By Staff Ed

Thumbs Up for our Facilities management workers. One of The Mac Weekly staffers recently pulled an all-nighter in TMW office and at around 6 a.m. a janitor came in to vacuum the WMCN office. He had been working since 3:30 a.m. to earn overtime for the holiday season. It is easy for Macalester students to stress about work during finals time but we all need to take a moment to remember those who are working hard all year round to keep our buildings sparkling clean. The sidewalks are always shoveled after snowstorms, puke is mopped up from the freshman dorms every weekend and they begin their days when most Mac students go to bed. Their work goes largely unrecognized and we encourage all students to take a moment to thank our wonderful facilities staff. Thumbs Down disengagement with the Twin Cities. Every year, more community engagement programs get cut from Macalester’s budget. There are never drastic changes, but every year we come closer to having no programs. Last year the administration ended our sponsorship of Minnesota Public Radio series that moved down the street to St. Thomas. The more we disengage with the community, the more Macalester becomes a generic liberal arts school that could be anywhere and will attract those sorts of students. Such changes will alter the character of the school.