Mirror - Vol. 19, No. 10 - December 08, 1994

              The
FairfieldMIRR®R Volume 19, No. 10 Thursday, December 8, 1994 Happy Holidays!
A campus divided
Looking back at an emotional semester
Pegeen Quinn
Contributing Writer
On a typical weekday
night recently, four female
students were in their townhouse,
going about their usual work. One
sat on the couch studying with her
boyfriend as two cleaned dishes
in the kitchen. The last student
informed her housemates of her
schedule before she headed out
the door. A moment later she
returned and said "I forgot my
mace."
During the past three
months, Fairfield University has
experienced a semester like none
other in recent history. The
occurrence of hate crimes on
campus, most particularly one
case of vandalism, has turned the
Fairfield community upside
down. In the early hours of
October 20, a threat was written
in a bathroom stall in Gonzaga
hall, which caused the campus to
erupt. The University community
responded through various outlets,
including a rally, security
precautions, and a diversity pledge
and button campaign. Though it
has been a time of pain, confusion,
and shock, Fairfield is not alone.
Statistics show that similar
incidents are taking place at other
colleges and universities.
Throughout this ordeal,
students have had mixed reactions.
"I think it's an individual
that's just very close-minded and
very angry for whatever reason,"
senior Allyson Weiss said.
Chris Deis, '97, IRHG
representative of AHANA, said,
"I think everyone at the University
needs to realize that we are all
prejudice. We are all from
different worlds. Weneed to have
an honest look at ourselves."
Many feel that now is
the time to let the dust settle and
review what has happened, as
sophomore Mike Reardon
explained, "You have to allow
time to heal."
At the Fairfield Security
Department, hate crimes are
categorized as bias cases. Since
September, there have been two
reports of harassing phone calls,
the discovery of anti-semitic
newspapers near Fairfield Prep,
and eight reported cases of
vandalism in residence halls. The
case of October 20 involved
graffiti professing white
supremacy and threatening the
lives of female minority students.
The message was signed "The
KKK," and decorated with
swastikas. -
The following morning,
all students received two letters in
their boxes, one from the
University President, Rev.
Aloysius P. Kelley, S.J., and one
fromFUSA president Christopher
Pilkerton. Each voiced his anger,
informed students what measures
had been taken, and called students
together.
All over campus, there
were personal reactions of fear,
shock, anger, and disgust. Chris
Deis said, "I was upset they had
the audacity to threaten the women.
Threats hurt, but when you raise it
to the level to threaten women,
that's a low blow, really dirty."
Mike Reardon, a
member of the recently developed
Multicultural Task Force, said "My
first reaction was frustration
mostly. We had just had a unity
rally the night before. We thought
we had been making some
progress."
Allyson Weiss is also a
member of the task force. Her
parents took quick action. "My
mom and dad came up that day.
They wanted to make sure I was
safe...My mom bought me a
beeper. Myfriend'sfatherbought
pepper mace for our whole
house."
In contrast to those •
disturbed Fairfield community
members, senior Ken Owens felt
no shock at all, stating, "I wasn't
surprised. I've almost become
desensitized to it. I just thought,
'Here we go again'."
The University
community attended a inity rally
on October 21, inciting a variety
of reactions. Reardon felt the
rally was beneficial, saying, "The
convocation was really inspiring.
It brought everyone together."
Yet some students were
not impressed. "I thought it was
farcical, a waste of time," Deis
said. "They could have used the
time and money for better things.
It was a political action so they
could make themselves look
(Continued on page 3)
Fairfield professor receives Fulbright
Physics professor Jack Beal will do
research in Budapest nest year. Photo: File
Caitlin Whelan
News Editor
Dr. Jack W. Beal,
associate professor of physics, is
the recipient of a Fulbright Grant
to lecture and conduct research
for six months at the Technical
University of Budapest in
Hungary. , The J. William
Fulbright Foreign Scholarship
Board and the United States
Information Agency announced
the award.
Dr. Beal is the third
member of the Fairfield
University faculty to receive a
Fulbright in the past year.
Additionally, three students in
the Class of 1994, Jennifer
Sorenson, Alycen McAuley, and
Alicia Smith, were awarded
Fulbright Grants and are
currently studying in Hungary,
Bolivia, and Morocco.
Dr. Beal is on leave
from Fairfield this semester to.
conduct research at MIT as a
Visiting Research Scientist. In
Budapest, he will study how to
improve the quality of the
atmosphere by determining the
materials that compose the dust
breathed in in Hungary.
A member of
Fairfield's faculty since 1986,
Dr. Beal spent nearly 25 years in
industry, government, and U.S.
National Laboratories. He is a
graduate ofTexas Technological
University and Michigan State
University.
Prior to his position at
Fairfield, Beal was involved in
research concerning advanced
accelerator design and
development, and in the
technology associated with
fusion power development.
While at Fairfield, he
has been studying environmental
science. His research focuses on
the composition and sources of
airborne pollutants.
Last semester, Beal
served as associate dean of the
College of Arts and Sciences.
Dr. Beal is one of 2,
000 Americans who will travel
abroad in 1994-95 under the
Fulbright Program, established
in 1946 by Sen. J. William
Fulbright to increase
understanding between people
of the United States and of other
countries.
The program is run by
the U.S. Information Agency
and several private
organizations. Funding for the
program is shared by thirty-seven
foreign governments.
Following his research
on air quality in the New York
Metropolitan area, Dr. Beal
determined that the local air
quality is "good and getting
better," according to a
University press release. He
attributes the improvement to
the elimination of lead from
gasoline, and new technology
which decreases power plant
exhaust.
Beal praised the rising
public awareness of the
problems pollution can create.
In his research, he has collected
harmless amounts of iridium, a
heavymetal found underground,
that have drifted here from the
Philippines following the
eruption of Mount Pinatubo in
1991.
fr The true
meaning of
Christmas
^
^
fr
JJ
^
Santa visits
Fairfield
V
fr
JJ
^\
Thejoy of
registration
V
fr
J
Top album
picks for
Christmas
\ f
\z J
^\
Hockey's
winning streak
^ ^