Architect Chosen for Georgetown Library RepairsThe Georgetown Neighborhood Library has reached a contract with Martinez and Johnson Architecture to repair the severe structural damage it suffered after a fire in April.”We are excited that the library has chosen an architect because we want the project to go through as expeditiously as possible,” Denise Cunningham, president of the Citizens Association of Georgetown, said.According to the District of Columbia Public Library, the total budget will be approximately $20 million and should be completed within 10 months.The architecture firm, based in Washington, D.C., has also completed projects at the Boston Opera House, the Kiel Opera House in Missouri and the Panasonic Theatre in Toronto, Canada.artinez and Johnson will partner with Hoshide Williams Architects, a Seattle-based company, who will act as consultants in library design.The Georgetown Neighborhood Library Recovery and Restoration Fund was established in May last year by the District of Columbia Public Library Foundation in order to fund the restoration of the library, which contains the Peabody Room, which housed historic Georgetown memorabilia, including Civil War-era maps, bound newspaper volumes and bound public records.A bookmobile is currently serving the Georgetown area in lieu of the neighborhood library, which has remained closed since the fire.Lauinger Library also announced last May that they would allow Georgetown residents use of the library while the Georgetown Neighborhood Library was closed.Cunningham said that more details would be available after the City Association of Georgetown monthly meeting on March 10, which the architects will attend.- Maximilien LambertsonWilliam and Mary Leaderless After President ResignsCollege of William and Mary President Gene Nichol resigned from his post on Tuesday after the Board of Visitors declined to renew his contract.In a press release, the Board of Visitors said it was disappointed by Nichol’s decision not to serve the remainder of his term, but “believed there were a number of problems that were keeping the College from reaching its full potential and concluded that those issues could not be effectively remedied without a change of leadership.”Several students said they were shocked by the decision and upset the Board of Visitors did not solicit student input before making its decision.”It is imperative that students have their say with their respective Board of Visitors. As the situation with . Nichol showed, the Board of Visitors, as a body, makes decisions that impact the students and faculty gravely,” said Sravya Yeleswarapu, a sophomore at William and Mary.Since Tuesday, students have held two rallies on campus to demonstrate against the decision. On Tuesday, more than 1,500 students and faculty gathered outside the president’s house to show their disapproval of the decision.Yeleswarapu said he is hoping to mobilize college students to ensure that their voices are heard by the governing boards of their schools.W. Taylor Reveley, dean of the William and Mary school of law, was appointed interim president, and the Board of Visitors said it will begin the search for a new president immediately.- Mary McGuireGU Community Service Initiatives Draw AccoladesThe President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll honored Georgetown University this week, for fostering a spirit of community service and civic engagement amongst its students.The university was one of 127 schools recognized as Honor Roll with Distinction members, including nearby American University and The George Washington University.Georgetown was selected based on a number of factors, including “scope and innovation of service projects, percentage of student participation in service activities, incentives for service and the extent to which the school offers service-learning courses,” according to the requirement of the Corporation for National and Community Service.Kathleen Maas Weigert, executive director of the Center for Social Justice Research, Teaching and Service, said the award is “one indication of the kind of environment that [the students] are participating in and helping grow.”Weigert said she sees students as playing an integral role in continuing to enhance and improve the community service emphasis at Georgetown because “their vision and desire to make a difference will keep the administrators on their toes.”Georgetown was named as a member of the Honor Roll with Distinction last year, at the inaugural President’s Honor Roll, in addition to being recognized as one of nine schools to receive Honor Roll distinction in the form of a “Katrina Compassion Award.”- Candace Mosely”