Scholarships for Victims’ Dependents

CHRONICLE OF HIGHER EDUCATION, Sept. 24 — Several colleges and universities announced they would offer scholarships for dependents of victims in the recent terrorist attacks.

Colleges located near the World Trade Center were the first to offer such assistance. They were followed quickly by New York State officials who said they were preparing to help victims’ spouses and children attend public colleges in New York, free.

Other schools offering special aid were Rutgers, New York University, Columbia, Fordham and Harvard.

The Chronicle also reported that Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (Ind.), will offer special scholarships to those who lost family members in the Sept. 11 attacks.

Flagpole Vigil Halted at Marquette

MARQUETTE TRIBUNE, Sept. 20 — Students were told by Marquette University officials not to conduct a vigil and a moment of silence at the flagpole because it might offend foreign students, Lonny Leitner, president of College Republicans, told the Marquette Tribune.

Leitner said she was told, “this is not a day for nationalism.” A staffer said that displaying the American flag would be offensive to foreign students and that university offices were notified not to display the Stars and Stripes.

Rana Altenburg, vice president for Public Affairs, told the Marquette Tribune and the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel that Marquette officials were simply confused about what the College Republicans wanted to do. She said she approved the event after she learned that it was to be a memorial and not a rally.

Pro-War Rally at Berkeley

REUTERS, Sept. 25 — “The times they are a-changing,” reports Reuters.

A small group of students at the University of California at Berkeley, a famous hotbed of anti-war protests during the Vietnam War, broke out in a “Rally for America” Sept. 24.

The event, which involved a coalition of student activists and fraternities, rallied behind President Bush's “war on terrorism.”

“This is 2001, not 1968,” rally coordinator Randy Barnes, a Berkeley senior, told 150 students from the steps of Sproul Hall, a landmark for Vietnam-era protests.

Pacifists shouted back, “1-2-3-4, we don't want your racist war.”

Robb McFadden, spokesman for the Berkeley Conservative Foundation, blasted the hecklers. “There is an unwritten rule in Berkeley: Blame America,” he told the crowd.

Loan Obligations Put Off

CHRONICLE OF HIGHER EDUCATION, Sept. 24 — The U.S. Department of Education announced Sept. 24 that it had directed lenders to temporarily suspend loan obligations of student borrowers who are activated for military duty as a result of the recent terrorist attacks.

Rod Paige, the secretary of education, also called on colleges to refund tuition and other institutional charges to students who are forced to withdraw to fulfill military obligations.

“The actions we are taking today, “ said Paige, “will ease their financial burdens as they defend our country in these challenging times.”