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Oregon Dai
Monday, October 13,2003
Since 1900 University of Oregon Eugene, Oregon
Volume 105, Issue 32
Professor
criticizes
Discovery
program
University professor Guy Tasa
says the ‘Unsolved History’
program on the Donner Party
left out research information
By Caron Alarab
News Reporter
The Donner Party experience is a noto
rious tale of heroism, desperation and sur
vival, according to a recent Discovery
Channel episode of "Unsolved History".
But for the local archaeologist and the
University anthropology professor fea
tured in the television special, the melo
dramatic focus on cannibalism overshad
owed the importance of University
technology and research to the identifica
tion of recently excavated Donner Party
bone fragments.
"In terms of a typical TV show, I thought
it was okay," said assistant adjunct profes
sor Guy Tasa, a research associate at the
Museum of Natural History. "But it wasn't
very heavy on science."
Tasa was just one of a handful of pro
fessionals interviewed by the Discovery
Channel about whether the bone
fragments are evidence of 19th century
cannibalism.
In 1846, the Donner Party was strand
ed in the snowy Sierra Nevada mountains
when their California-bound wagon train
took an uncharted shortcut over the sum
mit. The party of emigrants separated into
family units after the first few months to
set up campsites and try to brave the cold
and imminent starvation. After more than
five months of hunger, the desperate sur
vivors described the horror of losing 36 of
Turn to DISCOVERY, page 8
DPS adheres to strict hiring policies
DPS applicants must endure
a lengthy screening process,
and new hires complete training
very similar to that of EPD officers
By Jennifer Marie Bear
News Editor
The news that a DPS officer hit a man on a bi
cycle with his patrol vehicle last summer stunned
many people and raised questions within the De
partment of Public Safety about the legitimacy of
the officer's actions. After DPS determined the of
ficer committed misconduct, a new question
arose: What does DPS do to make sure the offi
cere it hires are the right ones for the job?
The road to the badge is not a jaunt through
the roses — it's more like a belly crawl through
the brambles.
Leaders within the department say there are
many tests and challenges a person must under
go to begin training as a DPS officer, and poten
tial officers who are allowed to go through train
ing are continually evaluated for a one-year
period before they are officially hired.
DPS Interim Director Tom Hicks said the ap
plication process is the first phase of recruitment,
and it demands that applicants meet the mini
mum requirements to be an officer.
In order to qualify for an interview, Hicks said ap
plicants must be 21 or older, have one year of law
PART 1 OF 2
Today: DPS’ hiring and training procedures
Tuesday: Reaction to DPS’ findings of misconduct
enforcement or security experience, have a valid
Oregon driver's license and a good driving record,
and be able to successfully pass a criminal back
ground check and a medical and psychological ex
amination.
The individuals who meet these basic require
ments take a video exam that consists of 54 sce
nario-based questions to test their decision-mak
ing skills, and the people who pass the exam are
then interviewed by a panel of people
Turn to DPS, page 3
DUCKS
TUMBLE
Terrence Whitehead
(with ball) and the
Ducks found their
running game, but
Arizona State was too
much for Oregon
in a 59-14 blowout. The
Ducks entered halftime
within striking distance,
but allowed 38 points
in the second half en
route to the 45-point
loss in Tempe.
INSIDE
Page 5: The Ducks
get destroyed in a
Pac-10 showdown
Laina McWhorter
The State Press
Adam Amato Photo Editor
Sophomore Julia Tuohy (middle), a new Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority
member, shows her excitement with senior member Anne Vereeke.
Sororities see membership numbers drop
About 150 fewer women
opt to be sorority members
this year; recruiters say
rising tuition is one factor
By Jared Paben
News Reporter
University sorority houses are going to be
a little quieter and more spacious this year.
Last year about 500 women were mem
bers of sororities, but this year that number
has dropped to around 350, said Melissa
Winkler, vice president in charge of recruit
ment for the Panhellenic Council.
One explanation for the drop in sorority
membership is the rising price of tuition, Win
kler said, adding that it gives women the im
pression they can't afford to join a sorority.
"Actually, we pay less to live in sororities
than we do to live in residence halls, "she said.
According to a comparative chart from the
Greek Life Office for this school year, the aver
age cost of living in a University residence hall
is $6,700, while the average cost of room and
board for a sorority is $5,168.
The membership decline can also be par
tially attributed to the fact that students'
schedules seemed to conflict with recruit
ment-week activities, Winkler said. Events
started at 5:30 p.m. every day during the
week, but Winkler said she noticed a lot of
women had classes in the evening.
Bad press is an
other factor Win
kler cited to ex
plain flagging
membership num
bers in sororities.
"I think there's
been a lot of nega
tive press about
greeks," she said.
Specifically; she mentioned the MTV show
"Sorority life," which she claims has negative
ly affected people's perceptions of sorority life
by showing irresponsible behavior and haz
ing. A lot of the girls who would join are afraid
PART 2 OF 2
Friday: Fraternities face
recruitment challenges
Today: Results of the
sorority membership
drive
Turn to SORORITIES, page 3
WEATHER
LOW
41
HIGH
64
INSIDE
Campus buzz.4 Crossword.7
Classifieds.7 Nation & World.3
Commentary..2 Sports.5
NEXT ISSUE
.CITATION
UNIVERSITY OF OREGON
EUGENE, OREGON
-HCKET
«23BH27&47_
Broken parking
meters annoy
students