Thursday, September 29, 2016

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29

VOLUME CLI, ISSUE 75

WWW.BROWNDAILYHERALD.COM

Judge invalidates U. ruling in sexual assault lawsuit U.S. District Court rules in favor of student due to retroactive application of new consent definition

By JACKSON CHAIKEN SENIOR STAFF WRITER

NAOMY PEDROZA / HERALD

The Undergraduate Council of Students held annual elections to fill seven posts at its meeting Wednesday.

Officers emphasized diversity and increasing the council’s presence on campus.

UCS fills seven leadership positions Chair of appointments, parliamentarian among positions filled in annual council elections

By ROSE SHEEHAN SENIOR STAFF WRITER

The Undergraduate Council of Students filled seven leadership positions through internal elections at its meeting

Wednesday night. The positions of chair of appointments and parliamentarian were hotly contested, with three students running for each post.

Gabrielle Alcala ’19 secured the position of chair of appointments after citing her leadership experience as a Minority Peer Counselor and as a member of committees within Alpha Chi Omega.

“I was on the committee to find the new dean of admission,” Alcala added. “I had the opportunity to not only work

with students, … but I also got the opportunity to meet administration, to get to work with people like (Dean of the College) Maud Mandel.”

Alcala will focus on diversity within University committees and “making sure that low-income students and people of color are represented on these committees,” she said. She added that she also hopes to delegate tasks in the appointment process to promote transparency » See UCS, page 2

Chief Judge William E. Smith ruled in favor of an undergraduate, referred to as John Doe in court documents to protect his identity, in a case against the University yesterday. The case concerned a University disciplinary hearing that found Doe guilty of sexual misconduct.

Doe was subsequently suspended from the University until the woman he was found guilty of sexually assaulting — an anonymous Ann Roe — was slated to graduate in fall 2018.

The ruling ordered the University to expunge Doe’s record but also stated “nothing in this order prevents Brown from re-trying Doe on the same charge with a new panel consistent with policies and procedures that apply,” according to the court documents.

Several of the claims against the University were dismissed, including the claim that the University “encourages allegations of misconduct, offers

accusers robust support and vigorously prosecutes complaints, while affording scant resources to the accused.” The judge also denied that “there was bias in the gender makeup of the University’s Title IX Council,” and “that the University should pay (Doe’s) attorneys’ fees,” according to a University press release.

The ruling means that Doe has the option to return to campus, though he is currently not taking courses at Brown, according to the release. “The University will make a determination on what, if any, further action is needed should he indicate his intent to return to campus,” according to the release.

The University will not appeal the decision, wrote Brian Clark, director of news and editorial development, in an email to The Herald.

In June the judge, gave a preliminary injunction barring the University from suspending Doe, claiming that the suspension would cause him “irreparable harm for which an award of monetary damages would not be sufficient,” The Herald previously reported.

The ruling Smith explicitly stated in the findings of fact and conclusions of law that » See RULING, page 2

Redniss ’96 receives Grad student to release haunting E.P. Proffitt’s GS MacArthur ‘genius’ grant Samuel melancholy songs inspired Author, illustrator of nonfiction graphic books aims to meld literary, visual flair in works

By ELENA RENKEN SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Lauren Redniss ’96 was sitting in her parents’ kitchen with her son when she received a call from an unknown number. Assuming it was an election survey, she picked up. “That’s not what it was,” she said.

It was a call notifying her that she had won a MacArthur Fellowship — $625,000 to pursue her creative work.

The MacArthur Foundation awards grants every year to outstanding individuals in many disciplines. Redniss, an author and illustrator who currently teaches at the New School’s Parsons School of Design, was one of the 23 winners chosen this year.

Redniss told her parents and her husband about the news before it was released to the public. “I cried, and I didn’t want them to think something terrible had happened,” she said. “But

INSIDE

they’re all good secret-keepers. No one divulged.”

Redniss writes and illustrates visual nonfiction books using a variety of media. “I want to create a kind of third thing that happens between the forms of prose writing and visual, something that I feel I can’t achieve with either on its own,” she said. She called this “third thing” a “fusion of fact and feeling — a kind of emotional impact.”

Unsure of her exact plans for the grant, Redniss wants to “let it sink in a little before I make any drastic moves,” she said.

Her previous projects include a book depicting the life of a traveling showgirl, brimming with newspaper clippings, drawings and photographs.

Another book — complete with a cover that glows in the dark — recounts the romance and scientific achievements of Marie and Pierre Curie. Her most recent work, “Thunder and Lightning,” focuses on the emotions and perceptions surrounding weather.

Redniss strives to create “a rich tapestry of words and images” incorporating multiple elements of the book, from » See MACARTHUR, page 3

by Russian literature, personal experiences

By ROLAND HIGH SENIOR STAFF WRITER

The haunting electronic melodies of Samuel Driver GS — known by his stage name Samuel Proffitt — began with tragedy. The same day Proffitt wrote the song “Cranes,” he learned his roommate had died after spending three months in a coma. A long-term relationship with his girlfriend had ended earlier that day.

“Obviously that was horrible, and it was just so much piled on at once,” Proffitt said. “What really affected me was the death.”

“There was so much absurdity within a six-month period that I think that just really (lent) itself to what I was writing,” he said.

Proffitt, who is currently studying for a PhD in Russian literature at Brown, said his taste in music and literature has always tended to be solemn, but these experiences prompted him to shift from more upbeat rhythms to a melancholy tone. “I like dance music,

COURTESY OF ROB CHRON

Samuel Proffitt’s new E.P., which draws from his study of Russian literature and a lifelong obsession with Russian culture, will be released Oct. 10. and I appreciate it. … But it just wasn’t fulfilling, and there wasn’t enough storytelling,” he said.

“For me, I needed there to be a darker aspect, and there needed to be something that was more raw.”

Proffitt counts jazz legend Miles

Davis and electronic singer James Blake among his favorite artists.

“I’ve always been obsessed with James Blake,” he said, calling his music “gritty but incredibly emotional.”

Russian literature has also been a » See PROFFITT, page 3

WEATHER

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29

ARTS & CULTURE ‘Sound of Ceramics’ exhibit to mix musical performance, colored sculpture at Granoff

ARTS & CULTURE ‘Eight Days a Week’ offers intimate, novel portrayal of Beatles’ touring years

COMMENTARY Malik ’18: Credit hours on syllabi misleading, should not be used to regulate universities

COMMENTARY Diaz-Loza ’17: UCS justified in calling for safe space, excluding press, public from meeting

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PAGE 2 • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

» RULING, from page 1 the court’s role is to determine whether the disciplinary process was “in line with (the plaintiff ’s) expectations based on the policies in place at the time of the incident.”

“It is not the court’s role to determine the facts of what happened between (Doe) and (Roe); to decide whether the court would have, in the panel’s position, found (Doe) responsible for sexual misconduct; to evaluate whether the court would have made the same judgement calls on evidence and other issues as Brown did; or to determine whether the procedure John received was optimal,” according to the court documents.

In referring to the court not being “swayed by emotion of public opinions,” Smith may have been referring to a widely circulated Facebook post

by Alex Volpicello ’18 encouraging students to email Smith about the case. “These tactics, while perhaps appropriate and effective in influencing legislators or officials in the executive branch, have no place in the judicial process. This is basic civics, and one would think students and others affiliated with a prestigious Ivy League institution would know this,” the court documents stated.

Overall, Smith determined that “the court must answer in this case: whether Brown’s rules and procedures, on their face, violate public policy or the law; whether Brown violated any of the specific terms of its contract and/ or applied its rules arbitrarily and capriciously in Doe’s case; if there was a breach of contract, whether that breach of contract caused Doe’s damage,” according to the court documents.

Smith determined that the disciplinary hearing is not against public policy or the law, but that “the process was not properly applied.”

“Brown provided Doe’s panel with a new written policy that was not in existence at the time of the incident, while explicitly telling Doe that the old policy would be used, and the panel used that new policy to find Doe responsible,” the ruling stated.

Smith also stated that the case was

» UCS, from page 1 and ensure “that the general body also knows what’s going on in this committee.”

Austin Lessin ’19, a Herald sales associate, who was elected parliamentarian, was praised during the discussion of the candidates for his past service in the position and his knowledge of the UCS code of protocol and the council’s constitution.

“One of the big projects I took on

HERALD FILE PHOTO

Concluding that the Title IX process was improperly applied, a judge ruled in favor of an undergraduate referred to as John Doe in court documents yesterday. The University, which was asked to expunge Doe’s record, has said it will not appeal the decision. “uniquely postured” because the al- Title IX policy — which was adopted Schultz provided the panel members written decision, stating, “Because the leged assault occurred in 2014, and the in 2015 — but Amanda Walsh, Title IX with the 2014-15 code of conduct and 2014-15 Code of Student Conduct does hearing was conducted the following program officer, rewrote the language “reminded the panel that the 2014-15 not explicitly define consent, the panel year, after the new Title IX policy had of the report such that it only cited the code did not define consent. She then referred to the current Title IX policy,” been introduced. Smith also ruled that 2014-15 University code of conduct. read the current definition of consent according to the court documents. “for this case and any others remainMarch 1, a draft of the report was in the Title IX policy and told the panel Doe and Roe both appealed the deing under the 2014-15 Code, Brown shared with Doe and Roe. Walsh then that, although they were not required cision April 25. Roe argued that Doe is contractually required to provide scheduled a Title IX Council hearing to use that definition, ‘it may be helpful should be expelled from Brown. Doe the rights it promised students in the for April 14. The panel included Se- in thinking about how the University argued that the panel “should not have Code.” nior Associate Dean for Curriculum has viewed consent,’” according to the referenced the Title IX policy because it Besenia Rodriguez, Deputy Director court documents. ‘substantively changed Brown’s definiThe timeline of the Swearer Center for Public SerWalsh also presented Schultz with tion of sexual misconduct,’” according The court documents from the con- vice Katherine Trimble and Kimberley Doe’s previous conduct history, which to the court documents. clusion of the case lay out the time- Charles ’16. Gretchen Schultz, profes- revealed that Doe had previously vioSchultz oversaw the panel for both line of alleged assault and disciplinary sor of French studies, served as the Title lated a no-contact order, which Rodri- appeals, which consisted of Amariah hearing process. Roe filed a complaint IX council chair, though she was not a guez said factored into her vote on the Becker GS, Manager of Athletic Parin the Title IX office Oct. 30, 2015 al- voting member of the panel. case, according to the court documents. ents and Stewardship Advancement leging that Doe sexually assaulted her Walsh presented Schultz with a The panel voted 2-1 that Doe had Alexandra Karppinen and Deputy Nov. 10, 2014. The investigation of the copy of the Title IX policy “because violated the Title IX policy. Given that Director of Athletics Colin Sullivan. complaint began Nov. 4, 2015 and was there was no definition of consent in Doe “had previously been placed on The panel decided against all of Doe’s conducted by an external investigator, the 2014-15 code, and (Walsh) wanted probation by the University for no- appeals, though one panelist voted to Djuna Perkins. The final report was panelists to have the Title IX policy contact order violations,” the panel grant Doe’s appeal “because it was a filed March 12. as an option to consider during their ruled to suspend Doe until after Roe procedural error to provide the panel A draft of Perkins’ report initially deliberations if they elected to do so,” graduated. with the Title IX policy definition.” The included that Doe had violated the according to the court documents.

April 19, Schultz released the panel’s panel also denied Roe’s appeal. last year was updating the code,” Lessin said. “So I had to go through the code, change all the sections and update it so that it actually reflects the protocol that we have today.” Lessin added that previously the code “was outdated and featured sections that weren’t really relevant anymore to UCS.” The parliamentarian “asks you to follow the rules whether they’re convenient or not,” said Zachary Nelkin ’17, a UCS member. “In the long run that’s the most important quality of (a)

parliamentarian — that you have to be willing to stand up for following (the) process no matter how inconvenient.”

Two candidates ran for the position of historian, with William Zhou ’20 emerging victorious. Zhou laid out two goals he intends to pursue during his tenure in order to “expand the reach of our history” and “make our history more useful to ourselves,” he said.

“One thing I want to do to increase the visibility of our history is to film a video series documenting the important moments in our history” by interviewing UCS alums, students and administrators, Zhou said. Zhou also plans to conduct debriefs after big events and the passage of major policies so the council can learn from its past initiatives, he

added.

“The more presence our history has on campus, the more legitimate we become and the more students will actually want to be involved with us,” he said.

Brandon Lê ’18 ran uncontested to serve as webmaster, a position he has held for the past two years. Lê was present for the launch of the current UCS website and WTF Brown, a forum for student feedback. His knowledge of website development and creation makes his experience and skills “a valuable asset,” he said. He hopes to improve WTF Brown this year.

“I have also been involved in retrieving minutes from past UCS meetings and archiving them on our website,” Lê said.

“He has made our website a lot better than it used to be,” said Tim Ittner ’18, UCS vice president.

Savannah Johnson ’18, Peter Vo ’19, Julian DeGeorgia ’20 and Alesandro Walker ’20 were elected to serve on the Undergraduate Finance Board. Zafreen Siddiquee ’19 was elected to the position of alumni liaison in an uncontested race, while Sam Shipley ’20 also ran uncontested for the post of secretary.

Lisa Schold ’19 also won the position of UCS-UFB liaison in an uncontested race. Schold previously served on the UCS service group funding board. “After my experience with that, I realized that I was really interested in allocating money for different groups on campus,” she said.

ARTS & CULTURE THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 • PAGE 3

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

Apfelbaum reflects on art career marked by experimentation Apfelbaum discusses ‘fallen paintings,’ ethereal, extemporaneous nature of her artistic process

By ETHEL RENIA STAFF WRITER

Polly Apfelbaum visited campus yesterday to discuss her three-decade career as an artist.

Apfelbaum kicked off her career with a keen interest in the domestic and everyday. She likes the concept of “art but not art,” as she describes it.

Her first exhibition as a young artist featured bed sheets hanging from the wall, and she liked the idea of hanging things in places they don’t belong, she said.

Her initial use of a seemingly domestic medium — fabric — evolved into more complex creations. She

began to further interact with the material by cutting, staining and dying it with a multitude of different bright colors. When she presented her art, she would carefully lay these pieces of cloth on the floor, such that the room “almost resembled a painting” in the classical sense of the word, she said. The walls were the frame and the floor her canvas.

Soon she began to cut out the stains of the fabric to create some of her most stunning work. Constructing something akin to physical pointillism, Apfelbaum would use hundreds of different stains to “make a painting of the floor,” she said. This led to the creation of multiple works, such as

“Ice” and “Reckless.”

While it is very difficult to put such creations into words, many art critics have referred to them as “fallen paintings.” “She created a hybrid of painting and sculpture and wasn’t afraid to experiment,” said César Bernal ’17.

She creates what looks like fractures of colors tumbling on the floor in seemingly controlled chaos.

Some of these works are more controlled than they seem. “Ice,” for example, has a structure of 103 colors, and each color has four different sections based on dye. All of these colors are clearly visible upon close examination, but if one looks at the piece from afar, the piece seems very pale. “Ice” gets its name from the continent Antarctica, which seems fairly uniform from afar but is actually composed

of a vast number of different colors and organisms.

On the other hand, works like “Reckless” have no controlled color system. In fact, “Reckless” is composed of all of the leftover stains that did not have a distinct place in “Ice.” What is perhaps most interesting about Apfelbaum’s art is that it is inherently ethereal. There is no template or plan for any of her pieces. None of the stains are glued down. Each must be individually placed on the ground and Apfelbaum herself must be present at nearly every installation and set up her pieces by memory.

Apfelbaum must first understand what is innate to a particular piece in terms of color systems or composition. She sometimes has to reflect on the past to understand what she

herself wanted to achieve.

“It’s a very intense experience,” she said. “Every time I set (a piece) up, it changes.”

“She responds to the architecture of the space she is in,” said Wendy Edwards, chair of the visual arts department. As such, two exhibitions of the exact same work will never look the same. Apfelbaum’s work is therefore an art that is very much rooted in the present.

Most recently, Apfelbaum has begun weaving rugs and making ceramics. Her goal is to bring people into the environment of the museum or gallery, so that people can go in and out of a piece. If visitors are standing and surrounded by Apfelbaum’s creations, then they are effectively part of the art.

» MACARTHUR, from page 1 its physical form to the smell of the ink.

“Even if you’re dealing with difficult subject matter or a complicated set of facts, it’s an experience that engages your mind,” she added. “But it’s also a pleasure, I hope.”

Redniss uses different artistic media in different books. “I try to make decisions about the artwork based on the subject matter,” she said, as she hopes to “make it feel meaningful to whatever ideas I’m trying to convey.”

Currently, Redniss is working on a book featuring an Apache community in Arizona, but she is still uncertain as to the form her illustrations will take.

“I’m playing with the idea of keeping it really, really simple,” she said, adding that she is considering colored pencil.

Her visuals are often drawings, but she has also worked in many forms of printmaking, ranging from deep blue and white cyanotypes to detailed etchings. She described printmaking as a “democratic medium” because it involves multiple copies, adding that it “was used historically as an instrument of inquiry into the natural world.”

Originally drawn to Brown because of its focus on freedom in the curriculum and social engagement, Redniss still tries to incorporate “that kind of experimental approach and social conscience” into her creations, she said.

Both her liberal arts education and Rhode Island School of Design classes

» PROFFITT, from page 1 vital source of inspiration for his music, Proffitt said. “There’s just something in the soul of the writing that was so different from anything else that I had ever encountered.”

Proffitt said the concepts he finds compelling in Russian literature are an important component of his work.

“My first E.P. was ‘Blue Notebook

COURTESY OF MACARTHUR FOUNDATION

Lauren Redniss ’96 received the prestigious MacArthur Fellowship for her experimental work blending prose writing and art in graphic novels. The grant, awarded annually, comes with a stipend of $625,000 for recipients to pursue their work further. continue to fuel her work, she added.

Dietrich Neumann, director of urban studies and professor of art and architecture, urban studies and Italian studies, was one of the professors

who influenced Redniss most, she said. Though she took large architecture classes from him many years ago, Neumann recalls conversing with her in office hours several times. She was “one

of those students that you remember for a long time,” he said, adding that she was “obviously bright and engaging and creative.”

Her books “show a huge range of

artistic expression,” Neumann said. “I hope she’ll come back to Brown and maybe talk to the students and show her work,” he added. “That would be wonderful.”

No. 10,’ and I wrote my honors thesis on a Russian absurdist named Daniil Kharms. … Arguably his most wellknown work is called ‘Blue Notebook.’

And it’s about the dissolution of character, the dissolution of story, of all of the normative ideals of storytelling.”

Proffitt is excited for his next E.P., “Grey Notebook,” to be released Oct. 10. “This E.P. production line is leaps and bounds over the previous one,”

he said. “The writing and the production is more complex and a little more elevated.”

“Drown,” a single from “Grey Notebook,” features classic piano chords injected with electronic irreverence amid the melancholy but sultry vocals of SKYLR. Proffitt said he found it unusually difficult to work the piece into shape.

After receiving the a cappella

recording from SKYLR’s management, Proffitt said he “sat on the track for maybe seven months … (and) just worked at it little by little, little by little, and then a couple months ago something just clicked.”

Because Proffitt is used to writing his songs from scratch, he said working from SKYLR’s vocals was difficult. “I get writer’s block because I see that there’s already a finished product.”

The last song on “Grey Notebook” is “Depth,” featuring the Russian band, “Наадя.”

“One of my main goals is to find a way to continue bridging the gap between Russia and the (United States) with the music that I make and the artists that I work with,” he said.“They’re not the bad guys in every James Bond movie — they’re creative, loving, intelligent people, just like we are here.”

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PAGE 4 • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

LILLY NGUYEN / HERALD

Beatles fans flock to the Avon to see Ron Howard’s documentary, “The Beatles: Eight Days a Week — The Touring Years.” Interspersed with clips of the lads from interviews, rehearsals and life on the road, the film chronicles the height of Beatlemania while capturing the band’s youthful camaraderie and cheeky personality.

‘Eight Days a Week’ brings Beatlemania to Thayer St. Beatles documentary captures political, social turmoil of ’60s, youthful stardom of group

By MADISON RIVLIN SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Chronicling The Beatles’ rise to stardom from meager beginnings in Liverpool in the late 1950s, Ron Howard’s documentary “The Beatles: Eight Days a Week — The Touring Years” captures the adolescent camaraderie and easygoing spirit of the band and its wild international popularity during times of political and social turmoil. “Eight Days a Week” follows John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo

Starr across the globe from Hamburg to their final impromptu rooftop performance in London Jan. 30, 1969. Starr and McCartney, the two living members of the band, recount the history of their experience as if it were “Yesterday.”

The documentary charts the band’s rise by focusing on the production and performances of every album. It starts with early successes like “Meet the Beatles!” and “A Hard Day’s Night” and progresses to the later, more experimental years of “Rubber Soul,” “Yesterday …

And Today” and “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.” Audience members become invested in “Eight Days a Week,” as it captures both the years of Beatlemania and the frustrations and growing aura of monotony preceding the group’s demise.

The film incorporates colorized black and white photos and clips of rehearsals and hotel shenanigans to inspire a more modern and intimate appreciation for the classic English rock group. Retouched interview snippets woven throughout capture each lad’s “cheeky” media persona. Just as Whoopi Goldberg’s childhood experiences listening to The Beatles helped her imagine knowing them, such clips allow audience members to think (and hope) they “could be friends with them,” as Goldberg says in the film.

In addition to Goldberg, the film features commentary from the likes of Sigourney Weaver, Elvis Costello, Eddie Izzard and Malcolm Gladwell.

Gladwell explores the phenomenon of the band’s success as a product of the

“10,000-Hour Rule” in his book “Outliers: The Story of Success.” Though the presence of these Hollywood giants seems out of place at first, their narratives regarding their relationship with the band strengthen the audience’s understanding of the omnipresence of Beatles culture during the 1960s.

The documentary grounds The Beatles’ rise in the turmoil of the 1960s and includes commentary on monumental events such as the Bikini Atoll nuclear tests, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the Vietnam War. The band had particular influence during this decade with respect to American race relations. Though they were “just lads,” Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Starr chose to take a stand on the segregation and racial discrimination that

was rampant in the southern United States. The Beatles refused to play in segregated arenas, specifically the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida in 1964.

The documentary does not fail to mention how the band’s influence created much controversy on an international scale. Both the apparent snub of the Philippines’ first lady Imelda Marcos and Lennon’s interview statement that the group had become “bigger than Jesus” demonstrated the scrutiny of the members’ actions.

True to its title, the film primarily focuses on “the touring years.” Though an in-depth documentation of the golden years of the group, the documentary feels unfinished, ending with the rooftop performance and leaving the tragedy of The Beatles’ story after 1969 untold.

New exhibit in Granoff experiments with shape, sound ‘Sound of Ceramics’ in Granoff ’s Cohen Gallery features clay bead mallets, sacred harp singing

By GEORGE KLEIN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The collaborative piece, “The Sound in Ceramics,” will debut in the Cohen Gallery at the Perry and Marty Granoff Center for the Creative Arts Sept.

30. It features an array of hung-up, colored shapes played with clay bead mallets created by the sculptor, Polly Apfelbaum. A musical performance

by Wang Lu, assistant professor of music, and her students accompanies the exhibit and includes prerecorded background sound using the shapes and mallets.

The piece is about “discovery, exploration and improvisation,” Lu said.

“The Sound of Ceramics” is a unique collaboration — purposely disorganized, it is not meant to be viewed or heard in any particular way.

“The point is participation and exploration, not about right and wrong” playing, Lu said.

The piece has many influences, including Chinese hanging bells, American traditional shape-note works and sacred harp singing. The

harp singing is a folk tradition that shares the same kind of collaborative music making “not for a purpose of performance,” Lu said. “I’m not playing this as a performer; I am listening, and next time the performance will be different.”

The members of the newly formed Brown Arts Initiative — evolved from the Creative Arts Council — are enthusiastic about the new exhibit.

“It’s an interdisciplinary collaborative piece and a great opportunity for (the Granoff) to show … this kind of work that is happening in classes and in students’ work that you don’t always see,” said Chira DelSesto, assistant director of the Brown Arts Initiative.

Lu and Apfelbaum originally met and became friends in Rome at the American Academy in 2012. The two began to talk about this collaboration last spring.

“I had known her work for a while, her style, her making shapes and colors,” Lu said.

The collaboration moved along quickly and smoothly. “Polly says collaboration is about her being herself and me doing my thing. … I think the best collaboration is ‘you do your thing, I do mine and let’s see what happens,’” Lu said.

The two sides came together and created a dynamic piece with vibrant

COURTESY OF WANG LU

“Sound of Ceramics,” a collaborative piece between Wang Lu and Polly Apfelbaum, features hanging, colored shapes that are played with clay bead mallets. The piece will debut in the Cohen Gallery in the Granoff Center. shapes and piercing music that leaves a real impact on the viewer. “The ceramics, the geometrical shapes have a visceral aspect visually as well as sonically,” said Joseph Rovan, director of the Brown Arts Initiative and professor of music.

Another dimension of the work is its interactive aspect.

“We’re all composers. … The most important thing … is to explore and be curious,” Lu said.

The aura of discovery is all around “The Sound of Ceramics.” “It makes (people) think about the materials in their everyday lives,” Rovan said.

“To hear is (to) discover things — like you discover a shape when you

are very small, or you discover an instrument,” Lu said.

Discovering “The Sound of Ceramics” is special, with its dual nature and combination of sight and sound.

“It’s a collaboration between an artist and a composer,” Rovan said.

Collaboration like this “connects Brown with the outside world.”

TODAY

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 • PAGE 5

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Students frolicking outside are adding an extra layer or two: After weeks and weeks of sweltering heat to start the school year, the wind and bitter cold of a New England fall are upon Brown’s campus.

Q U O T E O F T H E D AY

“(Russians) are not the bad guys in every James Bond

RELEASE DATE– Thursday, September 29, 2016

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle c rNorris o s sandwJoyce o rNichols d Lewis Edited by Rich ACROSS 1 “La Vie en Rose” singer 5 Ashtray array 10 Interest greatly 14 “There __ joy in Mudville ... ” 15 Livid 16 Cambodian currency 17 Lump 18 Hasbro soldier 19 Raison d’__ 20 Lake Michigan port 22 Dietary need 24 TriBeCa neighbor 26 Backspaced over 27 1974 hit with a Spanish title meaning “You are” 31 Jedi Council VIP 33 VCR successor 34 Brief meeting?

36 Army rank above maj.

41 Told ... and a hint to this puzzle’s six sets of circles 44 Ivy League sch.

45 “Rebel Without a Cause” star James 46 Where a retriever may be retrieved: Abbr.

47 Blacken 49 Prepare 51 Kansas motto word 55 Omit 57 “Moby-Dick” crew 59 Made possible 64 Italian air 65 Cumberland Gap explorer 67 Hall of Fame linebacker Junior 68 Copper that’s mostly zinc 69 Corned beef __ 70 Not fem.

71 __-Ball 72 Construction rod 73 Long haul DOWN 1 Draft item often traded 2 Vacation destination 3 Erelong

4 Snap, commercially 5 Michigan Stadium nickname, with “The” 6 Heep of trouble?

7 __ Mahal 8 Camaro roof option 9 What 15-Across people do 10 Former Fox News anchor Van Susteren 11 Ceremonies 12 Where eagles hatch 13 Some of this and some of that 21 JFK-to-Heathrow flier, once 23 Dental care name 25 Seafood found in beds 27 Website for handmade art 28 Electrolux spokeswoman Kelly 29 Pernicious 30 Something underfoot 32 DOL division

35 Scandinavian literary work 37 Try out 38 Toy gun ammo 39 Almost never 40 Six-part undergrad exam 42 Money 43 Tech graduate 48 Abet, in a way 50 Grime-fighting org.

51 Spy plane acronym

52 Toondom ogre 53 “Common Sense” writer 54 Give a big lift 56 Uganda neighbor 58 40-decibel unit 60 Realty ad abbr.

61 “I am a very foolish fond old man” speaker 62 Comfort 63 “Fore!”

66 Sun or moon

movie — they’re creative, loving, intelligent people, just

”

like we are here.

— Samuel Proffitt GS

See PROFFITT on page 1.

CORRECTIONS

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

An article in Wednesday’s Herald (“BUCC addresses diversity, inclusion efforts,” Sept. 28) referred to the Brown Immigrant Rights Coalition as the Brown Human Rights Coalition. The Herald regrets the error.

An article in Wednesday’s Herald (“Brown’s proportion of minority professors consistent with national average ,” Sept. 28) stated that Associate Dean of the Faculty Joel Revill said he estimated that next year, the proportion of faculty members of color would be between 26 and 31 percent. In fact, he said he estimates that the percentage of faculty members of color represent between 26 and 31 percent of the new faculty hires for the 2016-17 academic year. The Herald regrets the error.

xwordeditor@aol.com

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Fall Tech Fair Day 2 11:00 A.M. Sayles Hall

Preparedness Week: Trivia Game 11:30 A.M. Main Green

Get the Scoop on Study Abroad 12:00 P.M. J Walter Wilson Lobby

BURP Massages 1:00 P.M. Stephen Robert ’62 Campus Center, Memorial Lounge

TOMORROW Yoga for Academics 1:00 PM Alumnae Hall, Crystal Room

Concepts of Displacement 2:00 PM Pembroke Hall 305

Sound of Ceramics 6:00 PM Granoff Center

Breath and Hammer Concert 8:00 PM Granoff Center

COMMENTARY PAGE 6 • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

EDITORIAL

Peer education and activism Last week, The Herald’s editorial board urged our peers to “be generous” in speaking with other students who may not have as elaborate an understanding of issues of power and identity as their own. This week, we aim to expand on that notion, explaining why it is necessary and how it will prove crucial to advancing inclusivity on campus. In particular, we want to argue on behalf of educating each other, even if doing so is burdensome.

Educating others on issues of power and identity does not come without a price. Carrying out that process of education can be exhausting, and some argue that it is not their job to educate the public about what it means to be marginalized. Aspiring allies — students who are not marginalized in a certain regard but want to help peers confront that marginalization — may hear the mantra, “educate yourself.” Others are afraid to ask at all, concerned that a poorly worded question could offend or spark rebuke.

Without a doubt, explaining marginalization — especially in the context of lived experiences that may include trauma — is exhausting. It requires empathy, generosity and energy. Simply identifying with a historically marginalized group does not require that one educate others about marginalization. But those who proclaim a desire to change the world must put forth the effort to change it, and educating others is an essential part of that effort.

In considering why we must educate each other on cultural issues and how to go about it, we must recognize that students seeking to learn about these issues may not have been able to do so prior to their time at Brown. The same way students step onto campus with different levels of understanding of math or writing, so too do students come to Brown with different knowledge of inequality and oppression. For some students, power and privilege may be wholly new subjects because, while some topics are taught in schools and otherwise treated as indispensable, others — such as the understanding of marginalized identities — are widely treated as fields of study not central to education. This is a shame, but it is part of our reality.

What’s more, the extent to which people are educated about issues that do not pertain to their identities may correlate with privilege. For example, as the New York Times reported last year, certain elite New York high schools, armed with financial resources and Ivy-educated teachers, offer extensive programming about “identity, privilege and power.” Programming of this kind is much harder to come by in public school districts, where funding is less plentiful and teachers with top educations more scarce. When we do talk to people whose backgrounds differ from ours, we should remember this difference and approach disagreements with generosity. Open conversations can only take place on a foundation of goodwill.

We live in a historic time. We are on the precipice of real change — inside and outside the walls of this campus. As students with the privilege of studying at an institution as elite as Brown, we have a duty to enact change in this world.

But in the face of this change, our student body is divided, and it is divided by fear — fear that if you ask a question in not exactly the right way, you’ll be told to “educate yourself.” This is a university. We are all here to educate ourselves.

Part of that is learning from each other.

K I M B E R LY S A LT Z

comics Ampersand | Wasita Mahaphanit

A Horse of Any Other Name | Zach Silberberg

Editorials are written by The Herald’s editorial board: Emma Jerzyk ’17, Joseph Zappa ’17, Andrew Flax ’17 and Caroline Kelly ’17. Send comments to editorials@ browndailyherald.com.

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COMMENTARY THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 • PAGE 7

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

UCS members deserve a safe space ARELY DIAZ-LOZA op-ed contributor After reading Matthew Shorter’s ’17 op-ed, (“UCS needs to be transparent,” Sept. 28) in yesterday’s paper, I realized that the expectations we hold for our student leaders — and the necessity for their own safe space — needed to be discussed.

Shorter began his op-ed by attempting to explain what a safe space is supposed to be and then notes his disdain toward the Undergraduate Council of Students’ decision to create a safe space for its own members. He claims that the concept of a safe space has been “shamelessly co-opted to prevent criticism of the student government.” What Shorter fails to realize is that a safe space is not created to prevent criticism or to hide a secret agenda, but rather to make an environment where marginalized people or people with certain experiences feel comfortable talking about issues that affect them personally.

Like Sara Ahmed wrote in her essay “Against Students,” the aim of a safe space is to “enable conversations about difficult issues to happen: so often the difficulties people wish to

talk about end up being re-enacted within spaces, which is how they’re not talked about.”

Another point that Shorter misses is that the students involved in any sort of group or club cannot detach themselves from their own identities and experiences. These

If UCS President Viet Nguyen ’17 felt a safe space was needed to talk about issues of sexual assault and mental health, then perhaps there are personal conversations that needed to be had around these issues between administrators and UCS members. Perhaps UCS need-

sure of knowing anything they said could be quoted by The Herald.

It could have been anything. The point is that when people — especially marginalized and underrepresented people — make a call for a safe space, you need to respect that — no matter the position they hold.

Instead of criticizing UCS and its president, Shorter should instead turn his attention to the issues that create the need for safe spaces within UCS and Brown in the first place.

identities and experiences are sometimes what urge students to do the work that they do. Dismissing this places a ridiculous expectation on our student leaders, asking them to be stoic and indifferent if they want to be seen as “good” leaders. This should not be the case.

ed to discuss the backlash they received for their recent announcements and how this backlash might have affected certain members. Perhaps they wanted to create an environment where UCS members who tend to hold back could freely express themselves without the pres-

If you don’t respect that, then you don’t respect the idea of a safe space at all.

On the point of excluding the press, particularly The Herald, I think it’s important to remember the tension that still exists between student activist groups and The

Herald due to the insensitive columns published last fall. Considering The Herald has done nothing to ease these tensions beyond the apology note it published after the columns were taken down, it makes sense to exclude its reporters from a designated safe space.

Instead of criticizing UCS and its president, Shorter should instead turn his attention to the issues that create the need for safe spaces within UCS and Brown in the first place. Maybe the University is not providing our student government with enough support. As Shorter mentioned, UCS can be inaccessible to many students on campus. Did you know that UCS positions are unpaid? Perhaps that’s part of the problem. Holding open meetings isn’t going to fix anything if members don’t feel comfortable voicing the true issues that might be preventing them from doing more for this campus. If you’re not interested in holding the University accountable for sustaining our student government leaders, then you don’t need to be informed on what is said when members discuss these issues.

Arely Diaz-Loza ’17 can be reached at arely_diaz-loza@brown.edu.

Time shouldn’t equal credit AMEER MALIK staff columnist

We have all probably noticed a new feature on most course syllabi this semester: the inclusion of estimated completion times for assignments and readings. When I first saw these, I was intrigued. I hadn’t seen them before, and I wondered why they were listed. I have never believed that the amount of time spent on something accurately reflects its quality or significance. Why should it matter that one student spent five hours on a paper and another student spent 10 hours if both students produce excellent work?

Yet the federal government apparently thinks that the amount of time spent on something is indicative of accomplishment. According to Herald coverage, the university is up for reaccreditation by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges this year. As per NEASC’s “Policy on Credits and Degrees,” the organization adheres to the federal definition of the credit hour, under which one credit hour for a college course is equivalent to three hours of work each week. This means that, in order for a 15-week course to be worth four credits, it has to take 180 hours total.

But to measure the quality of work by the amount of time spent on it is inaccurate and

lazy. The use of the credit hour to regulate educational institutions does not make sense. We can all attest to this. We can remember times when we were able to pick up a lesson in a classroom quickly, breeze through the homework or complete a good project in a short time span.

What mattered in those instances was how effectively we used our time, not the number of

provement in my knowledge. I also remember occasionally doing homework that did nothing to enhance class lessons but was just busywork.

I was using up a lot of time but wasn’t getting much out of it. These experiences have helped me understand that time does not translate to educational value.

I’m not saying that professors at Brown as-

To measure the quality of work by the amount of time spent on it is inaccurate and lazy. The use of the credit hour to regulate educational institutions does not make sense.

hours it took.

Moreover, to use an example from years ago, there were times during middle school when I wondered what the heck I was doing in class. Though I am grateful for the extraordinary teachers I have had in my life, there were many instances when the amount of time spent in the classroom did not correlate with the im-

sign busywork. They don’t. I’m also sure that a course made up of busywork won’t be given credit. That is because NEASC does consider the qualitative aspects of academic programs.

They look at “breadth, depth, continuity, sequential progression and synthesis of learning.”

These characteristics cannot be determined by a simple metric, and NEASC seems to under-

stand that certain important qualities of academic programs cannot be quantified.

If only the metric of hours spent did not matter due to federal regulations. Since it is clear that there can be a sharp difference between the amount of time spent on work and the quality of the work, this method of measuring the success of a course is obviously faulty. I also feel that a student shouldn’t be compelled to spend a particular amount of time on a course if they can understand the lesson and produce quality papers or projects in less time. Plus, there are instances when counting the number of hours spent on something can be a wildly inaccurate way to measure its impact. For example, when I’m working on a creative assignment, I reflect upon my thoughts and intentions and am conscious of my feelings before, during, and after completing the assignment. My assignment can occupy my thoughts for days. How can I translate that into number of hours spent?

I believe certain national standards are important. But the credit hour is a ridiculous measure that the federal government has unfortunately decided to adopt. It forces coursework to be determined based on how long it takes, at least in part. But coursework should be determined based on how well it serves the needs and goals of the course, irrespective of estimated completion times.

Ameer Malik ’18 can be reached at ameer_malik@brown.edu.

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NEWS THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29

Alum’s production tackles historical racism with comedy ‘By the Way, Meet Vera Stark’ addresses racial barriers in Hollywood, pitfalls of fame

By HANA PARK STAFF WRITER

Sock & Buskin’s production “By the Way, Meet Vera Stark” will premiere Sept. 29. The play is a satirical comedy written by Lynn Nottage ’86 that focuses on the eponymous Stark — a struggling black actress who reaches fame but with unexpected consequences. Inspired by screwball comedies of the 1930s, the production scrutinizes the unchanging racial barrier in Hollywood.

“Vera Stark is ultimately about human relationships — the choices and (the) shaping of human ambition and fame and fortune,” said Assistant Professor of Theatre Arts and Performance Studies Kym Moore, who directed the production.

The play is “perfect for a school like Brown, where people are trying to be number one something at somewhere, and (it shows) the price that you pay for just doing that and not attending to your personal relationships.”

Regarding the play’s exploration of diversity, Moore said that she views “By the Way, Meet Vera Stark” as a form of healing. She added that the satirical nature and comedic aspect of the play allow the audience to understand that it’s a human story that transcends “a parody of people’s experience.” She emphasized

HUAYU OUYANG / HERALD

“By the Way, Meet Vera Stark” underscores the importance of preventing ambitions from interfering with personal relationships. Produced by Sock & Buskin and based on Lynn Nottage’s ’86 satirical screenplay, the production will run Sept. 29 to Oct. 2 and Oct. 6 to 9. that the play was a reminder of the follies of images. “To me, the whole piece is a wake-up call to see ourselves as humans rather than caricatures.”

Sienna Vann ’17, lead actress and chair of Sock & Buskin, reiterated the play’s focus on the performance aspect of people’s lives. Using the characters Vera, Gloria, Lottie and Anna Mae, Vann said the production strives to highlight a person’s natural desire to be seen — which has not changed, as embodied

by the rise of social media platforms.

Because the story goes through the 1930s, 1970s and the 2000s, the play is especially insightful in its focus on the unchanging lack of diversity in Hollywood. Vann noted that there is a scene in which a panel “looks at the figure of Vera Stark and (talks) about her as a problematic figure, which is really interesting because (though) she expanded black representation in the media, by playing those roles, she also

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perpetuated stereotypes.”

The play is more relevant than ever after the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences received criticism last year for the lack of non-white nominees in the top four categories.

“If we look today (at) all the black women that have ever been nominated by the Oscars, all the roles have been slaves, mammies and drug addicts” Vann said.

Assistant Director Ellie Gravitte

’17 also noted the difficulty in treading between the comedic aspect of the play and the somber history behind the story. “There are so many levels of performance in this production,” Gravitte said. She added that it was important to see that the more honest and painful the history was, the more effective the comedy.

“By the Way, Meet Vera Stark” will be performed from Sept. 29 to Oct. 2 and Oct. 6 to 9. Tickets are on sale now.