tl1985Summer-000 "The ow Published weekly by the students of Towson State University Vol. 78 No. 29 Towson, Md. 21204 Summer *** Special Summer 1985 Well, thereit is... File photo Humorist Art Buchwald was part of the 1984-85 SGA speaker series. This was the year that was By Robert Taylor You probably won't be surprised to learn that Towson State Univer-sity is not a hotbed of radical take-overs and foment. But neither is it a placid, unremarkable commuter col-lege. The administration has work-ed to keep the school from becoming even more of a ""suitcase"" school 'where the campus becomes de-serted every weekend as commuters stay at home and residents flee for greener pastures'. And Towson is a fairly large school, with an undergraduate enrollment of 11,000. So there are a few inter-esting thinks going on all the time here. For instance, debate raged last year over whether the Towson foot-ball team should advance from sion II to Division I-AA in the ECC. In a packed February University Senate hearing, arguments blazed until the bill barely passed by a 1 2-1 1 vote. Now, if the athletic foun-dation can raise the money, Towson's effortless wins over lesser opponents should come to a halt.Hopefully, more people will come to games and actually watch them, rather than spending the en-tire time at the tailgating festivities. University president Hoke Smith derided tailgating at the end of this year, calling it an ""all day, open-air drinking party."" But if tailgating goes, the campus will take yet another step towards becoming ""dry"". Although alcohol is currently allowed on campus and is served by the University at some social events, rumors abound that students may have to go off campus to get a drink from now on. Another thing to watch for this year: the SGA and the administra-tion have taken several abortive steps toward establishing an escort service to offer protection to stu-dents forced to walk across the cam-pus late at night. So far, nothing has happened but the SGA has been promising it for some time. Sheldon Nelson probably isn't a household name where you come from, but after the former football captain was suspended from the University for one year in the wake of sexual assault charges, he cer-tainly gained some notoriety here. Nelson is suing the University for four million dollaas after the admin-istration made several procedural blunders and the assault charges were dropped by a Baltimore Coun-ty grand jury. Nelson isn't the only one who got into hot water with the university due to allegedly improper relation-ships with members of the opposite sex. 'The Towson State Rugby Foot-ball Club was denied all funding by the SCA after the SGA received a report that nude ruggers had dis-turbed guests at a hotel in the Ba-hamas, where the team was entered in a rugby tournament. The com-plaint, came from the vice-principal of Albert Einstein High School in Rockville, Maryland, who claimed that a rugby player from Towson State assaulted a seventeen-year-old girl at the hotel. Not everything at the University is controversial, however. Au con-traire! Things generally run pretty smoothly, from August to May. Non-controversial things in the news: TSU broke with tradition last year and elected a ""Mr. and Ms. Towson State-, two students who exhibited all the virtues deemed worthy in college students, instead of choosing a Homecoming queen. SGA Senator Bob Slowey ended a four-year reign as the Towson mas-cot, turning in his claws to a new ""Towson Tiger"". Intramural sports grow stronger and stronger, as teams like the 'Nads and the Beard-ed Clams set new sporting tra-ditions at Towson state. The Greek groups, alwayllii important, at the University, gained paralaife little prestige this year as several Towson chapters became national affiliates. And the SGA speaker series, was consistantly strong drawing humorist Art Buchwald, and finish-ed with a bang as George McGovern and William F. Buckley debated the arms race in front of sell-out crowds. So Towson State becomes what you make of it. Neither the best of the worst of schools in any depart-ment, with a minimum application of spirit and interest, you'll find the University to be as exciting or as boring as you please. Towson's football team moves to a higher division in 1987. The Towson Tiger will continue to grace the campus, despite a change in keeper. ile photo File photo There are many ways to pass the time at Towson State. Students bask in the sunshine and cram between classes. Sue Finklestein and James Olsen became the first annual Ms. and Mr. TSU. Letter from the editors Dear Freshman/Transfer, Well, here you are at Towson State (how and why are you here we would not venture to guess) and when you collapse at home today and try to describe to your parents, friends, etc. what the place is, some foolish mortal may inquire about your college newspaper, which is why we are introducing ourselves to you in this special issue (also to make a pitch for you to join, but we'll get to that later). We expect that you'll be duly informed today of the various requirements and academic departments, and be given advice on how to survive and yes, even graduate one day. No one ask-ed us for our advice on how to have fun and get more out of col-lege, so we feel perfectly free in giving unsolicited comments. There are about 75 clubs and organizations on this campus that are always on the lookout for new members. And joining a group, along with providing you with another reason to show up here besides going to class, gives you the opportunity to meet people and an excuse to have parties. More serious-minded students can even find groups with a serious purpose here; we have everything from career-oriented groups, religious groups, democrats and republicans, tons of sororities and fraternities, campus media, even sports clubs, like the ski club mid the rugby club. And speaking of sports, our sports teams need love, too. Most of the splrts are Division I-AA and although they have See LETTER,page4 "
