(12/10/12 5:00am)
The Judges were in their element this past Friday at the Reggie Poyau Memorial Invitational at Gosman Sports and Convocation Center. Both squads were able to display their mettle in front of a supportive home crowd through several strong finishes. The men's and women's teams finished fifth-44 points for the women and 55 points for the men-out of eight teams, which included Stonehill College, Bentley University, Lasell College, Emmanuel College, Keene State College, Connecticut College, and the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Vincent Asante '14 started off the evening with an impressive win in both the preliminaries and the finals of the 55-meter dash, recording a finish of 6.52 seconds. And Asante was quick to point out that he enjoyed this opportunity to compete in front of a home crowd. "The competition rises as the performance level rises," said Asante. "So at a meet like this where we are just out to compete and not out to win, we just like to make sure that we are happy with ourselves and we have fun. We look for good results and enjoyment, because that's what's important in the end." Kensai Hughes '14, Galen Karlan-Mason '16, Jacob Wilhoite '15 and Jonathan Gilman '15 then rounded out the field in the 55, finishing in 6.78, 6.91, 7.01 and 8.15 seconds respectively. Asante, Hughes and Brittany Bell '13, who sprinted to a third place finish in 7.43 seconds, all qualified for the finals. Asante and Hughes ran in 6.52 and 6.78 seconds for first and fifth places respectively, while Bell ran 7.44 for fourth place. Mik Kern '13, Greg Bray '15 and Grady Ward '16 all headlined a formidable field in the one-mile run. The trio ran in four minutes, 24.22 seconds, 4:33.54 and 4.40.15 for second, sixth, and eighth places respectively. Amelia Lundkvist '14 finished second in the women's mile, finishing in 5:25.78. Maggie Hensel '16 and Molly Paris '16 rounded out the field in 5:35.34 and 5:56.97, good for third and eighth places. "It was an interesting first collegiate race," said Paris. "I came in the middle of the pack and we started out kind of slow, and I think that affected my time." Pace is certainly not a problem for the 400-meter dash. Joshua Hacunda '16 and Trevor Tuplin '16 bolted ahead of the field for seventh and tenth place finishes with times of 53.65 and 54.48 seconds, while the veteran Joshua Hoffman-Senn '13 ran 55.09 for eleventh place. Senior runners Casey McGown '13 and Anifreed Sinjour '13 ran side-by-side in 1:03.54 and 1:03.59 for fourth and fifth place finishes. Newcomer Matthew Becker '16 excelled in his first collegiate 600-meter race, finishing third in 1:36.73. He later joined Hacunda, Hoffman-Senn, and Tuplin in the 1600-meter relay for an overall time of three minutes and 37.24 seconds for fifth place. In the 800-meter run, Carl Lieberman '16 finished fourth in 2:04.22. Nora Owens '16 and Gabriella Guillette '15 ran for fifth and sixth places on the women's side in 2:42.65 and 2:43:82, respectively. Newcomers continued to make their presence known, especially in the 1,000-meter race. Liban Aden '16 took fourth place in 2:47.66, while Kelsey Whitaker '16 and Rachel Keller '16 ran for second and sixth places in 3:09.18 and 3:22.96. Asante reappeared in the 200-meter dash, fresh off his 55-meter win, looking to replicate his success. He came quite close, securing a third place finish in 23.21 seconds. Karlan-Mason and Wilhoite followed Asante with finishes in 24.53 and 25.84 seconds, good for 15th and 32nd place. First-years Adam Berger '16 and Brandon Odze '16 continued to make noise for the bright core of first-years, rounding out the field in 24.71 and 24.78 seconds for 18th and 29th places. Odze later came back to sprint another race, the 55-meter hurdles, in 10.29 seconds for 10th place. Brandeis fielded three standout finishes in the competitive 3000-meter run. Alex Kramer '13 took a noteworthy second place in 8:37.93, while Ed Colvin '14 and Jarret Harrigan '15 ran for 11th and 13th places in commendable times of 9:02.89 and 9:06.89. In the shot put, Kris Stinehart '14 and Jonathan Gilman '15 threw the shot at 12.40 meters and 7.74 meters for eighth and 22nd places. Alyssa Fenenbock '15 and Ashley Klein '16 threw 7.46 meters and 7.21 meters for 12th and 13th places. Hansen Yang '16 participated in the high jump, jumping 1.72 meters for eighth place, while also jumping 11.41 meters for ninth place in the triple jump. Berger joined Yang in the latter event, jumping 12.31 meters for sixth place, as well as Kim Farrington '13 who jumped 10.70 meters for fourth place. Berger returned to jump 5.63 meters for sixth place in the long jump, while Hughes jumped 5.96 meters for fifth place. Bell also landed at 4.91 meters for sixth place. The teams will next compete at the Dartmouth College Relays on Jan. 13, 2013.
(12/10/12 5:00am)
On Sunday, a relatively large group of 19 out of 23 Student Union senators recognized two education-related clubs, chartering one, while they turned down the umbrella organization Brandeis Associated Nerd Groups for recognition. The Senate also approved a $2,000 Senate Money Resolution to support an effort between various groups to bring CollegeHumor to campus.
(12/04/12 5:00am)
* "Sold out? The entire weekend?" I started panicking. I needed to get into this show. "We can put you on a waiting list," the calm woman at the ticket booth offered. As I sat in the foyer of Spingold Theater Center, I met a man whose guest was unable to attend the Friday night performance and jumped at the opportunity to join him. I hurried down the hall to the newly renovated Merrick Theater, where Brandeis Theater Company's production of Tennessee Williams' classic play, The Glass Menagerie, was being performed. The play, which ran from Nov. 29 through Dec. 2, was directed by professional actress Paula Plum and featured a cast solely composed of Brandeis undergraduates. * Before the play began, the actors sat at the front of the white-walled cozy theater, in a modest 1930s St. Louis parlor. The set, designed by the scenic paint charge for BTC, Kristin Knutson, was immaculate-a claw-footed Davenport, wooden rocking chair and matching dining room setup, table lamps and a throw rug. The walls of the 'apartment' were draped with white, gauzy linens. Light-colored laundry was strung up to dry. The dreamy-white color scheme of the room reminded audience members that the play is simply a series of memories. * For those unfamiliar with Williams' original script, the play is built upon two parallel premises: the dynamics of a broken American family, and the conflict one faces when he feels he lives an unfulfilled life. The play is very much a reflection upon the past, present and future of each character. * The family, the Wingfields, is led by a washed-up Southern belle of a mother, Amanda (Ellyn Getz '13), who struggles to protect her two adult children, Tom (Justy Kosek '14) and Laura (Corrie Legge '14), after their father, represented in the play only by a portrait hanging on the wall, runs away. Laura is plagued by a self-consciousness about her crippled leg, and instead of leading a normal life, she sits at home most days and plays with her collection of glass figurines, which her mother calls 'the glass menagerie.' Tom, who narrates the play alone in between scenes with other characters, works grueling hours at a factory to keep the family afloat and spends his nights at the "movies," always dissatisfied with his limiting job and dreaming of liberation from his family. * Plum's direction of the play does more than animate the original script-it brings to life elements of the story that, even though I have read Williams' script, I never quite seemed to get. In perhaps the single most important scene, Laura shows her glass menagerie to gentleman caller Jim (Ahmed Kouddous '14), who she is all too fond of, yet finds intimidating. Seeing the play acted out as opposed to reading it helped me to understand Laura in an entirely new way. While the script portrays Laura as potentially disturbed, Plum's production shows that she is, in fact, more fragile than anything else. * Jim has just enjoyed supper with the Wingfields when Amanda leaves him alone with Laura, hoping to catalyze a romantic interaction. The young man sweeps her up to dance to the victrola music but clumsily bumps a table upon which Laura's favorite figurine, a glass unicorn, sits. It falls and its horn is broken off, and it becomes just a normal horse. From the script, I gathered that this scene represented a loss of virginity, innocence and a crushing of dreams. But under Plum's direction, it became clear how violent the emotions in this scene are-Laura is not just disillusioned by the figurine breaking, she is devastated; it seems that this episode is something she is not to recover from. * Indeed, the entire play is laden with instances from which the characters are not to recover: like Amanda's choice to marry an alcoholic dreamer who abandoned the family years ago, or Tom's failure to pursue a life more promising than his meaningless factory job. But even in the throws of such material, the actors incorporated comedy and skill into their delivery. Amanda is quite difficult to take seriously, as she is the only character who dons an unflinching Mississippi accent established in her youth growing up on the Delta. Even though her children have grown up in St. Louis and would not naturally have comparable accents, hers was so pronounced that it makes her seem a bit too comical when she is actually quite an angry character. Getz's stamina with a character as incessant and volatile as Amanda is nothing less than impressive, though the humor she injected into the role undermined the seriousness of Amanda's manic nature. This is easily seen in a truly desperate Amanda's still laughable attempts to court a suitor for her daughter. * Tom provides a valuable perspective to the audience, as he is the only one who sees the other characters as they truly are, and is separate from the circumstances that limit them. Jim and Laura both slide perfectly into their roles; the conversations they have about being comfortable with oneself despite one's flaws are a pleasant balance to the tense relationship evident between Amanda and Tom. The beauty of BTC's production of The Glass Menagerie lies in these students' capacities to inject new, dynamic life into each character. It was truly as if I was experiencing the story for the very first time.
(12/04/12 5:00am)
At the end of this calendar year, Frances Drolette will leave her position as senior vice president of finance and chief financial officer, announced Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Steven Manos last Tuesday. Marianne Cwalina, the current associate vice president of finance, will take over the role on Jan. 1.
(12/04/12 5:00am)
Tucked away in the Usdan Student Center is a small office that directs all fellowship efforts on campus. Joined by active professors, these are the forces that support the fellowship and award searches for students at Brandeis, whether they are searching in University or outside channels. This academic year, this support system has already seen great success: Last week, it was announced that four bright Brandeisians had made proposals that won prestigious awards. These ranged from plans to help midwives in Timor Leste to academic endeavors in Christian ethics. Shota Adamia '15, Natan Odenheimer '15 and Sarah van Buren '13 have been announced as the 2012 Maurice J. and Fay B. Karpf and Ari Hahn Peace Awards winners, and Elizabeth Stoker '13 is the fourth-ever Brandeisian to be awarded the Marshall Scholarship. Sunday school to university theology
(12/03/12 5:00am)
After three weeks of rest following a tough cross country season, the Brandeis distance squad was joined by sprinters, jumpers and throwers for the winter track and field team.
(12/03/12 5:00am)
The Senate held its weekly meeting on Sunday, voting to recognize one club, charter another and reconsider a third at a future meeting. With 12 senators in attendance, the first order of business was the consideration of a Brandeis chapter of Alex's Lemonade Stand, a foundation that seeks to "raise money and awareness of childhood cancer causes" and to "encourage and empower others, especially children, to get involved and make a difference for children with cancer," according to the organization's website. The purpose of the Brandeis chapter will be to "give Brandeis University students the opportunity to join a national movement to find a cure for childhood cancer." The Senate voted unanimously to recognize the club. Next, the Brandeis Vegan/Vegetarian Club, which was recognized by the Senate earlier this year, requested charter from the Senate for events and posters. The Senate voted to grant charter to the club. The final club seeking to be chartered by the Senate was the Brandeis Triathlon Club, which seeks to "unite a community of student athletes who want to swim, bike, and/or run together for exercise or for competition," according to their constitution. The club was seeking charter for swim gear, open dinner events and competition fees. After a heated discussion, the Senate voted against chartering the club, but remained open to considering a revised proposal. The meeting ended with Committee Chair Reports. Dining Committee co-Chair Danny Novak '15 revealed that Einstein Bros. Bagels will "probably" be open 24 hours a day on Monday through Thursday next semester. In Gloria Park's '14 Executive Senator report, she announced the creation of a new university committee called the Student Health Advisory Committee. In the executive session that ended the meeting, senators were nominated to be Executive Senator next semester. The voting for that position will take place at next week's senate meeting. -Sam Mintz
(12/03/12 5:00am)
Three years ago they traveled the world-Claire Cooper '11 spent her junior year abroad in Morocco, while Anna Khandros '11 studied in Lebanon and spent her spring break traveling through Oman. Two years ago, they were back together, living in the Foster Mods for their senior year. After graduating, the two returned to their globe-trotting ways, this time reversing roles-Cooper is a Fulbright Scholar teaching English in Oman, while Khandros works for the Peace Corps in Morocco. "I came to Morocco knowing largely only what Claire had taught me," Khandros said. "When she received her invitation to go to Oman, everything she knew about Oman came from what I had told her because I had been there on spring break. I told her it was the most beautiful place and she had to go," Khandros said. Khandros is now eight months into the 27-month program, and Cooper fell in love with Oman and chose to stay for a second year. The two friends have come a long way from their days living together in Mod 10. Khandros' journey got off to a rough start-the day after graduating, she found out that her departure date had been pushed back from September 2011 to early 2012. Morocco had always been her first choice, but budget cuts meant that she was changed to an assignment in Kazakhstan. "It was definitely hard," Khandros said. "They tell you not to quit your job because you never know what will happen, but it was ... definitely hard finding out that I wouldn't be doing what I wanted to be doing. It made me question my reasons for wanting to go in the first place." Khandros stuck with it, and her patience was soon rewarded-the Peace Corps chose to begin phasing volunteers out of Kazakhstan, and Khandros was reassigned to Morocco. Khandros, who majored in Politics, joined nearly 120 other volunteers in the capital city of Rabat in March for training and arrived at her final site, Bou Anane, in May. Khandros, a Brooklyn, N.Y. native now finds herself three hours from the nearest city, six hours from the nearest supermarket and more than an hour away from the nearest Peace Corps volunteer. "The region is one of the poorest, so the volunteers are more spread out," she explained. Working through associations and local community centers, Khandros has set up several after-school workshops for local youth. She teaches everything from aerobics to clubs centered on health and the environment, but she says her focus has been on leadership and employability for the young adults. "Right now there are clubs seven days a week, and it's way harder than I thought it would be," Khandros said. "Two years ago we used to both go out at night, and now I spend it teaching and reading," Khandros said. Cooper had an easier go of it, leaving for Oman as planned in September 2011. Cooper, who majored in Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies, spent 10 months teaching English at Caledonian College of Engineering in Muscat and fell in love with the country. "It's such a peaceful place," she explained. "Everyone is extremely kind and helpful. It's absolutely gorgeous." Cooper loved her time there so much that she decided to spend another year on the Arabian Peninsula. After completing her program and returning home for the summer, Cooper took a job as a programming coordinator at the Center for International Learning in Muscat. Cooper does a variety of jobs for the CIL, including planning trips and guest lectures for study abroad students. Cooper is in Oman at a unique time-with the Arab Spring and social unrest spreading across the Middle East, the atmosphere in the country can be nerve-wracking at times. "There's a lot of tension in this society," she said. "People are trying to figure out how much of globalization they want to accept and how they should maintain their cultural identity." Cooper said that it is an exciting time to be there because "Oman is a really unique development story. It was underdeveloped for a long time, but the Sultan took over in 1970 and changed it all." Both Khandros and Cooper credited their time at Brandeis with helping to prepare them for their journeys. "I got a very strong academic understanding of the Middle East and Islamic influences," Cooper said. "My life experience here [in Oman,] I can experience it through the lens of these academic concepts that I learned at Brandeis. We always talk about the 'Brandeis bubble,' but I learned to talk to people with a wide range of geographic and socioeconomic backgrounds, and with a wide range of ideas." Khandros agreed, adding that talks with Cooper helped her realize that she wanted to travel after graduating. "I used to crawl into Claire's bed and we would talk every Saturday and Sunday morning," she said. "We always had a lot of similar goals and interests. We didn't know what we wanted to do with our lives, but we both wanted to explore the world." Having not seen each other in nearly a year, Khandros and Cooper decided to meet up over winter break. The duo will fly to Thailand in a few weeks along with Helen Shapiro '11, who also lived in their Mod and now lives in Cambridge, Mass. They will spend several weeks traveling the Southeast Asian country, and plan to spend New Year's Eve together. "It'll be a Mod 10 reunion," Khandros said. "I keep wondering if this is what our lives will be like-meeting up with each other in different places all over the world." *
(11/20/12 5:00am)
In an email to the student body on Friday, Provost Steve Goldstein '78 and Dean of Arts and Sciences Susan Birren announced that Brandeis will join an online consortium in fall 2013. While this board understands the benefits that online learning could bring to our University, we are hesitant about how this technology could best be used to suit the student's needs. Dean Birren explained that in fall 2013 a student who is off campus for the semester would be able to take a full four classes of credit. However, students who are absent from campus for an entire semester due to illness or internship opportunities likely will lack the time to take an entire semester of courses. It would be more practical for students to be able to take fewer than four courses while away from campus. Signing up for fewer than four courses may have an additional advantage. If a student majoring in Psychology, for example, is interested in a particular facet of the subject for which Brandeis does not offer a class, he or she could take the class from one of the nine other schools in our online consortium if one of the schools happened to offer it. This would allow students to further explore their fields of study with specific classes that Brandeis might lack. Furthermore, a student studying abroad would be able to take one or two classes that would go toward his or her major or minor, off-setting the time crunch that some who study abroad feel when trying to finish their requirements. Additionally, online classes should only be a supplement to in-person classes. Brandeis prides itself on its small class sizes and opportunities to interact with professors. We believe that the growth into the field of online learning could undercut this image. Students should be limited in the number of online courses they can take and the amount of University requirements they can satisfy. The convenience of online courses should not replace the importance of face-to-face interactions with professors. As this Semester Online will not be put into place until fall 2013, we hope that the administration will consider making some changes to its plan to make this new endeavor most useful for students.
(11/20/12 5:00am)
Earlier this week, Brandeis began the first steps toward an experimental new frontier in technology-aided education by announcing that the University has joined a consortium of schools in a program called "Semester Online." Starting next fall, students will be able to take a semester of classes online if they are abroad, doing an internship, staying at home or for whatever reason not able to be on campus.
(11/20/12 5:00am)
In the small village of Bil'in in the West Bank, a demonstration against the barrier separating the West Bank from Israel occurs every Friday. The head of Bil'in's Popular Committee and one of the leaders of the village's nonviolent resistance movement, Iyad Burnat, spoke on Wednesday at an event sponsored by Brandeis Students for Justice in Palestine.
(11/13/12 5:00am)
* JustArts spoke with Josh Seiden '13, a seasoned member of campus improv group Bad Grammer, about his time performing improv at Brandeis, his advice for first-year students interested in improv and his goals for the Bad Grammer troupe.
* JustArts: What got you originally involved in improv comedy on campus? Josh Seiden: I think the thing that got me first involved with improv comedy is that when I first got here, my friend David Fisch '13 said we should both try out for improv comedy. I didn't really know any of the improv groups, so first I tried out for Boris' Kitchen which I thought was an improv group and I ultimately didn't get in, and David said, "Well, there are other things you can try out for." So I was like, "Okay, well I'll try out for some other things," and I tried out for Bad Grammer kind of arbitrarily because I thought it was Brandeis' only improv group. Turns out it wasn't; there are three other very good improv groups, but that's how I got involved. I liked comedy in high school and wanted to get involved in college. It was sort of the luck of the draw that I got involved with Bad Grammer. JA: What kind of experience has being a part of Bad Grammer been for you? JS: I would say it's probably the best thing I do at Brandeis. I've met all of my best friends there. Every single time I talk about Brandeis University, Bad Grammer is the first thing I bring up. I can honestly say, not to sound clich?(c) because I hate talking like this, but I've never been in something where I've felt closer to the people and felt more like a family and I've never cared about a group more than I care about the improv group. It's been a really incredible thing; it's meant a tremendous amount to me. JA: What plans does Bad Grammer have for this coming year? JS: Oh God, what plans don't we have? Well, we have a show today, we have a senior end-of-semester show at the end of the semester, which we have yet to plan, but stay tuned. It'll be on deck. We're going to have an alumni show at the end of the year, and we're going to have a special mystery show next semester. JA: What kind of advice would you give to a first-year student who is interested in getting involved with improvisational comedy on campus? JS: The first thing I would say is definitely try out. I mean, almost none of us had improv experience when we tried out for our improv group. You sort of learn on the fly. The second thing is everyone who does improv at this school is extremely nice and extremely friendly and they love when people have questions and love when people get involved, so find the group that you like best and send them an email. I'm sure they have open practices. I'm sure they'll let you practice and give you some good advice. So don't be afraid to ask and follow any of your goals that you want to acheive. JA: Do you plan to pursue improv comedy in any fashion after graduating? JS: I think I might, in some form, but not in a career. There's no improv comedy track, but I hope next year, wherever I end up, I can take improv classes and hopefully join an improv team. JA: Lastly, what is your favorite character to play in sketches? JS: I don't really have any characters that I like that much. One character that I like a lot was Silent Jim, but I think you should put in the article that there's a bunch of other characters that I do not play but I love as characters. One is named Congo. It's a gorilla. It's played by Tom Phan ['14]. Ryan Fanning '12, who graduated two years ago, had a bunch of characters I loved. Scat Man and Coach. There were a lot of good characters. There's one character I like by Josh Liversidge ['15]. He's in Bad Grammer currently. One good thing in improv is that you're not bound by the characters. You can reinvent them all the time and that's something I've always loved doing. JA: How do you hope Bad Grammer can grow and develop in the next couple of years? JS: We're already very good friends, but I hope we can stay very good friends and become even closer. I hope everyone embraces their inner craziness and lets it fly a little bit more. And I think that by spending more time together, we'll get closer and closer and more cohesive as a group. JA: And do you have any thoughts on how you'll be involved as an alumnus? JS: We have our alumni show so I hope to come back to that. And everyone in Bad Grammer, even though they're alums, they still talk to each other all the time and see how each other is doing. -Phil Gallagher
(11/13/12 5:00am)
Prof. Gregory Petsko (BCHM), will be moving his research lab to New York City to join his wife, the dean of Weill Cornell Medical College, in early 2014. His wife, Laurie H. Glimcher, was appointed dean of the medical school in January and has been living in New York since then. "I don't have a choice," said Petsko in an interview with the Justice, explaining that Glimcher's appointment was expected to be relatively long-term, "I've made 70 trips to New York City since January, and that's not an exaggerated number." He went on to jokingly compare his predicament to the famous "offer you can't refuse," made by mafia don Vito Corleone in the movie The Godfather. "It's always a good sign when other schools want to hire our faculty, and a disappointment when it actually happens," wrote Provost Steve Goldstein '78 in an email to the Justice. "We are sorry to be losing Greg Petsko, even as we wish him well at Cornell Medical School." While the decision has been made, Petsko, the Gyula and Katica Tauber Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacodynamics, said he will continue to research and teach at Brandeis until 2014, when construction on the new research building he will work in in New York will be complete. The Petsko & Ringe Laboratories are located in 5,000 square feet on the sixth floor of the Rosenstiel Basic Medical Sciences Research Center, according to the lab's website. Petsko works there with the lab's other namesake, Prof. Dagmar Ringe (BCHM), the Harold and Bernice Davis Professor in Aging and Neurodegenerative Disease. Ringe did not respond to requests for comment. The majority of the research in the lab is dedicated to developing cures for Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease and Lou Gherig's Disease, according to Petsko. This research will continue in New York. The lab currently has a staff of about 20 students. Petsko estimated that six or seven are graduate students, about 12 are undergraduates and the rest are post-doctoral. He will aim to maintain the size of the lab's staff until his departure, hiring to make up for the usual turnover as students graduate or move on to other jobs. He anticipates that his new lab will be roughly the same size. However, one difference will be the loss of undergraduate students to work with and teach. Petsko will teach at the medical school, where only graduate students are enrolled. "We love having undergrads in the lab. ... They do really good work and they're a delight to have around," said Petsko, adding that it's also good training for his graduate and post-doctoral students to supervise the undergraduates. "I think [Brandeis is] the best place in the world to work in if you're a scientist who likes teaching. You couldn't ask for a better environment," he said, praising the faculty, students and University President Frederick Lawrence. "There's a million reasons why it would be wonderful to stay, but there's one big reason why I can't." Petsko said he hopes that, since he is vacating such a prominent position with a high salary, Brandeis will hire two associate professors of Biochemistry or Chemistry in his stead. "Bringing in vital, young people to the faculty is something that's very good to do," he said. Dean of Arts and Sciences Susan Birren confirmed this in an email to the Justice, saying that the search is already underway for "a new [Biochemistry] faculty member who will carry out research defined by his or her own interest and expertise, and who will carry on Brandeis' tradition of excellence in Biochemical research and teaching." Goldstein agreed. "[T]he departure of a faculty member-even one as outstanding as Greg-does bring one compensation: the opportunity to hire someone new."
(11/12/12 5:00am)
His job in Kenya has already transformed into more than a job. "I feel like I'm working toward something that's really important to me," said Matthew Travis '05. Travis is the volunteer coordinator and acting finance officer in Kenya for the nonprofit organization Flying Kites, which provides education and support for orphaned children in Kenya. The organization began as an orphanage founded by college graduates who had volunteered in orphanages in Nairobi and became interested in improving the lives of the children they encountered. "Flying Kites strives to create a better orphanage than the ones that already exist where the orphans could truly be given the opportunity to excel and be anything they want to without being limited by their circumstances." One of the best things for Travis about Brandeis was what he called the "diversity in study and community." The eclectic collection of students he made connections with during his time at Brandeis greatly influenced his decision to go into nonprofit work. "I had a couple friends who did Teach for America and another who joined the Peace Corps after college. I knew I wanted to do something like that, but I wasn't sure how." Travis became involved in the organization recently, though he did similar nonprofit work with Liberia mission in West Africa prior to joining the Flying Kites team a month and half ago. He was "blown away" by how developed Nairobi was compared to Liberia. His job with Flying Kites involves managing the employees responsible for recruiting American volunteers. His role as finance officer keeps him busy negotiating salaries, as well as haggling for resources such as fuel and food. Travis' administrative position does not prevent him from having routine contact with the children. He was able to remain a presence on the school's campus. "My wife and I always saw [the children] in the mornings as they headed to school," he said. Other interactions came in the form of dinners and after school study sessions. A History and Politics major, a liberal arts background taught Travis how to think, even if he couldn't always directly apply the knowledge he gained to his work with Flying Kites. "[Politics and History] are two very vague degrees, but I truly believe that I 'learned how to learn.'" But the formal education he received at Brandeis ended up being only a small portion of the valuable knowledge he gained. "Living in halls with my classmates taught me how to deal with people," Andrew stressed. "The importance of my education, both formal and informal, allowed me to succeed. " Prior to his work in Africa, social action did not have an obvious place in his life. During his years at Brandeis, he poured his passion for community-building into his involvement as president of Mountain Club. The principles of being part of a supportive, educational community like Mountain Club are similar to the work he does in Kenya. "With the Mountain Club I got to teach people how to climb and how to belay. I really enjoy being a part of a learning institution where I can share my skills." In addition to Mountain Club, Travis was actively involved in the Kayaking Club and as an EMT for Brandeis Emergency Medical Corps. The program is still a work in progress. "The volunteer program has been revised within the past 6 months," Travis explained. One the major areas of the program he wants to strengthen is "bringing in people who are able to specialize, take their training and directly apply their knowledge." Flying Kites is unique because it stresses making Kenyans self-sufficient, giving them the tools to provide a nurturing and healthy environment for the orphans. "One of my goals at Flying Kites is to put those sort of crucial functions in the hands of Kenyans so they are not reliant on American volunteers," he said. The nature of his work provided him perspective on his own life. He realized that his relationships with loved ones really matter above all other things. "I've gained ... the ability to focus on my relationships with friends and family and to worry less about 'first world problems,'" Travis explained. Travis is currently in the United States, but has plans to return to Kenya on Dec. 16. Although he is eager to throw himself back into his work, he admits that one of the most challenging aspects of his works is being away from his family and friends. "It is always very hard to travel away from one's community," Travis said. Going forward, Travis is specifically looking to recruit "college graduates who are willing to take sabbaticals from their careers who also have a lot of work experience to pull from," beyond their education. Travis's experience of removing himself from his natural environment realigned his values, giving him a worldly perspective he would not otherwise have. "Many people find relief in the simplicity of life, which can sometimes be a little condescending. When I made the transition, it gave me the opportunity to decide [what] was valuable."
(11/12/12 5:00am)
"Siri, who created you?"
(11/06/12 5:00am)
On Sunday afternoon, students, faculty and University administrators attended a benefit concert for Waltham Fields Community Farm, a local non-profit farming organization. The concert, held in the Slosberg Recital Hall, featured the Barbara Cassidy Band, which consists of Barbara Cassidy MA '98 (vocals and tambourine), a graduate of the Sociology and Women's and Gender Studies program and former arts project coordinator at Brandeis, and her husband Prof. Eric Chasalow (MUS) (guitar), the Irving Fine Professor of Music. Several guest musicians joined the Barbara Cassidy Band, including Peter Mulvey (guitar), David "Goody" Goodrich (guitar), Prof. Robert Nieske (MUS) (upright bass), Dave Mattacks (drums and piano), Joe Kessler (violin) and members of folk band Pesky J. Nixon, Ethan Baird '02 (guitar) and Jake Bush (accordion). In varying combinations of musicians, the groups performed 20 songs, ranging from slow ballads to rock and roll. Cassidy, Chasalow and a few accompanying musicians began the concert, followed by Baird on the guitar and Bush, also of Pesky J. Nixon, on the accordion. Mulvey and Goodrich played a couple of songs together on the guitar before the intermission, including "Old Fashioned Morphine" and "Everybody Knows." In the second half of the concert, the Barbara Cassidy Band returned to the stage, playing songs such as "Simon Simon," named after the couple's teenage son who was in the audience, and an upbeat song called "If Time Stood Still." Cassidy and Chasalow played an encore song at the end of the performance. All of the songs had a folksy tune that helped foster an intimate atmosphere for the performance. This atmosphere was reinforced when performers shared anecdotes with the audience and explained the personal backgrounds of certain songs. Cassidy and Chasalow talked about their collaborative experiences writing and composing music. They explained that they bring their skills together in the band to compose original songs. Baird and Bush touched upon their earlier experiences at Brandeis, joking about past fears before tests and assignments. Baird joked that he double-majored in Music and English at Brandeis, which his parents said were two different ways of asking: "Would you like fries with that?" His band recently released its second album, which is charting the top-10 in Folk DJ charts. During the intermission, the bands' albums as well as photographs donated by University Photographer Mike Lovett were on sale with all proceeds benefitting the community farm. The amount raised for the farm was not known by press time. The Waltham Fields Community Farm is an organization that promotes "local agriculture and food access," according to its website, through education and farming, using 15 acres of rented land from the University of Massachusetts. WFCF also operates a community supported agriculture program, which provides their locally-grown produce to shareholders. In an email interview with the Justice, Cassidy said that she and her husband first became involved in the WFCF by becoming CSA shareholders in 1999. Her decision to raise funds for the organization stemmed from her appreciation for the organization's mission. "I appreciate the hunger relief work that Waltham Fields is engaged in-and that the focus is local-from food to table for everyone to have access to locally grown food, regardless of economic status," Cassidy explained. When asked to reflect on the concert later that evening, Cassidy wrote that "Eric and I were extremely pleased to be in the company of such amazing musicians." Referring to the diverse group of musicians who joined her and Chasalow on stage, she expressed her delight at the different performances, commenting that "This afternoon [we] came together with a group of old and new friends who are immensely generous and talented."
(10/29/12 4:00am)
Last Sunday, Starving Artists, one of 14 a cappella groups on campus, hosted four a cappella groups at the second-annual Acatoberfest, a fall-themed concert held in the Slosberg Recital Hall. The visiting groups came from several different Boston-area schools, including the Sirens from Simmons College; the Clark Bars from Clark University; Common Sound, a semi-professional Boston-based group and S-Factor from Tufts University. Each visiting group sang approximately three songs that varied from hip-hop and R&B to gospel, pop and rock. There was a good balance of song genre, with an appropriate emphasis on more recent tunes. Including Starving Artists, there were three mixed-gender groups, while the S-Factor featured solely male singers and the Sirens only female singers. The audience included mostly the visiting groups themselves, although a lot of Brandeis students came out to support their classmates and a surprising number of parents attended the show. The auditorium was full as Starving Artist senior Abby Armstrong '13 stepped forward to welcome the audience and introduce the program. Starving Artists began by performing Demian 5's "When I Am King" and Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" before visiting groups took the stage. Armstrong classified the Starving Artists' rendition of the King's famous hit as having "a twist." The students' bodies swayed as their voices focused on specific notes for a protracted sound, making the song slower and more melodic than the original verson. The Simmons Sirens were next, warming the crowd up with slower songs before concluding with "Forget You." The crowd laughed as the lead singer replaced the explicit title of Cee Lo Green's original song with the censored one in the final verse. The energy in the audience was high but not as noticeable as when the Clark Bars took the stage. The singers' vocal quality matched the crowd's reaction of smiles and approving yells. When contacted via email, Starving Artists member Marlee Rosenthal '14, who helped organize Acatoberfest, said that this year's event was similar to last year's with a main exception: "What made this year's concert even more special was that 'Common Sound', a Semi-pro a cappella group, performed. Common Sound includes three Brandeis alumni-one of them being Andrew Litwin '12, who was the Starving Artists' music director '08-'11!" It was clear when Common Sound took the stage that Rosenthal wasn't the only one happy to have Brandeis singers back on campus. The Starving Artists playfully introduced the alumni individually and the crowd cheered. Each group sang at least one mainstream song and took visible efforts to get the audience members involved. At one point, a majority of the audience was waving their hands back and forth to the beat of "Big Poppa," a song originally by The Notorious B.I.G, performed by S-Factor. A Clark Bars singer urged the audience to "join me" before he hit the chorus of the Mumford & Sons song "The Cave." In addition, there seemed to be no lack of Adele's influence in the a cappella song choices. Three different groups, including Starving Artists, performed her popular hits including "Set Fire to the Rain" and "Someone Like You." The Starving Artists closed the hour-and-a-half long performance the same way they opened it-in song. Although this only marks Acatoberfest's second year, the tradition seems to be lively and likely to survive. Rosenthal says that planning in advance is essential, and it is all worth it. "Once reservations are in place, it's all about advertising-creating a Facebook event, updating Twitter, publicizing around campus with flyers, etc." Rosenthal worked with Starving Artists' events coordinator Alex Kwatcher '14 and business manager Armstrong to make the show run smoothly. Aside from a few minor and brief technical difficulties faced by visiting groups, like microphone detachments, the evening ran rather smoothly. So what will we do now that the lights have dimmed and the curtains closed? "Count down to 3rd Annual Acatoberfest-364 days!" Rosenthal told the Justice.
(10/29/12 4:00am)
* Offering a welcome break from the academic tunnel-vision that college students tend to fall prey to during midterm season, Adagio Dance Company proudly presented a phenomenal show last week-ADC Unleashed: Dancefest 2012. The massive performance took place in Levin Ballroom last Wednesday and featured Brandeis dance groups as well as groups from several other colleges in the greater Boston area. The presence of parents and families added a warmth to the densely packed audience of students and faculty, who all sat spellbound for the entire show, voicing personal cheers for the dancers they came to support. A total of 22 groups performed, ranging from belly dancing to ballet, and each with a distinct aesthetic. Groups were set apart by creative spatial use of the stage, clever costumes and coordinated lights and music, with each ensemble quite different from the next. * Adagio is Brandeis' largest student-run dance group, and performs in five different styles of dance: jazz, tap, hip-hop, lyrical, modern and ballet. This spirit of diversity and variety that Adagio is built upon held a capital presence in the Dancefest show, where each dance was very distinct from the others, but in a way that was more cooperative than competitive. * Although every group seemed to be followed by a fury of applause, the audience went the wildest for our very own hip-hop group, Kaos Kids. This group was so high-energy throughout their entire performance that I began to feel tired for them just by watching! Their whole routine was very carefully designed and practiced: from light and music changes to swapping out of dancers on the stage, they were on top of their game. Throbbing, rousing, beloved rap and hip-hop anthems like Nicki Minaj's "Roman's Revenge" blasted from the stage, and grainy audio clips with a themepark-style announcement were used to transition from one song to the next. During each of the transition clips, the group would become still, and one dancer would lip-sync along to the announcement while working his or her feistiest attitude. Within a few seconds, the group would slide into the next song and the audience would lean in a little closer, marveling at the dancers' endurance and how, over the course of their performance, they actually picked up the pace of their movements and seemed to smile a little bigger with each passing moment. * In a show that featured so much variety, it is impossible to say that one group performed better than another; each performance had so many facets unique to it alone. For example, some groups, like the ballet performances, highlighted individual skill as each dancer would perform the same steps in unison with the rest of the group, striving to move as one collective body. Brandeis' Ballet Club and other groups of similar style showcased themselves with commendable grace, and one could only find fault in minor points when dancers fell out of sync with each other. Conversely, more modern and hip hop-oriented groups adhered to a style of choreography that cultivated interaction and a chemistry between dancers-although each individual had a chance to shine, the strength of these groups was in their ability to complement each others' movements. I tended to prefer watching groups whose members interacted with each other onstage-joining hands, falling, catching and lifting each other and smiling at the dancers near them in silent encouragement. * Every act seemed to be a highlight in Dancefest. A group of Adagio alumni returned to Brandeis, shining in a Greek god and goddess-inspired piece in which dancers were painted a pale white and donned delicate togas, looking and moving very much like enchanted sculptures. Hooked on Tap, Brandeis' own Tap Ensemble, happily performed to a chipper swing song. Each member of the group tapped in perfect time with the rest and sported a darling uniform look: a charming ponytail, a white dress with red polka dots, white bobby socks and black tap shoes. The performance of Brandeis' Israeli folk dance group, B'yachad, translated a cultural love and pride into one of the most joyful dances of the night. It was choreographed to an upbeat song and featured dancers with infectious smiles. Even a hip hop group from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, called 'Ridonkulous,' was an obvious crowd pleaser, with a costume evolution from pajamas to green-and-black track suits to white, plastic Halloween masks. * By the end of the show, it was apparent that the assortment of taste and inspiration between each performance featured in Dancefest was not only endlessly enjoyable, but reflected the variety within the Brandeis community. We may not all dance to the same beat, but if we work together, our efforts on-and-off stage are much better than any solo act.
(10/29/12 4:00am)
Although Saturday's defeat against Smith College in this year's New England Wide Collegiate Rugby Conference signified the end of the season for the women's rugby team, there were many positives to take from this season. Initially a thriving team on the Brandeis club sports scene during the 1990s, the team was a perennial powerhouse. However, the club saw a lull in retention rates in the beginning of the 2000s. Yet, LauraBen Moore'14 states that there are brighter days ahead for a team that has just recently found its way back to prominence. "In the last two to three years, there have been massive changes in retention rates, attendance, and membership," said Moore. "In 2010, we had eight veterans. However, when looking at this year, we had 17 returners. You need 15 for a team." "We always say that the result of increased participation is culture, not coincidence," added Moore. We're starting to develop a culture on campus." Most notably, the team was invited to become one of 11 Division III teams in the NEWCRC. According to Moore, the NEWCRC was founded by teams who were tired of playing in non-competitive conferences. Additionally, joining the conference was a significant accomplishment because membership is by invitation only. "We play very competitive teams," said Moore. "We play schools like Smith, the [United States] Coast Guard Academy, Wheaton College and Mount Holyoke College." The club's upward trajectory was key in its invitation to the conference. And, according to Moore, the emergence of the squad has resulted in praise from many of the Conference's more established and experienced clubs. In addition to the athletic accomplishments of the club, Moore also noted the diversity of the team. "We have every major, every body type, every year, every type of person," she said. "We're very inclusive." What makes the accomplishments of the club even more notable is the small size of the team, both in terms of numbers and size. "We have girls on our team who are 110 pounds with bags of sand in their pockets," she joked. "But we have great fight and great determination." The most telling fact about this year's team is that it was able to qualify for the Division III playoffs for the first time in more than a decade. Yet, this season's accomplishments are not the end of the road. Moore said that while the semi-finals were a great success for the squad this year, they will look to win the competition next year. Given its recent resurgence, one might imagine that there are even better days ahead for the women's rugby team. After a surge to the semifinals of the Division III playoffs for the first time in 10 years, the sky is the limit for this young and emergent squad that has returned to the fold of Brandeis club sports.
(10/29/12 4:00am)
Hurricane Sandy began to rock the East Coast with high winds and storm surges yesterday morning, causing widespread power outages, flooding and wind damage. The University cancelled all Monday classes and events as students took shelter in their dormitories.
