Monday, August 19, 2019 I Vol. 116 Iss. 4 AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER • SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904 WWW.GWHATCHET.COM What’s inside Opinions Culture Sports The Hatchet editorial Read our orientation guide Freshman standouts to board comments on for tips on everything watch as they embark offi cials’ University of from budgeting to fi nding on their fi rst collegiate Miami hires freshman hotspots season with the Colonials Page 5 Pages 6-8 Page 9 New Student Orientation focused on Open residence hall tap including families, building connections access will increase need for security: offi cials LIA DEGROOT system to last year when ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR a diff erent plan was in place,” she said. As the University opens GW currently employs residence hall tap access 150 to 200 student access to any undergraduate stu- monitors each year, but The dent, offi cials said they are Hatchet reported in No- evaluating residence hall vember that student access security measures. monitors were not present Offi cials said the move, in Amsterdam and South which builds on the pilot halls more than 95 percent program implemented for of the time. freshmen in January, will Student Association allow undergraduate stu- President SJ Matthews dents to more easily connect said she worked with the with one another in resi- University to implement dence halls but may require the new tap access system an increased need for safety while serving as Residence measures. Security experts Hall Association president said expanding tap access last academic year and to all residence halls should voiced approval for the be met with additional se- change during her cam- curity measures, like in- paign for SA president. creased front desk security, “I also encouraged inter- to ensure that only students hall programming between are entering the halls. the fi rst year halls during Colette Coleman, the the pilot program so stu- senior associate dean of dents could build commu- students, said students can nity with people who lived tap into any residence hall in diff erent residence halls,” ALEXANDER WELLING | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR using GWorld, but only she said in an email. SA President SJ Matthews, an orientation leader, said she will gather feedback from students and their families on the University’s rst-ever registered residents can un- Of GW’s 12 peer schools, programming. lock their individual rooms. Georgetown, Wake Forest Coleman said the system and New York universities LIZZIE MINTZ fi nancial aid “open house” for families. Toll said the gramming, added online will allow students to host indicate on their websites CONTRIBUTING NEWS and internship informa- change will give students parent orientation and social events involving mul- that they employ similar EDITOR tion sessions, according to a “stronger foundational created more sessions for tiple residence halls because open tap access systems. the Offi ce of Undergradu- experience” during their students that covered aca- moving between buildings Georgetown and Wake Incoming students will ate Admissions’ webpage. transition to GW. demic topics, like course is less cumbersome. Forest universities prohibit participate in a fi rst-of-its- First-year students will “We hope it will en- registration. “The continuation of students from entering kind orientation this week attend orientation from courage students’ emo- This year’s orientation this exciting initiative will other residence halls after focused on building con- Wednesday to Sunday tional and social develop- will include in-person continue the goals of en- midnight. nections between transfer this week, while program- ment and lead to stronger programming for families hancing our residential Security experts said and fi rst-year students. ming for transfer students relationships among stu- that focuses on topics like communities by allowing offi cials should up the Students will attend is scheduled on Thurs- dents as well as with fac- how to be involved in stu- students to have greater number of student access New Student Orientation day and Friday. Students ulty and staff ,” he said in dents’ academic advising opportunity to connect monitors at buildings and starting the week before received information on an email. and how to support stu- with peers who live in oth- limit the hours during classes for the fi rst time their student portal and Toll said incoming stu- dents living at GW. er halls,” Coleman said in which students can access in history, replacing Colo- in emails about the week’s dents participated in vir- “Family members play an email. any residence hall to meet nial Inauguration, during events after registering for tual class registration and an important and vital She said the majority of the increased security de- which incoming students orientation, according to group advising sessions role in the student’s col- students who used the pilot mand. completed orientation the webpage. and registered for classes lege experience,” Toll said. program last semester en- Gary Sigrist – the chief over select weekends in First-year and transfer on specifi c days between “We want to provide them joyed the freedom to move executive offi cer and presi- June and August. Stu- students and families, can July 31 and Aug. 6. Stu- with knowledge and re- between halls on their dent of the security com- dent leaders and offi cials learn more about orienta- dents will speak individu- sources to be our partners own, but some students pany Safeguard Risk So- who planned orientation tion and other topics – like ally with advisers during in supporting our stu- voiced concerns to offi cials lutions, which provides said the switch allows in- dining and residence halls orientation and spend dents.” that the increased access security products and ser- coming students to build – in diff erent handbooks Friday afternoon with could contribute to an up- vices for U.S. universities stronger connections called the “Buff and Blue faculty and peer mentors Student leader in- tick in “student behavioral and public schools – said through social program- Book,” the webpage states. to learn more about the volvement issues.” that because the Universi- ming – like a movie night University’s academic re- Student Association Mary Paradis, the in- ty’s key card system tracks – earlier in the year and Easing students’ aca- sources, he said. President SJ Matthews, terim chief of police, said which buildings each stu- increases family partici- demic transitions who will serve as an ori- the GW Police Department dent enters, an open tap pation in students’ college Benjamin Toll, the Increasing family par- entation leader, said lead- will adjust the number of access system is not a large transitions. interim dean of under- ticipation ers participated in two student access monitors, security risk. Sigrist said Between Aug. 21 and graduate admissions, said Parents previously at- days of training in May who regulate tap-ins, and using metal keys in an 25, fi rst-year and trans- orientation will be a “tran- tended in-person “GW and two to three more other security personnel open tap system instead of fer students, parents and sitional moment” and al- 101” sessions during ori- days of training last week. stationed at each residence electronic cards could pose siblings can participate low students to make one entation that covered hall based on feedback from in programming like a less trip to campus be- topics like dining and students, faculty and staff . “Kickoff Event,” meetings fore school starts, which tuition costs. But in 2017 “We will compare the with academic advisers, a can be a fi nancial burden GW eliminated the pro- See LEADERS Page 2 eff ectiveness of the new See UNIVERSITY Page 2 Chatbot provides users with instant answers to technology questions AMY LIU heavily on technology. STAFF WRITER “We don’t want to tie students to their phones more than they al- A newly debuted chatbot will ready are,” he said in an email. “But give students answers to common we also want to connect with them questions and help them navigate where they are.” GW resources like Xfi nity On Cam- Mark McNasby – the chief execu- pus and FixIt. tive offi cer at Ivy, a chatbot develop- Offi cials launched MARTHA ment company – said that while chat- last week ahead of move-in and bots can boost student engagement New Student Orientation to help and access to resources, universities students glean information, sub- must ensure that chatbots are able to mit repair requests, obtain answers answer all types of questions. to frequently asked questions and McNasby said almost 40 percent receive “step-by-step instructional of questions asked to chatbots de- support” for problems they encoun- veloped for use in a single depart- ter. Artifi cial intelligence and higher ment are outside of the bot’s knowl- education experts said the chatbot edge domain. He said that when a will provide instant access to infor- department-specifi c chatbot cannot mation and meet the demand for answer a question, the department’s information at all hours of the day. staff may feed partial or inaccurate Administrators piloted an ini- information to the bot in an eff ort to tial version of MARTHA last Sep- answer the question going forward, tember, which allowed students to passing on misinformation to cur- quickly access information about rent and prospective students. simple tasks, like how to reset Net- “It’s critical that schools deploy ID passwords. Chief Information bots across the entire institution,” he Offi cer Loretta Early said the bot said in an email. “You can’t use a bot conducted more than 4,500 conver- in the admissions offi ce that can’t sations during the pilot, and 89 per- answer fi nancial aid questions.” cent of respondents to a follow-up GW’s Offi ce of Student Financial survey indicated they wanted the ALEXANDER WELLING | ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR Assistance announced in January service to become permanent.