dtrojan@usc.edu
U MM
October 5,1999
http://www.usc.edu/dt_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Vol. CXXXVIII, No. 25
Smell the roses
Azad Jafariari I Daily Trojan
I’ll take that one. Whitney Ellen, a junior majoring in environmental studies, buys flowers from a stand on campus near Jefferson Boulevard and Hoover Street on Monday.
By ARGHAVAN SALLES
Staff Writer
As part of National Campus Days of Dialogue, DiverSCity and the Office of Religious Life are sponsoring a Town Hall meeting at 7 p.m. tonight at GroundZero Coffeehouse to discuss hate crimes in the community and on campus.
The meeting was scheduled in response to U.S. Secretary of Education Robert Riley’s request that universities around the country “host a week of campus dialogue on issues of race, culture, gender and sexuality,” said Eric Schockman, the chair of the DiverSCity committee.
DiverSCity, which is under Student Affairs, attempts to promote the understanding of differences among people. In the past, DiverSCity has facilitated Campus Dialogue Days, which are held every year during the week of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The Dialogue Days are a part of the National Days of Dialogue on Race Relations and encourage open communication among students.
This is the first year that a Town Hall meeting will be held by DiverSCity. Schockman said the goal of the meeting is to have an open exchange of information about various hate crimes.
About 100 students are expected to attend the meeting, Schockman said, adding that it may encourage some students to
Town Hall meeting to discuss hate crimes
GPSS elects new member to its executive board
Organization: Naveen Kanal will head committee that plans annual conference
By ELISSA K. KONOVE
Staff Writer
Naveen Kanal, a second-year graduate student in business, was elected Academic Programming Chair at the Graduate and Professional Student Senate meeting Monday.
A newly created position, the Academic
Programming Chair is responsible for heading the committee that coordinates the GPSS Annual Interdisciplinary Conference, during which graduate students from different universities present their research. As a member of the GPSS Executive Board, Kanal will receive monetary compensation and will participate in national graduate student organization events.
Kanal was elected in a runoff against two other candidates for the position, Anna Sui Nan To, a first-year graduate student in electrical engineering, and Jaleh Gassemzadeh, a fourth-year graduate student in chemical engineering.
During his presentation to GPSS, Kanal
emphasized his commitment to academics and immediately starting work on the Interdisciplinary Conference.
“Academics are essential, and that is why we are all here,” Kanal said. “I wTant to keep pushing the academics at USC.
“My strongest commitment is to the conference. I want to start work on it right away and involve all of those who are interested in participating.”
GPSS is the official representation of the graduate and professional student body and is composed of representatives elected by students in their particular academic department. GPSS meets on the first Monday of each month.
m
Career Planning & Placement Center
Graduate students can receive expanded assistance with career planning and job placement with the new designation of a Career Planning & Placement Center staff member specifically to aid graduate students, said Lisa Eddy, assistant director for the center.
The center is planning several events and workshops targeted for graduate students, including an open house Nov. 1.
The center also prorides drop-in and individual counseling, job search, networking and interviewing workshops and an alumni data-I see GPSS, page 3 I
become involved in DiverSCity.
Charles Newman, the project coordinator for DiverSCity and a graduate student in education, said he hopes to “facilitate a discussion among students.”
Speakers for the event include Joe Hicks, from the City of L.A. Human Relations Commission; Ron Wakabayashi, the executive director of the L.A. County Human Relations Commission; Sue Stengel of the Anti-Defamation League; and Carla Arranaga, from the Hate Crimes Depression Unit of the Los Angeles Attorney’s Office.
After each of the experts speaks, the microphone will be opened to those in attendance. The Columbine High School shooting, the Grenada Hills Shooting and Matthew Shepard will be some of the issues discussed.
“The best way to address (hate) issues is to talk about them,” Newman said.
After the meeting, students can continue the discussion in smaller groups later in the week, which wrill be facilitated by members of the DiverSCity committee. The sessions will be held on Wednesday at 2 p.m: and Thursday at 11 a.m. in WPH, Room 207.
Some students said the Town Hall meeting would be beneficial to the university.
“I think it’s good that the school’s attempting to alleviate the frustration and anger pent up in students on this campus,” said Cecilia Mo, a sophomore majoring in international relations and mathematics.
Others were not sure it would be effective.
“Students should have the option to attend, but it is up to those who attend to make changes,” said Dominic Bruno, a freshman majoring in computer science.
The National Campus Days of Dialogue, which run from Oct. 4 to 8, are a result of President Clinton’s One America initiative.
Weather
High: 75 Low: 60
Tomorrow
Cloudy during the morning, then partial afternoon clearing
Happy times: New comedy, “Happy Texas,” is a sentimental and humorous look at a couple of bank robbers who turn good.	f
______________________________________________________DIVERSIONS f
Mistakes, mistakes: The USC football team couldn’t figure out how to knock out Oregon State.	OO
____________________________________________,__________SPORTS *m\J
Religion and Ethics Off the Wire Calendar Roundup Classifieds Crossword Puzzle
Diversity: The gathering, which will take place tonight, is part of National Campus Days of Dialogue
Mentoring prepares students for graduation, workplace
Academics: Programs focus on careers and cultures to increase student performance
By KIMBERLY TABA and ANNE WONSONO
Staff Writers
An increasing number of campus organizations and academic departments consider mentoring an effective
and more approachable means of meeting their goals, which range from preparing students for future challenges in the workplace to increasing student retention rates and ensuring that they graduate on time.
“USC is a very big place,” said Sarah Pratt, dean of College of Letters, Arts and Sciences administration. “And it’s easy to feel that you’re not attached or connected to the institution as strongly as you’d like to be.”
The various mentoring programs help students to adjust to campus life or prepare them for life after graduation. Some programs focus on academics,
while others have an ethnic focus to help deal with cultural issues in the ethnic communities.
“One out of every two Latinos on campus does not graduate on time,” said Desiree Campos, president of the Latino Honor Society and a senior majoring in American studies, political science and anthropology.
To improve the situation, the student counseling center and El Centro Chicano started a mentoring program four years ago.
“We want to make sure that Latino students not only come back the second year and stay, but (that) they excel aca-
demically as well and graduate on time,” Campos said.
The Asian Pacific American Support Group also combines both career and culture. APASG aims to increase awareness among Asian Pacific American students of the professional experience in the workplace as an APA, as well as forming future connections, said Willette Clark, director of APASG.
“The Asian Pacific American experience in the workplace is unique because of their ethnicity,” Clark said. “Being able to share that with students from the professional experience is beneficial to I see Mentoring, page 13 I
"It’s easy to feel that you’re not attached or connected to the institution as strongly as you’d like to be."
Sarah Pratt
dean
LAS