Kelly’s Ellis Island Sold to Owner of Tex-Mex Restaurants

Hugh Kelly, founder of Catholic University staples Irish Times and Ellis Island, has sold the later to the owner of two Tex-Mex restaurants. Ellis Island, once a bustling and popular bar/restaurant frequented by University students, has been closed the entire academic year, and its future was uncertain.

Brookland’s Ellis Island was sold to Jaime Vargas, owner of San Antonio Bar & Grill, a family-owned Tex-Mex restaurant with two locations in Virginia, according to community newspaper Brookland Heartbeat.

Vargas has been looking for a location in Brookland for several years, according to the Heartbeat. “I am very excited to become part of this community,” said Vargas. Read more

Cardinal Stafford Stands by Criticism of Obama

Cardinal J. Francis Stafford, head of the Apostolic Penitentiary of the Holy See, is standing by controversial comments he made about President-elect Barack Obama during an on-campus lecture last Thursday. In an address hosted by the John Paul II Institute on Marriage and Family, Stafford called President-elect Barack Obama’s policies “aggressive, disruptive and apocalyptic,” said that his election was “a cultural earthquake” and that Obama campaigned on an “extremist anti-life platform.” (YouTube Video)

The story about the Cardinal’s comments was posted on CUATOWER.com on Friday and audio of his remarks was added on Monday. Since its posting, the story went viral online and has been picked up by CNN, CBS, ABC, Catholic News Service, National Catholic Reporter and the Drudge Report. Read more

CUA Dean Files Complaint Against Cardinal’s Nest

The University filed a complaint against Cardinal’s Nest, a bar popular with students, on August 26, following reports of students returning to campus intoxicated from the bar.

Kathryn Jennings, associate dean of students, officially filed the complaint with the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Association saying, “Our Department of Public Safety reported hundreds of intoxicated students coming from Cardinal’s Nest.” The bar is located less than a half mile from the University.

Jennings also mentioned she has heard about various hearings that were being conducted against Cardinal’s Nest. Read more

Cadet Cardinal: Weekend Training With CUA ROTC

Behind every identical uniform, every generic honorific and every accomplishment within the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) is the story of an individual. Junior nursing major Shannon Gasser has shown up on her Colonel’s radar as a capable leader. Freshman Josh Choe scores in the top of his class on physical training, marksmanship and testing almost every chance he is given. George Washington University senior W. Buck Bobbin overcame a weight problem, completely altering his lifestyle after he missed junior summer training.

Over the last weekend, all of these stories collided about two hours outside of Washington, D.C. at the army’s Fort A.P. Hill in Bowling Green, Va. “It’s a chance to show our abilities to the commanders,” said senior Bob Bisconti, who acted as Master Sergeant for the battalion over the weekend. Read more

Senior Got Personal Pitch From Obama

Most voters get pitches from presidential candidates through television commercials, prime-time debates and campaign websites.

Senior Irene Kelly got a pitch from President-elect Barack Obama in a personal phone call and meeting with the candidate.

Irene’s mother, Sarah “Sally” Kelly, became one of the first state representatives in New Hampshire to support Obama in summer of 2007, after attending a meeting in Manchester, N.H. with Obama and some of his early supporters.

Kelly’s mother invited her to go, but unfortunately could not attend due to a previously scheduled meeting. Her mother kept calling Kelly during the meeting, until she had to finally excuse herself, thinking it might be an emergency. Read more

CUA Students Protest Prop. 8 on Mall

University students attended a protest on Nov. 15 against Proposition 8, a ballot which eliminates the right of same-sex couples to marry in California, as they braved the rain marching from the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial.

More than 5,000 people ranging “from gay and straight, young and old, black and white,” said senior Erin Murphy, who attended the protest.

“It was, in every sense of the word, an inclusive affair, and being directly in the midst of the action was an irreplaceable experience,” Murphy said. “It is not until you actually throw yourself out there that you realize how many people are negatively and unfairly affected by legislation like Prop 8.” Read more

Gibbons Residents Make Opus Room Selections

Residents in Gibbons Hall selected their rooms for next semester on Monday, as they prepare to move to Opus Hall next semester due to renovations that are planned to take place in Gibbons Hall.

The housing lottery, which began at 4:00 p.m., had problems, as the MyHousing section of Cardinal Station was unavailable due to computer problems.

MyHousing came back online 15 minutes after Housing Services contacted the Center for Planning and Information Technology, according to Todd Troke, assistant director of Housing Services. Read more

Association Discusses Student Bill of Rights

Student Fee Allocation Board Updates General Assembly on State of Funds

The Student Association General Assembly made plans to continue discussions on the proposed student bill of rights and received an update on student fee allocations from the Student Fee Allocation Board at their meeting Tuesday night.

Delegate Andrew Platt presented a student bill of rights to the General Assembly.

“This was the first reading of the bill, so this is not its final form and has yet to be adopted,” said delegate Ryan Winn. Read more

Events Highlight Needs of Disadvantaged

HUNGER AND HOMELESSNESS AWARENESS WEEK

The University recognized the less fortunate this past week through a series of activities during Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. The week began early Monday morning with So Others May Eat and continued with activities geared towards informing students about the plight of the homeless and ways to get involved.

“This whole lifestyle of love and service is about trying to do the will of God in my life every day,“ said Luis Vasquez, University alumnus and 2007 Washingtonian of the Year, who spoke Thursday nigh at CUA on Tap. He stressed the importance of giving back to the community, sharing his own personal experiences working with the homeless of Washington, D.C. Read more

Garbarino Elected 114th Tower Editor-in-Chief

Justine Garbarino, a sophomore Media Studies major from Allentown, PA was elected as the 114th editor-in-chief of the Tower on Sunday night.

“I was really excited when I won,” said Garbarino. “My competitor was really qualified and it was a really close race.” Garbarino ran against sophomore Michael Oliva.

Garbarino has been a member of the Tower since her freshman year, and has served as a news writer, assistant news editor and news editor. She is also co-editor of the 2009 Cardinal Yearbook, a D.C. Reads tutor and was a 2008 Orientation adviser.

“I’m sure that the reason I come back week to week is my love of the work we do and the people that make up our staff,” said Garbarino. “Our staff is immensely talented and has that natural nose for news. I want to help everyone develop their skills and find a niche that they like, whether it is layout, editing, writing, or web design.” Read more

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