Thursday, September 14, 2017

SINCE 1891

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2017

VOLUME CLII, ISSUE 65

WWW.BROWNDAILYHERALD.COM

University offers support, resources to undocumented students U. continues financial, legal, mental health support in wake of White House DACA decision

By PRIYANKA PODUGU SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Following President Trump’s announcement that he would end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program next March, the University announced its efforts to aid undocumented students on campus.

In a community-wide email, President Christina Paxson P’19, Provost Richard Locke and Vice President for Campus Life and Student Life Eric Estes wrote that the decision to end DACA was “shortsighted and in direct and flagrant conflict with this nation’s commitment to education and supporting the bold aspirations of our talented youth.”

They also wrote that the Undocumented and DACA Student Initiative, currently housed in the First-Generation College and Low-Income Student Center, would continue “to be the center of support for students with questions about available legal, financial and other resources.”

“The FLi Center and myself are committed to providing holistic support to students … (including) academic, financial and socio-emotional support,” said

Julio Reyes ’12, director of the FLi Center.

This kind of social and emotional support can be forgotten when “working with our students, particularly undocumented and DACA students,” Reyes added.

Reyes also said he hoped to build better relationships with offices across campus — including Counseling and Psychological Services, the Provost’s Office and divisions within the Office of Campus Life and Student Services — to understand the University’s varied resources. The FLi Center’s engagement would not only focus on “supporting the students that are directly impacted by providing resources, but (also) changing the campus environment and climate so that students feel supported in all avenues and aspects of their existence on campus,” he added.

He hopes to accomplish this through an “undocu-programming series” — taking the form of lectures, speakers, panels and potentially film screenings — that could educate community members on the issues undocumented immigrants face and build allies, Reyes said.

Reyes said he was in contact with the Dorcas International Institute of Rhode Island to see “if we can connect current students on campus to their services,” adding that the organization was providing “legal services to help eligible DACA recipients renew their applications.”

In the community-wide email, administrators also wrote that Locke would

continue to lead “a planning and assessment group representing offices across campus” to support those affected by the changing policy. This group consists of administrators from the Dean of the College, Campus Life and Financial Aid, among others, said Chief of Staff to the Provost Marisa Quinn.

The Herald previously reported that the University was willing to cover a student’s initial consultation with an attorney, a practice that Quinn said the University would continue to do for undocumented and DACA students seeking legal council. This coverage applies to all undocumented students, scholars, staff and faculty, and individuals may bring a family member to this consultation, she added. The University will also invite an attorney to host a “Know-Your-Rights” session for all interested students.

According to the email, the University will not “share information with law enforcement regarding the immigration status of undocumented or DACA status students, and we will not without a subpoena. Brown’s Department of Public Safety does not inquire about or act on information related to immigration status, and does not partner with federal or state agencies to do so.”

Deborah Gonzalez, director of the immigration law clinic at the Roger Williams University School of Law, said the notion that DACA would be functioning for another six months was misleading.

GUS REED / HERALD

Local activists marched to the R.I. State House Friday as part of a national movement in opposition to President Trump’s decision to end DACA. Those currently enrolled whose status is recipients whose protections end before “going to expire by March 5 need to re- March need to send in their applications new it. Based off of (Trump’s) announce- well before the Oct. 5 deadline. ment, … they must file the application This short time frame places signifito renew the DACA status for another cant financial pressure on young students, two-year period by Oct. 5, 2017.” because submitting the application to Gonzalez added that while she doesn’t renew DACA status costs $495, accordbelieve that the Trump administration ing to the National Immigration Law has the resources to start deportations Center’s website. Recognizing this, the immediately, she stressed that DACA » See DACA, page 2

Davis joins U. as Title IX Officer Jill Pipher tapped as new

vice president for research

Former Title IX coordinator of Mount Holyoke appointed after five-month vacancy

By Anna kramer senior staff writer Ending a five-month period of interim leadership by internal administrators, Rene Davis began work as the new program officer for the Title IX Office in mid-July. Now leading the University’s oversight of cases involving sexual and gender-based harassment and violence, she brings to her position extensive administrative, legal and trauma-focused experience.

To choose Davis, the University created a search committee comprising faculty members, staff members, administrators, University attorneys, students and members of the Title IX Oversight and Advisory Board. Davis was one among a pool of finalists who were invited to visit campus, wrote Executive Vice President for Planning and Policy Russell Carey ’91 MA’06 in a university-wide email May 18.

Davis comes to Brown from Mount Holyoke College, where she was the

INSIDE

Pipher to focus on increasing funding, commercial partnerships for U. researchers

By JONATHAN DOUGLAS SENIOR STAFF WRITER

COURTESY OF LISA QUINONES

Rene Davis will use her experience in the fields of administration, law and trauma to build trust between the Title IX office and the U. community.

Title IX and Section 504 coordinator.

Before that, Davis worked for Womanshelter/Compañeras as an administrator, volunteer coordinator and representative on the battered women’s shelter hotline. She then became involved with

female advocacy work at Girls Inc. and subsequently moved into administrative roles in higher education.

“Through divine intervention in a number of different roles, I ended up » See DAVIS, page 2

On July 1, Professor of Mathematics Jill Pipher became the new vice president for research for the University, in which she coordinates funding and monitors all research conducted at the University.

The office aims to have a universitywide view of research on campus rather than a focus on a specific department.

Pipher outlined three main goals for her tenure: increasing funding for research, expanding commercial engagement and continuing “operational excellence” within her office.

Pipher will face an uphill battle to secure federal funding. Research dollars have remained roughly flat over the last five years, yet inflation and the rising cost of conducting research has meant that budgets for projects have been strained across the board, Pipher

said. While Pipher will continue to visit Washington once a month to meet with members of Congress to encourage them to support research funding, she plans on turning more to other funding sources such as philanthropic and commercial institutions. Pipher will also face challenges from other competing research universities that are similarly turning to alternative funding sources, said David Savitz, professor of epidemiology and Pipher’s predecessor as vice president for research.

Pipher’s focus on expanding commercial partnerships and engagement will be aided by the recent hire of Daniel Behr as the executive director of corporate relations. Behr, who has headed the newly created Office of Corporate Relations since July 1, oversees all of the university’s efforts to create and expand relationships with outside corporations. While the university had previously engaged with the commercial sector in multiple departments under Savitz, Pipher has tried to centralize the process. “The mission of this new office is to unleash the impact » See RESEARCH, page 2

WEATHER

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2017

NEWS Ratty stays open for summer without air conditioning, dining hall staff report falling ill

NEWS ‘The Body As A Sight Of’ exhibit shows artwork by people of color, focuses on variety of experiences

COMMENTARY Esemplare ’18: S/NC system upholds University’s principles of learning

COMMENTARY Campanelli ’18: Confederate statues encrouage young Southerners to develop racist idols

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PAGE 2 • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2017

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

Davis hire ends period of temporary staffing in Title IX Office

By ANNA KRAMER SENIOR STAFF WRITER

KATE TALERICO / HERALD

» DAVIS, from page 1 falling into the work around Title IX,” Davis said.

“I was blown away when I first met her,” said Laurel Bestock, the chair of the Title IX Oversight and Advisory Board and associate professor of archaeology and the ancient world and Egyptology and Assyriology. “She has a really rare ability to listen, to disagree and then to explain why she disagrees and bring the people with whom she disagrees along with her.”

While there were a number of qualified candidates, “there was just this other quality about (Davis) that set her apart by miles,” said Kirsten Wolfe, assistant dean of student conduct and community standards and former interim deputy Title IX coordinator for undergraduate students.

Davis began shaping the Title IX policies and procedures at Mount Holyoke following the 2011 “Dear Colleague” letter written and released by the Department of Education under the Obama administration. The letter instructed universities to alter their Title IX processes. Those reforms allowed both parties to appeal any decision and established a preponderance of evidence as the standard, meaning that a hearing must find it more likely than not that the accused is at fault to determine guilt.

The preponderance of evidence standard has come under criticism from Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, who recently gave a speech raising concerns about due process in Title IX proceedings.

“I don’t think that the preponderance of the information standard means that more people are being found responsible than should,” Davis said in

response. The due process concerns are more legitimate, she added. At some institutions, the accused sometimes have no access to evidence or no knowledge of the complaint against them, she added.

At Brown, the accused receives a copy of the written complaint, may choose to respond, may choose to attend the hearing and give a statement and may also appeal the result of the hearing on certain grounds.

Davis has spent her first few months studying current University policies such as these, in addition to examining ongoing and past cases.

In her first year, Davis does not intend to make dramatic changes. “I’m too new to the community to go forward and do that,” she said. However, she does intend to “tinker with the procedures” to ensure that she understands the content of all Title IX cases and the potential threat they pose to the individual or University community. Currently, the Title IX program officer is not central to some of those operations, she said.

She also aims to further develop the informal complaint process with student and community input, she added.

Students often wonder how they can participate in an informal process — which would not involve an official hearing — while avoiding retaliation.

The primary challenge this year will be building trust, Davis said. “Getting people to see us beyond the complaint procedures will be an important hurdle.”

But interim staff from the department have confidence in Davis.

“Since she got here, she has had a clear vision for what she wants that office to be (and) what kind of support she needs to make that vision happen,” Wolfe said.

www.browndailyherald.com

Before Title IX Program Officer Rene Davis stepped into her role in July, the Title IX Office had been managed by a team of temporary administrators.

Following the departure of former Program Officer Amanda Walsh in January, Liza Cariaga-Lo, senior advisor to the provost for academic development, diversity and inclusion, served at the head of the office, along with Marc Peters, health promotion specialist at health services, and Kirsten Wolfe, assistant dean of student conduct and community standards, who worked as interim deputy Title IX coordinators for undergraduates, according to a statement from President Christina Paxson P’19.

Other administrators also played various roles in the process.

During the spring, some undergraduates and graduate students criticized the University for its lack of permanent staffing in the office and overburdening of interim staffers.

The supervision of the Title IX Oversight and Advisory Board helped ensure that procedures remained consistent throughout the interim period.

The oversight board checks “that the University is following its own policies with regards to Title IX and to assess whether or not those are the proper policies,” said Laurel Bestock, the chair of the Title IX Oversight and Advisory Board and associate professor of archaeology and the ancient world and Egyptology and Assyriology.

The oversight board invited the interim team to its formal meetings, she said, adding that various members attended the board’s three meetings. Additionally, Bestock scheduled informal meetings to assess and address the needs of the Title IX Office throughout last semester.

During the office’s leadership shift, “the policies themselves did not change,” Bestock said. “The implementation of those policies does require people, but provided that the policies are there and are followed, … we at least (had) the means to go forward.”

Cariaga-Lo has intensive and longstanding experience with University administration, Bestock said, adding that she and the oversight board were confident that the Title IX policies were implemented with procedural knowledge and institutional memory.

Claire Hall, an attorney and the principal of UECAT, LLC, also worked with Jessica Katz, former University employee and Title IX investigator, to outline a template of Title IX procedures for the interim administrators, Wolfe said. Because no attorneys worked on the interim team, Hall provided necessary legal advice during the weekly meetings, she added.

The oversight board helped University administrators understand the importance of communicating the search committee’s progress. “(The board) also played a critical role in communicating to the whole Brown community what was happening. … There was a lot of fear … about what this transition meant,” Bestock said.

GUS REED / HERALD

New Vice President for Research Jill Pipher looks to increase funding for research and expand commercial engagement during her tenure.

» RESEARCH, from page 1 of Brown’s research by encouraging and facilitating the evolution of Brown discoveries and inventions into products and services that will add an economic value,” Pipher said.

Other universities have expanded their partnerships with the commercial sector in recent years as federal research funding has become increasingly tight. Recently, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and IBM announced a $240 million partnership to advance artificial intelligence research, one of the largest partnerships between academic and commercial institutions.

Though critics have argued that such partnerships undermine the academic integrity of researchers and can create a bias toward market-ready products and short-term projects, both Pipher and Savitz said that Brown attempts to avoid conflicts of interest. While doing research under commercial agreements, for example, researchers must sign contracts guaranteeing that the research will be published regardless of the impact on the commercial partner, Pipher said.

Pipher was previously the founding director of the Institute of Computational and Experimental Research in Mathematics, a position she held from 2010 to 2016. Under her direction, the institute received both founding and operational grants from the National Science Foundation — establishing it as one of eight NSF-funded mathematical sciences institutes in the country — as well as a number of other grants from both federal and commercial sources.

Pipher also coordinated numerous semester long programs, which brought together over a thousand researchers during her tenure.

» DACA, from page 1 University will cover the costs for students to renew their DACA status, Quinn said. Students whose financial aid awards are compromised by the Trump administration’s decision will also receive assistance from the University, but students with concerns should speak to their relevant dean about their situation, she added.

CAPS has also worked to make campus mental health care more accessible for its undocumented and DACA-enrolled students, according to the campus-wide email. Will Meek, the director of CAPS, wrote in an email to The Herald that “CAPS has been having internal discussions about DACA for several weeks to prepare for this potential situation and we have set up some special channels with staff that work directly with

Brendan Hassett, who took over Pipher’s position as director of ICERM in July 2016, praised Pipher’s long-term planning and coordinating abilities.

“When I started at ICERM, there were a lot of things that I thought, ‘Oh, you could never get this to work.’ But she was very persistent and very proactive, and, in almost every case, she got it to work,” Hassett said.

Savitz seconded this praise, adding that Pipher “has a combination of scholarly vision and administrative skills.”

Pipher also brings a unique perspective to the office as one of the few female researchers in STEM. “I don’t think there has been as much progress as I would have hoped in diversity, in science, in academia,” Pipher said. “There’s still a lot of work to be done to understand the causes, to find the remedies, to support women and other underrepresented minorities in (STEM) fields. It’s always something I’ve got on my mind.”

As a first step, Pipher plans on raising awareness of these gaps. “Awareness of unconscious bias and of the implications of being a minority is helpful. There are certain situations in which reminding people that these factors exist can help change the tone of a meeting, conversation or direction that things go,” Pipher said.

Pipher will continue teaching, mentoring and researching during her tenure, serving as a co-professor for MATH 0750: “Introduction to Higher Mathematics” and furthering her work in mathematics.

Throughout her time in various positions throughout the University, Pipher has held one belief dear: “My common thread is my passion and respect for university research, in particular the research at Brown.” undocumented students to help them connect with us in a way that feels safe for them.”

“I’d suggest that anyone that gets mental health care related to this should make a request to their clinician that no records are made of their own or a family member’s documentation status. If the clinician does not agree to that, I would not discuss it further and find someone else who will honor that, which CAPS can help with,” Meeks wrote.

“The bigger perspective in all of this is that (for) the students who have chosen to come to Brown, who we have sought to bring to Brown because they’re enormously talented … we are taking every measure possible to ensure that they can focus in their studies and thrive as part of our community,” Quinn said.

NEWS

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2017 • PAGE 3

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

Study projects climate change to increase heat-related deaths Potential increase in heatrelated deaths indicate public health concern with climate change

By MIA PATTILLO SENIOR STAFF WRITER

It’s easy to conceptualize climate change as distant environmental shifts in the future. But a recent study led

by University researchers, along with others, showed U.S. mortality rates will increase in coming decades as result of climate change.

The study examined the relationship between temperature and deaths in 10 large metropolitan areas in the United States, said Antonio Gasparinni, associate professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, who did much of the statistical work for the team.

The researchers confirmed that as temperatures rise, heat-related deaths, like those from heatstroke, increase, while cold-related deaths, like those from hypothermia, decrease. Next, they decided to tackle the question of whether net deaths would increase or decrease overall.

In eight of the 10 metropolitan areas, researchers found that an increase in heat-related deaths would be larger than the decrease in coldrelated deaths, leaving a net increase

in mortalities.

After estimating the statistical curve of heat-based mortalities among the 10 cities based on historical data, the team obtained several projections for the future, Gasparinni said. These projections were based on various potential emissions scenarios, each of which fueled climate change to a different degree. Two main scenarios were examined in the paper — one “business as usual” scenario, which looked at the effects of climate change if humans continued emitting as they do now, and another scenario in which efforts were taken to curb emissions.

Despite the projected increase in human deaths, a silver lining still exists­— in comparing the two emissions scenarios, the team saw that a substantial number of those deaths could be avoided if the human population adheres to the lower emissions scenario.

Experts whose work deals with climate change agreed that the results of this study present a stark portrait of the future humans are going to face.

“This study shows a reality we’ll have to get used to because we have relatively high confidence in temperature projections,” said Amir AghaKouchak, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at University of California Irvine.

“We need to expect more from our policy makers than expecting people

Predicted worst case of heat-related deaths The heat-related deaths predicted for the year 2050 range from 877 to almost 15,000 in each of the major cities around the United States. The total predicted heat related deaths nationwide surpasses 50,000, accounting for projected population changes.

Chicago: 9,146

New York: 14, 505

Reference of scale

Los Angeles: 8,672

10,000 deaths 5,000 1,000

to automatically do something about those things,” he added.

“This study presents not only a public health argument for mitigating climate change, but also an opportunity to think about adaptation to climate,” said Kate Weinberger,

lead author and postdoctoral fellow in Brown’s Institute for Environment and Society. “What can we do — is it opening cooling centers, warning people about heat waves, planting more trees or planning city infrastructure in a way that produces good

DATA SCIENCE INITIATIVE LAUNCH EVENT

Empowering Collaboration / Expanding Networks September 19, 2017 Lunch & roundtable discussions: 12– 3 p.m., Sayles Hall, Room 108 Keynote presentation: 4 p.m., Granoff Center, Martinos Auditorium

Welcome: Jeffrey Brock, director, DSI Opening remarks: President Christina Paxson “Data Science at Brown”: Provost Richard M. Locke Keynote: Andrew W. Moore Professor and dean, School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University “Four Fronts of the Data War: The Battles for Talent, Compute, Privacy and Science” Reception to follow

Registration required: dsilaunch.eventbrite.com

LAURA FELENSTEIN / HERALD

effects?”

Especially in today’s political climate with its current debate surrounding climate change, this area of research can “provide some clear scientific evidence on the issue and make it less abstract,” Gasparinni said.

NEWS

PAGE 4 • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2017

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

Dining Services gets heat for lack of AC in the Ratty Lack of air conditioning leave dining service staff exhausted, elicit student petition

By EMILY DAVIES SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Richard Cabral has worked in Food Services at the Sharpe Refectory for the past 19 years. Cabral’s most strenuous moments on the job do not come from the swarms of hungry college kids, nor from his eight-and-a-half hour shifts. It’s the ruthless summer heat that pushes him to the breaking point.

“Whatever the temperature is outside, it’s easily 20 degrees hotter in (the Ratty),” Cabral said, standing behind trays of vegetables and lunch meat.

“The heat gets you tired faster. It puts you a bit on edge.”

In response to these working conditions, The Student Labor Alliance circulated an online petition over the summer that called for Brown Dining Services management to install air conditioning in the Main Dining Room and kitchens at the Ratty, citing health and safety violations.

“Over the summer, temperatures in Providence can reach up to 95 degrees, and yet, workers are expected to handle hot food for multiple hours on end with limited breaks and only a few fans to blow around humid, stale

GUS REED / HERALD

The Sharpe Refectory, known as the Ratty, was the only dining hall open to Summer@Brown students without air conditioning in the kitchen or main dining room. Dining staff and students have voiced concerns regarding health and safety in the substandard working environment. air,” the petition read.

The Ratty is one of three on-campus dining halls and eateries that remain open during summer months, but the only location without air conditioning in its main dining area (air conditioning is installed in its side dining rooms and administrative offices.)

Staff have fallen ill from working in the intense heat Rhode Island summers typically provide, Cabral said,

adding that he has found himself feeling light-headed frequently.

Food Service Worker Oscar Mitchell said he had to leave work early to go home on multiple occasions because he could not handle the temperature.

“It’s something we have been complaining about for as long as I can remember, but they keep saying how expensive it would be to add air conditioning,” Cabral said.

Peter Rossi, the University’s

director of Dining Services, is in the process of collaborating with other University departments to look into cooling systems for the Sharpe Refectory, Rossi wrote in an email to The Herald.

“As part of our continual efforts to maintain and upgrade our dining facilities, initial steps to evaluate the possibility of changes to heating and cooling at the Sharpe Refectory have been taken via the appropriate

University processes,” Rossi said. “The scope, timeline and cost for any upgrades are being evaluated through this process before any decision to proceed further is made.”

Dining Services has placed temporary cooling units in the Sharpe Refectory while a long-term solution is in the works, Rossi said. But some dining staff who work in the Ratty said that the fans were not nearly adequate for temperature concerns.

CSREA kicks off with exhibit featuring artists of color

“The Body As Site Of ” displays artwork intended to convey a variety of experiences

By LIORA MORHAYIM SENIOR STAFF WRITER

As artists continue to grapple with issues of race and identity, the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America opened the 2017-18 academic year with the exhibit “The Body As Site Of,” which displays the artwork of four contemporary artists of color — Akujixxv, Devyn Galindo, Panteha Abareshi and Carolina Hicks.

The curator of the exhibition, Brigitte Santana, a public humanities master’s student at the University,

talked about the lack of diversity in the art world at the exhibit’s opening Wednesday evening. Museum collections and exhibitions often reflect the priorities of mainstream institutions, and artwork is selected by people who do not reflect the demographics of their society, she said.

This exhibit aims to highlight artwork by people of color and convey a variety of experiences, Santana said.

It is important for artists to see themselves represented in museums, she added.

“What is it like to be a Latinx confronting political issues in Los Angeles?

What is it like to simultaneously fight against sickle cell zero beta thalassemia and oppressive ideas of intimacy and gender? What is it like to address the issues of emotional and mental wellbeing

as a Colombian American in the west coast or as a Jamaican American in the east coast?” Santana asked, referring to the different experiences of the displayed artists.

One of the attendees of the event, Samuel Ortiz, a staff member at the Office of Residential Life, said that he came to support art work by people of color. The artwork is “beautiful, inspiring, thought provoking,” he added.

Manager of the Programs and Outreach at the Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice Maiyah Gamble Rivers said that she was moved by the purity of the artwork, which reminds her of an intimate diary or sketchbook.

“Despite the disparity in our institutions at large, this exhibition reminds us some of the promises of art, including being able to connect with experiences

GUS REED / HERALD

The Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America, located on 96 Waterman St., will house the “The Both As Site Of” exhibit until May 31. unlike our own,” Santana said.

Tricia Rose AM’87 PhD’93 P’14, associate dean of the faculty for special initiatives, professor of Africana studies and director of CSREA, thanked

everyone for attending the event because the center “is not a private think tank. It is a campus and public resource to build … community on race and ethnicity.”

TODAY

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2017 • PAGE 5

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

u p , u p a n d away

menu SATELLITE DINING ANDREWS COMMONS

Pizza: BBQ Bam Bam, Meatball Provolone and Rosemary, Spicy 5 Cheese and Garlic JOSIAH’S

BLUE ROOM

Lasagna Bowl, Bacon Burger, Quesadilla Station

Chicken Artichoke Florentine, Organic Coconut Lentil Soup,

DINING HALLS SHARPE REFECTORY LUNCH

DINNER

Lyonnaise Potatoes, Butternut Squash Soup With Apples, BBQ Beef Sandwich, M&M Cookies

Pretzel Rolls, Mediterranean Eggplant Sauté, Chicken Helene, Lemon Squares

VERNEY-WOOLLEY LUNCH

DINNER

Chile Verde Enchilada, Cannellini Bean and Tomato Soup, M&M Cookies

Green Bean and Tomato Casserole, Macaroni Shell Pasta, Oreo Cheesecake

sudoku

RELEASE DATE– Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle c rNorris o s sandwJoyce o rNichols d Lewis Edited by Rich

ACROSS 1 Well-constructed 6 Formal agreement 10 Carried a balance 14 Boxing venue 15 Turkish honorific 16 Kolkata cover-up 17 2003 horse movie that won Best Picture 19 Early 11thcentury date 20 Bunny gait 21 Important bee 22 Runs easily 23 Throw for a loop 25 __ acid 27 Suffix with neat or beat 28 One who’s not on the honor roll 31 Tee off 34 Gets moving 35 Stick around 36 Pal of Piglet 37 Stress, as a key point 40 DSL offerer 41 Banjo ridge 43 WWII females 44 Like Stallone’s persona 46 “Yes, ma’am,” in Madrid 48 “Fresh Air” airer 49 Colgate rival 50 Bench or Berra 54 Manager who managed the Mets, Braves, Cardinals, Yankees and Dodgers 56 ’70s sitcom family name 58 Firefighter’s tool 59 Antioxidant berry in fruit juices 60 Primer sentence 62 Idle 63 Cologne that sounds forbidden 64 Sidestep 65 About 5.88 trillion mi.

66 Comical Laurel 67 Uses a stopwatch for DOWN 1 Malia Obama’s sister

2 Black-and-white treats 3 Jumped 4 Having five sharps, musically 5 Rum cocktail 6 Walked around the waiting room 7 Fluish feeling 8 Waters near Hong Kong and Shanghai 9 One might have “Mom” in a heart, briefly 10 Utah singing family 11 Woo like Cyrano 12 New York’s __ Canal 13 Parts of depts.

18 Done for 22 Lucy of “Kill Bill” 24 Small number 26 __ Helens, Wash.

28 About, chronologically 29 “A bit of talcum/Is always walcum” poet 30 Proofreader’s pickup 31 Fido’s greetings

32 “Me neither” 33 Flips out 34 Chest pulsation 38 “Terrible” age 39 Uncontested, like some hockey goals 42 Jack Russell or wirehair 45 Rainbow shape 47 Word before a maiden name 48 Zilch

50 Like some Louisiana fare 51 __-scarum 52 Radiate 53 Auberjonois and Russo 54 Hard to believe, as a tale 55 One __: kids’ ball game 57 Singer McEntire 60 Rds. 61 Actor Wallach

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

GUS REED / HERALD

The Superman Building shines through a veil of trees, giving students the strength they need to proceed as shopping period comes to a dramatic close. For first-years: let this be your lucky charm.

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

“Through divine intervention in a number of different roles, I ended up falling into the work around Title IX.” — Rene Davis, new program officer for Title IX office

See TITLE IX on page 1. xwordeditor@aol.com

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MMI Fall Seminar: Aoife Heaslip, Ph.D. 12:00 P.M. BioMed Center, 291

Time Management: Myth or Reality 12:00 P.M. Solomon, 001

Getting Started With CareerLAB 3:30 P.M. CareerLab, 1st floor

Brown Meditation Community Sit 4:00 P.M. Manning Chapel

TOMORROW Lunch with Dean of the College Maud S. Mandel 12:00 P.M. Sheridan Center

Pediatric Research Colloquim 1:30 P.M. Sciences Library, 3rd floor

Swearer Center Community Engagement Fair 3:00 P.M. Alumnae Hall Auditorium

Book Talk with Damien M. Sojoyner and Sabina E. Vaught 4:00 P.M. Brown Bookstore

COMMENTARY PAGE 6 • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2017

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

comic A Horse of Any Other Name | Zachary Silberberg

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COMMENTARY THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2017 • PAGE 7

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

Why S/NC is failing us NICHOLAS ESEMPLARE staff columnist

When applying to colleges, the thing I liked most about Brown was its promise of academic freedom. As I toiled through my final year of high school, I had grown weary of rigid course requirements. At a Brown information session that year, I was enthralled by the promise of an open curriculum.

After being accepted, I prepared to fill my semesters with the pursuit of my own curiosities.

This vision, for the most part, has become reality. Brown’s academic freedom is unmatched among its peers, and its influence on my college years is unmistakable. But when it comes to Brown’s promise of liberation from educational constraints, the S/NC option is at least as important, and considerably more famous, than the open curriculum. Brown’s allure to the average observer as a pioneer in academic freedom hinges on its near mythical “pass / fail” system, and I have had many friends and relatives make the all-too-common mistake of forgetting that Brown has grades at all. On campus, this option is so

deeply ingrained in the University’s culture that we seldom question its influence or merit. When challenged by outsiders to defend it, we scoff at these misguided students of less enlightened universities, who simply cannot grasp the richness and beauty of a true liberal arts education — of learning pursued for learning’s sake.

During my first semester on campus, I shared this perspective. I en-

soon as I heard about the S/NC grading option, I knew that people would take advantage of it for less noble academic reasons, such as to avoid a bad grade in a difficult class or simply as a workload reduction strategy. The existence of this type of misuse alone presents some reasonable objections to the system, but it is not my biggest qualm with it. The point of academic freedom, after all, is that students are responsible for their own education.

with those who approach it with pure intentions. The concern is the result of another hallmark of a Brown education — namely, its rigor.

The reality of the workload at Brown and comparable universities is that students are not realistically expected to complete every assignment over the course of the year. I have frequently had teachers and classmates suggest that it would be impossible to read every book or article assigned in

As anyone who has taken a class S/NC will confess, there comes an inevitable point in every semester when the needs of classes being taken for a grade trump any high-minded idealism that existed at the semester’s start. rolled in a computer science class with the S/NC grading option, and everything was as it should be. I had taken a class outside of my major, with which I had no previous experience, without fear that such exploration would hurt my GPA, and I had learned a great deal that might otherwise have gone unlearned.

Yet the S/NC system does have flaws worth discussing. Of course, as

This means that if Brown is committed to academic freedom, it will have to accept that students will not always utilize its academic system responsibly. You cannot give students the freedom to explore and challenge themselves without also giving them the freedom not to do so.

My most fundamental concern with the S/NC option is not with those that would abuse it, but rather

full, and that skimming and occasionally skipping these materials was the only way to survive the semester. The value of such a model could be the subject of its own article, but in relation to the S/NC option, this system of learning can quickly become problematic. As anyone who has taken a class S/NC will confess, there comes an inevitable point in every semester when the needs of classes being taken

for a grade trump any high-minded idealism that existed at the semester’s start. Indeed, to focus on readings or homework assignments for an S/NC course in the middle of a hectic semester requires a level of discipline that is borderline irresponsible. As a student parcels out inadequate time and mental resources among courses, those taken S/NC are necessarily the first casualties.

Of course, not all courses are easy to pass, and not all decisions are made with reverence for GPAs. Ultimately, I do feel that there will always be a role for the S/NC option at Brown, but I do believe the need to allow its unrestricted use is more imagined than real. Over the past three years, I have found that, if I truly want to learn about a subject, I need to take it for a grade. I have come to believe that in education, as in all things, you sometimes need to throw yourself headfirst into something you are afraid of if you wish to grow. In Brown’s efforts to make students comfortable taking a risk, I fear they have simply made it less necessary to do so.

Nicholas Esemplare ’18 can be reached at nicholas_esemplare@brown. edu.

America deserves better than Confederate statues BRYCE CAMPANELLI staff columnist

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a proud Virginian. I am a proud native to a small rural county just southeast of Charlottesville. On Aug. 12 I attended the counterprotest to the “Unite the Right” rally that brought hundreds of white nationalists to my home state. I witnessed firsthand the hate, bigotry and violence that the white nationalists inspired. A group of people commandeered and terrorized a city I call home.

In the wake of the terrorist attack in Charlottesville and the mass violence and destruction of the city, many have advocated for the removal of the Confederate statues that these racists continue to defend, but others have stated that they remain an important part of U.S. history and should stay. President Trump has even weighed in, saying the taking down of Confederate statues is “so foolish,” and that “they’re trying to take away our culture.”

It is time for these Confederate statues to be removed and more accurately historicized.

While people from all walks of life have weighed in on this topic, I think of my own personal experience as a kid who got swept up in the broader culture’s reverence for the Confederacy. In the 4th grade my class was required to do a research project on influential actors in the Civil War. I chose Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederacy. During this project I became enthralled with the man who led a government that actively fought to tear apart the United States and preserve the institution of slavery.

Like others around me, I justified his actions as “fighting for states’ rights” and “honorably standing alongside his southern brothers.” I respected his “honor,” “courage,” “leadership” and “conviction.” Even as my parents and my teacher

told me that Jefferson Davis was not a hero, I stood by my Confederate idol.

My parents tried to persuade me otherwise, and they took me to Monument Avenue in Richmond, Virginia — a street that is lined with monuments ranging from Confederate leaders to the world-famous tennis player Arthur Ashe.

But I only wanted to see one monument in particular, that of Jefferson Davis. I stood before the memorial in awe of the Confederate president who once governed the entire Southeast from Richmond. With his arm outstretched he

fought for the South because I was a proud Southerner.

But as I studied the history of the Civil War, Reconstruction and the Civil Rights Movement, I gained exposure to history outside of my small rural county, and I began to see the Confederacy as the evil it really was. I now see Jefferson Davis as the terrible slaveholding rebel who fought against the United States and I detest the motivations of the Confederacy. But these memories confirm an ever-important truth. The hundreds of Confederate statues that line towns

These statues perpetuate a false image of the Confederacy and perpetuate a culture in which Confederate leaders, and the causes they fought for, are not decried as evil and fundamentally un-American, but are rather referred to as stately and patriotic. We need to own this truth and begin the process of reversing it.

looked into the distance appearing stately, justified and honorable. There was my hero, right in front of me, standing larger than life.

Later that year I went to a Civil War gift shop and wanted to purchase a Confederate hat and outfit. My mom looked down at me — grey fatigues in my hands — with disappointment. She would not let me purchase the Confederate outfit because she said they fought for the wrong cause. But I fought back. I suggested that they fought for states’ rights. They fought for their southern brothers. I went so far as to say that if I was alive during the Civil War, I would have

and cities across the United States need to be removed from their pedestals. As kids, like my 4th grade self, stare up at them, they memorialize and honor a sickening element of American history. These monuments reinforce to people of all ages that the Confederacy was something honorable and prestigious. They instill this idea in children like me at a young age and make frank discussions about history and race difficult for young people. These statues perpetuate a false image of the Confederacy and propagate a culture in which Confederate leaders, and the causes they fought for, are not decried as evil

and fundamentally un-American, but are rather referred to as stately and patriotic. We need to own this truth and begin the process of reversing it.

I am a proud Virginian and I am a proud Southerner, but these monuments must go.

They are not accurate representations of history. They were built during the Jim Crow South as an act of defiance toward equality among races. They do not accurately recognize why these men fought for the Confederacy, that they fought to destroy the United States, or the terrible atrocities they committed against the slaves in the South. Taking these monuments down and moving them to a museum is not a destruction of, as Trump says, “our culture,” but an acknowledgement of the troubling history of the United States and a recognition of why these statues were actually erected.

If we want to move this nation forward, then it is time to abandon the myth of the “lost cause” and confront the bigotry, hatred and racism that were pervasive throughout our nation’s history and that sadly continue on in this moment. If we fail to address this issue now, more young children, like my younger self, will continue to think that Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee are worth idolizing. We will fail to truly and accurately acknowledge our nation’s past and fail to reconcile this history. Our inaction will perpetuate a cycle that does not accurately teach history, but distorts it — at the expense of younger generations.

We must be honest with our history and with the culture of racism in this country. By moving these statues to museums, contextualizing their historical significance and owning up to the history of the Confederacy, we can start to better represent “our culture” for what it really was and currently is.

Bryce Campanelli ’18 can be reached at bryce_campanelli@brown.edu.

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