M O N D A Y FEBRUARY 2, 2004
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD Volume CXXXIX, No. 4
An independent newspaper serving the Brown community since 1891
www.browndailyherald.com
Vranek ’04 remembered as dedicated to work, friends BY MERYL ROTHSTEIN
was very good. The entire room was packed,” he said. “But we also advertised on the (Daily) Jolt, we advertised by word of mouth, and we e-mailed our mailing list,” he added. “Some of our brothers are concerned our ads might be overlooked,” Bastien said. Meric said BSP has received mostly positive feedback from student organizations. “It’s the (savings in) manpower as well as the convenience of coming to one
Friends can only think of one thing that made Francisco Metha Vranek ’04 angry. Easy-going and energetic, Vranek would always laugh when others might get offended, friends say. That is, as long as they never went to the movies without him. When Vranek died last Sunday in a car accident in his hometown of Tenerife in the Canary Islands, he left behind friends touched by his dedication, compassion and enthusiasm for life — and the movies. A movie buff, Vranek served as his friends’ personal movie critic, recommending ones he thought they would like. Every weekend, he tried to drag friends to the movies with him; when he failed, he would sometimes watch two or three in a row by himself, friends said. Vranek was always up for anything and would encourage the same in his friends, “prodding” friends with chants of “Let’s go out!” until they gave in, said Alexandre Thiriez ’04. Or sometimes he’d bring the party inside, leaving champagne stains on the walls of his Buxton suite, Thiriez said. “He had so much energy that he would love to share it with people,” said Elena Esnaola ’04. Thiriez remembered foosball games with Vranek until 3 a.m., games loud enough to disturb the entire first floor of their dorm, he said. Though a champion foosball competitor, Vranek was less skilled at soccer, said Brice Neuman ’04. But that never stopped him from joining in matches with his housemates, he said. He loved mixing music on his computer, working out at the gym for hours each day and acting as the bouncer at Buxton
see TABLE-SLIPS, page 6
see VRANEK, page 7
Nick Neely / Herald
Patrick Clark ’07 browses through the newly instituted Brown Student Promotions’ table magazine during breakfast at the Ratty. Some students have complained that the new format is not a satisfactory substitute for the former table-slips.
Black History Month looks at higher education after integration BY ELISE BARAN
Carol Lee, professor of education and African American studies at Northwestern University and the founder of two African-centered schools in Chicago, will speak BLACK HISTORY at 7 p.m. tonight in MONTH • 2004 Salomon 101 to mark the beginning of Black History Month. Lee “has developed a theory of cultural modeling that provides a framework for the design and enactment of curriculum that draws on forms of prior knowledge that traditionally underserved students bring to classrooms,” according to her biography on Northwestern’s Web site. The theme this year is “Is this our Providence? Putting the master’s tools into whose hands.” Eldridge Gilbert ’05, who coordinated the activities for the month, said the theme is related to this year’s 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education. The theme is meant to raise questions about the accessibility into higher education for blacks since the decision, and is also meant to encourage students to explore the use of the tool of education see BHM, page 7
Some students dissatisfied with table-slip substitute BY JONATHAN ELLIS
Compared to the million-dollar Super Bowl commercials Sunday night, advertisements in the new Brown Events Magazine might seem insignificant. Yet the successor to table-slips is already raising a stir across campus. In publication only since Thursday, the magazine — with approval from Brown University Dining Services — has replaced table-slips in the University’s dining halls. While the quarter-page-sized leaflets used to cover tables, each table now receives one copy of BEM. BEM has a cardstock cover, full-page ads inside and quarter-page ads stapled to the back cover. “Students have noticed the magazine. We believe that the tables look better now,” said Beri Meric ’06, president of Brown Student Promotions, which publishes BEM. “Many students have commented on the fact that table-slips weren’t comfortable.” But some students are uncomfortable with the magazine. “This idea was foisted upon us,” said Adam Green ’05, concert manager for the University Chorus. BSP’s three main promises — that the magazine would be more effective, practical and environmentally friendly — were not fulfilled, he said. “The premise that it is more conducive to students reading it is false,” Green said. “The heavy cardstock and full pages means you have to use two hands to read it. I look around and nobody’s reading these things.” Marc Bastien ’06, a rush chair for the Zeta Delta Xi co-ed fraternity, said his house advertised an open mic night last weekend in the magazine. “Our turnout
University rewards some employees with merit-based bonuses BY ROBBIE COREY-BOULET
More than 200 University employees recently received merit-based bonuses on top of the flat salary increase awarded to employees prior to this academic year. The University awarded bonuses for exceptional performance, with amounts based on “the impact of accomplishment, results achieved and the time commitment involved,” wrote Vice President for Administration Walter Hunter in an e-mail to The Herald. “We provided bonuses to recognize and reward staff members whose extraordinary efforts contributed to the University in significant and meaningful ways,” he wrote.
see BONUSES, page 6
I N S I D E M O N D AY, F E B RUA RY 2 , 2 0 0 4 “Exchange Fields” allows visitors to break traditional gallery etiquette arts & culture, page 3
Dance, video and voice combine in RISD presentation of “Chopin and Me” arts & culture, page 3
Visiting econ professor tells audience coporate leaders’ responsibility to prevent fraud. campus news, page 5
This type of bonus differs from the salary increase of $900 awarded at the beginning of the fiscal year, which runs from July 1 to June 30, to all employees performing satisfactorily. That raise was originally intended for those employees earning less than $75,000 a year but was recently extended to all employees, Hunter wrote. Recipients of merit-based awards underwent a two-part process of performance appraisal. First, supervisors and department heads submitted written recommendations of staff members they wanted to be considered for a bonus. Committees of senior officers then made final evaluations of these recommendations.
TO D AY ’ S F O R E C A S T Ben Carmichael ’05.5 surveys a lit survey and deems it deconstructed column, page 11
Men’s basketball and hockey pull out exciting victories in overtime sports, page 12
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