New housing options are being offered to fraternities at the College of William and Mary.

An e-mail sent to members of the College’s Greek community by Council for Fraternity Affairs President David Cooper ’10 announced that, beginning during the 2010-2011 school year, fraternities and sororities will have the option of applying for special interest housing in Camm, Dawson, Madison and Stith Halls within the Bryan Complex, as well as Chandler Hall and the Ludwell Apartments.

“There was a list of possibilities that we took to the Council for Fraternity Affairs that gave the fraternities some options,” Director of Residence Life Deb Boykin said. “If they can think of any other places, we’re open to those possibilities.”

However, Boykin said that Jamestown North and South Halls would not be considered as alternative housing choices for Greek organizations because of the high demand for rooms in those buildings among undergraduates.

Vice President for Student Affairs Virginia Ambler ’88, Ph.D ’06 and Associate Director of Student Activities Anne Arseneau ’89 were unavailable for comment.

The residence halls are being offered through ResLife as alternatives to the units for fraternities unable to fulfill the residency requirement of 36 brothers.

“Fraternity men in special interest housing over the past few years have consistently said one of the greatest things about living in the chapter house is being surrounded by what are essentially your best friends,”
Cooper said in an e-mail. “This change in policy will allow chapters for which the units were not a feasible housing option the ability to pursue this kind of living arrangement if they choose.”

Problems with meeting the residency requirement led four fraternities to forgo their special interest housing this year. The new policies would allow fraternities with smaller numbers of residential members to have an on-campus presence again.

“Last year, the Williamsburg community wasupset because they thought we were kicking the fraternities off campus because they couldn’t fill their houses,” Boykin said. “In conversations with College leadership, we were trying to figure out what to do with fraternities with smaller membership. If [a fraternity] wants to go back to the units, they can submit a roster of 36, but if they can only fill 12 spaces, they can go other places now.”

Fraternities have the option of requesting a floor in one of the satellite buildings of the Bryan Complex, which house 16-18 students per floor; a single-floor wing of Chandler, housing 21-29 students; or combining four triple Ludwell Apartments. Other residence halls were considered but eventually ruled out.

“Less desirable is Jefferson,” Boykin said. “It’s unattractive to fraternities because the third floor is substance-free, and the basement is freshmen.”

While the policy is aimed at fraternities, sororities would also have the option of choosing the new locations instead of their traditional homes on Sorority Court.

“Hypothetically, sororities could choose to live there, too,” Boykin said. “I haven’t heard any sororities complain about their current housing, however.”

In the past, fraternities at the College have criticized the units for their location, size and generally poor condition. Despite those criticisms, Boykin said that some fraternities would continue to use the buildings, while units vacated by fraternities would be converted into independent residence halls.

“There are things fraternities really like about the units, like living in a community that’s all Greek,” Boykin said. “They say they don’t like the units, but they like what they provide, as far as social space like patios and basements. That’s more than they would have in Ludwell or Bryan, where they wouldn’t have patios. They don’t like the quality, but they like the space offerings.”

Cooper said that while he expects some fraternities to take advantage of the new housing options, the center of fraternity activity will remain in the units.

“I anticipate that the units will continue to be the primary location for the fraternity community in the near future,” Cooper said. “Really, this change in practice is about letting chapters for whom the units don’t work the ability to still enjoy the benefits of living together in special interest housing.”

ResLife is considering other locations for fraternities to select from as on-campus housing options. A final decision will be made after the annual ResLife housing survey closes Nov. 30.

“We’ve talked about Ludwell, the Lodges and the [Nicholas] Apartments in the Randolph Complex,” Boykin said. “But the Lodges and [Nicholas] options are dependent on the housing survey because of their popularity with students. They’re usually the first locations to go in the housing lottery. The others we approved were not necessarily as popular.”

Should the campus community vote to allow making the Lodges available for fraternity housing, ResLife plans on making only one of the seven structures an option.

“You have seven lodges, and one goes to the RA, leaving three male lodges and three female lodges,” Boykin said. “One of the male lodges is Alpha Epsilon Pi [fraternity], which leaves only two lodges for independent men. If we made both available for fraternities, there wouldn’t be any left for non affiliated male students.”
While the decision to allow fraternities to choose housing other than the units has many in the Greek community excited, some question whether the placement of Greek organizations and activities in independent residence halls will be accepted by students. Cooper said that many Greek students already live in independent housing without incident.

“The fraternities at William and Mary are comprised of responsible and socially upstanding young men,” Cooper said. “I do not think that having a fraternity in special interest housing near other residencies will affect those not in special interest housing to any significant degree. Many non Greek students are already living next to Greek students who are not in special interest housing, this change just allows those students’ [chapters] to have a location that gets both the privileges and the responsibilities that come along with special interest housing.”

According to Boykin, students wishing to avoid Greek activities could choose to live in areas not open to fraternity housing.

“They wouldn’t have to live there, but I hope that wouldn’t be the case,” Boykin said. “We’d like to have the housing assignments made before room selection, so you would know where fraternities will be living.”

Additionally, Boykin said that distinctions between the behaviors of Greek and non-Greek students were misleading.

“These are our students and classmates,” Boykin said. “Why are they different? Whether it’s noise or the treatment of facilities, everyone is held to the same standard, so I hope there would be no problems. If there were, the self-determination policy would have a big effect. The rest of the building could exert pressure on offending students, and I hope RAs would mediate.”

The ongoing issue of fraternity housing has raised discussions about changing the College’s alcohol policy in relation to Greek organizations.

The current policy prohibits fraternities from having alcohol in the basements or first floors of their houses.
Some have suggested the College change its definitions of public and private spaces as a way to loosen restrictions on Greek social events.

“Those I’ve talked to in the administration, including all those in Student Affairs and the Dean of Students Office, have shown a willingness to discuss the alcohol policy, and particularly how it applies to those in special interest housing with CFA,” Cooper said. “I believe what held us back on this topic this semester were rumors that the Student Assembly may have been organizing or pushing for a new Alcohol Review Task Force with the College administration. I think this led to a wait-and-see approach from both Student Affairs and CFA. Next semester, I anticipate CFA will take the lead, however, and ensure this review takes place with an emphasis on the definition between public and private spaces.”

The potential shift of fraternities from the units to other housing options has also resurrected discussions about constructing a new Greek village, in the style of Sorority Court, for fraternities on campus. Boykin said that the administration had not held any recent deliberations on the issue.

“There haven’t been any recent discussions,” Boykin said. “We haven’t convened a building committee or anything, but it was discussed with [College President Taylor] Reveley as a possibility. We know we need housing.”

While the latest ResLife policies offer new options for the Greek community at the College, Cooper said that the CFA still supports the construction of a Greek community as a major goal.

“No further concrete discussions on a Greek village has taken place this semester, but the CFA will continue to advocate for new dorms, similar in style to Sorority Court, that meet the needs of our chapters,” Cooper said. “All the administrators I’ve spoken to have been receptive to this idea but unable at this early stage to offer any kind of promises or assurances that this will indeed be what happens in the near future.”

An unexpected defect in part of Small Hall’s foundation has set the construction on the building back several months.

The preliminary demolition needed to make way for the project revealed design flaws in the structural framing of Small’s physics library.

While the construction crews were able to fix the defects, the completion of the first phase of construction will no longer be achieved January 2010.

“It looks like we will be done by March 2010,” physics professor and Chair of the Physics Department Facilities Committee David Armstrong said.

Small, named after Thomas Jefferson’s instructor and professor of natural philosophy William Small, has not been renovated since it was first constructed in 1964.

Small’s renovation is a two-phase project. Currently, two new wings are being constructed. One of the wings will house a high-bay lab area, with two floors of open space and an interior crane. The other will feature labs that can be easily reconfigured as research needs change.

Construction on William Small Research Laboratory began in January.

“[We are] bringing up [the technology] to what we need for this century,” Armstrong said. “What we will be doing largely is adding a substantial amount of research space [which will] catch us up to our peer institutions.”

This includes improvements in HV/AC and electrical technology, and basic infrastructure.

The second phase is to revamp existing portions of the building. Changes will include installing new windows that conserve heat energy, improving the basic infrastructure and ensuring that modern-day building codes are reconciled with modern-day needs for physics research.

“We will be doubling the amount of electric power we can bring into the building,” Armstrong said.

This power will be provided by the new transformer.

The improvements in the research labs will enhance the experience of all physics majors, who are required to do a year-long research project, most of which takes place in a lab environment.

During the spring 2009 semester, student group, Solar Cells On the Roof of Small designed and constructed a solar-cell testing station.

They intended to measure the electrical performance of various solar-cell technologies in order to create energy efficient options for Small renovations. A green roof was deemed too costly.

To accommodate the construction, most teaching labs and classes have been relocated to Millington Hall this academic semester.

In mid March, when the additions are complete, all research labs will be relocated to the new wings, and phase two interior renovations can begin.

The lecture halls will remain untouched for the remainder of the school year and will be replaced during the summer months.

“It’s staged so that it’s lacking in disruption to the teaching and the research program,” Armstrong said.

Small, which currently has 67,000 total square feet devoted to research and teaching labs, classrooms and offices, will have an additional 23,000 square feet after the renovation is complete.

_Flat Hat Assoc. News Editor Ameya Jammi also contributed to this story._

Virginia House of Delegates member Philip Hamilton ’85 (R-93rd) resigned Monday, ending a 21-year career recently clouded by state and federal investigation.

Hamilton, who represented the 93rd House District, which consists of James City County and Newport News, was voted out of office in the recent election against Democrat Robin Abbott J.D. ’01.

In a letter dated Nov. 10 to the House of Delegates clerk Bruce Jamerson, Hamilton said he was resigning his post in what he considered to be “the most distinguished legislative body in the world.”

The delegate pursued a position at Old Dominion University in August 2006, a few months before he filed legislation to create a teaching center at the university. He eventually accepted the position at ODU. He was reported to have directed hundreds of thousands of dollars toward the university while he was a delegate. ODU later hired Hamilton for $40,000 a year.

He quit Aug. 20, 2009 after the Daily Press obtained incriminating e-mails in which he used legislative influence to build the teaching center. Since the correspondence occurred while Hamilton was pursuing a position at the university, the ethics of his actions have been called into question.

Hamilton’s involvement became an issue in the statewide campaigns this fall. Virginia’s House Speaker William Howell (R-28th) later called for a state ethics panel inquiry into Hamilton’s actions

By law, the state ethics panel should conclude its work within 120 days of receiving a complaint.

The deadline will arrive in late December. Since Hamilton’s resignation ends his status as an active legislator, however, he may no longer be subject to review.

“To that extent, I suspect, but do not know, that their work is probably cut off,” Attorney General-elect Ken Cuccinelli told the Virginian-Pilot.

The delegate still remains under investigation by a federal grand jury.

Hamilton was the senior Republican delegate on the budget-writing House Appropriations Committee. Had he won the election Nov. 3, he would have been heading into his 12th term.

Students may soon be able to use more than Flex Point and WM Express accounts at Alan B. Miller Hall’s newly-opened Boehly Cafe. A new Student Assembly initiative aims to open the establishment for students with meal plans.

SA Under-Secretary for Dining Services Salil Singhal ’12, who serves as the student liaison for dining services on campus, said the dining hall attracted student attention after the building’s construction.

“From late last year, many students were curious as to if Miller Hall’s dining options would be on the meal plan, and many were furious when they found out that it, in fact, would not,” Singhal said. “After speaking to a few friends early on in the school year, I asked [Director of Dining Services] Matt Moss if this was a possibility.”

After initially being told “no,” the SA executive continued to push the possibility until Moss said that he would consider the issue if there was distinct student support.

Matthew Thames ’10 started a Facebook group called “Meals at Miller,” which now has more than 300 members, suggesting a student demand for a meal plan option at the new facility.

Moss said there were a variety of factors to take into consideration when deciding if Miller Hall’s cafe could be a meal option for students.

“Seating capacity and waste capacity of the current space, cannibalization of other locations such as the
Dodge Room, which could result in closure if sales were lost … service speed as the operation is currently designed, and the ability for the location to generate meal plans on its own merit alone, are all factors,” Moss said.

Moss said dining services has been tracking and will continue to track student attendance in the cafe to see if there is enough demand to make it an actual meal option.

“We have been monitoring the business at Miller during the semester to track attendance and sales, and we are evaluating the business currently to see what other services may be offered for next semester,” he said.

In response to problems concerning contracts with current dining services, Thames said that meals could be
packaged but still on the meal plan.

“If they didn’t want to offer the freshly prepared food as a meal, they could do it like the Dodge Room and
have an option to pick up a pre-made sandwich, chips, drink and fruit for a meal,” Thames said.
Singhal said they’re taking this idea into consideration in their proposal.

“Due to the upscale dining concept present in Miller Hall, having the current options on the meal plan is not feasible. Instead, I have been pushing for an option similar to the Dodge Room, in which ready-made sandwiches and other products will be available for student consumption on the meal plan,” Singhal said.
“According to [Moss], this is feasible and relatively easy to execute. Furthermore, the Dodge Room is a very successful concept that has become a viable alternative to the dining halls for the lunch period.”

Enabling students to use a meal option would be convenient for students coming from classes in the Mason School of Business, Thames said.

“It’s very convenient for the business major[s] and others in the area, but I didn’t choose my meal plan anticipating that I would pay for lunch with Flex everyday,” he said. “Miller is a solid 10 minutes from the [Commons], [Sadler Center] or Marketplace, so the Dodge Room is the next closest place where you can use a meal option at all. With business school scheduling and the distance of Miller from other dining options, business students are losing functionality of the meal plans which they purchase.”

Dining services staff said they would like to make a decision sometime soon.

“Any changes we hope to make will be announced in the next couple of weeks, as meal plan sign-ups open[ed] up this weekend,” Moss said.

Business Professor Jack Dittrick passed away Thursday Nov. 12.

Dittrick began teaching this semester, but stepped down after he fell ill.

As an undergraduate, he attended the United States Naval Academy, where he was trained as a naval pilot and roomed with Arizona Senator John McCain. Dittrick also received a M.S. degree in operational research from the Naval Academy’s Postgraduate School and went on to teach both operational research and calculus at the Academy. He later received a doctorate in economics from American University.

After retiring from the U.S. Navy, Dittrick came to the College of William and Mary’s Mason School of Business in 1987 as a visiting professor in the M.B.A. program.

After retiring from the Navy, he left to work as the vice dean for undergraduate programs at the University of Southern California’s business school before returning to the College in 2001 to serve as associate dean of the M.B.A. program. He had worked at the College ever since. Dittrick specialized in economics and finance.

A memorial service is planned for December.