Students across state plan protests opposing greed
UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA, RENO — College students in Reno and Las Vegas are planning to hold “Occupy” demonstrations soon in solidarity with the “Occupy Wall Street” protests in New York City.
Since a group of protesters first decided to camp out in the heart of Manhattan in mid-September, rallying behind the cry “We are the 99 percent,” similar demonstrations have popped up across the country. On OccupyTogether.org, protests are listed in almost every state as well as cities around the world.
Lea Moser, a University of Nevada, Reno student who is helping to organize the Reno group, said she is working with others to hold a planning session at UNR for an eventual demonstration.
“It’s something that I see affecting our community,” Moser said. “The economy has been horrible, and graduates haven’t been going into the jobs they got degrees for.”
She said she hopes to coordinate an “Occupy Nevada” day. Rather than holding separate demonstrations throughout the state, Moser said she would like to see groups including Lake Tahoe, Carson City and Las Vegas residents come together at the same time.
-The Nevada Sagebrush
By Ben Miller
Obama’s jobs plan could ease Iowa City school cuts
UNIVERSITY OF IOWA — The American Jobs Act might help Iowa City schools avoid faculty cuts.
White House officials released a “Teachers Jobs at Risk” report Tuesday, which would support nearly 400,000 education jobs across the country through federal funding for K-12 schools.
Iowa City School Board member Tuyet Dorau said the district has not had to cut teachers yet. She pointed to previous stimulus plans such as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and a decrease in district schools’ extra money or “solvency ratio.”
But Dorau said she was unsure whether the district will be able to avoid cutting staff in the future.
Dorau cited the Iowa legislature’s decision for zero percent allowable growth as one factor contributing to monetary troubles in schools.
“(Zero percent growth) has already put us in a difficult situation,” she said. “You never make up the loss of allowable growth.”
— The Daily Iowan
By Eric Moore
Higher sexual assault numbers could indicate increased awareness
OHIO UNIVERSITY — Sexual assault reports on Ohio University’s campus have increased in the past year, but OU officials credit the hike to victims’ willingness to report crimes.
The Clery Report, which was released Friday, compares crime statistics for 2010 to the two years prior. In 2010, a total of 12 forcible sex offenses were reported on campus property, compared to the eight reported in 2009.
OU Police Department Chief Andrew Powers emphasized that although the total reported number of sexual assaults rose, the number of reported rapes went down. There were six forcible rapes reported on campus property in 2010, compared to eight reported in 2009.
“If you look at national statistics on sexual assault, we know it’s a grossly underreported crime,” Powers said. “I don’t think we can ever believe the numbers reported are what is actually happening.”
Rather than an actual increase in sexual assaults on campus, the increase in reported assaults could be a result of sexual assault awareness and victims’ assistance programs on campus, Student Affairs Vice President Kent Smith said.
OU is creating programs geared toward greater education and awareness, and the Women’s Center recently hired a sexual assault advocate. OU Judiciaries has also increased punishment for sexual offenders; anyone found responsible for a sexual offense of any type will be suspended from OU.
-The Post
By Rebecca McKinsey
