NEWS

Black tar was dumped on the athletic trailer and Village III surfboard. Tire tracks ran through the arboretum. In one weekend, a few students tried to leave their mark on the Virginia Wesleyan campus through vandalism. Incident one: On Saturday, September 16, Security Officer Clevton Worley found black tar on the wall and windows of the athletic trailer. Accompanying the black mess were the letters "EN." Officer Worley estimates that the vandalism took place between 3 and 5 a.m. To date, no one has been held accountable for the damage.

Dick Safford, director of security, was disappointed by the event. "It is unfortunate that we have individuals who are destructive," he said. "It would be to everyone’s benefit if the people were caught." Director of the Physical Plant David Hopper said the tar had been left out by the maintenance crew who were patching the roof of the trailer Friday. He said the bucket was covered and left at the trailer so the job could be finished Monday. "The bucket of tar was an invitation," said Safford. No students have been suspected in the events. Initially, some officials thought that it may be related to the Sigma Nu fraternity, whose letters resemble "EN." However, after a closer look, they realized the symbol was an "E," meaning Epsilon Nu (another fraternity, not on this campus.)

Stephen Adair, president of Sigma Nu, said that he called security soon after he saw the tar, so his fraternity would not be held responsible. He also said that none of the Greeks would do something that disrespectful. "Our fraternity brothers would not do something like that," said Adair. He also said that if it was a brother, he would know the difference between Sigma and Epsilon. Another theory is that the letters "EN" could be the initials of the responsible person. The search continues. Incident two took place on Sunday, September 17 between the hours of 12 and 6 a.m. According to Security guard Nick Bottis, a student drove a vehicle through the Wilson Arboretum running over a maple sapling, and then continued to Norfolk Academy’s athletic fields. This person has been caught because parts of the vehicle were found in the soccer goals at Norfolk Academy. After receiving a call from Norfolk Academy, VWC security was able to match the parts with a vehicle on campus.

Keith Moore, director of residence life said, "It was a regrettable incident out of the character for the majority of VWC students." Sophomore Jen Green said she was not personally offended by the vandalism, but was still bothered by it. "People do obnoxious and destructive things," she said. "They are bored and feel it’s necessary to mark their territory like dogs."

Green also believes that a few angry people will not change the actions of the vandals. But maybe consequences will. Moore said the driver of the vehicle has acknowledged wrong doing and has accepted responsibility for the damage. The driver will also be responsible for the cost of repairs to the VWC and Norfolk Academy campuses. Moore said while events like this are not typical, it is still a problem. "There are a few people who have disrespected the campus environment," he said. "It’s unfortunate because it affects the way the campus is viewed by students and it adds to safety concerns." Moore said discipline in vandalism cases can include a number of sanctions: disciplinary probation, letters of apology, financial restitution, counseling, parent and coach notification if athletes are involved, and community service. He also said any vandalism will be charged to the responsible individual. However, if no one person is held accountable, the cost of damages can often be charged to residential halls and villages. "In common area billing, a floor or building can be charged for the actions of one or a few people," said Moore. Incident three: Residents of Village II were given a memorandum holding them responsible for damages done to the Village II commomns area. Residents must now pay for a fire extinguisher discharged between Graybeal and Johnston Halls on September 17, and a window damaged between Roop and Gum Halls on September 21. The total amount of the damage was $733, a break down of $3.60 per resident. Not a large tab, but money is not the issue with many of the residents. "I’m extremely bothered," said junior Megan DiCave, a resident of East Hall. "Why should we all be punished just because one person screws up?"

While the policy seems unfair to many, it is the only way to cover the damages until the vandals are found. Moore also had a warning to students who do cause problems on campus. "It does not take long for word to get around," he said. "It’s a very small campus."

"I really want to marry an entire boy band. Not a loser boy band like 98 Degrees but someone cool like ‘N Sync or the New Kids on the Block, but they’re not around anymore." Sound like the plans of an award -winning journalist? Wait, there’s more. "If that doesn’t work out I want to drive the Wienermobile. Every year 100 kids apply to be on the Oscar Meyer Hot Dog Team, where they pick like 25 kids to pair up on teams and drive wienermobiles all over the country. You have to be a communications graduate to apply and they only pick the cream of the crop. I’ve been wanting to do this since I was in high school. I think it’s the only reason I became a communications major in the first place." This is what Lacy Hall would like to do after college. Hall, a senior at Virginia Wesleyan and Marlin Chronicle columnist, has been awarded the Agnes Cook Scholarship by the Virginia Press Women Inc., an organization that "promotes high ideals in journalism." Given an application by Professor of Journalism Bill Ruehlmann, Lacy answered a few questions and submitted some writing samples, never thinking that she would actually win.

"Lacy is so good, she doesn’t know how good she is," said. Ruehlmann. "She’s an excellent writer, and she writes well what is hardest to -- humor." While originally from Oklahoma, the 21-year-old has lived in Virginia Beach since she was a child, eventually graduating from Ocean Lakes High School. Her career in journalism has included the Chronicle and an internship with Port Folio Weekly, and now she works over 30 hours a week for Cox Communications in addition to going to school full time. She attributes her success to a stable support system and to those who have encouraged her in the past. "My parents, of course -- they are supportive in everything I do and they are the ones that made me such a hard worker," she says. "Plus, I’ve always had really great teachers who have taken care of me and taught me a lot. I’ve just been really lucky with life. I’ve got a great best friend, a great boyfriend, great parents, a great boss, and even my dog, Rowdy, rocks the house."

Her love for journalism comes almost too easily and has afforded her strength she never knew she had. "I’m not a great writer," Hall says. "I have crappy grammar, bad vocabulary and my writing style is that of a sixth grader. I’m a good observer. Nothing gets past me. I just point out the things that most people tend to ignore. Anyone could do what I do. Writing is really good for me because it gives me power. I have trouble saying things with words. I’m really petite and I smile and laugh a lot, so people don’t always take me seriously. But when I write something, I come off a lot more aggressive and confident. People take me more seriously ... some of the time. I met someone last semester who had read my column but had never seen me in person before. He couldn’t get over the fact that I was short. He just kept saying that he pictured me taller. I think that’s because I came off so confident in my writing."

And she needed that scholarship. Hall promised herself when she entered college that she would not take out any loans to pay for school. She wanted to graduate with a clean financial record and to have the pride of having worked for every credit hour herself. "I work very hard during the summer and the school year," she says. "I can have the satisfaction of signing my name to a check every fall and know that I am one step closer to my goal. I’ve worked towards this goal my whole life." So what does the future hold for Wesleyan’s best journalist? Wedded bliss with the Backstreet Boys? Touring the nation in a giant wiener? "Beyond graduation, it’s hard for me to predict where a career in journalism will take me," Hall wrote in her VPW application. "But I have developed an understanding that I will lead my career and I will not allow it to lead me."

"Hey, you wanna go out and get something to eat?" "Sounds good, you drivin’?" "I don’t have any gas." "I don’t want to lose my spot. I’m going to have to park in the baseball field." "Fine, we’ll flip a coin." Sound familiar? Parking on the Virginia Wesleyan campus has become such a hassle to students that they battle with each other to see who is going to lose a spot. Because of the lack of parking, particularly in Village II, traffic tickets are becoming an expensive annoyance for students. Every ticket on campus, regardless of the offense, costs students $25. According to one security official, who asked to remain nameless for this article, tickets are given out for the following offenses: no valid parking decal, driving in an unsafe manner, parking in a faculty/staff or visitor spot, improper display of a decal, improper parking (such as parking on the grass), parking in a handicapped zone and parking in a restricted area. Most of the tickets given on campus are for parking in a faculty/staff parking spot, usually in Villages I and II. Many students are frustrated when they drive around the circle in Village II two or three times, hoping a spot will be open, despite the fact that there may be five faculty spaces available. Rather than risk it, students park in the baseball field or near the construction. Regardless of which overflow lot they choose, students have a long walk back to Village II.

Junior Orenda Aiken said, "I’m concerned about parking in the baseball lot. There are no lights or call boxes out there, and it’s scary walking all that way at night by yourself." This is one of the many reasons students may decide to take the $25 penalty and take a faculty spot. Some students park in a faculty spot and go out later on to move their car in hopes of discovering a "legal" spot in which to park. "It’s annoying that we can’t park in the faculty and staff parking spots, but they can park in ours with no penalty," said junior Jim Baker. Students and staff alike feel that there are many possible solutions to solve the parking problems at VWC. One security official suggested raising the price of a ticket to $50, making students pay more and maybe deterring students from parking illegally in the future. Security itself does not regulate the price of parking tickets; another board on campus commands that responsibility. Also, the money collected from parking tickets is recycled back into the campus and used for "student functions." Other students have suggested restricting freshmen from having cars to reduce parking lot overcrowding. The building of a three- story garage next to each village has also been suggested by security.

However, students will most likely have to tough out the lack of spaces available until the new student center is complete. Once it is finished, it will provide 500 additional spaces on campus. Until then, the best a VWC student can do is deal with the gravel lots. And if the lack of parking on campus is annoying, there are always faculty/staff spots open.