Campus News

Students to dance for charity

Kelly Shaw
Campus News Editor

Xavier’s first annual Dance Marathon, an event that is held nationwide at different colleges and high schools in conjunction with Children’s Miracle Network (CMN) and the local CMN Hospital (Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Medical Research Center), will take place this Friday, Dec. 8 beginning at 6 p.m. and continue until 10 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 9 in the O’Connor Sports Center.

Kaitlyn Kramer

Some of the children who will be helped by CMN.

Dancers will be on their feet for the entire 16 hours and have been working to raise money. Anyone can make donations at the event.

The registration deadline to be a dancer has passed but the Xavier community is welcome and encouraged to stop by the event any time between 6 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 8 and 10 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 9 to enjoy the festivities. Guests must pay $5 at the door but can stay as long as they like.

Co-director junior Heidi Mallis describes the event.

“It blends dancing, music, games, food and a variety of entertainment into one experience where students raise money for kids treated at their Children’s Miracle Network hospital,” Mallis said.

Family relations committee chair sophomore Kaitlyn Kramer looks forward to a good time.

“Dance Marathon is like a celebration for all of the money that we have raised for CMN. We are having different performers, games, prizes, food, music and a whole lot of fun,” Kramer said.

She also admires the students who have volunteered to dance at the event.

“It isn’t an ideal situation to be dancing for 16 hours straight. But the people who are committed to this and who are signed up weren’t thinking about how tired they will be,” she said. “They’ve been thinking about the difference that they can make. They were thinking about the families who will be helped and the children who will be saved. Cincinnati Children’s, along with the other CMN hospitals, is truly a miracle-working institution and it is important for our campus to realize that as college students we are empowered, and we can do something to help.”

Mallis feels this is a wonderful service opportunity for participants.

“Dance Marathon will be an opportunity for students to live out the Jesuit ideal of ‘men and women for others’ by doing a great service for the thousands of kids treated at Cincinnati Children’s each year,” Mallis said.

Kramer explains her role in working with the families who will be present at the event.

“It has been my privilege to work with six fantastic families from Cincinnati Children’s. I have been working to get them here on campus so that they feel comfortable with the environment as well as the Executive Committee before they come down for the actual event,” she said. “I am also responsible for including the families in our marathon. To me, this is the epitome. These families have such incredibly touching stories that I feel empowered to do something, make a difference, affect a change, every time I read their stories.”

For Kramer, Dance Marathon isn’t about the money that will be raised.

“Dance Marathon is truly for these families and for all the families whose stories I won’t hear. Whether we raise $10 or $10,000, it doesn’t really matter, because the families and the hospital know that we are inspired by them and are working to better their situations,” she said.

Kramer encourages participation and hopes to see positive change.

“Students should participate in order to see the remarkable contribution that Xavier students are making in order to assist Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. I hope that this event will affect the campus at large by encouraging Xavier students and the community to really look beyond themselves,” she said.
Mallis agrees.

“I hope this event raises awareness about Cincinnati Children’s and the great service it provides for the Cincinnati community,” she said. Cincinnati Children’s is saving the lives of kids every day and those lucky children are going to be our future leaders.”

TOP OF PAGE

XU and Jewish center support diversity

Kelly Shaw
Campus News Editor

Xavier University and the Hillel Jewish Student Center have announced a historic partnership between the two institutions, marking the first formal relationship between Hillel and Xavier.

After working for several years to encourage cultural and interreligious action, Rabbi Abie Ingber, the executive director of the Hillel Jewish Center of Cincinnati, will lead Hillel at Xavier.

“The growth of this relationship parallels Xavier’s mission, with its particular focus on the total educational and Jesuit mission of care for the whole person,” said Rabbi Ingber.

Xavier Press Release

Students participate in a Jewish ceremony.

The new partnership was celebrated at a recent reception where both Xavier University President, Fr. Michael J. Graham, S.J. and Rabbi Ingber spoke about the shared commitment to enriching the lives of young adults through learning. The partnership is intended to serve as a model for other institutions.

“Our mission is to form students intellectually, morally and spiritually, with rigor and compassion, toward lives of solidarity and service,” said Father Graham, S.J. “To do this successfully, diversity in all its forms must be a part of the experience we provide.”

This historic outreach by the two institutions came shortly before an address at Xavier by Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, S.J., Superior General of the Society of Jesus.

In his speech, the Father General said, “The service of faith in Jesuit higher education, then, helps members of the university community develop a profound understanding of, and commitment to, their own religious tradition. This process necessarily includes openness to and learning from other religious traditions and appreciation and critique of culture. Religious diversity and cultural values are interdependent and overlapping—not independent—dimensions of our lives.

Indeed, interreligious dialogue is one of the most powerful responses to the global cultural malaise. It will take the cooperation of the world’s religions to address adequately dehumanizing cultural forces.”

The partnership has already begun in some forms on campus. Rabbi Ingber is co-teaching a course with Xavier associate theology professor Sarah Melcher. The course is entitled “Jewish/Christian Dialogues Today: The Search for Authenticity.” As part of the class, Xavier students recently visited the Hillel Jewish Student Center on Clifton Avenue.

Rabbi Ingber is not new to Xavier’s campus. He is one of the co-creators of the award-winning exhibit, “A Blessing to One Another: Pope John Paul II and the Jewish People,” which premiered at Xavier in May 2005. Since the premiere, the exhibit has traveled to the John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington, D.C., Duquesne University, and it is currently at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City.

All of the programs planned by Hillel will be open to Xavier students, faculty and staff.

TOP OF PAGE

Police Notes

Nov. 27, 2:54 p.m.—Two employees reported a minor auto accident in the Gallagher lot.

Nov. 27, 7:40 p.m.—A student reported a hit-and-run accident in the Village lot. A suspect was identified and cited with the intent to leave the crime scene.

Nov. 27, 9:32 p.m.—A student in Elet Hall was cited for violating a stay-away order that was issued by the dean of students.

Nov. 28, 8:15 a.m.—A Physical Plant employee reported damage to a window in Husman Hall.

Nov. 30, 12:35 a.m.—An employee reported a minor accident in the Flynn Hall lot.

Dec. 1, 3:36 p.m.—Two students were cited for stealing alcohol from Cintas Concessions.

Dec. 2, 12:30 a.m.—An officer on patrol detected damage to a light pole on 1612 Dana Ave.

Dec. 2, 2:00 p.m.—A student who walked through the C-2 lot with an open container of alcohol was cited for underage consumption.

Dec. 2, 7:10 p.m.—Two non-students soliciting magazine subscriptions in the residence halls were cited and escorted off-campus.

Dec. 3, 12:10 a.m.—An RA in Brockman Hall reported that the contents of a fire extinguisher located on the second floor had been discharged.

Dec. 3, 3:10 p.m.—A non-student acting suspiciously in the library was arrested on four outstanding warrants including assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest and trespassing.

Dec. 3, 8:25 p.m.—An RA reported damage done to the emergency exit sign on the fifth floor of Kuhlman Hall.

Dec. 3, 10:40 p.m.—Campus Police investigated reports of roommate trouble in the Village. Neither party wanted further action.

Police Note of the Week

Dec. 1, 2:00 a.m.—A student walking back to campus from Surrey Square on Montgomery Road reported that a motorist solicited them for a sexual favor.

Published since 1915 by the students of Xavier University

Students to dance for charity

XU and Jewish center support diversity

Police Notes

Final ASA General Meeting