tl20030206-000 "TOWEriirphbl Baltimore's #1 College Paper - Published Twice-Weekly - www.thetowerlight.com Thursday, 2/6/03 Christy pays TU visit for deanship 4 Camp helps kids learn about others 5 LL hits the big screen in 'Eva' 12 Garden serves up a variety of foods 15 Departments News 4 Nation/Blotter 6 Campus Briefs 9 Arts 12 Art Around You 13 In A Theater Near You 14 Restaurant Review 15 Sports 20 Bankshots 19 In This Corner 20 Classifieds 16 Opinion 2 Affirmative action questioned USM chancellor says policy should stay the same, while President Bush seeks change Sarah Breitenbach The Towerlight This spring, the United States Supreme Court will hear a case that has the potential to change the way in which affirmative action serves minority students in higher educa-tion. The case at hand, Grutter v. Bollinger, is the appeal of a decision by the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals last May which upheld an affirma-tive action policy in place at the University of Michigan Law School. Barbara Grutter, a white appli-cant to the U of M law program, claims that she was passed over for admission in favor of less qualified minority students in 1997. The case is currently raising nationwide concern over the status and necessity of affirmative action in higher education. In 1978, the Supreme Court decided in the Regents of the University of California v. Bakke that race was an acceptable factor for consideration of admission. Opponents of Grutter would like to see the justices uphold the Bakke decision in order to aid in diversify-ing higher education. Like the University of Michigan, all of Maryland's state funded insti-tutions � including Towson � con-sider the race of applicants. University System of Maryland Chancellor William E. Kirwan recently told The Daily Record that the USM is in support of maintain-ing the Bakke decision, adding that if it were to be reversed there would be ""very troubling consequences for universities and the nation in gener-al: I Brain Leak, assistant director for admissions at Towson, explained that all USM schools are required to meet certain percentages of minori-ties in their student body popula-tion. ""We try our best to meet that per-centage, but we [don't always],"" he said. However, there is no penalty for CRIB climbs to new heights for Towson Saul Stoogenke The Towarhght ""It has something for everyone,"" says freshman education major Andrew Mininsky about the new Campus Recreation In Burdick facility, which received its official grand opening Wednesday afternoon. failing to meet the requested per-centage, and Towson does not specifically target additional minori-ties if it appears that the expected percentage will not be filled. ""We don't go out and try to recruit minorities last minute,"" Leak said. ""Nor do we, to meet that quota, give minorities extra favors."" Leak confirmed that Towson is currently trying to reach a 13-per-cent level of minority students, but is operating at a level of 11 percent. Towson's fundamental policy on minority recruitment, according to Leak, is to recruit in high minority areas such as Baltimore City and Prince George's and Montgomery Counties. ""Just by going to those neighbor-hoods and recruiting, we don't real-ly have to establish programs,"" Leak said. ""The communities already have programs established that we attended, so by us participating in the events that the community set forth, that is pretty much how we get out there."" Leak doubts Towson will estab-lish an affirmative action policy, but depending upon the Court's forth-coming decision, he said students See DEBATE, page 9 Today High 33 Low 27 Friday High 36 Low 18 Saturday High 35 Low 21 Sunday High 38 Low 22 Monday High 30 Low 19 "
