Recycle Not officially associated with the University of Florida Published by Campus Communications, Inc. of Gainesville, Florida We Inform. You Decide. VOLUME 102 ISSUE 100 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2009 Spring semester could bring more DUIs By KATIE EMMETS year. mester since people tend to drink 2007-2008 school year, Loschiavo In the meetings and hearings, Alligator Writer This year’s student DUI statis- more close to graduation. said. evidence against the student is [email protected] tics are below pace compared to There were 65 UF When a student is referred by a presented and disciplinary options years before, but Assistant Dean of Local students referred to law enforcement agency for a DUI, are discussed, Loschiavo said. Sixteen UF students were in- Students Chris Loschiavo said he News UF’s office of Student the student must meet with one “We take each individual’s cir- volved in DUI incidents since July expects the number to rise before Conflict and Conduct staff member or attend a student 1, the beginning of the fiscal school the second half of the spring se- Resolution for DUI’s, during the conduct committee hearing. SEE DUI, paGE 4 ON CAMPUS Ex-prof. claims discrimination By THOMAS STEWART Alligator Staff Writer [email protected] A former associate professor in UF’s Levin College of Law filed a lawsuit against UF last week alleging she was forced to resign in 2007 because of sex and race dis- crimination. In one instance, she alleges she was talking with a black student when a male colleague pushed her into the classroom’s whiteboard as class was about to start. Sherrie Russell-Brown, who was hired in 2001 as an assistant professor of law, filed suit in federal court against UF’s Board of Trustees, the College of Law and its dean, Bob Jerry. Russell-Brown, who is black, alleges that the bulk of the discrimination occurred after she returned from England, where she was studying for a degree in public international law at the University of Oxford while on a two-year leave of absence. While in England, she wrote e-mails to faculty in the law school detailing episodes of discrimination. When she returned in January 2007, she found her office a mess and learned that her personal mail and e-mails had been accessed in her absence, she said. She claims her colleagues completely shunned her Sarah Hsu / Alligator Staff and their hostility transferred to the students. One white A Spirited Performance male student sent her a threatening e-mail the day after Grammy award-winning R&B artist Ne-Yo performs for about 4,000 fans as part of his “Year of the Gentleman” the Virginia Tech killings, leading her to cancel the last Tour at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center on Tuesday night. See Story, Page 3. day of class for the semester, she said. SEE LAWSUIT, paGE 4 UF experts call for change to parts of stimulus plan By CAROLYN TILLO should focus more on building public schools spend. plan. Alligator Contributing Writer than on infrastructure projects, which include Doug Waldo, an as- The plan will only be useful if the prob- improving highways and bridges. sociate professor in UF’s lems in the banking sector are dealt with first, The U.S. Senate voted to approve the $838 Cook said more people will appreciate a department of economics, Waldo said. billion economic stimulus bill on Tuesday, stimulus plan that spends money on schools said funds from the plan However, the plan may have a useful ef- but UF experts have identified aspects of rather than infrastructure because the build- that are allocated to Florida fect on Florida’s agricultural industries. the recovery program they would like to see ing of schools involves a larger sector of the would hopefully help re- Tom Spreen, chairman of UF’s food and changed. population. duce UF’s budget cuts. resource economics department, said if the Michael Cook, a professor with the Rinker “In my opinion, there is really no substi- Cook But Waldo said govern- plan works, it could help raise the prices of School of Building Construction, said the bill tute for dollars spent on education,” he said. ment officials should focus UF may indeed now have more money to on bank reform before finalizing the stimulus SEE STIMULUS, paGE 5 n Nick Calathes UF and University of Kentucky battle for blood donations n For the first (right), who scored UF and Kentucky fans were fighting a bloody battle nearly a time, UF will offer Today week before the men’s basketball game. a career-high 33 free STD screen- FORECAST 2 points, couldn’t LifeSouth Community Blood Centers in Gainesville and Ken- tucky Blood Centers hosted a competition from Feb. 2 to Feb. 9 to ings at the Stu- OPINIONS 6 do it all for UF determine who could donate the most blood prior to the game. against Kentucky dent Health Care CLASSIFIEDS 9 Kentucky was proclaimed the winner of the blood drive during Center today Partly on Tuesday night as halftime of the men’s basketball game Tuesday night with 2,366 do- CROSSWORD 13 the team lost after nations, topping UF’s 2,173 donations. from 5 to SPORTS 14 cloudy a late Jodie Meeks This is the first year that LifeSouth has held a competition dur- 8 p.m. See Story, 80/59 3-pointer. ing men’s basketball season. Page 8. See Story, Page 14. — JEREMY GRINER visit www.alligator.org 2, ALLIGATOR � WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2009 News Today VOLUME 102 ISSUE 100 ISSN 0889-2423 WHAT’S HAPPENING FORECAST Not officially associated with the University of Florida RUB Entertainment Presents: Published by Campus Communications Inc., of Gainesville, Florida TODAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY The Dating Game NEWSROOM 352-376-4458 (Voice), 352-376-4467 (Fax) Today, 8 p.m. Editor Nicole Safker, [email protected] Orange & Brew Managing Editor / Print Kristin Bjornsen, Join RUB Entertainment for its PARTLY PARTLY PARTLY THUNDER- PARTLY [email protected] first dating game. Come find CLOUDY CLOUDY CLOUDY STORMS CLOUDY Managing Editor / New Media Rachel Roy, [email protected] the right lady or guy or enjoy 80/59 76/44 74/52 76/51 72/50 University Editor Lauren Baker, [email protected] the show as guys and ladies Metro Editor Brittany Davis, [email protected] and poetry. Come with your “We just want the club so that Freelance Editors Emily Blake, [email protected] get up on stage to try and find love song requests. straight and gay kids can get to- Christina McGinley, their perfect matches. gether to talk about harassment [email protected] RUB Entertainment Presents: and discrimination against gay Sports Editor Evan Drexler, [email protected] Study Abroad Information Assistant Sports Editor Adam Berry, [email protected] Speed Dating kids in an open environment. The Session alligatorSports.org Editor Kyle Maistri, [email protected] Friday, Feb. 13, 8:30 p.m. school is discriminating against Today, 3 p.m. Opinions Editor Dan Seco, [email protected] Orange and Brew us, and that’s exactly the kind of Editorial Board Nicole Safker, Kristin Bjornsen, Academic Advising, Rm. 200 Join RUB Entertainment for thing we want to prevent,” she Dan Seco Study in Europe this summer! a night of mixing and min- said. Photo Editor Harrison Diamond, Hosted by the Center for [email protected] gling. John L. Ruis, the school dis- European Studies. Meet Sarah Hsu, [email protected] trict’s superintendent, said in a students and faculty of the the Avenue Editor Lane Nieset, [email protected] Got something going on? letter to Rosenwald that “a club Brussels, Krakow, Salzburg Copy Desk Chiefs Jack Benge, Brian Kelley, And want to post it in this highlighting sexual orientations Katherine Siegel, Stephanie Slade and Prague programs. Free space? Send an e-mail to will not be permitted as it would Copy Editors Alex Chachkevitch, pizza. [email protected] violate school board policy.” The Cassandra Fellerman, Emily Fuggetta, Amelia Harnish, Joe Holzer, with “What’s Happening” Nassau County School Board Outreach Ambassador Program Amanda Milligan, Rachael Pino, in the subject line. was served with the lawsuit. Meeting Jessica Ronay, Jacquelyne Smith, The ACLU recently won a sim- Today, 6:30 p.m. Jennifer Smith, Sara Watson ilar case in Okeechobee. A judge Staff Phil Kegler, Mike McCall, Turlington L011 LOCAL there ruled schools must provide Brian Steele Want to inspire youth, increase Man robs local bank for the well-being of gay students diversity and recruit students A man robbed a Gainesville and cannot discriminate against DISPLAY ADVERTISING to The Gator Nation? OAP bank Tuesday by discreetly ap- 352-376-4482, 800-496-0265 (Voice), 352-376-4556 (Fax) the Gay-Straight Alliance. invites students to its second proaching a teller and handing Advertising Director Rose Sierra, [email protected] Rosenwald said the Okeecho- general body meeting. her a threatening note. Advertising Office Manager Victoria Livingston, The robbery was at the Cam- bee County School Board paid [email protected] $326,000 in attorneys fees in the Advertising Assistant Melissa Bell RUB Entertainment Presents: pus Credit Union Bank at 1200 case. Sales Development Manager Daniel Webber Casablanca S.W. Fifth Ave. Yulee is about 25 miles north Intern Coordinator Sarah Buckwald Today and Thursday, 8 and “She did exactly what Display Advertising Clerks Sarah Buckwald, Kaela Hill of Jacksonville. 10:30 p.m. we would have wanted her Sales Representatives Amanda Freilich, Sara Ingebretsen, Reitz Union Auditorium to do,” said Gainesville Po- Shaun O’Connor, Madeline Ross, lice Department spokesman Fla. rampage followed Lexie Stout, Kaia Tershowski, An American romantic drama Ryan Winkler starring Humphrey Bogart, Keith Kameg.