Mirror - Vol. 07, No. 15 - January 26, 1984

              "The Image
of
Fairfield"
FAIRFIELD W \\ [MIRROR] Nonprofit Organization
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
Permit No. 32
Fairfield, Conn.
Volume 7, No. 15 Thursday, January 26, 1984 Fairfield University, Fairfield, Connecticut 06430 Incorporated 1977
Construction Begins On
New Townhouse Complex
Construction is progressing in the frozen earth above the baseball diamond on the Northeast
corner of campus. The completion date for this project is set for September of 1984.
[Photo by John J. Pastorelle]
Students Contract Illness
by Christine Ryan
Over 75 students had to report to the infirmary,
and countless others dealt with their symptoms
with home remedies during finals week last
semester.
"This was a 24-hour illness that became ap-parent
Tuesday night the twentieth," stated
Henry Krell, Dean of Students. "By Wednesday
morning, it was obvious that this was a serious
problem. Our first priority was to cure their symp-toms,
then try to discover what caused it."
The administration is still not sure what the
cause was,"...and we may never know for
sure," remarked James Fitzpatrick, Director of
Student Activities. "Something of this nature is
difficult to isolate. We are currently awaiting the
results of tests conducted by Seilers and by us."
The symptoms ranged from discomfort and
nausea to vomiting and diarrhea, and lasted two
days at the most. "A sickness that comes and
goes that quickly and affects that many students
is probably food related," Krell declared.
During the summer of 1977, before Seilers
was our food service, an outbreak of salmonella
hit Fairfield University. "Even with the help of the
Connecticut Board of Health, we were never one
hundred percent sure what caused it," stated
Fitzpatrick. Meanwhile, the test results are
anxiously awaited.
"The timing of this outbreak was fortunate,
since if it had occurred a few days prior, we may
have had to reschedule some finals," remark-ed
Krell. "However, a problem this serious will
be investigated fully."
by Elizabeth Kline
The two million dollar townhouse project will
be ready to house 96 more upperclassmen by
September and according to Provost John
Barone, "We're scheduled for completion the
15th of August."
Of the two million dollar construction costs,
$1.7 million is for the actual building construc-tion
and the remainder goes toward architectural
and engineering fees as well as furnishing the
units. The new string of townhouses will be
located directly above the baseball field, in front
of the existing complex.
The construction crews have been working
diligently, toiling through the snow that the area
received last week, beginning work without any
delay.
The new complex of townhouses on the North-east
corner of campus should reach their
completion date more easily since no union con-struction
workers will be present to protest the
hiring of non union personnel. This occurred
when the original units were built 2 years ago.
When asked about their feelings toward the
additional 24 units being built, members of the
class of '86 were pleased. Without these addi-tional
units, the juniors probably would not have
been living at the townhouses since seniors fill
the units usually.
Since excavation started on January 5, the
North East gate has opened for the convenience
of the construction crews. "It's for construction
use only," stressed Barone who urges students
not to enter the campus through this gate. He
continued, "If that condition isn't observed, it
could be a problem for us." Also, a barrier has
been put up at the Jogues entrance to prevent
construction from coming onto campus there.
Crews will add a gravel path along the side of
the road beside the athletic field. This path will
run to the circle so pedestrians do not have to
walk in the road. Walkways will connect all
townhouse units to the other university facilities
and structures, according to the town's condi-tions
of approval.
The university has taken steps to alleviate the
parking problem at the townhouses. An addi-tional
parking lot will be constructed where the
construction trailer now stands.
"We tried to take and modify the existing
structures somewhat," stated Barone referring
to the design changes for the new units. These
exteriors will lack a front porch. Bath tubs with
sliding doors will replace the shower stalls found
in the existing units.
The townhouses will not be limited to seniors;
some juniors will get units through the lottery
system. "We did want a mix and now we're back
to our original approach," said Barone.
Court Battle May Ensue for WVOF
by Richard Swietek
Fairfield's radio station, WVOF, is presently in
a battle which could decide the future of the net-work.
By the end of the semester Federal Com-munications
Commission (FCC) hearings could
rule to make 88.5 FM a strong communications
force for the Fairfield community, or relegate it
to the status it has maintained because of its
minimal 10-watt signal.
In November of 1980, WVOF applied for a
license which would increase the wattage of the
station fivm 10to 100 watts. "The main reason
for this," seated Mr. James Fitzpatrick, Director
of the Campus Center, "centered around new
FCC legislation, which at the time, said that no
station on a non-commercial band under 100
watts, could be protected." At the time, WVOF
Overcrowding On The Wane
by Laura King
Concerning the student housing problem
which the university faced last semester, Phyllis
Fitzpatrick, Director of Student Residences, said,
"It is a good problem, and at a time when so
many schools are facing a loss of students, Fair-field
has gained enrollment." The housing prob-lem
was the result of freshmen choosing to at-tend
Fairfield and of fewer upperclassmen leav-ing
the residence halls.
Student lounges were converted into tem-porary
quarters for freshmen and members of
the transfer class were placed in suitable hostess
homes close to the University. For the first time
in two years, students were permitted to be
released from their residence hall contracts,
though this is not a standard procedure. Normal-ly
students are bound to their contracts for two
semesters. Ten people did go off campus.
Now, back from Winter break, many changes
have been made. "We got all of the September
transfers on campus and there were no January
transfers accepted," Fitzpatrick explained. Her
next project was to relocate the freshmen into
rooms. "The lounge people were offered an op-tion
of either staying or moving to a permanent
abode." Thus far, 50% of the women have been
settled and all of the men have been moved. In
fact, there are vacancies for them.
"I dislike the lounges because the occupants
become so attached to them and feel like they're
there forever," Fitzpatrick affirmed. At the mo-ment,
all of Campion's lounges are vacant with
one lounge occupied in both Jogues and Loyola
and three out of four occupied in Claver.
Fitzpatrick believes that the townhouses "are
helpful because they alleviate the housing pro-blem
especially for the men not in beach
houses." Lastly, the beach provides an option
for an exodus off campus which creates space
for new arrivals.
had a license for only 10-watts which meant that
any new station could challenge the capabilities
of WVOF to serve the community and thus apply
for a portion of the station's air-time.
After the station applied for its 100-watt license
it was then protected, but WVOF was told they
would have to wait approximately five or six
years before the FCC had a hearing concerning
their application. Since 1980 two other applica-tions
for licenses were made. One was a joint
venture by the school districts of Syosset and
Plainview on Long Island, who applied for a
330-watt station at 88.5, and the State Univer-sity
of New York at Purchase also applied. Since
that time S.U.N.Y. has withdrawn its application,
but all three stations could have existed without
interfering with one another.
Difficulties began after C.E.T.C, the Connec-ticut
Educational Television Company, a firm out
of Stamford which runs the CPTV facilities on
campus, applied for a 1000-watt license, also at
88.5 FM. This 1000-watt station would interfere
with all three other stations, and thus the FCC
had to call hearings to determine which station
or stations would provide the best service to their
respective areas.
In filing for their license C.E.T.C. officials said
they had no idea that WVOF was Fairfield
University's radio station. Mr. Fitzpatrick stated,
"I find that interesting. Either they're telling the
truth and didn't do their homework, or they knew
and went ahead anyway."
The FCC has scheduled a pre-conference
hearing with the parties involved on January 27
in Washington. WVOF has retained lawyers in
Washington and the Long Island stations have
lawyers from North Carolina pleading their case.
Fitzpatrick estimated that it would take almost
$50,000 in legal fees to fight C.E.T.C. in court.
If the university decides that it just can't afford
to support WVOF, then the station has the op-tion
to seek funding from outside sources, and
according to Fitzpatrick, "I think there is a strong
possibility that Plainview and Syosset will let us
split the costs with them."
Fitzpatrick also mentioned that the withdrawal
of S.U.N.Y. hurt Fairfield's chance of approval
because of the size of the area they would be
able to service.
If the final ruling goes in favor of C.E.T.C. then
88.5 will be taken away from WVOF and the only
other available channel would be 103.3, which
is between two of the most powerful stations in
the Fairfield area—WAPP and WDRC. Also the
station would have to remain at 10»watts and
therefore be unprotected again.
Fitzpatrick concluded by saying, "The last two
years there have been major improvements
made hi the station, and I think it would be foolish
to give it all up. It's going to be frustrating if we
lose since WVOF will be doomed to be a 10 watt
club out of Regis, and as a 10-watt station WVOF
doesn't effectively serve the university
community."
Ross and Oster Publish Research Report
by Steven D. Lunt
Dr. Donald J. Ross of the Biology Department
and Dr. Kurt A. Oster of Park City Hospital in
Bridgeport, announced at a news conference
last Wednesday the highlights of over 20 years
of research on the linkage of homogenized milk
consumption and some forms of heart and cir-culatory
disease. Dr. Ross, who has been on the
Fairfield faculty since 1950 and was chairman
of the Biology department from 1960-1980, and
Dr. Oster, chairman of the Department of
Medicine and Chief of Cardiology at Park City
Hospital, and Adjunct research professor at Fair-field,
have also published a book on the subject
entitled The XO Factor.
Their research shows that during the homo-genization
process, small liposomes or
"envelopes" are formed, which surround the en-zyme
xanthine oxidase (XO). These liposome
packages can only be seen through an electron
microscope. Xanthine Oxidase is protected by
the liposome, and the stomach acids cannot
break down the enzyme during digestion. The
liposome-XO package is then absorbed into the
bloodstream, where it is later "opened" and the
/ xanthine oxidase escapes.
It is then that the xanthine oxidase enzyme at-tacks
the artery walls, causing lesions. The
Herpes virus is the only other known cause of
these kind of lesions. This injury to the artery wall
alerts the body's immune system and cholesterol
Continued on page 2
Dr Donald Ross, Professor Biology and Carmel Corsaro, '84 take a reading in the biology
research laboratory in the Bannow Science Center. [Photo by John J. Pastorelle]