Published Sept. 18, 2012

A student shot another student in the head and shoulder with a pellet gun at Apartment Village on Sept. 11.

Ben Hunter, chief of staff and executive director of public safety, refused to release the full incident report. The Collegian was granted access to a redacted version of the report.

Around 6 p.m., Officer Jason Downs and Sgt. Tony Rivera of Butler University Police Department responded to a call from the victim at Apartment Village Building H.

When officers arrived at the scene, they found the victim had bloody welts near her ear and on her shoulder, according to the report.

The victim was able to identify where the shots came from. Officers then questioned the suspect, a black male student, who said he aimed at the victim and shot her with the air pellet gun.

Officers then photographed the evidence, which included an air pellet gun and pellets, according to the report.

The victim declined to press criminal charges. The case has been referred to the office of Student Affairs.

As of press time, Irene Stevens, dean of student life, said that the case was still in the disciplinary process and that hearings had not yet concluded.

Stevens said that university policy prevented her from commenting further on the matter.

Hunter said that the case is still open and that the victim may still decide to press charges.

The incident is listed on the daily crime log maintained by BUPD in accordance with the Clery Act, a federal law that requires campus crimes to be recorded.

Room 103 in Apartment Village Building H, is the listed location in the report, which is open to public inspection and can be found on BUPD’s website.

When The Collegian attempted to contact those living in the apartment, a woman answered the door. She said that she had heard about the incident but had no comment on the details.

Collegian sources have linked former men’s basketball player Chrishawn Hopkins to the incident.

University officials have not confirmed or denied these reports. Hopkins has not commented on the issue.

About 51 percent of students disagree that Butler University is diverse,  according to results from a new survey by  Student Affairs.

About 37 percent somewhat disagreed that Butler is diverse, and 14 percent strongly disagreed with that statement.

The survey gauged Butler’s diversity and students’ perspective on campus atmosphere.

There were 527 students who participated in the poll. Seventy percent were women and 29 percent were men.

A fifth to a quarter of each class was represented, according to the study.

Student Government Association President-Elect Mike Keller said this is because people only think of diversity as involving race.

“Diversity is a broad definition,” Keller said. “It was intended for broader areas other than race.”

Dean of Student Life Irene Stevens oversees the committee responsible for assessing the data. She said there are a number of things the campus can improve upon.

“We need to diversify campus more through admissions, and then help individuals take advantage of cultural-related activities,” Stevens said. “When students get into the real world it’s a lot more diverse than Butler.”

Stevens said everyone has the ability to act as an ambassador for the university, which will help diversify campus.

“Students, faculty and staff are all involved in encouraging diversity,” Stevens said.

Keller said there are two areas responsible for addressing these issues: admissions and organizations on campus.

“Admissions can target more people from diverse backgrounds,” Keller said. “R.E.A.C.H. and SGA are responsible for highlighting different cultures, which comes from programming.”

Twenty-eight percent of respondents participated in diversity-related activities, which were labeled a main point in the survey’s conclusion.

Freshman pharmacy major Eric Chen said as a minority student he has not attended a “diversity-related” activity because he said it brings attention to students’ minority status.

“I think these activities make minorities feel uncomfortable,” Chen said. “The best way to make a minority student feel comfortable is to treat them as any other person.

“Minorities don’t need any preferential treatment.”

Stevens said the administration is meeting with SGA over the summer to address the findings. Focus groups will also be formed to further explore students’ perspectives, Stevens said.

Keller said the low participation in diversity-related activities is due to the target audience of R.E.A.C.H.’s programming.

“People assume diversity programming is only for minorities,” Keller said. “Next year we will try to market it to a broader audience.”

One of the areas of greatest improvement was the number of respondents who described the university as “welcoming.”

Eighty percent of respondents said Butler is “very welcoming,” which is a 6 percent improvement from 2009.

Stevens said this is due to what she described as the university’s “culture of respect.”

“We want to create a university that’s welcoming,” Stevens said. “We expect that from all of Butler University.”

Politically, the survey found most students to be moderates, followed by conservatives and liberals, with 43 percent, 30 percent and 23 percent, respectively.

Keller said it is SGA’s responsibility to encourage political discussion on campus.

“Campus is stronger when people are talking,” Keller said. “We need political discussion.”

On April 18, Butler University’s Office of Student Affairs released the numbers from  its diversity survey.

The data revealed that most Butler students do not believe the school is very diverse.

Specifically, 71 percent of students of color and/or gay and lesbian students thought this.

If students, faculty and staff want to see a more inclusive university, everyone needs to take responsibility and not simply “encourage” diversity.

Students of diverse backgrounds are uniquely positioned to see this in action.

Each member of the community—from administrators to students—must take action to see a more respectful, diverse community at Butler.

Butler’s public relations materials talk about encouraging a worldview that considers other cultures and perspectives equal.

The community should not take these statistics negatively though.

Whether students think so or not, the university is not very diverse.

When respondents see that, the community demonstrates self-awareness.

And that means we have the opportunity to improve.

The university may indeed want to see more diversity.

But when the community stays relatively the same, perhaps inclination is not enough.

Everyone needs to take the commitment to diversity beyond simply tolerating others or wanting more obvious examples of multicultural students.

In other words, Butler and the people who make up the university all need to improve the school with direct action.

That starts with little gestures.

The university should consider converting some of the existing restrooms on campus into gender-neutral ones.

Any sort of deliberate move to include people of differing backgrounds speaks louder than mission statements do.

The university needs to find ways to work with the community and make Butler less of an island.

The bubble should not have such tough boundaries.

But a big part of responsibility falls on every student as well—myself included.

Students answered their surveys by saying that as few as 28 percent participate in diversity events.

This is unacceptable, especially when so many respondents say they want to see more diversity.

All of us, need to get involved.

Attend the events and take advantage of all the programs Butler offers.

Our community demonstrates over and over again that philanthropy and fundraisers are important.

Butler students should channel that energy to improve things close to home as well.

A more inclusive community makes everyone stronger.

And the events themselves help allies and activists unite over their common goals.

Any effort to build community support is better than nothing.

So the students must take advantage of the groups and events on campus.

And the university absolutely must do its part to include people of diverse backgrounds through accessible facilities and programs.

The retention rates at Butler University have been consistent over the years, but the university is looking to bring them closer to 100 percent.

Right now, Butler’s average retention from first to second year is 88 percent.

“If you don’t retain students there, they won’t be there for their junior year,” Associate Provost Mary Macmanus Ramsbottom said.

Ramsbottom said the university is losing people in the middle, so academic student affairs, admissions and student affairs are looking more closely at the year in between to find out why these students are leaving.

Student affairs and academic student affairs are now reaching out to first-generation college students who may not have the same sense of communication with their parents about values toward college.

They have planned events throughout the school year to get these students involved at the university and to create connections with faculty and other students that will help make the students feel comfortable.

Ramsbottom said if a connection is made with these students, they are more likely to end up staying all four to six years at the university.

Tom Weede, vice president for enrollment management, pointed out a few reasons why students would leave: wanting to be closer to family, a boyfriend or girlfriend; financial aid; or to seek certain programs or majors.

“People failing out is not a huge issue,” he said. “People here have the potential to be successful.”

The Learning Resource Center and student affairs meet with students who leave and have them take a survey about why they leave.

This helps the university study why students choose to depart and what the school can do to keep more students at Butler.

“If there is a solvable problem, we try to do that,” said Weede.

From what the surveys have shown, academics are not usually an issue.

Ramsbottom said the school studies what helps students adapt to the environment of the school and what helps students stay here longer.

A sense of belonging, a connection with faculty and other students, and one-on-one advising are a few factors that help students become comfortable at Butler.

However, some students don’t make these connections or get that sense of belonging, so they decide to leave the university.  There are a few impacts that this has on the university.

“It actually costs less to keep a student than it does finding a student to replace them,” said Weede. “The university loses money and people lose friends when a student leaves.”

When students do leave, living arrangements change in the residence halls.

Jeff Tyner, Residence Life Coordinator for Residential College, said that the remaining roommate is the key concern because they have to go through the whole process of learning about a new roommate again.

The RAs keep an eye on the incoming students to make sure they settle in and become comfortable in their new living environment.

On average, about 15 to 25 students come in and leave ResCo between semesters.

While that number could be lower, Ramsbottom said the current rates show students are fairly satisfied.

“The retention rates are good, so that is a good indicator of [student] satisfaction and finding the right fit,” she said.

Many Butler University students and staff members seeking a lunchtime pizza slice or cupcake last Wednesday were left unsatisfied.

The NY Slice and Scout’s Treats food trucks parked by Norris Plaza for lunch service but were asked to leave before the rush ended because they violated both an Aramark stipulation and the university’s ban on solicitation.

“Businesses cannot be here without being invited in,” Irene Stevens, dean of student life, said.

Under the solicitation policy, no business can operate on campus without being invited by a student organization and approved through the PuLSE office.

Aramark’s contract also states that it is the sole food vendor on campus, and exceptions to that policy must be approved.

The solicitation policy was enacted many years ago, Stevens said, to keep students from being approached by disreputable salespeople.

Lisa Moyer, owner of Scout’s Treats, said food trucks frequent other campuses and venues like Indiana University- Purdue University Indianapolis without any problems.

“Our experience at other universities has been foreign to this,” Moyer said.

Moyer said business was good before the trucks left, and she would like those on campus to be able to choose where they eat.

“We support giving people what they want,” she said. “And they showed what they want.”

Freshman Rithvi Melanta, a chemistry and engineering major, was one of many students who ate at The NY Slice and the Edward’s Drive-In trucks at Student Government Association’s assembly kickoff Tuesday.
The trucks came after being invited by SGA.

Melanta said she understands why the policy exists but said it limits students’ choices.

“They’re not really taking students away from eating here,” Melanta said. “They’re giving us closer options for eating out.”

Moyer and NY Slice owner John Ban said they would like to work with the university to be able to return.

“We’d love to come back for regular lunches,” Ban said.

Stevens said there is no push to revisit the policy and the administration will be enforcing it in regard to other restaurants like Jimmy John’s.

She said they will be informing them of the policy and not allowing them to pass out free food on campus.

“We’re going to tell them, ‘This is our policy. Please abide by it,’” Stevens said.