• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

E ETRIEVER H T WEEKLY R “Newspapers should have no friends.” — Joseph Pulitzer Volume 37, Number 14 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250 December 3, 2002 New Grading Policy at UMBC AMY SEGRETI that their GPAs would drop as a Retriever Weekly Editorial Staff result. According to the As universities across the Undergraduate Council’s country are increasingly start- (UGC) report on PMG systems, ing to use some form of the students with a GPA of between Plus/Minus Grading (PMG) 1.0 and 3.6 will see “a change system, the possibility of a in GPA of less than +/- 0.06.” change in the grading policy at However, it is noted that stu- UMBC to incorporate pluses dents with very high GPAs will and minuses into students’ be adversely affected; those GPAs is under intensive scruti- with GPAs of around 3.9 will ny by various councils and sen- see a decrease of up to 0.08. If ates. According to the Survey the PMG system was to be of Available Research on implemented, students who Grading Systems, students are generally only need to score a overwhelmingly against a PMG 90 to receive an A would need system because of the belief see GRADING, page 6 Courtesy of www.google.com On Display: Over 2,500 UMBC students’ names and social security numbers could be viewed over the internet from early September until mid-November due to a glitch on the campus network. Social Security Numbers of Students Accidentally Released on the Net MALCOLM FURGOL Student Events Board President made available on Google in the first Retriever Weekly Editorial Staff Mark Stewart who was one of the place, “The material was in an e- first people to report the problem to mail list archive that was accessible Lakin Jones / Retriever Weekly Staff Information privacy is reaching the Office of Information through the web.” Though the web- Office Woes: The Fin. Aid office is a source of agony for students. an all time importance across the Technology (OIT). According to site showed a date of August 2000 country due to the proliferation of Stewart, when he first called them to when viewed through the cache electronic means to store financial report the incident the OIT operator available on Google “the mail information. Just recently in New did not believe him until he was able archive was protected by an access Students Find Financial York, several people were arrested to pull the site up himself. A short control list that made this unavail- for using a laptop to obtain access to pause followed and then a general able to everyone but a few system Aid Dept. Inadequate countless credit card numbers which exclamation of “well, this really is a adminstrators.” Suess continued to they used to illegaly procure goods. problem” at which point the operator state that, “In early September 2002, BRETT MCKENZIE short-lived. And now at UMBC over 2,500 stu- proceeded to enter a work order to the list name was changed. In doing Retriever Weekly Editorial Staff In October, Welch’s account dent’s names and social security correct the problem. this change the access control list information stated that her loan had not numbers (SSN) were released on a According to Jack Suess, Chief protecting the list stopped working, For Kim Welch, a biology major, yet been disbursed. “I called [the website in early September of this Information Officer of OIT, he which let the list be potentially the costs of living on-campus and Finacial Aid office] in mid-October to year. received notification Nov. 13 of the accessed.” attending school did not seem feasible see why I hadn’t received my loan Student Government web site, which was accesible Despite the problem with the during her sophomore year. However, yet,” Welch, now a senior, remem- Association President Phil Shockley, through a cached version on the website Suess made sure to point out through the help of a student loan, bered. “They told me they had not yet whose name and SSN was on the search engine Google. “We worked that, “Everyone in OIT takes online Welch realized she would be able to received my FAFSA.” Welch came list, said, “It’s disheartening and dis- with Google and got it removed as of privacy very seriously, that is why make ends meet. She eagerly filled out into the office, resubmitted her FAFSA turbing. With that, you can get any- late in the evening on the 15,” said we are notifying students even a FAFSA during the summer before as she had done each semester of thing you want. You can steal that Suess in an e-mail. though we have no evidence that her sophomore year, applied for a loan, school since her admittance in 1999, person’s identity. It’s scary.” Suess went on to provide an and happily moved on-campus. Another student listed was explanation for how the website was see SSN, page 5 However, Welch’s happiness was see AID, page 2 News..................................page 1 Opinion............................page 11 Features ..........................page 20 Sports ..............................page 31 Police deal with Ali Rizwan and R. Eric Thomas Meet the basket- e campus bomb Phil Watkins rings in the shop- ball teams, swim- threats, professors debate the pres- ping season, ming and diving d have issues with ence of monopo- Bernard Shaw make waves at i tables, and a stu- lies and Abby comes to the the GWU invite, dent’s car is recov- Foster laments UMBC stage, and and Conrad Haber s ered by P.G. our chess school bad-ass Bond is defines cross n County Police. status. back in theaters. country. I Other things to check out: College News ..........................page 2 World News ............................page 3 Classifieds ..............................page 39 Page 2 THE RETRIEVER WEEKLY NEWS December 2, 2002 BehindtheScenes David Johnson Brings the Ancients to the Present for Students College News JENN GIBSON program that specialized in philosophy. P.h.D., this is Johnson’s first full-time Retriever Weekly Editorial Staff “By this time I knew I wanted to study phi- academic position. This semester Jonhson Ohio State U.’s Reputation losophy seriously.” Which is exactly the is teaching History of Ancient Philosophy Burned Away with Riotous Professor David Johnson is new not path he took. After taking a year off to work and Introduction to Moral Theory, two Flames only to the Catonsville area, but also to and study Greek and Latin, Johnson subjects that he is extremely well versed UMBC’s philosophy department, having enrolled in Stanford’s Ph.D. program. in. COLUMBUS, Ohio (U-Wire) — lived the majority of his years on the West Johnson’s dissertation focused on Plato and Next semester, in addition to Intro to Around the city, state, nation and world, for- Coast. Growing up in Los Angeles, Aristotle and the development of practical Moral Theory, Johnson will be teaching a mer and future Buckeyes alike have respond- Johnson went to nearby UC Berkeley reason and moral theory. “My first profes- seminar, which will focus on Plato and ed in mass to the post-Michigan rioting last majoring in philosophy and history. It was sor was the one who convinced me that this Aristotle. “Although the seminar will be weekend. while in these halls that Johnson found his is a wonderful field,” Johnson relates, focused on ancient philosophy, we’ll be Media coverage of the events has com- true passion – ancient Greek and Roman adding, “and he was on the board that reading a lot of contemporary articles that pelled hundreds of viewers to write to the philosophy. “I had a professor who reviewed my dissertation.” use Aristotle as a resource,” he says. university. The general message from the showed me how interesting studying Johnson’s role in the department is “Studying ancient philosophy, we’ll have public has included embarrassment, disgust ancient culture is,” Johnson says. twofold. First, he teaches ancient Greek one foot in the contemporary debates and a call for an apology by the rioters and Jumping across the Atlantic Ocean, and Roman philosophy. Also, he works a about ethics,” Johnson states, elaborating, action by the university. Johnson traveled to England’s famed great deal with contemporary ethics and the “One reason why I’m in ancient philoso- E-mail messages from former Cambridge University, where he complet- philosophy of action. Although he taught phy is because I think it has a lot to say, Buckeyes reaching all the way from the ed his Masters, studying the classics in a classes at Stanford while completing his especially about ethics.” United Kingdom and Switzerland made their way to the already overflowing inbox of Lee Tashjian, vice president of University Students Frustrated by Financial Aid Relations. “We’re receiving one after anoth- told several different stories about her funds’ sta- er, after another,” Tashjian said. from AID, page <None> experience is common: many students surveyed tus. But one local letter captured his atten- upon exiting the office felt the employees were and was told that her money would be received Many students don’t even realize there are tion. Sherry Cashin, mother of a high school rude and dismissive, and numerous students shortly. “After listening to horror stories about problems with their loans until registration peri- senior at St. Ignatius in Cleveland, wrote to complained of being told numerous different how financial aid had screwed people over, I pro- od, when they find themselves unable to sign up Tashjian on Monday. In her e-mail, she said, stories about the status of their funds. In addi- ceeded to call or visit once a week to check my for classes because of the balances on their “OSU has been permanently and irrevocably tion, few students make only one trip to the status,” Welch said.

Load more

  40

Copy Link