The past year we have watched a wide array of candidates vie for the chance to be our forty-fourth president until it finally came down to the two major contenders for the office, Senator John McCain and Senator Barack Obama. Both ran aggressive and well-funded campaigns, with the candidates together raising over $1 billion for the first time in history. Furthermore, a huge percentage of Obama’s funds were donated by individuals, with a significant number of small contributions coming from people who were giving to a political campaign for the first time.

Obama’s success overall can be to a great extent attributed to the huge number of first-time voters, contributors and volunteers that came out in support. Americans were inspired and moved to action more than ever before.

Election Day itself seemed to go smoothly, certainly more so than the tempestuous races of recent years. Across the entire country voters cast their ballots yesterday, electing Barack Obama by margins unseen by a Democratic candidate in decades.

Jason Rae, Chair of Wisconsin College Democrats, remarked, “I think we saw Americans wanting change, wanting to believe again in their government and in their country. Tonight’s result showed that the American people believe Senator Obama and his vision for America.”

But what does this vision entail? President-Elect Barack Obama has laid out extensive plans for his administration, which include tackling the current economic crisis as well as taking on key issues which require widespread reform. Addressing the present state of the economy will clearly be top priority for the president elect. Obama has stated he will attend to the housing crisis as one of his first acts, providing incentives for banks to refinance or buy outstanding mortgages. He also plans to change bankruptcy laws to empower judges to modify families’ mortgages, allowing more Americans to remain in their homes.

To jumpstart the economy overall, Obama has pledged to pursue another goal of his, creating a large number of new jobs in the alternative energy sector. Additionally, he has proposed a cap-and-trade system for carbon emissions, which will allow Congress to sell permits for burning fossil fuels. The money from this endeavor will then go to tax credits for green companies, energy research grants, and loans for improving the efficiency of plaguing industries such as car manufacturing.

Other major goals for the Obama administration include the improvement of our health care and education systems. As often discussed throughout the campaign, Obama plans to require employers to cover their employees’ health insurance and will lower costs to each family by $2500. He further will work to require health insurance for all children, with the eventual goal of universal coverage.

Great importance has also been placed on education reform and retooling No Child Left Behind to reduce its emphasis on testing and the penalizing of underperforming schools. Opposed to school vouchers, Obama instead supports increased funding allocated to charter schools and an expansion of early-childhood programs. Ultimately, Obama’s goal is to make a college education a realistic possibility for all.

Another main point laid out in Obama’s plan for America addresses the current military situation in Iraq and Afghanistan. Long holding the position that a timetable for troop withdrawal from Iraq is necessary, Obama hopes to have half of all U.S. troops out of the country by May of 2010. He further believes that our focus and resources should presently be switching toward Afghanistan to fight against the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

In addition to simply increasing troop levels, Obama believes in the necessity of better training Afghan forces and providing assistance to Afghan civilians, giving them alternative means of making a living apart from poppy-farming. Finally, his administration will pursue means of securing Afghanistan’s border with Pakistan and reducing corruption in the area. With a solid Democratic majority, these challenging goals can viably be achieved in the years to come.

While Barack Obama has accomplished a number of impressive feats in the past months, he most notably has managed to inspire a feeling of faith in the direction our country is now headed. He has pledged to make every effort to bring Americans together, no matter their party affiliation, with the goal of improving the quality of life for everyone.

Marecca Vertin, a member of the Marquette Obama team and poll monitor, agreed that “decent health care, a decent education, and general accountability from government are not actually divisive issues for most Americans.” She added, “The huge increase in voter turnout for Obama proves that this campaign made it clear that we can get real work done together without being radically left- or right-wing but by… acting in the generally moderate interests of the American people.”

After a long and hard-hitting campaign from both candidates, cooperation will now be the key to moving forward to achieve the change Americans desire.

Matt Dambach, chair of Students for McCain at Marquette, is of the same opinion. “At the end of the day both Republicans and Democrats have the same goal of doing what is best for our nation,” he says.

Both sides can further agree that with voter turnout at incredible highs this year, the increased political dialogue among American citizens can only have positive results. Dambach commented that “one of the great positives from this election cycle is the involvement of millions of new voters; involvement which will only make our country better in years to come.” Barack Obama, now the face of our country and representative of millions of Americans, will lead this country in a new direction.

That direction is one which will bring supporters of both parties together, moving forward and making this great nation even stronger as we work together for change.

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When Marquette University hired Tom Crean’s assistant coach, Brent “Buzz” Williams, to be the Men’s Basketball head coach, a lot of people thought that the athletic department had taken the easy way out. But little did the Marquette community know that Williams himself does anything but take the easy way out. From the players to the practices, Williams has overhauled the entire men’s basketball program.

“We want to be the hardest-working, most competitive program in the country,” Williams said. And he has been making every effort to make it so, showing that Marquette might have picked the right coach after all.

Young Men First, Students Second and Players Third

In Williams’ first press conference as the Marquette Men’s Basketball head coach, he stated:
“The players in the program will not be judged always in accordance with their skill set or their talent. They will always be judged as people: as young men first, as students second and as players third. And the priorities in our program, the responsibilities within our program, will always be reflective of those things.”

The academic responsibilities for the basketball players are strictly enforced to ensure that these priorities are met.
Williams is “not going to give you any leeway,” according to Liam McMorrow, the sophomore transfer from Durham College in Oshawa, Ontario, who is redshirted this season due to National Collegiate Athletic Association transfer rules.

Each player has a personal, color-coded schedule from 6 a.m. until 11 p.m. every day of the week detailing class, study hall hours, tutoring, basketball practice and weightlifting among other things. The graduate student coaching assistants and coaching staff escort the players to class to make sure that they are on time and that they do not leave class early.

“He really cares about our academics,” said David Cubillan, one of three juniors on the team. And so far, it has been paying off.
“I think I speak for everyone. Everyone, as far as academically is concerned, is doing much better… he’s definitely a help,” said Robert Frozena, the only walk-on of this year’s team, about the educational push the members of the team have received from Williams.

“They’re always accountable for each facet of their responsibilities,” Williams said, and according to Williams, the reason they can be held accountable is because “their character is very, very high.”

Athletic Hunger

Four man groups, individual practice, team practice, and boot camp are only a few of the strategies that Williams has been using to prepare the team for the coming season. Yes, boot camp.

“Boot camp was seven or eight days. That was the longest seven or eight days of my life. But it was good,” said Lazar Hayward, returning junior forward. Boot camp was a series of intense practices where, Williams said, “our team is formed.” Every drill that was done had to be done correctly by each member of the team. If someone could not finish, everybody had to do it over again. Every single teammate was accountable for every other teammate. As Williams said, “Everyone has to pull their own weight… and [we have to] communicate as a team.”
Somehow, everyone got through it.

“They were blowing it out every day,” Williams said. “It’s the best I’ve ever seen.”

Not only has their stamina and teamwork been tested, but Williams has the team “doing defensive drills day in and day out,” according to Dominic James, returning senior guard. Concerns over the short height of the team have sparked the emphasis put on the defensive side of the ball.

“We are little. We’re short. That’s not going to change… we’re going to have to be extraordinary good rebounders… I don’t think we’re going to struggle offensively. I think we can score enough points to win games. The question will be: How can we prevent our size from being a detriment to us defensively?” Williams said.

Jerel McNeal, returning senior guard, who has always been known as a defensive player, is excited for this change of focus. “We get everybody else to play at a high level defensively, then [that will] make things a lot easier for everybody.”

Williams has confidence that his players will do everything in their power to keep their height from affecting how they perform. “I think they’re hungry. I think they like to play from behind,” he said.

The players also receive personal coaching from Williams as part of his efforts to know his players well.

Wesley Matthews, one-third of Marquette’s “Big 3” along with Dominic James and Jerel McNeal, described how Williams wants him to play. “I’ve got to be a beast. I have to be everywhere. He wants me to basically let loose, just play the way I play, lead the way I lead, and just help.”

Joseph Fulce, a new sophomore recruit from Tyler Junior College in Tyler, Texas, said, “He’s always trying to find a way to help us get better.”

As an extra impetus to becoming the best, Williams has let them know that their every effort has to be put on the court when the time comes. “If we don’t play hard, they’re not going to play… every single minute counts. Every single minute in a game counts,” Williams said.

All About God and Family

These new academic priorities and athletic strategies would not work if the team did not respect their coach. But they do.
“He’s one of the most hardest workers I’ve met in my life. I don’t think he sleeps,” Fulce said.

His commitment stands out, and not just his commitment to the men’s basketball team.

“He’s dedicated… he’s all about his God and his family,” said Dwight Burke, the only senior forward on the team. And now his family has expanded to include the basketball team.

“The thing that I really pay attention to is those 13 young men… what they’re doing off the court, what they’re doing in the classroom and what they’re doing on the court,” Williams said.

Some of the lessons he has been teaching his players have clearly sunk in.

“The most important thing that Buzz has taught us, is that every day is a work day, and if you’re not going to work every day, then you shouldn’t be here,” said Patrick Hazel, a sophomore forward.

Message to the Marquette Student Body

Although Williams admits that he has not done a good job connecting with the students, he knows how important the Marquette Fanatics are to the success of his team.

“The teams that have elite success have a major home court advantage, and the teams that have a major home court advantage [have it] because it’s derived from their student population. Our students have to continue what they’ve always been, because that changes what the atmosphere and the ambience is like at the Bradley Center,” Williams said.

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But what exactly is “far less” than $700 billion? And as a Marquette student, who does not own a home nor have significant amounts of money invested in freefalling stocks, you may ask yourself, why am I being asked to pay to stabilize a situation in which I seem to have so little invested?

Many students at Marquette recognize the transient nature of their residence in Milwaukee, so they rent apartments, rather than purchase homes. They take on demanding course loads, which leaves few students time enough to maintain full-time employment. The lack of a full-time job certainly leaves most students without an excessive amount of disposable income, but it also means that they don’t have life savings, our future children’s college funds or our own retirement funds tied up in plummeting stocks.

So, as someone who is not watching their home value decline or their life savings evaporate, as someone who could have very well continued on with daily life oblivious to any sort of fluctuation in the stock market, turning on the television and hearing President Bush proclaim that America was in an economic “crisis” seemed a bit dramatic. Few Marquette students, if any, were glued to the television as the bailout bill was debated in the Senate and the House of Representatives, and very few singled out the bill as their sole topic of conversation. Blame what some students and faculty refer to as the ‘Marquette bubble’, but around campus, there did not seem to be an extreme amount of concern for recent economic events, and certainly nothing approaching panic.

However, the contents of this bill and the precedents its passage has set are of grave importance for all Americans. Never before have taxpayers been asked to become so deeply involved in the events of Wall Street. To many Americans, intense government participation in the private business sector seems fundamentally against the principles of capitalism upon which this country’s economic system are founded. Yet this bill forces all Americans to become invested, through their tax dollars, in the fates of private businesses, and in doing so sets a dangerous precedent for future levels of government involvement in the private business sector.

Most Marquette students are at the mere dawn of their tax-paying careers; for many, their investment in the federal government will only increase. With the federal government long operating in the red, the passage of an additional $700 billion bill adds further burden to the already unenviable position of young American taxpayers. However, the real issue is not the $700 billion check that Congress just forced taxpayers to sign. Unfortunately, this piece of legislature is a mere symptom of some fundamental problems in this country’s economic system.
According to Dr. Abdur R. Chowdhury, professor of economics in Marquette’s College of Business Administration, the current economic problems were created by inadequate regulation of private businesses. “It started with the housing market. Lenders gave out mortgage loans without looking at buyers income or wealth.” And although there were laws that regulated the actions of these lenders, “…they were never effectively enforced.” Thus many Americans were approved for loans on homes that they could not really afford. The lack of oversight allowed lenders to make these risky loans, which lead to an increase in demand for mortgages and an apparent increase in property value.

However, most lenders knew and chose to ignore the fact that the recipients of their loans would not be able to pay them back. These lenders accumulated millions of risky mortgages and used falsely inflated property values to back up the assets of many non-housing related companies. Many unqualified buyers soon began to default on their loans, increasing the number of foreclosures. Property values began to decline as more and more homes became available, leaving many homeowners owing more on their mortgage than their house was actually worth.
Furthermore, the investments backed by these mortgages began to collapse and affect assets of non-housing related companies, such as Lehman Brothers and AIG. The decline of mortgage-backed assets has drastically decreased these firms’ capital and liquidity. Across the country, banks have become wary of lending money and often impose extremely high interest rates on the loans that they do grant. The recent sudden withdrawal of credit has paralyzed businesses that rely on daily credit use, and driven many into bankruptcy. The entire financial institution is currently taking the hit for the reckless business strategies of mortgage lenders. The federal government has tried to remedy the situation by buying up the mortgage-basked assets from banks. This will release banks from their ties to these impaired assets and hopefully encourage further lending between banks to eventually stabilize the financial market. Ultimately, the sheer enormity of the $700 billion bailout bill is indicative of just how grave America’s economic troubles have become. To Americans heavily invested in the fate of the market system, the bill still does little to soothe the well-founded fears about their investments. To every American, the passage of this bill should drive home the message that this country’s future economic security is far from guaranteed.

Though many Marquette students are not part of the group that is heavily invested in the fate of the market, we will still see the effects of the current economic situation in many different areas. Marquette students nearing graduation will enter a job market drastically different from just five or ten years ago.

According to Chowdhury, “Business firms have been affected by the lack of liquidity. Firms will take on a waiting attitude; they will not invest, expand, hire.” Indeed, a government report issued last Friday reveals that September was the ninth straight month of job loss in the United States, and the largest monthly job decline in the past five years. This means that unemployment rates, already at 6.1%, will likely continue to rise. For companies looking to scale down their budgets, paid internships are usually the first things to get cut. That means many of the jobs Marquette students held last summer might not be available come this May, or might not be paid positions. Marquette seniors graduating this year will likely find themselves entering a job market with fewer opportunities and far more competition. This trend will also affect graduates applying to graduate school; as fewer people are able to find jobs, more and more will choose to go back to school, increasing competition for entry into the school, for scholarships and for grants.

One of the more immediate and most relevant concerns for many Marquette students will center on student loans. Recently, there has been a drastic decrease in the market’s liquidity. This means that banks are unable to or are extremely cautious about lending money, which is typical behavior in a recession. As credit institutions become increasingly wary of lending money, the opportunities for funding student loans diminishes. Students receive either federal loans, such as a Stafford or a Perkins Loan, or private loans, from private banks or companies such as Astrive Student Loans and Sallie Mae. Of the two, private loan institutions are the first to be affected by changes in the market. The federal government does not guarantee these private loans, so banks run the risk of students defaulting on their loans. Companies like Sallie Mae, which grants both private and federally backed loans, grant private loans by borrowing money from other investors and lend that money out to students. The companies make a profit when students pay back their loans plus interest.

However, with less money available for lending, there is widespread fear that the initial rate at which these companies borrow money will be higher than what they will earn from lending this money out to students. Investors in these private companies are becoming increasingly unconvinced that companies like Sallie Mae will be able to turn a profit, and thus increasingly unwilling to invest in them. Indeed, Sallie Mae reported over 1.5 billion dollars in losses at the end of last year and, despite a stronger performance this year, has still watched its market value plummet over 50 percent in the past four months. To address these investors’ fears and the financial losses these companies have experienced over the past months, many companies such as Citigroup, Bank of America and Wells Fargo have made large cuts in the number of student loans they grant, or have stopped making private student loans entirely. The companies that continue to grant students private loans are raising interest rates and tightening restrictions on which applicants receive loans, decisions that will no doubt affect Marquette students who rely on private loans.

However, even Marquette students who rely on federal, not private, loans to assist them in paying for tuition may eventually feel the effects of the nation’s economic situation. These federal loans are far more common than private loans. In some cases, the loans that Marquette students receive passes directly from the federal government to the university and then to the student. In 75 percent of cases, students receiving a federal student loan receive a second type of loan, one that is funded by private capital and made available through private companies such as JP Morgan Chase or Citibank. However, the federal government guarantees these loans, so banks assume no risk of student default. Furthermore, the federal government guarantees the interest rate on these loans, so any change in the rate would require a change in federal law. This further removes their interest rates from influence of the market, and makes it less likely that student with federal loans will see increased rates. Last year, Congress approved legislation to secure money for federal student loans through the 2009-2010 academic year, so students relying on these loans appear to be safe for now. However, if the national trend of decreased capital availability continues, even federal loan lenders could find themselves unable to secure money for student loans. For Marquette students with federal loans who will not graduate before July 2010, the fate of the federal loan program remains an issue.

The recession will undoubtedly be felt right here on campus as well. Many states are already trimming down educational costs by cutting courses, programs and other student activities. As a private university, many of these government cuts will not have an effect on Marquette. However, that does not mean the university will not be influenced by market changes. On the contrary, Marquette’s status as a private university requires that it rely heavily on private donations. Though many of the large donations that we hear about—the $25 million and $50 million donations to the engineering college this past year, for example—are made in anonymity, it is important to remember that these donors are not just nameless entities, infinitely wealthy and impervious to economic changes. They are real people, Marquette alumni and friends, and their gifts create the experiences that all current Marquette students share. Their donations cover the 38 percent of the cost of education not covered by yearly tuition. They have created and continue to sustain scholarships like the Raynor and Ignatius Scholarship, as well as Marquette’s student-athlete scholarships. These donations also contribute to campus safety programs and access to and improvement of student computer labs, as well as sustain numerous extracurricular activities.

From just that brief, incomplete overview of how donations benefit the lives of Marquette students, it is obvious that the extent upon which the university relies on the generosity of these donors cannot be overstated. As the country’s economic situation continues to decline, these donations will unquestionably drop. Speaking at the MUSG-sponsored forum on September 30, Father Wild acknowledged the donors’ vital role in maintaining and developing the university, and admitted that the “environment for fundraising is a lot tougher than it’s been.” To the many Marquette students who benefit from the university’s current donor-sponsored programs, that is an extremely concerning statement. Obviously, the university will have to respond to the decrease in donations, and how they address the situation will assuredly impact the lives of students However, Marquette University has weathered troubled economic times before, and for all those students anxious about how the university will address the problems of the coming recession, it is reasonable to examine how the university handled itself in a previous financial crises.

In 1931, the university was set to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its founding. Father William Magee, president of the university since 1928, was in the midst of planning a large celebration and a fundraising drive when October 24, the infamous black Thursday, came and sent the country spiraling into what is now known as the Great Depression. Federal student loans as most Marquette students know them had not yet been created, and as more Americans fell upon hard times, many families could not afford full tuition. Thus the number of full-time Marquette students decreased. The rise in unemployment also meant increased competition for any work, and the part-time jobs once available to students became scarce. As private donations used to fund undergraduate scholarships decreased, the awards and the students who relied on them disappeared from campus.

The decrease in students put further financial strain on the private, tuition-dependant university. Aside from canceling both the celebration and the drive for funds, Father Magee was forced to take other actions to keep the University from closing. Cuts were first made in the arts; the College of Music was officially closed in the summer of 1930 and the radio station disappeared in 1934. Student publications, including the Marquette Tribune, the Hilltop and the Marquette Journal were more than once threatened by a lack of funding, and all were forced to significantly reduce their size. Periodical subscriptions and the amount of new book purchases in the library were slashed, as were faculty salaries. As the budget grew increasingly tight, Marquette began to hire more and more Jesuit priests to save money on faculty salaries.

Since the nature of Marquette University as a private, tuition-dependant institution has not changed, previous responses to an increasingly tight budget are still relevant to students today; if the University falls upon hard times again, students can expect to see the same sort of actions taken in the past. Ultimately, it seems increasingly unlikely that students and the university will remain unaffected by the current economic troubles. Certainly those poised to graduate and move beyond the Marquette campus will be forced to address those troubles sooner than some other students. However, this recession will eventually have profound affects on all of us, and the university, as well as each individual student, must be prepared to address what are sure to be difficult times ahead.

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Much has changed since these ladies attended Marquette a few years back, but the Jesuit ideal of lifelong learning remains, and is the inspiration behind the College of Arts and Sciences’ Alumni in the Classroom program.

Currently in its tenth year, Alumni in the Classroom allows alumni who have graduated before 1964 to return to Marquette and audit classes for free. This semester there are 27 alumni taking a total of 32 classes, Tim Simmons, Chief Alumni Relations Director for Marquette’s Alumni Association said.

Participants are expected to regularly attend class and complete readings, but are not required to take tests or turn in homework. According to the College of Arts and Sciences Alumni Association, alumni earn no credit through the program and participants must be Arts and Sciences graduates, be comfortable with the use of computers, have a desire to learn and have an open mind.

Simmons said the program was originally a suggestion of some Arts and Sciences alumni and is unique in allowing alumni to connect with current Marquette students.
“Alumni have fond memories of their days as students,” Simmons said. “They want programs that help recreate those experiences. More importantly, they wanted a program that promotes lifelong learning, a very Jesuit concept.”

The office of Alumni Relations works directly with the College of Arts and Sciences to promote the program, register alumni for classes and conduct orientation. Participants can choose from a list of English, Foreign Language and Literature, Political Science, History and Theology courses which have extra space.
Simmons says the program has no plans for expansion.

TECHNOLOGY, WAR AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITY AT MARQUETTE

Although Simmons says that while adjustments need to occasionally be made for participants, overall feedback from the program has been positive.

“We have received comments from faculty and students that it is good to have their perspective in classroom discussions… the experience of having older alumni in the classroom has been rewarding.,” said Simmons.  “Alumni do realize that their student counterparts are in pursuit of their degrees, and are respectful to add to, and not detract from this experience.”

 Although there have not been any major program set backs, Simmons said many alumni do find the technological adjustment challenging.
“Technology is definitely the biggest change,” Eileen Johannsen said. “Everything is so much more interactive.”

Johannsen is a 1960 graduate who studied Latin and German. Johanssen earned her Masters in 1962 and then taught high school for 23 years before starting her own software business at 50.

Johannsen said she notices how the opportunities for women have expanded on campus, and is impressed with level of awareness of students in her class.
“Students today are much more with it than I ever felt with my peers,” Johannsen said. “They’re exposed to so much more in their young lives.”
Adele Hanson agrees and is continually impressed by students’ multi-tasking abilities.

“I could never begin to be able to do what students do now. When I hear and see what they learn and produce, I’m astonished,” Hanson said.
During a time when women mostly majored in nursing or education, Hanson stood out as a female engineering student in the 1940s.
“I felt very out of place taking classes in engineering,” Hanson said. “There were only three other girls taking classes with me.”

A history course on World War II might be interesting to Hanson, as she lived through the conflict and attended Marquette when the GIs returned to classes.
Hanson said she remembers taking classes in temporary government buildings that were put up to provide room for returning GIs, who were gladly welcomed back to campus by female students.

“After going through the war years with no boys, it was fun to have them back,” Hanson said.
To help returning students complete their education quicker, Hanson said a tedious trimester system was put in place so former GIs could get their degrees in three years.
“Men coming back were serious about getting their education, and were impatient to finish,” Hanson said.

The Jesuits played an important role as spiritual and academic mentors to students after the war—and went out of their way to help the GIs new to Marquette.
“Jesuits were extremely helpful to these guys. They bent over backward to help them get through,” said Johannsen. “GIs returning often had little high school preparation, and the Jesuits really worked with them to help them finish in three years.”

A DIFFERENT DYNAMIC

Both students and professors say alumni offer unparalleled perspectives and bring a unique dynamic to class discussion.
Dr. Barrett McCormick currently hosts alumni in his Chinese Politics class and said their presence makes class discussions richer and more interesting.
“Getting students involved in a conversation about the material is an important part of my teaching strategy,” McCormick said. “Alums have had experiences that the rest of us have not yet had and might not ever have. I think we all feel fortunate to have the chance to learn a little of their wisdom.”

Arts and Sciences junior Carlos Angeles said having perspectives from older classmates set an interesting dynamic for the political science course he took last year.
“I feel that his perspective was very valuable and gave the class discussion more depth,” Angeles said. “Their opinions matter because their experience and wisdom doesn’t come by very often, which gives students more conviction to participate in class… it’s exciting to see our own Marquette alumni still engaged in the Marquette community and still interested in academia.”

GREAT REVIEWS

Alumni in the Classroom gets a 10 all around for Lois Wakeman, a 1948 English graduate, who was a member of the first class to graduate with an elementary education focus. Wakeman has been involved with the program every semester since its inception, making this her tenth semester.

“It gets a 10 exponentially,” Wakeman said. “It’s wonderful not only to keep learning but to be back on campus. We feel very welcome here.”
Wakeman said she enjoys the variety of courses for alumni, and has taken a broad range of classes while in the program.

“Sometimes I want to learn more about a topic and other times I want to take a class on something I’ve never studied before,” Wakeman said.
The ladies said they have enjoyed every aspect of the program so far, and were surprised that the Alumni in the Classroom is relatively unknown to the Marquette community.
“I absolutely love it and plan my social calendar around class,” said Johannsen. “It’s amazing how well we’re received.”

Lois Wakeman agrees, but would like to see the program expanded to other colleges at Marquette.
“People who thought of the program deserve a pat on the back,” said Wakeman. “We wish other colleges would open up to expand so other alumni can enjoy what we’re enjoying.”
Hanson said she knows other alumni from other colleges who would participate if the program were expanded.
“It would be good for people to be able to come back and see what’s new in their fields,” Hanson said.

Tim Simmons said the relationship current students build with former ones in the classroom is a key component to the program, and encourages students to be open to interactions with their alumni counterparts.

“They [alumni] are appreciative of the opportunity and truly view our current-day students as a key element in the experience,” Simmons said.  “They like to hear the contemporary points of view, and share in the learning experience.”

Angeles said the program is something he would be interested in as an alumnus as well.
“Hopefully when I’m older, I’ll have some free time to return and take classes as well. Marquette really shows us that you’re never too old to learn.”

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This election’s favorite buzzword is more than a platform policy—it’s a new approach to campaigning that both the McCain and Obama campaigns have embraced. Both parties have utilized unprecedented technology to reach voters, and despite that similarity, the national Obama and McCain campaign counterparts at Marquette have taken very different approaches to reach students.

CHANGING METHODS: PROGRESSIVE CAMPAIGNING ON CAMPUS

ON RED…

On the right, Students for McCain is focused primarily on attending off-campus events to spread McCain’s message to Marquette, and the surrounding Milwaukee community. “Campaigning is our main priority this year,” said Matt Dambach, Arts and Sciences senior and chair of Students for McCain at Marquette. “We distribute campaign literature, and hold weekly gatherings making phone calls at the McCain Victory Center in West Allis.”

Students for McCain has yet to bring speakers to campus or host election events at Marquette, but Dambach says he doesn’t think the group is lacking in presence. “It’s nice to have speakers, but especially in the next two months we think it’s a more beneficial use of time to reach voters, there will always be an opportunity to bring speakers in. We think it’s better to just go out and support McCain,” Dambach said.

Instead of looking to counter or compete with Students for Obama, Dambach said his group plans to solely focus on McCain. The organization currently works closely with Marquette College Republicans, and College Republicans chair Justin Phillips said the relationship between the two is evolving. “Right now there is a mix between the groups, though we hope that the roles of both organizations will be more distinct in the near future,” said Phillips. “One of the things we’ve talked about for the organizations was MUCRs handling off campus events and volunteer activities while Students for McCain handles more on campus things.”

Phillips said finding volunteers is one of the biggest challenges for the conservative cause at Marquette. “I have no doubt that MUCRs will be able to get people to volunteer once they find out that it is more fun than they realize,” said Phillips. “The other problem is the fact that being in both an urban setting and in a college campus, we’re fighting an uphill battle.”

The technological progressiveness of the national Obama campaign is also a challenge for those with the McCain camp locally. Dambach admits that the McCain campaign is behind technologically, but says it is debatable how many more young voters McCain could get with a more technologically based campaign. “I think it is well known that the Obama campaign was and still is aggressive with new technologies,” Dambach said. “However it should be noted that technological campaigning works well with younger voters and it is commonly known that younger voters tend to be more liberal.”

Dambach said that Facebook is one of his biggest tools, but he feels the most effective campaign results from a balance between technology and personal interaction. “Obviously campaigns are becoming more technologically based and as a result it is my job to make sure that Students for McCain keeps up with that,” said Dambach. “One of the key tools of this is Facebook and it is used, but at the same time I feel the most effective campaign tactics are face to face or at least over the phone where you can actually hear a human voice.”

ON BLUE…

Bringing an excitement to the election and registering students to vote is the main concern for Marquette’s College Democrats. Former chair of Marquette’s College Democrats and now State chair of Wisconsin College Democrats, Arts and Sciences senior Jason Rae says that because political involvement is often weaker with students, campaigning at Marquette can be a challenge. “We want to show that students can make a difference,” Rae said. “ The more students who vote, the more votes go to Barack Obama because of his message of hope and issues related to education, healthcare and many others that so widely affect students.”

Like their political counterparts, Marquette’s College Democrats also work closely with Students for Obama, however both groups are committed to maintaining a distinct focus in each respective organization.

“I work very hard, as does the chair of Students for Obama to ensure that campaign issues do not get muddled in with issues being addressed by College Democrats alone,” said Rae. “We understand that not everyone wants to be 100 percentfocused on the campaign all the time. Therefore, we are organizing some events unrelated to the election, such as issue forums and volunteer opportunities.”

Current chair of Marquette’s College Democrats, Arts and Sciences senior Kirsten Jones, said the election is the organization’s main concern this year, with special attention given to registering students to vote—as seen with the group’s registration rally with Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean, U.S. Representative Gwen Moore and Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett last week. “Democrats at Marquette are going to be taking an important, active role this fall in registering new voters and educating them about the important issues at stake in this election,” Jones said. “The person we are voting for in November is not simply going to be deciding policy for the next four years, but will be deciding policy for the next two or three decades. As such, it is so important for students to see the difference.”

CHANGING MINDS: REACHING THE POLITICALLY UNAWARE STUDENT

Reaching the middle of the road and politically unaware students remain a challenge for both campus political groups. Despite a larger youth voter turnout in recent elections, Marquette Students for McCain and Students for Obama are working to reach even the most disinterested students. “We are working to extend our base of support to students who may have never been politically active before,” Jason Rae said. “We are simply building on that message by raising awareness of the issues, having guest speakers who students can get excited about (such as Howard Dean last week), and encouraging students to get out the vote.”

The fact that students typically tend to be liberal doesn’t frustrate Phillips, who said that CR’s could do a good job of having a strong campus presence. “The only reason Obama is the nominee is because he won urban areas and college campuses. We need to make people realize that the only candidate that will bring positive change to this country is John McCain,” Phillips said. “We’re specifically focusing on volunteer opportunities like phone banks and lit drops that get students out into communities for various candidates.”

Despite efforts to expand to students not involved in politics, Arts and Sciences junior Catie Uggeri said she never sees advertisements for political events and doesn’t feel informed about the political atmosphere on campus. “I never see posters for political events where I take classes in the Chemistry building,” Uggeri said. “ I think they [College Republicans and College Democrats] do a very poor job of bringing in uninformed students who don’t know a lot about politics.”

Uggeri said those who don’t have a basic framework of political knowledge find it difficult to get involved. “Maybe I should go and experience a meeting or political event, but I have this notion that it would be way over my head and I wouldn’t be able to follow it,” she said. “Unless it affects you directly or unless you can see how it affects you, I just lose interest, because it no longer pertains to me or what I spend my time doing.”

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Fortunately, all the information you will need for your classes has been conveniently bound into one location: textbooks. You are already paying an arm and a leg or two for tuition, and many find themselves surrendering both arms in the aftermath of textbook shopping. There’s no doubt that textbooks are expensive, but you can save yourself a little bit of money if you know what all your options are, and are willing to do a little leg work – assuming you still have both after paying tuition. Once you have all the information, you can decide what works best for you.
BookMarq is the university owned and operated bookstore located just north of the Annex on 16th Street, the same street that McCormick Hall is on. Textbooks are always in abundance, and the convenience of being able to order your books online is very appealing to many students. Bookmarq’s central location makes them very accessible to students on campus and if you order your books online, you can have them shipped to your home or pick them up at the store. The academic sections and books are well marked and easy to find.

BookMarq does not provide this level of convenience and ease for free; prices tend to be slightly higher than the alternatives. Students who choose the campus bookstore generally do so for convenience. “When I have to take my business to a campus bookstore, I take it to BookMarq because I can use my Marquette Cash there,” said Amanda Wolff, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences. BookMarq’s number is (414) 288-7317.

Sweeney’s: If students are not willing to pay for that level of convenience, but do not want to look off campus, they generally head to Sweeney’s. Located on the corner of Wisconsin and 17th streets, Sweeney’s is campus’s independently owned bookstore. Prices are generally cheaper, but books are harder to find and not always readily available.

Sweeney’s tries to make their main customer the student and not the University, as they argue BookMarq does. Sweeney’s will be relocating after the fall semester to 14th and Wells streets, a location that used to be a Chinese restaurant, if any of you were curious about the pagoda over the front door. Their store hours for August are Monday-Friday 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. For more information about Sweeney’s or to order books online, click here.

Online Options: Many students are beginning to explore alternatives to campus bookstores. Online textbook shopping has exploded in the past couple of years, with more and more students trying to save any amount of money they can. Some popular sites include Amazon.com, half.com, textbooks.com, barnesandnoble.com and chegg.com to name a few. “[Chegg.com] has definitely become my favorite,” said Wolff. Chegg.com is a book rental site that rents books to students for the semester, then takes the books back with no return shipping charged. Many students, however, are weary to try online options because of the security risk involved; students are afraid that books will never be shipped or they might receive the wrong edition.

Whether you buy at BookMarq or Sweeney’s, Barnes and Noble or Amazon, almost everyone suggests shopping around a little bit before pulling the trigger. “Wait until after the first day of classes to buy your books,” said Andrew Schueller, a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences. “A few times a ‘required’ book wasn’t needed at all, so wait until your teacher personally hands you a book list and then buy those.”

So no matter where you buy from, it is important to explore all your options first, and hopefully buying books doesn’t have to be too painful.

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“Thus they even carried the sick out into the streets and laid them on cots and mats so that when Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on one or another of them…and they were all cured” (Acts 5:15-16). In early Christianity, people crowded the streets to see Saint Peter, hoping to be cured or blessed by touching him, or even by standing in his passing shadow. Not much has changed in two-thousand years, as Pope Benedict XVI’s apostolic visit to America demonstrated. The pope, who is the 265th successor of Saint Peter, brought hundreds of thousands of Catholic faithful from all over the nation to Washington, D.C. and New York during his apostolic visit to the United States.

His Holiness, along with the Bishops of the United States, chose “Christ Our Hope” as the theme for this historic visit, which marks Benedict’s first visit to the United States as pope. In his advance message to the United States before his arrival, the Pope noted that his mission in coming to America was to, “proclaim this great truth: Jesus Christ is hope.” This visit of hope comes in the wake of the much publicized sex abuse crisis, which has ravaged and devastated the Catholic Church in America, and amidst a culture of increasing secularism. The Pope told reporters onboard what has been dubbed Shepherd One, the Papal airplane, that he was “deeply ashamed” of sex abuse by priests and that he would, “do everything possible to heal this wound.”

His Holiness landed in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday April 15, where he was met at Andrew’s Air Force Base by President Bush. It was the first time Bush greeted a head of state outside the White House. Here, he was greeted by multi-lingual renditions of Happy Birthday, to celebrate the Pontiff’s 81st birthday on the April 16. After a short meeting with the President, the Pope retired for the evening. On his birthday, Wednesday, he journeyed to the White House for a more extensive meeting with Bush, and he was greeted by 12,000 guests on the South Lawn. Following this reception, the Pope met with the Conference of Catholic Bishops at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington. In his address to the Bishops of the nation he acknowledged the deep fervor for faith in the U.S., and prompted them to continue their fight against materialism, relativism and secularism. He also encouraged the Bishops to be proactive in combating sex abuse, and affirmed some of the new programs adopted to help combat abuse, but noted that, “the policies and programs you [the bishops] have adopted need to be placed in a wider context.” He tied these words into the need to educate children on authentic and moral Christian sexuality and the need to fight pornography and the “crude manipulation of sexuality” that plagues American youth today.

The following morning the Pope celebrated Mass at Nationals Park for almost 50,000 in attendance, telling the faithful in his homily to be a “leaven of evangelical hope in American society, striving to bring the light and truth of the Gospel to the task of building an ever more just and free world for generations yet to come.” Also on Thursday, the Pope visited the Catholic University of America, and addressed Catholic educators from around the nation. In his speech he noted that, “first and foremost every Catholic educational institution is a place to encounter the living God.” Beyond this, the Pope also affirmed that Catholic identity does not depend on statistics, nor can it “simply be equated with orthodoxy of course content.” Rather, Catholic identity should be measured by more, “namely that each and every aspect of your learning communities reverberates within the ecclesial life of faith.” The Holy Father concluded by making it clear that while academic freedom is vital and important, using academic freedom to teach things contrary to the faith causes one to “obstruct or even betray the university’s identity and mission.” Thus, the Pope said, “teachers and administrators, whether in universities or schools, have the duty and privilege to ensure that students receive instruction in Catholic doctrine and practice.”

Marquette’s own president, Rev. Robert A. Wild, S.J., was in attendance. Wild spoke with The Warrior and outlined some of the highlights of the Pope’s address. Wild applauded the Pope’s encouragement of those present to not be complacent in the search for truth, which manifests itself in Jesus Christ. He highlighted faith as an integral part of Marquette’s mission believing that Marquette does a good job of executing that mission of authentic Catholic faith.

“There are areas that we can do better in,” admits Wild, but the “search for truth is not an easy business,” and it is something that Marquette continues to strive for.

The Pope also held an interreligious prayer service on April 17 and met with leaders of the Washington, D.C.. Jewish community.

On April 18, the Pope traveled to New York City, where he addressed the United Nations in both French and English, speaking of the need to protect religious freedom and human dignity. The Pope also held a meeting of leaders from different Christian denominations at St. Joseph’s Church in New York where he expressed his desire for Christian unity and reaffirmed the existence of objective truth, as well as the need for not only spiritual, but doctrinal unity.

“A clear convincing testimony to the salvation wrought for us in Christ Jesus,” the Pope noted, “has to be based upon the notion of normative apostolic teaching: a teaching which indeed underlies the inspired word of God and sustains the sacramental life of Christians.”

A PERSONAL ACCOUNT

While the Pope was busy spreading his message of hope in New York, I was in the back of a full twelve passenger van traveling to see the Pope on Saturday, April 19. With us were Marquette students Scott Emerson and Matt Shireman, as well as other people not affiliated with the University. We embarked Thursday afternoon and spent that night in South Bend, Indiana, and arrived in New York City late Friday night and settled in at the Crotona tutoring center in the Bronx for the evening. The next morning we awoke early for Mass and then, after a short breakfast, made haste to St. Joseph’s Seminary where the Pope would be speaking later that afternoon in a rally of seminarians and young faithful from across the nation. During that time, His Holiness was celebrating Mass for clergy and religious at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

When we arrived, the field behind St. Joseph’s Seminary was mildly populated; Secret Service, state and local police were heavily present. We found a place on the lawn about thirty feet from the stage where the Pope would be speaking exclusively with the seminarians, who had preferred placement right in front of the stage, in front of us. The next few hours were spent watching and listening to the music and dance performances that had been arranged for entertainment. Some of the more notable acts included the Christian groups Third Day, Salvador, Toby Mac, and priest-rapper Stan Fortuna. The festivities concluded with a brief performance by Kelly Clarkson, who would later appear again before the Pope’s departure to sing Ave Maria to His Holiness. Despite our tickets coming with free food passes, our group collectively fasted, in fear of losing our plot of lawn if we moved to get food. Our hunger, in conjunction with the 70 degree heat which was exacerbated by the increasing number of spectators, made the several hours of waiting for the Pope rather arduous.

“The youth rally was a long day of being out in the sun, without food and with little water, surrounded by tens of thousands of other people,” says Matt Shireman, a senior in Engineering with whom I traveled. “But it was incredible to be a part of the crowd when the Holy Father arrived.”

Upon arriving, His Holiness first visited the seminary chapel where he blessed handicapped children in a gesture of the Church’s love for all persons, even those on whom secular society places less value. After this, he traveled via Pope-mobile down to the field where 20,000 seminarians and youth awaited him. While at St. Joseph’s, the Pope encouraged youth to model their lives after those of the saints. He poignantly urged that America’s youth develop a personal relationship with Christ and realize the expansive wonder and awe found in the Christian faith, stating that, “sometimes, we are looked upon as people who speak only of prohibitions. Nothing could be further from the truth! Authentic Christian discipleship is marked by a sense of wonder. We stand before the God we know and love as a friend, the vastness of his creation, and the beauty of our Christian faith.”

“The Holy Father spoke directly to the hearts of young American Catholics,” notes Shireman. “It was all a bit surreal.”

Being able to experience the presence of the Pope, the successor of Saint Peter upon whom Christ built the Church (see Matthew 16:18), at St. Joseph’s Seminary was indeed a surreal experience. An even more surreal experience, however, was being able to attend Mass celebrated by him. The following day, Sunday, we again awoke early to make our way to Yankee Stadium, where the Pope would be celebrating Mass. Close to 60,000 people were in attendance, and the enormous volume of people made getting to the appropriate gate assigned on our tickets difficult. Our seats were not as spectacular as those we had the previous day at the seminary; however we had a great view of the elaborate stage and altar that had been erected for the Pope’s visit. When His Holiness finally arrived at Yankee Stadium, driving around the edge of the field in the Pope-mobile, the excited crowd rose with jovial applause and shouts. Indeed, it was an exciting moment, to be part of a vast number of Catholic faithful who were all united in a very special way in the presence of the Vicar of Christ on earth.

“Mass with the Pope was an awesome experience,” says Scott Emerson, a sophomore in Engineering, who was also among my traveling companions, “just to be in his presence, along with thousands of other Catholics who are all cheering and exited about their faith…it’s amazing.” Emerson points out that the Pope’s homily was as inspiring as it was intellectually challenging. “We have to remember that this Pope is a scholar. His speeches and homilies are very intellectual, as well as deep and insightful.”

In his homily at Yankee Stadium, the Pope challenged the faithful to follow Christ’s footsteps, telling those present that, “true freedom…is found only in the self-surrender which is part of the mystery of love. Only by losing ourselves, the Lord tells us, do we truly find ourselves.”

On his last day in the United States, the Pope visited Ground Zero, where he prayed for God to grant eternal light and peace to those who had perished in the September 11 attacks. After his stop at Ground Zero, the Pope made his way to JFK International Airport, where Vice-President Dick Cheney awaited him as he finished his apostolic visit to America. He thanked America for its hospitality and professed his joy in the faith of the American Catholic community. Bidding farewell to our nation, he took his leave and asked that Americans remember him in their prayers, leaving us with the words: “God bless America.”

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Following this afternoon’s press conference about Marquette’s reaction to the departure of nine-year Head Coach Tom Crean, Warrior reporters spoke with Lazar Hayward and Dominic James, both of whom expressed residual troubles surrounding Crean’s departure on April 1.

“It hurts when the team is losing its leader,” James said in the Al McGuire Center lobby. “But we have to move on.”

Hayward said the difficulties he was having stemmed from the fact that the team seemed to be gelling and falling into place as one of the top five teams in the Big East.

“It’s tough to deal with, especially when we played so well last year,” Hayward said.

In terms of the team’s future, Hayward said his goals have not changed.

“It’s the same goals as last year,” Hayward said. “I’m always trying to get better and improve. No matter what happens I’m always working to improve on last year.”

James, though, went one step further.

“It increases goals,” James said.

When asked whether or not Crean’s departure would affect his decision to leave Marquette early for the NBA draft, James indicated that it would.

“It’s definitely a factor, but it is going to take time. I need to talk to my teammates before I make a decision,” James said. “It’s going to take time.”

But to further muddy the waters about his already clouded future at Marquette, James seemed to signal that reprisal was in the front of his mind.

“It increases goals.” James went on, “If someone leaves us, we just want to rub it in.”

In spite of recruits asking for release from their obligations to Marquette and rumors surrounding any future coach – names that include Tony Bennett of Washington State, Bobby Knight formerly of Army, Indiana and Texas Tech, Bruce Weber of Illinois and Sean Miller of Xavier – Hayward’s criteria for a future coach is simple:

“We want someone who’s a hard-worker, allows us to play freely and loves winning,” said Hayward.

Photo Credit: Mike Rudzinski

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It was the kidnapping and five armed robberies that occurred within the two weeks just prior to Spring Break that made Micaela Robb-McGrath conscious of the realities of crime in District 3.

“Although I thought I was making good choices, I really probably wasn’t making the best choices for my safety,” Robb-McGrath, a sophomore in the College of Communication, said. “The time and circumstances surrounding the incidents, especially the clustering and severity of the crimes showed that I really do need to take proactive steps to be safe on campus.”

With the recent spike in violent crime on campus, the perception of students tends to be that violent crime in the area is increasing.

“I thought crime in the immediate Marquette area was increasing after those events,” Robb-McGrath said.

With nationally recognized student safety programs, Marquette’s Department of Public Safety is looked to as the remedy for crime on campus. Especially in light of the recent violence, DPS has made itself, along with the Milwaukee Police Department available to address concerns and answer questions from the Marquette community, as was seen in a March 10 forum. However, despite the efforts of DPS, some students still have reservations about the level of safety on campus.

“Those crimes were just jarring and shocking,” Julie Knyszek, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, said. “When they’re separated out you don’t think about it as much as when it all happens in one week.”

District 3 does have higher numbers of violent crime than other areas of Milwaukee, but, according to the MPD Web site, violent crime, including robberies, has actually decreased by 62 percent since 1990.

The expansion of DPS, not only in numbers, but in the continual creation of effective student safety programs also affects crime trends. Since his start with DPS in 1985, Captain Russell Shaw said the department has grown three times its original size.

“As far as personal crime goes, since the late 90s, it has decreased at Marquette,” Shaw said. “With the recent spike in robberies, the perception might be the opposite, but in reality the numbers are lower.”

“CRIMES OF OPPORTUNITY”

In the most recent robbery that occurred over spring break on W. Wisconsin Ave., Shaw said all of the five suspects came from outside of District 3 to commit the crime.

“The majority of violent crime around campus committed is from those outside our area,” Shaw said. “It’s often a crime of opportunity; in a lot of these cases they’re just riding through here.”

As far as increased security measures are concerned, Shaw said the department continues to add more cameras and has cut vacation time to be able to keep a high level of manpower in the department and more officers on the streets.

“We’re creating more overtime and trying to saturate the area as much as we can to have more squads out there,” Shaw said.

In terms of crime, Marquette is a very safe area to be living in, but taking preventative measures along with gaining a broader understanding of violent crime in the area makes a difference in decreasing a student’s chances of being a victim, said Shaw.

“It’s important to look at the big picture outside the patrol area, students never think crime is going to happen to them and it gets frustrating when students don’t take advantage of the safety programs” Shaw said. “A decent amount of students come from rural areas and it takes time to adjust to the urban environment, but students need to be totally aware of their surroundings.”

Despite complaints that DPS is not always upfront about the nature of the severity of campus crimes, Shaw maintains the department does not try to withhold information.

“We’re not trying to hide things when we put information about an incident out there,” Shaw said.

The need for departmental discretion when dealing with crime information is also present in the relationship between MPD and the public. “We weigh the need for people to know about the crimes with the need for a successful resolution,” MPD District 3 Captain James Harpole said.

A new approach to community policing, with a focus on building and fostering relationships between DPS, MPD and residents of the community is becoming an increasingly prevalent and effective way to control crime.

“It was an error of the past to look at community policing as just a program. It is not a program, but a method of operation, focusing on responding to the needs of the community,” Harpole said. “We are working towards becoming proactive instead of reactive like we are now. Our goal is to get rid of the visible signs of disorder and crime. We need to stop people from coming from other areas into District 3 to buy drugs and sex.”

“INTELLIGENCE LED, DATA DRIVEN AND PROACTIVE”

With the limited resources that exist in all communities, learning to balance and work with budgets at the state and local levels is a recurrent challenge of law enforcement at Marquette and in Milwaukee.

“It can be difficult, because preventing crime is resource intensive, and when there are visible signs that something is happening on the street, it adds to that negative perception of the neighborhood,” Jeffrey Altenburg, Marquette alumnus and Director of the Community Based Prosecution Unit for Milwaukee County, said. “Our early priority has been to get a plan in place, where we’re looking for results on violent crime and we’re committed to use info to get specific resources.”

The emphasis on personal relationships, not only between police and the community but also within the department, is the focus of MPD, which “continues to be intelligence led, data driven and proactive,” Altenburg said.

Graduating from Marquette in 1986, Altenburg said that when he was a student, Public Safety was not the advanced policing force it has since become.

“When I was at Marquette, DPS was more like mall security,” Altenburg said. “But the transformation of the department did not happen overnight, you’ll get returns where you put resources in.”

Despite the strides DPS has and continues to make, the realities of an urban environment make crime nearly inevitable.

“I understand crime is not their fault because there’s only so much power in the department and they’re limited by so many factors,” Knyzsek said. “When crime increases they only use what they have available, but I would like MPD to be more available on campus,” Knyszek said.

Although students’ perceptions may be that more cops equal less crime, Harpole said more cops doesn’t necessarily equate to a safer neighborhood.

“For the number of people at Marquette, crime is low,” Harpole said. “Crime happens everywhere, but in Milwaukee we already have this perception that it’s crime filled, but it’s really an anomaly. You can’t condemn the neighborhood and be paralyzed by fear; sometimes we look at such a small snapshot in time when it’s not always accurate.”

As much as crime is stopped by law enforcement, the prosecution of crime plays a pivotal role in diminishing crime in District 3. However, because of budget restrictions and resource limitations, the District Attorney’s office has looked to alternatives outside the criminal justice system, better suited to deal with specific offenses, Altenburg said.

“We’ve been getting smarter about how you bring people into the criminal justice system, you have to preserve limited resources for violent individuals,” Altenburg said. “We’re not soft on crime, we’re tough on crime, but when you lose 20 prosecutors in the DA’s office you have to make tough decisions.”

In addition to understanding what works in the criminal justice system, Altenburg maintains identity is key to cutting crime.

“More neighborhood identity, and relationships and communication improve crime in the community,” Altenburg said.

THE IMPACT OF THE AVENUES WEST ASSOCIATION

As much as law enforcement and prosecutors impact crime in the area, the redevelopment of the business district around Marquette and revitalization of buildings in the community in recent years has played a critical role in violent crime development.

“There really has been a steady, but dramatic downward trend in crime in District 3,” June Moberly, executive director of the Avenues West Association, the local neighborhood revitalization association said. “The investment and reinvestment in businesses and upgrading buildings in the community has had a real impact.”

The Avenues West Association works with businesses in District 3 to improve property management practices and to create a safer environment. The association also works with landlords in the area, encouraging them not to rent to troubled tenants, said Moberly.

Currently the Association is working on infrastructure reinvestments, pedestrian lightings and 27th St. main streets program in the neighborhood. Business and building improvements to the neighborhood has increased property values in the last 13 years.

According to the Avenues West Association’s 2007 Annual Report in comments made by Association President and Marquette Vice President of the Office of Public Affairs Rana Altenburg, “property values within the Avenues West Business Improvement District rose from $46,524,890 in 1993 to $92,953,229 in 2006.

Despite increased real estate values, poverty is still a concern in District 3. “District 3 is home to a more poverty stricken community, and with that higher level of poverty, there tends to be more crime,” Harpole said.

Along with poverty, the Ambassador Hotel, which catered to prostitutes and extensive drug activity in the mid-80s, also played a large role in crime, and contributed to a perception of the community around Marquette as blighted and dangerous.

“Business districts help communities thrive, but when they decline, and there’s that perception that businesses are boarded up, the trend tends to be that homeowners leave and renters come in,” Harpole said.

However, with neighborhood improvements in Avenues West, there continues to be a stronger element of home ownership. As Marquette also purchases property in the area and renovates it, the perception of District 3 improves.

“The investments Marquette has made have been instrumental in improving the area,” Harpole said. “Marquette’s vision for the area has played a huge role in the rebirth of the region with the Ambassador Hotel renovation and other recent developments.”

Part 2
by Robert Fafinski III

For Mike Heim, senior in the College of Arts and Sciences, though, all these facts and figures came crashing down on him one night in late 2006. On an otherwise normal evening at Marquette, Heim, a thrower on the Track team, was walking back from studying at the Al McGuire Center.

“I saw two black guys coming at me with a purpose, I had a moment of indecision-thought ‘what do I do?’-and then it happened… the first guy grabbed me, pulled me onto the grass. I tensed up to fight, and that’s when I saw the other guy pointing a gun at me.”

Heim is not someone a person would normally associate with being the victim of a crime. A thrower on the Track team, Heim’s size and strength are considered some of his greatest assets. He’s 6’6” and weighs 270 pounds. He is a big guy. But now, Heim realizes his size only gave him a false sense of security.
“I have no more illusions that I can’t get picked on because I’m big,” he said in an interview Monday.

After the initial shock wore off and Heim realized that he was being mugged, he attempted to look at the men for distinguishing features, something he hoped could be used for subsequent police efforts. That’s when the scariest thing happened.

“After the confusion wore off, I started to look up because I may have had to identify the guys. That’s when the guy thrust up the gun at my face and said, ‘Don’t f—— look at me or I’ll shoot your ass.”

It’s at this point that looking back Heim is finally actually able to find a little humor in the incident.
“When he said that, I stuck my chin waaay down on my chest I was so scared I did whatever they said.”

When the men had taken all of Heim’s personal property, they told him to walk back the way he had come while they mad their getaway.

“When they had everything, they said ‘turn back and walk back the way you came- don’t turn around or I’ll shoot you.’ And I believed them.”
Heim then stumbled upon two unsuspecting Marquette women who let him into their apartment and called DPS. Heim was physically safe, but the damage to his psyche was just setting in.

MU RESPONSE “AWESOME”

Marquette University Public Safety acted very professionally and caring, according to Heim. Despite his shaken state, the first officer on the scene was very helpful- suggesting counseling and even giving Heim a pamphlet about identity theft.
“I thought [DPS was] awesome. They were patient because I was speaking a mile a minute. The officer was really nice. He talked to me about victim counseling. He also told me, ‘this is a traumatic crime. If at any point in the future you feel nervous or need someone to talk to, just pick up a Blue Light Phone and one of our officers will just pick you up and drive you home.’”
Heim did, in fact, utilize the victim counseling services offered by Marquette. Often after a traumatic crime, the victim will not feel comfortable talking about his feelings to someone who has not had a shared experience. So Heim was a little apprehensive about going to counseling.

But, he said, “It did help. I mean, those people are trained to understand. It gave me something to bounce my frustrations off of. It was someone to talk to and [Marquette University] really prepared a lot of support for me.”
What was not “awesome” for Heim was the criminal outcome. The two men were never found. They used his debit card a few times over the next hour or so, but then the trail went cold.

MENTAL CONCERNS

When the DPS officers arrived at the apartment after the mugging, Heim was finally safe. The muggers could not get to him. But just because he was physically safe did not mean the damage was done.

It is not easy for Heim to talk about it, but that the mugging really does stay with him on a daily basis while on Marquette’s campus.

“I’m still having trouble with it…It really changes your perception of things,” he said. “I’d hear a noise that usually wouldn’t startle me and I’d jump right out of my seat.”

After the robbery, Heim took steps to avoid being the victim of another traumatic crime. He was much more cognizant of people around him on campus. He used Marquette’s LIMO program. But this year, his vigilance began to wane. But with the recent wave of criminal activity on campus, Heim has largely returned to his vigilant ways.

“You know, I try not to walk home by myself anymore, especially realizing this crime spree recently. I take LIMOS and get rides after the sun goes down,” he said. “Whenever I walk anywhere off of Wisconsin Avenue, my head’s on a swivel.”
In all, Heim says he lost a little over $300 worth of property. Not bad considering he had a pistol pointed at his face for a few minutes. But even worse than the monetary loss for Heim is the loss of innocence.

“The worst thing they did is take away my sense of security,” he said. “Obviously, I wasn’t comfortable here at Marquette.”

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The news that no Marquette fan wanted to hear on a day that no Marquette fan really wants to believe has arrived. On April 1st, the Golden Eagles head coach, Tom Crean, left our beloved basketball program in pursuit of a job at the University of Indiana. With Crean leaving for a school in need of rebuilding and full of questions, Marquette fans are left with many questions of their own. The two main questions that everyone is asking are: will Crean’s recruits stay at Marquette or will they leave now that he is no longer their coach, and who will be able to fill the job that Crean has left vacant? Unfortunately, for us this very well may mean that both James and McNeal could be going out for the draft, as well as a couple of Crean’s 2009 recruits starting to look at what the Hoosiers can offer them.

However, there is plenty for Marquette fans to be skeptical about. Whether you are angry with him for leaving Marquette or happy to see some change, there is no doubt that he has given Marquette a height of attention that it has not seen since the Al McGuire days. He also did a great job of leading Marquette to becoming one of the most dominant teams of arguably the best conference in basketball – oh, and by the way, he took us to the Final Four in 2003. With all the national attention Marquette has received, we are able to talk to some quality coaches who may not have even considered Marquette previously.

One name that has been floating around between students is Bobby Knight. It would be very ironic if the former Indiana coach ended up at Marquette right after Crean’s departure. Knight retired from Texas Tech mid-season and became a part time analyst for ESPN. Many in the basketball community believe that Knight will coach again, but would he come back so soon? While Knight without a doubt would make a great head coach at Marquette and probably take the team to the next level, the odds may be against the former Hoosier coming back just months after retirement.

Despite their poor finish in the tournament, Drake’s head coach, Keno Davis, would be a great candidate for the coaching job. He led the Bulldogs in a dominating season in the Missouri Valley Conference and achieved a five seed in the NCAA tournament. This all coming from a coach whose team was expected to finish ninth in the conference.

Davidson’s lead man Bob McKillop is also a great option. He has shown a great eye for recruiting bringing in strong recruits such as Stephen Curry, Andrew Lovedale and Jason Richards. He had an extremely successful year in which he led the Wildcats to an Elite Eight appearance.

Now that Lute Olson is back with Arizona and he’s released the interim coach Kevin O’Neill, there is an opportunity to get somebody that had some success in a tumultuous year in and in a power conference. Not to mention that O’Neill used to coach at Marquette.

These are all good options for the lead man, but the best thing to do right now may be to wait and see who else becomes available. Regardless of what happens, Marquette is back on track as being one of the elite programs in the country and it will not take a legend to keep the success coming.

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