Western Front - 2001 May 1

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The Western Front
Western Washington University Volume 116 Issue 8 Bellingham, Washington
Parking lot
surveillance
increases
By Carly Barrett
THE WESTERN FRONT
Increased surveillance of
Western's parking lots may
reduce the unusually high num­ber
of car prowls this year said,
Dave Doughty, assistant chief of
University Police.
"We're going to concentrate
more attention on all the park­ing
lots around Western by
applying more undercover work,
such as placing officers in the
corners of the parking lots and
inside of bushes," Doughty said.
Twenty-eight reports of car
theft have been reported since
the beginning of spring quarter.
The number of car prowls com­mitted
this year on Western's
campus has surpassed last
year's record of 72.
Despite the rising numbers of
car prowl incidents and com­plaints
of students who feel the
lighting around campus is
insufficient, UP have not yet
decided whether more lighting
will be placed around the cam-pus
parking lots.
Stephanie Kosonen/ The Western Front
Under doctor's orders, Cindy Rawls wears a mask to alleviate respiratory problems caused by construction dust. Students sickened, AS renovates
See PROWLER, Page 5 vices
By Ken Jager
THE WESTERN FRONT
Last week, Associated
Students Bookstore employees
sent a letter to Gayle Shipley,
director of environmental ser-at
Western, asking for
the bookstore to be shut down
until "it became a safe working
environment."
Breathing problems, coughing
and eye irritation were among
the symptoms bookstore
employees experienced due to
residual dust from the construc­tion
of the Viking Union, the
bookstore's temporary location.
The bookstore moved into the
VU so the permanent location
be remodeled as part of the VU
renovation project.
"We never should have moved
into this building until it had
been properly cleaned," AS
Bookstore manager Dave
MacAuley said.
Bookstore cashier Lauren
Rosenthal, who is the one who
initiated the letter to Shipley, is
a strong proponent of shutting
the bookstore down.
"Everyone is getting sick,"
See BOOKSTORE, Page 3
AS representative responsibilities unclear, students say
By Emily Christianson
THE WESTERN FRONT
Western students say they
support what the Associated
Students board of directors has
done during the past year, but
they just don't know what it is.
"I remember at freshman ori­entation
they were there," fresh­man
Megan Bloom said. "I think
that's the only time I've seen
them."
"It seems like because
(Western's) such a big school it's
hard to get recognition, and it's
hard to get connected," fresh­man
Kim Larson said.
Stacey Valentin, vice presi­dent
for Legislative and
Community Affairs, said she
facilitated a successful "Get out
the Vote" campaign fall quarter
by visiting political science
classes and dining halls and set­ting
up tables in Red Square to
encourage students to register
to vote. Valentin said she
worked closely with Josh Dyck
of the U.S. Students Association
to meet their goal.
The USSA participated in
door knocking and telephone
calls to students, while jointly
advertising with signs and mail­ings
with the AS.
"I saw lots of signs about vot­ing
during voting time, trying to
get people to register," junior Ed
Berschauer said, adding he did
not know which organizations
were involved with posting the
signs. »
In combination with the signs,
the' efforts of the two groups
were awarded with the
"Outstanding Campaign" for a
non-member school by the USSA
and were recognized by The
Seattle Times and King 5 News
as contributing significantly to
the success of Sen. Maria
Cantwell's senate race.
Valentin said she also followed
through on a 'Viking Day at
Olympia" idea she had hoped to
implement when she became a
vice president.
The students used personal
Softball wins PacWest
By Sonja Rose
THE WESTERN FRONT
The Western Women's softball team
swept Saint Martin's College in a
doubleheader last weekend for the
PacWest West Division title. With the
wins comes the opportunity for
Western to host the PacWest tourna­ment
this weekend.
Game one of the double-header
proved to be a nail-biter, ending in a 1-
0 shutout of Saint Martin's. Game two
was no less dramatic, as the Vikings
notched a 4-3 come-from-behind vic­tory.
"I think we did really well today,"
senior Dani Puz said. "We had a lot of
pressure on us, and I think we fought
hard."
Sophomore Amanda Grant pitched
her 17th complete game of the season
allowing six hits, no walks and zero
Stephanie Kosonen/ The Western Front r u n s a n ( i striking out four batters in
Sarah Diamond pitched five innings for the Vikings. game one.
The game proved to be a pitcher's
duel for both teams.
The Vikings were mired in a score­less
tie until the fifth inning, when
senior Darcy Taylor reached first base
on a fielding error. Puz advanced
Taylor to second with a bunt to the first
baseman. Freshman Dani Deyette hit
a sacrifice bunt to advance Taylor to
third.
A managerial move to pinch hit
freshman Jodie Rock for freshman
Charity Harmeson proved to be the
defining moment of the game. Rock
flew out to center field but the hit was
deep enough, as Taylor scored on a
throwing error.
The unearned run proved enough for
the Vikings 1-0 victory as Grant
silenced the Saint Martin's batters for
the remaining two innings.
"I wanted to make sure I was chal­lenging
the hitters every single at bat
and giving them my best stuff," Grant
said. "Just keeping them off balance."
See SOFTBALL, Page 10
testimony to lobby for linked
and predictable tuition increas­es
while attending meetings
directly with legislators. Their
lobby included Top Ramen with
letters from the students to
hand out to each legislator they
came in contact with.
"I think that was funny but
very effective as well," Western
student Nova Gattman said.
"I'm sure everyone there got a
good laugh about it. This is what
See AS, Page 5
IN THIS ISSUE
Fantastic Four
Western's softball team
showcase four elite pitchers
with a variety of pitches
See story, Page 10.
Sweet smell of funny
money in Carver Gym
Hustlers gambled, gamblers
hustled and
cheesy pick­up
lines were
exchanged at
Western's
25th annual
Casino Night
Saturday.
See story, Page 8.
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