News

The state House of Representatives will vote Thursday whether to recognize same-sex marriages in Minnesota.

The DFL-controlled Legislature has heard arguments from both sides for months, and as the vote nears, supporters and opponents are still trying to influence undecided legislators.

If passed, the Senate will vote Monday. Gov. Mark Dayton has said he would sign the bill, making Minnesota the 12th state to legalize same-sex marriages.

Sandra Buchholz has had difficulty landing a job because she’s deaf.

Some employers wouldn’t hire her because her deafness would make it hard to communicate, said Buchholz, who works as an American Sign Language instructor at the University of Minnesota.

“I would say that there are a lot of deaf people out there who have a tough time getting a job because of their disability,” she said through an interpreter.

Researchers from the universities of Wisconsin and Washington reportedly falsified data.

A social psychologist in the Netherlands fabricated more than 50 scientific articles over the course of his career.

While reports of research misconduct at other universities have had an uptick this year, University of Minnesota officials tout the institution’s ethics program as an example for other schools.

Proactive measures

Most University research oversight exists to prevent research misconduct from occurring in the first place.

The University of Minnesota Board of Regents will meet Thursday and Friday for its final meeting of the academic year.

The regents will take action on a proposal to create a single, shared governance structure for the University of Minnesota, Fairview Health Services and University of Minnesota Physicians.

The board will also approve an agreement to allow the Minnesota Vikings to play in TCF Bank Stadium for two years while a new stadium is built in downtown Minneapolis. 

When Carl Flink sat down with students and faculty in the University of Minnesota’s Department of Theatre Arts and Dance last month to talk about diversity, he did so with an open mind.

“We set up this loose structure and asked the students to respond,” the department chair said.

After two sessions, the department decided to start a task force — made up mainly of students — to tackle the issue of diversity in theater, Flink said.

“We want it to be a student-driven organization,” he said.

Jasmine Hardin is living away from home for the first time this year, and while she enjoys living closer to school, making rent can be difficult.

For years, theater arts senior Andrew Buckholtz has only had to report the income of one of his two dads on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

In the past, students with same-sex or unmarried parents who lived together weren’t required to report the income of both parents — potentially qualifying them for more aid.

But next year, that will change.

Beginning with the 2014-15 FAFSA, dependent students with same-sex or unmarried parents who live together will need to report income and other information from both parents.