art is not the same as student has a 3.78 GPA, yet says no one ever biology and so forth, but one wonders ifsuch expectations known. told her the requirements, which' think is Staff Writers vast differences are necessary. Yes, it is true quite ironic since she has been studying com- Claire Adams '02 that each department is responsible for cre- ture on the topic (math) to a paper of an un- munication for four years with the same fac- Eric Barry '00 ating its own criteria; however, how is it that determined length totaling one to three cred- ulty. I also couldn't believe that some stu- Jon Bearr '01 someone in one major may have to write a its (exercise science). Chair of the exercise dents even asked me what receiving honors Joan Faulkner '02 '50 page paper (political science) and deliver science and physical education departments meant! Kristen G. Fraser '00 a lecture about it while others merely have Dr. Alexander Ober commented that he was Sadly, regardless of the department, it Dan Gadd '00 to turn in their notes some projects they have very interested in fairness when it came to seems that only a few apply for honors each already completed, along with a short sum- deciding on honors candidates and that there year. In fact, I did not apply. However, I Brian Griffiths '01 mary (theatre)? hasn't been a reason to change the standards students hope that in the future Greg Lederer '0 I For the most part, each department has a yet. I'm sure everyone is interested in fair- would more aware of what honors means, are made Dave Lee '03 requirement of at least a 3.2 GPA (3.5 in ness when it comes to this process, but some what they have to do to receive it, and that Stacey M. Myers '02 some) in the major. Although this seems to departments seem to be more fair than oth- the distinction means just as much in one Cathy Pendorf '02 be rather uniform across campus, the require- ers when it comes to making their expecta- department as it does in any other. Sarah Radice '01 'fammi Slater '03 Mike Stokes '00 "Rouzer Hall: Last criticism of the semester Nykole Tyson '02 Lisa Van Auken '02 With practically days standing between Michael Wiles discusses once Despite all the time I have spent trying Brad Widner '03 us and the end of the Spring 2000 semester, more his favorite topic of to figure out why this place is the way it is, I Michael Wiles '03 I must now look back, one last time, upon criticism: Rouzer Hall. am still as clueless as I was when I moved Raini Wright '00 my favorite target of criticism: Rouzer Hall. Over the past two semesters, I have regaled removal of a chair from a hallway actually Now on to the narcissism. Have my peri- all of you with stories "from the inside" requires an investment of money from the odic editorials about Rouzer Hall made any Distribution things that have made you both repel in shock school, I highly suggest Residence Life re- difference in the way people think about it, Rich Suchoski '00 and laugh out loud, or, more accurately, both consider the contract they have with the or inspired anyone to take action? at the same time. Housekeeping Department. Probably not. Student Adviser In looking back, I have begun to wonder This, actually, brings me to my next point. However, one of my neighbors did post Megan K. Martin '01 if anything has changed over the past two For all the cleaning the Housekeeping De- a section of my first article on his door dur- semesters, for better or for worse. Have my partment does, Rouzer stills seems to be for- ing the first semester, which made me feel Faculty Adviser observations and snide remarks really done ever dirty and filled with an odor words can like I was at least reaching someone. How- Terry Dalton any good? With those questions in mind, I not do justice to. ever, upon recent inspection, I noticed that now give you my last report from Rouzer Although Housekeeping does do regular my article has long since disappeared, and The Phoenix is published biweekly. The Hall. rounds, these rounds usually consist of cov- has been replaced by a bikini-dad woman opinions expressed do not necessarily rep- Let us take this issue by issue. First of ering th~ floors with tepid water and then holding a surf board. resent those of The Phoenix staff, the fac- all, the problem revolving around the Com- leaving them {hat way. As Inear the end of my slay in this build- ulty, or the administrators ofWMC. mon Damage policy has not improved by any Leaving the floors wet is not only highly ing among buildings, I must say I have no The paper welcomes free-lance submis- means, and has, in fact, gotten much worse. unsafe, but the use of water that is clearly regrets. sions on Macintosh disks in most word pro- Interestingly enough, and purely for the sake dirty is obviously counterproductive to the Without any doubt, Rouzer Hall has given cessor formats. Theeditors reserve theright of honestly, I must say that this is not en- cleaning process. me many good stories; events and occur- to edit for clarity, length, and libel and to tirely (he fault of the residents. As for the bathrooms, they are cleaned rences that I can shock all of my University publish as space permits. All submissions As of the latest bill, Common Damage, in much the same way, which is to say that· of Maryland friends with over the upcom- (excluding self-addressed diskettes) become at least on my floor, is at an all-time monthly they are left in an entirely unsanitary condi- ing summer. the property of The Phoenix and cannot be high. tion. And, to that same end, it has been much returned Now, although this sounds like it could What is more, it would seem that these more than a collection of semi-criminal in- Please include a name and phone nurn- be the fault of no one but the students who conditions are distinct to Rouzer, since no cidents and filth, but a phenomenon like no berforverification. Names will be withheld cause the damage, one must first examine one would ever attend this school if the whole other. only bythediscretionoftheEditors-in-Chief. what exactly this costly "damage" is. One place looked and smelled the way Rouzer From Common Damage bills to the early item that struck me as odd on the current bill does. morning visits from Campus Safety, Rouzer 71JePhnenixdoesnotdi<>eriminate based was the $15.00 charge for a "desk chair re- The irony is, since Rouzer is a freshman Hall has been an experience all its own: a on age, race, religion, gender, sexual orien- moved from [the] hallway." donn, why is it not one of the cleanliest build- WMC original. tation, national origin, condition of handi- Now, honestly, does it cost $15.00 to ings on campus? You would think that the Iwould be truly hard pressed to ever find cap, or marital status. move a desk chair left in the hallway? lun- school would want to use it as an attraction another place just like it; if only because derstand that leaving a desk chair in the ha!l- to incoming students, but, then again, Rou- those who live beyond its walls can never Mail to: way is irresponsible, but charging for its re- zer is never shown to prospective students quite believe what goes on here every day. The Phoenix moval is laughable. on tours, which really makes this point a In the end, Rouzer Hall is certainly a place WMC, 2 College Hill In fact, it seems quite illegitimate, since mote one. worth locking away in the scrapbook of the westminster; MD 21157 Common Damage is defined as student re- Anyway you look at it, though, this build- mind, and truly shows that there is at least (410)751-8600 imbursement for the actually costs dealt to ing is a mess, plain and simple, just as it al- one lesson here at WMC not taught in the FAX, (410) 857-'l:I29 the school to have damage repaired. If the ways has been. classroom: survival. E-Mail: phoenix@wmdc.edu