IBS HERALD
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Matthew
Poslusny, Ph.D.
Named Provost
Hannah Thornton, staff writer
Dr. Matthew Poslusny was named
the new provost on Friday, February
22, 2013. Meredith College has been
searching for a new provost since the
fall of 2012. The most common ques
tion circulating through the student
population right now is “ what is a
provost and what does a provost do?”
While the duties of a provost vary
from campus to campus, a provost is
someone who typically resides one
step below the college president. The
Chronicle, the journal for higher edu
cation, identities the position of pro
vost in a higher education institution
Amongst other
duties, the Meredith
provost “is a mem
ber of the Executive
Leadership Team
and oversees four
schools, the library,
the registrar, and
enrollment manage
ment”
as working to “promote and maintain
a distinctive academic vision” while
making sure that the institution “stays
true to its mission.”
Meredith College has deviated
slightly from this definition, and has
expanded the position to include Se
nior Vice President & Provost (SVPP)
as stated in the official published job
description. The responsibilities of
our provost will combine the areas of
academics and admissions in order to
grow in ways that maintain academic
standards and show incremental
growth. Amongst other duties, the
Meredith provost “is a member of the
Executive Leadership Team and over
sees four schools, the library, the regis
trar, and enrollment management.”
The search process began in Octo
ber when Meredith hired RPA, Inc.
(referred to by some as the “match
maker”) to create the job description
and begin recruiting candidates. Kate
Nolde, RPA, Inc. representative, came
to Meredith to get a feel for our com
munity to find the best candidates for
the campus.
The search and review process be
gan with “ Continued on Page 6
Congress Faces
Challenge With
Sequester
Monique Kreisman, staff writer
The sequester is a collection of federal
spending cuts that will go into effect
automatically if Congress cannot reach
a budget agreement by March 1st. It
was established in 2011 as the US crept
closer to the debt ceiling, and it totals
more than $1.2 trillion over the next ten
years. About half of the cuts—over $500
billion—will come tfom the defense
budget. Unpaid furloughs for Pentagon
workers are expected. An additional
$500 billion will be cut from domestic
programs such as food safety inspection-
and housing aid.
Olympian
Sprinter Shoots
Girlfriend
Rachel Pratl, staff writer
Oscar Pistorius, the world famous
double-amputee and Olympian
sprinter who has competed and won
both Olympic and Paralympic medals
with prosthetic legs, has been charged
with the premeditated murder of his
girlfriend. On February 14, 2013, he
was accused of deliberately shooting
Reeva Steenkamp, a famous swimsuit
model.
On that same day, thousands of
women stood up to participate in One
Billion Rising, the global movement
now considered the largest mass ac
tion to stop violence against women
and girls. Participants said that Steen-
kamp’s tragic death created a platform
to share how violence has touched
their lives.
According to South
African law, Pistori-
ous could be charged
with 25 years in jail
if convicted of the
charge of premedi
tated murder.
Pistorius’ defense team claims that
he mistakenly believed Steenkamp was
an intruder hiding inside the bath
room of his home in Pretoria, South
Africa. Last Friday, he was released
on $112,000 bail after a four-day,
emotionally wrenching bail hearing.
He is expected to face trial in South
Africa within six months. According to
South African law, Pistorious could be
charged with 25 years in jail if con
victed of the charge of premeditated
murder.
Following in famous athletes Lance
Armstrong and Tiger Wood’s foot
steps, Pistorious has again shamed his
Nike endorsement in an advertisement
which features him besides the saying
“I am a bullet in the chamber” oppo
site Nike’s “Just do it” slogan and logo.
Senate Confirms
Hagel as Secre
tary of Defense
Kim Dixon, staff writer
On Tuesday, the Senate confirmed
Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) as secretary
of defense in a vote of 58 to 41, the
narrowest margin for any defense
secretary on record. His confirmation
follows weeks of partisan fighting over
his nomination by President Obama.
Four republicans voted for Mr. Hagel;
Senators Thad Cochran of Mississippi,
Richard Shelby of Alabama, Mike
Johanns of Nebraska and Rand Paul of
Kentucky. Mr. Hagel will be sworn in
on Wednesday. He follows Secretary of
Defense Leon Panetta and comes into
Chuck Hagel photo via npr.org
office just as across-the-board budget
cuts are set to affect the Pentagon on
March 1 as a result of the 2011 Budget
Control Act.
Hagel has been under fire during
the confirmation process for his out
spoken opposition to the war in Iraq,
criticism of the Israeli lobby’s influ
ence in Washington and past state
ments on Iran. Senator John McCain,
once close friends with Hagel, had
heated exchanges with him over the
troop surge in Iraq. Republican Sena
tor Ted Cruz (Texas) accused Hagel of
taking money from North Korea and
Saudi Arabia.
Hagel, 66, is a former two-term Ne
braska senator. He served in Vietnam
combat where he was wounded twice.
He said he was honored that the presi
dent and the Senate “have entrusted
me to serve our nation again.” After
the Senate vote. President Obama said
in a statement, “we will have the de
fense secretary our nation needs and
the leader our troops deserve.”
Controversy at
the Academy
Awards
Lizzie Wood and Brianna Karmi,
staff writers
Usually the biggest controversy sur
rounding the Oscars is the incredibly
long time it takes to dole out all of the
awards. However, this year brought
Seth MacFarlane photo via npr.org
a sexist comedian and a certain First
Lady.
While the ratings were the second
highest in history for first-time host
Seth MacFarlane, his performance
is drawing in mixed reviews. Those
who were less pleased with his perfor
mance felt that he was overly sexist
in his jokes and singing numbers, es
pecially in the number “We Saw Your
Boobs.” Despite drawing in more male
viewers than an average Oscar night,
MacFarlane has already announced
that he will not be making a return ap
pearance as host again.
The next source of controversy
comes from the White House. First
Lady, Michelle Obama surprised
viewers and presenters alike when she
participated in the awards show. How
ever, not all viewers were happy to
see her. Some feel that the First Lady
is prioritizing her duties incorrectly,
and she should focus more on political
matters and White House duties.
Finally, a tweet was heard around
the world when the Onion tweeted
about Lead Actress nominee Quven-
zhane Wallis and called her by a rude
obscenity. This nominee is nine years
old. Needless to say, there was major
backlash to this tweet, and the mes
sage was quickly taken down from the
social media site.
So, what do you think? Email the
Herald and let us know your thoughts
on this past Academy Awards.