Saint Mary's Board of Governance jumped back into business after spring break, approving sponsorship of a rape elimination night and discussing the College's upcoming Saint Mary's Donor Recognition Weekend.
The board approved a $1,500 co-sponsorship with the Campus Alliance for Rape Elimination for a tri-campus "Take Back the Night" event to be held April 15.
CARE members and Jackie Zins, the primary event organizer, presented the co-sponsorship request. Referring to several recent sex scandals in the area, Zins emphasized the event's value for women of the three campuses at this point in time.
"It's especially important because of last year and earlier this year," she said. "Victims were being blamed instead of the perpetrators."
"Take Back the Night" is a walk that focuses on decreasing violent crimes against women and both men and women can participate. This will be the first tri-campus event, and the first ever for Holy Cross, Zins said.
The walk will begin at Holy Cross at 5 p.m., and will end with a rally in Dalloway's Clubhouse at Saint Mary's. There will be pickup points on each campus for walkers during the event, and speakers from all three campuses are being invited.
"We're looking into SOS and each campus president, and Notre Dame will probably have someone from [Notre Dame Security/ Police] speak," Zins said.
Members also discussed Saint Mary's Donor Recognition Weekend, during which members of the Madeleva Society and other campus benefactors visit with students and have the opportunity to attend classes, mass and a special dinner.
Student body president Elizabeth Jablonski-Diehl said that with the large number of donors, students should expect to be displaced from the dining hall for one meal and from premium parking spaces. Because the weekend coincides with both the Board of Trustees meeting and the senior formal, parking could be a major issue for students. The increased traffic could force one meal to be moved, most likely to Haggar.
In other BOG news:
u The movie "Love, Actually" will be shown tonight at 7 p.m. in Carroll Auditorium. The event is free of charge and open to all Notre Dame and Saint Mary's students.
u "Last Comic Standing" winner Dat Phan will be performing Friday at 7 p.m. on the O'Laughlin stage. During his Saint Mary's visit, he will also have dinner Thursday night with the Intercultural Living floor and sign autographs at Midnight Madness. He will be appearing on the Bob and Tom radio show Friday morning to publicize his visit.
u Student Diversity Board is sponsoring International Women's Week this week. Activities include a student panel on Wednesday at noon in the West Wing of the dining hall and a "Pamper Your Body" session from 7 to 9 p.m. in Stapleton Lounge.
A massage therapist will be available, along with candy from the South Bend Chocolate Factory, manicures, henna painting and roses for the first 20 participants. There will also be an open mic night and poetry reading Thursday at Dalloway's.
