Hi David and Scott,
I'm a Brandeis and Justice alumn - I graduated in 2001, reported sports for the Justice for two years while at the Deis and had a sports column at the paper my senior year called The Corner Kick. Currently, I'm a financial journalist in NYC - who still dabbles in sports writing as a freelancer...
I'm writing you because a friend of mine from Brandeis forwarded onto me a student-written letter to Pres. Reinharz in protest of this year's commencement speaker choice as well as the disturbing response to the letter from Pres. Reinharz intending to be sent to an administrator. I'm sure you both have read the letter and email as I know it is definitely circulating around campus and I'd imagine is creating quite a stir.
I wondered a couple things - firstly, I wanted to know if the Justice would be covering this newsworthy piece of info (if by the off chance, no one has submitted the letter to the Justice or onto any of its writers, I can provide the link for you)
Secondly, whether the student's dissatisfaction is a sentiment that is prevalent on campus right now and whether the Justice has covered the student's dissapointment over the commencement speaker choice
Thirdly, whether you guys might be interested in printing an editorial from an alum, namely, me :) about the letter. I wound up sending an extremely long editorial-type email back to my friend who had passed the letter onto me (as an aside, he's also a Justice alum, who is working as a news writer/producer for a Boston t.v. station) and found I had alot to say about the whole incident.
This is something that I already know has been leaked to the press outside campus and effects you guys, the students, but also the alum and the reputation of the school.
I am personally outraged by Reinharz's response to the letter (and I'd love to know what he actually intended by asking that question) but, I also found the student's letter to be in such poor taste... and my main argument is why this student chose to send a letter to the president a month before graduating. There were so many productive things he could have done to make his experience at the school better - and if he felt he did everything in his power to have had "fun" at school and still felt this way - why didn't he pitch an editorial piece to the Justice and write about it in a forum that might lead to more discussion within the student body and among the faculty and administration.
Perhaps I'm too far removed from campus life - it's only been four years, but believe me, it feels like a century. I'd love to offer a little bit of a seasoned opinion on the whole matter - if the Justice would let me.
Feel free to contact me either way at
danaczapnik@yahoo.com
I apologize for the long-winded email.
Thanks,
Dana