Darius Rice finds it difficult to go unnoticed on and off the court.
Not only does he share the last name of NFL legend, Jerry Rice, but he also wears red Jordan’s as opposed to the teams’ choice of green shoes.
More notably, however, is the fact that Rice is an All-America candidate and an ominous force of the Hurricane men’s basketball team for the second consecutive season.
He is also one of 30 preseason nominees for the 2001-02 Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year Award.
At a towering 6-10, the sophomore starter ironically excels at the small forward position. He is explosive all over the court, but outside shots are his specialty. This season Rice is one of the Big East’s top three-point shooters.
“Rice obviously contributes to the offensive effort, averaging an impressive 15.2 points per game, but it doesn’t stop there. He is really expanding his game and becoming a very well-rounded player,” UM coach Perry Clark said.
This type of talent, according to Rice, didn’t come naturally with his adolescent growth spurt. Instead he perfected his technique by practicing with thousands of shots per day.
“I would just shoot- in the paint, out of the paint- all day long. Repetition helped me reach this level. You know how they say ‘practice makes perfect’, well it’s true,” said Rice.
His height, on the other hand, happens to be a natural advantage.
“I appreciate my height the most on defense. When I guard other players it’s easier for me to get in their faces. I guess I am a step ahead,” said Rice.
He leads the team in scoring and three-point field goal percentage and is also ranked second in rebounding.
Against Villanova, Rice posted his second-straight 30-point game and had 10 rebounds, one assist and one steal.
As for the loss to Boston College, Rice is over it. He was held to 16 points and went 1-for-9 from 3-point range. Focusing on the next challenge en route to the Final Four is more important.
This Saturday the Hurricanes will face Caron Butler and the UConn Huskies, who are 14-3 overall and 6-0 in the Big East. In last month’s match-up, the ‘Canes came up short 75-76.
“The UConn game is a huge threat to us. Butler and I will be going head to head,” said Rice. “We can’t be satisfied with an 18-3 record, but it’s also a very long season. We have the opportunity to pick up the rest of our games and make it to the postseason,” Rice said.
Hot Rice keeps the Hurricanes cooking
Bell, Eagles hand UM first home loss
Just when their fan support was slowly increasing, the Hurricane men’s basketball team did something Tuesday night they had not done the entire season – lose at home.
Miami couldn’t match Boston College All-American guard Troy Bell and his seven points in the last two minutes, as the Hurricanes fell for the first time at Miami Arena this season, 70-65, in front of 5,174 fans.
Trailing 65-63 with less than two minutes remaining, Bell, who had been held scoreless for almost the entire second half, hit a three-pointer to give the Eagles (15-5, 4-3 in Big East) the lead. Miami (18-3, 5-3) missed its final six shots from the field, as Bell and forward Andrew Bryant each hit two free-throws in the final minute to seal the win.
Bell led all scorers with 25 points and guard Ryan Sidney scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Forward James Jones led the Canes with 19 points and 12 rebounds. Miami also connected on 25 of 26 shots from the free-throw line, but shot a poor 29.8 percent from the field.
“I think we tried doing the things we’re so used to doing like fast-break jump shots and trying to work the ball inside to guys like John Salmons,” UM head coach Perry Clark said. “They picked up on this and took that away. We just didn’t do a great job of recognizing what was available to us down the stretch.”
After trailing by as many as 10 points, the Canes used a 17-2 run to take a 56-51 lead with 9:49 remaining in the game. Down the stretch, Miami missed key three-point shots that would have put the game away and were held without a field goal for the final 6:16.
“I think we really didn’t have any flow or continuity at the end of the game,” UM forward James Jones said. “Everybody kept going for the dagger and we just let them back in it.”
Coming into the game, the Hurricanes had won four conference games and moved up to No. 15 in the Associated Press Poll. The Eagles had been ranked as high as No. 10 after a 12-1 start, but had dropped four of their last six games, including an 88-78 loss to top-ranked Duke.
“We can’t get caught up with how good our record is and how great our season’s gone so far,” Darius Rice said.
Rice epitomized the Hurricanes’ shooting woes, converting on only 1-of-9 three-point shots.
“We have to stay humble and go out and compete hard every night.”
Miami’s next competitor won’t be any easier as the ‘Canes will face No. 17 Connecticut tomorrow night at Miami Arena. Miami will try to avenge its 76-75 loss earlier this month at Storrs, Connecticut. After Tuesday’s defeat, the ‘Canes desperately need a victory if they want to maintain any chance of winning the Big East.
“We have to look forward to UConn now,” Rice said. “We have to try and knock them off and hope for two more losses to try and get back in this thing. We can’t dwell on it. We’re hurt now, but tomorrow’s a new day.”
Letter to the Editor
Re: Student Government President Jose Diaz’ Jan. 25
It is good to know that at least someone is listening to me. I want to thank Jose Diaz, our student government president for responding to my article, “Parking Blunders.” He obviously cares for the school, which is reassuring, and he wanted to defend the administration from my attack, which is understandable. However, his defense does not hold water.
First, the most important issue: Mr. Diaz claims that it was actually the students who made the decision to create the new patio in front of Eaton (consequentially cutting down their chances at parking). This simply cannot be true.
The majority of students, as we all know, are poor. And, as we all know, major decisions at a university are made by people who have money. No matter how badly students want more places to hang out, the ultimate decision lies in the hands of whoever has the money. To those people I say there is no justification for deciding to satisfy one student complaint when it involves making an even more bitter complaint worse.
Also, I am positive that most students would rather not pay for multiple parking tickets than have a few extra tables to hang out around. The fact that the lost parking spaces are being replaced in other lots, as Mr. Diaz points out, is no excuse.
They could have been making those extra spaces in addition to the ones they paved over, not instead of them. Moreover, I know that they could have put the patio somewhere where no parking spaces would have been sacrificed.
And how dare they still give tickets after taking away our spaces???!!! Every day, I see some unfortunate student get a ticket in the Eaton lot and I think, if they wouldn’t have taken out those spaces to put in the patio, that student would have a place to park! I’m sure after finding that ticket the student wasn’t worried about admiring the beauty of the patio.
What’s worse, according to the department of transportation there are roughly 7,083 spaces on campus. When I asked how many parking passes they sold, they refused to say. Do you smell something fishy? I can’t say for a fact if they do sell more permits than they have spaces, but judging by their silence and the number of cars with permits forced to park illegally every day, I don’t think I am too far from the truth.
But let’s stick to the facts. No school has the right to provide inadequate parking, even take away from what little there is, and then have the gall to give students tickets because they cannot be accommodated. This is especially true if my hunch is right and they sold even one more than 7,083 permits. You say the administration can’t win, Mr. Diaz. I say not as long as they continue to make such ill-advised decisions.
Travis Atria is a sophomore majoring in English literature.
Media to blame for ignorance
Growing anti-American sentiment around the world remained at a high level; some people believe deserved it. This anti-American resentment might be blamed on the American press, who in its long standing dedication to journalistic excellence, have managed to skew foreign news, essentially reporting the news advertisers want to see.
There is little doubt those lives lost in September were valuable. Yet not more valuable either than the lives lost that day in other parts of the world. Setting standards to report deaths in regions diminishes the worth of life. It’s wrong, completely unfair. The public should be wary of the American press, as the government uses the media to further its foreign policy. For example, during the Afghani air raids, the U.S. reports of casualties differed from those of the Taliban. It doesn’t matter who was wrong or right. But there is little doubt the media was used as a propaganda machine.
Journalists may argue they are giving the public what it wants. But it is not that Americans don’t care about any other part of the world except Afghanistan and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; it’s just that that’s about all America hears. What about the question of the AIDS epidemic and cancer deaths in countries like South Africa or Thailand? These deaths are just as horrible as that of Israelis and Palestinians killed in a gunfight in an east bank settlement, wouldn’t you think that? If the press gives the public the tools and knowledge they need to form their decisions. Their decisions could stop the inefficient allocation of foreign aid and heal the effects of genocide and starvation in Africa. The American people are willing to help, but they just need to learn about these issues.
It’s important for Americans to learn about the world out there, after all America is a melting pot, and nearly every person here today has roots based in that outside world, be they first or tenth generation Americans. A large number of people emigrate to the United States every year, making it one of the most popular “refugee camps” in the world. But that issue aside, Americans need to learn more about what’s really going on in the world on the other side of the ocean if anything to make sure that it doesn’t ever spread to America’s shores.
The media has to step up, grow out of its shell and objectively actually report the story. The numbers don’t matter. Where a person dies is not important. It’s life that matters. What is important is that a life was cut short-that’s the story.
Faris al-Haisa is a sophomore majoring in political science.
News reflects public’s bias
Every morning, when I pick up one of the locally available papers, be it The New York Times, The Miami Herald or the Sun-Sentinel – I hunt for international headlines. And, most of the time, what I see is more news about the Middle East, Afghanistan, or Fidel’s kingdom to the south.
I’m sorry to say, but that’s the way things are, and most probably, the way they should be. Simply because those are the places of political and economic interest to the United States. Yes, we do live each day in a more globalized world, one in which each region and sometimes even each country has its own place in the global scheme. Yes, national legislation-here and abroad-has rippling effects beyond national borders. But we still can’t expect Finland, Nepal and Trinidad and Tobago to be as important to the United States as are the Middle East, China, and Colombia. These places are, quite simply, of higher political and economic interest to the United States, not to mention cultural.
One could blame the media. Not that the media is powerless in this country (much on the contrary), but it’s unrealistic, I believe, to hold the media above influence, above anyone or anything. U.S. foreign policy has much to do with what countries are covered and how they are covered.
And let’s not forget that the news media depends on public bias to survive. The readers are who dictate much of the content that is published. Most people don’t care what happens beyond their state borders, much less about what happens outside their national border. Unless, of course, they have family, cultural or economic ties to other countries. It’s part of human nature to be selective. As long as they depend on profits, the media will do whatever they can to sell more. Even if it means neglecting some of their readers.
While the atrocities in Chechnya, the plight of the poor in Morocco, and the AIDS epidemic in Sub-Saharan Africa may generate as many interesting stories as do Afghanistan, Colombia, and Israeli-Palestinian conflict, these countries don’t seem to be nearly as important to the United States.
This is the reality. But that doesn’t mean the lives of those in other countries are more precious than others. But, to some degree, it does make one life more important than another. And it becomes imperative to understand the difference between those two: Interest in one region doesn’t mean exclude not caring about another. The degrees of interest are what vary.
In the end, we’re just naturally wired to be selective, and the media simply reflect that bias in their coverage. It is up to the readers, then, to define (or re-define) their interests, so that the media can do the same with theirs.
Daniel Paskin is a doctoral student in the School of International Studies.
The bastardization of espa
Coming to the University of Miami to study or major in Spanish is absolutely ridiculous. Not because of the professors who teach the language. UM has terrific Spanish teachers. The problem? County residents. While more than one million Hispanic residents live in the Gateway to the Americas, many don’t speak Spanish. They speak Spanglish. So if you came over to learn or practice your espa
News Briefs and Campus Calendar
mortar board senior honor society
Mortar Board Senior Honor Society is looking forward to tapping this years 2002 Class of outstanding Seniors. Before the actual tapping there is a period for nominations to go out. Nominations are out until Feb. 14th they are available in the Academic Development center. MortarBoard Senior Honor Society is the second highest honor society at the University of Miami. They stand for leadership, scholarship and service.
Orientation coordinators wanted
Becoming an Orientation Coordinator! If you are looking for a leadership role in Orientation and were once an OA, please pass by the Office of Orientation and Commuter Student Affairs to pick up an OC application and signup for an interview. OCs will be responsible for a small group of OAs and are involved in planning and staffing. Any questions? Call 305-284-5646. Applications are due Feb. 8th by 5 p.m.
Black Awareness Month
Today
Friday Grove on UC Patio from 11:30am-1pm.
Happy Hour at the Rathskeller from 4:30-8pm- Erica Summers.
Saturday 2 February
Alpha Kappa Psi is holding a BBQ as a recruiting activity today at noon at Tropical Park, Shelter #3. For more information e-mail ERH82@aol.com
Monday 4 February
Guns N Violence Awareness Campaign
Application deadline for UM Ambassadors.
Tuesday 5 February
Asian Music Students Concert (various artists) today at 8pm-10:30pm at Victor E. Clarke Recital Hall in the L. Austin Weeks Center. Admission is free.
CAC sneak peek at the Cosford Cinema from 9-11pm: Collateral Damage.
Senior orientation from 12-1pm at Toppel Career Center library.
Women’s Resource Center open house at 4:30-5:30pm at UC room 224.
Wednesday 6 February
Open mic/ poetry night with BAM at the Rathskeller from 7-9pm.
Workshop: Getting the most from reading your textbooks at 1pm.
Tibetan Monks perform “Sacred Music and Sacred Dance for World Healing” tonight at 8pm in the Gusman Concert Hall. Doors open at 7:30pm, event is free to UM students while $5 for other students/seniors and $8 for general admission. VIP passes available in UC 206 (preferred seating). For more information contact Breana Burkett at 305-284-4606.
Karaoke Kraziness. A fun musical event in the Allen Hall courtyard from 12-1pm … we’re looking for all IEP students to participate. Talk to Maria in the IEP office for more information and lyrics to Karaoke songs. (This event is open to IEP students only.)
Join the Wellness Center today between 5-7pm in its Atrium for Healthy Heart Day, an event providing information to protect both aspects of your heart-physical and emotional. Information will be available on nutrition, healthy relationships, and preventing sexual transmitted infections and sexual assault. For more information call 305-284-6524.
Thursday 7 February
Workshop: Getting the most from reading your textbooks at 12:30pm.
Friday 8 February
Friday Grove on UC Patio from 11:30am-1pm.
Senior orientation from 2-3pm at Toppel Career Center library.
Applications for Orientation and Commuter Affairs are due today at 5pm.
Happy Hour at the Rathskeller from 4:30-8pm- Erica Summers.
Tuesday 12 February
CAC film at the Cosford Cinema.
Wednesday 13th February
Karaoke Night at Rathskeller
Workshop: Managing midterms, term papers, and projects at 1pm.
Thursday 14 February
Lonely hearts comedy jam at Rathskeller at 9-11pm.
Workshop: Managing midterms, term papers, and projects at 12:30pm.
Friday 15th February
Friday Grove on UC Patio from 11:30am-1pm.
Happy Hour at the Rathskeller from 4:30-8pm- Erica Summers.
Saturday 16th February
Funday! Check-in on UC center patio.
Sunday 17th February
WWF No way out! At the Rathskeller from 7-9pm.
Monday 18th February
The Department of Psychology is hosting its second annual Community Lecture Series: Psychology in Film. The next film and discussion will be Tuesday’s with Morrie at the Storer Auditorium in the Business School. For more information call Undergraduate Academic Services for Psychology at 305-284-3303 or visit www.psy.miami.edu.
Graduation to be more intimate
Commencement 2002 will not be business as usual.
Changes have been made to this year’s commencement, as the rescheduling reflects President Donna Shalala ‘s desire to give students a more valuable and personalized graduation experience.
“President Shalala has directed the University to create a series of commencement exercises this year to allow students to be individually recognized on stage by the President and the appropriate deans,” said a memo to the deans and vice-presidents.
In the past, UM had only one commencement ceremony in the spring, followed by smaller convocations and receptions by the individual schools.
This meant that each student was allowed only 10 guests to the ceremony.
“I come from a very large extended family,” Shalala said.
“Forty people attended my graduation. If I had told them there were only ten tickets, many would have been very insulted.”
This year commencement for the students from the College of Arts & Sciences, School of International Studies, and School of Continuing Studies will be held at 8:30 a.m. Students from the School of Business and College of Engineering will have theirs at 1 p.m.
Graduates of the School of Architecture, School of Communication, School of Education, School of Music and School of Nursing will have theirs at 4:30 p.m.
All ceremonies will take place on the university green and students will be allowed as many guests as they wish.
Many seniors have mixed opinions to these changes.
“I personally think it is a pr move and in this pr move it is breaking tradition,” said Marilisa Jimenez, a senior in the School of Communication. “I don’t appreciate the change. I’ve been at this school for four years and was looking forward in participating in the traditional commencement.”
Jimenez continued to explain that this is a time for the students and the changes made are “at the expense of the students.”
“I think it’s good that President Shalala wants to individualize each student to make the students day more memorable,” said John Lopez, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Parents and students will be notified of these changes in writing through flyers, direct mail, and online resources.
Seniors planning for the Spring 2002 Commencement must apply for graduation by Friday, Feb. 8 through the EASY system.
They may also at that time order their regalia, which is free to all graduation students. Information about commencement and these changes can be found on the University web site.
Increases in parking and prices scheduled
In accordance with last year’s parking management plan, UM is finalizing the groundwork for a massive parking expansion.
By the time construction is finished in 2005, over 3000 new spaces will have been added, said Sandra Redway, Assistant Director of Business Services. The cost of this project, which will be approximately $20 million, will be funded through parking revenues.
“Our hope is to have a good plan that will minimize inconveniences for students,” said Dr. Patricia Whitely, Vice President for Student Affairs. “We want the best plan possible-but that doesn’t mean it won’t be inconvenient.”
Permit prices increased 4.5% last year, and will increase 16.5% next year and 8% annually for the following five years.
Discount parking permits, however, will cost less for the first three years than the current $235 for standard parking.
The new spaces will come from two new garages, new parking lots and various expansions.
Two new lots, Stanford/Granada and Plumer, will be built on the south side of the University Metrorail Station, as well new lots behind the Memorial classroom building.
Another garage will be built close to Mahoney/Pearson Residential halls and two floors will be added to the existing Ponce garage, increasing the number of discounted parking spaces from 200 to over 1800.
“We want to let people know that there is action being taken,” said Robert Castro, Head of the Student Government Parking Committee.
However, as a result of construction to increase parking, many lots will be closed. In response to this, various temporary lots are going to be opened, among them two behind Fraternity Row.
Making for another lot the Sigma Alpha Epsilon area will also be paved.
“This is all in hopes of having ample parking while building,” said Mike Johnston, Student Government Speaker of the Senate.
These lots, however, may prove very inconvenient for students. While the Mahoney/Pearson area lots are closed, all the substitute parking spaces will be by San Amaro Drive, making for nearly a two-mile walk.
“We’re in a very awkward position. Should we make people walk from Frat row to Mahoney/Pearson?” said Johnston. “It’s not safe; it’s not convenient.”
Though construction is slated to begin during spring break, it will not be completed until-at the very least-the beginning of the fall semester. “Realistically, the temporary lots won’t be finished until the end of the semester,” said Jonhston.
“The Pavia lot will be closed starting at spring break; the Mahoney/Pearson lot will close sometime in April, and the Ponce garage will only shut down for construction after the semester is over,” added Dr. Pat Whitely.
The University has also purchased the stretch of Miller Drive between the Ring Theater and the Law School from the City of Coral Gables in order to take over parking in that area and possibly remove the parking meters.
“We are working on purchasing Stanford Drive from Coral Gables in order to remove those meters as well,” said Johnston.
“The good news is there will be plenty of parking in the future,” said Whitely.
Hurricane Productions promises ‘huge’ rock act
Following Ludacris’ blow-out performance in the pouring rain during homecoming weekend last semester, everyone is wondering who will be involved in the big Hurricane Productions [HP] act for this semester.
Unfortunately, only a few members of the HP team are privy to this information. And although Graham Micone, head of the concerts department, is not yet ready to release this confidential information, he assures the student body that “it will be a rock act, and they will be huge.”
While rumors carry names such as No Doubt and Linkin Park, students will simply just have to wait and see until the spring headliners are officially announced.
While the spring music act is still clouded in mystery, students can plan now for other HP events, including the Source Fashion Nation Tour and a team laser-tag tournament, which will be part of the upcoming HP schedule.
The laser-tag tournament, which takes place on Feb. 28th, will allow 32 five-member teams to compete for fame and glory in a single-elimination contest. The matches will be held between 4 and 10 p.m. on the Campus Green.
The following day, the school will play host to a hip-hop fashion show, where students can audition to model clothes (jeans) from various designers such as Sean John and Pepe.
Pop-culture director, John Waters, is the featured guest speaker this semester. This visionary director of such films as Pink Flamingos and Pecker will be featured on April 18th.
The HP staff has become an association of students who take it upon themselves to plan entertainment of all sorts at the university throughout the year.
Every semester, HP plans blockbuster film screenings, heart-pounding musical acts, first-rate guest speakers, and an assortment of intriguing special events with this semester being no exception.
Although some students are quick to criticize the HP staff for its decisions on events, most do not realize how much effort it takes to get first-rate entertainment to come to UM, especially because of the small funding allowance, taken from the students’ activities fee, said the HP staff.
“We are working with middlemen and exclusive agents within a very limited budget,” says HP staff member Matt Stover.
Still, HP anticipates the opening of Ryder Center next year where they will be able to accommodate larger musical acts because of the extra space.
They also expect additional funding from non-UM patrons who will be able to attend these performances.
Many students are usually familiar with HP because of the film screenings that take place every Tuesday evening at the Cosford Cinema.
Highlights for this semester include the films, Shallow Hal, Monster’s Inc., and Pulp Fiction (in February), Ocean’s 11, Harry Potter, and Not Another Teen Movie (in March), and The Royal Tenenbaums, Vanilla Sky, and The Lord of the Rings (in April). In addition to the advertised selections, HP plans to offer a number of sneak previews throughout the semester that will be screened on campus before they are available to the general public.
The first of these sneak screenings is Arnold Schwarzenegger’s new movie, Collateral Damage, scheduled for Tuesday, February 5, at 7:00 pm at the Cosford Cinema.
Passes are still available for this screening in the HP office on the second floor of the University Center.
“There will be at least two or three more screenings this semester,” said Chad Peiken, head of the Cinematic Arts Commission [CAC], the movie department of Hurricane Productions
Many more exciting HP opportunities are sure to develop throughout the semester. Interested parties can look for additional information on upcoming HP events at www.um-hp.com or come on up to the HP office located on the UC second floor.
Shalala adjusts well to university life
A dazzling ‘GO CANES’ logo slapped in green letters around the cement pillar that supports the roof under which President Shalala works, is perhaps the most visible sign of the changing times.
Gone are the heavy oak-wood bookstands that kept former president Tad Foote’s favorite reads in place. Filling in for them: myriad plaques, awards and distinctions that Shalala, former Secretary of Health and Human Services for the Clinton administration has netted throughout her career in education and public administration.
Six months into the job, the president is still hesitant to get into specifics when asked to spell out her vision for the University.
“I’ve been listening – haven’t done a lot of acting yet,” she told the Hurricane. “I need to know a lot more about the institution.”
However, last semester was certainly not the time for passive leadership.
September’s terrorist attacks, their repercussions on Muslim students at UM, and the on-campus drowning of freshman Chad Meredith required Shalala to take a number of tough on-the-spot decisions and stand behind the proverbial podium to offer comforting words when the community at large was speechless.
She aced the test according to Student Government President Jose DIaz who was on the committee that led the nation-wide hunt for Foote’s successor.
“The way she handled September 11 and other difficult moments last semester was notable,” said DIaz, who met Shalala four years ago when she accepted an invitation to speak at the Business School.
When Muslim students reported incidents of stigmatization as a result of September’s terrorist attacks, Shalala recurred to no euphemism in expressing her determination to halt that type of behavior by issuing bold statements-“freedom of speech also means that we can answer back.”
When reporters asked her about the circumstances that surrounded Meredith’s death on Nov. 5, Shalala was able to put a face to the name, making reference to a conversation the two had had earlier last semester. “He talked about majoring in political science and history – he wanted to be a lawyer,” she said.
The incidents revealed a president who could be as firm as stone one moment, and playful the next.
“She treats you like a friend,” said DIaz about the president’s leadership style. “She’s the type of person who’s not afraid of getting her hands dirty,” he added.
Dirty or not, the president got her nails done in orange for her inauguration.
Indeed, Shalala has taken a number of peculiar steps to befriend students, such as sitting with them during football games.
“My rule is that I sit the first quarter of every football game in the stands with the students, and the last quarter too. In between, at half time, I usually have guests in my box upstairs that I have to go schmooze with. My preference would be to be outside for the whole game but presidents have responsibilities,” Shalala told the Palm Beach Post last December.
The president’s next important test is likely to be the multi-million fund raising effort that lies ahead amidst times of economic uncertainty.
“I expect fundraising to be down the next few years because of recession in the economy,” Shalala told the Hurricane, adding that scant fundraising might take a toll on her handicap by keeping her away from the golf course.
“No fundraising, means no golf,” she joked.
Better housing options and more flexibility for students in putting their majors together are two local issues Shalala is currently tackling.
The president told the Hurricane that the university is about to pick contractors to build apartments for upper-class students.
Then there’s the infamous parking situation. “I’m experienced in every other aspect of higher education except dealing with parking,” joked Shalala, who served as president of Hunter College from 1980 to 1987 and as chancellor of the University of Wisconsin from 1987 to 1993.
A handful of UM students will soon get to judge one of her non-parking-related expertise: teaching.
“I’ve always taught,” said Shalala who’s looking forward to teaching a 500-level course in public policy next fall.
Commencement protocol is another major change the president is spearheading.
“I come from a very large extended family,” said Shalala. “Forty people attended my graduation. If I had told them there were only ten tickets, many would have been very insulted.”
The next time UM students rig up their caps and gowns, they will each receive their diploma as they shake the president’s hand, and will be allowed to invite as many guests as they wish to the ceremonies that will be broken up into smaller groups.
Despite her hectic, back-to-back meeting schedule during the week, Shalala says she has plenty of spare time during weekends.
“I do what everybody in Miami does. I play tennis, I go to the theater, I love the Miami City Ballet,” she said.
“Oh, and fishing!” she exclaimed. “I recently bought a boat. I was out fishing last Monday. We caught a lot of fish – but none over ten inches, so we threw them back in.”
Politics is one arena Shalala has decided to steer away from. “I’m not near it,” she stated emphatically. “I’m not telling anyone who I’m voting for for governor,” said Shalala, who arrived in Miami with heavy Democratic baggage from her tenure in Washington.
Does governor-hopeful former Attorney General Janet Reno consider a vote from her ex-colleague a sure thing?
“You’d have to ask her,” Reno told the Hurricane during a phone interview. The two, she said, have only seen each other a couple of times since they moved to Miami.
“She’s a busy woman, I’m a busy woman,” Reno explained.
Asked to comment on her former colleague, Reno said she always admired Shalala’s “tremendous energy and her ability to identify issues that need attention.”
Although it may be too early to envisage the impact Shalala will have in the community, a university as vibrant and volatile as UM will likely benefit enormously from the two characteristics Edna Shalala, the president’s 90-year-old mother exalts about her daughter.
“From a very early age, Donna has always been a fearless leader and a risk-taker,” Edna Shalala told the Hurricane during a phone interview from her law firm in Cleveland, Ohio.
“She always wanted to be the first to try things,” she explained. She would be the first to jump from the diving board; she was the first woman from her university to join the Peace Corps, always a little ahead of herself.”
One fun-fact about the president: “She’s the person you want to take to a Lebanese restaurant,” marked Reno. “She always knows exactly what to order.”
Wasabi serves a tasty fish
The Wasabi Sushi Bar & Japanese Restaurant, at 1540 Sunset Dr., offers its patrons with more choices than they could ever need. Where to sit poses the first question, with available seating outside, inside, or at the sushi bar. The choices just get harder once the menu comes. They offer 50 different appetizers. They’ve got cold appetizers, hot appetizers, and appetizers from the sushi bar. The sushi bar has 83 different types of sushi. I could go to the Wasabi Sushi Bar for three months straight and try a different kind of sushi every night. And the choices still keep coming. Their wide variety of main courses doesn’t stop at the sushi bar. The kitchen also offers 20 entr