Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Daily

Herald

the Brown

vol. cxlvi, no. 70

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Summer programs raking in revenue

By Mark Raymond Senior Staff Writer

Summer programs run through the Office of Continuing Education brought in around $4 million for the University this summer, up from $2.9 million in summer 2010.

Over the past five years, the amount of revenue taken in by the University from summer programs has more than doubled, said Laurie Ward, director of finance and administration for continuing education. In summer 2007, the University received $1.95 million from the Office of Continuing Education’s summer programs.

Top administrators have been looking to identify additional revenue streams as part of an effort to

In lieu of textbooks, students lug costs

close the budget gap brought on by the 2008 financial downturn.

Expanded offerings in continuing education represent a key part of this plan.

“Our goal is to provide highquality, top-notch educational experiences,” said Robin Rose, senior associate dean for continuing education. “An additional objective is to be able to generate additional revenue for the University.”

Revenue from summer programs is divided between the Office of Continuing Education, which manages various precollege education programs, including Summer@Brown, and the University, Ward said. The University as a whole gets a greater share of the revenue than the

Herald file photo

continued on page 2

High school students participating in Summer@Brown flirt with college life on the Main Green. The program is generating more revenue for the University.

By kristina Fazzalaro Arts & Culture Editor

The Brown Concert Agency’s Fall Concert this Saturday will be an unprecedented event — and not necessarily because of the dubstepping talents of Starkey or the psychedelic strumming of Real Estate. The real surprise for students this time around is the ticket price: gratis, frei, free.

Arts & Culture

firm Moses and Afonso Mark Ryan and CEO of a Rhode Island nonprofit Michael Van Leesten.

State Sen. Bethany Moura, RCumberland and Lincoln, submitted the only ‘nay’ vote of the afternoon against Hunger.

“Making sure talented people are working in collaboration is very important as we go forward,” Chafee said at the hearing. “All

“As far as I know, it’s never been free,” said Gillian Brassil ’12, BCA booking chair, who referred to the Fall Concert as a “baby Spring Weekend.”

The Undergraduate Finance Board usually provides funding for the cost of the talent, Brassil said, and production costs are paid for by revenues from ticket sales. This year was supposed to be no different, but over the summer, the game plan changed.

BCA compiled a list of artists they were interested in bringing to campus and put the short list before the student body on BlogDailyHerald July 31, Brassil said.

The results revealed Tune-Yards,

continued on page 3

The Senate Corporations Committee approved Gov. Lincoln Chafee’s ’75 P’14 nominations to the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission at its hearing yesterday, greenlighting the roster for a vote by the full Senate Thursday.

Colin Kane, principal of the development firm Peregrine Group LLC, will serve as chairman of

the commission. The committee approved six other commission members: Adjunct Assistant Professor of Biotechnology Barrett Bready ’99 MD’03, Women and

city & state Infants Hospital nurse Barbara Hunger, art consultant Diana Johnson MA’71, President and CEO of Meeting Street School John Kelly, Principal at the law

continued on page 4

continued on page 2

U. explains academic code to int’l students

By Katrina Phillips Senior Staff Writer

International students were responsible for a disproportionately high number of academic code violations brought before the Academic Code Committee last academic year, prompting the University to improve the support and information provided to international students this year.

The committee’s report, released April 14, concluded that international students “are disproportionately likely to appear before the committee and to be found to have violated the academic code.”

The report showed that while nonAmerican citizens make up less than 10 percent of the student body, they represent nearly 20 percent of the appearances before the committee

What a Racket Women’s tennis prepares for Ivy League season sports, 6

spiels on the bus

last year.

Students in computer science courses account for the majority of academic code violations decided by the committee. The Department of Computer Science uses plagiarism detection software, which makes it easier for the department to identify instances of academic dishonesty.

The two findings might be connected, said Kathleen McSharry, associate dean for writing and dean for issues of chemical dependency and a case administrator for the committee. “I don’t think they’re actually violating the code more,” she said, but international students may be “disproportionately represented” in computer science courses.

But with only 57 cases reviewed by the committee last year, McShar-

Rachel Kaplan / Herald

continued on page 3

C-SPAN pulled into campus Tuesday after visiting Hope High School. The network is on a tour to familiarize students and the public with its coverage.

Unify

Seol ’14 defends collective bargaining Opinions, 11

weather

By Elizabeth Carr Senior Staff Writer

For a backpack containing “Grant’s Atlas of Anatomy,” “Junquiera’s Basic Histology” and “Bates’ Guide to Physical Examination and History Taking ,” Corey Spiro’s MD’15 bag is remarkably light. Combined, the books weigh less than 1.33 pounds — the e-books, that is.

This year for the first time, Alpert Medical School required every incoming first-year to purchase an iPad 2. The Med School has revised its curriculum to further incorporate tablet technology.

Administrators are encouraging first-years to use the iPads to read electronic versions of textbooks and take notes in class.

Some faculty are also piloting iPad use in three second-year pathophysiology classes.

First-years were required to buy iPad versions of several textbooks through Inkling, a California start-up. Combined, the cost for these e-books totalled $30 more than the cost of new print editions through Amazon — $150 more than the cheapest used versions. Combined with the iPad’s

inside

With cheap artists, Fall Concert goes free

I-195 commission set for Senate approval

By Sahil Luthra Senior Staff Writer

news....................2-9 editorial............10 Opinions.............11

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2 Campus News calendar Today

september 21

12 P.m.

ToMORROW

september 22

7:30 p.m.

Fall Career Fair,

Salvador Dali’s “Aliya: The Rebirth of

Multiple Locations

Israel” Opening Reception, Hillel

6 p.m.

7:30 p.m.

Shanghai Cinema Behind the

“No, you’re not crazy. It IS sexism,”

Scenes, Granoff Center

Salomon 202

menu SHARPE REFECTORY

VERNEy-WOOLLEY DINING HALL LUNCH Italian Sausage and Peppers Sandwich, Vegetable Strudel, Lemon Cookies

Polynesian Chicken Wings, Stir Fried Rice, Vegan Stir Fry Veggies with Tofu, Lemon Cookies DINNER Sustainable Baked and Breaded Pollock, Cheese Quesadillas with Sour Cream and Salsa

Chopped Sirloin with Mushroom Sauce, Pastito, Squash Rolls, Macaroon Bars

Sudoku

The Brown Daily Herald Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Free fall concert aims Summer to draw larger crowd program continued from page 1

Curren$y and Theophilus London as the student body’s top three choices.

Real Estate came in seventh, receiving only 40 votes out of 616.

Starkey was not listed on the poll — BCA had already booked him after last year’s positive reaction to the similar-sounding Stegosaurus.

Going down the list of acts, each one was either already booked or unable to make it to the concert, Brassil said. Curren$y, for example, recently broke his ankle, she said.

As a result, the combined cost for booking Real Estate and Starkey was much less than expected, Brassil said.

“We had only spent about half of our budget on talent,” she said.

UFB allotted $20,000 to pay for the acts this year. The organization considered trying to book a third act but decided against it to keep ticket prices down, Brassil said.

“We were like, great — tickets will only have to be five or seven dollars,” Brassil said. But then they thought, why not make it completely free?

And so the group approached UFB Chair Jason Lee ’12 and Vice Chair Mike Perchonok ’12 with

Daily

the Brown

Crossword

the idea of using the remaining budget to fund production in addition to the talent.

“They wanted to lower prices so more people would come,” Lee said, and UFB was on board. “We don’t want money to be a prohibitive factor” for students to attend events, he said.

It’s “worth it to have cheaper bands if it’s free,” Brassil said, citing the greater number of students who would come to the event and be exposed to lesser-known musical talents if cost were not a factor.

Based on student reactions, it was a very good call.

“Last year I paid money, and I hated it, so I wasn’t going to go this year,” said Becky Specking ’13. But now, because admission is free, she said she is likely to go.

“I have trouble forking over money for Spring Weekend,” added Kayleigh Butera ’13, so going to a smaller concert with lesserknown acts for a similar price was not high on her to-do list.

“When it’s free, I can make an appearance and then leave,” said Raquel Bryant ’15.

BCA would love to have another free Fall Concert, Brassil said.

UFB “didn’t want to set a precedent with this,” she said. But if this year goes well, she said, “who knows?”

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continues to grow continued from page 1

Office of Continuing Education, Ward said.

The proportion of funds given to the University has not altered in recent years, Ward said. The steady increase in revenue allocated to the University simply reflects the growth of the programs.

“We certainly work on trying to increase our number of students,” Ward said. “We have been successful in growing the programs each summer.”

This past year, the University welcomed around 3,300 high school students for its Summer@ Brown program, which allows high school students to live on campus and take classes.

The summer programs have been “enormously successful” and “beneficial for the students and for the University,” said Beppie Huidekoper, executive vice president for finance and administration. “Revenue has increased significantly over time.”

Despite concerns, the economic climate of the past few years has not diminished the growth of the University’s summer offerings, Ward said.

“Given the economic circumstances, we weren’t sure if we would be able to sustain the level of enrollment,” she said. But “we have been exceeding our targets.”

Beyond its current summer programs, the Office of Continuing Education plans to continue expanding its offerings to serve different populations and open new revenue streams for the University, according to Ward. She cited educational opportunities for adults as a potential area for expansion.

“We always look at other revenue streams without wanting to interfere with anything already happening at the University,” Ward said.

The University has reported plans to launch professional master’s degree programs, with instruction primarily taking place online, in 2012.

The Brown Daily Herald Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Campus News 3

Foreign Med students required to buy iPads student support expanded continued from page 1

continued from page 1 ry said the statistics may not even show actual trends.

The University has made changes to help international students in recent months, including creating a full-time position for a coordinator of English as a Second Language writing support. The coordinator position is currently held by Esther Boucher-Yip. Boucher-Yip hosts office hours in the Writing Center for non-native English speakers and is leading a series of writing workshops throughout the semester catered specifically to these students. The third workshop is titled, “Using sources in your essay.”

Students have mostly seen Boucher-Yip for general writing help so far, but she said she expects more focus on citations when students are assigned longer papers later in the semester.

The University revised International Orientation, which was mandatory for the first time this year, to include an information session on plagiarism.

International students are disproportionately represented in academic code violations because they are unaware of or do not understand American standards of academic honesty, McSharry said.

“The burden is on the University to help these students understand what it means to be a student in an American system.”

“Western notions of ownership of ideas by the individual are something that students from East Asian cultures in particular need to learn about,” she said. “In some Asian cultures today, being a good student means basically reproducing what authorities have said about things without assuming to assert your own opinion about it.”

Once international students understand the University’s academic code, they are happy to comply with it, Boucher-Yip said.

$699 price tag for 64 gigabytes — a figure that does not include the AppleCare service package, keyboard, cover and stylus recommended by the Med School — the total purchase was less cost effective than the traditional printedition route.

But minimizing costs for students was not the motivation for the iPad initiative, said Philip Gruppuso, associate dean for medical education.

The additional features of the Inkling “virtual textbooks” provided a major incentive, said Paul George, director of the second-year basic science curriculum. After reading about a certain physical diagnosis exam, for instance, students using the e-book can watch a video about how to perform it and then take a comprehension quiz. “Regular textbooks don’t allow that sort of interactivity important for active learning,” George said.

In class, students can use their iPads in a variety of ways — they can look at slides during a virtual microscopy or pull up instructions for a lab experiment. Tablets can also be used in a clinical setting.

Most hospitals are moving toward digitalization, in line with federal mandates to establish electronic health records by 2014, George said.

The old Med School facilities lacked the power outlets necessary to support heightened technology use in the classroom, Gruppuso said. But with this summer’s move to a new building, students and faculty can take full advantage of digital opportunities.

Spiro said his biggest gripe with the initiative is the fact that it was mandatory. “Everything I’ve done with (the iPad) so far is something I could have done on a laptop,” Spiro said.

But Gruppuso said administrators needed to require iPads to factor the cost into financial aid calculations. He acknowledged that students most likely knew they were not truly mandated to purchase the tablets. Students know there are no “iPad police running around threatening

Tom Clancy / Herald

Alpert Medical School first-years were each asked to purchase an iPad 2 instead of print-edition textbooks this year.

to throw them out of medical school,” he said.

After making the decision last spring to adopt iPads for the fall, administrators called on Rahul Banerjee ’10 MD’14 and Michael Kim ’10 MD ’14. Both had worked for the technology support help desk and were asked to aid with the transition and to act as liaisons between students and administrators.

Banerjee and Kim tested apps and wrote support documentation this summer. The two offered workshops and held office hours during orientation and the first weeks of the year. The recently launched IT Fellows program will make sure iPad technologies at the Med School are up to date, Banerjee said.

Though some students were initially reluctant to adopt the Apple product, they have by and large embraced it, Banerjee said. Having the community on the same technological platform streamlines tech support, he said.

And since all the new classroom technology was chosen with the

iPad specifically in mind, it is not necessarily compatible with other devices, George said.

Administrators are now gathering student feedback so the Med School can further integrate iPads into the curriculum, Gruppuso said.

So far, feedback has been “generally positive,” George said, adding that administrators will continue to solicit input throughout the year. About a quarter of second-year students have adopted iPads as well, he added.

Banerjee and Kim anticipate the Med School will soon put

pressure on its affiliated hospitals to adopt iPads as well. Many hospitals have already started the process — iPads can be a great resource for doctors, Banerjee said.

“On the wards, you want to be able to look up information very quickly, whether it’s dosage of a drug or whether it’s possible side effects of medication or of a certain treatment regiment,” he said.

Georgetown University, Stanford University, the University of California and other major universities have also begun exploring iPad use in their medical schools.

4 Campus News

The Brown Daily Herald Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Senate to vote on I-195 commission continued from page 1 these nominees share the common goal of bringing economic revitalization to the state of Rhode Island.”

Hunger, Kelly and Ryan were also on Providence Mayor Angel Taveras’ list of nominees.

“This is an extraordinary opportunity for our city, for our state, for our region,” Taveras said at the hearing in support of Chafee’s plan for the commission.

“The idea of the commission and the way that it’s come together is something that’s going to benefit us for months and years to come.”

“I am an average, concerned citizen,” said Hunger to the committee. “What I am not is a city planner, a developer or a businesswoman.”

Many of the other nominees could lay claim to such titles.

Kane will bring his experience in real estate development to the chairman position. “Institutional capital that came here during the last cycle got smoked,” he said.

“We need to convince these groups that we have a growing economy and a predictable approval pro-

cess.”

Kane was particularly insistent about the importance of structured parking to the development of the district. “If we don’t invest in structured parking, this area is worthless,” he said.

Bready, president and CEO of the biotech company NABsys, said he would like to see life sciences and biotechnology investment in the area. “While it may be difficult to see with the instability of the current global markets, we are actually on the edge of the next technology-fueled boom,” he said.

“I can explain to companies considering looking here what the advantages are.”

Bready assured the committee that his volunteer position at Brown and the University’s interest in the Jewelry District would not create a conflict of interest.

Johnson, former director of the David Winton Bell Gallery, will bring her expertise in the areas of art and business to the project.

Kelly has focused his legal career in corporate and real estate law and previously held the position of chair of the Providence zoning board. “Consolidating and

reducing the permit process” will be important for attracting investors to the area, he said. An important role of the commission will be “identifying who we want and what we’re doing from a policy standpoint to attract them,” he added.

State Sen. Dominick Ruggerio, D-Providence and North Providence, endorsed Ryan as “one of the foremost authorities in zoning and planning.”

Van Leesten, CEO of OIC of Rhode Island, is distinguished by his experience in volunteerism and his awareness of Rhode Island’s major social issues. “Our state is going through some changes,” he said, noting that Rhode Island’s African American and Hispanic communities are expanding dramatically while the white population is declining. The commission needs to “figure out how to move and make decisions while the world is moving so rapidly,” he said.

Once the commission begins work, it will be important to manage expectations for substantive results, Kane said. “Tower cranes don’t go up tomorrow.”

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The Brown Daily Herald Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Higher ed ne ws roundup

by lucy Feldman senior staff writer

Tupac lives on in library archives Fifteen years after his death, rap icon Tupac Shakur has been honored by the opening of a collection in his name at the Atlanta University Center, a consortium of four historically black colleges and universities.

The collection includes 30 boxes of Shakur’s written and video work, personal letters and memorabilia as well as work by Shakur’s family members and collaborators, according to the center’s press release. Artifacts within the collection date from 1969 to 2008.

The collection is intended for research purposes, according to the press release. It is housed in the Robert W. Woodruff Library in Atlanta.

Students celebrated the opening of the collection at a block party Sept. 13, according to an Atlanta Journal-Constitution blog post.

Carnegie Mellon to launch campus in Rwanda Carnegie Mellon University will establish a branch campus in Rwanda, the country’s President Paul Kagame announced at Carnegie Mellon’s Pittsburgh campus Friday.

With its Rwanda branch, the university will become one of only a handful of American institutions with locations in African nations.

The announcement attracted protest groups against the university’s involvement in Rwanda as well as supporters of the project. The history of Rwanda’s government policies restricting civil liberties spurred human rights groups to issue an open letter to the university discouraging it from pursuing a relationship with the country.

The new branch will launch next fall with 40 American graduate students and will seek to recruit students from Rwanda and other African countries, according to a Carnegie Mellon press release.

The program will offer a master’s degree in information technology alongside local education, training and research programs.

Harvard opens Naval ROTC office Harvard welcomed the opening of a Navy satellite office on its campus with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Tuesday, launching the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps’ reintroduction to the university.

After Congress repealed “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” — a military policy that violated Harvard’s own policy of anti-discrimination — in December 2010, Harvard announced in March that ROTC would be welcomed back on its campus after a nearly 40-year absence.

Yale and Columbia have also moved toward reinstating ROTC in the past year.

Campus News 5

6 Campus News

The Brown Daily Herald Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Monday specials at Jo’s return pudding, Kabob and Curry and Shanghai at the Blue Room and the macaroni and cheese specials For those who missed it, Josiah’s at the Ivy Room. served stuffed French toast last Stuffed French toast will be semester. And this semester, it’s around for the next few weeks, back again, as and Fitzsenr y part of a series said he is planNews from of rotating spening other speBlog cials on Monday cial nights at Jo’s. nights at the A baked poDaily campus eatery. tato bar featurHerald Fillings ining both regular clude chocolate and sweet potablogdailyherald.com chips, raisins, toes with topfruit, jelly and pings like lobster ham. Syrup, tater tots and sausage bisque starts Oct. 17. The last can be served on the side.

Monday special for the semester Stuffed French toast is just will be a grilled cheese bar with one of the culinary innovations soup and dips Nov. 21. Next sebrought to the University’s retail mester, there will be a ramen bar eateries by Aaron Fitzsenry, cu- with soba noodles, pho and curry linary manager of retail dining broth, a burrito bar and a barbeat Brown Dining Services. He is cue special to welcome the warm the man behind nosh like bread weather in the spring.

By Greg Jordan-Detamore Senior Staff Writer

Jesse Schwimmer / Herald

The women’s team, looking to rebound from last season, will host the Brown Invitational this weekend.

W. tennis

Bears hoping to hold court By hak rim kim Contributing Writer

After finishing fourth in the Ivy League last year, the women’s tennis team is ready to redeem itself this season.

The team will test its mettle at the Brown Invitational Sept. 2324, in its opening tournament of the fall campaign.

Five of the top six players from last year have returned this season — Julie Flanzer ’12, Michalina Misia Krasowski ’13, Casey

Herzberg ’12, Jessica Harrow ’14 and Elle Caldwell ’14. Four firstyears are expected to contribute and compete for the sixth spot in singles play.

“Our returners have come back better than they left, and our freshmen are very strong,” said Assistant Coach Cecily Dubusker.

Krasowski echoed her coach’s sentiment, citing “an increase in the level of maturity that the returning players have in their attitude towards practice and competition.”

“We have great freshmen that will add a lot of depth to our lineup,” she added.

Dubusker acknowledged the tough competition the team will face this season. “All teams we play are working extremely hard to separate from the pack,” she said.

“We all are striving to win the Ivy League Championship and also get into the NCAA tournament,” Harrow said. “Every match counts, and there is not just one person who can win it for the team.”

Greg Jordan-Detamore / Herald

Josiah’s rotating Monday night menu includes stuffed French toast.

The Brown Daily Herald Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Campus News 7

Bio center to focus on collaboration

By Michael Danielewicz Contributing Writer

In line with University goals, Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology David Rand P’12 says he will take an interdisciplinary approach to expanding research in his new role as director of the Center for Computational Molecular Biology. Rand, who replaced the center’s former director, Professor of Computer Science Sorin Istrail, this August, intends to foster collaborative research projects across disciplines like applied math, computer science and biology.

The CCMB was founded in 2003 to focus on computational approaches to molecular biology and evolutionary genetics enabled by advances in genomics.

Rand said he hopes to eventually institute a postdoctoral fellow program at the center.

The University has access to “excellent human capital,” he said.

Availibility of tremendous amounts of public genomic data and data generated at Brown — combined

with new approaches to data analysis — will allow researchers to compete for more grants from the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation in the future, he said.

But putting the CCMB on the map has not always been easy, Rand said. Brown’s relatively small size meant the University could not allocate a competitive level of resources to the field.

Increasing the center’s visibility was one of Istrail’s main goals during his period as director of the CCMB. A big fan of Steve Jobs, Istrail summarized his “iVision” as “engaging the world, one inspiring course, one innovative student, one influential research leader at a time.” He said encouraging critical discourse was essential to his plan for the center. To further this end, the CCMB organized symposia that offered access to “distinguished lecturers nonstop.”

Under Istrail’s leadership in 2009, the CCMB announced the availability of a doctoral program in computational molecular biol-

ogy.

Despite its challenges, Rand said the center has used Brown’s academic environment to its favor.

“Undergrads are happier here than in most other places,” he said. One of the CCMB’s goals is to recreate this enthusiasm at the graduate, postdoctoral and faculty research level.

In November 2009, the University announced Rhode Island’s only supercomputer. Rand said the CCMB currently has a computer cluster distinct from the Center for Computation and Visualization’s supercomputer, but he hopes to share resources more in the future.

Consolidation and efficiency are key priorities for Rand. He said the CCMB would like to reduce redundancies across courses.

In addition to his leadership position at the CCMB, Rand will continue teaching undergraduates and is working to integrate computer science, ecology and evolutionary biology and genomics under an Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship NSF grant.

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8 Campus News

The Brown Daily Herald Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Renovations continue on, off College Hill continued from page 12 projects completed, Dietel said.

“I’m very pleased with our progress.”

A few summer projects were put on hold due to budget constraints, Dietel said. Some of the crosswalks on Thayer Street were slated to be repainted in a simpler design, but “based on the pricing,” that project was put on hold while alternatives are considered, he said.

Solar panels were supposed to have been installed on the roof of the GeoChem Building, but due to some structural issues, it “did not make sense economically to move forward” by the time the design on the project was finished, Dietel said.

A plan to create new exit pathways on the east side of Caswell Hall was deferred until next summer.

The University was busy at work off College Hill as well. The new Medical Education Building opened Aug. 15 to much fanfare.

Renovations on 121 South Main St. for the Institute for Computational and Experimental Research in Mathematics were completed in July, and work continues on 198 Dyer St., the future home of the Office of Continuing Education.

“We’re getting ready to start construction” on the renovation of 315 Thayer St., which will house

Greg Jordan-Detamore / Herald

The University installed additional lighting on the Main Green, particularly near Sayles and Wilson halls.

about 60 students when it opens next fall, Dietel said. And the renovation of Hunter Laboratory is currently in the design phase, with its “comprehensive renovation” planned to start in April

2012. The project will involve the construction of a new greenhouse on the roof and the removal of the existing Plant Environmental Center to create an extension of the Walk to Lincoln Field.

The Brown Daily Herald Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Psych services sees heightened awareness continued from page 12 sociation of Schools and Colleges report stated that psychological resources at the University were of a lower caliber than at peer institutions.

Since then, Psychological Services has increased the number of free visitations to seven and hired another psychotherapist.

Overall, students are open to discussion about psychological issues, said Ash Sofman ’12, a former copy editor for Post- magazine. He said he had to find the courage to

go to the office the first time because it was “sort of like admitting weakness.” He had to wait a week for each of the two consultations he scheduled. Despite the wait, he said he had no problems with the service he received.

Student awareness has increased over the past few years, Johnson said. The office’s move from Rhode Island Hall to J. Walter Wilson two yeas ago was an added boost to its visibility. Students are also more educated about the resources available and the importance of therapy, she said.

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Campus News 9 comics Cabernet Voltaire | Abe Pressman

Fraternity of Evil | Eshan Mitra, Brendan Hainline and Hector Ramirez

10 Editorial Editorial Teach for America, learn for America A hallmark of Brown students is their proclivity to forge unique combinations of studies. Yet as those of us pursuing double concentrations, independent concentrations or independent studies know, our goals sometimes prove overly ambitious.

With this in mind, we were initially skeptical of a new partnership between Teach for America and the Urban Education Policy program.

Combining practical teaching experience with education policy studies makes sense. But we were concerned that the two extremely rigorous programs would not complement each other and would instead be competing stressors for participants trying to succeed in both.

After further research, we are optimistic that the collaboration will indeed be a worthwhile addition to the University’s degree offerings.

Director of the Urban Education Policy Program Kenneth Wong, professor of education and chair of the department, said the program’s structure was designed with the demands of TFA in mind. Participants will not begin their Urban Education Policy studies until their first year of TFA is complete, allowing TFA corps members to get through the strenuous first year of teaching before beginning graduate studies.

Prospective students will apply in January but do not have to commit until the spring. Staggering the application process against the schoolyear calendar gives applicants valuable time on the job to help them evaluate whether to take on additional graduate studies.

This non-traditional schedule should allow participants to better handle the demands of simultaneously teaching and getting a master’s degree. Wong said the policy program’s structure and culture give him confidence that students will not slip through the cracks and see their classroom performance struggle — either as teachers or as students.

With a low student-faculty ratio, the policy program keeps students and professors in close contact, increasing the likelihood that problems handling the dual program will be successfully resolved.

Furthermore, Wong said the policy program features a strong administrative staff focused on assisting students with logistical issues.

This point is particularly important — a current TFA corps member told us that poor communication and coordination between TFA and graduate programs is a red flag for those considering degrees.

Still, it is crucial that new University programs demonstrate they are achieving their aims, no matter how good they sound on paper.

Wong said he is very mindful of the need to evaluate the program as it progresses. Among the criteria he cited, we were pleased to hear that he will pay attention to how involved participants are in extracurricular Urban Education Policy activities and how much they are collaborating with other students. Focusing on factors like these will help ensure that participants are fully involved in the Brown degree program and are not sacrificing their effort here for the demands of teaching.

If successful, we believe this program could help make Rhode Island more attractive to prospective TFA corps members. It might even help retain a few well-qualified individuals in the state after they complete their studies. Brunonians frequently strive to combine theoretical and practical studies, and we look forward to tracking the progress of this new effort.

The Brown Daily Herald Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Editorial comic

by sam rosenfeld

quote of the day

“(There are no) iPad police running around

”

threatening to throw them out of medical school.

— Philip Gruppuso, associate dean for medical education See Textbooks on page 1.

Editorials are written by The Herald’s editorial page board. Send comments to editorials@browndailyherald.com.

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Opinions 11

The Brown Daily Herald Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Hear him out

By Chip Lebovitz Opinions Columnist Those of us who care little for the New England Patriots might have spent last Monday night watching a different sort of game — CNN’s Republican Presidential Primary Debate. Located in sunny Tampa Bay, Fla., the debate was what you would have expected: a dog pile on the Republican front-runner, Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

For those of you who missed it, the debate went something like this: Wolf Blitzer: “Gov. Perry, what do you think about anything?”

Perry: “Realistically Wolf, I think we need to …”

The rest of the field: “I disagree with whatever Perry is saying right now.”

To be fair, Mitt Romney acquitted himself well, and other candidates made some articulate, well-thought-out points. Also, Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, RMinn., said that Gardasil, the HPV vaccine, causes mental retardation — but hey, no debate is perfect.

In fact, this debate was especially imperfect because it denied America an opportunity to hear from some of the more interesting candidates.

To qualify for last Monday’s CNN/Tea Party Express Debate, a candidate had to average 2 percent of votes in three national polls occurring in the months of July or

August.

These requirements mean the American public will be denied a fully stocked buffet of GOP presidential primary candidates. While these numbers are definitely reasonable, it denies media attention to a more screwball candidate, former Louisiana Gov. Buddy Roemer.

Roemer’s signature issue is his belief in strict campaign finance reform. His campaign nobly accepts only donations of

emer said. “And I talk about unfair trade … These are my two issues. Nobody else talks about them.”

And that’s the point. Nobody else in the primary talks about campaign finance.

Even if Roemer has a miniscule chance of winning, injecting his ideas into the primary may help define the national discussion.

Excluding fringe candidates is often done to allow other contenders more time

Nobody else in the primary talks about campaign finance.

$100 or less and no money from Political Action Committees.

Roemer’s poll numbers often barely register. When his name is actually listed as a possible candidate in polls, he occasionally draws 1 percent support. But the numbers are unimportant. While the quantitative argument for Roemer is painfully weak, he deserves a spot for qualitative reasons.

I recently asked Roemer about being excluded from the debate. “I’m not one to be overly anxious about it. I need a debate — there’s no question about it. My ideas are different. I talk about the money, and its corrupting influence in politics,” Ro-

to speak. So far, the debates already suffer from an imbalance of speaking times, with an emphasis on the front-runners.

As evidenced by former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum’s complaints during the August Fox News/Washington Examiner debate, no matter how many candidates attend, some will not get enough speaking time. Adding Roemer will not change that reality.

Just look at former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, who has as much of a shot as Roemer of winning the nomination — zero, for those of you wondering — yet is on stage for all of the debates.

With all due respect to the speaker, if he

can focus primarily on chiding the media for asking “gotcha” questions, then why can’t we have Roemer dinging the media for not asking about campaign finance?

Furthermore, making campaign finance reform a part of the national discussion is something that everyone can and should rally around. The point of the fringe candidate is to inject into the national conversation important issues that do not often get mentioned.

The morality of knowing who is paying for what in politics should be an outright priority, especially for the upcoming 2012 election. With President Obama rumored to be raising $1 billion for his reelection campaign and a possible President Rick Perry — who was labeled a crony capitalist by members of his own GOP establishment­ — a discussion about money in politics needs to be broached. Roemer is the person to herald that discussion.

Therefore, I hope Fox News allows Roemer on stage for its Sept. 22 debate. You may disagree with some of Roemer’s policies. I happen to disagree with nearly all of them. That fact still does not diminish what his candidacy can bring to the podium. Roemer’s poll numbers may be low, but let him debate. Campaign finance matters, and America deserves a look into who is funding the president it elects in 2012.

Chip Lebovitz ’14 would like to congratulate his parents on their 25th anniversary. He can be reached at charles_lebovitz@brown.edu.

Setting a new precedent

By Young Seol Opinions Columnist Collective bargaining rights — the right of employees to cooperate to achieve agreements on issues such as wages, working hours, workplace safety and grievance mechanisms — have recently made headlines. Yet belying such mainstream media attention is a facet of collective bargaining rights that is far more relevant to many students’ daily lives: the right of paid private University employees, including teaching or research assistants, to unionize.

In 2004, the National Labor Relations Board, which governs the collective bargaining rights of private graduate student employees in the United States, decided to deny the petition for 450 graduate students at Brown to unionize. In doing so, the NLRB reversed a prior ruling in 2000 that permitted graduate student worker unions at New York University. The NLRB decided in the Brown case that, because graduate students tend to spend more time on studies than on work, they count as students and are therefore not protected by employees’ rights.

The logic in the Brown case is troubling because it justifies rights violations by arbitrary classification. Whether an individual is 20 percent student and 80 percent employee or 80 percent student and 20 percent employee seems a meager distinction upon which to deny collective bargaining rights — rights so fundamental that they are guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

To further highlight the arbitrariness

present in the system, consider two hypothetical graduate students doing identical work as students and employees. One works at Brown, the other at the University of Rhode Island. As an employee of a public university, the latter is protected by state collective bargaining laws. Yet by attending a private institution, the former is denied the exact same rights. When the value of deontological arguments resides in their universal applicability, it seems intuitively unjust to allow such insignificant factors to distinguish between otherwise identical individuals.

More generally, collective bargaining rights exist as an extension of one’s funda-

easily switch schools. Thus, a uniquely coercive relationship is born. Not only do private institutions have, by virtue of high barriers to substitution, considerably more leeway in workplace abuses that would normally be solved by alternatives in other industries, but they also often require employment as a condition of enrollment. Students are left with no recourse.

The results can be devastating. A report by the Graduate Employees and Students Organization at Yale found that “70 percent of undergraduate teaching contact hours at Yale are performed by transient teachers: graduate teachers, adjunct instructors and

Time and again, undergraduates are caught in the crossfire and suffer incalculable damage to their education.

mental right to free speech. By the same logic that our Founding Fathers saw it necessary to guarantee “the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances,” the right to collectively bargain allows workers to associate, thereby checking the power imbalances that exist in employer-employee relationships.

The ability of the union to mitigate abuses of power is particularly relevant to student employees. Whereas an employee of McDonald’s might be able to quit and find employment at Wendy’s, students, particularly those at private universities, cannot so

other teachers not on the tenure track,” and “transient teachers’ lack of institutional support compromises the quality of educational experience they are able to provide.” In the most extreme scenarios, for example, during finals at Yale in 1995, teaching assistants could go on strike, refusing to teach or grade.

Time and again, undergraduates are caught in the crossfire and suffer incalculable damage to their education.

Recognizing collective bargaining rights for graduate student employees offers additional positive externalities for education as a whole. Most directly, the cessation of artifi-

cially cheap student labor would incentivize greater usage of professors in the classroom.

Graduate students also have unique incentives as a result of their dual role as student and educator. Their perspective would be invaluable in balancing competing interests between the two on issues such as donor restrictions on research or intellectual property rights, which are often handled one-sidedly by tenured professors and school administrators. Yet without collective bargaining rights, their voices are simply ignored.

In April 2010, more than 1,000 NYU graduate students filed a petition against this very phenomenon. The decision by the acting director of the NLRB’s New York office, released last summer, deferred to the 2004 Brown ruling and denied the petition, but criticized it as being “premised on a university setting as it existed 30 years ago.” With particular regard to graduate students, the decision found that they “have a dual relationship with the employer that does not necessarily preclude a finding of employee status.”

The Republican-dominated NLRB that adjudicated the Brown petition is no more, having in large part been replaced by President Obama’s nominees. The language to once again set a new precedent is in place.

The University should seek to set an example among private institutions and work with student unions. But it cannot create them alone. Our student employees must stand up for their rights to ensure a better educational system for all.

Young Seol ’14 is a chemistry and economics concentrator from Iowa City, Iowa. He can be reached at j_young_seol@brown.edu.

Daily Herald Campus News the Brown

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Facilities completes summer upgrades Psych

Services use on the rise

By Greg Jordan-Detamore Senior Staff Writer

The Department of Facilities Management completed nearly all of its planned projects this summer, bringing new sidewalks, lighting and bicycle racks to campus along with other upgrades and improvements.

Including capital projects, the total cost of summer work was about $47 million, said Paul Dietel, director of project management.

New bike racks have been installed in a number of locations around campus, including the Main Green and the BioMed Center. These installations represent progress but are not finished, Dietel said. Facilities hopes to install more racks in the future to meet demand.

The Main Green is now safer for nighttime pedestrians, thanks to the installation of additional lighting, particularly near Sayles and Wilson halls. “There were some areas that were a little bit darker than they should be,” Dietel said. “We think we’ve achieved a much more consistent lighting level throughout the Green.”

Gillian Horwitz ’14 said the Green “is definitely brighter at night.”

Though the renovation of the Metcalf Chemistry and Research Laboratory will continue until October, the pathway in front of the building on Lincoln Field was reopened this semester.

“It is nice that that’s all done,” Horwitz said, noting the reopened walkway is “less of a mess.”

The sidewalks on Lincoln Field and elsewhere on campus were also replaced.

Outside the Olney-Margolies Athletic Center, what was once a parking lot is being transformed into Ittleson Quadrangle, a new green space for the athletic complex set to open in the spring. A portion is now open, while the

By Alex Macfarlane Staff Writer

inhibit summer work. “There was no impact on construction as a result of the storm,” Dietel said.

“All of our construction sites were secured in advance of the storm” to prevent damage, he said.

Overall, “everything went according to plan” with over 100

There has been an increase in student demand over the past five years for Psychological Services, according to Director Belinda Johnson. Johnson largely attributed the increase to greater student awareness of available resources.

About 17 percent of the total student body, 1,460 students, sought help for psychological or emotional issues last year.

This figure is typical of the last five years — between 16 and 18 percent of the student body typically seek help annually, Johnson said. But the stable figures understate demand because the student body grew significantly in that time period.

Visitations were at their lowest in the 2007-08 academic year, when the center saw 16 percent of the population, Johnson said.

Students are allowed seven free consultations, though the average student who visits Psychological Services attends three. It is rare that a student will reach the seven-consultation limit, Johnson said. About 30 percent of the students are referred to an external therapist, either because they want ongoing regular consultation or have exceeded the University’s limit.

In 2006, when the number of free visits was capped at five, students were often asked to wait as long as two weeks for a consultation, Johnson said. Psychological Services hired an additional psychotherapist at that time to reduce the wait.

But in 2009, a New England As-

continued on page 8

continued on page 9

Greg Jordan-Detamore / Herald

Walkways on Lincoln Field were replaced, and new bike racks were added around campus. Ittleson Quadrangle will be a new green space for the athletic complex, and the new fitness and aquatics center are scheduled to open in the spring.

remainder is still under construction.

Some classrooms, such as MacMillan 117, received new painting and carpeting.

Facilities repainted 456 rooms in 24 residence halls this summer, according to Dietel. Some residence halls also received lighting upgrades, part of a larger ini-

tiative to make the University’s buildings more energy-efficient, Dietel said. The showers in some Goddard House bathrooms were “completely gutted out and renovated,” Dietel said. “Several of these showers were leaking to the point where we couldn’t maintain them.”

Tropical Storm Irene did not

Announcement pending on Humanities Initiative

By Max Ernst Staff Writer

The University will make a major announcement within the next several weeks regarding the Humanities Initiative, a multidisciplinary effort launched last year to strengthen teaching and research in the humanities.

A working group including Dean of the Faculty Kevin McLaughlin P’12, Provost Mark Schlissel P’15, Dean of the College Katherine Bergeron, Deputy Provost Joseph Meisel and Director of the Cogut Center for the Humanities and Professor of History and Music Michael Steinberg is still making final decisions about how to attract six new faculty members and spend the anonymous donation of $3 million allotted to the initiative.

When implemented, the initiative will encourage laboratory research in the humanities by providing venues for research across disciplines, Steinberg said. In addition to creating positions for six renowned scholars of the humanities, the initiative will provide funding for collaborative programming, multidisciplinary graduate research and new coursework.

“We made an announcement last fall that we would hire six new faculty, each of whom would have a degree of flexibility in teaching so they could develop projects,” McLaughlin said. “This year, we are scaling up the initiative to include a wider set of proposals for the humanities centered on collaborative research and teaching.”

The Humanities Initiative — started by former Dean of the

Faculty Rajiv Vohra P’07, now a professor of economics — is still in the planning phase. The working group must receive approval from the Academic Priorities Committee before disclosing full details about the project to the community, McLaughlin said.

No new faculty members have yet been hired and none of the money donated to the cause has been spent.

The University hopes to have extended “a couple of offers out for faculty hires” and initiated some interdisciplinary research projects by the end of the year, McLaughlin said. Of the three to four candidates considered as finalists last year for these faculty positions, only one remains under consideration, he said.

The hiring procedure for the six positions this year will likely

entail soliciting nominations from faculty, but nominees will have to be named by professors from at least two departments to be considered, McLaughlin said. Ultimately, the University is searching for younger and midcareer scholars who are focused on “what they could do here that they could not do where they are now,” he said.

The announcement coming in the next few weeks will likely include further information on hiring and how the $3 million will be spent.

“We haven’t worked out any final details,” Schlissel said. “We have just thought in more detail about how to help the initiative achieve its goals.”

The initiative will build on the University’s tradition of academic exploration and curricular open-

ness, Steinberg said. The Cogut Center for the Humanities will provide the home and resources for initiative projects by creating opportunities for collaboration.

“The initiative will feed into the Cogut Center’s efforts to create interactions among different subjects,” Schlissel added.

By dedicating resources to strengthen the humanities, the University is ultimately hoping to encourage innovation in the humanities on par with advancement in the sciences, McLaughlin said. This priority, he added, is unique to Brown.

“Brown is making a big statement about the humanities that other universities aren’t making,” McLaughlin said. “The initiative will help us continue to keep strength in the humanities part of our national profile.”