middbriefs

Author: Brian Fung & Anthony Adragna

Police employ helicopter in search for Garza, several leads dead end

Members of the Middlebury Police Department (MPD) used a helicopter to conduct an aerial search of the local area including Otter Creek on March 18 in the latest in a series of measures to locate missing student Nick Garza '11.

The move came after a suggestion from a representative from Texas-based EquuSearch.

"I'm lured to the water because that's where we usually end up having a majority of them and you have a really wild river here in Otter Creek that has a lot of water in it," EquuSearch volunteer Gary Peterson said in an interview with WCAX.

Canine search crews examined the campus on March 16 for any signs of Garza, although no new leads emerged. The crews came from Lower Adirondack Search and Rescue.

Last week, a private investigator hired by the Garza family completed his inquiry into the disappearance with no new information for the MPD. Additionally, the search last week discovered an unregistered sex offender living in the area.

"Elvin L. Williamson, age 41, was arrested today on a charge of Failing to Register as a Sex Offender in the State of Vermont," a MPD press release said. "Mr. Williamson is wanted in Florida for violating that state's sex offender registration law. Florida authorities will not extradite him. He is classified by the State of Florida as a Sexual Predator. His prior record involves sexual activity with young children."

Authorities determined there was no connection between Williamson and the Garza disappearance. MPD reported interviewing two people who were on campus during February break with no discernable connection to the College. The agency later found the two had no relevant information to the case.

"America's Most Wanted," a long-time television show that airs on Fox, featured the Garza case on its Web site and could profile the case in future episodes. "The Lineup," another Fox program, interviewed Garza's mother, Natalie, for a recent program.

Anyone with relevant information to the case should contact the MPD immediately. Nick Garza was last seen on Feb. 5 at around 11:00 p.m. He has not been seen since that time. The College will continue to provide students with updates.


Congressman revives recruitment debate

U.S. Congressman Robert Andrews (D-NJ) spoke to students yesterday in a lecture that described current efforts to combat workplace discrimination, with special emphasis on the U.S.'s policy known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," which seeks to prohibit openly gay individuals from serving in the military.

The congressman's anti-discriminatory message could be lost on students already sympathetic to Andrews' cause, predicted Ryan Tauriainen '08.5, co-president of the Middlebury Open Queer Alliance (MOQA), in an e-mail prior to the lecture.

"This meeting might be frustrating in the fact that it will be, once again, 'preaching to the choir,'" wrote Tauriainen. "However, it is exciting nonetheless because he is a U.S. congressman who can effect real change in our country."

Andrews' visit follows a brief incident last November in which students protesting against the policy called for an open meeting with U.S. Marine Corps representatives The College received some $1.8 million in federal funding in 2005 as a result of allowing the Corps access to students.

As one of eight other co-sponsors of a 2007 bill to fight workplace inequality based on sexual orientation, Andrews has collaborated extensively with others on the issue. Though the legislation - or its equivalent - has yet to be passed by the Senate, Tauriainen expects the lawmaker to increase pressure on Capitol Hill on behalf of homosexuals in the coming months.


Hunt '07.5 wins Watson Fellowship to study urban subterranean spaces

Will Hunt '07.5 was awarded a coveted Watson Fellowship on March 14, which will support a year's worth of post-graduate research on what Hunt called "urban subterranean spaces."

Hunt proposal will take him to numerous underground sites accross Wesern and Central Europe.

"I'll be going to Paris to explore the catacombs, then to this underground arts festival in Amsterdam, literally underground," said Hunt in an interview by phone.

After Berlin's abandoned subway system, and the underground ruins of Rome and Naples, Hunt will be exploring entire subterranean Turkish cities.

"They're amazing," he said. "From the first century A.D. The original Christians and pagans were hanging out down there at different times."

In preparation for his research abroad, Hunt hopes to acquire proficiency in - at the very least -?French, Italian and German before he departs in July.

Watson fellowships are awarded annually by the Thomas J. Watson Foundation to no more than 50 students nationwide. Each finalist receives $25,000 to pursue independent research in the area of his or her choice.

"It's nothing but wonderful," said Hunt. "It's exactly how I want to spend a year, especially when I don't know what I'm doing after school. It's really nice to have that figured out."

Currently Middlebury alumni Dalal Al-Abdulrazzak '07, Carolyn Barnwell '07 and Sathyavani Sathisan '07 are abroad pursuing 2007-2008 projects funded by the Watson Fellowship.