This December, the university-wide commencement ceremony will only be open to Ph.D. and graduate students, while undergraduate seniors will attend their individual college convocations, university officials said over the weekend.

UA President Peter Likins said discussions began after members of the College of Law asked to opt out of the university commencement, preferring instead to only hold their own graduation ceremony. [Read article]

Tucson Police Department officers say the beginning of the school year is a prime time to crack down on fake ID usage, and those who are caught usually don't expect the tough penalties that go with it.

"It's amazing how much of our activity revolves around alcohol," said officer Chris Wildblood, who is part of TPD's downtown division. "It's a big hot button, especially this time of year."

Students arrested for using fake IDs could have their driver licenses suspended for six months, making the punishment for fake IDs more severe than penalties for a DUI arrest. [Read article]

With the help of local Tucson community members, the UA Young Democrats kicked off a new project, "Tailgating for Kerry," before Saturday's football game.

UAYD president and political science senior Alicia Cybulski said the new campaign focuses on increasing voter registration and voter participation via out-of-state ballot, as well as informing students about the Democratic choice for the November election, Sen. John Kerry. [Read article]

The yearbook signifies the culmination of a school year and is usually delivered to students before they head off campus for the summer.

However, UA's official memory guide, The Desert Yearbook, got a late start and should be arriving in the homes of students who ordered them last year in the next two or three weeks, said Kevin Klaus, Desert editor in chief.

Daniel Scarpinato, last year's yearbook editor in chief and former Wildcat editor in chief, said students might be wondering where their yearbooks are, but said the yearbook didn't finish production until early June because the yearbook staff wanted to include commencement ceremonies, senior photos and athletic events that continued on past the end of the school year. [Read article]

A new report released by the Dean of Students Office has academically-based infractions down slightly from the previous year.

According to the report, called the Code of Academic Integrity Summary Report, 300 students were reported to the dean of students for various academic infractions in the 2003-2004 school year.

The report is compiled every year from July 1 - June 30. Violations include plagiarism, copying on tests and using cheat sheets. [Read article]

College adviser says increase shows new 'E-tegrity' program is working

Citing an increase in reported cases of academic dishonesty in the Eller College of Management, the undergraduate adviser said the college has cracked down on cheating.

According to the Code of Academic Integrity Summary Report, released by the Dean of Students Office, 68 cases of academic violations by students enrolled in the Eller College of Management were reported during the 2003-2004 academic year. Thirty-three of those cases were initiated by Eller College faculty members. This is a dramatic increase from the previous academic year. [Read article]

Things you always never wanted to know