Red Sox Shrine Seen In Provost Office

A pennant and some other Red Sox memorabilia decorate a small table outside Provost Paul Fonteyn’s office. Included is a “crying towel,” for the provost, since his beloved San Francisco Giants lost their chance at the National League Championship Series to the Florida Marlins two weeks ago.

Fonteyn, who spent eleven years as associate vice president of research and sponsored programs/dean of graduate studies and research at San Francisco State University, was forced to move his Giants memorabilia to a shelf in his office, as the Sox took their rightful place on top the small table.

Better luck next time, provost.

Professor Battles Rats

Professor Charles Cnudde has a rat problem. A very, very big rat problem, according to the Cambridge Chronicle.

“These rats are well fed. I’ve caught some that are as big as cats, and then I’ve caught some smaller ones,” Cnudde told the Chronicle about the sixteen rats he had caught in his backyard.

Some were seen chasing cats, he joked to his Legislative Process class.

Cnudde went before the Cambridge City Council earlier this fall to speak on the problem affecting the various areas of the city. The city has brought in a consultant (assumedly not the Pied Piper) as part of an effort to help the city deal with the problem.

Race-Based Point System Out at UMass

In response to the Supreme Court ruling earlier this year UMass Amherst will no longer be awarding points in the admisssions process on the basis of race. However, race will remain a factor, which is also in accordance with the Supreme Court ruling, in the case against the University of Michigan.

“We will be using race as a consideration,” Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Michael Gargano told Associated Press. “We will be looking at each applicant as an individual.”

No effect is expected on the number of minority applicants, according to UMass Amherst officials.

Minorities made up eighteen percent of 16,400 applicants, and seventeen percent of the incoming four thousand freshman are minorities, the Associated Press quoted Director of Institutional Research Marilyn Blaustein as saying.