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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2017

VOLUME CLII, ISSUE 1

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Online watchlist targets U. prof. for defense of safe spaces Turning Point USA employee says watchlist doubles as conservative college guide By ROSE SHEEHAN SENIOR STAFF WRITER

COURTESY OF DRASHTI BRAHMBHATT

Students pose in the foreground of Jerusalem’s skyline. Brown’s Wintersession, new as of this academic year, gave students the opportunity to extend their study abroad with destination courses.

Wintersession fosters study of niche topics

U.’s first Wintersession offers on-campus, online, destination courses, sees high first-gen enrollment By MIA PATTILLO SENIOR STAFF WRITER

The University launched its Wintersession pilot this January, allowing students to explore one niche subject in the span of three to five weeks and offering on-campus, online and destination courses across many disciplines. First generation students were well represented within Wintersession

enrollment figures — 82.5 percent of participants were first-generation students, said Maud Mandel, dean of the College. The class years were evenly distributed, though fewer seniors participated in Wintersession, she said. Of the 126 students who enrolled in Wintersession, 54.8 percent identified as female and 42.2 percent as male, Mandel said. The racial makeup of enrolled students generally represented the University’s demographics, Mandel said. Both students and professors alike who took part in Wintersession praised the unique opportunity to be immersed in one discipline over

a short span of time. “Having this course every day gave me the opportunity to focus in on one subject, which can be harder when taking four or five courses,” said Jonathan Weisskoff ’20, who took the single online course offered, ENGL0930: “Introduction to Creative Nonfiction” taught by Elizabeth Taylor, co-director of the nonfiction writing program. Weisskoff said the course provided him with a solid dayto-day structure, including anywhere from five to 10 hours of daily work. The online course also allowed students to engage more than in a typical course, Taylor said. “The shy » See WINTER, page 3

As colleges grapple with free expression, one organization has begun compiling a controversial watchlist of professors it considers a threat to free speech. Turning Point USA, a nonprofit that promotes conservative values among college and high school students, recently named Matthew Guterl, professor of Africana studies and American studies, to its website “Professor Watchlist.” The website launched Nov. 21 with the aim to “expose and document college professors who discriminate against conservative students and advance leftist propaganda in the classroom,” according to the website. Professor Watchlist profiles feature a photograph of the professor and a description of any “liberal” articles that the professor has written. The Professor Watchlist cites Guterl’s response to a letter University of Chicago Dean of Students John Ellison sent to the university’s class of 2020 stating that the college does not encourage the creation of safe spaces. In his essay, Guterl asserts the need for safe spaces as a place to initiate productive debate on college campuses. According to the website, Guterl described the University of Chicago’s opposition of safe spaces as a “cold, Darwinian approach.” “It is not our job to make intellectual noise — a raucous debate, a clashing set of ideas, a hurtful back-and-forth — just because we can,” he wrote in his essay. The compilation of the watchlist

began in the summer of 2016 at the urging of “student activists … parents of our students, donors and other supporters” who called for a “central location where we could see all this information,” said Matt Lamb, manager of the list and regional field director for Turning Point USA. The watchlist’s creation is unrelated to the 2016 presidential election, Lamb added. The list is meant to serve as a tool in the college selection process, he said. Lamb added that the watchlist offers “information on what resources a college provides” to conservative students, similar to sites that indicate a college’s suitability for first-generation or LGBTQ students. The list does not aim to discourage enrollment at certain colleges, but rather said that it strives to prepare students “to be ready for some kind of fierce resistance” to their views. The watchlist “represents an increasingly public assault on intelligent thought,” Guterl wrote in an email to The Herald, adding that it is made by people “who want to scare faculty into submission” and is also “a very real challenge to those who value constructive engagement with real social and political problems.” But the list does not include enough overarching information about a school to aid in the college decision process, said Ross Cheit, professor of international and public affairs and political science. “This is one thing that one person at Brown wrote — that doesn’t help you decide anything about Brown University.” Lamb said the watchlist names professors who seem inclined to not only disagree with but also delegitimize certain political views in the classroom. “All of the entries have to have » See WATCHLIST, page 2

U. to lease office space in Jewelry District Professor Wang Lu 50,000 square feet to go honored by WQXR Radio to School of Professional Lu’s musical compositions reflect environmental, romantic themes, promote responsibility By ELIZABETH TOLEDANO SENIOR STAFF WRITER

When music touches on the real-world implications of cultural heritage, the environment and popular culture, people are sure to notice. And they have — WQXR Radio in New York City included the work of Assistant Professor of Music Wang Lu among the

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INSIDE

“Top New Music-Moments of 2016.” The list aimed to celebrate “some of the most uplifting, imagination-gripping and breathtaking musical achievements of the past year,” according to the radio station’s website. In addition to many other honors, Wang is a 2014 Guggenheim Fellow and the recipient of two ASCAP Morton Gould Awards. “She seems to be blowing up now,” said Ian MacDougald ’17, who has taken three classes with Wang and is currently her thesis advisee. Despite her recent honors, Wang said she cares more about composing itself than the titles. I’ve “just got to write the music, whether I’m on the » See WANG LU, page 4

Studies in Providence Innovation Center By ANNA KRAMER SENIOR STAFF WRITER

In December, the University announced that it will lease two floors of the future Innovation Center complex in the Jewelry District to house the School of Professional Studies. The building is currently under development by Wexford Science and Technology and is set to finish construction in roughly two years. Once completed, it will hold the SPS in 50,000 square feet of space on the » See SPS, page 2

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Administrators hope collaboration with the Innovation Center will solidify ties between the University and the broader Providence community.

WEATHER

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2017

NEWS Philanthropist, buisness leader Herbert Kaplan, died of natural causes

NEWS RISD student robbed at gunpoint at intersection of Meeting Street and Benefit Street

COMMENTARY Campbell ’18: U. must improve recruitment, financial aid, support for low-income students

COMMENTARY Kumar ’17: We must acknowledge class diversities present in student body

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» SPS, from page 1 third and fourth floors, according to Karen Sibley, vice president for strategic initiatives and dean of the SPS. The Cambridge Innovation Center will occupy the first and second floors, Sibley said, adding that there is no known tenant for the remaining space. Given its current trajectory, the SPS has outgrown the roughly 20,000 square feet at 200 Dyer St., said Russell Carey ’91 MA’06, vice president for planning and policy. The school will increase the number of executive master’s programs from four to six and grow each class size in the coming years. The SPS will pay for the lease itself because it generates its own revenue that supports its staff, programs and space, Carey said, adding that any excess revenue will return to the University. The SPS will remain in the Jewelry District because the location fosters collaboration with the broader Providence commercial environment as an “intersection between Brown’s campus and the community,” Sibley said. By expanding the SPS in the Jewelry District, the goal is to create “the kinds of environments that exist at places like Harvard and (Johns Hopkins University) and Penn,” Sibley added. Wexford’s role also made the project more attractive to the University, Carey said, adding that the University has already worked with the developer on its South Street Landing project. Wexford is “famous for … buildings that support the nexus between higher education and innovation economy,” Sibley said.

Close proximity to the Cambridge Innovation Center makes the location highly appealing, largely because the SPS and CIC have a similar entrepreneurial spirit, Carey said. CIC provides startups with working space, which is in short supply in Providence, he said. The center attracts entrepreneurs because it enables rapid engagement with the community, Sibley said. The SPS serves “students who are by definition interested in innovation, either inside their careers or because they are entrepreneurs building new products,” she said, adding that she hopes to encourage students to learn from more experienced entrepreneurs at CIC. “CIC has a long history of working productively with universities in the innovation space — in fact, the presence of strong, forward-thinking institutions is one of the ways we pick our new locations,” wrote Amelia Aboff ’11, expansion project lead at CIC, in an email to The Herald. “Since the beginning of our work in Providence, we’ve been excited about having Brown as a neighbor in the building, and we’re looking forward to seeing how our organizations can work together.” Adding to the development in the area, Richard Galvin ’79 is developing a hotel next door, Sibley said. Galvin is the president and CEO of CV Properties, LLC, an equity partner with Wexford. The hotel and innovation center are part of the first phase of a project by CV Properties to develop the I-195 lands in Providence, also known as the Innovation and Design District, according to a press release from the Providence Innovation and Design District. The efforts to develop this district aim to capitalize and build upon the growth of surrounding universities, including Brown, Rhode Island School of Design and University of Rhode Island, said Dyana Koelsch, the press contact for the Providence Innovation and Design District.

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After writing an essay critiquing the University of Chicago’s condemnation of safe spaces, Matthew Guterl, professor of Africana studies and American studies, was accused of threatening conservative values.

» WATCHLIST, from page 1 documented news sources behind them,” he said. “It can’t just be heresay,” Lamb said. The entries must not only provide evidence of a liberal viewpoint, Lamb added. “What they’re saying would have to shut down debate in a classroom.” But Cheit argues that Guterl’s entry “was based on a single article,” he said. “It’s hard to believe they read that article carefully,” Cheit said. Guterl’s article “is sensible, well-argued,” he said, adding “it’s not a polemic ... it just happened to be something about safe spaces.” Gary Gutting, a recently retired professor of philosophy at the University of Notre Dame, was included in the watchlist because of an op-ed on gun laws that he wrote for the New York Times.

In most cases, the “evidence” for including individuals on the watchlist relies on views expressed in public media, not the classroom, Gutting wrote in an email to The Herald. “The (creators’) assumption — totally unjustified — was that those who hold political views will use their classes to impose their views on students,” he added. Some professors cited concerns that this type of watchlist, contrary to its goal of promoting free speech, in reality aims to curb free expression in academia. “Free speech requires that everyone be mindful of others. It demands mutual respect,” Guterl wrote, adding that the watchlist is “inherently angry, fearful and disrespectful.” While Turning Point USA has the right to publish the list, “I have the right

to say that it’s disgraceful, shallow, (not) useful and problematic,” Cheit said. Over 100 Notre Dame faculty members petitioned to be added to the watchlist after Gutting and another faculty member were named to the list. “I was proud of my colleagues at Notre Dame and honored by their support,” Gutting wrote. The example of the faculty at the Notre Dame indicates the watchlist does not limit academic freedom, Lamb said. Once he was named to the list, Guterl began to receive “angry, private hate mail,” he said. “The list is ridiculous until someone actually starts to take it seriously,” he added. “Given the current political situation, there’s a danger that such silliness can quickly turn sinister,” Gutting said.

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» WINTER, from page 1

LAURA FELENSTEIN / HERALD

and international students are grateful, because they actually get more of an opportunity to be heard,” she said. Unlike the course she offers during the semester, Taylor’s online course was supported with a writing fellow due to the course’s fast-paced nature. Both Taylor and Weisskoff said they hoped that additional online courses would be added in future Wintersessions. On campus, six courses were offered in departments ranging from visual arts to engineering to American studies. Nicola Young ’18.5, Constance Gamache ’18, Marisa Kouroubacalis ’19.5 and David Lu ’20 worked as a team within ENGN 0110: “Lean LaunchPad” to create a mobile app promoting hospital efficiency and patient-doctor communication. Teams of students proposed their own startup ideas and learned how to implement them in the community. “We spend about half of our time in the classroom and half of our time in the community, adding up to about a 12-hour day,” said Young, whose team travelled to nearby hospitals to work on their app. The intensity of the course gave a realistic sense of the hectic nature of a start-up, Kouroubacalis said. Students and professors said they appreciated the sustained and concentrated learning necessitated by condensing a standard 180-hour course into a month’s length. “It’s almost like running a

marathon as opposed to doing 100yard sprints,” said Associate Professor of History Neil Safier, who taught the on-campus course HIST 1974K: “Maps and Empires: A Journey through the Cartographic Collection of the John Carter Brown Library.” Resources such as Counseling and Psychological Services, Student Employee Accessibility Services and Health Services were all available to on-campus students if needed. But Gamache said the fast-paced nature of her course made finding time for them difficult. Some students felt that the housing situation could be improved in future Wintersessions. Kouroubacalis was not relocated to a dorm with other Wintersession students, and living in an entire dorm alone was isolating and may cause students in future Wintersessions to feel unsafe, she said. Students may benefit if all of the Wintersession students live in proximity to one another, she added. Wintersession also offered three destination courses, which travelled to Thailand, Hawaii and Israel/Palestine. These 12-person travel courses were completely filled, Mandel said. The on-campus and online 20-person courses were mostly full, although each had a bit of space; AMST1500B: “Broadway Modern: Race, Gender, Class, and the American Musical” was the most popular — it had 17 spots filled, Mandel said. Many of the students interviewed said Wintersession gave them an

opportunity to pursue a subject they ordinarily would not have the time for during the regular school year. “Students are coming from a lot of different disciplines and concentrations, from geochemistry to philosophy,” Safier said, whose class learned about cartography through primary resources. The course gave students with a limited background in history the experience of an advanced researcher in the field, Safier added. Many students in Taylor’s writing class were science concentrators, “perhaps because their regular semester can be eaten up by lab requirements,” Taylor said. Similar to how a student gains one credit through one Wintersession course, the faculty are similarly compensated, Taylor said. One Wintersession course equates to one of the regular semester-long courses typically taught by a professor, she added. Wintersession is currently on a three-year pilot, and Mandel said she anticipates having the same number of courses each year, though the courses themselves will differ, Mandel said. “We might tinker with the distribution of online, on-campus and destination (courses), depending on faculty submissions,” Mandel said. Future Wintersessions might appeal to those looking for something to do over the University’s particularly long winter break, Mandel said. “I would encourage students to take advantage of (Wintersession), after going home for the holidays, coming back for one of these opportunities.”

ARTS & CULTURE PAGE 4 • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2017

» WANG LU, from page 1 list or not.” When Wang was growing up in the 1980s, a period of economic reform in China, families would come together to buy a piano, she said. Many saw the investment as a sign of a cultured life at home. “It’s an escape, it’s a fantasy, it’s moving forward,” Wang said. She, like many of her childhood friends, played piano from a young age. She began training at five, studying a strict Western repertoire focusing primarily on French and Russian works. Early in her adolescence, she began composing with the encouragement of her teacher. Wang then went on to receive her undergraduate degree at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing. Outside of formal training, music surrounded Wang — both her father and grandmother sang opera. Before she began playing piano, singing was her passion — she can still perform excerpts from the Beijing and Qinqiang Operas, she said. After receiving her undergraduate degree, Wang went on to earn her doctoral degree in composition at Columbia. She then lived in Rome and Chicago, composing alongside her husband. Her work often focuses on environmental crises, inspired by her experiences living around the world, Wang said. Recent compositions incorporate the heart rates of extinct animals played alongside footage of air quality warnings. “What interests me and moves me

is … the world we live in — the social, political and environmental,” Wang said. In China, many rely on the air quality index to determine whether or not they will go out that day, she said. “As an artist, or as a human, we should all be aware and be responsible,” Wang said. For Wang, this message plays a formative role in her creative process. “You think about how the crisis is affecting who you are, and it will translate into your music. It is important to not just write music because you like the sound,” Wang said. “I feel like everyone has a way to spread a message. For me, I’m a musician.” Wang draws her inspiration from many sources, whether that be early Chinese rock and roll, free jazz or classical piano— even, on one occasion, her students’ Tinder notifications. “Some of my students told me about Tinder,” she said. “I had never heard of Tinder, so I wrote this piece using notifications sounds together with romantic quotations.” Through these materials, Wang addressed “what romance means.” Having taught at Brown for one and a half years, Wang said she’s fascinated and impressed by undergraduate students. “Some of them are learning for the first time, and they can just get it,” she said. “They make me think; they give me my favorite songs.” Her students are likewise impressed with her. “Talking to her is like taking a shot of espresso — engaging and inspiring,” MacDougald said.

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COURTESY OF BROWN UNIVERSITY

Assistant Professor of Music Wang Lu’s innovative compositions were among the “Top New Music-Moments of 2016” by the New York City-based classical music radio station WQXR.

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2017 • PAGE 5

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Study shows Medicaid expansion linked to increased healthcare quality U. researchers compared effects of insurance coverage between states with, without expansion By GLORIA NASHED STAFF WRITER

Researchers at the School of Public Health compared data from 2011 through 2014 to determine the effects of the Affordable Care Act on the number of people covered by health insurance and the quality of care at federally funded community health centers for a study published in the healthcare journal Health Affairs January . According to the study led by Megan Cole GS, a PhD candidate in the School of Public Health, many adults gained access to health insurance under the ACA in 2014 when 25 states and Washington, D.C. expanded Medicaid eligibility for low-income and non-elderly individuals. Prior to the ACA, most states did not cover childless adults, Cole said. With the expansion of Medicaid, this population gained coverage along with “persons with incomes up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level,” she added. The goals of extending Medicaid coverage were to “improve access to care for low-income patients who otherwise would not have access to health services and to protect people from large out-of-pocket expenses for healthcare,” Amal Trivedi, associate

professor of health services, policy and practice, said. Before analyzing the data from federally funded community health centers, the researchers developed three main hypotheses. The first hypothesis was that expanded eligibility would increase the proportion of patients with insurance. This hypothesis was based on data in nine states that showed fewer patients who visited health centers after the Medicaid expansion were uninsured. The second hypothesis was that health centers in expansion states would “see an increase in the number of unique patients served, compared to centers in non-expansion states.” Their third hypothesis was that gains in coverage “would translate into improved access to effective primary care, specialty care and prescription drugs for newly insured patients,” which would ultimately improve the quality of care. After comparing data from health centers in expansion and non-expansion states, the researchers found their hypotheses held true. “In the states that expanded Medicaid under the (ACA), we observed very large increases in proportion of health center patients with Medicaid coverage and corresponding decreases in the fraction who are uninsured,” Trivedi said. The researchers also found “there was an increase in quality of care in health centers in the Medicaid expansion states,” Trivedi added. “There are a couple reasons for this, one of which might be due to increased insurance revenues to the

community health centers.” The researchers chose eight measures, such as colorectal cancer screening and diabetes control, to determine the quality of care at the health centers based on recommendations for improvement by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, said Omar Galárraga, assistant professor of health services, policy and practice and co-author of the study. Medicaid

expansion ultimately was associated with improved accessibility on four of the eight measures examined: asthma treatment, Pap testing, body mass index assessment and hypertension control. The results of the study show that repealing the ACA could result in those currently insured to “lose access to care, which could potentially reverse some of the positive effects that we observed in the first year,” Cole said. Yet it is unclear

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how expansion of Medicaid under the ACA will be affected by the new presidential administration, Galárraga said. “The new administration has vowed to repeal the ACA. However, they still have not come out with a plan of what they are going to do,” Galárraga said. “If they repeal the law, millions of people will be affected — this is very unfortunate.”

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Philanthropist Herbert Kaplan dies at 81 Business leader remembered for healthcare work, Medical School contributions By HATTIE XU SCIENCE AND RESEARCH EDITOR

Herbert Kaplan, president of The Warren Alpert Foundation and former CEO of Warren Equities, died in his sleep Jan. 2, wrote Dean of Medicine and Biological Sciences Jack Elias in a community-wide email. Kaplan, a philanthropist and business leader, is remembered by the University community for his contributions to the Alpert Medical School and his commitment to healthcare, Elias wrote. In 2007, Kaplan helped direct $100 million from The Warren Alpert Foundation to support the medical school. The donation, a gift from his uncle, Warren Alpert, is tied for the largest in the school’s history and was used to fund the construction of a

new building, research, financial aid and curriculum development within the medical school. The school was renamed The Warren Alpert Medical School to honor the foundation. In November, the foundation gifted the medical school another $27 million to support the Brown Institute for Translational Science and establish the Warren Alpert Physician-Scientist MD/PhD Advanced Training Program. For his service to healthcare and research, Kaplan received an honorary doctorate from the University in 2011 during a ceremony that formally opened the medical school’s new building. At the ceremony, Kaplan was also awarded a key to the city by former Mayor Angel Taveras, who declared Oct. 21 “Herbert Kaplan Day,” according to Kaplan’s obituary in The Boston Globe. Kaplan was also a member of the Brown Medical School Corporation Committee from 2007 until his passing. In his email, Elias described

Kaplan as “brilliant, loyal and compassionate while being incredibly humble” and noted his “tireless dedication to leaving the world in a better state.” With Alpert’s assistance, Kaplan also worked to grow Warren Equities, a petroleum retailer and operator of the Xtra Mart convenience store chain, according to the obituary. The business reached over $1 billion in annual sales by 2007. Outside of Brown, Kaplan’s philanthropic ventures included serving as a founding member of the Noble Deeds Society of the Mount Sinai Hospital and a member of the Board of Fellows of Harvard Medical School. “Generations of students, clinicians and patients will benefit from the vision and generosity with which Herb Kaplan led The Warren Alpert Foundation,” President Christina Paxson P’19 said in a statement. “Without question, Herb’s passion for improving the quality of health care was boundless, and his loss is deeply felt at Brown.

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RISD student robbed at gunpoint Three males steal backpack at intersection of Benefit, Meeting St. Friday night By KYLE BOROWSKI METRO EDITOR

A Rhode Island School of Design student was robbed Friday at approximately 6 p.m., according to a community-wide email from the Department of Public Safety. The incident occurred near the intersection of Benefit and Meeting Street. While walking at night, the student was approached by three males, one of whom was wielding a silver firearm. After taking the student’s backpack, the

men fled the scene, potentially in the direction of downtown Providence. The student complied with the accosters and escaped the incident unharmed. The three suspects are all described as being about 5’7” and between 20 and 25 years of age. The first was wearing a dark leather jacket over a dark sweatshirt. The other two were described as being heavy set, one covering his frizzy hair with a red ball cap. In response to the incident, DPS has increased patrols in the area and encourages community members to review the department’s guidelines for safety awareness on their website. Anyone with information on the incident should contact the Providence Police Department at 401-272-3121.

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2017 • PAGE 7

ARTS & CULTURE PAGE 8 • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2017

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COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

The talents of Oliver Sim and Romy Croft, the lyrical and harmonic core of English indie-pop outfit the xx, are on full display in the band’s latest LP, “I See You,” released Jan. 13, 2017.

The xx demonstrates bold artistic development with new LP ‘I See You’ Band’s latest album trades distinctive sensual ambience for involved instrumental textures By CONNOR SULLIVAN SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Since the rise of band member Jamie xx’s solo career, nothing has been the same for London-based indie pop band the xx. In 2015, Jamie xx — the 28-yearold English DJ and record producer long at the helm of many of the group’s best beats — released his breakthrough solo effort “In Colour.” Marking a serious detour from the sensual, reserved tones and themes found throughout the xx’s discography, the solo record instead leans toward brasher sonics and abundant sampling. The LP’s lead single “I Know There’s Gonna Be (Good Times),” featuring choppy rhyming by rapper Young Thug and splashes of reverb, is maybe the most obvious counterpoint to the drab and passive material present on the xx’s “Coexist,” the band’s last LP. “Coexist,” released in 2012, epitomizes much of the common criticism of the Young Turks-signed band — namely, vocalists Romy Croft and Oliver Sim’s often bland and understated delivery. At their best, the restricted vocals and forlorn lyrics of the two effectively convey an anguished sense of longing. The greatest music by the xx is characterized by an all-too-powerful sense of romantic restraint — perfect for soundtracking the inconspicuous hookups of the modern era. But at their worst, Croft and Sim provide

the listener with little more than passionless and pretentious murmurs, reflecting an inorganic depression. This flat minimalism, accentuated by Jamie xx’s stripped-back production, easily lends itself to an ambivalent listening experience and is much more evident on “Coexist” than on the band’s debut release. Released five years after “Coexist,” the third LP by the xx, “I See You,” is a brave and welcomed new world for the British indie institution. The xx clearly took notes from 2015’s “In Colour” and at least partially distanced itself from its minimalist roots. In an interview with New Music Express, a prominent British music publication, Jamie xx stated that his solo album “definitely informed” what the band would be doing on its next album. Hearing the LP’s first single, the influence is undeniable. With bold textures taken straight out of disco and a sampled Hall and Oates hook, radio hit single “On Hold” most clearly evinces the extent of the xx’s evolution. While the newfound manic energy and sampling are obvious nods to “In Colour,” the xx succeeds in demonstrating artistic progression that comes off as neither contrived nor an abandonment of the band’s previous themes. If anything, the xx’s distinctive brand of melancholy is accentuated. In the opening lines of the single, Craft croons “I can’t hold on/To an empty space,” lamenting her loss with an

urgency that is seamlessly complemented by pulsating, heart-thumping rhythms. “On Hold” ostensibly details a break-up with a former lover — a narrative it does due justice. After hearing the song, it’s difficult not to have a head flooded with as many memories of past relationships as the song has beats per minute. But the dense layers of instrumentation obscure a deeper reading of the track: the xx’s break-up with a former sound. Much of the band’s output up to this point functioned as a glacial and reflective setting for a passive listener. Yet on “I See You,” there truly is little room for the “empty space” Croft alludes to abandoning. Deeper cuts like “I Dare You” and “Dangerous” operate in the same engaging vain as “On Hold,” effectively embracing the newly aggressive, Jamie xx-inspired sound. Croft and Sim still sing and write with the same crestfallen affect that made older songs such as “VCR” and “Angels” so effective; they have merely traded ambience for more violent noise. The only major misfires of the record are its regressions. Stumbling back into sleep-inducing territory and awkward executions, tracks like “Lips” remind listeners of what rendered “Coexist” so forgettable. While the lyrical platitudes and lazy instrumentals might appeal to some, the forced malaise and sensuality come across as boring. Most of the LP avoids devolving into a Tumblr blog’s soundtrack — it’s about three years too late anyway — thankfully opting instead for bold experimentation.

The efforts of individual members fuse together on “I See You.” Croft and Sim’s delivery and Jamie xx’s production work wonderfully together as a true confluence of tenderness and energy. The most interesting artists in music are at once irrevocably tied to their style and increasingly set on transcending

it. Saying the indie pop group hits this paradoxical apex would be too much praise. Ultimately, the xx remains too mired in a pseudo-depressed sound to reach a creative peak with the LP. But with “I See You,” the band offers some much-needed stylistic change and more than hints at an actualization

KATE TALERICO / HERALD

TODAY

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2017 • PAGE 9

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evening aesthetic

SATELLITE DINING ANDREWS COMMONS

Pizza: Mushroom’s Revenge, Spicy Sausage and Garlic, Miss Maple Grinder Sandwiches JOSIAH’S

BLUE ROOM

The Josiah Chicken Panini

Soup: Broccoli and Cheddar, Hearty Country Vegetable

DINING HALLS SHARPE REFECTORY LUNCH

DINNER

Bourbon BBQ Chicken, Cajun Style Corn and Tomatoes, BBQ Tempeh, Sugar Cookies

Beef Strip Shish Kabobs, Chicken and Artichoke Pasta Medley, Sunny Sprouts, Banana Cake

VERNEY-WOOLLEY LUNCH

DINNER

Jamie’s Spiced Chicken Wings, Sticky Rice with Edamame, Snickerdoodle Cookies

General Tso’s Chicken Stir Fry, Creole Red Beans, Siena Roasted Couscous, Polenta Bread

sudoku

SAM BERUBE / HERALD

With notes of blue, purple and orange, a 7:10 p.m. shadow descends gracefully upon Wriston Quad’s Wayland Arch, accentuating the beauty of a seminal Providence sunset-stricken winter sky.

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

“It’s an escape, it’s a fantasy, it’s moving forward.” — Professor Wang Lu

crossword

See WANG LU on page 1.

calendar TODAY JANUARY

Wellness at Brown!: Blissful Belly 12:00 P.M. 200 Dyer Street, 101

Optimize WorkLife Balance With Mindfulness 12:00 P.M. Petteruti Lounge

LingLangLunchLite 1:00 P.M. Metcalf Research Building, 305

“The Regulatory Genome” Symposium 3:00 P.M. Watson CIT, 241

TOMORROW How to Make the Most of Shopping Period 12:00 P.M. J. Walter Wilson, 203

DEEPS Colloquia 4:00 P.M. MacMillan Hall, 115

Connect for Health Spring 2017 Info Session 5:30 P.M. Salomon Center, 003

Athletes in Action Prime Time Gathering 8:00 P.M. Pembroke Field House

COMMENTARY PAGE 10 • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2017

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

EDITORIAL

Beyond 140 characters On Jan. 20, 2017, President Donald Trump was sworn in, marking the first of the 1,462 days that the United States will be governed by a man who referred to journalists as being “among the most dishonest human beings on earth.” This statement, while mild in comparison to the deplorable remarks Trump has made against immigrants, Muslims, women and many others, represents one of the primary challenges media organizations face today — distrust in news organizations as institutions. Trump is not alone in this sentiment. A September 2016 Gallup poll showed that trust in mass media has hit a historic low. Only 32 percent of Americans surveyed in the poll indicated they have a “great deal” or “fair amount” of trust in mass media. As leaders of a staff of student editors and reporters — many of whom are working to become professional journalists or writers — this distrust can be disheartening. Our staff members spend many hours researching, interviewing, fact-checking and copy-editing to make sure we put out an informative paper five times per week. Yet many people, including Trump, turn away from engaging with news outlets and instead turn toward places like Twitter, where complex ideas must be condensed to 140 characters or fewer. Acknowledging this distrust that exists, we hope to build your confidence in The Herald through the reporting we put forth. This year, our goals as a new editorial board are two-fold: First, challenge ourselves to do better as a platform for engagement. Second, challenge you, our readers and community, to help us do better. We aim to publish nuanced and well-reported stories that feature a wide variety of voices, including historically marginalized voices that may be particularly vulnerable under the Trump administration. Our opinions section should represent the diverse range of opinions at Brown, and we affirm that challenging someone’s ideas does not necessitate attacking the person himself. We aim to uphold standards that require our writers to think beyond simple preconceptions. We acknowledge the privilege that comes with serving as a platform for our community’s ideas and do not take this responsibility lightly. We will continue to put in those hours of research, transcribing, writing and editing every day. In an effort to be more transparent as an organization, we will also continue to outline our goals and perspectives through future editorials throughout this semester. In parallel, we emphasize The Herald’s power to ignite conversations within the Brown community. The voices in our paper include students, administrators, alums and other community members who can and should communicate through The Herald. Talk to our reporters, write us an op-ed or letter to the editor or join our staff if you’re a student — become a part of the conversation. Now, more than ever, no one can afford to be silent.

D O R O T H Y W I N D HA M

comic Comic | Richard Oliver

Editorials are written by The Herald’s editorial board: Lauren Aratani ’18, Kate Talerico ’18, Matthew Brownsword ’18 and Rebecca Ellis ’18. Send comments to editorials@browndailyherald.com.

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COMMENTARY WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 25, 2017 • PAGE 11

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

The unequal equalizer NIKHIL KUMAR staff columnist

What’s the point of college? On my final first day of class as an undergraduate, this question looms at the top of my mind. “Mobility Report Cards: The Role of Colleges in Intergenerational Mobility,” a paper co-authored by Associate Professor of Economics John Friedman, provides one answer: socioeconomic mobility. According to the study, parental income is a hugely significant factor in students’ access to colleges. Yet students who attend the same college have similar earnings potential, regardless of their family background — a strong indicator that college has an equalizing effect. Of course, since correlation does not imply causation, the study can’t explain by what mechanism a college degree levels the playing field so dramatically. Still, it offers a fascinating picture of the complex relationship between income and higher education. If one of the chief purposes of universities is to encourage upward mobility, then it is clear that an enormous amount of work remains for Brown in particular and the higher education system in general. Among the 12 “Ivy Plus” universities — the Ivy League, Duke University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University and the University of Chicago, as defined by a recent New York Times article about social mobility and colleges — Brown boasts the highest median parental income, the second-highest share of students from the top 1 percent and the

third-highest share of students from the top 20 percent, according to that article. The University undoubtedly remains a cozy bastion of the upper and upper-middle class. More concerning than the socioeconomic situation of incoming students is that of alums: In terms of both median student income at age 34 and overall mobility, Brown is second-to-last among its Ivy Plus peers. Though the income measure is hardly surprising, Brown’s relatively poor performance on the overall mobility index is disheartening. These statistics should give all members of the Brown community pause. Brown has a reputation as

cuss money, especially when it’s a question of your parents’ money or when it impacts your social life. Because many students come from such affluent backgrounds, most assume that there is little to say about the matter. But the statistics reveal that our community is one in which economically disadvantaged students are in the extreme minority. In striving to make Brown as inclusive as possible, class must be taken into account. That means aiming to make the income distribution of students less heavily skewed in favor of the top 1 percent — easier said than done given that society overall often undermines equitable access

directed toward socioeconomically disadvantaged students. Perhaps most importantly, Brown’s needbased financial aid policy means that for some low-income students, a Brown degree is less costly than that of a public university. Moreover, the burden of ensuring socioeconomic mobility does not rest solely on the shoulders of Brown and other universities. Every stage of the educational process — from pre-K through high school, extracurricular enrichment and standardized test prep — is instrumental in preparing students for undergraduate, and later professional, success. The relative lack of

If we hope to see increasing numbers of low- and middle-income students at Brown and in the rest of the Ivy League, society must prioritize public education at every turn. Private universities cannot do it alone.

the most laid-back, socially aware member of the Ivy League. To what extent, though, does the University participate in the inequitable system that so many of its students hope to push against? A certain denial of Brown’s complicity in social inequality exists not only within the administration but also among students themselves. While potentially divisive issues of race, gender and sexuality are discussed with little hesitation, class is a different ball of wax. In my personal experience, friends from different socioeconomic classes rarely discuss the matter — perhaps it’s too awkward to dis-

to higher education. But the study contains some good news for Brown and its prestigious counterparts. While Ivy Plus colleges might not reach the highest number of students, they are the most successful at lifting students from the bottom fifth to the top 1 percent. According to Friedman, “Brown gets between 7 and 10 percent of its low-income students into the top 1 percent.” This is a remarkable achievement. In addition, the opening of the First-Generation and Low-Income Student Center in September 2016 speaks to the particular attention the University has recently

low- and middle-income students enrolled in elite colleges speaks in large part to the cumulative effect of all of these educational components, which high-income families are better equipped to provide for their children. Given the strong correlation between income and educational attainment, it seems likely that the close relationship between the economic elite and the intellectual elite will persist. If we hope to see increasing numbers of low- and middle-income students at Brown and in the rest of the Ivy League, society must prioritize public education at every turn. Private universi-

ties cannot do it alone. Perhaps it is less than productive to focus so much energy on the role of Brown and other elite institutions in securing the American Dream. After all, the Ivy Plus universities enroll roughly 18,000 students per year — a fraction of the millions of undergraduate students in colleges across the country. While Brown and its peers should value contributing to low-income students’ future prospects, larger public institutions are the most effective engine for socioeconomic mobility on a large scale, as David Leonhardt’s New York Times column “America’s Great Working-Class Colleges” shows. In addition to investing in primary and secondary education, we ought to do more to support public universities. As is often the case, one’s interpretation of Friedman’s study depends on what one is looking for. The New York Times framed it in a somewhat negative light by focusing on the disproportionate number of wealthy students at elite universities, while Brown’s interview with Friedman applied a positive spin by highlighting colleges’ importance for upward mobility. Ultimately, both angles reveal the urgent work that remains: making higher education and its remarkable socioeconomic benefits accessible for as many students as possible. In considering the many purposes of an undergraduate education, the Brown community — administration and students alike — shouldn’t lose sight of the part we play in an increasingly unequal American society.

Nikhil Kumar ’17 can be reached at nikhil_kumar@brown.edu.

Aggressive recruitment can’t offset limited aid VAUGHN CAMPBELL staff columnist Three and a half years ago, Elisha Anderson ’98, former associate director of college admission, visited my high school. For many of you, there is probably nothing too remarkable about that sentence. But I went to a small public high school in southern West Virginia. A school with a college attendance rate of about 40 percent. A school that, for athletics, was placed in West Virginia’s “Coalfields Conference.” I had to drive an hour and a half to hear a group of admission officers from other elite schools speak. The only other college to ever send a representative to my high school was a public university three miles away. Yet I was able to speak one-on-one, for almost an hour, with a representative from Brown who had traveled 168 times further. For this reason, during my first two years at Brown, I never paid much mind to the demands I heard for better recruitment, financial aid and support for students from low- and middle-income backgrounds. Sure, it would have been great to get better aid (I was lucky enough to be able to choose Brown, though its financial offer fell short of its peer schools), but Brown’s recruiting already seemed so many miles above that of its peers that it felt absurd to complain. After all,

if Brown could come to my school, I figured they must have been nearly everywhere. It seemed clear that Brown was already going above and beyond. Yet last week, the New York Times published an article indicating efforts on recruitment and financial aid remain to be made. In contrast to my experience, Brown still admits more students with income in the top 1 percent than it does in the entire bottom 60 percent of Americans. Of

2013 and may have since changed. My experience may have even been a conscious attempt to remedy this trend. Yet recruiting on its own is not enough. As I mentioned before, I was lucky enough to be able to accept Brown even though it declined to fully match the aid I might have received elsewhere. I may have had this choice, but many others do not. The scale of Brown’s financial aid lags behind that of other top-tier schools: According to the Washington Post, Brown offers

Brown can solve its financial diversity problem, but it must first be able to commit to investing in its undergraduate aid on the level of other Ivies.

course, this is true for five of the eight schools in the Ivy League. Harvard, known for its generous aid, fares better, but Columbia and Cornell also make the cut. Brown is not only a step behind its peers in recruiting and matriculating low- and middle- income students, but also has the highest median family income of all its peers. Admittedly, these figures apply to the class of

the lowest percentage of need-based grants in the Ivy League. Harvard has one of the lowest family median incomes among the Ivies, but it almost certainly receives a comparable number of applications from the one percent. It has managed to bring in a larger number of low- and middle- income students because it has committed to making at-

tendance financially attractive. With its smaller endowment, Brown lacks comparable aid necessary for its undergraduate programs to compete with its peers. Brown can solve its financial diversity problem, but it must first be able to commit to investing in its undergraduate aid on the level of other Ivies. The New York Times article speaks more to the difficulties that low- and middle- income students face in admission, with good reason. Many students aren’t even aware that these schools are viable options for them, much less the extent of financial aid that is available. From my personal experience, I can attest to the fact that Brown’s Admission Office works hard to solve this problem. It was ridiculous that a Brown representative showed up at my high school when no one else did, and I don’t just mean no one from within the Ivy League: I mean no one. I commend Brown for making this effort; the lengths it went to — at least in my experience — were extensive. Though expanding access in admission is a crucial step, Brown still has work to do to make attendance truly affordable for these low- and middle-income students. As an Ivy whose aid is comparatively quite poor, Brown’s problem remains financial.

Vaughn Campbell ’18 can be reached at vaughn_campbell@brown.edu.

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