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Saturday, June 30, 2012 4:46 p.m.

District declares state of emergency following raging storm

by Matthew Kwiecinski

D.C. declared a state of emergency Saturday following severe weather and high winds that thrashed the city Friday night.

Damage across the District from Friday’s storm prompted the government to declare an emergency “to respond to emerging issues as expeditiously as possible,” City Administrator Allen Lew said in a press release from Mayor Vincent Gray’s office. The declaration will stay in effect for 15 days unless Gray proposes an extension period following the July 15 cutoff.

The sudden storm started pounding the D.C.-area late Friday, knocking down trees and power lines and leaving more than 1.3 million Maryland, Virginia and District residents without power, according to The Washington Post. Five people were killed, four of whom were struck by fallen trees.

As of Saturday, 443,000 local residents were out of power, according to a press release from the power company Pepco. Complete restoration will take “several days.”

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Tuesday, April 17, 2012 4:57 p.m.

D.C. universities outline energy reduction goal

by Cory Weinberg

University President Steven Knapp signed a pledge in February to commit D.C. universities to helping the city become more energy efficient. Hatchet File Photo

GW joined eight other District universities Tuesday in pledging to reduce energy use by enough to power 720 U.S. households every year, part of a city-wide sustainability initiative.

The goal to rein in heat energy use will be tracked on a D.C.-hosted website for Mayor Vincent Gray’s “Sustainable D.C. Vision,” which will be unveiled next week.

“As a sector, we hope to continue to offer a model of sustainability innovation for citizens and organizations across the District,” Meghan Chapple-Brown, director of GW’s Office of Sustainability, said in a news release. “Universities tend to have a big impact on climate change through energy use in our buildings, and we challenge other building owners in D.C. to increase energy efficiency.”

University President Steven Knapp – who has prioritized sustainability since joining GW in 2007 – signed a pact in February with nine other D.C. university presidents to make strides in helping the city become more eco-friendly.

D.C. Department of the Environment Director Christophe Tulou announced the specific commitment with Chapple-Brown Tuesday.

GW has pledged to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2025 and become carbon neutral by 2040.

The University has seen its green push pay off, earning a nod Tuesday as one of the top 322 green colleges by the Princeton Review, the second time it has received the accolade in the guide’s three years. Students will also be able to minor in sustainability next year when GW offers more than 60 green leaf courses in social, economic or environmental sustainability.

Measured against other D.C. schools though, American and Georgetown universities and the University of the District of Columbia finished ahead of GW in the eight-week intercollegiate Reyclemania competition in results announced April 13.

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Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012 1:03 p.m.

University sits second in D.C. employer rankings

by Cory Weinberg
The GW Hospital

GW Hospital is the District's 13th-largest employeer. Hatchet File Photo

GW held steady as the second-largest employer in the District, according to an audit of the city’s finances released Monday.

Georgetown topped GW for the second straight year as the top employer in the D.C. Comprehensive Annual Financial Report of fiscal year 2010, which includes the list “to help explain the environment within which the District’s financial activities take place,” according to the report.

The list has seen some shuffling over the past decade – most significantly the fall of Howard University from its 5-year reign as the No. 1 employer last year to No. 7. Howard was ranked as No. 7 again this year.

The GW Hospital maintained its position as the No. 13 employer.

The required report – compiled by the office of D.C.’s chief financial officer Natwar Gandhi – does not include the number of employees for each institution due to privacy reasons.

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Thursday, July 21, 2011 1:56 p.m.

GW hosts job fair for D.C. residents

by Chelsea Radler
Knapp and Gray

Photo courtesy of GWU Photography

The University hosted a job fair for District residents Wednesday in an effort to strengthen ties with the broader D.C. community.

Alumnus and Mayor Vincent Gray and University President Steven Knapp met residents and recruiters at the event, which drew over 1,500 local job seekers.

“It’s important that we’re part of our community in D.C.,” Knapp said.

Knapp offered to host the event last December in tandem with Gray’s efforts to decrease joblessness in the District.

GW ‘s relationship with the surrounding city community – particularly Foggy Bottom – has historically been strained, as the University’s development plans mushroomed the Foggy Bottom Campus across the neighborhood during former University President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg’s tenure. Locals often criticize the school for allegedly not factoring nearby residents into the equation while considering University projects. Offering jobs to locals creates tangible benefits the University is able to tout when seeking neighborhood approval.

In December, Knapp and School of Business Dean Doug Guthrie joined a D.C.-wide job creation summit held by the mayor’s office, where the pair discussed how GW can both generate jobs and prepare students entering the job market. Knapp announced at the event that GW would look into hosting a job symposium as well.

The event was held in conjunction with the D.C. Department of Employment Services and the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area, which includes nine D.C.-area universities.

“They account for approximately 68,117 full- and part-time jobs with $3 billion in total payroll expenditures,” University spokeswoman Michelle Sherrard said of local universities, which serve as major employers throughout the area.

The University hopes to fill more than 100 vacant posts including information technology, general service and administrative positions, Sherrard said.

“A lot of people are here looking for opportunities,” Knapp said over the din in the Marvin Center ballroom. “They’re very grateful that we’re doing this.”

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Saturday, Oct. 16, 2010 6:34 p.m.

D.C. Starbucks switch to gender-neutral bathroom signs

by The GW Hatchet

This report was written by Hatchet reporter Emily Scott.

Starbucks locations in D.C. are beginning to switch to gender neutral bathroom signs, in compliance with D.C. law. Marie McGrory | Hatchet Staff Photogpraher

Ffity-two Starbucks locations in the District will be replacing men’s and women’s bathroom signs with a gender-neutral restroom signs over the next month.

Starbucks coffee houses across D.C. are swapping their traditional bathroom signs to accommodate trans-gender customers, but because bathrooms in the Gelman Library Starbucks have multiple stalls per restrooms, bathrooms there will continue to be separated by gender.

Starbucks decided to change their policy at the end of September after five complaints were filed at the D.C. Office of Human Rights against Starbucks based on their gender-specific bathroom signs according to the D.C. OHR.

By changing the signs, Starbucks will be in compliance with regulations passed about four years ago after the Human Rights Act was amended to include gender identity.

Sadie-Ryanne Baker, a spokeswoman for the D.C. Trans Coalition, said that after the D.C. Council voted unanimously to add “gender identity and expression” as a protected class in the Act, “trans people and our allies helped draft enforcement regulations that spell out how this law affects businesses and individuals in the District.”

Even though the law required businesses to “allow individuals the right to use gender-specific restrooms and other gender-specific facilities…that are consistent with their gender identity or expression,” few establishments actually complied with the part of the law that says single occupancy restrooms must be labeled gender-neutral.

“I’m elated,” said senior Michael Komo, president of Allied in Pride. “This is a huge victory for trans-gender individuals and the D.C. community. I tip my hat to Starbucks.”

Allied in Pride supports the bathroom law, as the organization has been lobbying for more gender-neutral policies, including those affecting housing on campus. Komo said he hopes that Starbucks will have a “domino effect” on other District establishments.

“There is no disadvantage to gender-neutral bathrooms,” Komo said. “People just need to be educated about gender identity. Once they become more aware, they will become more comfortable.”

Starbucks didn’t return request for comment.

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Thursday, Sept. 24, 2009 7:30 p.m.

Blair Underwood helps open AIDS clinic near campus

by Gabrielle Bluestone

Hollywood actor Blair Underwood, known for his roles on TV shows like Dirty Sexy Money and In Treatment, cut the ribbon on an AIDS clinic in the same building as Student Health Services Thursday morning, several news outlets are reporting.

The AHF Blair Underwood Healthcare Clinic, located at 2141 K St. NW, was opened by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, and named after Underwood because his star power may help draw clients, the Washington Post reported.

According to the Post, “U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) and representatives from the Obama administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the March of Dimes,” all attended the opening.

The HIV/AIDS rate in D.C. is at least 3 percent, according to a study funded by the CDC and conducted by GW’s School of Health and Health Services.

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Wednesday, July 29, 2009 12:14 p.m.

Hundreds of University employees earn more pay after minimum wage increase

by Emily Cahn

Approximately 350 University employees received a 70-cent per hour pay increase earlier this month, after D.C. raised the minimum wage to $8.25 per hour, the University announced Friday.

While GW and other institutions of higher education are not required to pay students the minimum wage set by the District – the University has the option of using the federal minimum wage rate of $7.25 an hour – GW chose to follow the D.C. minimum wage. All other employees, however, must be paid the D.C. minimum wage.

Lou Katz, executive vice president and treasurer of the University, said paying students the higher minimum wage is consistent with the University’s overall strategy for affordability.

“Most of the students who work do so in order to support themselves,” he said. “This is why they go through the University and this affects the amount of money they need from financial aid or loans.”

Maria Alam, associate vice president of Human Resources, said a minimum wage increase is beneficial for the nearly 350 University employees who earn minimum wage, as they are not eligible for merit wage increases.

“At the request of Student Employment and with the approval of the Office of Budget, Finance and Personnel at [Student and Academic Support Services], the salaries of the students were increased as well,” Alam said in an e-mail. “GW has typically followed the District’s minimum wage for both students and staff.”

Alam added that the minimum wage increase, “allows [students] to receive an increase to keep up with the cost of living.”

D.C. law states that the District’s minimum wage must be $1 more than the federal minimum wage. The federal minimum wage was increased to $7.25 on July 24.

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