Tuesday, September 11, 2012

daily herald the Brown

vol. cxxii, no. 64

INSIDE

Page 2

Homeless rights First Homeless Bill passed, R.I. leads national effort Page 4

National student loan debt levels on the rise

By Alexa Pugh Senior Staff Writer

More IOUs Middle-class students bear brunt of rising loan debt Page 5

Skeeter threat Three R.I. mosquito samples test positive for West Nile

today

73 / 50

tomorrow

79 / 58

As the country struggles to recover from the 2008 financial crisis, student loan debt has grown by more than 60 percent in the last five years to reach over $1 trillion, surpassing credit card dues as the leading cause of debt in the United States.

The issue drew national attention in late June, when it seemed Congress might not pass legislation in time to prevent the interest rate on subsidized Stafford student loans from doubling from 3.4 to 6.8 percent July 1, which would have meant a significant increase in monthly repayments for those with federal loans.

This potential rate increase raised concern at institutions across the nation, including Brown, where 41 percent of 2010 graduates owed an average of $15,530 in federal loans,

according to a study by the Project on Student Debt. The University’s Office of Financial Aid worked with the Office of Public Affairs and University Relations to educate local representatives about how the decision would affect students, said James Tilton, director of financial aid. And Anthony White ’13, president of the Undergraduate Council of Students, teamed up with his peers at Providence College and the University of Rhode Island to write a letter urging Congress to act.

The $6.7 billion measure eventually passed in Congress June 29, maintaining the rate at 3.4 percent and saving 7.4 million students an average of $1,000 in loan payment fees, according to an Education Week article. But experts say it is little more than a stopgap — pending Congressional action, the provision will ex/ / Debt page 4 pire in one

11 y e a r s l at e r

herald file photo

Students held candles at a memorial in front of Faunce House on Sept.

11, 2005. Today marks the 11-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

Ambulance outsourcing can incur student EMS fee

By Caroline Saine Senior Staff Writer

When faced with an emergency — whether alcohol poisoning or a broken leg — the cost of emergency services and insurance co-pays are the last thing on a student’s mind.

Students are not charged for transportation or medical aid given by the Brown Emergency Medical Services ambulance. EMS costs are covered under an annual Health Services fee — $336 for the current academic year — which also covers primary care, dermatology care, health education and up to seven visits to Psychological Services, according to the Health Services website.

But the fee does not cover trans-

since 1891

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

port and care provided by Providence emergency response vehicles, which are dispatched to campus if the Brown EMS ambulance is already in use, said Amy Sanderson, emergency medical services manager. Students are not informed which ambulance they will be sent when they make the call requesting EMS. Though EMS does not often receive multiple calls at the same time, “sometimes there are simultaneous emergencies,” Sanderson said. “We do our best to manage those calls ourselves, but we will always send another ambulance if it’s in the patient’s best interest.”

Brown EMS receives around 800 calls annually for ambulance services, about 25 percent of which are alcohol/ / EMS page 5 related, Sander-

By Adam toobin Senior staff writer

Rachel A. Kaplan / Herald

In cases of simultaneous emergencies, students who are sent a Providence ambulance incur the cost of both transport and care.

Alum program pairs graduates with start-ups By sheza atiq contributing writer

Courtesy of Megan Hurlburt

Venture For America matches enterprising college graduates with startup companies in five lower-cost American cities for a two-year period.

Primary race decided today

Forty college graduates were selected from an application pool of 500 for the inaugural class of Venture For America, a program founded by Andrew Yang ’96 and dedicated to promoting entrepreneurship through a focus on start-ups. Through the program, which held its first summer training program at the University in July, fellows will spend the next two years working with innovative start-up companies in five cities.

The organization has three primary goals — it seeks to “revitalize American cities,” encourage graduates to “create new opportunities for themselves and others” and works to “restore the culture of achievement to include value-creation, risk and reward and the common good,” according to its website.

Bryant Yik was one of the fellows of the first VFA class. Yik,

who graduated from the Wharton School of Business at Penn and went on to work at the Department of Homeland Security, said he decided to apply to VFA because his desire to build companies and experience the “start-up sense” was not being fulfilled by his work in the U.S. government.

The summer training program — required for all VFA fellows — included talks by professionals on topics such as public speaking and teamwork management, as well as assignments centered around solving business models and developing the VFA’s website.

The organization also brought guest speakers from leading corporations such as McKinsey and Company, and IDEO — two consulting agencies — to advise the students.

“We were very fortunate to build on the experiences others have had,” said Yang, / / Venture page 3

Primaries for state elections will be held today. Voters registered in Rhode Island’s first congressional district can vote in Salomon Center between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m.

In accordance with Rhode Island law, voters are required to present identification — such as a driver’s license, voter ID card or passport — to cast a vote in today’s election. Individuals without identification may cast provisional ballots at their polling place, which will be reviewed later to ensure the voter is registered in Rhode Island. Voters must have registered before Aug. 12 to be eligible to vote in today’s primaries.

city & state

U.S. House Fresh on the heels of the candidates’ final debate last Thursday, incumbent U.S. Rep. David Cicilline ’83, D-R.I., faces businessmen Anthony Gemma and Christopher Young in today’s Democratic primary to represent Rhode Island’s first congressional district. The race, primarily a contest between Cicilline and Gemma, has consistently generated headlines for its rancor. Gemma has accused Cicilline of committing voter fraud in several elections over the past decade and lying to voters about his record as Providence’s mayor from 2002-10. Cicilline, the Democratic / / Vote page 4

2 city & state c alendar Today

september 11

6 P.m.

ToMORROW

September 12

7 P.M. Community Service Fair

TF Green Hall

7:30 p.m.

Sayles Hall 7:30 p.m.

Better Babka Baking

Urban Studies Film Festival

Hillel

Granoff Center

menu SHARPE REFECTORY

VERNEy-WOOLLEY DINING HALL

LUNCH French Bread Pizza, Grilled Turkey Burger, Broccoli Au Gratin, Nachos, Sausage with Tortellini Soup

Honey Mustard Chicken Sandwich, Vegetarian Pot Pie, Roasted Beets, Grilled Rotisserie Chicken

DINNER Vegan Ratatouille, Antipasto Bar, Italian Beef Noodle Casserole, Steak Fries, Washington Apple Cake

R.I. passes first homeless bill of rights By meia geddes

Nudity in the Upspace Yoga

the brown daily herald Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Roast Beef Au Jus, Broccoli Pasta Alfredo, Vegan Vegetable Couscous, Rosemary Potatoes, Red Beans Creole

Sudoku

Crossword

Staff Writer

This summer, Rhode Island became the first state to pass a Homeless Bill of Rights. The bill reasserts basic rights for the homeless, including the right to be in public spaces, the right to equal treatment by all state and city agencies, the right not to face discrimination in applying for or keeping employment, the right to emergency medical care, the right to vote and the right to privacy.

“I hope to move this piece of legislation through the country,” said state Sen. John Tassoni Jr., D-Smithfield and North Smithfield, the lead author on the bill. “(The bill) comes from the people who are experiencing homelessness and (from) my experience being homeless for three years,” said John Joyce, co-director of the Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project who wrote the bill in fall 2011 with fellow director Megan Smith ’10. Joyce said his aim is for the Ocean State to be the first in the nation to end chronic homelessness.

“I think it’s a big step forward for the people who are homeless,” Tassoni said.

“I think a lot of the stigma they have is untrue. This bill moving forward is a big step for the whole country.”

“At the end of the day it’s about the strengthening of the law to make sure that the homeless have just as many rights and privileges as everyone else and that those rights and privileges are equally protected,” said state Rep. Chris Blazejewski, D-Providence and East Providence, who co-sponsored the bill.

The bill easily passed its first test in the state Senate, which “really championed the issue as a body,” said Jim Ryczek, executive director of the Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless. But some members of the House were concerned about aspects of the bill. One change made by the House broadened the rights of homeless individuals against discrimination. The original bill protected the homeless from discrimination from “law enforcement” — a stipulation that police opposed, Ryczek said. “We’re not saying that all police violate homeless people’s rights,” Ryczek said. But eventually “law enforcement” was replaced by the broader term “municipal officials.”

In light of recent legislation that has restricted the rights of homeless individuals, some advocates have become increasingly concerned about the criminalization of homelessness. From sleeping outside to eating in public, many communities are “essentially making it illegal to be homeless,” said Andy Beres, development and communications coordinator at the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty.

From the Homeless Bill of Rights: “At the present time, many persons have been rendered homeless as a result of economic hardship, a severe shortage of safe, affordable housing and a shrinking social safety net.”

“All free governments are instituted for the protection, safety and happiness of the people. All laws, therefore, should be made for the good of the whole; and the burdens of the state ought to be fairly distributed among its citizens. No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law, nor shall any person be denied equal protection of the laws.”

“No person’s rights, privileges or access to public services may be be denied or abridged solely because he or she is homeless. Such a person shall be granted the same rights and privileges as any other resident of this state.”

A person experiencing homelessness: “Has the right to use and move freely in public spaces, including, but not limited to, public sidewalks, public parks, public transportation and public buildings, in the same manner as any other person, and without discrimination on the basis of his or her housing status.”

“Has the right to equal treatment by all state and municipal agencies, without discrimination on the basis of housing status.”

“Has the right not to face discrimination while seeking or maintaining employment due to his or her lack of permanent mailing address, or his or her mailing address being that of a shelter or social service provider.”

“Has the right to emergency medical care free from discrimination based on his or her housing status.”

Criminalization of homelessness has been proliferating at an alarming rate, Beres said. The bill is “especially important at a time when communities across the country are responding to homelessness by criminalizing lifesustaining behaviors,” he said.

But many homeless advocates have expressed interest in bringing the bill’s model into their communities, Beres said, mentioning colleagues in Oregon who have already taken steps towards passing a similar bill. Other states, like California and New York, may also be looking to follow Rhode Island’s lead, Tassoni said.

Tassoni spoke to the moral and economic reasons for addressing homelessness. “They’re human beings. They’re not animals, they’re human beings,” he said. In the long run, ending homelessness will benefit the economy, he added.

Brown’s student-run program, Housing Opportunities for People Everywhere, was “very, very instrumental on having the bill passed,” said Karen Jeffreys, associate director at the Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless. HOPE gathered over 600 signed letters advocat-

daily herald the Brown

www.browndailyherald.com 195 Angell St., Providence, R.I.

Claire Peracchio, President Rebecca Ballhaus, Vice President

Danielle Marshak, Treasurer Siena DeLisser, Secretary

The Brown Daily Herald (USPS 067.740) is an independent newspaper serving the Brown University community daily since 1891. It is published Monday through Friday during the academic year, excluding vacations, once during Commencement and once during Orientation by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Single copy free for each member of the community.

POSTMASTER please send corrections to P.O. Box 2538, Providence, RI 02906.

Periodicals postage paid at Providence, R.I. Subscription prices: $280 one year daily, $140 one semester daily.

Copyright 2011 by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. All rights reserved. editorial

(401) 351-3372 herald@browndailyherald.com

Business

(401) 351-3260 gm@browndailyherald.com

ing legislation including the Homeless Bill of Rights, discussed homelessness solutions with House Speaker Gordon Fox, D-Providence, and has advocated for a weekly soup kitchen inside the capitol during the spring.

Benjamin Eichert ’13, a member of HOPE, outlined a variety of timedependent solutions to homelessness.

The immediate goal is shelter, he said.

Longer-term strategies include rapid re-housing, with the ultimate goal of providing affordable housing to those in need, he said.

But before these goals are met, advocates are seeking to provide dignity to the homeless. “Discrimination isn’t always visible,” Eichert said.

But some question whether a Homeless Bill of Rights is the best solution. The Minnesota Coalition for the Homeless works to help its citizens obtain stable and affordable housing, rather than spending time on in-between solutions, said Kenza Hadj-Moussa, communications and development director of the organization. The organization works “to end homelessness, period,” she said.

With this approach, there is no need for a bill, she said. “We believe it’s possible for everybody to have a place to call home.”

Tassoni pointed out that the homeless face unique challenges that make special legislation needed. For example, homeless individuals have been denied jobs because they listed Harrington Hall, a homeless shelter in Rhode Island, as their address in job applications, he said.

The National Law Center of Homelessness and Poverty will recognize Tassoni’s efforts to use legislation to change lives with the Bruce F. Vento Award in November. The foundation also has tapped him to work with its board of directors to pass bills similar to the Homeless Bill of Rights across the country, Tassoni said.

campus news 3

the brown daily herald Tuesday, September 11, 2012

/ / Venture page 1 who studied economics and political science.

The training program concluded with an independent challenge that required fellows to “‘(create) value’ for their future company, an organization in their city or for Venture for America,” according to the website.

Kathy Cheng, a VFA fellow who graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a degree in economics and urban science, called the training a “very good refresher course.” Like all fellows enrolled in the program, Cheng was hired by a start-up company after completing her training. Her employer, a Detroit-based organization called Doodle Home, helps interior designers build their own websites. Fifty start-up or early-stage companies like Doodle Home have partnered with VFA to provide fellows with the entrepreneurship experience the program promotes.

Fellows such as Cheng are scheduled through VFA to work for two years with companies based in cities identified by the organization as “lower-cost.” This year, VFA targeted five cities — Detroit, Cincinnati, Las Vegas, New Orleans and Providence.

The process of selecting partner start-ups involved significant research into various companies, said Mike Tarullo, director of corporate development. Companies needed to have some degree of financial stability, as well as a comfortable work environment. Tarullo noted that there was “a real desire from owners to be a mentor and shape the fellows.”

Depending on their home base and the associated living costs, com-

panies are expected to pay fellows a yearly salary ranging from $32,000 to $38,000 and are welcome to offer more. Tarullo, also known as the “matchmaker” of the VFA team, is responsible for gauging fellows’ interests through surveys and interviews and subsequently partnering them with the start-up most suited to their needs. Fellows met with Tarullo throughout the training program and were paired with a company toward its end.

Company managers review resumes and meet with the fellows before selecting them for positions.

Bill Cunningham, co-founder of VFA partner OneMorePallet, a company that aims to minimize storage waste, said he was “excited to be a part of the first-ever program” run by VFA. Cunningham, who is an officer of the Greater Cincinnati Venture Association, served as an adviser to the students during the business model challenge in training camp.

The success of the training camp has enabled VFA to become clearer in its goals, Yang said. “Over the next two years, the fellows are going to be exactly the kind of people you want to invest in.” After completing two years with their employers, fellows have the option of staying with the companies or becoming entrepreneurs themselves — and even competing for a $100,000 cash prize awarded by VFA to the most innovative and promising start-up idea.

For the next class of fellows, VFA will expand its outreach to several more cities, including New Haven, Cleveland and Baltimore.

“I genuinely believe start-ups are the best environments for enterprising, smart people,” Yang said.

Bilingual talks celebrate prof ’s life By lee bernstein and Elizabeth Koh Contributing Writer and Senior Staff Writer

This fall, the Hispanic studies department will host “Carlos Fuentes Beyond Borders,” a commemoration honoring former professor-at-large and Mexican novelist Carlos Fuentes, who died last May after suffering an internal hemorrhage. Through a series of bilingual talks given by Fuentes’ former students and colleagues, the Rochambeau House event will celebrate his life and career Oct. 8 and 9.

Julio Ortega, a professor of Hispanic studies who had known Fuentes since 1969, will moderate, opening with an explanation about the Transatlantic Project at Brown, a Hispanic studies program that promotes student and faculty dialogue surrounding social and political issues between Spain and the Americas.

Speakers will include former president of Chile and professor-at-large Ricardo Lagos, professors from Princeton and New York University and Fuentes’ former students and mentees, according to the official commemoration program.

By beginning the ceremony with a former student and finishing with Lagos, the event will come full circle in touching upon each of Fuentes’ major life contributions, Ortega said.

An internationally renowned author, Fuentes was associated with the Latin American boom of the 1960s and 1970s, during which several Latin American authors gained global acclaim. Fuentes won numerous awards for his work, including Mexico’s National Prize for Arts and Sciences and the Miguel de Cervantes Prize. The son of a Mexican

herald file photo

The Hispanic studies department will commemorate the life of renowned author and professor-at-large Carlos Fuentes, who died in May. diplomat, Fuentes was also politically active, speaking out on American foreign policy and Mexican politics and serving for two years as the Mexican ambassador to France.

“Fuentes was a much admired member of the Brown community,” wrote former president Ruth Simmons in a May press release, noting his interaction with students and literary achievements.

“He lived a long, full and storied life, and he enriched our community through his work and many lasting contributions.”

Ortega served as Fuentes’ biographer, writing a short book, “Retrato de Carlos Fuentes,” on the author’s life and work. He praised Fuentes during an interview in May for excelling in his many roles as a “professor, writer and scholar.”

“He always was planning a new novel, a new article and conferences,”

Ortega told The Herald in May. “We’re going to miss him because we really have lost a relationship with the future that we used to have in the Spanish language.”

Fuentes also taught at Harvard, Princeton and Columbia before arriving at Brown as a professor-at-large in 1996.

Fuentes was “very important at Brown because of the impact of his work,” Ortega said. “He has been crucial in synchronizing our teaching to the literary international scene of new writing.”

“Professor-at-large is a very special position for very well-known people at the top of their field,” and Fuentes’ role will not be an easy one to fill, Ortega said.

An earlier version of this article was published online May 23.

Econ prof declares support for Romney platform

By Mariya Bashkatova Contributing WriTer

Professor of Economics George Borts recently signed his name to a statement of support for Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s

proposed economic policy, joining more than 640 economists, including six Nobel Laureates, on the list titled “Economists for Romney.”

The statement of support outlines Romney’s proposed fiscal policies, which include cutting taxes, limit-

courtesy of brown university

Professor of Economics George Borts joined a list of “Economists for Romney,” signing a statement of support for the candidate’s economic plan.

ing federal spending to 20 percent of the economy to cut down on the federal debt, reducing the growth of Social Security and Medicare, decreasing federal economic regulations, reforming national health care legislation and encouraging the use of domestic energy resources.

Disappointment with the current administration’s economic policy, the importance of this presidential election and his respect for other economists who signed the statement factored into his decision to add his name, Borts said.

Roberto Serrano, chair of the economics department, declined to comment on Borts’ endorsement.

Many other faculty members have taken public stances to support liberal political candidates and liberal policy, wrote Terrence George ’13, president of the Brown Republicans, in an email to The Herald.

These have included professors who have protested the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps at Brown, supported the Occupy movement and signed leftist political petitions, he said.

George added that Borts should receive “the same level of quiet acceptance” from the Brown community as members of the faculty who voice liberal views.

Though Borts’ support for a Republican presidential candidate may place him in the minority of

the University community, differing views can foster intellectual diversity and discussion, said Sofia Fernandez Gold ’14, president of the Brown Democrats.

Fernandez Gold said that she would be happy taking classes from professors of all political inclinations, as long as the professor’s personal views do not get in the way of teaching or result in discrimination.

“We can only truly understand why we believe what we do when our ideas are challenged, and we’re forced to defend them,” she said. “If I always stayed out of a classroom where a conservative professor was teaching, I don’t think I would learn a lot.”

“I try to stay on the economics,

and also, if I do deal with issues that are controversial, I try to be sure that I will assign both positions. I don’t feel as if I’m there to proselytize,” Borts said. But he added that he will voice his opinion if asked and that the atmosphere at the University is one of free speech, which leads to healthy discussion among faculty and students.

Though offending the administration with one’s views was once grounds for being fired, the freedom of faculty to voice political views has been widespread at universities since the 20th century, he said.

“I’d like to think that voting for a Republican is still not going to lead people to be fired,” Borts said.

4 campus news / / Debt page 1 year, allowing the interest rate to double in 2013.

‘A much larger issue’ Interest rates are only part of a much larger issue, said Lauren Asher ’87.5, president of the Institute for College Access and Success. Among other factors contributing to debt, federal Pell Grants will be at their lowest value ever in the upcoming year. For the 13 percent of Brown students who received Pell grants in 2009-10, the $4,215 average award already covered less than 11 percent of the year’s tuition, according to the Institute for College Access and Success.

Roughly half of graduates owed an average of $22,832 total in 2009-10, according to the University’s financial aid office. Nationally, 67 percent of students averaged $25,250 in debt, according to the Institute for College Access and Success.

The debt’s greatest impact has been on students of for-profit colleges, who now receive roughly a quarter of all federal student aid.

Students at public institutions have also felt the effects of state cuts to higher education, which have caused tuition and fees to increase 72 percent from 2001 to 2011, according to data from the College Board. Costs have climbed 29 percent nationwide and almost 56 percent at Brown over the same period.

“The reason we’re seeing student debt grow over the last generation is college costs have continued to outpace both family income and available grant aid,” Asher said. Record numbers of enrollment are partially to blame, but the share of college students with loans has also increased from one-half to two-thirds, she said.

Nevertheless, the media’s attention to students with extreme debt can be misleading, she said. Students finishing a bachelor’s degree with over $100,000 in debt account for less than 0.5 percent of all borrowers. Of Brown students with no-loan packages in 2011-2012, only 2 percent borrowed over $12,501, according to graphs provided by Tilton.

“I know there are a lot of headlines out there that talk about ‘crisis’ and this sort of thing, but I think that really is overblown,” said Haley Chitty, director of communications for the National Association for Student Financial Aid Administrators. “The

/ / Vote page 1 party’s endorsed candidate, has apologized for misleading voters about the city’s financial strength, but he maintains that Gemma’s claims of voter fraud are “baseless.” The winner of the primary will face Republican Brendan Doherty ­— the former superintendent of the Rhode Island state police who is running unopposed in his party’s primary — in the general election in November.

In Rhode Island’s second district, six-term U.S. Rep. Jim Langevin, DR.I., faces the most significant challenge from carpenter John Matson, marking the fifth time the two have fought for the nomination. The winner of the Democratic primary will vie against the winner of the Republican primary — predicted to be businessman Michael Riley or lawyer Michael

reality is most students borrow 20 to 25 thousand dollars, and given the return on higher education, for most students that’s a very good investment.”

most of their options, Tilton said.

Students should maximize the use of federal loans before borrowing privately.

Undergraduates under age 24 are eligible for up to a total of $31,000 in subsidized Stafford loans, which offer protections and benefits like loan forgiveness and tax-deductions that private lenders do not. Borrowers with extreme debt balances are most often those with private loans, Chitty said.

“It’s really critical that students and parents know the difference between theses two types of loans and only use private loans as a last resort,” he said.

Consequently, schools are urged to adopt certification programs under which all private borrowing has to be approved by the school.

Brown’s financial aid office has a list of pre-approved lenders, and those requesting to borrow privately who have not taken advantage of all federal loan options are contacted by a counselor. Including graduate and professional students, private lending has decreased from $7 or $8 million to roughly $2 million over the last four years, Tilton said.

The University’s policies Concern over high debt levels is mostly reserved for students at expensive private colleges that, unlike Brown, do not guarantee to meet demonstrated need, said Ronald Ehrenberg, director of the Cornell Higher Education Research Institute.

Brown’s current financial aid policy has been in place since 2008, when the University eliminated loans for students whose family income is less than $100,000 and ceased to require financial contributions from parents making less than $60,000 per year.

Last year, 63 percent of the roughly 2,600 students who received needbased financial aid did not have loans in their initial financial aid packages, while the rest had $3,000, $4,000 or $5,000 loans based on family income.

The number of student borrowers remained roughly the same between 2008 and 2011, and — with the exception of 2010, when it climbed to $22,832 ­— the average debt increased only marginally from $19,390 to $19,463, according to the graphs.

“Our goal was to stop the increase in the average debt at graduation … and we’re doing that,” Tilton said.

But compared to other Ivy League schools and peer institutions, the University still ranks as one of the highest in both the percentage of students graduating with debt and the average amount owed.

“We’d love to see that reduced to $15,000, which is much more in line with the average burden of Ivy Plus schools,” said Alex Mechanick ’15, president of the student group Brown for Financial Aid. Some colleges, including Harvard, Princeton and Amherst College, have eliminated loans from their financial aid packages entirely, made possible in large part by available resources and budget allocations, Tilton said.

But even students at these schools are graduating with debt.

“Even though students have no loans in their packages, they still borrow for a number of reasons,” he said.

“The fact that students will choose to use loans to help pay for college was the point of what we were trying to do in 2008 when we made the change.”

It’s the job of the financial aid office to make sure students make the

Managing student debt Helping students and parents to make informed decisions before they borrow is key, Asher said. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Department of Education collaborated on the “Know Before You Owe” initiative, and all colleges were required to have net price calculators on their websites starting last October.

“I think the financial aid community around the country had to change and adjust their conversations with students and families not just about financial aid but how to finance an education, and I think we do that well here,” Tilton said.

Brown’s loan office helps indebted students and alums navigate their borrowing and repayment options.

Under the income-based repayment program, which was extended to all federal loan borrowers in 2009, monthly payments are proportionate to the borrower’s income rather than fixed.

But the policy is mostly geared toward students at risk of defaulting on their loans, Chitty said. While more than five million Americans are past due on at least one student loan according to the Federal Reserve,

Gardiner — as well as Independent Abel Collins.

she has attributed to an absence from Providence in August.

R.I. Senate Gayle Goldin and Maryellen Butke are facing off in today’s primary to replace state Sen. Rhoda Perry P’91, D-Providence, who is vacating her seat in the Rhode Island General Assembly after 22 years. The two candidates share positions on many issues, notably diverging on education policy.

Goldin is critical of Butke’s support for charter schools, while Butke contends that Goldin lacks experience working with public education.

Goldin has received endorsements from the Democratic State Senatorial Committee, the National Education Association — the largest teachers union in the country — and Providence Mayor Angel Taveras. Butke has not received any endorsements, which

R.I. House of Representatives Libby Kimzey, a former member of the class of 2009, will appear on the ballot in Rhode Island’s eighth district in a race to unseat freshman incumbent state Rep. Michael Tarro, D-Federal Hill, Olneyville and Valley.

Kimzey, who has been endorsed by Providence Mayor Angel Taveras, and Tarro, who has the support of Rhode Island House Speaker Gordon Fox, D-Providence, will face former acting mayor of Providence and 26-year city councilman John Lombardi. Lombardi has picked up endorsements from the Providence Teachers Union and the Teamsters Local 251. The winner of the Democratic primary will run unopposed in the general election Nov. 6.

the brown daily herald Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Brown has one of the lowest default rates in the country, at 1.5 percent in 2010, Tilton said.

By working to borrow modestly and living within their means, students can keep debt levels in check, he said. It is also important for students to estimate how much monthly loan payments including interest are likely to cost and to consider the earning potential of their chosen career path in order to make responsible decisions about borrowing, he said.

For some students, that means having to rethink their post-graduate plans. “If I didn’t have the financial strain, I feel like I wouldn’t even go down the pre-med route. I would just embrace what I’m studying without worrying about whether or not I’m going to get a job or financially secure myself,” said King John Pascual ’14, a Herald business staffer who started to receive aid a year ago when he gained U.S. citizenship, in an interview with The Herald last spring.

Unemployment for recent college graduates aged 20 to 24 reached 9.1 percent in 2010, the highest annual rate on record. And even in a boom economy, picking a lucrative career is never a sure bet, Asher said.

But the University’s financial aid programs were designed with the goal of helping students graduate with options, Tilton said. “I think that Brown students have several choices and many choices because of the way we manage their student loan debt.”

Mechanick would still like to see a significant reduction in the average debt, but is hopeful that President Christina Paxson will consider it a priority, he said. “We’re really excited to have a new president coming in.

We think that now is a great time to really commit to making big, bold changes,” he said.

On a national level, Chitty remains optimistic that more careful thinking on the part of borrowers and a predicted decline in enrollment will help alleviate student loan debt. “It doesn’t make a great headline, but it’s not all gloom and more debt,” he said.

Others are not so sure. The government’s lack of bipartisanship makes the economic improvement necessary to alleviate the loan debt crisis very unlikely, Ehrenberg said.

“Unless saner heads get together, gridlock is going to stay at the federal level, and that’s going to create real problems for higher education and for students.”

President On the final day of the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, President Obama officially accepted the Democratic Party’s nomination to once again be its candidate for president of the U.S. The convention featured speakers ranging from former president Bill Clinton to Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee ’75 P’14 P’16. Taveras and Rhode Island General Treasurer Gina Raimondo attended the convention and participated in forums where they discussed their approaches to pensions and municipal finance. Experts suspect Taveras and Raimonodo will challenge Chafee for the governorship in 2014.

U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., and U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., were also present at the convention.

Student loan debt rises most for uppermiddle class

By Alexa Pugh Senior Staff Writer

Upper-middle-income families are bearing the brunt of a national increase in student loan debt, the Wall Street Journal reported this summer.

Families with incomes between $94,535 and $205,335 saw the largest increase in the percent of borrowers and the average amount borrowed in student loans between 2007 and 2010, according to the Journal’s analysis of data published by the Federal Reserve.

Following the economic downturn in 2008, the financial burden of paying for college is moving from the government to families, said Haley Chitty, a spokesperson for the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.

“The cost is sufficiently expensive now that even students in families with relatively high income levels will need some grant aid to avoid having to take out loans,” said Ron Ehrenberg, director of the Cornell Higher Education Research Institute.

But federal grant aid is not always available for students of middle-income families, leaving loans as the only option for this demographic, Chitty said.

“In some ways, I think that’s a good thing,” Chitty said. “We really want to make sure the federal aid funds are targeted to the neediest families.”

Financial stress on the middle class is a popular concern among Brown students, which may be explained by the University’s higher average loan debt compared to the rest of the Ivy League, said Alex Mechanik ’15, president of the student group Brown for Financial Aid. Brown students whose parents make between $100,000 and $125,000 generally have a $3,000 loan built into their financial aid package, said James Tilton, director of financial aid. Average borrowing by Brown students has also increased slightly in recent years, by about $600, according to Tilton’s estimates.

More students are taking on the responsibility of the financial burden of tuition and extra costs like study abroad, he said. Students are actively choosing to borrow as a way to pay for school, rather than pursuing other options for covering costs.

“I think that’s what we’re seeing, is students saying ‘I’m not going to have Mom and Dad take out all that.

I’m going to help out,’” he said.

“It may be that with this economy and the decline of home equity, families aren’t borrowing more but are borrowing differently,” said Lauren Asher, president of the Institute for College Access and Success. “Student loans have become more common for more kinds of students and families than ever before.”

city & state 5

the brown daily herald Tuesday, September 11, 2012

West Nile virus found in Providence Golden and Butke face off

courtesy of Al Gettman

This mosquito trap, set by the R.I. Department of Environmental Management, uses putrid water to attract female mosquitoes for testing.

By phoebe Draper senior staff writer

The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management discovered three isolations of West Nile virus in Rhode Island mosquito populations this year, said Al Gettman, mosquito abatement coordinator at the department. The virus was first detected mid-July during a routine weekly mosquito sampling in Westerly, Rhode Island and was followed by the discovery of virus-positive mosquito samples in Providence and North Providence July 30 and Aug. 20, Gettman said.

The presence of West Nile came as no surprise to Gettman and his colleagues, because it is generally found in the state annually.

The department also found two in-

/ / EMS page 1 son said. The most common times for simultaneous calls are busy weekend nights, Sanderson said, though there is no data on exactly how often this happens. The months following vacations — September, October and February — generally bring the most calls, she said.

“We try to explain to students that you should never worry about money when you need an ambulance,” Sanderson said. EMS aims to circumvent the need to call in additional outside help by hiring a second ambulance during popularly-attended on-campus events such as Spring Weekend, in anticipation of larger student need for transport and medical attention. This second ambulance incurs no cost, Sanderson said.

There are no plans to permanently acquire additional ambulances, she said.

One junior, who asked to remain anonymous for privacy reasons, asked her friends to take her to on-site EMS personnel at Spring Weekend during her first year. EMS responders deemed the student in need of immediate assistance and transported her to a nearby hospital in a Brown ambulance.

“I was in a state where I wasn’t re-

cidences of Eastern Equine Encephalitis — another mosquito-transmitted disease — in Tiverton, Rhode Island this summer. EEE is traditionally more rare than West Nile and has a much higher human mortality rate, Gettman said.

Despite the virus’ presence in mosquito populations, there have been no West Nile cases in humans in Rhode Island this year, said Dara Chadwick, chief officer of health promotion at the Rhode Island Department of Health.

Brown students who recently participated in a three-day backpacking trip with Brown Outdoor Leadership Training armed themselves with bug spray and did not let the threat of West Nile keep them from participating.

“We had more pressing concerns, like bears,” said BOLT leader Thomas Miotke ’14. ally thinking about the fees,” she said, adding that she was pleasantly surprised when she was not charged for the ambulance.

The student said she would never consider the risk of charges if she had to make the decision to call EMS for someone else. “It’s something that I would think about preemptively,” she said. “In a high-emergency situation, it would go way down on the list.”

Natasha Kumar ’13, a Residential Peer Leader, has made two EMS calls for students in need of emergency attention — both first-years. Firstyears are not often aware they may be charged if transported and given aid by a Providence ambulance, Kumar said.

“I think awareness of that increases as people get charged and they spread the word among their friends,” she said.

The issue of Providence ambulance charges was discussed at RPL training, which strongly advocated the idea that health comes first, Kumar said. “RPLs would rather call EMS and make sure students are safe,” she said, adding that the prospect of fees has never affected her choice to call EMS for someone else. “We don’t want students to be encouraged to not call EMS if they need to call EMS,” she said.

Compared to a bear attack, the consequences of contracting West Nile virus are more subtle. About 80 percent of infected individuals do not display symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. Mild flu-like symptoms are seen in around 20 percent of cases, while one in 150 people infected acquire serious symptoms including fever, convulsions and paralysis.

“When we get those positive results from the mosquito pools, it tells us that we need to make sure people are stepping up to protect themselves,” Chadwick said. Prevention measures include limiting outdoor activity during sunrise and sunset, wearing long sleeves and pants, eliminating standing water and checking that screens are hole-free and effective, he said.

While the West Nile incidence rate in Rhode Island was not abnormal this year, the virus’ presence nationwide was higher than average, Gettman said. West Nile incidence rate is the highest it has been since 1999 ­— 1,993 cases and 87 deaths have been reported this year, according to the Center for Disease Control website.

The winter was mild, which led to higher survival of earlier stages of mosquitos, Gettman said. He added that lack of rain during summer months could also have contributed to the increase of West Nile virus. Without rain to flush out the storm basins, standing water becomes more nutritious for mosquito larvae, Gettman noted.

To combat mosquito-borne diseases, the environmental management department purchases a “very environmentally-benign product” called Bti. This bacterium is targeted to underground water basins to reduce mosquito production, Gettman said.

“The product that’s used is highly specific to killing only mosquito larvae,” Gettman said. “It doesn’t even kill closely related species.”

West Nile arrived in North America in 1999 and “spread like wildfire,” Gettman said. It is now firmly established across the country.

Clara Kliman-Silver ’13, also an RPL, said she has heard some students express concern about paying large medical fees. “If it’s not covered under your insurance plan, that can be a big issue,” she said. Health Services should inform students of the possibility of a charge, she said. “I think that any time there is a cost incurred, the students need to know about it.”

Regardless of potential charges, in an emergency situation, “I would always call,” Kliman-Silver said, adding that the “second call would be to (the Office of Residential Life) or to Health Services to make sure the student has a way of handling the medical bills.”

Class Notes | Philip Trammell

in R.I. Senate primary

By Adam toobin Senior staff writer

State Sen. Rhoda Perry P’91, DProvidence, who has represented the University’s district for 22 years, announced her retirement from politics earlier this year, putting her seat up for grabs in this election cycle.

Two Democrats are squaring off in today’s primary to replace Perry — Gayle Goldin, a leader at the Women’s Fund of Rhode Island, and Maryellen Butke, a former small business owner and an advocate for education reform.

Goldin worked with Volunteers in Health Care — an organization that supports a broad range of efforts to increase access to health care for everyone in Rhode Island — when she first moved to the state in 1998.

Goldin also challenged the State House to reform a law that prevented adoptive parents, who paid into the Temporary Disability Insurance program from receiving TDI support during a parental leave.

Butke has worked on policy reform at both state and national levels, most recently advocating for education reform through the Rhode Island Campaign for Achievement Now. But she credits her experience in the private sector as one of her greatest advantages over her opponent. “We need a primary focus on bolstering our economy, and the experience that goes with that,” Butke said.

Goldin has received endorsements from the Democratic State Senatorial Committee, the National Education Association — the largest teachers union in the country — and Providence Mayor Angel Taveras.

Butke said she did not receive any endorsements because she was enrolled in a program at Harvard Kennedy School of Government in August during the endorsement process.

Goldin received the Democratic State Senatorial Committee’s endorsement the Thursday before Perry decided to retire — behavior that, experts have suggested implies Perry was trying to hand-pick her successor. At a discussion sponsored by the College Hill Neighborhood Association held between the candidates last Wednesday, Goldin rejected the notion that Perry had endorsed her for any reason other than that she supports her policies and believes in her experience. At the debate, Butke said that the allegations establish Goldin as “the status-quo candidate” — and that the status quo is not working for

COMICS

Rhode Island.

The candidates agree on most major policy issues, including pension reform, marriage equality and a woman’s right to choose. The two candidates diverge most on the issue of education reform, Butke told The Herald. Butke has worked in schools and education reform for almost a decade, but Goldin has far less experience in the field, Butke said. “We have to go back to the issue of track record,” she added.

Goldin could not be reached for comment.

Butke cited her time lobbying the state government to change the funding formula used to apportion state payments to cities and towns as among the qualifications that set her apart on this issue. “The number of students did not equal the amount of money (the cities and towns) received,” Butke said. Now, after a long fight, schools receive the same amount of money per child, and if a student leaves a school, “the money follows the child,” she said.

At the discussion, Goldin criticized Butke for highlighting charter schools at the expense of traditional public schools — a claim Butke says is overblown. Charter schools often provide high-quality seats for students, but can only be one part of a much larger solution, Butke said.

In response to Goldin’s criticisms of the use of a lottery at charter schools to determine admissions, Butke said that traditional public schools use similar lotteries when demand outpaces supply. “(Goldin) doesn’t have experience in public education,” Butke told The Herald. “I don’t think her kids have ever gone to public schools. I don’t know if there’s even a clear plan.”

In the debate, Goldin listed three goals for education — reinstituting state funding to transport high school students to school, investing in infrastructure and technology in schools and reforming the state’s foster children system, which can force students to change schools if they change families.

On the same subject, Butke said she would support giving public schools more freedom and flexibility to experiment with their own reforms, implement a national evaluation system that would allow the state to identify and reward successful teachers and promote a labor-management compact that was pioneered by Steve Smith, leader of the Providence Teachers Union.

6 editorial & letter Editorial

A party without a name Gov. Lincoln Chafee ’75 P’14 P’16, an Independent, took the stage Sept. 4 at the Democratic National Convention to address and potentially sway moderate and independent voters. Chafee reached out to those with political beliefs that — like his own — fall toward the middle of the spectrum, who “all too often have no one to speak for them.” In doing so, he at once excoriated the Republican Party for straying from the traditional moderate conservatism exemplified by Rockefeller Republicans like his father, former governor John Chafee, while praising the Obama administration for responsible environmental, financial and foreign policy. Though Chafee’s appearance at the convention may have been the result of newfound political alliances, his message to political moderates is one this country desperately needs.

Chafee left the Republican Party in 2007 due to the growing influence of the far-right wing. He supported President Obama in 2008 and is currently co-chair of the 2012 re-election campaign. Naturally, his speech at the DNC included a harsh summary of the George W. Bush years and an optimistic review of Obama’s first term. It is common for party-switchers to speak at conventions to politically appeal to independent voters, and, in many ways, Chafee’s appearance was quite typically partisan. But Chafee was also able to evoke a sense of a purer, less extreme conservatism, to reach those who do not subscribe to the increasingly extreme views on either side of the political spectrum. He labeled this as a “group (that) doesn’t necessarily have a name.”

This party without a name is seldom energized about either Democrats or Republicans. In today’s political environment and constant cable news cycle, it often seems that discourse has taken a backseat to shock value and ultra-partisan views. However, Chafee and the Democratic Party should be praised for adopting a political platform premised on universal acceptance, an ideal that is commendable in theory, if not in pragmatism. In order to truly commit to Obama’s idea that “citizenship … only works when we accept certain obligations to one another and to future generations,” DNC speakers set out to tell liberals, moderates and conservatives alike that there is no longer room for intolerance or limited freedom if we wish to revitalize our nation. This vision of the future can only be accomplished through embracing conservatism as it was originally intended. True conservatism, which advocates and respects personal freedoms, is not apparent in our most divisive social issues — gay marriage and abortion rights.

Of course, this political strategy may backfire in many hotly contested electoral districts. The Democratic platform, namely its stances on social issues and health care, can be seen as incredibly radical for a national message and may prove too progressive to appeal to many conservatives.

As always, the moderates — the party without a name — will decide the election. The Democratic platform is intended to challenge and appeal to moderates by creating a stark division between the agendas of both parties. No matter the outcome, it is certainly admirable that Chafee and others like him are willing to sacrifice political capital to advance a message of universal personal freedom, instead of shying away from the issue to pander to various constituencies.

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

the brown daily herald Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Editorial cartoon b y a n g e l i a wa n g

quote of the day

“We had more pressing concerns, like bears.”

— Tom Miotke ’14 See west nile on page 5.

www.browndailyherald.com t h e b row n da i ly h e r a l d Editor-in-Chief

Managing Editors

Senior Editors

Claire Peracchio

Rebecca Ballhaus Nicole Boucher

Tony Bakshi Natalie Villacorta Business

editorial Sarah Mancone Arts & Culture Editor Joe Rosales Arts & Culture Editor Elizabeth Carr City & State Editor Amy Rasmussen City & State Editor Aparna Bansal Features Editor Jordan Hendricks Features Editor Lucy Feldman News Editor Shefali Luthra News Editor Alexandra Macfarlane News Editor Sahil Luthra Science & Research Editor Jake Comer Sports Editor Lindor Qunaj Sports Editor Sam Rubinroit Assistant Sports Editor Dan Jeon Editorial Page Editor Annika Lichtenbaum Editorial Page Editor Lucas Husted Opinions Editor Garret Johnson Opinions Editor Jared Moffat Opinions Editor Greg Jordan-Detamore Special Projects Graphics & Photos Emily Gilbert Photo Editor Sam Kase Photo Editor Tom Sullivan Photo Editor Rachel Kaplan Photo Training Manager Jonathan Bateman Sports Photo Editor Production Olivia Conetta Copy Desk Chief Kyle McNamara Design Editor Julia Shube Design Editor Neal Poole Web Producer

General Managers Siena DeLisser Danielle Marshak

Office Manager Shawn Reilly

correc tion The quote of the day in Monday’s Herald misspelled the name of the Bears’ football team offensive coordinator Frank Sheehan. The Herald regrets the error.

Have something to say?

Prove it! Write a letter to the editor:

Directors Julia Kuwahara Samuel Plotner Nikita Khadloya Angel Lee

Sales Finance Alumni Relations Business Development

letters@browndailyherald.com

Managers Justin Lee Kaivan Shroff Gregory Chatzinoff Luka Ursic Alison Pruzan Elizabeth Gordon David Winer

Human Resources Research & Development Collections Finance Operations Alumni Engagement Fundraising Marketing

Post- magazine Clay Aldern Jenny Carr

Editor-in-Chief Editor-in-Chief

BLOG DAILY HERALD Matt Klimerman Meredith Bilski

Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor

facebook.com/browndailyherald

@the_herald

thebdh.org

C ORRE C T I ON S P o l icy The Brown Daily Herald is committed to providing the Brown University community with the most accurate information possible. Corrections may be submitted up to seven calendar days after publication.

C o mm e n ta r y P OL I C Y The editorial is the majority opinion of the editorial page board of The Brown Daily Herald. The editorial viewpoint does not necessarily reflect the views of The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Columns, letters and comics reflect the opinions of their authors only.

L e t t e r s t o t h e Edi t o r P o l icy Send letters to letters@browndailyherald.com. Include a telephone number with all letters. The Herald reserves the right to edit all letters for length and clarity and cannot assure the publication of any letter. Please limit letters to 250 words. Under special circumstances writers may request anonymity, but no letter will be printed if the author’s identity is unknown to the editors. Announcements of events will not be printed. adv e r t isi n g P o l icy The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. reserves the right to accept or decline any advertisement at its discretion.

opinions 7

the brown daily herald Tuesday, September 11, 2012

The myth of Brunonian decline By zachary ingber Opinions Columnist The U.S. News and World Report college rankings, which place Brown at number 15, are bound to shock students. It is not that we care so much about the actual number — it’s just that we just know that we are better than number 15. Why do we always have to justify to outsiders that having an open curriculum actually enhances our education? That a lack of a core set of classes allows us to explore more disciplines than anyone could fathom? I cannot tell you how many times I have had to tell others that yes, we do receive grades at Brown.

The astute political scholar Robert Kagan wrote an article for the New Republic in which he discussed what he coined “the myth of American decline.” Kagan proposed that America’s influence and success has not spiraled downward, but rather that people of the world create a historical American fantasy that allows them to believe the U.S. was much stronger in past decades. According to the magazine Foreign Policy, the article is a favorite of President Obama.

In this column I will attempt to take Kagan’s eloquent idea and apply it to Brown’s place in higher education. Despite the constant fun poked at Brown, the numerous pop-culture references that undermine its credibility as a serious academic institution

and the misunderstanding of its academic philosophy, Brown and its alums achieve great success in all sectors of public and private life.

While working at a think tank in London over the summer, I received mixed reactions about the fact that I study at Brown.

Some were amazed and asked how I received admission to such a selective school — I could not really provide an adequate answer — but most asked me if I’d had the opportunity to meet Emma Watson. Oth-

ago as significantly more academically serious.

Fortunately, the students and alums of this great University have benefited from the education and culture it offers — even if it has been criticized. Brown graduates are prepared to think unconventionally and tackle questions in creative ways.

Some great individuals come to mind — esteemed diplomat Richard Holbrooke ’62, Gov. Lincoln Chafee’75 P’14 P’16, Alexander Meiklejohn 1893, Bank of America

Fortunately, the students and alums of this great University have benefited from the education and culture it offers — even if it has been criticized. Brown graduates are prepared to think unconventionally and tackle questions in creative ways. ers inquired if every class was pass/fail, and a few asked if there was as much pot as the rumors suggested. I began to step back and ask myself — why do people perceive Brown this way? Why don’t people react this way when they hear the names of other Ivy League institutions?

Maybe Brown was always viewed like this. Maybe, as Kagan suggests many around the world are doing with America, we as Brown students believe in some fantasy in which Brown was perceived very differently than it is today. Maybe I have idealized Brown’s reputation a few decades

Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan ’81 P’14, author Randy Pausch ’82 and actor John Krasinski ’01 top the list. But the average — and I say that with a smirk — Brown graduate is doing great things as well. Last April, The Herald published an article with statistics about the plans of graduating seniors (“Looking ahead from inside the Ivy gates,” April 27). CareerLAB data indicated that an astonishing 31 seniors last year were going on to Teach for America, and 85 were working in the field of technology, with 21 at Google alone. Organizations like Bain and Company and

top investment banks recruit heavily at Brown and hire many of their first-year associates from College Hill.

The Brown Alumni Magazine published an illustration with various Brown alumni working in Washington D.C. The piece talked to alums such as Kori Schulman ’08, who serves as the deputy director of digital content in the White House, and Dana Singiser ’92, who acts as special assistant to the president for legislative affairs. And let us not forget that Roberta Jacobson ’82 is the newly appointed assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs and is a part of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s inner circle.

I do not have to remind Brown students that there are brilliant Brown alums — just last week, The Herald published an article about the Brown professor who worked on the team that achieved the Higgs boson breakthrough. I simply want to remind Brunonians who love Brown as much as I do that we are not in decline. We have always embraced our informality and our laid-back atmosphere. Let us use that as a strength and not feel defensive when we encounter those who think that the old university in Cambridge, Mass., is the paradigm for a university structure. And to U.S. News and World Report, I say this — everyone knows we are not tied with Cornell.

Zachary Ingber ’15 is content with being number 15 if that means he does not have to take a science class. He can be reached at zachary_ingber@brown.edu

Starting the conversation — a manifesto By benjamin resnik Guest Columnist I firmly believe that Brown students are capable of anything.

Not just Brown alums — Brown students. In the past year alone, our classmates have created works of art and literature, aided in the discovery of the Higgs boson particle and displayed stunning athletic prowess to a watching world.

Members of our University are part of a centuries-old legacy that its students live up to every single day. It is long past cliched to say at this point, but members of the Brown community are truly leaders — of today and of tomorrow.

But there is something missing on this campus.

Half a century ago, when student activism was in its heyday across the country, Brown students, as they always are, were at the forefront. Brunonians marched for improved workers’ rights, for racial and gender equality and to end the war in Vietnam. Our riot-proof Graduate Center, built in 1968, is a concrete reminder of how seriously both students and the University treated those causes.

But today it is harder to be excited about our politics. We are as passionate and driven as ever, but too many causes we champion end up in unresolved stasis. Brown students showed up for Occupy Providence only to see the movement largely fizzle. They mobilized for Barack

Obama only to see petty bickering return on both sides. Today, it is harder to feel like we are making progress.

And so our efforts to address real political issues, both on and off Brown’s campus, have slowed. From freshman year on, “liberals” join the Brown Democrats and “conservatives” join the Brown Republicans and that is, more or less, the end of the story. That is not to imply that these illustrious and student-driven organizations are not active or effective — they do truly exceptional work for their state

duces men and women of influence and note at every convocation. The Brown Democrats was founded by U.S. Rep. David Cicilline ’83 and John F. Kennedy, Jr. ’83, and Brown’s first Republican Club was founded by Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal ’91.5 — our graduates march out of the Van Wickle Gates and on to important things.

And so our unwillingness to talk with the other side is a real problem. If our future governors, congressmen, activists and justices are trained from college on-

If our future governors, congressmen, activists and justices are trained from college onward to lock in ideology and block off discussion, then that is exactly how they will govern.

and national counterparts — but when is the last time those two bodies sat down together and tried to hash out their differences? When is the last time the Brown Democrats or Republicans sat their members down to try to reconcile their personal beliefs with their parties’ inconsistencies?

We have a student body that will undoubtedly have a measurable effect on the course of the world. Our University pro-

ward to lock in ideology and block off discussion, then that is exactly how they will govern. There is a vicious cycle of learned partisanship from college to career to children and back to college, and we are seeing the fruits of this pattern right now in Washington.

To break the cycle, someone needs to start the conversation, and it’s going to have to be right here, on campus — because it’s not going to happen in D.C. any

time soon. That is why we founded the Brown Political Forum — to start the conversation.

Our mission is simple. Once a week, starting Sept. 17, Brown students from every point on the political spectrum will sit down to discuss a topic, from partial birth abortion to the Bush tax cuts to negative campaign ads. It will be a space free of party affiliation to share what you, as an individual, feel about the subject, to learn about what others think and to incorporate that knowledge into your own beliefs.

The Brown Political Forum is not devoted to finding the answers — that’s something its members will do in the years and decades to come. The goal is to get people talking, to introduce people to modes of thought they simply haven’t encountered before, and to make people comfortable with that disagreement. The goal is to make discussion and compromise second nature, not last resort.

There is no doubt that we can accomplish that goal. We do things as a community every day that would simply not be possible anywhere else. We have a drive, an optimism and a confidence that is unique to our campus, and starting right here, on that campus, we can start the conversation.

Brown students lead. To begin the fight and end these politically isolated, partisan times, all we need is a push. The Brown Political Forum is that push.

Ben Resnik ’15 thinks everybody should just get along. He can be reached at benjamin_resnik@brown.edu

daily herald sports tuesday the Brown

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Develin ’10 joins Patriot practice squad

By Nikhil Parasher Sports Staff Writer

Former Bruno defensive lineman James Develin ’10 has been signed to the practice squad of the National Football League’s New England Patriots.

This is Develin’s second NFL practice squad — he spent more than a season with the Cincinnati Bengals before being cut two weekends ago. Develin, who made the switch from defense to offense after college and now plays fullback, was picked up by the Patriots earlier this month.

Develin said he is excited to join his new organization — getting cut by the Bengals left him feeling “pretty bummed.”

But joining the Patriots is “really a blessing,” Develin said. “The prospect of coming back up to the New England area, where I went to school for four years, and being coached by the great coaching staff they have up here ­— I was really happy and obviously excited.”

But joining the practice squad does not necessarily guarantee Develin any game time. In addition to its active 53-man roster, every NFL team has an eight-man practice squad whose members train with the active players. These squads are stocked mainly with young talent teams want to develop or keep on hand in case an active player is injured.

By moving up to the world’s premier professional football league, Develin sacrifices the guaranteed playing time he saw in the Arena Football League. As a member of the AFL’s now-defunct Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz, Develin garnered his initial professional experience.

After two months with the Yard Dawgz in 2010, Develin switched to the United Football League’s Florida Tuskers, where he made the transition from defensive lineman to fullback. He transferred to the Bengals before the year was out.

Develin said he decided to change positions because, at 6 feet 3 inches and 251 pounds, he doesn’t have the size to play defensive lineman in the NFL. “I was a good defensive lineman at Brown, but I don’t really think that I had the skill set or the athleticism to play (that position) in the NFL,” Develin said.

“You look at some of these defensive ends they have playing right now and they’re just absolute freaks of nature.”

Kelley Cox ’10, a close friend who

Men’s golf

Men’s golf starts season on the upswing

By Connor Grealy Sports Staff Writer

Courtesy of David silverman

James Develin ’10, former defensive lineman for the Bears, has been picked up by the New England Patriots’ practice squad. played with Develin during his years with the Bears, said he is confident that Develin can succeed as a fullback.

“You have to be a tenacious hitter” as a fullback, Cox explained. “You have to love what we call ‘the sound of music’ …

Develin is the most physical player that I’ve ever played with.”

Cox said that, in addition to having the physicality to play in the NFL, Develin also has a passion for the game that will allow him to continue to improve.

“He’s freaking crazy about football,” Cox said. “I don’t know how he knew that he wanted to play football forever when he was 12. I don’t know why. But truly passionate, in the true sense of the word, he is willing to suffer for the game … He loves it more than he loves his fiancee.”

Phil Estes, head coach of the Brown football team, said Develin has a good chance to find a role in the NFL. “I wouldn’t be surprised if you see him … find his niche in the NFL some-

where, somewhere that really likes to have a physical fullback,” Estes said.

Develin was “probably one of the best, toughest, most durable football players I have ever coached,” he added.

Develin said he is less certain of his chances to make it onto the 53-man roster but said he will do everything he can to show that he deserves to play on Sundays.

“I don’t really know, to be honest,” Develin said of his chances of making the active roster. “If I keep doing what I’m doing … then hopefully the stars will align and I’ll get my opportunity.

But that’s really out of my control,” he added. “All I can do is … give my best out on the field and learn the offense and I’ll let Coach (Bill) Belichick and the rest of the coaches make those kinds of personnel decisions.”

Despite Develin’s uncertainty, his old friend remains confident. “Can he succeed?” Cox asked. “Absolutely.”

After a disappointing last-place ranking at the Ivy League Championship in April, the Brown men’s golf team opened the 2012-2013 season with a fifth-place finish at the Navy Fall Classic at the U.S. Naval Academy Golf Club in Annapolis, Md., this past weekend.

Last year’s squad set the school record for lowest round with 283 strokes. Though the team didn’t play another round for the record books this weekend, Head Coach Michael Hughes said he was just as impressed with his players’ performance. “(On Saturday), we shot 291 and were in fourth. (Sunday) we shot 295 and placed fifth,” Hughes said. “We were only two shots out of third. The fact of the matter is that we’re now a very balanced and competitive team — we were in contention the whole way.”

Justin Miller ’15 noted the team’s consistency at the tournament.

“I don’t remember playing under 300 back-to-back in a tournament.

Usually, we’re shooting 300. It takes a lot of pressure off everyone.”

Miller torched the course for the second year in a row, placing fifth overall in the tournament to lead the Bears with an overall score of 143.

Miller was not alone atop the leaderboard — in his collegiate debut, Jack Wilson ’16 shot 146, landing him in 14th place in the tournament. Nelson Hargrove ’13.5 followed closely behind Wilson and carded a 147 for the weekend. Peter Callas ’14 and Kyohei Itamura ’14 rounded out the Bears’ scorecard with scores of 150 and 151, respectively.

“We have a team that can compete to win tournaments,” said co-captain J.D. Ardell ’13. “The key point is to keep the momentum going from our high points. (Last) fall was a little bit of a roller coaster.”

Hughes discussed the upcoming season and goals for his team, which will feature all key players from last year in addition to Wilson.

“We have three goals: start contending in these events, win one of these events and win the Ivy League Tournament in the spring,” Hughes said. “These kids expect to play well.”

In past years, Hughes has scheduled tournaments against top-25 teams to propel Brown into the national picture. By contrast, this year’s goals will be played out on a schedule that will bypass many of the powerhouse programs that have been on the schedule in recent seasons.

“We’re playing a lighter schedule where we can compete to win and build up our nerves that we need to win a big tournament,” Ardell said.

“It’s a different feeling playing in the last group, playing for something.”

The team will primarily be teeing up against Ivy League and regional opponents.

The first big change to Bruno’s schedule will be an appearance at the Big Red Invitational Sept. 22 and 23 at Cornell. The tournament will be the first time any of the team’s current players have seen the course, but they will be familiar with their competition.

“The Cornell field is more indicative of the guys we play against all year,” Hughes said. “They’re more in tune with the competition we play against.”

Brown is poised to emerge as a competitor in the Ivy League and the region, with a veteran core building on last year’s impressive performance from underclassmen.

“I couldn’t be happier. I think that the seniors have provided great leadership,” Hughes said. “They’ve proven in the past they’re here to compete.

We’re a better all-over collective team this year.”

Hughes said he is optimistic about his team’s ability to compete this season.

“There are great times ahead for golf on College Hill. No matter which five (golfers) we put out, we’re going to be a great representation of Brown golf.”

Football

Bears confident in experienced defensive lineup

By Jake Comer Sports Editor

With a defense ranked first in the Ivy League in yards against last season, the returning squad will have a lot to live up to this fall.

Head Coach Phil Estes spoke confidently of the veteran players who will fill many of the Bears’ defensive positions, adding that inexperience among the linebackers is an exception to the rest of the squad.

“Even though we graduated (some seniors), there are players that have to step up. We don’t think we should be taking a drop-off by any means,” said Michael Kelleher, the defensive coordinator.

An experienced defensive line — including Brett Polacek ’14, John Bumpus ’14, co-captain Ross Walthall ’13

and Stephen Fox ’13 — will return to continue putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks.

With Michael Yules ’14, Patxi Colbern ’13 and Matthew Miller ’13 giving the squad “good depth,” Kelleher said the defensive line will be in “very good shape.”

“We feel like we have at least eight guys that have a lot of experience and (will) be able to boost our defensive line,” Estes added.

Co-captain A.J. Cruz ’13, who had three interceptions last season, will nail down the secondary with Emory Polley ’14. Polley was a starter at cornerback last season who racked up 20 tackles and one interception.

Estes called Cruz “one of the best defensive backs in the league” during the 2012 Football Media Day Teleconference

With Polley manning the other side of the field, Estes said, “We feel that we’re very, very solid (at cornerback).”

The coaches did note the relative lack of varsity experience in the linebacker corps.

“We have a number of players coming back with experience, but, saying that, we are going to be a little inexperienced at the linebacker position,” Kelleher said.

Estes said the team does have significant talent at the position.

“You’re going to see those guys getting better and better, game after game, because they’re getting that experience,” he added.

Estes said a main challenge for the new starting linebackers — Stephen Zambetti ’13, Xavier Russo ’15 and Daniel Giovacchini ’15 — will be developing the instincts needed to succeed at this

level of play.

“You’ve got to read your keys and do your job,” he said. “Sometimes you want to do a little bit more, you find yourself in trouble.”

For this season’s starting linebackers, that sort of gut knowledge “is just going to come by experience,” he added.

“It’ll be a first start for (Giovacchini), but he’s a hell of an athlete, and he can make plays, and what I’d call him is slippery … he’s just a hard guy to block,” Estes said.

Kelleher added that the new starters’ general familiarity with the Brown football program has helped prepare them for varsity competition.

“We’ve been able to remain consistent in having an opportunity to compete for championships every year because we are fortunate enough to be able to not have

to rely on the first-year players,” Kelleher said. He explained that younger defensive players often have some difficulty transitioning from high school standards to the playing styles that win college games.

Cruz said this year’s starting defense is well-equipped to fill the holes left by graduating seniors. His concerns about the linebackers’ experience, he said, were “squashed” last spring, and a strong preseason and enthusiasm from the team’s seniors, he said, will help make it a “fun, exciting year.”

“You see a focus shift from the senior class, like … this is our last chance,” Cruz said. That final-shot determination led many of the team’s veterans to do great work in preparing for this season over the summer, he added.

“Can we get there now?” Cruz said.

“We’re all ready.”