Trojans fall into role of spoiler
The USC men's basketball team travels to Seattle tonight to face a Washington team needing to win its remaining three games to have a shot at qualifying for the NCAA Tournament,
Sports, page 16
Blondes really do have more fun
"The Real Blonde," directed by Tom DiCillo in a very Robert Altman-esque style, is a campy romp tnrough the fashion industry. Characters interact wonderfully and the casting is superb.
Diversions, page 7
An olive branch, just out of reach
Even with a tentative agreement, should the United States ease up on Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein? Editorial Columnist Sarita D. Jackson and Viewpoint Writer Jennifer Prosser debate the point.
Viewpoint, page 4
F.Y.I.
Marathon club, 'MaeBeth' play
The USC Marathon Club is meeting in the Cardinal Room of the Lyon Center from 6 to 7 p.m. tonight. The club is preparing for the L.A. Marathon on March 29.
For more information, contact Brian Outlaw at eout-law@usc.edu or Dr. Carbuto at (213) 740-5344.
•••
The School of Theatre will be performing "MacBeth" in Bing Theatre at 7 p.m. tonight. Admission is $3 for students and seniors and $5 for the public.
For tickets, call (213) 740-7111.
• ••
The Diavolo Dance Theatre Company will perform in Bovard Auditorium at 7 p.m. tonight. The event is sponsored by Spectrum. Admission is free to students with a USC ID, $5 for faculty and staff and $10 for the general public.
For tickets, call (213) 740-7111.
Campaign statements stir debate
Presidential ticket allegedly changes stance on Burning of the Bruin issue
By Ben Berkowitz
Assistant City Editor
■
Although attendees said stu dent body presidential and vice residental candidates Jon ialon and Chris O'Connor told a Black Student Assembly meeting Tuesday night that they would not support the Bumin] of the Bruin next year, an would in fact work to stop it, the ticket has been endorsed by the College Republicans, the organization that fought to preserve the event last fall,
Bialon and O'Connor, as well as the other presidential tickets, were at the BSA meeting to explain their platforms to the organization. Members of the group asked Bialon and O'Connor specifically what they
would do about the Burning of the Bruin. BSA supported the Black Student Union, tneir branch organization, in ending the once-annual event last semester.
At first, Bialon and O'Connor said that they wanted to let the student body decide and that the majority should rule., meeting attendees said. However, BSA members pressed the pair for a more specific answer and made reference to instances in history where majority rule led to oppression. At that point, Bialon and O'Connor reportedly changed their stance.
"They gave the impression that as president and vice president they would give their all to make sure there was unity among the campus community, and that included the elimina-
tion of activities the students would have problems with," said Imani Butler, a sophomore majoring in philosophy and psychology ana a member of BbA.
"The impression that I got was yes, they would do whatever they could to stop the Burning of the Bruin," said Amber Johnson, a sophomore majoring in psychology and pre-medicine and the secretary of the BSA, as well as vice president of the Black Women's Caucus.
Bialon said that he stressed to the BSA the importance of bringing the issue to the students and that he made no direct promises.
"We actually said we want to take it directly to a student vote,'' he said.
Jason Gray, chairman of the CRs, said that his organization is committed to bringing back the Burning of the Bruin, and Bialon and O'Connor are "the only ticket that is supporting the idea of the majority of the university
making the choice."
When asked if the CRs endorsement of Bialon and O'Connor bothered her, Johnson said, "Yeah, it does, because to an extent I see some phoniness I see their speaking to us about the Burning of the Bruin as a ploy to get the vote of the black students on campus."
"The College Republicans stand for a lot more than just the Burning of the Bruin," Bialon said.
In an e-mail to all members announcing the CRs endorsement Tuesday night, Gray said, "Jon's and Chris' stances on important campus issues closely enough represented the conservative and small-government positions of the CRs that we were proud to support them."
It continued, "We cannot allow another year of politically correct, anti-free speech, antirivalry student government on this campus."
Swing shift
Elections continue
By Ben Berkowitz
Assistant City Editor
The first day of Student Senate elections ran with only a handful of problems, and voter turnout was better than expected, said Elections Commissioner Irfan Elahi.
Elahi said that as of 4 p.m., at least 600 votes had been cast and that ballot security was very tight. "There have
been no compromises," he said.
One poll, located in the Engineering Quad, was closed because none of the polling workers showed up for work. A mobile poll was set up in the afternoon outside of Seeley G. Mudd to handle the group of students coming out of an organic chemistry midterm.
One reason for the polling shortage was that some groups who volunteered to help, like Helenes and Trojan Knights, did not bring as many people as
(See Elections, page 2)
Local politics focus of charter meeting
Jaaaica Namakkal / Daily TVoJan Glen Marhevka, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy trumpet player, performs Wednesday in a lunchtime concert in Hahn Plaza sponsored by Student Senate and Program Board.
■■■ ..
By Robin Levine
Staff Writer
There is a need to concentrate on making government more accessible to the public, said many of the members of the Appointed L.A. Charter Reform Commission on Wednesday.
At a public meeting commission members voiced the need to change the city charter and involve the public more intimately in local government.
Last April, voters approved a
ballot to reform the city charter, which establishes the supreme law in the city government, for the first time in 72 years.
“The charter is like the Constitution, in that it describes the way in which government operates," said Erwin Chem-erinsky, a USC law professor and chairman of the elected charter commission.
Two commissions were established last year to draw up charters. The commission that met (See Charter, page 3)
.'M
MBA program ranks in nation's top 25, again
By Sylvia Moore Staff Writer
U.S. News & World Report ranked the Marshall School of Business' graduate program 21st out of the top 50 American business schools for 1998, an increase of 13 places from last year's rankings.
John Crowe, senior associate dean for external affairs in the business school, said that the school's jump in the rankings was due to better qualified applicants as well as an improvement in California's economy.
"We did see an improvement in the calibcr of students this fall which will increase again," he said.
Overall, the undergraduate grade point average for Marshall's fall class last year was
3.2, and the average GMAT score was 640.
The number of USC MBAs employed three months after graduation increased from 87 percent in 19% to 95.6 percent in 1997, Crowe said. Management consulting firms were the top recruiters.
"We expect this year to be the best recruit-ingyear," he said.
Tne top five include: Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Pennsylvania. USC tied with Emory University in Georgia and Indiana University for the 21st spot.
As corporate downsizing slowed and the Pacific Coast economy began to strengthen, more and more companies began hiring
MBAs. As a result, 61 percent of MBA pro-
grams saw an increase in the number of students applying to their schools, according to the article. Crowe said applications to the business school grew from 1,200 in 19% to 1,800 last year.
However, one of the business school's weaknesses remains its reputation among corporate recruiters, something that has kept the school from cracking the top 10, Crowe said. In 1994, Marshall ranked 20th.
"By and large, corporate recruiters still think USC students aren't willing to move (from the West Coast)," Crowe said.
Many of the large corporations have head-uarters on the East Coast. Crowe explained at a school like Stanford, which recruits
(See Marshall, page 2)
I