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              THE MAROON WWW.LOYOLAMAROON.COM FRIDAY, APRIL 27, 2007 VOL. 85, NO. 24 Fired faculty file suits against Loyola Litigants claim handbook violation By STEVE HEATH THE MAROON Earlier this month seven former Loyola faculty members, terminated under the "Pathways" plan, fded lawsuits against the university at Civil District Court. The lawsuits charged the university with breach of contracts and breach of contracts in bad faith for violating the conditions of termination set out in the Faculty Handbook — a part of faculty members' contracts. Other named as defendants include Provost Walter Harris and the Rev. Kevin Wildes, S.J., university president. Specifically, plaintiffs claim the university violated section 9E.2 of the Faculty Handbook. The section states that in the case of program or department discontinuation, the university must make efforts to find other possible positions before terminating faculty — even if additional training is required. It further states that if no other position may be found, the university must devise a severance plan adjusted to that faculty member's length of past employment and potential service. The university terminated 17 tenured and tenure-track professors after disolving and consolidating several departments in response to Hurricane Katrina last spring, eliciting an investigation and potential censure from the American Association of University Professors. One lawsuit, involving former WATER, WATER EVERYWHERE Deteriorating facilities hindering city's ability to provide water By LAUREN LABORDE SENIOR STAFF WRITER Aging equipment, a disrupted repair cycle and diminished personnel following Katrina have sent a flood of frustrations to the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board. This may portend a citywide crisis, according to Board purification superintendent Marvin Russell. Unable to depend on the old, unreliable equipment at its former facility, the Board primarily uses pumps at its newer plant to create drinking water. But with one of the main pumps broken, one mechanical failure in the remaining pumps may compromise the facility's ability to produce an adequate supply of drinking water for the city, according to Russell. While Katrina may have left the board's physical facility relatively unscathed, it did succeed in disrupting a system that relies on predictability to function properly. "We're a system that has enjoyed redundancy — redundant pumps, redundant systems of treatment. In the past, when there were breakdowns, you just use something else," said Russell. "Were to the point where we have too many things not working right and unfortunately, one more major breakdown may force us into a situation where we can't deal with it" Russell said board personnel took a severe blow following the storm, contributing to a delay in fixing the broken pump. "Everything we have here is custom made — it's not just something you buy off the shdfT he said. "Our machine shop, which in the past has made those pieces for us, used to have 157 people in the maintenance department The maintenance department now has 58 (people)" Besides reducing the Boards maintenance team, Katrina has forced time and money normally reserved for repairs to be allocated elsewhere."What Katrina did to us was it disrupted our cycle. It disrupted by absorbing the monies that would have been used, and the time that would have been taken, to do those capital repairs and improvements and pushed them back, and made monies impossible to get for those things," Russell said. nor any drop to drink "So as we look into the future — not only at our critical needs today, but as we look down the road three years, five years, ten years — we know that Katrina at least disrupted that to the extent that those repairs would not be made." With repairs on hold and existing equipment not getting any newer, the Sewerage and Water Board is considering possible solutions to a potentially imminent problem. According to Russell, the Board is exploring the possibility of using modular water treatment units, which would temporarily compensate for the broken pump as maintenance continues to make repairs. However, he adds, put- CATHERINE COTTON / THE MAROON This water tank, designed to process 100 million gallons a day, is not being used because the pump that brings water to it is broken. Storage a summer student service Local units provide safe haven for student property By TARA TEMPLETON SENIOR STAFF WRITER With the end of the semester and the beginning of hurricane season fast approaching, students are faced with the problem of what to do with their possessions.There are several options for keeping possessions safe over the summer break. Many students rely on storage facilities close to campus. The wide- 'Mama Dunbar adjusted to Loyola By KATHY MARTINEZ THE MAROON It's been a year since the renowned Creole restaurant Dunbar's came to Loyola's campus. After Hurricane Katrina destroyed her Freret Street location, restaurateur Tina "Mama" Dunbar set up shop in the space formerly occupied by the Pine Street Cafe on the Broadway Campus. Dunbar has grown especially fond of students who frequent her establishment She hopes to keep her business on campus for as long as possible but Mama says she needs Loyola students to help her do so. "It's been good here so far. It's been different, but good," Dunbar said. "Students haven't accepted me as a restaurant yet and not as a cafeteria." Before moving on to Loyolas campus, Dunbar's was a legendary local restaurant known for its hearty cuisine and service since opening in 1985. Its motto was,"An uptown restaurant thriving on a casual, friendly style." Since relocating, Dunbar has redesigned her menu to accommodate collegiate clientele but has preserved her signature flavor with every dish. "I know college students. They have limited see LAWSUITS, page 4 see STORAGE, page 5 see WATER, page 5 see DUNBAR'S, page 4 Here's what you missed this week if you E~MT| didn't go to loyolamaroon.com: I — DebbieStieffelresigned  — James Carville spoke on campus E32HEHE L OYQLAMAROON COM — Mary McCay is the interim HNS dean MAROON DIRECTORY: CALENDAR, page 2 | EDITORIAL, page 14 | LIFE & TIMES, page 8 | SPORTS, page 6 | NEWS TIPS: 865-3535 THIS IS OUft AASf JSSUtQF THE SEMESTER, HAVE A 6REAT SUMMER.