Becky Ball, a post-doctoral fellow in Dartmouth's environmental
studies program, welcomed young readers to the second field season
of her Antarctica research blog last week. Ball, along with three other
Dartmouth scientists and a research team from Colorado State University,
will study the microorganisms and nutrient elements in Antarctic soil this
winter, according to the blog. Research will take place in the McMurdo Dry
Valleys, a polar desert where the ice has retreated. Ball's goal is to use the
blog as an educational tool for elementary and middle school teachers by
displaying pictures and detailed stories from her experience in Antarctica,
according to Dartmouth's Office of Public Affairs web site.
Long-time Dartmouth administrator and coach Alden "Whitey"
Burnham passed away on Nov. 18, at the age of 85. Burnham, the College's
only three-sport coach, came to Dartmouth in 1960 to coach soccer
and lacrosse and began coaching wrestling in 1961, according to the
Dartmouth Athletic Department's web site. Burnham spent nine seasons
at Dartmouth, coaching the 1964 and 1965 Ivy League championship
teams in men's lacrosse, as well as the 1964 Ivy League championship
men's soccer team. Burnham became the assistant director of athletics
at Dartmouth in 1969 and the associate director of athletics for development
and alumni affairs in 1983. He also served as the president of the
National Soccer Coaches Association of America and was chairman of
the All-America selection committee for 14 years. Burnham Field, home
to Dartmouth's soccer teams, was dedicated to Burnham in spring 2008
at the request of lead donor Stan Smoyer '34.
Bob Jones University, a fundamentalist Christian college in South
Carolina, posted a statement on its web site Thursday apologizing for
the racially-charged policies the university maintained until 2000. The
university did not admit black students until 1971 and prohibited interracial
dating among students until 2000, the Chronicle of Higher Education
reported on Friday. In March 2000, Bob Jones III, the university's
president until 2005, announced that he would reverse the dating policy
on Larry King Live. "For almost two centuries American Christianity,
including BJU in its early stages, was characterized by the segregationist
ethos of American culture," the web statement said. "Consequently,
for far too long, we allowed institutional policies regarding race to be
shaped more directly by that ethos than by the principles and precepts
of the Scriptures. We conformed to the culture rather than provide a clear
Christian counterpoint to it. In so doing, we failed to accurately represent
the Lord and to fulfill the commandment to love others as ourselves. For
these failures we are profoundly sorry." Stephen Jones, the university's
current president and Bob Jones III's son, issued the statement because
he said he still receives questions about the university's race relations,
according to the Chronicle.
