This week Northwestern University unveiled a new financial aid program geared at increasing minority and low-income enrollment.

In fall 2011, the Good Neighbor, Great University scholarship program will offer enhanced financial aid to about 100 incoming freshman from Chicago and Evanston high schools, though it is expected to expand to offer aid to up to 200 students in the future. The new scholarships will replace the loan and work study component in traditional financial aid packages.

Graduates from public and private high schools are eligible for the new aid. They may re-apply each year and must maintain at least a 2.0 GPA and remain full time students, taking at least nine credits per year.

The program will serve as a foundation for the university’s push to attract applications from minority and low-income students, said former Associated Student Government President Mike McGee (Communication ‘10), who served on the task force that planned the new program.

“This program’s very big, and it’s going to cost a lot of money,” McGee said. “But it’s going to affect a lot of students.”

University President Morton Schapiro and Penelope Peterson, dean of the School of Education and Social Policy, co-chaired the planning task force, which included other administrators, faculty, staff, trustees and a handful of students.

McGee said the next step is to spread word of the program to Evanston and Chicago high school students. He pointed to a breakdown in communication between the university and minority families as one reason for Northwestern’s historically low minority enrollment.

He is prepared, he said, to personally visit local high schools to promote the new financial aid. “I won’t be done with Northwestern any time soon,” he said.

Updated 8/4/10, 4:09 p.m. CST.

Weinberg sophomore James Obremski was found dead in his Evanston apartment on Friday, Dean of Students Burgwell Howard said in an e-mail to students.

A representative of the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office said the death has been ruled a suicide.

The 22-year-old Obremski worked for four years at WNUR 89.3 FM, Northwestern’s student-run radio station, where he hosted “The Expansion Experiment,” an avant-garde music program.

Doug Kaplan, a friend and the former general manager of WNUR, remembered Obremski as a fervent music lover with a vast knowledge of genres and styles. He liked everything from the Monkees to “harsh, synthesized noise,” and “he was always watching and listening to new things every day,” Kaplan said. Obremski’s favorites: Orange Juice, a twee pop band active in the 1980s, and the punk group Mission of Burma.

“He was just such a brilliant person,” Kaplan, a Communication senior, said.

Obremski served for a quarter as programming director for the radio station, and dedicated himself to teaching freshmen how to produce shows. “James played a very strong role” in the training of new DJs, said Paul Riismandel, the staff adviser to WNUR.

Kaplan heard about Obremski’s death on Friday when a friend forwarded him the e-mail from Howard. Numerous students have reported not receiving the e-mail.

Friends from WNUR and family will hold a private gathering this evening to commemorate Obremski.

***

The following is the e-mail sent from Dean of Students Burgwell Howard the evening of Friday, July 30, 2010.

Dear Members of the Northwestern Community:

I am saddened to report that a Northwestern undergraduate student, James Obremski, 22, was found dead in his apartment in Evanston on Friday, July 30, 2010. The cause of death has not yet been determined and is under investigation by the Evanston Police Department with assistance from University Police. There is no indication of any danger or threat to other members of the Northwestern community.

James was a sophomore in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences from Danvers, MA.

On behalf of the University, I extend our condolences to James’ family and his friends. We always feel deeply the loss of a member of our Northwestern community.

Staff members from Counseling and Psychological Services (847-491-2151 or 847-491-8100 after hours) and the University Chaplain’s office are available for members of the community seeking support.

Again, we offer our profound sympathy to James’ family and to his fellow students. We join them in mourning the loss of a member of the Northwestern family.

Burgwell J. Howard
Dean of Students

Updated 6/21 9:04 p.m. CST with photos.

The sun peeked through a rainy forecast as Michael Wilbon, sports columnist for The Washington Post and co-host of ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption, addressed the more than 4000 members of the Class of 2010 at an abbreviated 152nd Commencement Friday evening.

“You can pursue passions professionally and in further educational endeavors,” he said, “But it requires you to honestly assess what you love, to give into what you want to do and what you’re good at instead of holding fast to the notion of what you ought to do or what you’re trained to do.”

Wilbon flew in from Los Angeles to speak before graduates, distinguished faculty members and the thousands of family members that filled the western half of Ryan Field. He agreed to become the commencement speaker after Christiane Amanpour dropped out at the last minute due to reporting responsibilities.

But Wilbon relished the moment to speak before his alma mater, saying he was “beyond honored.” Wilbon graduated from the Medill School of Journalism in 1980. That year, he started working for the Washington Post as a sports columnist.

At the podium, Wilbon turned an overcast day into a hopeful one filled with sage advise and witty remarks. He joked about Amanpour’s drop as speaker.

“Trust me, there were other turndowns by the powers at be,” he said, “I guess when Blagojevich [WCAS '79] said no, it got a little tense.”

He reminisced about his own graduation ceremony, 30 years from last Saturday. Though he could not remember his commencement speaker, the 51-year-old said, Amanpour was “probably off covering conflict in Baghdad there too.”

“I’m one of those people who knew when my parents dropped me off at Sargent Hall — believe me it was a dump then too — I was about to begin the four most important and enjoyable years of my life.”

For Wilbon, the commencement was the beginning and the end of many things, one including sound advice. Despite the hardships the class of 2010 will surely face, he reassured the class their years at Northwestern leave them better prepared to have a successful life post-college.

“I know from my professional and personal experiences that you, as a group, is as well-prepared as any and more prepared than most to leave Evanston and be damn successful by any measure at whatever you decide to do,” he said.

He said the class should learn to take calculated risks. While covering the seventh game of the NBA Finals less than 24 hours ago, Wilbon said one of the themes resonating between each coach’s post-game speeches was that “anything [as rewarding as a professional sports championship] is and should be difficult to attain.”

He paused for a moment. Whether it is men and women being drafted into war or economic instability, he said, graduates find ways to overcome the bleakest situations, referring to the distinguished alumni from the Class of 1980.

“It might be difficult for most of you, yes,” he said, “Then good. This is a competitive world you are about to step into. But you enter it with the best weapon this culture can arm you with: a damn good education. Because you enter the world properly prepared, the triumphs will be that much sweeter.”

The headline has been corrected to amend the spelling of “receive.” Thanks to commenters Danny and Sam for pointing out the error.

Updated 6/7/10, 3:04 p.m. CST

A 25-year-old male student was found dead in a bathroom of the University Library around 9:20 a.m. Sunday, May 30, an Evanston Police Department news release said.

The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office has confirmed the identity of the student as Brian Tsay, who was enrolled in the School of Continuing Studies. Tsay attended New Trier Township High School and graduated in 2003, a friend said.

A memorial gathering will be held Monday, June 7 at 5:30 p.m. in Vail Chapel, Lloyd R. Kittlaus, director of Lutheran campus ministry, said in an email. The SCS Associate Dean for Student and Alumni Services Timothy Gordon said in an email that a moment will be dedicated to Tsay at SCS Convocation on June 19 in Alice Millar Chapel.

The police release said that there was no sign of foul play or indication as to the cause of death. Evanston Police Commander Tom Guenther said that police were awaiting results from the medical examiner’s toxicology report.

A representative from the medical examiner’s office said that the office would not rule on a cause of death for 8 to 12 weeks, after the toxicology report is completed.

“The UP are assisting the Evanston police in the investigation,” Vice President for University Relations Alan Cubbage said. Dean of Students Burgwell Howard said the student community did not face any threat.

Photo by Nick Castele / North by Northwestern.

Police guarded library doors for much of Sunday morning, and police cars were parked outside the library and nearby on Campus Drive. A large black van was parked near the library’s loading dock. University Police Commander Darren Davis was at the scene but did not offer comment.

Vice President for Student Affairs William Banis announced the death to the Northwestern community in a statement released Sunday afternoon by email and on the Northwestern website.

The University Library did not open that Sunday, but were open according to schedule the rest of the week. Parts of the library remained closed Monday, but staff members said it was due to reduced staffing on Memorial Day and had nothing to do with the incident.

“The Library remained closed until the police had finished all their work and until the area was certified clean and safe,” University Librarian Sarah Pritchard wrote in an email Monday.

Library employee Megan Sugrue arrived for her 12:30 p.m. shift, but a police officer at the main entrance turned her away. The Weinberg senior did not receive any prior notice that the library was closed. McCormick sophomore Jack LaFreniere, who works in Deering Library, received an e-mail from a co-worker who had been similarly turned away. As of 2:30 p.m., he had not heard anything from his supervisors. Pritchard said that that library administrators informed some staff members of the situation Sunday morning.

“Any loss to any university is very difficult to deal with,” Howard said. “We are making sure services are available to students who are affected by this incident and to those who knew the student.”

I am saddened to report that a 25 year-old male student in the School of Continuing Studies was found dead in the University Library on the Evanston campus shortly before 10 a.m. Sunday, May 30, 2010. The Evanston Police Department, with assistance from University Police, is investigating and awaiting information on the cause of death from the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office.

The preliminary investigation indicates that there is no threat or potential danger to other members of the Northwestern community.

The University is not releasing further details regarding the student’s identity at this time at the request of his family.

On behalf of Northwestern, I offer our deepest sympathy to our student’s family, friends and fellow students. The death of any one member of our community affects all of us.

The University Library will be closed on Sunday, May 30, 2010. Members of the Northwestern community may use the Science and Engineering Library, 2233 Tech Drive, today. The University Library will re-open on Monday, May 31, 2010.

Staff members from Counseling and Psychological Services are available for students who may wish to speak with a counselor. CAPS can be contacted at 1-2151 or 1-8100 after hours.

Again, we extend our deepest sympathy.

William Banis
Vice President for Student Affairs

On May 30th 2010, at approximately 9:20 a.m. Northwestern University Evanston campus library staff discovered an unresponsive male in a men’s bathroom within the library. Evanston Fire Paramedics responded and determined that the subject was deceased. A joint investigation was then initiated by Evanston police and Northwestern University police.

Subsequent investigation determined that the deceased was a 25 year-old Northwestern student, identified as one Brian Tsay. Preliminary investigation indicates their were no signs of foul play or physical evidence indicating cause or manner of death.

Furthering this investigation, a postmortem examination was conducted by the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office, cause and manner of death still remain undetermined. This case is now pending a Cook County Medical Examiners toxicology examination, results expected in several weeks.

Additional reporting by Caty Enders and Gus Wezerek.

Northwestern University Dance Marathon’s 2011 primary beneficiary will be the Children’s Heart Foundation, an organization dedicated to providing support and awareness to children and families affected by congenital heart defects.

Since its incorporation in 1996, the Children’s Heart Foundation (CHF) has directed $3.6 million to 37 research projects dedicated to the most common birth defect.

NUDM selected CHF, who was NUDM’s primary beneficiary in 1999, in hopes of making “a direct impact on both children affected by congenital heart defects and their families through the organization’s support programs,” said Catrina Miksis, Executive Co-Chair of Dance Marathon 2011, in a press release.

Evanston Community Foundation will be the secondary beneficiary for the fourteenth consecutive year.

More information can be found on NUDM’s press release.

Hip hop artist Rhymefest and mash-up group Super Mash Bros. were announced as the last two Dillo Acts Tuesday.

Chicago-based Rhymefest, born Che Smith, co-wrote Kanye West’s “Jesus Walks.” His 2006 album Blue Collar features the single “Brand New” and a reworking of “Build Me Up.”

“Rhymefest is more hardcore while Nelly is more mainstream,” said Katie Halpern, Mayfest co-chair. “He’s more edgy. It’s very raw.”

Super Mash Bros. were previously speculated to be a Dillo Act according to concert dates on JamBase and Pollstar.

“They’re always in high demand from students according to our polls,” said Michael Gebhardt, Mayfest co-chair. “We’re happy to have them.”

The order of the artists will be Battle of the Bands winner Looney and the Tunes, Regina Spektor, Guster, Battle of the DJs winner Practical Tactical, Rhymefest, Super Mash Bros. and Nelly.

Mayfest said they always strive for a variety of artists in the lineup.

“It’s a very well-rounded lineup,” Halpern said. “This is one of the first years I can remember that we’ve had a truly balanced lineup.”

The U.S. Supreme Court announced Monday morning they will decide whether Skinner is entitled to request DNA tests under federal civil rights law on biological evidence in his case, according to the Medill Innocence Project website. The decision is expected to occur during the Court’s 2010 term, which begins in October.

According to the Innocence Project’s website, Skinner, 47, faced lethal injection for allegedly killing his girlfriend, Twila Jean Busby, and stabbing her two adult sons at their home in Pampa, Texas on New Year’s Eve in 1993. He was convicted in 1994 and sentenced to death a year later. The Innocence Project took up the case in 1999 after an AP reporter questioned the conviction.

Director of the Innocence Project and Medill Professor David Protess said he and his students were ecstatic about the ruling.

“It was a long shot, but a man’s life is on the line so I’m glad the courts did the right thing,” said Protess.

The success comes not only from the journalists but also the lawyers they worked with, he said.

“It’s not every day you get the Supreme Court to take your case, even with a man’s life on the line,” he said. “My fondest hope is that the students who have been involved with this project will, ten years from now, learn a great deal from the experience.”

He added, “If they do, the project will be a success, regardless of what the court ultimately decides.”

Updated 5/24/10, 11:55 p.m. More to come.

Students and faculty from all 11 residential colleges gathered at the south end of the Lakefill Saturday afternoon to participate in the 2010 Residential College Board Field Day. Donning their residential college shirts, participants bounced on the moon bounce, ate snow cones and cotton candy, and went head-to-head in competitions such as tug-of-war.

“I think the executive board did a great job of devising a wide range of interactive exercises and activities,” said Nancy Anderson, the director of Residential College Board. “It’s really great to see people come out and have a great time.”

Among the various activities, students particularly enjoyed human foosball, in which team members, strapped to ropes at their waists, tried to score goals. Some games, such as the semifinal match between Slivka and CCI, took longer to finish as the ball frequently flew out of the field.

“I lost my voice during human foosball; I was cheering so hard,” said Sudarshan Srivatsan, a McCormick freshman and CCI resident. “That was a long, epic, hard-fought battle and we won.”

Another competition, the Master’s Mile, involved students pushing their residential college master inside a shopping cart around the long path by the lake. Facing sharp turns, hills and sometimes inattentive people, participants competed to complete the mile in the shortest amount of time.

“After it, I felt like my heart was going to explode, but it was glorious,” said Taiyo Sogawa, a McCormick freshman and president of Willard.

Even though the day was foggy and humid, students at the field day enjoyed winning prizes such as water guns, while others wore face paint to show support for their residential colleges. Anderson also praised the ability of the event to bring together students and faculty.

“It’s something that’s open to everybody,” she said. “Fellows come with their families, masters get together with their students. You see it all. It’s great.”

“It’s really cool that faculty come out and play the games with us,” said Asna Ansari, Weinberg sophomore and CCS president. “I think it’s going really well. It’s a lot of fun.”

The residential colleges that won the main competitions received trophies. Because of this, Ansari was eager to see CCS win.

“I’m feeling excited, anxious about whether CCS is going to carry on the tradition of winning field day,” she said. “CCS is pretty much dominating.”

While there was plenty of competition, the Residential Colleges Board Field Day ultimately brought fun to the students involved in the residential college system.

“I’m just really happy I came,” said Julia Simkowski, Weinberg freshman and CCI resident. “I should be studying for a midterm, but it’s just worth it to be here.”

Alternative rock band Guster will perform at Northwestern on Dillo Day May 29. Mayfest made the announcement at Battle of the DJs Friday night.

“They have the perfect upbeat, outdoor, sunny-day sound,” said Katie Halpern, Mayfest co-chair. “Guster is totally danceable. It’s totally lounge-able. Whatever people want to be doing on the Lakefill, it’ll probably be nice.”

Guster performed for an A&O concert five years ago. The Boston-based group is known for the singles “Barrel of a Gun” and “Amsterdam.” Their most recent album, 2006’s Ganging Up on the Sun, peaked at 25 on the Billboard Top 200 and won Album of the Year at the Boston Music Awards. They are set to release their sixth studio album in September.

One factor in bringing Guster was Mayfest’s push to make Dillo Day more eco-friendly. Adam Gardner, guitarist and vocalist of Guster, started the non-profit organization Reverb, which encourages artists to use environmentally-friendly plastics and biodiesel for tour buses.

Mayfest had previously announced Regina Spektor and Nelly as headliners of the annual outdoor festival.

“The thing we thought was missing with Nelly and Regina was a band with guitars and instruments,” said Michael Gebhardt, Mayfest co-chair.

Although the headliners appeal to different audiences, Halpern said “all three of them will go with the Dillo Day spirit that is about celebration, fun and a sort of hedonistic day.”

In the past, Dillo Day has typically featured only two headlining acts. Mayfest is able to bring three this year because of co-sponsorships. Spektor was co-sponsored with Hillel, and Nelly was funded in part by the Interfraternity Council and the Panhellenic Association.

“We want to have big draws the entire day,” Halpern said. “We know people have their own off-campus activities, but Dillo Day is really about what happens on the Lakefill.”

Updated 5/23/10 1:42 p.m.

While walking down Sheridan Road, feel free to stop to read a message, play hopscotch, or text a stranger; the walkway is now more than just a stretch of boring pavement, thanks to the Happiness Club.

Cheerfully decorated by club members and other students, Sheridan Road became a canvas Wednesday night, as students armed with sidewalk chalk tackled the empty sidewalk, covering the ground with inspirational drawings and messages.

“It’s just really fun, just writing anything, drawing pictures and drawing smiley faces,” said Alex Wilson, McCormick sophomore and president of Happiness Club. “It’s also fun the day after, just walking around and seeing everything you wrote last night.”

According to Wilson, the Happiness Club received a $200 Be the Change grant from the Center for Student Involvement to purchase the chalk. Students gathered at the Arch at 9:00 p.m., carefully selected their chalk pieces and went straight to work.

Most students drew pictures of animals and wrote inspirational messages. Weinberg freshman Marina Mason had a list of tips ready, including “Sleep More,” a message she chalked near the Arch.

“That’s a good way to be happy at Northwestern; nobody gets enough sleep,” she said, finishing her message with a flourish.

While students like Mason wrote messages and drew games like hopscotch and tic-tac-toe, others drew whatever came to mind.

“I drew some lava on the ground and put a warning that says ‘lava,’” said Eric Smith, Weinberg sophomore and Happiness Club executive board member. “Hopefully people jump over it, skip over it. It’s so unique; it’s so much fun and it just brings back childhood and you just enjoy life for a bit.”

To Justin Barbin, Communication junior, chalking was a way to reach other students. He wrote his phone number on the ground, under a message that read, “Text Me.”

“It’s more of a message […] just seeing who actually looks down and who will take these things seriously and how many people I can connect with through this graffiti,” Barbin said. “I’m expecting some hellos, I’m expecting some people who may already know my number, and I’m expecting some crude messages maybe asking for sexual favors, so who knows? Anything can happen.”

Barbin, whose friends recently held a fundraiser to help him buy a new camera, said he trusted the Northwestern community enough to not abuse his phone number.

“I’m a little nervous, but from the events of last week, I have faith in the goodness of humanity,” he said. “I’m hoping that maybe I can start a random conversation with a stranger and we’ll end up knowing each other and maybe developing a new friendship with somebody I’ve never met before. It could also be a breach of my privacy and I may regret it, but I trust Northwestern students.”

Medill sophomore Kaitlin Miller agreed and said that chalking was a good way to reach the busy students on campus.

“On our campus, people are very serious walking to class and they don’t really look up or make eye contact, so if everyone’s already looking at the ground, I feel like it’s a good way to boost morale,” she said. “You don’t have to trudge to class; you can look up and appreciate the weather and, I don’t know, play hopscotch on your way to class.”

The Happiness Club’s efforts don’t end with the chalking. Next week’s events include Magical Bubbles Monday, Temporary Tattoos Tuesday, Wacky Face Paint Wednesday, Name-tag Day and Flashback Friday.

“I hope that the happiness continues,” Mason said. “Spreading happiness is kind of a big deal.”

Mayfest co-chairs Katie Halpern and Mike Gebhardt announced Nelly as Dillo Day’s night headliner.

“When Mike and I were planning our vision for this year’s Dillo Day, we wanted it to be really upbeat,” Halpern said. “He has throwback appeal, but Nelly sort of appeals to everyone and he’s Grammy award-winning.”

Three-time Grammy winner Nelly is best known for his Billboard chart-topping album, Country Grammar, including its title track, “Ride Wit Me” and “Batter Up.”

“The greatest thing about him is that he’s an awesome rapper,” Gebhardt said. “But people who are not really into hip-hop or rap remember growing up with him.”

Nellyville, Nelly’s second album, was released in 2002, featuring lead singles “Hot in Herre” and “Dilemma” with Kelly Rowland of Destiny’s Child.

“Dillo Day is so universal,” Halpern said. “We wanted this act to reflect that.”

In comparison to previous Dillo headliners, Gebhardt views Nelly as “the best hip-hop act we’ve had.”

“We hit the mark we set,” Halpern said. “He’s universally appealing and danceable.”

According to Gebhardt, Nelly is funded in part by Northwestern’s Interfraternity Council and the Panhellenic Association.

Mayfest has yet to announce another act, their DJ (rumored to be Super Mash Bros.) and the student DJ, says Halpern.

“We’re most likely going to be announcing another act this Friday at the Battle of the DJs at Buffalo Wild Wings,” Gebhardt said.

Confirmed artists for Dillo 2010‘s lineup include Regina Spektor and student band Looney and the Tunes.

Bonus: Take a trip back to 2002 and refresh your memory of Nelly’s hits.

Correction: The front page news summary originally misspelled Mike Gebhardt’s surname as Gephardt. North by Northwestern regrets this error.

Many of the speakers who come to Northwestern start off their talks by mentioning some canned anecdote about the last time they were here or about what happened to them in O’Hare; on Monday conservative talk radio host and Medill alumnus Guy Benson started his College Republicans-sponsored talk on “The Obama Generation: Lost to Liberalism?” by reminiscing about a sociology class he took in the very classroom that he was now opining in.

Although Benson could still easily be mistaken for the journalism student who worked at WNUR and lived in PARC for two years, he was obviously in command of the 30 or so students and older listeners who came to hear his optimistic case for why “Millennials” –- aka 18 to 29-year-olds –- who overwhelmingly voted for Obama in 2008 could possibly become conservatives. Benson, who makes a point of being almost disarmingly optimistic and sunny, spent a great deal of his talk poring over poll results which he thought showed the possibility of a rightward shift among young voters.

Talking about his gloomy attitude following the 2008 election, Benson relayed how the results made him fear that young people had rejected the three pillars of conservative politics in the U.S. -– fiscal conservatives, hawkish national security policy and social conservatives. But even though Obama had “inspired millions of younger voters to shed apathy and cynicism towards politics” and even supported him with a “devotion that bordered on creepy,” Benson felt that not all was lost for conservatives.

He spent the rest of his talk detailing this argument with a raft of empirical data and polling results that, while not the most exciting for an audience that included a good number of tea party attending talk radio devotees, certainly fleshed out Benson’s intuition.

Benson also shared some of his own experiences as a student that led him to believe that Millennials just might be conservatives, including a debate on abortion when he lived in PARC where “people were unexpectedly on different sides” and three female students even admitted to becoming more sympathetic to the anti-abortion side. But like all of his anecdotes, which he admitted were intrinsically “hopelessly biased,” this one was supported by polling data which showed that 48 percent of 18 to 29-year-olds wanted abortion to be “mostly or totally illegal” and that a plurality of young voters described themselves as pro-choice.

His strongest case for why Millennials would come to reject Obama and his policies, however, was based on economics. He shared an anecdote from Heritage Foundation data cruncher William Beach that, according to his numbers, every single Millennial would pay the equivalent of a brand new iPod every month for the rest of their lives to pay off debt created by the stimulus bill.

Benson’s remarks ended, however, on a more ambivalent note. Despite Republican electoral gains in 2009, especially wins in Massachusetts, New Jersey and Virginia, Benson said that the 2010 midterms “will not be a cakewalk” and that, after Republican blowouts in 2006 and 2008, conservatives will “need to work tirelessly to win back that trust.”

Northwestern’s Undergraduate Budget Priorities Committee recently released its short- and long-term proposals for next school year based on results taken from an all-campus survey that gathered over 2,000 responses, as well as from peer institution research and discussions with administrators and student leaders.

One of the more immediate results students can expect to see is an all-campus concert in Welsh-Ryan Arena that will be hosted by the university and A&O Productions during Fall Quarter of next year.

“The questions on [the survey] were targeted to identify what are the problems at Northwestern and what sorts of solutions would be appropriate to propose,” said Anil Wadhwani, incoming UBPC Chair and Weinberg junior.

“Data from the survey also helps us prioritize our list of proposals to help the university best allocate resources,” Wadhwani said.

Some of the programs that are set to be implemented include improved cell phone reception, installation of electrical outlets on the ground floor of Norris and new light posts placed on-campus and in the surrounding areas. In addition, a new position under the Dean of Students will be created to aid with off-campus housing efforts, which Wadhwani called “the most important thing” that the committee addressed this year.

“This year was also very different because it’s President [Morton] Schapiro’s first year,” Wadhwani said. “So we wanted to give him as much information as possible to give him the most comprehensive survey, the most comprehensive report and the most detailed list of priorities that I think we’ve ever given in our history.”

Wadhwani said the committee had to cut down on items last year due to the economy.

Some of UBPC’s long-term priorities that will not necessarily take place over the upcoming school year include a new student center, an office of undergraduate research and a more in-depth look at the Living Wage campaign and how it fits within the student budget.

Mayfest announced Looney and the Tunes as the Battle of the Bands winner Friday night. The band will perform a 30-minute set before Regina Spektor on Dillo Day May 29.

Other bands in the competition were the Main Men, the Royal Senders, Kelsey Wild, Ken Ross with the Bread and Butter, the E.L. Cross Project, Spearmint Rhino and Kara and the Creepers.

Updated: Due to a last minute staff assignment, NBN was unable to get photos of the Battle of the Bands. Sorry for getting your hopes up. Check out a profile of Jordan Looney we did last month.

University administrators announced Friday that Michael Wilbon, Washington Post columnist and co-host of ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption, will be replacing Christiane Amanpour as the speaker at Northwestern’s 152nd Commencement ceremony.

This last-minute change was arranged after the university became aware a few weeks ago that Amanpour would be out of the country on an assignment at the time of the ceremony. Left empty handed, the administration reached out to Wilbon, who graduated from Northwestern in 1980 and also serves on the board of trustees.

“We’re fortunate to have a superb board of trustees,” said NU President Morton Schapiro in a press release. “Assisting the University in a time of need is part of the trustees’ duty, and this was one of those times. We thank Michael in advance for being there when we need him.”

Wilbon joined the staff of the Washington Post in 1980, where he covered both professional and college sports, as well as the Olympics and other special events, for ten years before earning his own column. He has also hosted Pardon the Interruption since its inception in 2001 and has covered professional basketball for ABC and ESPN since 2006. The Society of Professional Journalists also named the Medill alum the top sports columnist in America in 2000, among other honors and acknowledgments.

“We are very appreciative of his being willing to step up and pinch hit, so to speak,” said Al Cubbage, Vice President of University Relations. “We’re confident that he’ll do a very good job.”

Commencement for the Class of 2010 will be held at 6 p.m. June 18 at Ryan Field.

Thanks to commenter Mr. Clean for correcting our error in the photo caption. NBN regrets the mistake.