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Profs. Timothy Hickey '77 (COSI), Irina Dubinina (GRALL), Christine Thomas (CHEM) and Wendy Cadge (SOC) received four different awards for teaching and mentoring, which were presented at last Thursday's faculty meeting.
According to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, Brandeis is one of the worst universities in terms of promoting free speech, a finding that was published in the Huffington Post last week. The Huffington Post list, compiled by Greg Lukianoff, the president of FIRE, explains that Brandeis is on the list because of an incident involving Prof. Donald Hindley (POL) in fall 2007, when he used the word "wetbacks"-a derogatory term for Mexicans illegally in the U.S.-in his Latin American Politics class. After Hindley's remarks, the University placed a monitor in his classroom and did not allow him a hearing. According to FIRE, these actions signaled a violation of his academic freedom. I must admit, I was surprised to find Brandeis on this list, as I have never felt that Brandeis restricted free speech at all throughout my four years here. I have always found that both professors and students are at liberty to voice their opinions. So, I decided to do a couple of Google searches trying to find any indication of the event and the administration's reactions online. What I found was basically what the Huffington Post article explained, along with a couple of letters from FIRE to then-University President Jehuda Reinharz urging the administration to apologize to Hindley. I was still in high school when Hindley was repudiated for making his remarks and had scant knowledge of the incident until this week. Consequently, I do not think I am the proper person to assess whether he or the administration were right in their actions. I can read past coverage on the issue and have done so, but since I was not on campus, I am simply not in the position to judge or make an informed opinion about the matter.What I do think, however, is that the University needs to lay this issue to rest by issuing Hindley a formal apology because its refusal to do so has negatively impacted our institution. How can a school that prides itself on a mission of inclusivity and justice appear intolerant towards members of its own faculty? While it seems the administration's actions toward Hindley may have violated his academic freedom, we should not be defined by an incident that happened four years ago. I confidently believe a majority of students would refute Lukianoff's analysis, claiming that the University does and has promoted free speech both inside and outside the classroom. Remember the outcry over the decision to bring Michael Oren as commencement speaker? Or the protests over the decision to close the Rose Art Museum? Free speech and academic freedom were alive and well in both situations. In fact, I believe students were reprimanded by sources outside the University, not the administration, for voicing their opinions. I fear that if the administration does not apologize to Hindley, this one incident will overshadow all of the instances that embody appreciation of First Amendment rights, consequently giving the University a false image in the public arena. * It is not always beneficial to be swayed by public demands, but I think in this case it is the right thing to do to preserve the school's reputation, particularly its emphasis on social justice. While Lukianoff acknowledges that Reinharz failed to defend Hindley's academic rights, he hopes "that the new administration will put this incident behind it and finally expunge the harassment finding against Hindley or, at the very least, explain that no such incident would happen at Brandeis again." While I disagree with Lukianoff's assessment of Brandeis' suppression or stance of of first amendment rights overall, I agree with him on this matter. University President Fredrick Lawrence is a preeminent scholar on hate crimes and First Amendment rights, a position that is emphasizing his failure to issue a response to this matter. Since Lawrence assumed the position of president a year ago, he has implemented several changes and programs that have placed the University in a positive light, like settling the lawsuit over the Rose Art Museum and reopening the Linsey pool. Lawrence and the new administration should now turn their attention to this pressing matter. The administration needs to apologize to Hindley in order to simply put the matter behind them so they can be respected for their commendable protection of academic freedom.
According to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, Brandeis is one of the worst universities in terms of promoting free speech, a finding that was published in the Huffington Post last week. The Huffington Post list, compiled by Greg Lukianoff, the president of FIRE, explains that Brandeis is on the list because of an incident involving Prof. Donald Hindley (POL) in fall 2007, when he used the word "wetbacks"-a derogatory term for Mexicans illegally in the U.S.-in his Latin American Politics class. After Hindley's remarks, the University placed a monitor in his classroom and did not allow him a hearing. According to FIRE, these actions signaled a violation of his academic freedom. I must admit, I was surprised to find Brandeis on this list, as I have never felt that Brandeis restricted free speech at all throughout my four years here. I have always found that both professors and students are at liberty to voice their opinions. So, I decided to do a couple of Google searches trying to find any indication of the event and the administration's reactions online. What I found was basically what the Huffington Post article explained, along with a couple of letters from FIRE to then-University President Jehuda Reinharz urging the administration to apologize to Hindley. I was still in high school when Hindley was repudiated for making his remarks and had scant knowledge of the incident until this week. Consequently, I do not think I am the proper person to assess whether he or the administration were right in their actions. I can read past coverage on the issue and have done so, but since I was not on campus, I am simply not in the position to judge or make an informed opinion about the matter.What I do think, however, is that the University needs to lay this issue to rest by issuing Hindley a formal apology because its refusal to do so has negatively impacted our institution. How can a school that prides itself on a mission of inclusivity and justice appear intolerant towards members of its own faculty? While it seems the administration's actions toward Hindley may have violated his academic freedom, we should not be defined by an incident that happened four years ago. I confidently believe a majority of students would refute Lukianoff's analysis, claiming that the University does and has promoted free speech both inside and outside the classroom. Remember the outcry over the decision to bring Michael Oren as commencement speaker? Or the protests over the decision to close the Rose Art Museum? Free speech and academic freedom were alive and well in both situations. In fact, I believe students were reprimanded by sources outside the University, not the administration, for voicing their opinions. I fear that if the administration does not apologize to Hindley, this one incident will overshadow all of the instances that embody appreciation of First Amendment rights, consequently giving the University a false image in the public arena. * It is not always beneficial to be swayed by public demands, but I think in this case it is the right thing to do to preserve the school's reputation, particularly its emphasis on social justice. While Lukianoff acknowledges that Reinharz failed to defend Hindley's academic rights, he hopes "that the new administration will put this incident behind it and finally expunge the harassment finding against Hindley or, at the very least, explain that no such incident would happen at Brandeis again." While I disagree with Lukianoff's assessment of Brandeis' suppression or stance of of first amendment rights overall, I agree with him on this matter. University President Fredrick Lawrence is a preeminent scholar on hate crimes and First Amendment rights, a position that is emphasizing his failure to issue a response to this matter. Since Lawrence assumed the position of president a year ago, he has implemented several changes and programs that have placed the University in a positive light, like settling the lawsuit over the Rose Art Museum and reopening the Linsey pool. Lawrence and the new administration should now turn their attention to this pressing matter. The administration needs to apologize to Hindley in order to simply put the matter behind them so they can be respected for their commendable protection of academic freedom.
According to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, Brandeis is one of the worst universities in terms of promoting free speech, a finding that was published in the Huffington Post last week.
According to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, Brandeis is one of the worst universities in terms of promoting free speech, a finding that was published in the Huffington Post last week. The Huffington Post list, compiled by Greg Lukianoff, the president of FIRE, explains that Brandeis is on the list because of an incident involving Prof. Donald Hindley (POL) in fall 2007, when he used the word "wetbacks"-a derogatory term for Mexicans illegally in the U.S.-in his Latin American Politics class. After Hindley's remarks, the University placed a monitor in his classroom and did not allow him a hearing. According to FIRE, these actions signaled a violation of his academic freedom. I must admit, I was surprised to find Brandeis on this list, as I have never felt that Brandeis restricted free speech at all throughout my four years here. I have always found that both professors and students are at liberty to voice their opinions. So, I decided to do a couple of Google searches trying to find any indication of the event and the administration's reactions online. What I found was basically what the Huffington Post article explained, along with a couple of letters from FIRE to then-University President Jehuda Reinharz urging the administration to apologize to Hindley. I was still in high school when Hindley was repudiated for making his remarks and had scant knowledge of the incident until this week. Consequently, I do not think I am the proper person to assess whether he or the administration were right in their actions. I can read past coverage on the issue and have done so, but since I was not on campus, I am simply not in the position to judge or make an informed opinion about the matter.What I do think, however, is that the University needs to lay this issue to rest by issuing Hindley a formal apology because its refusal to do so has negatively impacted our institution. How can a school that prides itself on a mission of inclusivity and justice appear intolerant towards members of its own faculty? While it seems the administration's actions toward Hindley may have violated his academic freedom, we should not be defined by an incident that happened four years ago. I confidently believe a majority of students would refute Lukianoff's analysis, claiming that the University does and has promoted free speech both inside and outside the classroom. Remember the outcry over the decision to bring Michael Oren as commencement speaker? Or the protests over the decision to close the Rose Art Museum? Free speech and academic freedom were alive and well in both situations. In fact, I believe students were reprimanded by sources outside the University, not the administration, for voicing their opinions. I fear that if the administration does not apologize to Hindley, this one incident will overshadow all of the instances that embody appreciation of First Amendment rights, consequently giving the University a false image in the public arena. * It is not always beneficial to be swayed by public demands, but I think in this case it is the right thing to do to preserve the school's reputation, particularly its emphasis on social justice. While Lukianoff acknowledges that Reinharz failed to defend Hindley's academic rights, he hopes "that the new administration will put this incident behind it and finally expunge the harassment finding against Hindley or, at the very least, explain that no such incident would happen at Brandeis again." While I disagree with Lukianoff's assessment of Brandeis' suppression or stance of of first amendment rights overall, I agree with him on this matter. University President Fredrick Lawrence is a preeminent scholar on hate crimes and First Amendment rights, a position that is emphasizing his failure to issue a response to this matter. Since Lawrence assumed the position of president a year ago, he has implemented several changes and programs that have placed the University in a positive light, like settling the lawsuit over the Rose Art Museum and reopening the Linsey pool. Lawrence and the new administration should now turn their attention to this pressing matter. The administration needs to apologize to Hindley in order to simply put the matter behind them so they can be respected for their commendable protection of academic freedom.
Profs. Anita Hill (Heller) and Bernadette Brooten (NEJS) hosted a conference yesterday to explore the issue of sexual assault of African-American women, which featured panel discussions with several outside professors who research various aspects of sexual violence and race.
The student-faculty ratio rose from 9-to-1 to 10-to-1 for fall 2011 from the previous year, according to data provided to the Justice by the University Registrar. While this increase is not drastic, both Senior Vice President for Students and Enrollment Andrew Flagel and Dean of Arts and Sciences Susan Birren have acknowledged the potential impact the increased size of the student body will have both on class sizes and the student-faculty ratio and are planning on taking measures to ensure close student-faculty interaction. The issue of an increase in the potentially enlarged student-faculty ratio stems from the University's decision in 2009 to increase the incoming first-year class in order to raise revenues, an increase that has been most noticeable with this year's first-year class. According to the 2011-2012 Common Data Set, the Class of 2015 consists of approximately 858 students. In an Sept. 12, 2011 email to the Justice, Vice President of Students and Enrollment Keenyn McFarlane wrote that 108 midyears would enroll in January, bringing the size of the Class to 966 students. By contrast, 690 students enrolled for the Class of 2014 in the fall, according to the 2010-2011 Common Data Set. McFarlane wrote in his email that 108 students enrolled in January, for a total of 798 students. Dean of Admissions Mark Spencer explained in a Sept. 12 phone interview with the Justice that the University would maintain this goal of enrolling 855 students for the Class of 2016. According to interviews with both Birren and Flagel, the increased number of students will inevitably impact the number of students in classes, but they do not believe it will do so drastically, and said that close student-faculty interaction will remain a top priority. "While I expect that changes in class sizes will be small, we don't have all of those numbers yet. Our goal of maintaining a close relationship between our students and the faculty will require continuing thought and a commitment to ongoing planning," said Birren in September. The numbers from the CDS seem to corroborate Birren's claim. According to the data, there are 14 classes with over 100 students enrolled, 38 classes with 40 to 49 students, 47 classes with 30 to 39 students, 109 classes with 20 to 29 students, 278 classes with 10 to 19 students and 111 classes with 2 to 9 students. These numbers are largely in line with those of the previous year. University President Frederick Lawrence emphasized in an interview with the Justice that this issue should be prioritized. "If the size of the class gets a little bigger and the size of the faculty gets a little smaller, your student-to-faculty ratio obviously is going to increase. And that's a concern. I would say that if we're talking about something that goes from something in the nines to something in the 10s that's a concern because it's increasing, but it still is better than the vast majority of research universities in the country." he said. Flagel said that this issue would be incorporated into the University's Strategic Planning Committee, which is being led by Provost Steve Goldstein ‘78 over the course of 18 months. "In the midst of [the Strategic Planning Report] you will see a lot of talk about where the institution really ought to be and a very big sense of trajectories. In the long term, one of the questions that we have to wrestle with is how much growth would make sense for Brandeis, given where we want Brandeis to be for faculty and students and what [that means] for space," he said. "In the short term, what we have been looking at is a faculty really thoughtful and considerate in their planning about interactions with students, and one of the things we need to work towards is preserving that atmosphere," he said. Flagel also remarked that there is little physical space for classes to massively expand, presenting another incentive to maintain the low student-faculty ratio. "If we wanted a lot of large classes, we would have built a lot of large classrooms. In order to utilize our space effectively, we would need to maintain class sizes," he explained. In regard to methods of preserving the atmosphere, Birren said that the administration had acknowledged this dynamic as an issue, although they had not been having specific conversations about it yet and said there would be discussions about the different mechanisms that could be used to maintain small classes. "I would say that we are committed to maintaining the Brandeis tradition of meaningful small group interactions between students and faculty and that there are many scenarios for making sure that happens including providing opportunities for students to take small classes. We are in the early stages of assessing the impact of having more students on campus and in designing mechanisms to make sure that all students can get to know their professors," she said. Neither Flagel nor Birren said that they had spoken with professors about this particular topic. —Andrew Wingens contributed reporting.
The Office of Development and Alumni Relations recently announced the launch of its new program, Brandeisians of the Last Decade, a series of initiatives designed to engage alumni who have graduated since 2002. Annual Giving and Parents Fund Officer Gayle Gordon '08 and Director of Alumni Relations Leigh Creveling are leading the program. According to the initiative's website, the BOLD initiative is "a young alumni program dedicated to addressing the unique needs and interests of undergraduate alumni during the first 10 years after graduation," and it "seeks to strengthen the young alumni community, develop future alumni leaders, foster mutually beneficial partnerships between Brandeisians and their alma mater, and cultivate annual giving to Brandeis." Allie Morse '10, department coordinator for Alumni Relations, explained in a phone interview with the Justice that the program is designed to foster alumni relations through various events, including kickoff events in Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Washington D.C, Chicago and Northern California. Gordon said in a phone interview with the Justice that this initiative is crucial because the alumni of the last decade constitute 26 percent of the University's total alumni base. "We didn't think we were maximizing our opportunities to engage them; there was [sic] not many activities specific to young alumnae," she explained. She added that this emphasis on aspects important to young alumni renders this initiative different from other alumni outreach programs. In an email to the Justice, Senior Vice President of Institutional Advancement Nancy Winship wrote "we are reaching out to [alumni] where they live–online, cell phones, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc." According to Winship, the 10- year period shifts every year with each new graduating class. Gordon said that university President Frederick Lawrence and Winship formed the idea for this initiative, but she and Creveling have been instrumental in its implementation because they are "more familiar with the social media and how it feels to young alumnae."
Director of Public Safety Edward Callahan and the Escort Management team have collaborated with Student Union President Herbie Rosen '12 and three other members of the Student Union to implement a trial run of a shuttle bus running from campus to the Riverside MBTA Station for the next two weekends, according to a press release from the Head Coordinator of Operations for the Escort Safety Service Shirel Guez '12.
As part of last week's celebration of the Rose Art Museum, renowned pop artist James Rosenquist spoke at two major events on campus last week: an invitation-only dinner for trustees, donors and faculty members last Wednesday at the Rose and a lecture for students last Thursday in Pollack Auditorium.
The University has begun to search in earnest for a new director of the Rose Art Museum following a settlement of the Rose lawsuit this summer, Director of the Office of the Arts Scott Edmiston announced at the faculty meeting last Thursday. The Rose has not had an official director since 2009, when the University did not renew former Director Michael Rush's contract. Since Rush's exit, Director of Operations Roy Dawes has filled the role. Edmiston, who is also the chair of the search committee, explained at the faculty meeting that former Provost Marty Krauss asked him to chair the committee for a new director in 2010 but that the committee's "hands were tied" until final decisions were made regarding sales of the artwork. In January 2009, in the midst of the University's financial crisis, then-University President Jehuda Reinharz and the Board of Trustees voted to close the museum and sell all artwork. This decision induced a controversial reaction that ultimately resulted in a lawsuit filed by Meryl Rose, Jonathan Lee, Lois Foster and Gerald Fineberg, all members of the Rose Board of Overseers. University President Frederick Lawrence and the plaintiffs settled the lawsuit this summer with the stipulations that the museum will remain open to the public; be professionally staffed and committed to "collecting, preserving, studying and exhibiting fine art;" hire a director with expertise in modern and contemporary art; and that the University will have no plans or intent to sell of any of the artwork, according to the settlement agreement. "Happily, President Lawrence brought that chapter to a close last summer, and we began our search," Edmiston said at the meeting. The goal of the search is to "restore the arts to a place of confidence with the University's identity," said Edmiston. "I see the search as being not just another staff hire. I believe it is a symbolic step forward … [in] reclaiming our place as a beacon for art and culture," he told the faculty. According to BrandeisNOW, the committee is composed of 13 members, including two students, Meryl Feinstein '12 and Rebecca Ulm '11; a graduate student in Studio Art; three staff members; Vice President for Planning and Institutional Research Daniel Feldman; Vice Provost for Academic Affairs Michaele Whelan; Amy Silberstein of the Office of Development and Alumni Relations; three faculty members: Prof. Jonathan Unglaub (FA); Prof. Susan Lichtman (FA); John Lisman (BIOL); and Robin Feuer Miller, the Edytha Macy Gross Professor of Humanities. Stephen J. Reiner '61, a member of the board of trustees and chairman of the board of overseers, and Lois Foster, a member of the Rose Board of Overseers, are also serving on the committee, as is Jock Reynolds, an artist and the Henry J. Heinz II Director of the Yale University Art Gallery. The committee also has an advisory board consisting of alumni prominent in the arts world, including Gary Tinterow '76, curator of 19th-century, modern and contemporary art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art; Kim Rorschach '78, director of the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University; and Adam Weinberg '77, director of the Whitney Museum of American Art. —Andrew Wingens contributed reporting.
A robbery occurred on campus during the AHORA! Dance in the Levin Ballroom at midnight on Saturday. A student attending the dance was robbed in the restroom, Director of Public Safety Edward Callahan wrote in a campuswide email last Sunday. Callahan notified the campus community at noon on Sunday after he was aware of the incident, requesting information from students. He wrote in his email that "The victim said an object was pressed against his back and money and other items were taken from his wallet." According to the email, the identities of the perpetrators have not been identified. The name of the student who was robbed has not been released. Although Callahan did not mention the details of the object that was thrust into the students' back, the University Police Log states that the student reported that "two males poked an object into his back." Callahan wrote in an email to the Justice that he was notified of this event early Sunday morning by his employees in the Department of Public Safety who handled the incident. "At approximately 2 AM., I received an email from the Night Brandeis Police Lieutenant who indicated the incident was under investigation and possible suspects were being interviewed," he wrote. The dance, according to wherevent.com, was titled, "AHORA!: Blaze Reggaeton vs. Reggae." It was sponsored by AHORA!, a Hispanic/Latino awareness group and the Nu Chapter of Phi Iota Alpha Fraternity of Boston University and took place in Levin Ballroom from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. Callahan said there was an enhanced security presence at the event. "It appears that very detailed security was in place for the dance," said Callahan. Callahan provided the same response when asked about future security measures on campus. Gabby Castellanos '13, the president of AHORA!, said in an interview with the Justice that she only knows that the incident happened in the bathroom, and the student assaulted felt something sharp in his back. Castellanos noted, however, that the event had metal detectors, which she believes eliminates the possibility that the object was a weapon. "We had metal detectors, therefore I know it wasn't a weapon—we had a lot of security," she said. Castellanos has not had subsequent contact with the student who was robbed and only knew the incident occurred because she saw a number of police officers and asked a University Police officer what had happened. Although Callahan wrote that "the events of the night in question are under review," he emphasized that the overall safety of the campus was not at stake. "It appeared that there was no imminent threat to the Brandeis Community," he wrote. Callahan wrote that the investigation is ongoing.
The expansion of the first-year class has resulted in an increased amount of students residing in lofted triples, double rooms that are converted so that three students can live there instead of two, Senior Director of Community Living Jeremy Leiferman wrote in an email to the Justice.
Two students were hit by a moving vehicle on Loop Road near the Main Gate last Friday night and the vehicle "fled the scene," according to the University Police Log. Director of Public Safety Ed Callahan wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that both of the victims were hospitalized. According to the Police Log, one student was transported by ambulance to the Newton-Wellesley Hospital and the other was transported by ambulance to Beth Israel Deaconness Medical Center. The student taken to Newton-Wellesley was released, but the other student hadn't been discharged from Beth Israel as of 6:30 p.m. yesterday, according to Callahan's e-mail. The student released from the hospital declined to comment.Callahan wrote in his e-mail that the driver has been identified and the incident is under investigation. Sgt. Timothy King, the spokesman for the Waltham Police Department, could not be reached for comment by press time. A student familiar with the situation who was not on the scene that night and wished to remain anonymous due to the student's connection to the incident said that the driver was a student. Another source, a student, confirmed that the driver was a student.That same student said in an interview with the Justice that both students were struck by the vehicle and thrown a distance and there was moderate blood loss as a result. The student also said that the victim taken to Newton-Wellesley was discharged that night. The student taken to Beth Israel was in the intensive care unit as of noon yesterday, the source said.The Police Log also states that "a vehicle matching the description wanted was found in East Quad parking lot."A student who witnessed the incident and wished to remain anonymous due to uncertainty that the victims would want this information revealed and the sensitivity of the issue said that the incident took place when the two victims were walking with a group of other students on the way back to East Residence Quad from the Chabad house on Turner Street Friday night. This student was part of that group."I was on the sidewalk, but two of my friends who were by the car were on the street; ... the next thing I know, a car came," the student said, adding that no one saw the car coming and that the vehicle's headlights were not on. The source further explained that the car hit one of the victims from the side and one from the front, that BEMCo immediately responded and that someone ran after the car to obtain the license plate number. The student also said that the victim hit from the front sustained worse injuries because that victim was hit in the head, and the other victim was bruised. This student also said that the car that hit the victims moved to the side of the road and continued to drive. A Waltham Police officer and a University Police officer interrogated the student and the other witnesses to discern if the driver wanted to hurt the victims, and during the process, the driver's identity was revealed.-Fiona Lockyer contributed reporting.
The University is considering an additional convenience store, which would be located in the Village, and adding hot food options to Einstein Bros. Bagels, Student Union President Daniel Acheampong '11 announced in his State of the Union address Nov. 18. Acheampong additionally announced that beginning in fall 2011, the University will only offer cage-free eggs. In a phone interview with the Justice, Acheampong said that although there is a strong chance of implementing these proposals, nothing has been finalized. "These are very, very strong proposals, and the administration has taken a very serious tone to make it happen, so I'll say .. the likelihood is very strong," he said. While he said he hoped that the second convenience store would be up and running by spring 2011, he emphasized that nothing had been officially confirmed by the administration."Everything is not finalized because there are some logistical things being discussed, but it is a very strong proposal," Acheampong explained.Acheampong said that the Student Union would not be funding the changes and that "it is up to the administration to decide where the funding is coming from."When asked about the timeline for the discussion and implementation of changes pertaining to Dining Services, Acheampong said that these changes had been under discussion for quite some time because they are fundamental issues for students. Acheampong noted, however, that no changes would affect the cost of student meal plans."Dining has always been an important issue for students, so the discussion has been going on for a while," he said, explaining that the Union issued a survey last year about student concerns and that Dining Services surfaced as the top issue.Acheampong said that this issue was extremely important to former Vice President of Students and Enrollment Jean Eddy and that Senior Vice President of Administration Mark Collins has also been involved in the discussion. Neither Collins nor Director of Dining Services Aaron Bennos could be reached for comment by press time.Acheampong also announced in his address that, beginning next fall, the University will only offer cage-free eggs, or eggs from hens raised in more humane conditions than battery-caged eggs, in campus dining facilities. In October, the Real Food Coalition circulated a petition requesting that Dining Services implement this policy, and the Student Union issued a survey soliciting students' opinions on the matter.Seth Grande '12, one of the coordinators of the campaign to solely use cage-free eggs, wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that members of the administration made the decision "a few weeks ago."Grande also wrote that the change would cause meal plans to increase by $7.50 per semester, however, he said he does not think the changes would affect the prices of meal plans.He explained that this price increase is "consistent with the cost increases at other schools who have implemented the switch [to cage-free eggs].""During the campaign we did our best to make clear that the switch would entail a price increase between $5-10.We are working to put out an official announcement about the change right now with Dining Services and the Administration, and we are working to make sure that this switch is made with as much transparency as possible," Grande wrote. Grande said that student feedback had been very positive."Students don't like that their money is being used to purchase food that is produced so cruelly, and when we decided to do something to change some of those practices, it really resonated," he wrote.
A female student was assaulted on the evening of Nov. 9 while jogging on South Street in Waltham, Director of Public Safety Edward Callahan wrote in a Nov. 10 campus wide e-mail.According to the e-mail, which did not identify the student, she was "approached by three young men and knocked to the ground." Callahan wrote in the e-mail that "the student called Waltham Police from a friend's home nearby after the incident. Police searched the area, but did not locate the three men."Callahan said that he has not directly spoken with other students who have experienced similar encounters but said he had heard from another student that "there may have been one incident that happened on the weekend of Halloween." However, Callahan said that the student has not come to see him to report or discuss the encounter, and he does not have the student's name.In an interview with the Justice, the student, who said she wished to remain anonymous, confirmed that the assault happened on Nov. 9, that she went to a friend's house to call the police and that her friend brought her back to campus."They sent out squads to look around the area to see if they can try and find the guy that matched the description I had. They weren't able to find anyone," she said. She also said she was "seen by a few EMTs" but did not want to go to the hospital. In an interview with the Justice, Callahan said that the Brandeis Department of Public Safety was informed "midday" on Nov. 10. "I got a copy of the report from the Waltham Police, and then we . called the victim and talked with her and tried to pinpoint the exact location of the incident," Callahan said. He added that he suggested to the student that she visit the Golding Health Center and asked her if she would be willing to reconstruct a depiction of the people who assaulted her. The student said that Waltham Police had asked her for a description prior to the Brandeis Police but that she did not feel she would be able to provide an accurate description."It happened too fast, and I wasn't paying attention to the three guys when it happened at the time, so I told Waltham Police that I didn't want to, and I called back the Brandeis Police today to tell them that I didn't think that I would be able to ... give them back a description," she saidSgt. Timothy King, the spokesman for the Waltham Police Department, could not be reached for comment by press time despite repeated attempts to contact him. In an interview with the Justice, Ofc. Jorge Orta of the Waltham Police Department said that Det. John Comeau had been assigned to the case. Comeau could not be reached for comment by press time, and Orta said he did not know enough about the investigation to comment further.In regard to the communication between Waltham Police and Public Safety, Callahan said that Public Safety is kept up-to-date with safety concerns in the greater Waltham area."Whatever usually happens in Waltham, I usually know about within a short span of time," he said, adding, "I think a day doesn't go by that I'm [not] in communication with the Waltham police for something."In response to the incident, Callahan said that the Waltham Police had increased patrols on South Street in conjunction with University Police. He explained that University Police had always patrolled South Street but that this patrol was intensified in the aftermath of the incident. Callahan also said that Public Safety had added additional escort vans to transport students around campus between 7 and 11 p.m. The e-mail to the community also explained, "While we hope this was an isolated incident, we remind members of the Brandeis community to be aware of their surroundings at all times-on and off campus."When asked if students had consequently reported feeling unsafe after the incident, Callahan said that he had not heard or students feeling unsafe but that he had received e-mails from some students asking where the exact location of the incident was. -Nashrah Rahman contributed reporting.
The rate of alumni providing monetary contributions to the University has declined from 34 percent to 30 percent between fiscal 2006 and 2010, according to Vice President of Development Myles Weisenberg. Weisenberg said that 34 percent of alumni provided contributions in fiscal 2006, 33 percent participated in fiscal 2007 and 30 percent participated in fiscal 2008 and 2009. Weisenberg said that the numbers for fiscal 2010 have not yet been finalized. However, according to the annual ranking of universities in U.S. News and World Report, 30 percent of alumni participated in the provision of donations in fiscal 2009, a figure that placed Brandeis 24th among 262 universities.In a phone interview with the Justice, Senior Vice President of Institutional Advancement Nancy Winship attributed the decrease in participation to the fact that a majority of the donations come from members of the earliest graduating classes when the University was extremely small and that the later classes have fewer students providing donations because they are younger and cannot provide as much. Winship also added that even though the participation rate has declined, the level of contributions has remained relatively steady and continues to constitute 16 to 18 percent of the money raised annually."Every year, more students graduate and they are very young. So if you go back to 1952, you might only have 80 or 90 people in that class versus 700 or 800 today, so that means that we keep getting younger," Winship said, explaining that this dynamic differentiates Brandeis from schools where there are equal numbers of younger and older alumni. Weisenberg said that the rate of participation from alumni who graduated in the 1950s and 1960s is approximately 40 to50 percent but that the rate of participation among alumni who have graduated within the last 12 years is approximately between 10 and 15 percent. Weisenberg said that this dynamic lowers the participation rate because the younger classes constitute a third of the alumni pool, so "no matter how [well] the older classes . [participate], it's just going to shrink the rate down.""Older classes give at a higher participation rate, but the difference is, we have so many more younger alumni as opposed to the older classes, and Brandeis is challenged each year for alumni participation because every year we're adding bigger classes against a base that was very small," Weisenberg explained.When asked about the classes that graduated in the 1970s and 1980s, Weisenberg said their participation rate was approximately 30 percent.In an effort to increase the participation rate among the younger classes, Associate Vice President of the Campaign for Brandeis Judith Krinsky said in an interview with the Justice that Brandeis is aiming to "encourage a climate of giving where people give even if it's a modest gift." Weisenberg explained that this emphasis on any type of donations begins with encouraging seniors to participate in the class gift. "We really try hard with the senior class gift," said Weisenberg, explaining, "If we can get a lot of seniors giving, we believe that their first year out, they're in a slight habit of giving already. In their first year out, maybe instead of giving at 10 percent, they would give at 12 or 13 percent." Weisenberg also said the office is working on an emerging leaders program in which "we devote staff time to working with our youngest alumni to engage them in the hopes that they will give."Director of Development Communications David Nathan said in an interview with the Justice that the Office of Development has developed a number of marketing campaigns on YouTube and Facebook to encourage contributions."The idea is go where these young alumni live. . Those were very successful in bringing in gifts from young alumni we had never gotten gifts from before," said Nathan. Despite the gradual decline in the alumni participation rate, the University received $72 million in donations in fiscal 2010. When asked about the relationship between the rate of alumni participation and alumni giving, Weisenberg said there was essentially no relationship between the two."Participation is really different from alumni total giving. Total giving could go up every year while participation could go down," he said.
Editor's note: Because all charges related to the arrests described in this article have been dismissed, the Justice has removed the names of the individuals involved from the online version of this article. For the original text, contact the editor in chief at editor@thejustice.org. Seven students who witnessed the events leading up to the arrests of two students on Oct. 23 provided their accounts of the incident, which are inconsistent with the accounts given by members of the Department of Public Safety, in interviews with the Justice. According to the Oct. 25 University Police Log, two students were arrested and charged under Massachusetts law with disorderly conduct and assaulting a University Police officer, and one of those students was also charged with resisting arrest. Both were arraigned last Tuesday and will have a hearing Nov. 23, according to records from the Waltham District Court House. Both students declined to comment for this article. The lawyer of one of the students, Brian Murphy, a lawyer from Todd and Weld LLP, a firm of trial lawyers in Boston, could not be reached by press time despite repeated requests for comment. Director of Public Safety Ed Callahan declined to comment yesterday on the student arrests, writing in an e-mail to the Justice that "this is a criminal matter in the hands of the court. Because of that I am declining any further comment." In an Oct. 25 interview with the Justice, Callahan said that one of the students bit a University police officer as he tried to arrest him and that another University police officer hurt his back while trying to control the situation. Furthermore, Callahan said that the Waltham Police Department was called to provide assistance. The seven student eyewitnesses who were interviewed said that while the student charged with resisting arrest in addition to the other two charges was extremely intoxicated, they did not witness him exhibiting any violent behavior. They also said that they did not see the other student engaging in disorderly conduct or striking a police officer and that he had not been drinking. The students also said that no drugs were involved with the incidents. John Homans '12, who said he was present for the entire sequence of events up until the first arrest, admitted that he had been drinking but that he felt confident about his recollections from the night. Homans said the two had attended a rugby social and that one of the students had consumed approximately five shots and two beers before the party and approximately 17 beers at the party. He explained that by the end of the social that student was so intoxicated that he and Ami Spiwak '12 had to carry him back to his suite in Ziv Quad. Describing the student's state after the rugby social, Spiwak said, "John and I were on either side of him; he had his arms wrapped around us and he was dragging his feet along, so he was intoxicated, obviously." Homans said that once they reached the suite, he and Spiwak and approximately three other students who do not attend Brandeis attended to the intoxicated student. "We took care of him for a good hour," said Homans, explaining that the student vomited four or five times but was unresponsive and could not consume water or bread. Amelia Rey '12, a trained emergency medical technician and a member of BEMCo who is friends with the student and lives in the suite below him, said that she was approached "because they didn't know what to do with [him], because [he] wasn't doing well at all." She said that when she came into the suite, she saw the student "completely unconscious." "In EMT training, you're taught that when you see someone unconscious, you go through different levels of trying to establish how unconscious they are, so you can do verbal stimulation, which is just talking to someone to see if they respond--he didn't--you can move them, like shake their hands or shake one of their limbs to see if they respond-he didn't," said Rey. She also added that the students in the suite were paranoid about calling the police. One student who wished to remain anonymous said that she made the call to BEMCo when those attending to the student observed that he might be vomiting blood. Katherine Pena '12, another student who was present in the suite that night said that "what really scared us was that he was foaming at the mouth and we thought we saw blood coming out of his mouth." Pena said that upon receiving the call, two EMTs arrived with Officer Anthony Celona, a member of the University Police. Rey said that the officer and the EMTs made everyone besides the intoxicated student leave the room. She also said that while the BEMCo members were diligent and complied with protocol by going to the room to attend to him, "the cop was extremely aggressive." Spiwak described the officer as aggressive as well. "As soon as the two BEMCo girls went into the room with [the intoxicated student], the officer ... became extremely hostile and verbally aggressive. He said, 'Get the f--- out of my face" [and] 'Get the f--- out of here,'" he said. In Celona's incident report, a copy of which was obtained by the Justice from the Waltham Court House, Celona states that the student "began shouting and was uncooperative" with the EMTs when they began administering treatment and that he requested medical backup but that other University Police officers were "reassigned to a University sponsored dance" and were unable to hear his request "over the loud noise of the dance." Celona further explains in the report that he instructed the EMTs to leave and that upon his attempt to assist the student, "he swung his left hand towards me and hit me on the left side of my jaw with the back side of his hand." Pena said that when the student came out of his room with the EMTs and Celona, she witnessed the police officer "take his hand on the back of [his] head and slam it into a corner." Homans and the student who placed the call to BEMCo also confirmed that they had seen the officer slam the student's head against the wall. Pena said that after this incident, the student was handcuffed and taken in the elevator outside of his suite. None of the students who spoke to the Justice said they were present in the elevator with him. According to Celona's account in his incident report, another University Police officer, Officer Brian Cogan, arrived to assist him, and the two escorted the student into the elevator. The report states that in the elevator Celona witnessed the student shout foul language at the officers and "spit on Sgt. Cogan's chest." Cogan's account of the time spent with the student in his incident report is consistent with Celona's. Cogan's report explains that "Ofc. Celona informed me he had to handcuff [the student] because he was attempting to assault the responding BEMCo Units." When the student was taken outside, Homans said that he and the other student who was later arrested that evening were at the "forefront" of the crowd of students that had gathered outside in Ziv Quad and were pleading with the officers to take the first student to the hospital. He said that he witnessed that student being pushed into a police car and having his head slammed against the car. Celona's incident report states that while he was handling the student outside, "Someone came up behind me and hit me in the back between my shoulder blades at the base of my neck." The report goes on to say that a BEMCo representative who was on-scene identified the second student, who was then placed under arrest. However, the seven students interviewed said they did not see that student hit a police officer. Eli Tarlow '12, who said he was standing outside with the second student arrested, said that the student was taking a video of the incident and that the police arrested him. "The cops were telling us, 'You have to go inside, you're not helping the situation,' ... and [he's] just standing there and they come up and arrest him because he was taking [a video]. He was just [saying], I'm allowed to be out here, I'm a Brandeis student," said Tarlow. Homans added, "The only contact [he] had with a cop was when the cop handcuffed him." Homans said that he spoke with the first student arrested the Sunday morning after his arrest and that that student had no recollection of the incidents leading up to the charges brought against him. "I called [him] immediately. It was ... 8:30 a.m. on Sunday, and he was crying hysterically," said Homans, further saying that the student had asked him to explain what had happened to him the night before. According to Homans, the two arrested students returned to campus on Sunday Oct. 31 after being suspended last week and are attending classes again this week. When asked to confirm these matters, Dean of Student Life Rick Sawyer declined to comment, citing legal restrictions and privacy matters. -Ian Cutler, Brian Fromm, Fiona Lockyer, Nashrah Rahman and Jillian Wagner contributed reporting.
The University announced the four new course topics for the summer and fall 2011 Justice Brandeis Semesters, an experiential learning program, in a campuswide e-mail Oct. 20.According to the e-mail, the four programs are "Civil Rights and Justice in Mississippi," which will be taught by Prof. David Cunningham (SOC); "Environmental Health and Justice," by Prof. Laura Goldin (AMST); "Filmmaking: From Script to Screen," by Prof. Marc Weinberg (ENG); and "Mobile Applications and Game Development," by Prof. Tim Hickey (COSI). The e-mail explains that "Environmental Health and Justice" will be offered in the fall, and the others will be offered during the summer. The JBS website explains that JBS is "an engaging, immersive academic program in which small groups of students explore a thematic topic through inquiry-based courses linked to real-world experiential opportunities." A subcommittee of the Curriculum and Academic Restructuring Steering committee proposed implementing a Justice Brandeis Semesters in 2009.Alyssa Grinberg, the manager of the JBS programs, wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that the JBS committee evaluated the program proposals to determine which ones would more on to the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee. She explained the programs announced to the student body had already received approval from the UCC Oct. 14 and that "no major revisions were incorporated in the proposals" after they had been approved. When asked if there was a targeted student enrollment number, Grinberg wrote that "each program will roughly enroll ten to fifteen students.""With the benefit of small class sizes, learning will become a collaborative process, as professors are able to engage students on a more personal level, and students and their peers share their own ideas and experiences," she explained. Five of the eight JBS programs the University originally planned to offer last year were canceled due to both administrative reasons and a lack of student participation, according to an April 13 Justice article. When asked if there would be a concerted effort to promote enrollment in these upcoming programs, Grinberg explained that until the application deadline on March 15, the University will emphasize the benefits of the program to students in an effort to ensure adequate enrollment.Grinberg explained that the promotion of the program would occur through e-mails and information sessions. "Students will receive some e-mails with information and we will hold a series of information sessions," she wrote, further explaining that students are encouraged to contact her or the faculty members teaching the programs to "discuss the students [sic] academic career and explore whether JBS would be the right match for the individual."Grinberg also emphasized that students participating in these programs would have housing for both the fall and spring semesters."Students can choose to live on campus or off," Grinberg wrote.
A fire broke out yesterday at approximately 10 a.m. in the Schneider building, which houses the Heller School for Social Policy and Management, on Oct. 18, and the entire building was evacuated. Classes resumed in the building by 12:30 that afternoon, according to a campuswide e-mail from Senior Vice President for Administration Mark Collins.In an interview with the Justice, Dean of the Heller School Lisa Lynch said that the building's warning system went off at approximately 10 a.m."We had the building emptied out within a minute," said Lynch, adding that "it certainly didn't hurt the evacuation efforts when people saw flames outside the building."Director of Public Safety Ed Callahan said in a phone interview with the Justice that the cause of the fire has not yet been determined, and that the Waltham Fire Department is currently investigating possible origins of the blaze."The fire department will determine the origin of the fire," said Callahan. Callahan also said that he was not aware of any injuries occurring during the incident.In an e-mail to the Justice, Collins wrote that as of Monday night, the cause of the fire was still undetermined.The occupants of Schneider were relocated to the Usdan Student Center following the incident until the building was reopened at 12:30 p.m.Ikenna Momah (GRAD), a student at the Heller School who was evacuated, said that he was in class when he was told to evacuate the building and leave from the nearest exit."We saw the smoke outside on the exit," said Momah.Momah also expressed satisfaction with the administrative handling of the incident and said he felt he was given adequate warning of the fire. "I think it was a good method because the voice was calm and reassuring; they put so much trust in us to leave," he said.Prof. Jeffrey Prottas (Heller) said in an interview with the Justice that "the alarm went off saying there was some sort of emergency." Prottas further explained that when he walked outside he could see there were flames on the back patio right around the wall."Lynch said that a set of windows had to be replaced but that the building was fully accessible, and the fire did not drastically disrupt the daily routine. "Everything is back and running," she said.Collins wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that the damage occurred in the connecting area of between the old Heller building and the new Schneider building. He explained that while no official cost has been determined, he would estimate the cost of the damage at to be approximately $25,000 to $50,000, and that he expected the building to be fully operational by today. "There will be repairs, such as glass replacement, and replacement of some walls and ceilings that will be completed in the next couple of weeks," Collins wrote.-Fiona Lockyer, Harry Shipps and Brian Fromm contributed reporting.