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EDITOR’S NOTE/NEWS

EYW Issue Wednesday, April 17, 2016 Yale-NUS College, Singapore www.theoctant.org

NEWS Marriage Contract Innauguration

FEATURES/ARTS DF suite profile Art on campus Campus architecture

THE MARRIAGE CONTRACT Governing Board members celebrate at Yale-NUS’ Topping Out Ceremony in March 2014.

OPINION In (what) Asia, for the world?

Only one Yale-NUS

EDITOR’S NOTE Dear Yale-NUS admits, I hope you are having a fantastic time at the Experience Yale-NUS Weekend 2016.

Story by Spandana Bhattacharya, Joyan Tan Photo credit to Public Affairs Originally Published on 3/11/15

he birth of Yale-NUS College is the result of a marriage like no other. It brings together two “great” universities—Yale University and National University of Singapore (NUS)— in a bid to create a distinct college, or as Yale-NUS’ promotional materials express it mathematically, “1+1=3”.

As with all other relationships, this marriage comes with the perennial question—“Who does more in the relationship?” The answer is complex and requires an analysis of the different aspects of Yale-NUS, such as funding and operation. The Singaporean government shoulders maximum responsibility of the former while both Yale and NUS contribute to the latter. Funding for YaleNUS is derived from three main sources: the Singapore Government, donors, and tuition fees.

The Singaporean government provides funding for the construction of the new campus, building up of endowment and

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Yale- NUS’ operating expenses. At present, Yale- NUS operations are centred in Residential College 4 while the new campus is being constructed. It is estimated to be completed by the start of Academic Year 2015/2016. As reported by the Yale Daily News, the cost of the new campus is US$240 million, fully paid for by “NUS— funded by the Singaporean government.”

Yale-NUS President Pericles Lewis observed, “The building cost is certainly the biggest upfront cost.”

In addition, the Singaporean government matches endowments gifted to Yale-NUS by a 3:1 ratio. Lewis explained, “The Singapore government matches all endowments and gives at least an equal amount. It depends on the nature of the donation.” According to a press release by the Ministry of Education, the Singaporean government provides “1.5:1 matching for all universities for up to 20 years”, as of January 2010. New institutions like Singapore University of Technology and

In light of the occasion we here at The Octant thought it might be a good idea to produce a special issue for you all, filled with past articles that we feel give an overview of life at Yale-NUS; this includes interesting features, key news events and some of the controversial opinions we have published.

At The Octant we aim to promote free speech and critical discourse on campus.

As such, we try and give a voice to everyone in the community. If that sounds like something you’d be interested in please consider joining (sorry about the shameless plug).

I wish you all the best for the weekend. If you have any questions about Yale-NUS or The Octant, don’t hesitate to shoot me an email at: david. chappell@u.yale-nus.edu.sg . I’ve had an amazing time at Yale-NUS and would love to talk to you about how incredible it is!

All the best, Dave Chappell Managing Editor April 17, 2016 | 1

NEWS

Design and Yale-NUS receive 3:1 matching for up to the first 10 years.

One example of this is stated in a NUS news release dated Jan. 17, 2012. NUS received S$12.9 million gifts from corporate and private donors led by Singapore Airlines and Singapore Exchange.

Out of this, S$11.9 million was directed to “support new initiatives at Yale- NUS” while $1 million went to NUS Global Asia Institute.

The Singaporean government’s matching brought total funding to S$49.6 million.

Nevertheless, not all gifts are eligible for enhanced matching and NUS’ Regulation 12, titled ‘Gifts to the University’, lays out the criteria. The gifts must be received for “the advancement of education”, not received “as part of fulfilling the Donor’s legal obligations”, not received “in return for a service rendered by the University”, and must not be “conditional upon the purchase of specific goods and/or services prescribed by the Donor”.

The Singaporean government also provides funding for YaleNUS’ operating expenses. Lewis explained, “All universities in Singapore get a certain amount per student… the exact amount varies. For example, we have 320 students, the government pays this amount to support the students.” Lewis noted that this amount may vary depending on whether the student is Singaporean or International. When asked about specific details of the amount, Yale- NUS spokesperson Fiona Soh commented that such details are rarely made public.

Aside from the Singaporean government, Yale-NUS also receives gifts from other sources. Yale-NUS accepts both endowed and expendable gifts, and its website explains the distinction as, “An endowed gift has a long- term impact on the future of the College as the principal is retained and invested. The returns earned will go towards supporting the gift purpose. An expendable gift has an immediate impact. The entire amount will be spent on the donor’s intended gift purpose.”

Lewis explained that the two main sources of seeking philanthropic support are NUS’ Development Office and YaleNUS’ Development Office. Lewis stated,“Our focus now… is to focus on major donors who can give us substantial amounts because we need to build up our endowment relatively quickly.”

Still, Yale-NUS eventually plans to launch Annual Giving to solicit financial support from staff, faculty, parents of students and ultimately alumni.

Andy Loo, Senior Associate Director of Yale-NUS’ Development Office, commented, “Our priorities are financial aid (scholarships and study awards), academic support (professorships and fellowships) as well as student programmes (e.g. CIPE and DoS programmes).”At present, financial aid has been and continues to be the most popular gift category. In terms of future plans, the Office aims to raise S$100 million over the next few years.

When asked about Yale’s role, Soh responded, “Yale-NUS’ Development Office and Yale’s Office of Development are in contact with each other. If there are suitable donors, these will be recommended to the College accordingly.”

At present, Yale-NUS’ financial statements are reflected as part of the annual financial statements of NUS. According to NUS 2 | April 17, 2016

Giving Reports, Yale-NUS has raised approximately S$11 million, S$24 million and S12.5 million for Financial Years 2011, 2012 and 2013 respectively. The total gifts received from donors, not including matching grants, add up to approximately S$47.5 million.

The third source of funding for Yale-NUS comes from tuition fees paid by students. The annual tuition fee for 2015 is S$18,000 for Singapore citizens, S$25,200 for Permanent Residents and S$36,000 for International students. However, the fee for Permanent Residents and International students reflects a tuition subsidy by the Singaporean government, requiring them to work for three years for a Singapore-registered company if taken up.

Should they choose to decline the grant, students are required to pay an additional fee of S$16,800 per year.

Aside from funding, Yale-NUS also receives assistance from Yale and NUS in other aspects like faculty recruitment. “Yale faculty and administrative leaders have been active in helping to conceptualise the unique emphasis of the College on reframing the liberal arts for a more global context.” Soh remarked, “They have also participated directly in the recruitment of faculty and senior administrators and been openly enthusiastic about opportunities to bring back to Yale some of the curricular and extracurricular innovations in development at the College. In addition, many Yale faculty visit the College to teach.”

Initially, Yale and NUS played an important role in recruiting faculty for Yale-NUS. Charles Bailyn, Yale-NUS Dean of Faculty, stated, “In the first instance, before there were any Yale-NUS faculty, all the search committees consisted of equal numbers of Yale and NUS faculty.” This has gradually shifted toward comprising of more Yale-NUS faculty.

Formal programs that bring Yale and NUS faculty to Yale-NUS are also in place. They can be “seconded” to Yale-NUS with the agreement of Yale-NUS and the home faculty and department at Yale and NUS respectively. According to Lewis, the salaries and associated costs of Visiting Professors and staff are covered by Yale-NUS. Yale-NUS students also have the opportunity to study at Yale in New Haven for a semester, or participate in Yale’s study abroad programs. For instance, nine Yale-NUS students will be studying abroad at either Yale University or Yale in London next semester.

Soh added, “They can also participate in a variety of creative collaborative degree programs such as a concurrent BA/MA degree program with Yale’s School of Forestry.”

Yale-NUS welcomed its First Class in Fall 2013.

NEWS

Anastasia Vrachnos, Dean of Centre for International and Professional Experience at Yale-NUS, added that internship exchanges remain a future possibility as Yale-NUS students become upperclassmen and women. “Our counterparts [at Yale and NUS] have been incredibly welcoming and generous… CIPE works in very close collaboration and we have been very pleased when, even in these early stages of launching our programming, we’ve been able to create opportunities that interest and add value to the experiences of Yale and NUS students as well,” Vrachnos commented.

Vrachnos stressed that Yale-NUS also welcomes Yale students for a semester-long exchange once the Yale-NUS campus opens, and potential initiatives that include hosting and housing Yale interns are in the works. Similarly, Yale-NUS CIPE opens opportunities for NUS students and previously hosted 5 NUS students in NGO Bootcamp, a 5-day training event centered on non-profits, organized by Yale-NUS last summer.

Upon graduation, Yale-NUS students also gain access to Yale’s and NUS’ alumni networks. Soh commented that Yale-NUS will be starting its own alumni association in due course.

Operation-wise, Yale-NUS’ Board of Governors comprises an equal number of Yale and Singapore representatives, who,

according to Yale-NUS’ Charter, “have all the authority necessary and appropriate for carrying out all duties and responsibilities in developing, managing and operating the College.” This includes approving the overall budget of Yale-NUS each year. The Chair and Singapore representatives are nominated by Singapore’s Ministry of Education while the Yale representatives are nominated by the Yale Corporation after consultation with the Ministry of Education.

This marriage between Yale and NUS may not last forever. The initial contractual agreement between Yale and NUS to form YaleNUS can be reviewed at fixed intervals and even withdrawn from.

Soh remarked, “Yale and NUS have a contractual partnership to set up the College. At fixed intervals within the contract both partners are given the opportunity to evaluate the partnership and the option to withdraw from it.” When asked about the details of the review period, Soh noted that details of contractual agreements are rarely made public. She added, “However, the strong support and commitment from both founding institutions to realize the success of the College is a positive sign of the strength and depth of their ties.”

At present, Yale-NUS has been up and running for three semester.

PM LEE: YALE-NUS MUST BE MORE

THAN CARBON COPY OF YALE Story Pham Le Vi, Contributing Reporter Photo credit to Public Affairs Originally Published on 12/11/15

ale-NUS College has to adapt the Yale University liberal arts model to Asia in order for it to succeed, Singapore Prime Minister (PM) Lee Hsien Loong said at the Inauguration of the Yale-NUS College campus on Oct. 12.

While Yale University has been very successful in the American context, Yale-NUS cannot be a carbon copy of Yale, PM Lee said.

Many countries face similar social and economic challenges but are not converging on a single socio-political model, he said. Thus, Yale-NUS needs a “curriculum and a college ethos that responds to [its] regional context”, taking into account “different natural endowments, different historical experiences, different geopolitical circumstances, different social structures, cultures and values.”

PM Lee also stressed the importance of an experiential education based in Asia. Yale-NUS graduates have to possess “not just a theoretical and intellectual understanding [of Asia] on paper, but actual experience living in Asia and interacting with students from this region and outside,” he said. “They can be effective working in these countries and helping them to change and to adapt to a rapidly changing world.”

PM Lee also highlighted the diversity of students at Yale-NUS who come from five different continents. A Yale-NUS education would give Singaporean graduates “a cosmopolitan exposure while strengthening their roots in Singapore”. For international graduates, he hoped that they would remain part of Singapore’s “extended family”.

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PM Lee, Co-Acting Education Minister Ong Ye Kung and the three presidents of Yale, NUS and Yale-NUS launching the Yale-NUS campus.

He contextualized Yale-NUS College as part of the government’s attempt to grow and diversify the tertiary education sector in Singapore. PM Lee stressed the importance of developing institutions with “different foci, different characters and different roles”. Along with other new universities such as the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD), Yale-NUS provides another pathway for Singapore students to explore and chase their aspirations, he said.

The Inauguration was also attended by Acting Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) Ong Ye Kung and college presidents from educational institutions worldwide, including Yale President Peter Salovey and National University of Singapore April 17, 2016 | 3

NEW/FEATURES

(NUS) President Tan Chorh Chuan.

The two parent institutions also presented gifts to Yale-NUS. Yale presented a bronze statue of Nathan Hale, an American Revolutionary soldier from Yale College Class of 1773. Mr. Salovey said that Hale’s courage and dedication exemplified the founding spirit of Yale-NUS. The gift is a symbol of Yale’s “enduring dedication to NUS partners and to Yale-NUS College”, he wrote in the event booklet.

NUS’ gift, titled Spirit of the Explorer, is a Chinese ink painting

depicting a monumental landscape with different paths. Mr. Tan said the painting is meant to celebrate the bold spirit behind the partnership between NUS and Yale and the trailblazing journey of Yale-NUS. In his speech, President Pericles Lewis thanked College benefactors and staff for their contributions to the college. “The College has not sprung from the ground without great effort,” he said.

SAGA #12-101: A VIBRANT COMMUNITY Home is where you’re comfortable being yourself. [From left to right] Aieshah, Chris and Lauren.

Story by Nicholas Lua, Features Editor Picture credit to Serena Quay Originally Published on 5/4/16

n her spare-room-turned-art-studio, Lauren Seaman shows me her latest art project. Careful black-and-white drawings of somewhat eerie humanoids reflecting her latest interest in cartoons, fill half the canvas. The other half is raw, spontaneous energy: an abstract orange explosion that looks like cakes of lava.

She created the effect by using “tons of glue and wood shavings and set[ting] it on fire”.

A pop—we turn around. Christopher Mulvey stands in the doorway, toting a Nerf gun. Now Lauren is showing me her Strawberry earmuffs—and shrieks. Out in the hallway, Chris and Aieshah Arif both wield Nerf guns, laughing like crazy. More pops and whistles. Lauren and I edge into an open room, taking cover.

For the rare few who don’t know them, Aieshah, Chris and Lauren aren’t students. They are Dean’s Fellows (DFs).

These three Saga DFs—two Americans and a Singaporean— share a suite designed for six people. Living among the student

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4 | April 17, 2016

body is part of their role. Together with the other DFs, the trio serve as mentor-advisors to students and help encourage vibrant community life in Yale-NUS College. A tour of their “Nerd Room”, art studio and personal spaces revealed that their mission to encourage vibrancy extends to the lives they lead and the suite they live in. In the latest installment of The Octant’s suite profiles, we pay a visit to DF Suite #12-101.

The cosmopolitan influences are clear here. Textiles are the name of the game. Sofas, rooms and walls are decorated with cloths of varying origin and personal meaning. Next to Lauren’s bed hangs a vibrant orange cloth with drips of lighter hues in the style of Jackson Pollock. It was a gift from her cousin, who is now a designer. Aieshah’s bed looks like a Persian divan, her patterned carpet to match. I note Chris’ Christmas ornament, hanging on the window at the end of the corridor. “My mother made this,” he says, “it’s a Singapore Sling and a Merlion. She makes a Christmas ornament every year … And she sews whatever I’m doing [that year] on the other side.” Indeed, it reads “Chris / Yale-NUS /

Chris: “This is the first time I’ve ever had a bed big enough for me. In my entire life, since I was full-grown.”

FEATURES Dissatisfied with your suitemates’ toilet habits? Consider this rainbow-and-unicorn solution.

Dean’s Fellow”.

This suite also has other touches of the whimsical. The three insist I take a look inside their toilet cubicle. Not quite sure what to expect, I am pleasantly amused to find a page from a unicorn coloring book pasted on the wall. “Unicorns don’t replace the toilet paper roll,” it reads. Aieshah explains it serves as a reminder to everyone to refill the toilet paper when it runs out. A communal initiative, the public service announcement was originally a page from Chris’ tastefully colored unicorn coloring book, a gift to him from Lauren.

I notice their nameplates. Rightly, I see Chris’ name on the door of his room. Aieshah’s nameplate, meanwhile, is stuck on the entrance to the shower cubicle. Apparently because she takes really long showers. Lauren’s nameplate is pasted on the front of the toilet door. I make it a point not to ask why.

The three DFs have clearly made a home of their suite. In addition to personalizing their rooms and common area, they have converted the spare rooms to other purposes. Aside from Lauren’s art studio, the three have what they affectionately call “The Nerd Room”, where Aieshah and Chris have study tables

for doing work. It is also home to their suite dinosaur. “Turn him on, turn him on,” Chris excitedly tells the other two. Dino remains unresponsive. Cries of disappointment from the others, myself included. Dino’s batteries are dead. “Sorry, I’m sorry—I should have prepared,” says Chris.

Their last spare room is currently a pantry. I see cups, a full-size fridge and two bookshelves loaded with breakfast cereals, cookies and chips. Suddenly I am aware of how close the time is to dinner.

Aieshah offers me a cup of Korean corn tea and something out of her cookie selection. “Do you want the shortbread? I’ve been trying to find an excuse to open [the packet],” she says. They’re delicious.

The homeliness of their suite encourages visits from guests.

Earlier this semester and the last, the DFs invited students over to their suite for tea parties. Occasionally, they also invite the other DFs for food and drink.

The time left for entertaining, though, is growing short.

Chris will be heading to Yale University for graduate studies in Anthropology. In their post-DF lives, Lauren and Aieshah hope to continue their work at Yale-NUS in other capacities.

Now that’s a well-stocked pantry.

April 17, 2016 | 5

FEATURES

MIDNIGHT MENU FOR THE HELPLESS AND HUNGRY Story by Nicole Lim, Contibuting Reporter | Picture credit to Rachel Johanna Lim | Originally Published on 3/11/15

esperate calls for Indomie in the middle of night on Facebook have been popping up all too frequently and have almost become the hallmark of college life. However, resorting to instant noodles in Singapore, with its vibrant supper culture, seems almost criminal. The Octant has hunted down the best late-night dining options around campus, and we show you how you can get your fix, sometimes even without moving your feet.

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Wah Chee Tze Char A hot favorite amongst Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) students and National University of Singapore students, this tze-char stall, or Chinese “cook and fry” stall, is well-known for its Salted Egg Yolk Squid ($12) with its creamy liquid sauce, Cereal Prawn ($15), Prawn-Paste Chicken ($8), as well as its unlimited supply of rice. To beat the queues, simply ring them up in advance to place your order before heading down in either Bus 33 or 196 and alighting three stops later.

5 Dover Crescent #01-02 Dover Court Singapore 130005 Opening hours: 11 am-11.30 pm daily

Al Amaan Restaurant Al Amaan is one of the most popular supper options on campus, and with good reason too. Not only does it deliver the food right to your lift lobby (with a delivery charge of $2), but it also serves a wide variety of cuisine, from Indian, Pakistani, Thai, Western, to Vegetarian. Its must-try dishes include its Butter Chicken ($7), Pattaya Maggi Noodles ($5.50) and Cheese Fries ($4). Don’t forget to get a Milo Dinosaur ($2.50) on the side to have a sweet finish to your meal! Delivery waiting times are usually between 60 to 90 minutes on a weekday night, but if you can’t wait that long, then simply take Bus 188 along Clementi Road and alight four stops later.

12 Clementi Road, Singapore 129742 Opening Hours: 11 am-3 am daily 6777 0555

ABC Brickworks Market and Fo

Think durian puree on top of mango and shaved ice. Not a fan of worry, neither was I, but I was completely won over by this ingen Gangster Ice ($2.50), with the perfect match of sweet meets tangy. Ano Jin Dessert stall is their Power Chendol ($1.50), where coconut-infus in thick Gula Melaka syrup. Looking for something savory? Try Yi Sh meat at Fatty Cheong, and Western food at Wow Wow West. To get t 15 stops later.

6 Jalan Bukit Merah, Singapore 150006 Jin Jin Dessert: #01-20, 12 pm-12 am daily, 94788733 Yi Sheng Hokkien Mee: #01-13, 3 pm-10.45 pm, closed on Wednes Fatty Cheong: #01-120, 11 am-8.30 pm, closed on Thursdays Wow Wow West: #01-133, 11 am-9 pm, closed on Sundays 6 | April 17, 2016

ood Centre

f the King of Fruits? Don’t nious dessert aptly named other popular option at Jin sed shaved ice is drenched heng Hokkien Mee, roasted there, take Bus 196 and alight

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FEATURES

Holland

Village

Holland Village is a popular destination amongst young adults and expatriates looking for good food and a place to unwind. If you can’t get enough of the thrill of slurping up the soup of Xiao Long Baos (soup dumplings) without breaking their delicate skin, head over to Crystal Jade’s free-flow Xiao Long Bao buffet ($19.80++ to $25.90++) to hone your skills. Prefer a spicy thrill? Join the queue at Nakhon Kitchen, which serves up authentic Thai fare like Phad Thai ($4) and Tom Yum Goong ($6) at pocket-friendly prices. To get to Holland V, simply alight one stop after Buona Vista MRT on the Circle Line.

Crystal Jade Xiao Long Bao 241/241A Holland Ave. Singapore 278975 Opening Hours: 11 am-11 pm (Sun-Thurs); 10.30 am-11.40 pm (Fri-Sat) 6463 0968 Nakhon Kitchen 27A Lorong Liput Singapore 277738 Opening Hours: 12 pm-3 pm, 5.30pm-10 pm daily 6469 6862

IKEA

(Alexandra)

Apart from its modern furniture, Ikea also brings many Singaporeans hoping for a Swedish Meatball fix ($8.50 for 15 pcs). (Remember how they went for 10c a piece in 2013?) Apart from their all-time favorite, be sure to also try their Chicken Wings ($7.50 for 6 pcs), Daim Cake ($3.50), and their self-serve Ice-cream Cones ($0.50) at the checkout counter! To get there, simply take Bus 33 and alight nine stops later.

317 Alexandra Rd Singapore 159965 Opening Hours: 10 am-11 pm 6786 6868

April 17, 2016 | 7

ARTS

DETAILING THE DISTINCT ARCHITECTURE OF YALE-NUS Story David Chiai, Arts Editor

Photo credit to Pelli Clarke Pelli Architect Originally Published on 3/11/15

n July 2010, Yale-NUS College’s parent institutions—Yale University and the National University of Singapore (NUS)— posed a challenge to Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects and Forum Architects: “to design a residential liberal arts college contextualized in Asia in the 21st century.” Five years later, Yale-NUS students now live in their solution.

According to the design brief, Yale-NUS had to hybridize the Greek Academy tradition, with architectural sensibilities of the 21st century and of Asia. “Much like the educational mission of the College, the architecture of Yale-NUS is keenly attuned to its antecedents and committed to the ideas and responsibilities of today,” Fred Clarke, senior principal of Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, said. Indeed, this fusing of tradition and innovation from the East and West eventually led to the distinctive features of the campus.

Part of the challenge was approached by finding common elements of tradition between academies in the East and West.

From the West, the architects focused on the integrated living and learning Greek tradition as seen at Oxford, Cambridge, and Yale. While for the East, the architects studied India’s Nalanda University and the Hanoi’s Temple of Literature architectural sensibilities.

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Stoas, Courtyards and Sky Gardens “One of the common elements that existed is the idea of the stoa and the courtyards,“ Mariko Masuoka, principal for academic projects and large-scale civic projects at Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, said. In both Asia and the West, courtyards, highlighted by colonnades, form nested academic communities that facilitate living and learning.

Yale-NUS takes this one step further. The courtyards at YaleNUS interweave exterior and interior spaces to support the pedagogy of the college. Like the old tradition, the three residential colleges are animated around courtyards with processional entrances, sun and rain-screened colonnades and roof forms with detailed eaves.

Sense of intimacy and belonging According to the July 2012 campus design brief, “residential colleges will serve as the social ‘home’ of the students, providing a sense of belonging that continues long after they complete their education.” This has led to a network of public and private courtyards interlaced with gates in and out of the residential colleges. “[The openings] are enclosed in such a way that they form a secondary courtyard within a network of courtyards,” Wong Chin Wah, Associate Director of Forum Architects, said.

The choice to limit the number of openings into University Town (UTown) was deliberate to supplement the sense of belonging within the College. The sense of familiarity is supported by the visual transition from private to public. Visual cues such as sky gardens, gates, and residential college courtyards aid in the publicprivate separation therein facilitating the sense of intimacy.

President Pericles Lewis said he liked how the courtyards and open passageways allow students to see one another from different sides of the building and engage more frequently.

Merging the Five-Foot Way and the New Haven Grid

Beyond a philosophical challenge, a huge part of the challenge is physical. The undulating topography of a 62,000-square-meter golf course caused problems in creating naturally ventilated walkways that connected the interior and exterior. The solution was inspired by the five-foot way vernacular of Singapore and urban grid structure of New Haven. The five-foot way found in many Singaporean shop houses was adopted into Yale-NUS to encourage pedestrian movement between buildings. Unlike the curviness of UTown, Yale-NUS is different in that it is in a grid structure, said Jane Jacobs, Director of the Urban Studies division at Yale-NUS. Distinctive Woodwork and Traceries The design brief also wanted the campus to “offer a special environment that overlays cultures and traditions.” The architects of Yale-NUS have gone out of their way to ensure the distinctiveness of every residential college—in its detail and materiality. The tropical Singaporean climate allowed for the sunand rain-screened colonnades to create unique designs for each residential college. Each dining hall showcases vaulted ceilings with personalized wood articulations.

The materials used in each college are different: peach wood is used in Saga, cherry wood in Elm and teak in Cendana. These subtle expressions can be found in dining halls, common lounges, and butteries. Each furniture carries with it a cultural precedence that is either Western, Asian, or a hybridity of both. The precast concrete forming the exterior facade of the College contains patterned metalwork that differ by residential college. The Performance Hall resembles halls at Yale, and is clad in cherry wood commonly found in the Northeast America. The backdrop of the hall compresses the wood articulations of the dining hall ceilings of the residential colleges.

Horizontal to Vertical Typology A distinctive departure from the horizontality of low rise residential colleges at Yale, Yale-NUS has invented a new vertical April 17, 2016 | 9

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typology for the residential college system. Student housing and faculty apartments are vertically stacked onto faculty offices, dining halls, butteries and classrooms. This verticality could be traced back to the density of buildings in Singapore. Unlike Singaporean public housing, condominiums, and colleges at UTown, the towers at Yale-NUS are slender to allow for natural ventilation, said Tan Kok Hiang, Founding Director of Forum Architects. In an attempt to replicate the entryways at Yale, he added, each tower is separated into neighborhoods housing about 30 to 40 students.

The outdoor stairway within each neighborhood serve the social purpose of drawing people together.

Cluster Skyscrapers and Syncopated Skyline Towers mark the presence of an institution in the skyline, another commonality in the East and West. At Yale, the collegiate gothicstyle Harkness tower, situated between Branford and Saybrook College, is extracted into more detail as it reaches the top. YaleNUS takes on a different ‘feel’. At Yale-NUS, the cluster of mini skyscrapers deconstructs the Harkness tower and subtle sculptural tops celebrate the towers meeting the sky. A lot of thought is put into the way in which the building ends, said Mr. Clarke. Unlike the Petronas Twin Towers, another architectural project by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, the towers at Yale-NUS are lit from above instead of from below. “This is a new way to highlight the faces on top to give it more glow and body,” he added.

From Heaven to Earth At the main entrance, an inward-sloping roof of grand scale forms a square oculus that draws in a dramatic cascade of rainwater into a large circular reflecting pool below it. While also drawing attention to the ecological features of the College and of tropical rainfall, the oculus is a sculptural contribution to YaleNUS. Philosophically loaded, the oculus is a playful reversal. In Chinese symbolic tradition, circles refer to Heaven and squares refer to the Earth. At Yale-NUS, this symbology is reversed—the Heaven is brought down into the circular reflecting pool while the Earth is brought up. Rain, in many Asian cultures, is also a symbol of wealth and wisdom, said Ms. Masuoka. A highly refined piece of engineering, the inward-sloping roof modulates intense rain by funneling water in and through the square oculus.

Learning Landscape Throughout the design process, “a learning landscape” has been a slogan that has stuck with Lekker Architects, the firm responsible for the landscaping of Yale-NUS. That slogan served a double meaning: it is a landscape in which people learn, but it is also a landscape for learning, said Joshua Comaroff, co-founder of Lekker Architects. The landscape served the educational purpose of introducing the larger social and historical context of biodiversity around the region. The elliptical courtyards at Yale are adapted, with a wide range of regional equatorial plant species.

Within the lush landscape of the campus green lie six heritage 10 | April 17, 2016

trees—one of which is the Margaritaria indica, the only tree of its kind in Singapore. The Ecopond plays the role of filtering water runoff at UTown. Joshua Comaroff estimates that about 11% of University Town rainwater runoff is filtered at the Ecopond.

Reinforcing the distinctive features of each residential college, each courtyard is landscaped along a theme. The Saga courtyard is planted with species that are religiously significant in local and regional cultures such as the plumeria rubra, melaleuca cajaputi, often found in Hindu temples. The Elm courtyard contains palms and cycads, blending nicely with ferns that echo and stitch into the larger UTown landscape. Palms were also planted practically to avoid damaging the large utility cable that runs underneath the Elm courtyard. Finally, the Cendana courtyard is planted with species that contain culinary or medicinal values in regional cultures, including nutmeg, neem trees, and pandan, ginger, and curry plants.

A tribute to its ecological features—from biodiversity to architectural innovation—the College received the Greenmark Platinum Award from the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) in May 2013.

A Design of Learning and for Learning Ultimately, the project of Yale-NUS was both a design in which people learned, but also a design for learning. The collaboration between Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects and Forum Architects reflect the academic mission and foundation the College. “Designing Yale-NUS is one of the most significant projects in education and for education in the 21st century,” Fred Clarke said.

Indeed, the confluence of architecture and cultural pressures that one finds at Yale-NUS pushes boundaries, embraces intersections, and echoes its context. “The campus is not simply a mash-up of architectural elements but rather a unique response to context,” said Ms. Masuoka. In both its process and product, the design of Yale-NUS is attuned to its antecedents and committed to the ideas and responsibilities of the 21st century. Openness to East-West hybridity and the balancing of tradition and innovation have resulted to a distinctive solution to a unique architectural challenge—all that’s left is the community within to enrich it with narratives.

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ART AROUND CAMPUS

Memories (2007) by Jerry Morada, Saga College Office Story by Nicholas Lua, Features Editor Photo credit to Serena Quay Originally Published on 9/2/16

ander around Yale-NUS College enough and you are sure to have noticed the artworks displayed around campus. Why are they here? Who contributed them?

Where are they located?

The artworks, a collection of Southeast Asian pieces and American pieces, were granted to the college by individuals associated with Yale University. Hogi Hyun, Yale alumnus ’85 and Founder and Director of Abacus Capital loaned the Southeast Asian works to Yale-NUS. Christine Pillsbury,daughter of Edmund P. Pillsbury, who was the founding director of the Yale Centre of British Art and curator of the Yale Art Gallery, donated the four American works. Ms. Pillsbury also curated all the works.

Mr. Hyun, the owner of one of the most extensive Southeast Asian art collections, envisioned the loaning of his artworks as a way of contributing to the narrative of Yale-NUS, and shaping the history and legacy of the college. At Yale-NUS, students have an “exceptional opportunity to define what the liberal arts mean.”

“We’d like to see … very challenging, productive leaders … able to integrate cultures and distinctly bring the world together a little bit more than it is today, by creating understanding.” he said.

His goal with the pieces was to achieve a rich collection of artworks across different countries and through different time periods. Good art, he says, serves as an emotional reference point for a person in time and place. Exposing students to such pieces on campus, without necessarily studying them in a formal way, is a “very powerful part of the educational experience” in college.

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He hoped students would resonate with the artworks and recall having contemplated them when exposed to similar pieces later in life.

Ms. Pillsbury inherited the American pieces from her late father, and donated them to Yale-NUS in his memory. The artists are either deceased or currently working in the Philadelphia, New York, and Connecticut areas. “All of them had either a tenuous or direct link with Yale,” she said.

The philosophy behind her arrangement of the artworks ensures that the individual pieces enhance the spaces they are located in. “I’m very much driven by aesthetics,” she said.

Students Keziah Quek ’17, and Lishani Ramanayake ’18 are working with Ms. Pillsbury to create a catalogue that will explain

Ladies of Peace (Year Unknown) by Astari, CIPE Office

OPINION

IN (WHAT?) ASIA, FOR THE WORLD. story Timothy Lim, Guest Columnist Photo credit to Adlin Zainal Originally Published on 17/11/15

he last line of the school’s vision statement, “In Asia, for the World” is a line we are all well-versed with. It adorned the walls of Residential College 4, while our admissions booklets continue to proudly state what kind of school it is trying to sell. We have all heard it one too many times at speeches that have delayed our dinners at formal ceremonies. Dare I add that even the upperclassmen have grown tired of using it for drinking games, for fear of alcohol poisoning?

The vision statement is a good sign of what our founders “from two great universities” intended for the school: a grandiose statement for grandiose ambitions. However, three years since its first class of students were admitted, there is a question that remains to be answered: In what Asia is the school located in, both in the geo-political sense as well as the intellectual sense? There is no doubt that this institution is “for the World”, with a community of students and faculty that thus far hail from 40 over countries; but what does it mean to be a globally-minded institution that is “in Asia”?

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s recent speech at the inauguration of the Yale-NUS campus talked about how YaleNUS had to be more than “a carbon copy of Yale in New Haven”, and instead should look to adapting the Yale model to Asia. He hoped that Yale-NUS would “be relevant to students from other Asian countries, as well as other international students who wish to understand Asia.”

Nevertheless, how much does the school understand about its place in Asia, let alone understand Asia? For all the Prime Minister’s talk about adaptation in Asia, let us not forget where Yale-NUS is; not at the crossroads of this fabled “Asia”, but rather the crossroads of three distinct groups of civilizations: the Indus Valley, Alam Melayu (the Malay World), and of course, China. While these three groups have shaped and controlled a good part of Asia as we know today, they are but three of many other civilizations that have shaped the history of this continent. If we wish to live up to our vision statement, to even begin to understand what Asia really is, then we need to recognize this limitation of where we are in Asia: a country born of the migrations of civilisations and born of colonial actions, something uniquely Singaporean and unrepresentative of this continent of conquerors and the conquered. After all, no one would take it seriously if an institution opened in New York City, and then proclaimed itself “in the Americas, for the World”; but just because the paint has dried on our own walls, does not mean we have to stop taking ourselves seriously.

For one, we can begin to realize the diversity among our own students: 20 different Asian territories are represented, with multiple cultures and linguistic groups in between them. Furthermore, some among us have flown for hours to come experience Asia, but let’s not pretend that Asia begins in India and ends in China, with Singapore in between. We tout the Common Curriculum as a meeting of the Eastern and Western canons, but what about

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No one would take it seriously if an institution opened in New York City and proclaimed itself “in the Americas, for the World”

everything else in between? As an example, the Class of 2017 read Indonesian author Armjin Pane’s Shackles, but in subsequent years it has disappeared from the Literature & Humanities’ reading list.

Sure, the Centre for International and Professional Experience has provided opportunities for many of us to discover the world from Week 7 trips to summer travel grants; but how much of it has been devoted to understanding Asia through its distinctive parts, instead of Asia as Greater China and not-China? This of course is not to say there’s anything wrong with wanting to study China and Chinese, but to solely focus on China (which in itself is anything but a homogenous whole) at the expense of the wealth of experiences of the Chinese here and the region would be a shame.

Singapore may not be at the crossroads of Southeast Asia, but it’s a good enough start; being “in Asia” is a reduction that cannot possibly capture the diversity of Southeast Asia, let alone the wider continent.

At the end of the day, we, from administrators and faculty to students, need to ask ourselves this: at the end of our time here, when we walk out of the ivory tower for the last time, what do our students really know about Asia? It would be a shame if all we could do is describe the political state of China and the curiosities of hutongs in Beijing, but when asked about Singapore, the only image beyond our four walls conjured up is that of Holland Village, or Changi Airport; dare we be asked about its neighbors?.

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DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of The Octant.

Questions can be directed to yncoctant@gmail.com

April 17, 2016 | 11

OPINION

ONLY ONE YALE-NUS Students hanging out at the Saga buttery.

story Matthew Ware, Guest Columnist Photo credit to David Zhang Originally Published on 15/9/15

n his interview with The Octant (“Yale-NUS to Open a Fourth Residential College in Four Years”), Governing Board member Roland Betts suggested that “there aren’t really good liberal arts models in Asia”, and that “if we find, say 10-15 years from now, there are seven or eight new universities in Asia that copied the model of Yale-NUS, that would be a great success.” I find this view troubling, because it suggests that Yale-NUS College is an educational export, a product to be expanded with a recipe and brand, and somehow represents the first “good” model for liberal arts in Asia.

First, in his assertion that there are no good models for liberal arts in Asia, Mr. Betts fails to recognize historical traditions like the Chinese Academies (Shuyuan), as well as modern and indigenous institutions like Yonsei Underwood College in Korea. While studying liberal arts is currently not as common in Asia as it is in the United States, the notion that Yale University is responsible for importing liberal arts scholarship to an entire region of the world is ludicrous. To the contrary, there is a fairly strong argument to be made that liberal arts began in Asia. A vast system of academies (Shuyuan) was established in China during the Tang Dynasty in 725 when nothing similar existed in Europe. The Shuyuan eschewed fixed terms of study and degrees in favor of open inquiry and lifelong scholarship.

As a student of the Common Curriculum, I find it more than a little ironic that Mr. Betts believes “education is about to explode” on the continent that brought us Confucius, Valmiki, Gandhi, Sun Yat-Sen, and the Dalai Lama.

Second, it imagines higher education as a commodity, and our college as the first location of a franchise store, which can open cookie-cutter versions of itself in different places. This model is inherently unhinged from location and context; in its transnationalism it is ignorant to its surroundings. Yale-NUS, by this view, is not a local institution, so much as a generic, globalized institution which just happens to be based in Singapore.

I don’t often engage in the rhetoric of exceptionalism, and neither do I think that Yale-NUS is inherently fragile, even in its beginning stages. However, as a student, I do see another side to things. The lofty goal of the Common Curriculum to blend East and West isn’t as effortless as our promotional materials make it sound to be. It doesn’t just happen when you put Aristotle and

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Mencius in the same class—it involves difficult conversations about identity, privilege, and the legacy of colonialism. We aren’t a magic island of free speech and expression—liberalizing Singapore—as the Fareed Zakaria’s of the world would hope.

But precisely because we are not, no one takes those things for granted. We’ve had countless debates about the meaning and value of expression. And as much as we celebrate Yale-NUS as a place where people from different cultures, nationalities, and walks of life live and work peacefully together, we must also recognize this has not happened simply because we live in suites and eat in the same dining hall. It happens because students make tough choices about when to go home and when to stay. It happens because students have tough conversations about the meanings of apologies and forgiveness. It happens because everyone has to walk to the UTown Green together when the fire alarm goes off—again.

Sometimes I worry that Yale-NUS might become too much like an expatriate’s enclave when I hear American professors only cite examples from the US, or when international students say they mainly like Singapore because of their ability to take cheap, short flights to other places. But I don’t think it is, because much more often, I see international students who write complete translations of their Facebook posts in Chinese, or go everywhere with local friends from church, or eat late night meals of kaya toast and mee goreng in a buttery we renamed the Shiok Shack. That isn’t the end, but it’s a start. It’s a kind of connection you can’t copy, export, or commercialize, because it has to happen from the ground up.

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12 | April 17, 2016

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