Kim Williams

Features Editor

For many, snow evokes childhood memories of days off of school, snow ball fights, and hot cocoa. But this February storm, called “Snowmageddon” by President Obama, sent more snow our way than most would ever have hoped for.

Dr. Ethan Seidel, the college’s Vice President, said “of course, being a college, the greatest impact from the storms was the cancellation of classes. We’ll have to figure out how to compensate for the lost week.”

While many students were pleased by the break from classes, there were problems brought about by the inclement weather that were not enjoyed. Sophomore Shelby Parenteau, whose ankle was fractured during the storm, said that it is “very hard to get around.” Junior Zander Roell also dislocated his shoulder during the storm.

Junior Hannah Elovich described that in the “house I rent with three roommates who are also students here at McDaniel… since the ice and icicles were so heavy, it pulled down the gutter on one side and part of the siding under the gutter.”

Elovich’s house was not the only building to be hit hard. Dr. Seidel said, “There was damage to the gutters at the Garden Apartments. My guess is that until more of the snow clears from the roof, it will be difficult to assess the full extent of the damage.”

The snow was not only an expense as far as the toll on buildings. Dr. Seidel remarked that “we did contract with Thomas, Bennett, and Hunter to aid in snow removal… They possess heavy equipment that was really helpful in clearing roads and parking lots. At this point, it’s still too early to know the cost for this work.”

That is not to say the blizzard had no positive aspects. Senior Jessie Largent said “even though it was horrible and inconvenient, it was the first time I can remember playing out in the snow for over an hour in years which was pretty awesome.”

Michael Webster, Director of Campus Safety, said, “The biggest challenge was obviously moving around the campus. I enjoyed watching my kids play in the snow.”

In spite of the difficulties caused by the incessant snowfall, campus life went on. Mitchell Alexander, Director of College Activities, said that “the biggest challenge concerning events is making sure that all of the parties involved know that the events are still happening…such as the Stuff-a-Buddy.” While keeping events running smoothly during the storm required a lot, activities such as the Stuff-A-Buddy event on Feb. 11th where students gathered to make stuffed animals definitely brought in a crowd.

Furthermore, the exemplary work put in by a multitude of staff cannot go without mention. For instance, Valerie Westbrook, Coordinator of Conference, Camp and Event Scheduling, said “While we were safe in our warm homes [the grounds crew] were going to be out in the snow for endless hours to make the campus safe for all of us.”

In appreciation for this hard work, Westbrook said, “I thought about baking something for them to munch on during their breaks. I then invited other co-worker/friends on campus to join me. The outpouring of generosity was overwhelming. We had everything from canned soups, baked goods to hand warmers.”

While the snow caused many difficulties, the effect of the storm can best be summed up by Westbrook, who said of the donations made to the grounds crew “that I saw the college community come together for a common cause. It warmed my heart. It isn’t until we truly come together that we will see how strong this campus really is.”

Juliann Guiffre

Co Editor-in-Chief

On December 17, 2009, the Board of Trustees, in a unanimous decision, selected Dr. Roger N. Casey as the ninth president of McDaniel College.

Casey, who is currently the Vice President of Academic Affairs and Provost of Rollins College in Florida, will replace current president Joan Develin Coley as of July 1, 2010.

“Never in my life did I see this happening,” said Casey, “but I came to see that I thought I could do good. You have to accept the mantle of responsibility, and this place really felt right.”

Casey and his wife, Robyn Allers, visited McDaniel for the first time in early November, after the committee decided he was the leading candidate in the large pool.

“We had every detail of these people’s lives laid out before us and it was clear,” said Mary Lynn Durham, vice chair of the Board of Trustees, “he is so outstanding so many ways, and fulfilled every single one of our search criteria.”

A week from then they returned for a public visit, including two meetings with the faculty, one with staff, one with student representatives, and a dinner with the trustees. He also attended a dinner at the president’s house and the annual tree lighting ceremony.

“After that visit, I had emails pouring in from faculty, saying ‘go get him!’” said Durham.

Casey joined Rollins College in 2000 as Dean of Faculty and promoted in 2006 to his current position. From 1991 to 2000 he was an Associate Dean and professor at Birmingham-Southern College in Alabama. Casey received his M.A. and PhD in English from Florida State University and his BA from Furman University in his native South Carolina.

“Students will like [Casey] because he speaks at your level,” said Dr. Lewis Duncan, president of Rollins College. “When we have our beginning of the year ceremony, he will often break into a rap song. He wants to break down that barrier.”

Casey, a first generation college student, grew up in a small town, and said that his eyes were opened at age 22 when he first traveled to another country. Since then, he’s been to 69 countries. In 1994, he was named a Fellow of the W.K. Kellog Foundation, which sponsored his travel to 16 of those countries over a four-year period, during which he examined the role of vision in the creation of community.

“I spent a lot of time in Bali, which is a mono-cultural society with one belief system, but lots of poverty. In India I spent half the time with the poorest people and half with the richest. This was before the digital revolution, I hadn’t seen that kind of poverty before,” said Casey.

The most important things for Casey to learn about, he said, are who the students are, where they are coming from, and how to make McDaniel a better college.

“I want to be around at events, to be engaged in the lives of people at the college,” he said, adding that he particularly likes how the President’s office is at the heart of the college in the student center, not offsite a mile away. In fact, one of his first priorities will be improvement to Decker as well as the first year dorms.

Casey and his wife are hugely involved in the arts. He has been a theatrical producer, director, and actor, mostly recently in 2006 in a production of “Devotedly, With Dearest Love: The Letters of Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald.”

Allers served as the interim director of the Cornell Fine Arts Museum at Rollins, and they were both extremely pleased to have a reception at the Carroll Arts Center, said Casey, “we will not forget the arts.”

“He and his wife are both very present on our campus, and we will miss him. But he’s ready to president. From everything I’ve heard about McDaniel, it will be a great fit,” said Duncan.

Another passion of Casey’s is studying the impact of “Generation X” and “The Millennials.” He is so attuned to a college students’ generation, in fact, that it drives him crazy when professors tell students to put their phones away while in class.

“It’s the same as telling everyone to put their pencil and paper away. I tell everyone to turn their cell phones on and tell people on Facebook what we’re talking about, take a picture, tweet about it, create buzz,” he said.

Casey has his own twitter, with which he posts quotes he admires, opinions on current issues, and even references to popular culture (i.e. “This just in: Paula Abdul will head up “Death Panels” in this fall’s newest hit on the CDC”).

“I love Twitter because it’s like writing a sonnet. You’re limited to only 140 characters,” he said.

According to Durhman, Casey is already talking with Joyce Muller about improvements to the website and how we can further web-based communication.

“He’s very interested in technology we can use to teach, but that doesn’t replace pedagogical techniques,” said Durham.

Casey also has a Facebook account, and encourages students to friend him, saying “friend in my life is more a verb than a noun these days.”

Although Casey and Allers were in Laos the day his selection was announced, he did write a letter to the members of the McDaniel community, which can be found on the website, along with further biographical information.

A Sampling of Dr. Casey’s Tweets:

“Twain: “Commentators have already thrown much darkness on this subject. . . . we shall soon know nothing about it.” Health-care reform?”

“Yeats said that education is not the filling of a pail but rather the lighting of a fire–but is the fire under the pail or in it?”

“Congrembarrassman Wilson still argues the health bill gives illegal aliens equal access to death panels. No. They must work when sick.”

“Greider: we need to build a new economy recycling all the stuff we’ve already made.”

“Nedderman: There are more cures for male impotence than malaria. Isn’t this a problem?”

Megan Robinson

Co News Editor

Students studying in the library this semester might notice some new additions. The library recently invested in some new furniture to accommodate students’ with a need for a different kind of workspace.

The new additions include two new group stations, technology rooms, and movable furniture.

The group stations are both located on the first floor of the library. These new stations are designed to set up a group around a central point. They consist of a large circular desk separated by partitions into three pods, which each comfortably sit three people. One of these workstations come equipped with IMacs, and both have electrical outlets in the desk, to make it easy for students to plug in laptops.

The technology rooms located on the third floor are closed rooms that can be reserved and rented out, which are equipped with chalk boards and large IMacs. These rooms were created to give groups of students a place to work on a louder project that requires more privacy, such as a presentation or screening a movie.

Moveable furniture is yet another innovation in the library. Several chairs and desks on wheels are located on the first floor. These are ideal for students who want to create their own space to work together.

An alternative to the traditional wooden carols are located on the lower level. These are better suited to students that need quiet, individual study. They are L shaped and provide more space for the student to spread out their school work than the typical wooden carols.

These additions were chosen and designed by Jessame Ferguson, Director of Hoover Library. She worked together with a Creative Learning Spaces Group which consisted of the head of Information Technology, Ester Iglich, two student representatives from the Student Government Assembly, a representative from administration, and a representative from faculty. The group gathered to discuss different learning spaces used in libraries across the country to decide which types of furniture to experiment with purchasing.

Ferguson explained that the purchases were an experiment, and future purchases will depend on the students’ reactions to the new additions.

Ferguson said she is “interested to see what people’s reactions are.” She wants to see if the new furniture functions the way it needs to. She also wants to know “what appeals to students that helps them do their work better, and go in that direction.”

Ferguson is soliciting students’ reactions to the new furniture in two ways. The first is an open house being held on February 5 at 2:00. Ferguson is speaking at this event, and there will be self-tours to showcase the new additions. There will be comment cards available at this event to gather comments from students.

Another way students can provide reactions is at the library’s blog: http://hooverlib.wordpress.com/information-commons/. Ferguson can also be reached directly for comments at jferguson@mcdaniel.edu.

Megan Robinson

Co News Editor

On December 17, 2009 McDaniel College named its ninth president of the college. Dr. Roger N. Casey comes to the college from Robins College in Florida where he worked as Vice President of Academic Affairs and provost. Dr. Casey was named president by the Presidential Search Committee including student representative junior Ben Cowman.

The committee was comprised of board members who also served on the transition committee, three faculty members, one staff member, and one student representative. The student representative, Cowman, also serves as Executive Vice President of Student Government Assembly.

Cowman said that while any student could have served as the student representative, he was chosen because he expressed interest in serving on the committee and the administration was familiar with him through his work on SGA. As Executive Vice President of SGA, Cowman brought not only a student’s perspective to the committee but also a broad knowledge of the institution’s policies and administration.

Cowman felt it was “important to have a student member that is informed about a lot of different issues on campus.” He said he felt “when you know what’s going on in the whole institution, it sheds a whole different light on the college.”

Despite his well rounded knowledge about the institution, however, Cowman did not only contribute his own opinions to the Presidential Search. Cowman held a focus group of about thirty students in the beginning and then again in the later part of the fall semester to address concerns from a variety of different students. This focus group was made up of students from various organizations around campus including the All College Council, the Resident Assistants, and Greek Life.

Cowman expressed the difficulty in presenting all the perspectives of such a large student body, and accurately addressing every individual’s concerns. However he feels he did the best job he could of representing the student body. Despite being the only student representative he feels he “made an impact on the committee.”

Cowman expressed that he was very pleased with the candidate they selected. Cowman believes that the Presidential Search Committee chose the best fit out of an “extraordinary pool of candidates.”

In addition to being very well qualified, Cowman feels that Dr. Casey can “take every decision that [he] makes and relate it to the students.”

Megan Robinson

Co News Editor

Students returning for the spring semester may notice new LCD televisions in popular locations around campus. These new TVs display the new Student Government Assembly channel, which in addition to being shown on the new TVs, can also be viewed on campus cable station 80.

The channel was created as a central place for students to look at to find out about events and happenings around campus. The station will display weather, campus and national news, upcoming events on campus, sports media, and advertisements from clubs.

Clubs and other organizations from around campus can submit pages and news request to be displayed on the channel by submitting to the SGA a form which can be found on the student intranet. Ben Cowman, Executive Vice President of SGA, said the channel was created to take general information and provide it in a way students would be interested in looking at.

The LCD televisions displaying the channel are located in Englar Dining Hall, outside of the Pub, and by the Information Desk in Decker. Cowman said the SGA is looking to expand the project to include placing televisions in academic buildings and resident halls.

This project was eight months in the making, according to Cowman. He said that he and Dave Castle, SGA President, first got the idea at a leadership conference last spring. After some debate over the format, they decided on a broadcast channel on the campus’s closed circuit cable. The channel itself is maintained by SGA Vice President of Communications, sophomore Brendon Coll.

SGA is the visionary behind the project, but not the only financial contributor. The project is additionally funded by the College Activities Office, Information Technology, and the Physical Plant.