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the c ollegian
daily
www.colleglan.psu.edu
Vol. 99, No. 75 16 Pages ©1998 Collegian Inc
Trial begins for
By RACHEL HANSON,
EMILY REHRING and TIM SWIFT
Collegian Staff Writers
BELLEFONTE The trial of a
35-year-old Boalsburg resident who
allegedly held his former fiancee
captive and raped her in November
began yesterday at the Centre
County Courthouse.
Shane A. Dawson allegedly broke
into the victim's parents' home
Nov. 19 after she had broken off
their engagement the night before,
the State College Police Depart
ment said. She was held captive for
seven hours, was raped and had a
gun held to her head, according to
court documents.
Jamie Klingler (senior-film and video and women's studies) and Jeremy Kuharcik (senior-broadcast journalism), co-chairs of the class gift
committee, announce the Class of 1999's gift to Penn State yesterday on the first floor of the HUB. The class gift committee is giving two
aquariums to the HUB/Robeson Cultural Center, which will be completed Fall Semester 1999.
Class of 1999 to donate fish aquariums
to HUB after construction completion
By TIM SWIFT
Collegian Staff Writer
The term "HUB fishbowl" soon
will have new meaning thanks to
the Class of 1999.
The graduating seniors voted
last week to place two fish tanks
in the soon-to-be-completed HUB
atrium as their class gift. Senior
Class Gift committee co-chairs
Jamie Klingler and Jeremy
Kuharcik announced the selection
yesterday. Of about 1,000 stu
dents, 83 percent voted for the
aquarium concept, Klingler said.
The two aquariums, one a 300-
gallon saltwater tank for coral
reef fish and the other a 120-gallon
freshwater tank for African lake
Senate to discuss university
By CHERYL FRANKENFIELD
Collegian Staff Writer
The university's calendar,
including the implementation of a
fall break, will be discussed at the
University Faculty Senate meeting
at 1:30 p.m. today in 112 Kern.
"I am very confident that (fall
break) will pass. (The Undergradu
ate Student Government) fought
for it hook, line and sinker," Bryan
Shine, USG town senator, said.
If the proposal passes, a two-day
fall break would be added to mid-
October and Fall Semester 1999
classes would begin Tuesday
rather than Wednesday.
USG has been working on the
proposal for more than a year.
Members have conducted Penn
The victim was able to escape
with a revolver after Dawson went
into the bathroom, according to the
documents.
Dawson tried to escape the house
later that night when he drove the
victim's car out of the closed garage
door, according to the documents.
He was arrested after driving
between 300 and 400 yards, hitting
two police cars blocking his path.
Witnesses called by the prosecu
tion yesterday included State Col
lege police officers, relatives of
Dawson's ex-fiancee, the doctor
who examined the woman and a
911 dispatcher who responded to
emergency calls the morning of the
19th.
fish, will be installed shortly after
the HUB/Robeson Cultural Center
construction is completed in Fall
Semester 1999, Klingler said.
News of the aquarium selection
was greeted by casual onlookers
passing through Union Street and
a host of administrators, includ
ing Vice President for Student
Affairs William Asbury.
"(The aquariums are) going to
be a regional and perhaps even a
state-wide focal point for stu
dents," he said.
Asbury said the aquariums will
be a tremendous addition to the
HUB, adding the "living class
room" aspect is particularly
exciting.
The aquariums, aside from their
"Thirteen weeks without a break is just too much."
State Pulse surveys, consulted with
other universities and accumulated
more than 4,500 student signatures "Thirteen weeks without a break
supporting a fall break. The Asso- is just too much for any person,
ciation of Residence Hall Students, especially a college student," said
Interfraternity Council, the Asian David Kayal, Academic Assembly
American Student Coalition and the president. "The only (bad) vibe I
Council of Commonwealth Student got was a slight opposition to losing
Governments also support the a day of classes."
implementation of a fall break. Additional calendar changes,
The petition, combined with such as one that would begin
information from comparable uni- Thanksgiving break at 2:15 p.m.
versities with fall breaks, will be Wednesday, and the expansion of
man charged in hostage crisis
Centre County District Attorney
Ray Gricar presented the prosecu
tion's case to Centre County Judge
Thomas K. Kistler by setting up
the sequence of events and the
actions of police officers during
the standoff. Gricar also ques
tioned relatives of the victim about
her relationship with Dawson.
Cpl. Richard Garis and Detective
Ralph Ralston of State College
police testified they negotiated
with Dawson throughout the stand
off.
Garis, who was one of the first
officers on the scene, initiated con
tact early in the morning with
Dawson by cellular phone. When
Garis spoke with Dawson on the
•
-
decorative value, will function as
laboratories for teaching environ
mental science, biology, geology
and chemistry to Penn State stu
dents as well as State College
Area High School students.
The living classroom concept
was proposed as part of HUB ren
ovations three years ago by stu
dents and faculty from the Penn
State Marine Science Society,
Asbury said. However, it was not
factored into the renovations.
The senior class gift committee
has raised $24,000 thus far; how
ever, the total cost of the aquari
ums will be $150,000, Klingler
said, adding the committee will
work throughout the year to raise
the difference.
. David Kayai
Academic Assembly President
influential in passing the proposal,
Shine said.
Tuesday, Oct. 27, 1998
phone, Garis testified he could
hear Dawson's ex-girlfriend in the
background.
"In the background, I could hear
a female screaming, 'Get me the
fuck out of here. He's got a gun,
he's going to kill me,"' Garis said.
When Ralston arrived on the
scene later in the morning, he
assumed control of the negotiations
with Dawson. According to Ral
ston's testimony, Dawson had
many demands including ciga
rettes, resuming traffic on the road
and for police to drive around in a
circle in a nearby field.
"Mr. Dawson was almost mock
ing us ... playfully saying things to
us," Ralston said.
Collegian Photo/Lee A. McMahon
Justin Zimmerman, an author
of the proposal for the living
classroom, said the project was
revamped and pitched to the
senior class gift committee.
"This is very exciting," Zim
merman said. "We hope this will
increase the knowledge of marine
sciences."
Brooke Goss (sophomore-kine
siology) said she was happy with
the choice of the gift committee.
The aquariums beat out the other
proposals for the 1999 class gift:
cultural murals for the HUB and
a plan to restore the Pattee lobby.
"I like watching fish," Goss
said. "(The aquariums) will be
really relaxing to hang out and
study by."
calendar
more course options during the
Summer Session, also will be rec
ommended for consideration.
The two six-week sessions would
be offered during Summer Session
and would allow departments to
have more flexibility with schedul
ing 4-, 6-, 8-, 10- or 12-week cours
es.
The senate also will review a
report of recommendations from
the General Education Implemen
tation Committee about language
and Intercultural and International
Competence requirements.
The report recommends an
"option to substitute study in a sec
ond language at the third semester
or higher levels for any three cred
its in the general education cur
riculum."
Low
SU . 42
-
le cloudiness. See page 2 for the extended
A.
Campus Weather Service
Numerous attempts by police to
get Dawson to surrender himself
and release the woman inside
throughout the day were unsuc
cessful. At one point during the
day, Dawson's mother unsuccess
fully pleaded with her son to end
the standoff.
State College police Chief Tom
King requested assistance from the
Pennsylvania State police during
the standoff. Pennsylvania State
Emergency Response Team
(SERT) arrived at the scene at
noon and set up command post in a
near-by driveway. When the
woman escaped from the house,
she ran to members of the team.
"It was the most terrified I have
UAC committee
assists students
with disabilities
By KATIE O'HARA
Collegian Staff Writer
The Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990 requires that no indi
vidual with a disability be denied
access from benefits of programs,
services and use of facilities.
And at Penn State, the University
Access Committee is assisting stu
dents, faculty and staff with dis
abilities. Mary Franks, coordinator
of ADA programs and UAC chair,
said there currently are many
small access projects being
addressed at University Park.
"There's always something we
can be doing. If there are students
or faculty who need it that takes
No. 1 priority," Franks said, adding
UAC uses a priority management
approach when scheduling projects
to aid individuals with disabilities.
The 1990 act calls for new con
struction, alterations and improved
access to buildings and facilities
that provide services or goods to
the public.
UAC, chartered in 1994 to help
the university adhere to Americans
with Disabilities Act guidelines,
has received more than $2 million
from the administration in the past
four years.
It also receives state funding,
which recently has provided Uni
versity Park with $8 million for
design and renovation projects. At
this point, the state has not
released funding for Common
wealth Campuses.
Franks and Jim Lettiere, Office
of Physical Plant facility resources
manager, are striving to have all
Penn State campuses establish
their own UAC committees so to
work with representatives to begin
updating campus facilities. The
Mont Alto and Hazleton campuses
already have begun the process.
UAC also is contemplating hold
ing monthly meetings at different
campuses intended to raise aware
University Access
Committee (LIA.C)
Funding Allocations:
University Park-$1,565,000
Commonwealth Campuses-$885,000 - -
Total-$2,450,000
VAC Minor r'roject Funds
Allocations:
University Park-$649,880
Commonwealth Campuses-$278,520
Total-$928,400
Current Work..
Published independently by students at Penn State
ever seen someone in my life," said a
Pennsylvania State police corporal,
who was the first to have contact
with the woman after she escaped.
Dr. John Randolph Paine, an
emergency room physician, testi
fied yesterday he interviewed
Dawson's former fiancee shortly
after she escaped. Paine said the
woman told him she was physically
abused and made to participate in
oral and vaginal sex at gunpoint by
Dawson. Paine's physical examina
tion proved consistent with her
story.
More evidence for the prosecu
tion included taped 911 emergency
phone calls.
"These are people in
positions to get things
done. This is a team
approach."
ness about projects and the need
for issue assessment on each cam
pus, Lettiere added.
Each situation is dealt with on a
case-by-case basis and renovation
requests may come from any num
ber of sources. UAC takes a collab
orative approach to improving
access on campus by incorporating
administrative representatives
from many areas of the university.
"These are people in positions to
get things done," Franks said.
"This is a team approach."
In the spring, University Park
will host a conference about facili
ties management at which many
Big 10 schools will be represented.
It will allow UAC to serve as a
model for disability barrier
removal for other schools to follow.
"Our process has been proven to
be very credible," Franks said. She
has been contacted by other uni
versities that are looking to repli
cate what Penn State has done to
work with disability barriers.
Franks has inquired about the
possibilities of having some stan
dard materials and parts needed
for building improvement in stock
so turnaround time would be as
minimal as possible.
"I see that over the years more
students, faculty and staff are
aware of the UAC mission," Let
tiere said. "And we do what is
needed to get students and faculty
to programs and services offered
in the buildings."
Two sets of automatic doors
at $3,000 each were installed
- the lower South entrance
Willard Building the day
Tore the begins of
Semester 1998.
Work vain soon` Begin to
install an exterior
automatic door (13,000)
to the North entrance
of Cedar Buildine,
Please see TRIAL, Page 2
Mary Franks
coordinator of ADA
programs and UAC chair
Cogoyim ariphiefflisn Cmaz