__81 percent satisfied with position at the College__

p. In a 2006 survey that was released at yesterday’s Board of Visitors meeting, 81 percent of faculty reported feeling “very satisfied” or “moderately satisfied” with their position at the College.

p. This figure is part of a detailed faculty survey written and administered by the Faculty Assembly.

p. “Generally speaking, the faculty are very satisfied to be here,” Provost Geoffrey Feiss said.

p. Faculty satisfaction registered as 78 percent in 2003 and 86 percent in 1999 (the survey is administered every three years). Only 3 percent described themselves as “very dissatisfied” in 2006, while 5 and 4 percent chose “very dissatisfied” in 2003 and 1999, respectively.

p. Out of a list of 16 goals to address, faculty members ranked salaries, research and student financial aid as the highest priorities. For departments in the undergraduate Arts and Sciences, these goals were always ranked as the top three in that order; other academic areas’ choices varied, but these three areas almost always prevailed (though in varying orders) over the other 13 choices.

p. “We know that we have salary problems here,” Feiss said.
Feiss said there were two ways to interpret salary dissatisfaction. Either people are thinking about leaving, or the College has a faculty strong enough that they can consider going somewhere else.

p. Dissatisfaction with research support (63 percent) and salary (60 percent) were the top two reasons faculty expressed for putting themselves back on the job market.

p. FA President Alan Meese said faculty satisfaction follows economic trends and that in years when there are more salary increases, satisfaction is higher.

p. In the last two years, 62 percent of faculty considered permanently leaving their positions; this rate was 69 percent in 2003. This is significantly higher than at all other four-year universities, for which the result was 43.2 percent. However, participation in the 2003 survey was only 37.8 percent, while the College’s faculty response rate to this survey was 73 percent.
Seventy-one percent of faculty disagreed or strongly disagreed that they spend the same amount of time on teaching as on research. Fifty-one percent said that they spent more time on teaching than on research; 73 percent disagreed that they spent more time on research than teaching.

p. A slight majority in the schools of business and education disagreed that they spent more time on teaching than on researching. Sixty-eight percent of natural sciences in the school of Arts & Sciences, 80 percent in the Marshall-Wythe School of Law and 90 percent in the Virginia Institute of Marine Science disagreed. In the school of Arts & Sciences, 81 percent of the humanities and 60 percent of social sciences faculty strongly agreed or agreed that they spend more time on teaching than on research.

p. Majorities in the latter two areas were dissatisfied with the balance between teaching and research, though combined responses yielded a 53 percent satisfaction rate for the same subject. Seventy-three percent reported they would like to spend more time on research. Slight majorities in nearly all the academic departments except those of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science feel pressure to do more research than they are currently doing.

p. Majorities of professors in the Arts & Sciences humanities, social sciences and natural sciences departments and the schools of business and law said that they do not spend more time researching than teaching. Majorities in the school of law and VIMS said that they do.

p. This is the sixth time the survey has been administered; it is given to full-time tenured and tenure-eligible faculty.

p. __Flat Hat News Editor Austin Wright contributed to this report.__

__College refuses to release names in illegal music downloading lawsuits__

p. Approximately 15 students at the College are facing possible federal lawsuits filed by a firm representing the Recording Industry Association of America regarding the illegal distribution of music files through the College’s network.

p. One of the students, who requested to remain anonymous, provided details on the situation.

p. “I got an e-mail from [Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs] Ginger Ambler on Tuesday, Jan. 29, that said I had a letter in the Campus Center that I needed to pick up,” he said. “I knew it was bad.”

p. Enclosed in the envelope was a letter from Ambler, currently serving in place of Vice President for Student Affairs Sam Sadler, who is recovering from surgery. Her letter informed the student that he had received one of many letters “sent to students at universities nationwide as part of what appears to be a concerted effort to address copyright violation.”

p. Ambler’s letter notified the student that the RIAA had tracked his illegal distribution through his Internet Protocol, or IP, address. Though his name was not released to the RIAA, the law firm representing the RIAA made clear their intent to subpoena the College for personal information.

p. The envelope also contained a second letter from the law firm representing the RIAA and a “number of large record companies.” In this letter, dated Jan. 9, 2007, the student was accused of illegally distributing 77 songs through LimeWire, a file-sharing website. He was informed that he could either settle for $3,000 or face a lawsuit, in which case the RIAA would seek a minimum of $750 per song.

p. Toward the end of the letter, in bold and capital letters, was the statement: “If you do not resolve our claims against you within twenty (20) calendar days from the date of this letter, then we will file suit against you in federal court.” The letter ended with advice to seek legal counsel.

p. “The really shitty part is that the letter was dated the [Jan.] 9, and I got it on [Jan.] 29,” the student said. “So basically I was given four hours to put a credit card on a website and pay $3,000. I didn’t feel I was able to do that given I didn’t have the time to consult a lawyer.”

p. He expressed concern that, even by settling with the RIAA, he may still face the expense of lawsuits filed independently by other label companies.

p. The student has yet to hear anything more from the law firm representing the RIAA. He has spoken to Student Legal Services and is currently waiting to hear back from a law professor who assisted students in a similar situation last year.

p. “At this point, I guess I’m facing a lawsuit,” the student explained. “Hopefully, I can find a lawyer who is versed in such a new phenomenon and something as specific as copyright laws.”

p. As of yet, the College has not sought to bring any disciplinary action in this case.

**Tuesday, Jan. 29 —** A student reported that an unknown individual was stealing Flex Points from her account. Approximately $65 in Flex Points were stolen.

p. — A student called to report the theft of her bass clarinet from Ewell Hall Jan. 25. The instrument is valued between $3,000 and $4,000. **(1)**

p. **Wednesday, Jan. 30 —** Staff at the Graduate Housing Complex reported damage to five ground lights. Staff estimated the replacement cost of each light to be between $400 and $500. Police determined that several lights were not damaged as severely and could be repaired for less. **(2)**

p. **Thursday, Jan. 31 —** A student reported the theft of his bike from Ewell Hall. Its estimated value is $300. **(1)**

p. — A professor from Rogers Hall called to report the theft of personal documents. The professor later called back to say that the documents could possibly be in a classroom and that he would call after the class in progress in the room had ended. The professor failed to report back to the police. **(3)**

p. — A student reported that his laptop was stolen from Rogers room 100 around 3:30 p.m. The student later called to say that his professor had seen the laptop unattended in the classroom and had taken it for safekeeping. **(3)**

p. **Friday, Feb. 1 —** A caller reported that a pipe had broken on the third floor of Landrum Hall. The water fountain had been pushed away from the wall causing the pipe to break. Damage to the building is estimated at $500. **(4)**

p. **Monday, Feb. 4 —** A student from Unit B called to report the theft of a jacket and iPod from their room. The total estimated value of the items is $400. **(5)**

Retired Gen. Merrill A. McPeak, former chief of staff of the Air Force, will be speaking at the College today at 1 p.m. in McGlothlin-Street Hall. McPeak will discuss engaging voters in the current political environment and will also speak about U.S. foreign policy in the 21st century.

p. During his military career, McPeak served as a fighter pilot for various squadrons, including the prestigious Thunderbirds.

p. In the 2004 Presidential election, McPeak, a former Republican, served as an advisor for Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry’s campaign and is currently one of Barack Obama’s top national security advisers.

p. The event is sponsored by the College chapter of Students for Barack Obama and is free to the public.

This past Wednesday, the College announced four classes that will be offered this summer in Washington D.C. The courses, divided into two sessions, will include three English classes and one philosophy class.

p. During the first summer session, lasting from May 27 to June 27, the English classes “The Harlem Renaissance in Washington” and “Language of the Land: Literary Washington, D.C.” will be offered.
During the second summer session, lasting from June 30 to Aug. 1, the philosophy class “Ethics” and English class “Preserving American Culture and Letters” will be offered.

p. The W&M in Washington Summer Session allows students to take General Education Requirements and major/minor courses at the Washington campus of the College. All fees will be equivalent to those of the summer sessions offered at the Williamsburg campus.

**1929**
Washington Hall was officially opened for use. The building, which cost $200,000 to construct, housed the biology department on the ground floor, while the upper floors were used as lecture rooms and offices for the departments of education, English, fine arts, mathematics, philosophy, Latin and modern languages.

p. **1952**
The College announced that, in addition to the general physical education courses required for female students, junior and senior women could now choose to take one of three new P.E. courses, including history of dance composition and forms.

p. **1973**
As part of a facelift to the Colonial Williamsburg area, five new shop openings on Prince George Street were announced. Among the stores slated to open in the spring were The Cheese Shop, The Peanut Shop and Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream.

p. **1982**
Eight students were arrested Feb. 4 on charges of stealing approximately $2,500 of furniture from campus buildings. Campus Police recovered chairs, desks, sofas, beds, tables, lamps and chests of drawers. One of the students was caught stealing a television from the Tri Delta house, which led to the discovery of the other stolen items.

**81,065**
The number of living College alumni, according to the College website.

p. **1:15 a.m.**
The average bedtime of college students on weekends, based on a survey published in the Journal of American College Health. The average bedtime on weekdays is 11:40 p.m.

p. **14 billion**
The number of pencils produced worldwide every year, according to the Musgrave Pencil Company.

p. **842**
The number of “super-delegates” in the Democratic primary. These unpledged delegates make up nearly 40 percent of the Democratic delegates needed to win the nomination and could decide the primary winner.

The College’s website, which receives millions of visits each year, will receive a makeover in an effort to streamline the site and increase appeal to potential applicants. The new design was revealed last week.

p. The process began last February when Provost Geoffrey Feiss initiated a committee to develop a new web presence for the College. The committee included members of the College administration, faculty, students and alumni, as well as six representatives from Information Technology.

p. “The website need[ed] to be redesigned because right now it does not accurately represent our college,” committee member Sarah Rojas ’10 said. “Sometimes people don’t realize that many international viewers or prospective students judge our college solely on the website.” She added that the current site is seven years old.

p. The committee kept in mind the recent student opposition to the new logo, and although only two students sat on the committee — Rojas and Patrick Donaldson ’08 — they were careful to include student opinions in each step of the process.

p. In several separate visits last year, representatives from mStoner, a web consultant company that has worked with Princeton University and the University of Virginia, talked with students, faculty and staff about the College and what the website should be.

p. “Making sure the website is student-friendly and student-approved [was] a top priority,” Rojas said. “The decision to use Concept One was supported by every member of [the] committee, all the feedback we received and by Provost Geoff Feiss and President Gene Nichol.”

p. Rojas added that feedback has been positive overall.

p. “Most all of the feedback we received before the final concept was decided on was in favor of Concept One, and the support has only continued,” she said.

p. The consulting firm originally made three different website mockups. The mockup known as Concept One was ultimately chosen.

p. Rojas said that the chosen design was her favorite. It incorporates large, colorful pictures with a horizontal navigation bar and information on College news and events.

p. “I think it brings the new and interesting perspective that we are looking for and expresses the William and Mary community well, while easily laying out the main links needed,” she said.

p. According to the project website, over 2,000 prospective and early admission students, a key demographic, have been asked for feedback.

p. The College’s Law School, School of Education and Virginia Institute of Marine Science will also receive new web pages based on the new main page.

p. Rojas said the site is set to go live this summer.

Two days after Del. Tim Hugo ’86 (R-Fairfax) said on the floor of the House of Delegates that “William and Mary is becoming a joke,” four Board of Visitors members were summoned to Richmond yesterday for questioning by the House Privileges and Elections Committee.

p. BOV members John Gerdelman ’75, Kathy Hornsby ’79, Anita Poston J.D. ’74 and Henry Wolf ’64 J.D. ’66, who are up for reappointment by the House, had to leave the BOV meeting in Williamsburg for questioning in Richmond, where they were asked about recent controversies at the College.

p. “They asked us a variety of questions about everything from the bias reporting to the cross issue to the sex show,” Hornsby said. “They were trying to get a read on us to see if we’re being responsible stewards of the College.”

p. In the past, the General Assembly has approved the governor’s BOV appointees with little scrutiny. Del. Mark Cole (R-Spotsylvania), chair of the Privileges and Elections Committee and author of the summons letter, said that the questioning of appointees is unusual but not unprecedented.

p. “I’m pleased with the way it went,” Cole said. “The various [delegates] got their points across, and I think the nominees will reevaluate some of their policies.”

p. He added that he is concerned with Nichol’s leadership, but he would not say whether he thinks Nichol’s contract should be renewed.

p. In the months leading up to this week’s BOV meeting, Republican delegates hounded Nichol for continuing to cause controversy more than a year after he drew national attention for removing the Wren Chapel cross from permanent display. Delegates Bob Marshall (R-Prince William) and Brenda Pogge (R-James City) recently criticized Nichol for allowing the Sex Workers’ Art show to appear on campus, and Hugo took the House floor Tuesday and asked Nichol to step down when his contract expires in June.

p. “He’s a nice guy, but it just seems like there’s one controversy after another, and I think it’s hurting the College,” Hugo said in a telephone interview with The Flat Hat.

p. “It’s not good when you’re constantly making the news because of a feather or a cross or a show highlighting illegal activity.”

p. On the floor, Hugo said that the mention of his alma mater elicits snickers and jokes among his colleagues in the General Assembly and that Nichol’s leadership is causing the College’s stock to plummet relative to other state universities.

p. This barrage of Nichol criticism from state lawmakers may be a sign that those who divvy out state funds to public institutions are trying to take a larger role in managing the College. Last year Marshall tried to cut Nichol’s salary in half, and this year he proposed a bill that would give alumni a voice in choosing College BOV members.

p. In December, though, BOV Rector Michael Powell ’85 said he would not let any outside group influence the decision of whether to renew Nichol’s contract.

p. “Too many people are trying to control the perception of what’s going on,” Powell said. “This is too serious for us to be swayed by competing public battles.”

p. Yesterday Nichol’s contract did not come up during the day-long BOV meeting, but about 15 students showed up to show support for the president.

p. Today, BOV members meet in Blow Hall from 10 a.m. to noon, and the agenda says that they could go into closed session during that time.