Western Front - 2004 October 22

              DANCE QUEENS
The Lucky Devil Girly Show
hits The 3B Tavern.
Accent, Page 7
CANNABIS INDUSTRY
industrial hemp production would
help save resources.
Opinions, Page 10
FROM SCRATCH
Lummi Island has a new
home-field advantage.
Sports, Page 8
Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington
ISSUE 10
Volume 131 The Western Front Friday
Oct. 22, 2004
Western mourns soldier
Chris Taylor/The Western Front
Western students, friends and fellow Sehome High School graduates commemorate fallen Army
Cpl. Jonathan Santos, 22, son of Wellness Outreach Center coordinator Doris Kent, Thursday
outside the Performing Arts Center.
Western staff member's son is No. 1,096 to die in Iraq
By Laura McVicker
The Western Front
Friends and students gathered
Thursday to honor Bellingham native
and Sehome High School graduate
Army Cpl. Jonathan Santos, 22,
who died in action in Iraq on Oct.
15. Santos' mother, Doris Kent, is
Western's Wellness Outreach Center
coordinator.
Many of those who attended had
never met Santos.
"So many people care about (Kent)
and didn't even know Jonathan," said
Brian Pahl, coordinator of the men's
violence protection project and a co­worker
and friend of Kent's. "But
knowing her and just hearing stories
that she would tell them, they feel
personally affected by ... his loss."
The vigil took place in front of
the Performing Arts Center at 5 p.m.
Thursday. Kent's co-workers and
students involved in the lifestyle
advisor program, which Kent advises
along with others, were among the
many who attended.
Mourners lit candles and stood in
silent memorial of Santos. Several
spoke on behalf of Kent and the life
of her son.
"Doris needs support right now,"
Western senior and lifestyle advisor
Rebecca Brummel said to the crowd.
"And when all is said and done, she's
still going to need that support. And
SEE Soldier, PAGE 4
Theatre department
suspends professor
for unnamed reasons
ByElanaBean
The Western Front
Western's theatre arts department suspended associate professor
Perry Mills with pay Tuesday for undisclosed reasons.
Mills, a well-known professor on campus, teaches several cinema
and theater classes.
Department chair and professor Mark Kuntz said he would not
reveal the reasons for Mills' suspension because the matter concerns
department personnel.
"This is to honor and protect
Perry's privacy," Kuntz said.
Mills tells a much different story.
"I was suspended and told to leave
the campus because the department
chair got a report of a student seeing
(me) with a pocketknife," he said.
University Police Chief Jim
Shaw said Mills is unable to return
to campus without UP deciding
whether he needs a police escort,
which he said is standard protocol for
any instructor on paid suspension.
"I don't know how they have the
power to ban me from campus," Mills said.
Mills said he asked the police if the pocketknife was considered a
weapon. He said the police said the pocketknife was OK to have on
campus.
University Police Cpl. Josef Bailey said that any knife, however,
can be considered a deadly weapon, and the only people authorized
to carry weapons on public school grounds are police.
Shaw said Kuntz's administrative assistant, Kay Reddell,
requested a civil standby Oct. 20 at the Performing Arts Center.
A civil standby ensures that when an officer serves papers, the
interaction goes smoothly. An officer acted as a witness while Kuntz
gave the letter to Mills, Shaw said.
Mills said he is most upset about the effect his suspension will
have on his students. He said the quarter is ruined for his students,
many of whom need his guidance in upper-division classes.
SEE Mills, PAGE 4
Courtesy of the Western
theatre arts department
Associate professor
Perry Mills.
Christian peacemakers
tell students about Iraq
By Marissa Harshman
The Western Front
Western students and community
members got a glimpse into
the atmosphere of wartime Iraq
Wednesday without being exposed
to the physical dangers of war.
Christian Peacemaker Team
members Ryan and Christie Schmid
spoke about their trip to Iraq at the
Fairhaven College Auditorium as
part of Fairhaven College's World
Issues Forum.
From mid-February to March,
the Schmids traveled through Iraq,
interacting with villagers, victims
of raids, human-rights organizers
and U.S. soldiers.
"We got to see the beauty
and strong relationships people
had with each other," Christie
Schmid said.
The Schmids traveled in a group
of eight short-term and eight long-term
Christian Peacemaker Team
members. The long-term members
will stay in Iraq for six months,
return home for a month and then
travel to other areas the teams are
working with, including Colombia
and Palestine.
Christian Peacemaker Teams
initiated long-term presence in Iraq
in October 2002 before the war
began, according to the Christian
Peacemaker Teams' Web site.
While traveling through the
SEE Iraq, PAGE 4
Business, economics college
recognizes Western scholars
Chris Taylor/The Western Front
Brian Burton, associate dean of the College of Business and
Economics (right) mingles with students Thursday at a merit
and distinguished scholar event.
By Ruth Wetzel
The Western Front
When applying to Western as
a transfer student, junior Bonnie
Morse said she wanted to be a
business major. As a result of that
interest, combined with the quality
of her application, she was one of 16
Western applicants invited to attend
a merit and distinguished scholar
event presented by the College of
Business and Economics.
The event, at 4 p.m. Thursday in
Old Main 590, was the first time
the college has had an event of this
kind, Associate Dean Brian Burton
said. In a joint effort, the dean's
SEE Scholars, PAGE 3
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