Senate enforces policy
The Student Senate has recently requested the Director of the Union to enforce a policy passed by last year’s Senate regarding Troy Student Housing. Troy Student Housing had previously slipped under the radar and began advertising on the Union’s off-campus housing database, in direct violation of Union policy.
The Student Senate passed a resolution last year on February 27 that barred Troy Student Housing and any of its affiliates and subsidiaries from advertising in or around the Union or Mueller Center, as well as on the off-campus housing website. The policy was enacted because the organization was allegedly not truthful in its advertising.
Troy Student Housing, however, has been advertising on the Student Union’s off-campus housing database; its sister property, Horizon Terrace Apartments, had also recently sent advertisements via e-mail to some students promoting the apartments.
The Student Senate decided last week that the policy passed by last year’s Senate should be enforced and therefore, Grand Marshal Carlos Perea ’07 has enacted the resolution, which will be in effect until Troy Student Housing can prove that it is not violating the rights of RPI students, and that they are truthful in their advertising.
Perea said, “We are just making sure that Union policies are being upheld. If Troy Student Housing would like to be allowed to advertise in the Union again, all they would need to do is prove to us beyond a doubt that they are providing a safe, healthy, and fair place to live for our students without violating any of their rights.”
Union students arrested
Two students at Union College were arrested February 7 on charges of drug dealing. Richard Valentas, 21, was arrested at the house of the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity, of which he is president; Jonah Silk, also 21, was picked up at his Park Avenue residence. Both were charged with counts of felony drug sale.
The arrests came as a result of a joint undercover investigation between the Schenectady Police Department and the State Police regarding drug sales around the campus. Silk and Valentas were allegedly operating separately, but both were selling marijuana in gallon-sized resealable bags. Investigators noted that such quantities are not typically for personal use but are divided up and resold in smaller portions.
The students were arraigned in state Supreme Court and sent to Schenectady County Jail.
RPI researcher honored
The Eastern New York Intellectual Property Law Association named Professor Leonard Intorrante and former Rensselaer researcher Chris Whitmarsh as the recipients of the 2007 Inventor of the Year Award on Friday. The pair was recognized for their work on silicon carbide ceramic processes that will yield high-strength ceramic materials that have broad uses in applications ranging from motorcycles to aerospace.
The award is given annually based on criteria such as creativity, economic value, and problem difficulty, as well as the status of the inventor and invention. Past developments that have earned the award include ones in computer chip design, pharmaceuticals, and medical and surgical devices.
Whitmarsh now works with Starfire Systems, Inc., which is currently the developer of the technology.
