2009 July: Community News

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Campus to be smoke-free under new policy

• L acrosse coach

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• S hakespeare quiz

n effort to simplify and extend the University policy on smoking will go into effect Jan. 1, 2010, making DU one of a handful of smokefree campuses in Colorado. The decision comes on the heels of nearly two years of surveys, letters, petitions, research and debate on smoking policy that considered everything from smoking areas marked by yellow umbrellas to a total ban on all tobacco products. “A complete ban on the use or possession of legal tobacco products among the DU community is not reasonable,” Chancellor Robert Coombe said in a letter to the DU community. “[DU] does not regulate legal personal choice unless such choice has a deleterious effect on the community as a whole. … At DU, personal choice is a part of personal growth.” The policy will prohibit smoking in all locations on campus except for an area 25 feet from public perimeter rights-of-way. Also exempted from the ban are two yet-to-be designated smoking areas outside the Ritchie Center and the Newman Center that will be available to smokers during public events. University officials said the new standard also will apply to off-campus university-owned buildings. “It’s a public health issue,” says Dr. Sam Alexander, director of the Health and Counseling Center, who spearheaded a DU Tobacco Task Force that examined the issue. “Our main concern was the effect of secondhand smoke on the health of people who choose not to smoke.” Nationally, there are about 150 institutions that are smoke free or tobacco free. According to a survey conducted by the DU Tobacco Task Force, 62 percent of students, 73 percent of staff and 61 percent of faculty support a smoke-free campus. The survey indicated that 4 percent of students smoke regularly on campus, another 4 percent smoke socially on and off campus, and 8 percent smoke socially off campus. According to research compiled by the Tobacco Task Force, the danger for nonsmokers is in the carcinogens in secondhand smoke, which can cause lung cancer, heart disease and asthma in nonsmokers and pose a danger even in “occasional exposure.” —Richard Chapman

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• Carbon neutrality • Self-defense class • Soap opera star

The Class of 1959 recently celebrated its 50th reunion on campus. Here are some facts about the class: • T he number of 1959 graduates from all schools is 1,547. • T he number of 1959 graduates residing in Colorado is 347. • In 1959 the business school was located in downtown Denver. • Tuition was $15 a credit hour. • More students attended football games than hockey games.

Princeton men’s lacrosse coach Bill Tierney has been named the head men’s lacrosse coach at the University of Denver. During his 22 seasons with Princeton, Tierney led the Tigers to six NCAA championships, eight NCAA championship games, 10 NCAA Final Four appearances and 14 Ivy League championships. He compiled a 238– 86 career record at Princeton and has a career collegiate record of 272–93 for a .745 winning percentage. In 1992, Tierney won the Morris Touchstone Award as the Division I Coach of the Year to go along with the Division III Coach of the Year honor he received in 1983 at Rochester Institute of Technology. He was elected to the Long Island Chapter Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1994 and the New Jersey Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1999. Outside of his collegiate coaching honors, Tierney coached the United States to a world championship in 1998 and was inducted into the U.S. Lacrosse Hall of Fame as part of the 2002 class. Tierney replaces Jamie Munro, who resigned on May 7 after posting a 91–70 mark in 11 seasons. Tierney began as head coach of the Pioneers on July 1. —Athletics Media Relations

Thou shalt know Shakespeare? If you are a student at University Park Elementary School, then you likely do. For 10 of the last dozen years, a team of fifth-graders from UPark has crushed all-comers at the annual Denver Public Schools Shakespeare Festival trivia contest just as it did in early May. Try your luck: 1. Queen Elizabeth was a descendant of what royal blood line? 2. Who did Queen Elizabeth marry? 3. In what Shakespeare play is the following quote: “A horse, a horse! My kingdom for a horse!”

DU seeks carbon neutrality by 2050

1. The Tudors 2. No one 3. Richard III

More than a year in the making, the University of Denver’s plan for achieving carbon neutrality has been approved and the goal is set. Under the plan, by the year 2050, DU will achieve climate neutrality. The plan is one of the promises the University made in 2007 when Chancellor Robert Coombe signed on to the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment. The commitment defines climate neutrality as “having no net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, to be achieved by minimizing GHG emissions as much as possible, and using carbon offsets or other measures to mitigate the remaining emissions.” DU’s plan was crafted by the Sustainability Council, a collaborative body made up of students, faculty and staff and led by outgoing chairman Fred Cheever and Lyndsay Agans, lead writer and incoming chair. The 93-page document lays the groundwork for what will be an ongoing effort to reduce carbon emissions, achieve new energy efficiencies and change the way the University uses energy. The proposal focuses on conservation, reduced consumption, and appropriate alternative energy sources. DU already has taken steps toward its goal, including producing a full inventory of the University’s greenhouse gas emissions and adding an energy engineer to look for ways DU can be more sustainable. In the past year, DU has substantially boosted its recycling campaign, added vehicles that run on cleaner-burning compressed natural gas and kicked off a bicycle-sharing program. The plan calls for everything from generating some of the University’s own power to including a curriculum in sustainability so that future generations will continue the fight for carbon neutrality. —Chase Squires

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Beverly Schaefer/Princeton OAC

DU names new men’s lacrosse head coach

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Volume 32, Number 10 Vice Chancellor for University Communications

Carol Farnsworth

Publications Director

Chelsey Baker-Hauck (BA ’96) Managing Editor

Kathryn Mayer (BA ’07) Art Director

Craig Korn, VeggieGraphics Community News is published monthly by the University of Denver, University Communications, 2199 S. University Blvd., Denver, CO 80208. The University of Denver is an EEO/AA institution.

Contact Community News at 303-871-4312 or [email protected] To receive an e-mail notice upon the publication of Community News, contact us with your name and e-mail address.

Strike force

On-campus self-defense class packs a punch

—Samantha Stewart

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Wayne Armstrong

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woman walks home after a night out, striding down a poorly lit side street without trepidation. She’s heard the oftrepeated statistic that one in four women will be sexually assaulted in their lifetime, but her confidence in the precautions she has taken — carrying pepper spray and chatting with a friend on the phone, a measure intended to ensure she returns home safely — assuages any instinctual unease. Preoccupied, she doesn’t notice the approaching stranger. As she gropes for the pepper spray in her purse, her hands come up empty. The stranger makes his move. The call ends and her friend, although disturbed by the abrupt goodbye, can only guess at the reason and her friend’s location. This sort of scenario concerns DU Campus Safety Sergeant Jason McKelvy and his fellow officers, who regularly see students ambling across campus, distracted by their cell phones A self-defense student practices her striking technique on a mock attacker. and oblivious to their surroundings. So, each quarter, Campus Safety offers a basic physical defense course through RAD, the largest self-defense training network in the country. Being cognizant of possible threats and putting away the cell phone can make a world of difference. “Ninety-percent of self-defense education is awareness,” says RAD instructor Kelly Raeburn. “By educating participants about what makes women more vulnerable to attacks, we hope women will have a heightened awareness of their surroundings and avoid a confrontation.” Open to students, employees and members of the public, RAD also teaches women how to use their personal weapons — voice, hands, feet, elbows, etc. — to survive dangerous situations like the stranger-on-the-sidewalk scenario. A woman’s voice, instructors emphasize, is her most valuable weapon because predators don’t want to fight or attract attention. Consequently, assertive verbal commands like “stay back” and “no,” as opposed to screaming, can help prevent an altercation. Participants spend most of the three-day, four-hour-long course learning and practicing a comprehensive array of combative methods for blocking advances, striking back and, above all, escaping physical confrontations. “When in an altercation, the adrenaline kicks in and humans have a tendency to revert to what they feel most comfortable with and what feels natural to them so these skills are simple to learn and retain,” says McKelvy. By the final class, participants have learned how to favorably alter the possible outcomes of the stranger-on-the-sidewalk scenario. So a woman, having completed RAD training, knows to be aware of her surroundings and gets a good look at the stranger’s face as he approaches. “Stay back,” she would shout with authority, shifting her right-foot back into a balanced stance, bringing the left-arm up to block and securing a fist with her right-hand. She knows to aim her strike at vulnerable areas such as the nose or throat, to anticipate the direction of her attacker’s counterstrike by watching his shoulders and to continue voicing assertive commands so as to attract attention. She knows to steady her breathing and prevent panic from freezing her. She knows how to survive and believes she can. Empowerment and confidence is the end goal of the course, says Raeburn. “The most important thing I hope women walk away from the basic physical defense course with is that no matter their age or physical ability, they are not powerless if confronted by an attacker.” “I thought it was a good class for us,” says Denver resident Monique Cameron, who took the class with her 12-year-old daughter. “Jazmyn is not confrontational like her mother. I’ve always felt I could defend myself, but now I am more confident that Jazz can.” Women interested in taking a RAD class can e-mail Tyrone Mills at [email protected] or visit www.du.edu/campus-safety/rad.htm. The course costs $25. Courses can be scheduled upon request.

[Events] July

Real-life lawyer plays serial killer on soap opera

Arts 12 Rafael Mendez Brass

Institute. Hosted by the Lamont School of Music. For information, contact director Alan Hood at [email protected] or visit www.mendezbrassinstitute. com. Conservatory Theatre’s Annie Jr. Noon and 6 p.m. Margery Reed Hall, Little Theatre. Additional performances July 17 at noon and 6 p.m. and July 18 at noon and 5 p.m. Visit RMCTonline. com for tickets and information.

26 Lamont cello camp. Through

July 30. For information, contact director Richard Slavich at [email protected] or www. rockymountaincellofest.org.

Around Campus 3 Independence Day holiday. Campus closed.

4 Fourth of July annual parade. 10 a.m. Observatory Park. Community welcome.

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House. 10 a.m. Chambers Center.

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Courtesy of ABC Television Network

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It looks like Sean Moynihan has two lives to live after all. In the early 1990s, Moynihan (JD ’04) was a regular on the soap opera “One Life to Live.” Now, he’s a Denver deputy district attorney living a “normal” life. But, most normal attorneys don’t get calls from television writers asking if they’d like to return for a 10-episode stint. “I was a little shocked,” he says about the call asking him to return as his character Powell Lord. His episodes recently aired on ABC. The last time viewers saw Lord, the killer and rapist was sent to a psychiatric hospital. “He was a college boy who got involved with some bad college boys. He’s certainly done some bad things,” Moynihan says. That was 15 years ago. “I haven’t heard from them [since then],” Moynihan says. “I kind of moved on.” It’s a far cry from the life he has now. He lives in Boulder County, Colo., with his wife and two young children. After “One Life to Live,” Moynihan moved to Los Angeles and guest starred on shows such as “Caroline in the City” and “Sliders.” But the L.A. lifestyle proved to be unstable. So he moved to Denver and applied to DU’s Sturm College of Law. “I’m glad they gave me a shot; they gave me an opportunity,” he says of DU. “It was a very rich and rewarding experience,” Moynihan says, adding that he got to apply himself much more than he did as an undergraduate at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. “For three years, I had the luxury of dropping out from the workforce and jumping into learning the law.” That jump landed him in the Denver district attorney’s office. Moynihan took off about seven days this spring to take two separate trips to New York City to film the shows. “I enjoyed walking along the streets of New York again,” he says. “For a brief moment, I was a professional actor; I was no longer a lawyer.” It took some warming up at first, though. “The first few episodes I was a little nervous, a little stiff,” Moynihan says. “The more I did it, the more I loosened up.” He hadn’t been acting except for a few local events “just for fun,” he says. And he hadn’t really planned on it, either. “It was like going back into a time warp,” he says. “It was really bizarre.” But a good bizarre, he clarifies. Does the soap character have one more life to live? “There are no plans as of now. I viewed it as a lark. But if they were to inquire again, I’d certainly consider it.” Perhaps he should. Powell Lord got shot in his last episode, but it wasn’t clear whether he lived or died. “I certainly miss [the show],” Moynihan says, “but I have a good life here, too.” —Kathryn Mayer