Raese applauds ‘party rating’

During an on-campus visit last week, John Raese, Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, applauded West Virginia University’s recent
"No. 1 party school" ranking.

Raese visited campus Oct. 10 to speak with students and share his 2012 campaign platforms.

"I was a ‘73 graduate (of WVU). I should have been ‘72, but I stayed an extra year to work on our party rating," Raese said. "It’s good to know you guys got it back to No. 1."

Raese’s endorsement came just days after the post-game fires and riots, which have received national media attention.

University spokesperson Becky Lofstead said University officials have no response, and were unaware of Raese’s comments.

Lofstead said while the University takes a strong stance against the "party school" image and the behavior following the WVU-Texas game, she believes everyone is entitled to their own opinions.

"Most people view WVU as a positive place and truly don’t appreciate this misleading image," Lofstead said.

In an official statement following the Princeton Review’s and The Daily Beast’s "No. 1 party school" ranking, the University said: "In the big picture, clearly this list has no real credibility. As always, we focus on celebrating and supporting WVU’s long history of academic achievements.

Our students, faculty, alumni, parents and friends have made it clear that is their focus as well."

Following the WVU-Texas game, the Morgantown Fire Department responded to 35 malicious fires.

Five individuals were charged with malicious burning during the events, and 10 others were arrested for offenses including battery on an officer, escape, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and obstruction. Other citations were issued for alcohol-related offenses.

The Raese campaign did not respond to requests for comment by press time.

Raese’s opponent, Senator Joe Manchin (D), said he believes the post-game riots and "party school" reputation should not be displayed proudly.

"I don’t think that’s a badge of honor; I really don’t," he said. "We can do better. My goal would be to have a school that’s
well-rounded and
balanced. To have high academic standards, so that when you left here you knew you’d left with a badge of honor – that you had a great education, and it would be synonymous, and it’d be branded."

Manchin said he sees WVU’s inaugural season in the Big 12 athletic conference as the perfect window to dispel the stereotypes and reputations associated with the state and University.

"We’re in the Big 12, so we’re being looked at differently. I know it’s not around sports, but basically sports give you that window. And that window has given us an opportunity to show that we’re a complete different state than people might have thought," he said. "I wouldn’t have said that. That’s just not me."

Manchin also suggested a University-sponsored, controlled burn as a solution to the malicious fires and resulting riots.

"It’d be controlled; the proper authorities will be there, so it won’t get out of control or out of hand. And you can get it out of your system if burning something is your thing," he said.

"A lot of schools have bonfires. At a lot of schools, after every game, they do these things. Maybe we should look at that."