F R I D A Y APRIL 15, 2005
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD Volume CXL, No. 50
www.browndailyherald.com
An independent newspaper serving the Brown community since 1891 ‘STAR’ STRUCK John Nagler ’07: Tasteless porno and political correctness actually on display in QA event’s ad campaign OPINIONS 7
SPIRIT ‘SIDE’ In ‘Closet,’ arcade-game design, striking dialogue make for powerful rumination on death A R T S & C U LT U R E 3
HOUSE RULES Track squads will stretch their legs at home Invitational this weekend, take on rivals and prep for Heps SPORTS 8
TODAY
TOMORROW
partly cloudy 53 / 33
mostly sunny 50 / 34
700 students to get storage vouchers
Students want U. to reconsider sign language program cuts
BY CHRISTOPHER CHON STAFF WRITER
BY STU WOO SENIOR STAFF WRITER
Jim Lipsky was taken aback in February when he found out that the American Sign Language program at Brown was being phased out. “One of the students who was participating in the program heard it from her instructor, and she passed it on to me,” he said through a sign language interpreter. What was especially surprising to Lipsky, the coordinator of ASL studies at Brown, was that he had not been informed that the University was even considering the cutback of the ASL program. When he found out that the Academic Priorities Committee, which is in charge of making curricular decisions, had been discussing the fate of ASL at Brown, he was already too late. The committee had made a final decision to reduce the program. “I was extremely disappointed, because ASL is an extremely popular program,” Lipsky said. “People enjoy the language itself, and it has rich culture associated with it. … It’s really incredible.” But now, on the eve of Disabilities Awareness Week, students on campus are mobilizing in an attempt to raise awareness of the cutback and to keep the ASL program on campus.
tions at Jo’s as well as other Brown dining facilities. Jackie Henry ’06, the student general manager, said she has noticed improvements as a result of the added staff. “There are more people that students can go to if they notice someone stealing,” she said, but despite an increased professional management presence, theft at Jo’s continues to be a problem. Jo’s perennially suffers a greater theft problem than other Brown dining facilities like The Gate or the Ivy Room. Henry believes that the primary cause of the disparity is simply that Jo’s is the most popular of Brown’s retail dining units, and thus the most crowded, making smuggling food easier. “The problem is bad enough that it affects the morale of many of my staff,” said Ann Lawrence, associate director of dining services. In an e-mail to The Herald, Lawrence explained that it is difficult to control theft at Jo’s because the employees are students and many of them are not comfortable confronting their peers. “Tackling theft at Jo’s is a perennial challenge and we continually try to empower our employees to reprimand customers who attempt to steal,” she wrote. “It frustrates me that they are put in the position of having to do so in the first place,” she added. Lawrence suggested that the higher theft rates at Jo’s can also be attributed to differences in the arrangement of the space. “The openness enables crowds to gather, and crowds make it easier for individuals to conceal hidden goods or to eat without paying,” she said. Jo’s hours, too, are different from other dining locations, contributing to the problem. It is open longer and later than the Ivy
Pressed by an Undergraduate Council of Students ad hoc committee, the University has decided to spend approximately $40,000 to subsidize summer storage for students just one year after abandoning its previous on-campus storage program. Under the new plan, beginning this year, 700 students will receive $50 vouchers to use with the company Campus Shipping and Storage. The University will also cover additional costs, including labor, associated with storing boxes. Students can sign up for vouchers at the Brown Student Agencies office in Lower Faunce Monday at 10 a.m. The first 700 students to sign up will receive vouchers. Campus Shipping and Storage will come to campus near the end of the semester to provide boxes for students. A $50 voucher is good for one 4.66-cubic foot box, or any variation of smaller, cheaper boxes, according to the company’s Web site. The new storage plan is not without its shortcomings, said Brian Bidadi ’06 and Ben Creo ’07, the leaders of the ad hoc committee. Unlike the University’s previous on-campus storage program, the new plan does not provide for every student, vouchers are limited to $50 and students’ belongings are not stored on campus. “Everyone involved understands this is the first step,” Bidadi said. “We really lobbied to bring (storage) back this year,” he added. “Though it has some limitations, this is positive. Last year, there was zero aid for storage. To go from nonexistent to the administration offering $40,000 from their budget at the end of the calendar year is rare.” If student demand for the vouchers is high and response after the summer is positive, Creo said he hopes the University will expand the program next year to offer vouchers to all students. According to the University, no more than 1,700 students used free storage in a given year during the previous on-campus program, Creo said. “It doesn’t help as many students as we want it to help right now,” Creo said. “But if we get enough support and 700 students sign up — which I’m confident of — we will look to get free storage for all students by next summer. This is something UCS will fight for.” Director of Residential Life Richard Bova first suggested the idea of University subsidies to the ad hoc committee. Bidadi and Creo, who are both UCS presidential candidates, explored the option. After weeks of research and discussions with several administrators, including Bova and Interim Dean for Campus Life Margaret Klawunn, regarding issues of health, safety and liability, the subsidy plan was finalized and presented for University approval. Earlier in the semester, the ad hoc committee wanted to use storage pods
see THEFT, page 4
see STORAGE, page 4
Nick Neely / Herald
The University intends to move the American Sign Language program to Continuing Studies.
Current ASL program ‘deficient’ The APC decided in February to cut back the ASL program at Brown. The program, which currently consists of four classes — SI 10, 20, 30 and 40 — see ASL, page 5
Jo’s theft rate highest of Brown dining facilities BY HANNAH MILLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER
From pilfered popsicles to stolen sandwiches, for years, Josiah’s has been a target for theft. Despite sustained efforts on the part of management to fix the problem, Jo’s continues to struggle to combat shoplifting. Two new professional managers were hired this year in order to oversee opera-
Arts festival to take over Main Green The arrival of spring has perennially signified the Main Green’s transformation into a space for outdoor reading, protesting, lounging and recreating. On Saturday from noon to 4 p.m., the traditional warm weather functions of the Green and surrounding buildings will be expanded to house diverse modes of artistic expression during the Student Creative Arts Council’s first annual arts festival. Festival chair Corey Solinger ’05 said that the festival will be composed of outdoor and indoor events. Students will be able to enjoy three live bands, an Asian drumming circle, a silk screening station, sidewalk art and a mural in progress outside. Space in Prison for the Arts and Creative Expression (SPACE), a Swearer Center for Public Service program offering creative arts workshops in prisons, will also conduct a fundraising bake sale. Festival-goers can head indoors to Sayles Hall to participate in creative writing workshops in fiction, theater and poetry. Solinger said that some student art may be displayed in Petteruti Lounge, which is serving as a registration center for the weekend’s Ivy Film Festival.
The arts festival was originally planned for the fall, but organizational difficulties forced its postponement until the return of good weather in the spring, Solinger said. The council hopes that the open space of the Main Green will foster interaction between the many disciplines that are defined as “creative arts,” she said. The council’s defining goals are to increase visibility of and participation in the arts at Brown, and as such the festival is incorporating participatory events. The writing workshops, hosted by graduate students in English, will include spontaneous writing exercises and do not assume that students will arrive with a work in progress. The entire campus community is encouraged to contribute to the mural on the Main Green and create a silk-screened product, Solinger said. The three bands scheduled to perform — The Good Days, The Trophy Wives and Cheap Labor — are all Brown student bands. Solinger said she hopes the festival will extend beyond showcasing Brown’s currently identified artists. “We hope (the festival) will excite students who don’t consider themselves as artists about the creative process,” she said. — Patrick Clark
Editorial: 401.351.3372 Business: 401.351.3269
195 Angell Street, Providence, Rhode Island
News tips: herald@browndailyherald.com