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NCAA student-athletes can now profit off their fame nationwide

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After the NCAA board of governors passed a law to allow college athletes to profit off their fame in several states such as California, Florida and Colorado, they voted unan- imously on a similar agree- ment nationwide on Oct. 29.

The board has asked the three divisions of the NCAA to create the necessary rules immediately in order to have them in place no later than January of 2021.

Bill Jurgens, Florida Tech’s athletic director, stat- ed that he does not have an opinion at this time, due to this information just being released, and the fact that the NCAA is still looking into this matter.

According to TIME, the NCAA needs to determine how athletes can profit off of their name, likeness and

image, while also maintaining rules regarding amateurism.

Jake Hahn, a junior on the lacrosse team, said he thinks that for these rules to be effec- tive, the NCAA would have to redefine the term of amateur- ism in college sports.

“I think the main thing that categorizes an athlete as a professional is that they get paid to play their sport,” Hahn said.

Hahn then explained that an athlete can’t be both a professional and an amateur at the same time.

He elaborated that the hard thing about allowing student athletes to make money off their name is the fact that once that student starts making money, it’s hard to say if they can still be considered an amateur.

Johnny Poret, a sopho- more on the football team, said he believes that players

should be paid based on the amount of money they bring into the school.

“Big time players bring in big time money for schools because people want to come watch them play,” Poret said. “The more money a player brings in, the more money that player should receive.”

How universities will assist students in profiting off of their name and likeness has not been decided.

Both Hahn and Poret brought up the suggestion of personal jersey sales, or team equipment inside the univer- sity’s bookstore or on their website.

As far as recruiting is concerned, Hahn said he believes that this new rule will potentially have no impact on the smaller Division II and Division III schools, but could have an effect on Division I schools.

Hahn went on to explain that the high quality athletes, such as those who are considered four or five star recruits, won’t have an interest in coming to Florida Tech, as they have the opportunity to

pursue Division I schools. With just a little over a year until this rule will be put in play, much more informa- tion regarding rules and regu- lations from the NCAA itself

are still to come.

Nearly $200,000 raised for Day of Giving at Florida Tech

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  • The black chart represents the donation amount per department.

  • The red chart represents the top 16 departments with the amount of donors who contributed per department.

This year’s Day of Giving exceeded Florida Tech’s goal of 1,500 donors with funds reaching just under $200,000 in 24 hours.

The funds that were raised will be used for everything from updating technology on campus, providing for scholarship and research grants and funding the new Health Sciences Building.

Mary Ida Spradlin, the assistant director of annual giving, is the main organizer for the Day of Giving.

The day was dedicated to raising money for the campus, and Spradlin said it is their biggest online fundraising event.

Spradlin graduated from Florida Tech two years ago, and said the purpose of the event is to bring in alumni donors.

According to Spradlin, her job is to connect with all current students and alumni, and she planned this year’s theme of superhero Pete the Panther.

Sydney Tai, a sophomore in biomathematics, works as a student ambassador for the development office and acts as a student caller.

Tai said that her job is to contact alumni to inform them about current events on campus.

This includes information about how alumni can donate. Furthermore, any alumni that donates more than $1,000 is eligible for invitations to special events, including Tastes of the Season, an annual banquet featuring a dinner made by award- winning chefs during the holiday season.

According to Spradlin, this year they had 1,984 donors in 24 hours.

Bess Handel, a junior in psychology, was assigned to work on Day of Giving for her public relations class.

Her task was to create awareness for the student body and the superhero theme, advertising on the School of Arts and Communication Facebook page.

Handel’s team received help from the Office of Development in running a

booth outside of Panther Dining Hall for students, where students could write down their superpower and participate in a social media campaign.

“The Day of Giving is essentially an opportunity to give back to Florida Tech and all it’s done for you,” Handel said. “Whether you are faculty, staff, a student or simply a local resident, all donations are welcome and appreciated. Even if it’s just some spare change at the bottom of their wallet, it can help both the university and you as a student.”

Handel said that knowing exactly where donations go can make alumni and students more inclined to donate.

“It gives people an opportunity to support their interests and hobbies instead of just handing over money and not knowing what it’s going toward,” Handel said.

Tai agreed, saying, “It all goes back to the students, whether it be through grants or scholarships or specific areas.”

Spradlin says donors can specify where their donations go, giving to specific colleges, Athletics or the Panther Fund.

Spradlin also added that the Panther Fund is the university’s president’s fund to use for Florida Tech’s greatest needs.

A student holds a sign saying “I participate because I love my campus community.”
Photo // Florida Tech Alumni

Handel had some ideas to improve Day of Giving as well since she said she feels that not much has been advertised beyond emails, suggesting that students expand participation with more groups being encouraged to run booths.

“Students are more likely to donate if students are promoting the event, as opposed to Florida Tech staff,” Handel said. “Students will do a lot for extra credit, as we all know.”

Spradlin said she has already started planning how to improve next year’s Day of Giving. “This year was the biggest year we’ve had yet, and I think next year will be even bigger,” said Spradlin.

Florida Tech fails to acknowledge reports of rape required under federal law

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By: Emily Walker, Olivia McKelvey, Kevin Boodoosingh

Florida Tech failed to acknowledge multiple reports of rape within the 2019 Annual Security and Fire Safety Reports under the Clery Act.




  • The Campus Crime Statistics lists zero sex offenses have occurred in the in the past three years. If there have been cases of sexual assaults that were not included in the crime statistics, then that is a violation of the Clery Act. 

Two students have come forward with accounts of rape and how they reported their cases through Title IX and Security.

Their cases did not appear on the Annual Security and Fire Safety Reports, which is in violation of the Clery Act.

What is the Clery Act:

In 1986, Jeanne Clery, a student at Lehigh University, was raped and murdered in her residence hall.

Four years later, the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act of 1990 was established in order to create accountability for reporting violent crimes and providing transparency on campus crime statistics.

The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act—the Clery Act— is a federal law requiring United States colleges and universities to disclose information about crime on and around campuses.

Due to the fact that Florida Tech receives federal funding, it is required to publish an annual security report for both students and employees every Oct. 1.

What is included within the Clery report:

Florida Tech’s Office of Safety and Security prepares an annual report in cooperation with local law enforcement agencies such as Melbourne Police Department, Palm Bay Police Department and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office.

Other university departments also work in collaboration with compiling crime reports and statistics such as the Title IX office.

The report is required to include data from the past three years on the following crimes:

  • Criminal homicides such as murder and non-negligent manslaughter and negligent manslaughter
  • Sex offenses such as rape, fondling, incest and statutory rape
  • Arrests and judicial referrals for liquor law violations, drug abuse violations and weapons law violations
  • The “other” category, which includes robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, motor vehicle theft and arson
  • The Violence Against Women’s Act—VAWA—is an amendment within Clery that expands the rights to campus survivors of sexual assault and includes the following crimes:
    • domestic violence
    • dating violence
    • stalking
  • Hate crimes, which include offense definitions relating to hate/bias-related crime, larceny, simple assault, intimidation and destruction/damage/vandalism of property

Clery cites that the following individuals on campus are Campus Security Authorities—also known as mandated reporters— a term created by the Clery Act that encompasses groups of individuals and organizations at Florida Tech:

  • Dean of Students
  • Director of Security
  • Security Department
  • Title IX Coordinator
  • Senior Vice President for Academic Administration
  • Chief of Staff
  • Athletics Director
  • Athletic Coaches
  • Office of Student Life
  • Director of Student Housing
  • Other Campus Security Authorities that have a “significant responsibility for student and campus activities.”

Clery geography:

Another factor Clery examines when categorizing data is geographical location of a specific crime.

Clery includes both on-campus and non-campus locations within the report.

An on-campus location is defined as any building or property owned or controlled by an institution, such as an academic building or dorm.

Non-campus geographic location can refer to any Florida Tech owned entity that is frequented by students.

The non-campus definition also includes campus leased or rented spaces for an event that was sponsored by the university or any building or property owned or controlled by a student organization that is officially recognized by the institution.

How Florida Tech violated the Clery Act:

In the 2019 Annual Security and Fire Safety Reports, all sex offenses, including rape, were cited as zero for the past three years.

According to definition in Florida Tech’s 2019 Annual Safety and Fire Report, rape is defined as “the penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.”

An anonymous student has gone on record and said that her rape, which occurred in 2018 on campus, was not included in the Clery report.

“I went into the Title IX office because I wanted this put down on record,” she said. “I wanted them to know that women are being assaulted and raped on this campus.” 

The student went to the health center and Counseling and Psychological Services, neither of which are mandated reporters.

She later went to Linda Jancheson, the Title IX coordinator, who reports to, as listed in Florida Tech’s organizational chart, VP/General Counsel.

“I spent 20 minutes waiting in the Title IX office, five minutes in Jancheson’s office and I left with three extra papers that I didn’t know what the hell meant,” the student said.

The student later talked to another Campus Security Authority and discussed her options with Security.

She ultimately decided not to take action against her rapist and no charges were filed in this case. 

Despite the student not taking action, according to Frank Iannone, director of security, whether or not a victim decides to pursue charges, a report is made regardless of the outcome.

When asked how many cases of rape have been reported to Jancheson for the past three years, she said, “I do not know the exact numbers.”

When asked how many Title IX reports Jancheson handed over to Security to include within this year’s Clery report, she said, “I do not know.”

The Title IX coordinator was asked these same questions two times, in two separate interviews, and responded with “I do not know,” in each instance.

Jancheson went on to say that she was not in the Title IX coordinator position when reports were made last year in 2018, though her start date was February of 2018.

Another anonymous source was raped in 2017 on campus and reported her rape to Security in 2018.

The student went through an investigation and disciplinary hearing, which took over one year and resulted in disciplinary action for her rapist. 

This student’s rape was also not included within this year’s Clery data. 

“Sitting down with two security officers not once, but twice to relive the details of my rape in depth and on record was anything but a warm environment as a victim,” she said. 

After her initial report, the student heard nothing for five months regarding the investigation and the scheduling of the disciplinary hearing.

“It was the worst experience of my life,” she said. “The process of reporting it was nearly as bad as my actual rape.”

It is not immediately known whether or not campus security filed these two reports of rape with local law enforcement.

Both sources will remain anonymous. The Crimson does not disclose the names of sexual assault survivors.

Repercussions for violating Clery:

According to a press release from the National Association of Clery Compliance officers and professionals, as of February 2019, the new amount that the U.S. Department of Education can impose for noncompliance with the Clery Act is $57,317 per violation. 

In 2016, Penn State was fined 2.4 million dollars for having been “out of compliance” for 11 serious cases dating from 1998 to 2011.

In 2018, the University of Montana was fined $966,614 for “inaccurate and misleading crime statistics” from liquior law violations to cases of rape between 2012 and 2015. 

Two anonymous students at Florida Tech have come forward to discuss their rapes in 2017 and 2018 and how they reported it to Security.

Those cases have not been cited within this year’s Clery report. 

Iannone said that from the statistics that are provided within this year’s Clery report, he feels the numbers accurately represent the campus.

If you have made a report to Security or Title IX and feel it has not been handled correctly, visit endrapeoncampus.org/the-clery-act to file a complaint.

As a student-run newspaper, your voices are extremely important to us.

If you feel you have experienced something similar as described in this piece and would like to speak with us, please contact us at crimson@fit.edu.

National Sexual Assault Hotline -1-800-656-4673
Women’s Center Counseling 321-242-1526

College of Business hosts Rett syndrome fundraiser

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Every year since 2010, Florida Tech has seen a fundraiser hosted for Rett Syndrome.

This is because Henry Perez, the dean of the College of Business, has a 23-year-old daughter named Lily with the syndrome.

According to rettsyndrome.org, Rett syndrome is a rare non-inherited genetic disorder that occurs mostly in girls, although it can rarely occur in boys.

Rett syndrome tends to have an affect on brain development. Perez’s fundraiser, known as the Florida Strollathon, benefits rettsyndrome.org.

The organization invests in research, educates about the syndrome and calls for volunteers to help with fundraisers.

The Strollathon will be held on Saturday, Nov. 2, at the Space Coast Field of Dreams.

Many people across the state, including families who are affected by Rett syndrome, will gather together at the Strollathon.

A Rett syndrome awareness week at the College of Business and a pancake breakfast fundraiser at Lucky’s was held beforehand to spread awareness. Funds were collected during the events.

Graduate student Kristi Stephens is participating in the fundraiser for the first time, and will be assisting Perez. Stephens got the opportunity to meet Lily, which inspired her to participate.

“I am particularly inspired to support families and children who face daily challenges because I am fortunate to have two healthy children of my own,” Stephens said. “I believe an entire community benefits when people are willing to help each other with kindness, generosity and compassion.”

Stephens has played a major role with the fundraiser, as she has “planned details of the event such as catering, entertainment and booking hotel accommodations.”

With Stephens’ interest in volunteering, she said she enjoys helping others and getting to know new people, such as the families that attend the fundraiser.

“The most rewarding part of my contribution so far has been interacting with families who have daughters with Rett syndrome,” Stephens said. “It has been a pleasure to support them in a small way, whether by setting up their fundraising pages, helping them post photos and letters, booking hotel rooms or answering general questions about the event.”

Stephens said she looks forward to meeting the families in person and will be proud to have contributed to their enjoyment of a fun day while supporting a cause that can make a difference in their lives.

The fundraiser’s goal is to raise over $100 thousand this year.

If this goal is reached, the fundraiser would raise one million dollars over the course of the Strollathon’s ten-year period.

Florida Tech drops in national ratings

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While last year, Florida Tech came in at 177 for national university rankings, according to ratings released a few weeks ago from U.S. News, Florida Tech has dropped to 202.

Although some may be concerned about the 25 spot decrease, it didn’t seem to bother Wes Sumner, Florida Tech’s vice president for Marketing and Communications.

Sumner explained that many considerations are taken into account, such as the academic performance of freshmen, alumni donations, class size and a number of other factors.

However, Sumner also explained that the biggest reason Florida Tech dropped in the rankings was due to something called the Carnegie Classification system.

This system acts as a framework for classifying universities throughout the nation.

“The Carnegie Classification changed and allowed a large number of additional universities in at our Carnegie Classification,” Sumner said. “This means that the new universities got added ahead of Florida Tech, meaning that our relative ranking fell.”

Despite this year’s rankings, Sumner stated that the university as a whole remained constant, or even improved in all of the ranking factors, and still remains a tier one best school for over a decade.

Students such as Riley Dolan, a sophomore in mechanical engineering, believe that smaller classes, high quality professors and job opportunities in the local area have helped contribute to that title.

“When I first started looking at colleges, I was trying to find a university where I can not only be successful in school, but find success quickly once I graduate,” Dolan said. “Florida Tech is known for their engineering programs, and companies like Harris and Northorp Gruman are always looking for interns as well as new engineers.”

Dolan went on to say that most other universities in the state don’t offer the same amount of quality or opportunities that a smaller tech university can offer to their students.

Jordan Neely, a junior in civil engineering, also said that the class size and the technology that is accessible through the university is what causes Florida Tech to be viewed as a tier one school.

“I don’t think that many other universities have the ability to offer the high availability of technology that Florida Tech can offer to their students,” Neely said.

Neely went on to explain that while other universities may have the same technology capabilities of Florida Tech, they often have a larger student body, which could make accessing those capabilities more difficult.

Sumner stated that one of the university’s core values is a lifetime commitment to student success, and despite what the rankings may say students such as Dolan and Neely feel like that value is being maintained.

Residence communities make dreams come true

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Students chat in their LLC lounge with a plane of Gemini on the table.

Florida Tech students are making their dreams become reality as they now have the opportunity to be more immersed in the world of aeronautics and aerospace engineering.

“I was talking to somebody in the Residence Life department at the time, mentioning that I would like to stay involved in the department somehow even though I was moving over to the College of Aeronautics,” said Warren Pittorie, an instructor in the College of Aeronautics and a former resident director. “I didn’t hear from the department for a few weeks, then somebody came up with the idea to start another living-learning community.”

The aviation living community—Let’s Fly—was established on the second floor of Brownlie Hall and took in freshmen aviation and aerospace engineering students this fall.

Pittorie explained that an LLC is where students are placed together on a floor or within a building based on a common majors, common interests or common program affiliations.

The Let’s Fly LLC is the third LLC on campus, joining the Women in STEM and the Honors College LLC.

Keeping with the theme of aviation, Pittorie reached out to College of Aeronautics alumni and asked for donations to decorate the hall.

“Those that did reach out had a lot of stuff to donate,” Pittorie said. “We have a bookshelf with a couple aviation books, and we put a lot of study tables up there as well, rather than a lounge to hang out and watch tv.”

Both RA’s in Brownlie hall, Kerrington Witherspoon and Michaela Salazar, are aviation students.

Witherspoon, a sophomore, said, “I have the same responsibilities as other RA’s. We’re trying to plan trips to get students to Melbourne airport, down to Vero Beach to the Piper manufacturing facility, Cape Canaveral and guest speakers.”

Pittorie explained that although the events are targeted towards the LLC students, others would also be able to participate.

Witherspoon said that so far the residents are enjoying the LLC and utilizing the common area to hang out and study.

Thus, the newly added LLC on campus has connected more students in a comfortable living space where they can achieve success above and beyond.

CAPS – The Panther’s First Semester

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Whether this is the first semester of your freshman year of college or your final “first” semester of graduate school, the start of a new academic year can come with so many new and different things.

Some might be exciting, like meeting new roommates; while others might be challenging, like repairing a suffering GPA.

Regardless of what experiences come your way, it is important to find a balance between school, work and your social and personal life.

A great way to start the new academic year is to establish a daily routine.

While classes naturally create a routine, there are many other areas of your life that could benefit from some structure.

Setting aside certain days or times for things, like hanging out with friends or catching up with family, can be just as important as scheduling time for studying.

Having an exercise routine can also be helpful and more than just managing weight.

Regular exercise can help manage stress, anxiety and depression.

Eating regular, well-balanced meals at around the same time each day can further help with overall physical and mental health.

Additionally, taking time to relax can help balance out the stress of studying, working or dealing with social/ extra-curricular demands.

Give yourself the gift of setting limits on where and how you spend your time.

It might seem like extra work now, but it will pay off when October hits and you find yourself not wondering where all your time went.

If you find yourself having difficulties that cannot be resolved with setting routines and engaging in self-care, reach out to someone for support.

You can also visit Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS), where a variety of mental health and wellness services are available to assist students so they can successfully reach their own personal, academic and career goals.

We also offer weekly counseling groups, including Mood Matters on Mondays, a group on managing depression and anxiety; Let’s Talk on Tuesdays, which explores ways to improve relationship skills; Proud To Be Me on Wednesdays, which provides support for LGBTQ+ concerns; Understanding Self & Others on Thursdays, which explores personal identity and interpersonal success; and Emotional Flexibility on Fridays, which provides a variety of stress management techniques.

More information regarding CAPS’ services and support can be found by visiting: www.fit.edu/counseling-and-psychological-services/

We are here to help you achieve your goals and be the happiest and healthiest Panther you can be.

Panthers solve real-world problems

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Malia Ashmead, Jamison Burch and Emanuel Rossi with the Osiris bioreactor.

Students utilized their knowledge gained through their years at Florida Tech to find solutions to real-world problems and present them at the Northrop Grumman Student Design and Research Showcase.

The event took place on April 12 at the Clemente Center.

“This was the first time that we could really put all of our knowledge to use and see everything we have learned since freshman year,” Emily Perron, an ocean engineering major, said.

Perron’s group, Reef Life, created an artificial reef that creates a perfect surf while also protecting the shoreline and promoting coral growth.

Perron said that the modular design was based off of LEGOs so the reef could be configured in any shape.

“It feels really great to have won Best in Show for Ocean Engineering and to know that someone really appreciated our hard work,” Perron said. “I’m very grateful.”

Reef Life placed first in their category, but success did not come without challenges.

Emily Perron and Stephen Hammond with their artificial reef, Reel Life.

“Originally we tried 3D printing our blocks, and they took 20 hours each to make and kept failing,” Perron said. “We had to make 100 of these blocks, so we had to find a different method of designing.”

Reef Life opted to use molds instead of printing to speed up their manufacturing process.

Dev Patel, an aerospace engineering major, presented the Perching Unmanned Monitoring Aircraft or PUMA.

PUMA can act as both a rotorcraft and a fixed wing aircraft, giving it increased speed and maneuverability.

The aircraft has a claw-like landing gear, which allows it to perch like a bird.

“It’s designed to act as a mobile services platform for emergency service providers,” Patel said.

Computer engineering major, Ahmed Okasha and his team designed an on-board diagnostic tool for the formula electric team.

“Once they build the car, the engineers would basically just walk up and plug in the device to the car and be able to get all the readings that they need,” Okasha said.

The device would give battery voltage, temperature and charging state readings.

Okasha said that in the future, a radio can be added to the device so that it can stay on the car permanently and send info back to the engineers while it’s racing.

“It [completing senior design] feels satisfying, but there’s always that one part of you that feels as if you could have done more,” Okasha said.

Cooper Mitchell, an ocean engineering student, and his team built the foundation vessel SWATH. SWATH is a Small Waterplane Area Twin Hole vessel was built to bridge the gap between large vessels and smaller vessels with not much over complications.

Mitchell’s project reached outside of ocean engineering and recruited the help of aerospace, electrical and computer engineers.

“It’s a great culmination of my ocean engineering degree,” Mitchell said. “We did coastal process, naval architecture, instrumentation, material science and ship design and construction. It showed me to have a full range of experience to take with me into the job market.”

Students form club to promote College of Business

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Students formed a club to run social media for Florida Tech’s Nathan M. Bisk College of Business this spring.

According to Kollin Upton, a senior studying business administration, the College of Business Social Media Team consists of about 10 students aiming to increase outreach and engagement to current and potential students.

Upton started the club and now serves as its administrator, meaning that he performs secretarial tasks and other “behind-the-scenes” work.

Upton said the group meets once a week to think of ways to promote the College of Business. The discussion and schedule revolves around events happening that week.

“We do things like student spotlights, or event spotlights, where we recognize events going on around campus,” Upton said.

He said that the student spotlights help appeal to prospective students by showing what current students are accomplishing.

Since the club’s formation, the members have created an Instagram account for the College of Business, floridatech_cob.

“It’s been about a month and a half,” Upton said. “Our Instagram presence has grown notably.”

He explained that the group began with a mass email to seek members. Interested students volunteered to participate, and Upton said the students continued with it because they enjoyed it.

The group includes international students and at least one nontraditional student, according to Upton.

He said that having members from different backgrounds helps provide different perspectives in their planning.

Upton says the group being mostly student-run allows for the content to be more relatable the student audience, since they are their own “target market.”

“Students know what students want,” he said.

The club is led by two student leaders. Upton said that having two leaders provides more than one “point of contact” for leadership duties.

Drew Bastian, a senior studying global management, is one of the club’s student leaders.

He said the club provides the students with marketing experience and a chance to use what they are learning, while giving them a say in how the College of Business is seen by others.

The group is working to gain followers on the College’s Facebook and LinkedIn.

According to Upton, the group has limited access to these pages, unlike the full access to the Instagram account.

Bastian said the club would like to improve the timeliness and accuracy of posts across these pages.

“The future plans for the group, currently, are to grow the social media presence of the [College of Business], and to eventually hand the group off to other students that are as interested in learning about social media and how it can help in business,” Bastian said in an emailed response.

He explained that the group does not currently have any other specific plans, but that he is “excited for the future.”

“With all the different backgrounds we have working on getting information and content made, I feel like anything can happen,” Bastian said.

According to Bastian, the club will be seeking new members in the fall semester.

Professors suspected in Crawford’s hamster infestation

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Recently, students, staff and faculty have noticed an infestation of hamsters in Crawford, cause of which is still under investigation.

While facilities claimed the hamsters were likely coming from the atomic toilet, some students have the suspicion their professors are smuggling them into class.

A hamster peeks out of a professor’s pocket during a lecture. Picture by a traumatized student.

“My professor proudly shows off his hamster,” one student said.

The student added that her professor keeps his hamster in his pocket and feeds it nuts throughout class.

Another student said the hamsters may be there for emotional support.

“Before, my professor seemed so lonely,” she said. “Having a hamster really seems to help him. Whenever we’re doing work and he’s at his desk, his hamster is there for him to pet.”

While many find the furry creatures adorable, some students said they’ve become a distraction.

A graduate student said it wouldn’t be a big deal if professors were better at controlling their hamsters.

“Lots of people have hamsters, and that’s fine,” he said. “But I don’t want them out and about in class. Keep them in their cages.”

It isn’t just students that have a problem with the hamsters. Some professors are bothered by their presence as well.

One professor in communications said the daily sight of her coworkers’ hamsters is upsetting. “It’s disgusting,” she said. “I can’t have a hamster, and to see them flaunting theirs around the school? I’m ready to quit.”

Another professor said seeing the hamsters everyday is a sad reminder that she can’t have one.

“I’ve always liked them,” she said. “I wish I had one, and seeing them every day just reminds me I’ll never have one.”

Facilities is working to get to the bottom of the infestation and stop it from spreading further.

“Our biggest concern is containment, both of the hamsters and professors,” one staff member said. “If it is professors bringing the hamsters in, we have a bigger issue than we thought. Everyone will want to try it. As they say, monkey see, monkey do.”

While there are several courses of action being considered, the staff member said they’re leaning toward shutting down Crawford for several days.

“There are a couple reasons to shut it down,” the staff member said. “We’d like to exterminate any remaining hamsters in the building. But the biggest issue is that most of our professors probably need a break. If they had some time off, they might not feel the need to bring their hamsters onto school property.”

One professor, who wished to remain anonymous, is horrified at the idea of not being able to bring his hamster to class any longer.

“He’s my best friend,” he said. “He’s basically a part of me.”

The professor added that his hamster is like a security blanket, and when he has to spend the entire day without his pet, he feels tense, agitated and unfulfilled in life.

Some of the program chairs in Crawford are also looking into the problem.

They want to keep the building clean while also keeping their professors happy.

They’re considering adding rules about allowing certain pets, as long as professors follow specific protocol for cleaning up after their furry friends.

“I don’t know what we’re going to do, but I do know it’s something a lot of students have complained about,” one program chair said. “No one wants to see a hamster sticking out of their professor’s pocket at eight in the morning.”