Blog Archive » 2006 » March

One day he was famous for being a new, brash, acerbic conservative blogger on washingtonpost.com The next day he was a disgraced ex-Post-staffer. What happened to Ben Domenech? Plagiarism. Plain and simple, the most elementary form of academic theft. News reports indicate that he first plagiarized while writing for the student newspaper at the College of William and Mary, and then continued his dishonest ways in subsequent writings.

Some commentators are complaining that there's a tinge of politics in the whole "outing" of a conservative blogger's misdeeds after he outrageously characterized Coretta Scott King as a "communist." Mr. Domenech offers his own explanation in his blog "Red America Ends" on RedState.com

Politics aside, plagiarism is an academic crime, never justifiable, always a guaranteed act of self-destruction. At Trinity, our Academic Honesty Policy makes it clear that plagiarism and other forms of cheating will not be tolerated. As the season for final exams and papers draws near, I am taking this opportunity to remind students that the consequences of plagiarism can be devastating. For underclass students, the first offense is an "F" for the course, and the second offense if suspension for a semester. We do not refund your tuition. Even worse, for seniors and graduate students, even if it's a first offense, the penalty for plagiarism and other academic dishonesty is expulsion. Some of my saddest days at Trinity have been when I have had to sign expulsion letters in plagiarism cases. But there is no possible excuse for such behavior.

Ben Domenech's case is a morality tale. Plagiarism can kill a potentially great career. Don't let it happen to you.

More: ben domenech, plagiarism, washingtonpost.com, Washington Post,

"Why Do So Few Women Reach the Top of Big Law Firms?"

Writer Timothy L. O'Brien poses that question in today's New York Times (Sunday, March 19, 2006). The article explores the various reasons why women, although nearly 50% of law school graduates, remain in disproportionately low numbers in law firm partnerships. I touched on this issue earlier this week in a speech I gave for Women's History Month at the Federal Triangle Partnership in the Reagan Building.

What can we do about this? I'd like to hear from you, and will post the best ideas. In particular, I hope our Trinity Alumnae Lawyers can send in some comments on their experiences at law firms. Just click on the little envelope below or "comments" link in the upper right corner of this page, or send me an email at president@trinitydc.edu Watch this page for more on this topic!

Read more at women lawyers, women/'s rights, Women/'s History

The Washington Post has published an eloquent letter-to-the-editor that Trinity student Charlotte Williams wrote about Susan Kinzie's article on Trinity's program at THE ARC. In her letter Ms. Williams objects to the reporter's characterization of the students at THE ARC. Ms. Williams states, "Her [the reporter's] implication about blacks and Latinos being intellectually inferior reeks with an air of white superiority….Kinzie used students' phrases to profile them stereotypically."

Trinity students at THE ARC are every bit as serious, powerful and determined to succeed as Trinity students have always been for more than a century. These women — and men! — are writing a new chapter in Trinity's history. They are pioneers. We are the first university, public or private, to offer a degree program east of the river, and we know that there is a large and eager group of future students throughout southeast Washington. Trinity's program at THE ARC is hardly 'experimental' as the article implied — Trinity fully intends to expand its programs at that location and elsewhere in southeast in the months to come.

Historical facts are clear: Trinity once was 95% white, Catholic, traditional-aged, residential, in keeping with its original cultural construct from the early 20th century. Trinity today is 65% Black, 15% Latina, 8% White, 4% Asian, and the balance arrayed among other categories. Many of our students have international origins, with more than 40 other nations and 16 languages present on our campus.

Trinity is very proud of this great diversity, and we certainly believe that the rich depth and powerful ambition of today's students makes Trinity ever bit as "elite" as we always have been. Our students achieve remarkable success each day, and they repeatedly demonstrate the power of a Trinity education in their classroom performance, their community service, and their accomplishments in the corporate and civic arenas of Washington. The Washington Post could learn a lot about excellence and achievement from today's Trinity students.

An article in the Sunday New York Times describes how the path to corporate board seats and executive suites still tracks through the prestigious golf clubs of America ("A Path to a Seat on the Board? Try the Fairway" by Landon Thomas, Jr., March 11, 2006) March is Women's History Month, and this article is a potent reminder of the fact that women remain significantly disadvantaged when it comes to gaining access and influence in the highest echelons of corporate life. Only two women are CEO's in the Fortune 500, according to Catalyst, an organization that tracks women's participation on boards and in executive offices. 90% of the Fortune 500 have NO (that's ZERO) women among their officer ranks. Only 12% of board seats are held by women.

Clearly, when the path to the boardroom must cut across the fairway and through the men's locker room at clubs where the price of admission (aside from chromosomes) starts at $200,000 or more, women don't have much of a chance. We are still too dependent upon the goodwill and graciousness of those rare good men who take up the cause of enlarging women's presence in corporate life. We should be walking through the front doors of the club on our own, not waiting in the grill for the ladies' tee times. Playing games on the fairway denies women a Fair Way to achieve corporate leadership positions.

Read more in my Women's History Month speech to the Federal Triangle Partnership.

See Women, Women/'s History, Discrimination

Peace in Iraq seems infinitely more remote this morning with the news of the murder of Christian Peacemaker Tom Fox whose body was discovered in Baghdad yesterday several months after he was kidnapped along with other members of the Christian Peacemakers team. Fox knew that he was risking his life to give witness to peace and justice in Iraq. But he felt called to work among the people of that shattered land to do what he could to give comfort, hope and relief to the families so devastated by the violence of each day's struggle. On his blog, Tom Fox posted an entry that gives some insight into his personal motivation: He was reflecting on the natural disaster of Hurricane Katrina and the manmade disasters of war and violence, and he starts with a quote from the pioneering doctor Elizabeth Blackwell:

" 'I must have something in life which will fill this vacuum and prevent this sad wearing away of the heart.'- Elizabeth Blackwell … This was the quote today in my planner as I considered the tragedies both great and small, personal and global we are all dealing with. … We have seen again and again in the last one hundred years the evolution of warfare to the point now when the first two parts of war that have been in play for centuries, that of middle-age men sending out young men to fight and die to keep the middle-age men in power, has added a third component. Still the young fight and die to retain the power of the middle-age men but now most of those who lose their lives in the conflict are women and children. Four months ago the UN commissioned a study to look at Iraqi casualties since the beginning of the U.S. led invasion. …The study stated that 40,000 Iraqis have probably died from violence since March of 2003. That includes death from U.S., Iraqi and insurgent violence. And 70% of those casualties were innocent non-combatants, mainly women and children.
The only "something in my life" I can hold onto is to do what little I can to bring about the creation of the Peaceable Realm of God. It is my sense that such a realm will always have natural disasters. It is the "man-made" disasters that we are called upon to bring to and end."

Let us pray for Tom Fox and his family, for all of the peacemakers in Iraq, for our soldiers and for the families who must live with the consequences of violence each day.

See also Iraq, Tom Fox