Monday, September 13th, 2021

SINCE 1891

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD VOLUME CLVI, ISSUE XIII

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

BROWNDAILYHERALD.COM

UNIVERSITY NEWS

UNIVERSITY NEWS

BSU hosts fourth Black Convocation

20 years later: the legacy of 9/11 media coverage

Black Student Union holds convocation for over 200 students in classes of 2024, 2025

Reflecting on stories told, left untold in mainstream media post-9/11

BY GAYA GUPTA UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITOR The Black Student Union celebrated its fourth annual Black Convocation Sunday for the classes of 2024 and 2025.

The event, themed “Rooted and Resting: Rebuilding Brick by Brick” this year, welcomed Black underclassmen to College Hill and into the Black community at Brown, encouraging them to lean on one another for support and to forge new traditions.

More than 200 underclassmen dressed in white walked into Starr Plaza and took their seats, where they listened to Shades of Brown, a multicultural, multiethnic, co-ed acapella group on campus, as well as three speakers who shared advice about college and life. In past years, Black Convocation was held at Manning Chapel due to its proximity to the Slavery Memorial, but the event was held outside at Starr

BY JACK WALKER UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITOR

GAYA GUPTA / HERALD

BSU’s fourth annual Black Convocation, themed “Rooted and Resting: Rebuilding Brick by Brick,” emphasized student support and tradition.

Plaza this year to accommodate COVID restrictions.

Black Convocation was started by BSU in 2018 by then-President Yacine Niang ’19.

The Convocation is one of the “very few moments in Brown’s history where all of the Black students, the faculty, the alumni can really gather in community and celebrate the legacy of Black students at Brown, where the only intent is joy and well wishes, and nothing but immense love,” said BSU President Ciara Sing ’22. This year’s Convocation was

METRO

Ceremony Tea opens new location, expands options With larger space, new menu items, store hopes to keep sight of its founding origins

BY KATY PICKENS SENIOR STAFF WRITER The soft launch of Ceremony Tea’s new location at 21 Euclid Ave. saw a steady stream of customers eager to return to the shop Friday, preceeded by a month-long hiatus following its move off Thayer Street.

While the new, larger space has more of an industrial feel than its former location, the geometric light fixtures, neutral color palette and minimalist aesthetic ensured that Ceremony has maintained the same calm ambiance.

As this reporter sat sipping a lavender matcha latte, one customer walked toward the exit holding a drink laden with whipped cream and extravagant toppings in one hand and onigiri in the other. Smiling to herself, she then exclaimed, “I’m so excited!” while leaving the shop.

Twenty years ago, on the eve of Sept.

11, 2001, life on Brown’s campus proceeded as normal. It was a sunny day at the tail end of summer, and, in passing, students read Herald stories covering last night’s Undergraduate Council of Students meeting and the construction of a new English building.

Yet in just 24 hours, campus was transformed. Pathways filled with students comforting one another, some crying, some silent. Others sat glued to their television screens in shock and confusion. At the center of everyone’s mind was the series of four coordinated terrorist attacks taken on the United States’ soil — and the previously unimaginable loss and destruction that came with it.

The enthusiasm for Ceremony’s return is a sentiment shared by Brown students and community members alike. After the tea shop left Thayer July 21, many expressed worry that Ceremony had closed permanently.

“When we closed for a month, we got so many messages, emails and Instagram DMs asking when we (would) open,” said Michelle Cheng, Ceremony’s owner and founder. “That was very humbling.”

Cheng said she decided to move locations to refocus on the original purpose of the store: tea ceremonies.

“Unfortunately, two months into our (original) launch, the pandemic happened,” Cheng said. “We couldn’t really do indoor seating, which prompted us to pivot to a new to-go menu.”

Limited by health restrictions, tea ceremonies — which Cheng said were foundational to Ceremony as a location and an experience — couldn’t happen in the shop for months. “The pandemic definitely threw a wrench in everything, but we were able to adapt and pivot really fast,” Cheng said. “If we weren’t able to do that, I don’t think we’d still

SEE CEREMONY PAGE 3

especially important to bring people together after the isolation caused by COVID-19, she added.

“I think it was hard for everyone to build community — but especially within the Black community — because so often we feel isolated in classrooms or our dorms,” she said. “I think COVID exacerbated the isolation.”

Sing began the Convocation with a short introduction and a land acknowledgment.

SEE BSU PAGE 3

Across the nation, the aftermath of 9/11 instilled in communities a need for information, truth and ultimately, a reason why. And, for many, the search for answers began with the media, leaving journalists responsible for deciding which stories to tell and how to tell them.

The search for answers The turn of the 21st century ushered rapid technological development into the American media landscape.

In journalism, technological growth was reflected in how the public consumed its news: split between print and digital media.

Although she owned one herself, “cell phones were really just for voice then,” said Katherine Boas ’02, coeditor-in-chief of The Herald during 9/11. With fewer features and a less user-friendly interface, “these were not smartphones. And people didn’t rely on them like we do now.”

Instead, with television, radio, print news and the up-and-coming

SEE 9/11 PAGE 8

METRO

PPSD starts third year amid pandemic

REBECCA HO / HERALD

Teachers expressed concern about overcrowding and lost learning for students who have to quarantine because of the lack of a remote option.

Teachers, students discuss concerns, hopes for full-time in-person learning with COVID-19

BY KATE DARIO SENIOR STAFF WRITER The Providence Public School District

began its third academic year amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic Sept. 9.

For the first time since March 2020, all students and staff across the city returned for full-time in-person learning, according to Victor Morente, director of communications for the Rhode Island Department of Education.

As infection rates in the city and state remain high, many COVID-19 safety policies will stay in place for

News

Sports

Sports

Commentary

The University recorded 70 COVID-19 cases last week, the most since August 2020.

Page 3

Men’s soccer defeated Niagara 5-1 Saturday in their first home win since 2019.

Page 2

Field hockey defeated Bryant University Friday with 5-1 victory.

Page 7

Gupta ’22: Offering PLCY, IR, DS and IAPA would provide flexibility and specialization.

Page 5

the fall. “The health and safety of our students and staff remains our number one priority,” Morente wrote in an email to The Herald. “PPSD will continue to implement an aggressive, multi-layered COVID mitigation strategy this school year.”

These COVID-19 prevention measures include universal masking, social

SEE PPSD PAGE 6

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

SPORTS

Men’s soccer defeats Niagara in historic 5-1 blowout

COURTESY OF BROWN ATHLETICS

Four players scored their first career goals for Bruno on Saturday in the men’s soccer team’s victory over Niagara University. Brown will play its in-state rival, the University of Rhode Island, this Wednesday.

BY RYAN HANDEL SPORTS EDITOR The men’s soccer team returned to winning ways Saturday at home against Niagara University (1-4) with a 5-1 victory. The Bears (2-1) were clinical offensively with five different goalscorers, including Paul Elliott ’23, Dennis Pyetsukh ’22, Zakary Lawal ’23 and Kojo Dadzie ’24, who each notched their first career goals. Veteran forward Alex Mina ’22 capped Bruno’s offensive breakout with his first goal since Sept. 18, 2019.

Niagara avoided a shutout with a late set piece goal, but it was too little, too late for the Purple Eagles. Brown’s four-goal margin of victory was its largest since a 5-0 victory over Marist University in 2013.

After a heartbreaking loss Wednes-

day to Bryant University, in which the Bears led 2-0 but fell 4-2 in their home opener, Brown was eager to put on a better showing for its home fans. The Bruno faithful did not need to wait long to see a scoring outburst. In the seventh minute against Niagara, captain Will Crain ’22 launched a corner kick into the penalty box, which was headed out by the Niagara defense. But Elliott corralled the rebound and fired a shot into the right corner of the goal, giving Brown the 1-0 lead.

The team “is a young group. We were maybe a bit too excited about the home opener,” said Head Coach Patrick Laughlin. “It’s good to see them adapting and learning so quickly.”

Bruno’s defense held firm throughout the remainder of a rough and tumble first half. The only serious threat

posed by the Purple Eagles’ attack came when Niagara’s Jelldrik Dallman attempted a close-range header, but he sent the ball just left of the goalpost. Brown extended its lead with a lightning-quick counter attack from Pyetsukh, who dribbled around Niagara’s goalkeeper to set himself up for an easy tap-in goal.

“It felt amazing (to get my first collegiate goal),” Pyetsukh said. “Just glad to help the team and help us progress and get our first home win.”

Midfielder Derek Waleffe ’22, who missed Wednesday’s game against Bryant with an injury, returned against Niagara and assisted Pyetsukh’s goal. “We need (Waleffe) … he provides us a lot of calmness, an ability to carry the ball and an ability to attack,” Laughlin said.

A crafty steal by Crain set up anoth-

er Bears counter attack, which allowed Lawal to launch a screamer from the right side of the penalty box into the bottom left corner of the goal, giving Bruno a 3-0 lead taken into halftime.

The dominant first half from the Bears was the first time they had scored three goals in one half since the 2013 win over Marist, when Brown notched four goals in the first 45 minutes of the match.

“We switched up how our midfield was looking and we tactically made a couple changes,” Crain said. “We knew Niagara had those wide open wings, so we exploited them there on the counter attack.”

Brown once again burst out of the gates in the second half. Dadzie engineered an elusive run through the penalty box before sending the ball into the bottom right corner of the goal,

giving Bruno a 4-0 advantage. Mina scored a goal off of a throw-in less than five minutes later to extend the lead to a commanding five goals.

Niagara increased its offensive pressure after going down 5-0, but it was too late for a Purple Eagles comeback. Niagara hit a shot off the goalpost before finally breaking through in the 66th minute, as Dallman scored off a corner kick. Unlike in Wednesday’s loss to Bryant, the Bears were able to easily hang on to their lead and walk away with a comfortable victory.

Brown will head on the road Wednesday for a battle with in-state rival University of Rhode Island.

“Against URI, it’s going to be a fight because it’s a rivalry,” Crain said. “It’s going to be a mental game for 90 minutes.”

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

BSU FROM PAGE 1 “Moments like this make me really proud to be part of Brown and excited about all the many wonderful faces that I get to see here,” Sing said, speaking to the crowd. “Today, we will celebrate the newest members of our community.”

Upperclassmen and members of BSU’s E-Board chose speakers based on who shaped their time at Brown, and who could offer similar support to underclassmen. The first speaker of the program was Assistant to the President for Special Projects Olugbenga Joseph ’16.

Joseph’s first piece of advice was to “fail first,” based on his own experiences as a first-year.

“If you navigate your time at Brown and you never fail, it probably means you never took a risk, which means you fail by default,” he said.

Elaborating on lessons gleaned from his experiences at Brown, he shared a second piece of advice: “Invest in yourself so you can invest in others.” During his time at Brown, Joseph invested in himself by taking advantage of various campus resources at his disposal, including CareerLAB and the Writing Center.

His final piece of advice was to “commit to community.” Joseph prompted the crowd to look around at the people sitting next to them.

“These are your co-captains, your classmates, your colleagues, the people you’re going to be learning from, learning with, trying and failing and trying,” he said. “And it’s very important for you to commit to that community.”

Building on the Convocation’s theme, Joseph added that new students have an opportunity to redefine their own traditions and community.

“The senior class, the one graduating in 2022, is the only class of Brown that has been here for (one full year) in person. And so what that means is that we have a very interesting opportunity to redefine those traditions and create new ones as Black students. And so I encourage you to embrace the opportunity, and leave the legacy behind in the same way that you’ve seen created

by Convocation.”

The Shades of Brown continued the program with a performance of their introduction song, “Shades,” and “What You Don’t Do,” by Lianne La Havas.

“It’s very important for us to be present at (people of color) events, specifically Black events on campus,” said Teniola Ayeni ’23, music director of Shades at Brown. “We want to make sure that first-years know that they have the space and community to make music moving forward, and so this is a good opportunity for us to

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

introduce ourselves to them and also for them to see us.”

The next speaker was Melaine Ferdinand-King GS, a fourth-year doctoral candidate in Africana Studies, who was a teaching assistant for a class that Sing and other E-Board members had taken.

“If there’s anything I have experienced … and from the many lessons that we learn from history, it’s that spirit and maintaining your spirit is perhaps one of the most important things you can do for yourself and for others in times of uncertainty,” Ferdinand-King said. “Part of cultivating your spirit as a student here at Brown, or what is known as your social and ethical emotional character, is knowing yourself.”

She continued that students’ time at Brown is not just about classes and academics, but also self-reflection and forming connections and relationships that allow them to become their “favorite self.”

The program concluded with keynote speaker Lisa Biggs, assistant professor of Africana Studies, who spoke about the history of Black activism on campus.

“In 1968, there were (roughly) 80 Black students between Brown and Pembroke combined,” Biggs said. “And I want to say that we have … three times as many … They couldn’t have predicted you would be here, they couldn’t have predicted that I would be here.”

After the program concluded, the students were invited to take class pictures and continue celebrating in the plaza with food and drinks.

Several underclassmen were excited to take part in the event to meet peers, learn more about the Black community at Brown and continue the legacy of Black Convocation.

“The speakers were very influential,” said Jada Joseph ’25, who valued their advice “because they’ve been where we are,” adding that it was powerful and empowering to see such a high turnout.

“Being a part of a community means a lot to me,” added Sofia Nuri ’25.

Going forward, Sing hopes to continue expanding the ceremony and hopes to increase the event’s visibility.

“We really want to create a moment during the beginning of the year so that way when things come up they know that they can call on any one of us,” Sing said.

Black Convocation, she continued, provides an especially healing space for the Black community “to just be celebrated and nothing else.”

Brown sees peak in asymptomatic, positive COVID-19 cases since Aug. 2020

TRACY PAN / HERALD

Vaccinated individuals no longer need to quarantine after being exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID-19 but must get tested four days after exposure.

The University reported 70 positive COVID-19 cases through the asymptomatic testing program from Sept. 5 to Sept. 11, according to the Healthy Brown COVID-19 Dashboard as of Sunday afternoon.

While the number of positive cases is a “significant increase,” “we’ve done a lot more tests” during this last week compared to the summer 2021 semester, said Executive Vice President for

just in Rhode Island but nationally,” Carey added. “Most of the country is in a high transmission category and that’s absolutely because of the Delta variant.”

“We’ve not seen any evidence of any serious illness … among these positives” within the Brown community, Carey said. There have been no hospitalizations due to COVID-19 or indication of a widespread outbreak on campus, he added.

Even with the increased numbers of positive-testing students, the University is “not anywhere near isolation capacity,” Carey said. The University has secured approximately 150 to 160 beds at the Courtyard by Marriott Providence Downtown hotel for student isolation housing and is at around 20 to 25% capacity as of last

exposure as “15 minutes or more in close proximity, less than six feet without a mask.”

The University also opened two new COVID-19 testing sites Sept. 7 in place of the site previously located at the Olney-Margolies Athletic Center, The Herald previously reported. The new sites are located at the lower level of Alumnae Hall and Andrews House. The testing site at One Davol Square in the Jewelry District is still operating.

Vaccinated individuals are required to get tested one time per week, while unvaccinated individuals are required to get tested two times per week or every four days. It is a “violation of the campus safety policy” to miss testing appointments, Carey said.

“I think people are taking it seri-

Planning and Policy Russell Carey ’91 MA’06 in an interview with The Herald Sept. 9. “We expect more cases when we do more tests,” he added.

The 70 positive cases came from a total of 13,067 tests conducted through the testing program during this period. Though the weekly number of tests conducted is comparable to that of spring 2021, Carey noted differences in this semester that contribute to a higher number of cases: the return of students from all graduation years, closer proximity of students and greater transmissibility of the Delta variant.

These numbers are what “we expected with a highly vaccinated population,” Carey said.

“We’re seeing a microcosm on campus of what’s happening not

Thursday. Students who test positive are required to live in isolation housing for 10 days after the date of the positive test or the start of symptoms.

Positive-testing students who live in a nearby state or off-campus may be approved to self-isolate instead of moving to isolation housing, according to Carey and a Sept. 9 email from the Health and Wellness Team at Brown.

Vaccinated individuals who have been exposed to someone who tested positive and were alerted by Health Services no longer need to quarantine but must get tested on the fourth day after exposure. But unvaccinated individuals who are exposed and test negative on day one and five will need to quarantine for seven days, according to the email. Carey defined

ously and will continue to do so, but we are monitoring,” he said. “There will be follow-ups if people fall off of the cadence that we’ve asked them to stick to.”

The University has also initiated a mask mandate indoors regardless of vaccination status, “unless in a private, non-shared space or when actively eating,” according to a Sept. 4 email from the Office of Residential Life.

Room occupancy should not exceed “three times the assigned occupancy.”

“We just want to support people in making good choices” to reduce risks of transmitting or contracting COVID-19,” Carey said.

Isolation housing in Courtyard by Marriott hotel ‘not anywhere near isolation capacity’

BY GABRIELLA VULAKH SENIOR STAFF WRITER

TEA FROM PAGE 1 be here.”

Eventually, she added, Ceremony began taking tea ceremony reservations again. But “that’s when we realized we can’t function with both (tea ceremonies and to-go options) under the same roof because it was too small.”

The new location has a dedicated room toward the back for a variety of tea ceremonies, in addition to new outdoor seating and a bar featuring imported sake, wine and local IPAs. Cheng said the bar will open within the next two weeks and serve sake martinis, sake lemonade, tea-infused low-alcohol cocktails and more.

Izzy Gao ’21.5, a returning customer who visited the store Friday, said she was looking forward to using the new space for studying. “I see myself

KATY PICKENS / HERALD

Ceremony maintained its calm ambiance and minimalist aesthetic in its new, larger location. coming here after class. It’s much more spacious,” she said. Gao said the cozy environment made it an ideal space to study or relax. “People really come here for the space,” she said.

3

Attention to detail is central to tea ceremonies, according to Cheng, including choosing different vessels and pots for different loose-leaf teas.

Additionally, those conducting the cer-

emonies must have extensive knowledge about the teas and their sourcing.

This meticulousness runs through the whole tea shop, Cheng said, as small decorative details, hand-selected snacks and imported pottery create a cohesive experience.

Jeffrey Zhang GS said that he was excited to continue going to Ceremony.

“It’s my first time here,” he said. “I think it’s one of the most beautiful coffee shops around here, so I’m really excited.”

Cheng said she was enthusiastic about the larger space and the new directions Ceremony will be pursuing.

“I’m excited to see where this journey is going to take us,” she said. “When we first started Ceremony, we had a very small dream of just sharing our tea knowledge and the good teas that we source with our customers.”

Now, Cheng feels as though Ceremony has become a fixture on College Hill and brings an important aspect of East Asian culture and her own upbringing to the neighborhood. “We didn’t know how much we were infused in everyone’s daily lives,” she said.

Feedback and praise from students and locals, Cheng said, has been gratifying.

Ultimately, Ceremony is focused on good tea, connecting with farmers who grow tea and creating a place to share and be with others, Cheng said.

“It led us to building a little community here,” she said. “I think that’s the most rewarding part.”

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

4

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

UNIVERSITY NEWS

Brown community responds to in-person shopping period In-person shopping period brings excitement, unique challenges

BY STELLA OLKEN-HUNT SENIOR STAFF WRITER Shopping period has returned to the classroom after being conducted solely online for the past three semesters.

While many students showed excitement at being able to socialize and meet teachers and fellow students face to face, this shopping period comes with unique challenges and protocols.

Naphat Permpredanun ’24 expressed preference for in-person shopping, especially “in terms of socializing,” and meeting professors as well as peers who share academic interests.

While online learning offers more flexibility, and the ability to seamlessly toggle between classes, being “in person, being able to talk to a teacher, being near people … (is) exciting because I haven’t been in a classroom for real in two years,” said Allen Dufort ’24.

According to Professor Maya Krinsky, adjunct lecturer in Visual Arts, “it’s wonderful to see student enthusiasm for the classes and to meet everyone in person.” At the same time, there are “a lot of really great aspects to using remote interactions and having several assignments be more asynchronous and flexible, which I do plan to integrate into my class,” Krinsky added.

Beyond the opportunity to interact with their peers, students say in person shopping period can facilitate more candid and genuine interactions between professors and students.

“It’s a lot easier and a lot more helpful to be able to introduce myself to professors and talk to them about

VICTORIA YIN / HERALD

Students received shopping period well in both virtual and in-person formats. why I might have an overlap or why I need an override code,” said Peyton Newman ’23.

Not all classes have transitioned to in-person shopping period, and some students have been unable to shop in person because of class protocols and individual circumstances.

Permpredanun said he shopped a class that was supposed to be in person, but “because of some incident ... the professor could not come in, so it was changed to online instead.”

Other courses, such as MATH 0520: “Linear Algebra,” are mostly online this semester. It’s a “pre-recorded class, so it’s not like you can really shop it, you just see the first lecture and see how you thought about it,” Dufort said.

Kaiya Arushi Pandit ’25, who had to do a week of shopping period virtually, said that each class has accommodated virtual students differently.

“One of them was (over) Zoom, one of them was a recorded lecture,” Pandit said. “(And for) my other two classes, there was nothing. I just emailed them and asked my friends what they did in class. It was honestly not much because it was the first week, but all the course

material was on Canvas, so it was really easy to access.”

According to Pandit, most professors were accommodating, as long as she reached out and informed them of her situation.

As for Zooming into an all in-person class, Pandit enjoyed the experience.

“It felt like I was in the class. I wasn’t off to the side or anything, I could see the lecture, I could see the slides and I could talk if I wanted to,” she added.

Many Brunonians are excited to be back in person for shopping period, despite this semester’s unique circumstances and challenges. In fact, Krinsky said that shopping period “felt a little more busy this year,” in comparison to previous years.

Yet limited class space continues to constrain the number of people that can shop certain courses in person.

In VISA 0140: “Photography Foundation,” for which the waitlist is three times the 12-person class capacity, the small studio space is limiting shoppers, Krinsky explained. “I wish I could let everybody into the class!”

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Wednesday, September 8, 2021

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | COMMENTARY

5

Gupta ’22: IAPA and the old three-concentration system can and should coexist “Do you pronounce it I-A-P-A or I-APA?” This conversation with my fellow International Relations concentrators was a lighthearted way of passing the time. But questioning IAPA’s pronunciation illustrated how the Watson Institute had transformed over the past year.

In April 2019, the Watson Institute officially announced that it was going to combine its three main concentrations — International Relations, Public Policy and Development Studies — into one: International and Public Affairs. In its official statement, the Watson Institute stood by the decision, claiming that the new program would “offer students the best, most globally relevant liberal arts education possible.” The transition drew criticism, with Professor Nina Tannenwald, head of the IR program at the time that the merger was proposed, noting her objection to the plan. While IAPA solved many of the problems posed by the old, three-concentration system, the new structure is not without its shortcomings. Watson should thus maintain IAPA and reinstate the previous three-concentration system in the interest of enabling both the flexibility of the former and the specialization of the latter. The success of this transition rests on transparency and the active solicitation of student input.

With regard to specialization, IR, PLCY and DS truly shine. IR’s original mission was to develop “analytic tools, language expertise and cross-cultural understanding,” whereas PLCY is focused on studying the “design, implementation and evaluation of better policies and practices.” The Watson Institute’s website states that the primary aim of the DS curriculum is to train students to “engage with the issues of economic and social development.”

In each of these three concentrations, there was a comprehensive structure in place to guide first-years through

the discipline and the Open Curriculum as a whole.

Moreover, the core coursework of the three previous concentrations allowed students to develop the key knowledge relevant to their fields.

The interdisciplinary nature of IR was emphasized in coursework in Anthro-

the vein of the previous concentrations miss out on this opportunity. By both preserving IAPA and reinstating the previous three concentrations, students could choose between flexibility and specialization, rather than being forced into one.

The language requirement of DS

distinct concentrations give students an edge in their job searches by instilling in them important skills unique to their field. In order to be a competitive applicant, IR concentrators need fluency in a language other than English and a strong sense of cultural familiarity. PLCY concen-

“Watson should maintain IAPA and reinstate the previous three-concentration system in the interest of enabling both the flexibility of the former and the specialization of the latter. ”

pology, Economics, History, Sociology and Political Science. In PLCY, concentrators learned about what issues policy-makers grapple with through Ethics for Public Policy and Program Evaluation. DS leaned into its economic background, requiring a course in Developmental Economics and a special sophomore seminar. In each of the three, concentrators gained a tailored skillset.

IAPA adopts a more generalist approach, intending to instill students with “knowledge and skills necessary for engaged global citizenship.”

Meant to resemble a combination of the prior three, it features three separate tracks: Development, Security and Policy & Governance. Each track’s five electives can be chosen in specific areas, and the concentration drops the language requirement of IR and DS and the stricter methods requirements of the previous concentrations — thus balancing flexibility and specialization.

But while IAPA offers flexibility, students who wish to specialize in

and IR and IAPA’s notable lack thereof, for example, speaks to the need to offer all four concentrations. Language requirements certainly have practical benefits. When IAPA removed the language requirement featured in IR and DS, it potentially disincentivized students interested in an internationally-based education from pursuing the concentration. In the absence of a requirement, fewer people will study languages independent of the concentration, diluting the international focus of IAPA. At the same time, though, the old language requirement might pose a barrier to entry for students who enter Brown without Advanced Placement credits, putting them at a disadvantage against students who place out of language courses and thereby face a smaller course load. Moreover, IAPA could encourage students to specialize in more diverse regions because AP classes disproportionately represent European language-speaking regions.

On the other hand, the prior three

trators need to have a firm basis for evaluating and assessing policies, which they gain through a program evaluation requirement. DS concentrators need to understand the economic and sociological theories of development, perspectives they develop through their unique and specialized core courses. Without being forced to develop these skills, IAPA graduates could be passed over for students from other schools that require language proficiency and such specialized skills.

Still, IAPA’s flexibility welcomes prospective double concentrators who prefer the concentration’s less structured requirements, as compared to the previous system. I’ve had plenty of friends studying subjects like Computer Science and Applied Mathematics who appreciate IAPA as an additional concentration because of its flexibility. By creating a Watson with all four concentrations, the institute could expand its offerings to students in all degree programs.

If the prior three concentrations

are reinstated, reform must follow.

Watson should distribute and publish a yearly survey to collect student feedback and assess the status of the merger. There’s little data beyond anecdotes about how current and incoming Watson concentrators feel now that the IAPA has settled into the Open Curriculum. In fact, while Watson Director Edward Steinfeld emphasized that the merger was developed with substantial student and faculty input, the development and passage of the IAPA proposal remains opaque. Feedback and transparency are essential to the program’s success.

If the Watson Institute wants to achieve its initial goal and “offer students the best, most globally relevant liberal arts education possible,” it must make up for the gaps left by the elimination of IR, PLCY and DS. Propping up IAPA as Watson’s sole concentration addresses certain problems with the old curriculum, yet major shortcomings arise relating to specialization, the content of coursework and career preparedness. All four concentrations should be kept to maximize student choice.

Watson should avoid unilateral decision-making by soliciting and valuing student feedback, thereby promoting transparency in the institute as a whole — and providing students with the most intellectually stimulating academic program possible.

Deepak Gupta ’22 can be reached at deepak_gupta@brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@ browndailyherald.com and op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.

9

6

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

PPSD FROM PAGE 1 distancing, cleaning and hygiene protocols, in-school vaccine clinics and asymptomatic testing, according to guidelines released by RIDE and PPSD .

PPSD teachers and students shared excitement for a return to a more typical school life, but they also voiced concerns about the safety and efficacy of the return plan.

“There are mixed feelings. I think that teachers are grateful to have a contract and be back in school, but I think that there’s ongoing concern and growing concern over masking and vaccinations and the Delta and the Mu variants, and how they may impact our schools in the coming weeks and months,” said Maribeth Calabro, president of Providence Teachers Union.

“I’m deeply concerned about the conditions that we’re opening in,” Maya Chavez, a social studies teacher at Alvarez High School, said. With 27 students in her classroom, physical distancing is not possible, she added.

Last school year, PPSD schools had hybrid and remote learning options to allow for reduced capacity in the buildings, according to Calabro. Without a remote option this year, Chavez and Calabro said they are worried about overcrowded classrooms and learning losses for students who may have to quarantine.

With vaccines not yet approved for children under 12 and no vaccine mandates for eligible students or staff on the state or city level, Calabro and Chavez said they worry about potential spread among unvaccinated individuals and the threat of breakthrough cases.

Both Chavez and Calabro said that they did not feel that RIDE and PPSD teachers had a significant enough voice in designing the return plan.

“There’s a sense of powerlessness and desperation,” Chavez said. “I think we feel a little bit incredulous that these really are the conditions, that there’s such indifference for the lives and health of our students and family members. It is truly shocking.”

“I don’t believe that they consulted teachers adequately — if at all — to be quite frank,” Calabro added. “I know they didn’t acknowledge or ask the union what their input might be in

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

terms of a safe return to school.”

In response to concerns, Morente wrote, “the District greatly appreciates feedback from our school community.

In August, PPSD leadership held two Back2School town halls (one in English and one in Spanish) to answer families’ questions about our health and safety guidance. Families are always encouraged to reach out to the Office of Family and Community Engagement with questions or concerns.”

For PPSD students, the school days on Thursday and Friday contrasted the socially-distanced and remote learning of the past two years. Two Classical High School seniors, Milly Asherov and Eva Matos, said there was palpable excitement among the student body.

“Going in and seeing everybody definitely made the environment a lot better,” Matos said. “I’m more excited for my classes, and I feel a lot better in my learning environment.”

“COVID protocol wise, there was definitely less than last year,” Asherov said, noting the lack of temperature checks and symptom questioning.

“I remember my first transition from homeroom to first period. The hallway was absolutely crowded, and I forgot that the hallways would get that congested,” she added.

Matos and Asherov shared some concern about crowdedness in school buildings but added they generally felt more safe than fearful.

Matos said she hopes to experience some traditional aspects of student life at Classical this year that she and her fellow students have missed out on since March 2020, like attending football games and donning togas for spirit week.

Both Asherov and Matos noted how online learning changed the tenor and demands of school. They said they hoped some of the flexibility their teachers demonstrated during the previous two school years of the pandemic would continue into the fall. According to Asherov, full-time in-person school is “a lot more work” than remote and hybrid learning.

School “has not been this type of real work since I was a sophomore,” Asherov said. “And now I’m a senior, so it kind of feels surreal.”

CA L E N DA R

COVID -19 AT BROWN LAST 7 DAYS*

SEPTEMBER S

5

M

6

Tu

7

Completed Tests

People Tested

W

Th

F

S

13,067

11,485

1

2

3

4

Confirmed Positives

Positivity Rates

70

0.5 %

8

9

10

11 SINCE AUGUST 24, 2020*

12 19 26

13 20 27

14 21 28

15 22 29

16 23 30

17 24

18 25

Completed Tests

People Tested

481,582

17,079

Total Cases

Prevalence

703

4.1 %

*AS OF SEP 12.

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | COMMENTARY

7

SPORTS

Field hockey extends undefeated streak with win against Bryant

COURTESY OF BROWN ATHLETICS

Captain Danielle van Rootselaar ’22 found the back of the net twice. Ross ’23, Piacentini ’23 and Walsh ’25 also scored en route to a commanding win for Bruno.

Team’s three straight wins to start year is best start to season since 2014

BY GABRIELLA SARTORI SENIOR STAFF WRITER The field hockey team (3-1) defeated Bryant University (0-5) in a commanding 5-1 victory Friday afternoon at Goldberger Family Field. The Bears’ third straight win gave them their best start to a season since their 3-0 start in 2014.

Head Coach Jill Reeve noted that even though the Ivy League season

has yet to begin, the team is bringing a competitive approach to each game.

“It doesn’t matter what jersey the other team has on, our performance still stays the same,” Reeve said. “We need to continue to grow our game, and I’m glad we got the win. But I’m still cautious, and that’s where I’m at right now. We have a lot to work on and that starts with continuing to create relationships on the field.”

Connections were made all over the field, helping four different Bears find the back of the net, with captain Danielle van Rootselaar ’22 scoring twice.

Bruno started strong early in the first quarter as midfielder Lindsey Ross ’23 scored her first career goal in the sixth

minute of the game. Bruno extended the lead to 2-0 when Ana Claire Piacentini ’23 scored from a deflection on a van Rootselaar shot off a penalty corner.

The Bulldogs would later catch the Bears on their heels as they cut Bruno’s lead to one to end the first quarter. This would be the only goal Brown’s defence allowed for the remainder of the game.

To end the first half, van Rootselaar made her presence known as she danced around the Bryant defense before firing a backhand shot to extend the lead to 3-1.

The Bears maintained their momentum from the first half, increasing the lead to 4-1 just 50 seconds into the second half. A 2-on-1 breakaway led

to a Mikayla Walsh ’25 goal as a slot pass down the right side from Imogen Govan ’24 made it easy for Walsh to tap it in. Brown remained controlled in their play as the game progressed.

In the last nine minutes of the game, van Rootselaar again carried the ball through the Bryant defense to further extend the lead to 5-1, solidifying the win for Bruno.

Van Rootselaar said she had to quickly adapt to changes in personnel before the game as her fellow captain, Emma Rosen ’22 was absent due to COVID-19 protocols. “It was definitely unexpected and last minute,” van Rootselaar said. “We did a great job of controlling the controllables and re-

maining poised throughout the game.”

Reeve mentioned how the Bears continue to see growth in the flow of their game as well as in handling the waves of attack that the Bryant offense presented. The calm mindset the team maintained was especially notable given the Bears’ numerous underclassmen contributors. Key players like Walsh, who scored and has started in all three games for Brown, helped facilitate Bruno’s aggressiveness on the field. “I’m always listening to my teammates whether they are behind or in front of me,” Walsh said.

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8

9/11 FROM PAGE 1 internet, the United States sat at the precipice of an uncontested digital age.

On Brown’s campus, “television cable news was the primary way that we got news about what was happening then,” Patrick Moos ’02, Boas’ co-editor-in-chief, recalled. It was through cable news that Moos and his roommate heard about the attacks in the first place.

The aftermath of 9/11 gave student journalists on College Hill a newfound duty: to capture a national conversation, explaining what happened and what it meant for the Brown community. As student journalists leading The Herald when the attacks happened, Boas and Moos found themselves central bearers of this responsibility.

“I don’t want to make The Herald seem more important than it was, but certainly there was a reliance on paper newspapers in a way that there might not be today,” Boas said. “So, to have a physical copy of The Herald was important to us, and we hope important to our readers.”

“I don’t think on Sept. 11, or Sept.

12, or Sept. 13 we understood the gravity and the world-changing nature of what had happened. Everybody was in shock,” she added. “There was a lot of confusion, and we were just trying to do our jobs. So, was there pressure? I don’t know — there was pressure every day to do the best job we could.”

When the attacks happened, Moos added, The Herald immediately began coverage, documenting how the Brown community was responding and what was occuring on the national level, including “wires,” or stories transferred from major news outlets, in the printed paper. “I don’t actually remember specifically how I kicked into gear in terms of trying to think like a reporter, but I know that, within a few hours, certainly all of us were at The Herald and trying to figure out what we would put in the paper,” he said. For days and even weeks after Sept. 11, the attacks remained central to The Herald’s news coverage, with spreads of 9/11-related stories on every page.

Major media organizations were essential in addressing confusion and grief following 9/11 on a national scale.

For Kimberly Millette, Office of Military-Affiliated Students program director, she and her family relied upon brief glimpses of televised media coverage as they tried to make sense of the tragedy.

The attack “was very dramatic at

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS school,” said Millette, who was a freshman in high school at the time. “Everybody was upset because some students had family members that were in the area, so there was a lot of confusion.”

But Millette grew up in a traditional household where topics like 9/11 were not something her parents readily addressed. “I was pretty sheltered,” she explained. On Sept. 11, Millette remembers seeing her mom watching the news on the television and crying, but the two never discussed it.

At the time of the attacks, Millette’s father was a member of the Army Reserve, making the events hit even closer to home.

“Dealing with their own emotions through it … I just think they didn’t have the capacity to have that conversation with us, me and my sisters,” she said.

Confronted with a level of violence deemed unspeakable, Millette’s family experienced 9/11 in silence, allowing the media to do the talking.

Nationalizing narratives Recently, scrutiny over the media has grown in the general American consciousness, and the public has begun to reexamine whether journalism can ever be devoid of subjectivity. But Millette did not grow up with this critical rhetoric. Within her community, ideological and social conservatism made for a culture resistant to ideas and influences from elsewhere in the country, and Millette largely took media narratives at face value.

In part, the perspective Millette gained from watching news coverage of 9/11 was one that honored the fallen and all who made sacrifices to help others in the aftermath of the attacks, especially first responders. Millette, who served in the United States Air Force for six years, noted that acts of service from first responders created a legacy of respect across the country, but even more so in military spaces, instilling in many Americans a sense of duty to protect their nation.

“Even Brown alumni that I talk to say that they served because of 9/11,” she said. “Even (for) our current veterans, (the anniversary of the attacks) is something that every year is impactful to them, even if they were children when they happened.”

But while the media served as a tool to honor those seen as upholders of American principles, narratives it perpetuated also often cast out Muslim

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

Americans from an otherwise national identity.

“Back then, I wasn’t educated about media … and how stories can be told in certain ways,” Millette said.

“I thought anything I see through the news — it’s truth, that’s just how I was raised.”

Following the attacks on Sept. 11, the United States saw a sharp rise in violence against Muslims. According

associate professor of history, added.

“And so it affected the South Asian community ... including non-Muslims.”

For example, Zamindar said, Sikhs who wear turbans “were read as Muslim bodies in (the American conciousness) that affected domestically what it meant to be American.”

Influenced by media narratives, Millette said her “elementary way of looking at (9/11) back then was there

News is the only news that they watch, 24/7. So that is the information they’re getting, and we know social media is tailored to what our preferences are, in that we oftentimes will not see the other side’s opinions because it’s filtered out,” Millette said. Social media companies “know that we don’t want to see (conflicting ideas) … we want confirmation bias, we just want to see what we already believe.”

to Sreemati Mitter, assistant professor of Middle Eastern history and international and public affairs, the stories told by the media tap into sentiments that already exist in our society. Islamophobia was not created by the events that transpired on Sept. 11, 2001 — it had been lurking beneath the surface of American society, and was suddenly viewed as an acceptable sentiment to have and publicly voice at the expense of Muslims, Mitter explained.

Predicated on an understanding of who was American and who was not, this shift resulted in the targeting of ethnic minorities perceived as Muslim, Mitter said. She noted the experiences of discrimination faced by her Muslim and non-Muslim Middle Eastern and South Asian friends alike, demonstrating the racialized targeting of people who “look Muslim,” and therefore do not fit into popular depictions of what an American is.

“Many South Asians were attacked, regardless of their religion or ethnicity, (because of) the racial perception of who a Muslim is,” Vazira Zamindar,

are terrorists, they don’t like America because we stand for freedom, and so that is why they did what they did.”

It was not until adulthood and after her military service that Millette fully understood the history of American interventionism and conflict in the Middle East, in addition to the context surrounding the attacks, and gained a perspective informed beyond mass media coverage.

On the other hand, Moos said that some at the time did approach the media with caution, including on Brown’s campus. But in a moment of unparalleled grief, he felt the nation “did kind of drop that skepticism … at least temporarily, in the immediate aftermath of (9/11), because people were hungry for facts about what was happening, and the national news media was the only place to get any information.”

“I do think there is mass-generalization over an entire religion because of (9/11) without fully understanding what the religion is, and taking extremist action and rhetoric and assigning that label to everyone. Unfortunately, it is very common,” Millette added.

Despite the admiration first responders received in the media, Millette emphasized that that narrative of support was not always the full story.

“There was a period of time where the first responders of 9/11 didn’t receive the care and attention that they deserved,” she explained. “They have so many health issues now because of (their service), and so, even though we all see their service as amazing … they’re still fighting to get their basic needs met from the aftermath of it.”

For the people of the Middle East, military intervention following the United States’ Oct. 7, 2001 invasion of Afghanistan and the ensuing decades of warfare led to the “violent deaths” of more than 335,000 civilians, according to the Watson Institute of International and Public Affairs’ Cost of War Project. And, according to Mitter, these are the stories of loss and suffering following 9/11 that remain untold by most of the mainstream media in the United States. She pointed to a New York Times series that documented the lives of those who died during 9/11 while overlooking lives lost in the Middle East following U.S. military intervention. “Those photographs that I saw in the New York Times every day … we never saw a single photograph of an innocent child” from the Middle East who died in the war on terror,” Mitter said. She added that the full number of lives lost following U.S. intervention in the Middle East after 9/11 will likely never be known.

“We don’t have the faces and the names of the Afghani people” who died in the war, Mitter said. “There seems to be, at least in the U.S. press, no recognition — or not in the same way of the cost to human life when (those who have died) are not American,” demonstrating that not all lives are equal in their depictions by the mainstream media.

THE HERALD

Twenty years later In some ways, media coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic mirrors coverage of 9/11, showing consistencies in the way Americans interpret and experience tragedies. In the aftermath of 9/11, there was an honoring of first responders as American heroes akin to how doctors and healthcare professionals have been uplifted throughout the pandemic.

In other ways, the media during both events have featured a rhetoric of “othering” immigrants and religious and racial minorities, covering narratives that depict marginalized groups as responsible for national tragedies. The period following 9/11 saw a rise in Islamaphobic violence, and violence against East Asians spiked during the pandemic.

But not all racism and violence is perpetuated in the same way in the United States, Mitter said, noting that Islam has been associated, and continues to be associated, with violence, evoking a distinctly Islamaphobic fear of violence within the American mainstream.

According to Millette, a limited news consumption can give news organizations disproportionate power in shaping how people perceive reality, especially in tumultuous times.

“I say that with love for my family, but they are all very conservative. Fox