The Hoya: January 23, 2015

GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD SINCE 1920 thehoya.com

Georgetown University • Washington, D.C. Vol. 96, No. 28, © 2015

FRIDAY, JANUARY 23, 2015

AMRIKA CHALO

The production of a Pakistani satire aims to reconcile cultures.

COMMENTARY H*yas for Choice seeks to return to initial goals, aiming to inform.

GUIDE, B1

HOLIDAY CALENDAR The 2015-2016 calendar includes a two-day winter break extension.

COURT STORMING Hoya Blue president comments on students’ post-Villanova behavior.

NEWS, A5

OPINION, A3

SPORTS, B10

CISR Yet to Release Decision

Pollution Persists in Potomac River Margaret Heftler

which prevent runoff.

Sewage remains the largest pollution contribuAfter years of unchecked tor; there are around 40 sewage flowing into the Polocations where sewage tomac River, President Lyncould release a staggering don B. Johnson called the amount of bacteria and river “a national disgrace” waste during periods of in 1965. Although efforts rainfall. to clean up the river have Swimming in any of the improved the quality of rivers or streams in the the water, continued conDistrict is illegal. The sole cerns about its cleanliness exception to this law is the prompted conservationists nation’s Triathlon, though to add a little sparkle to even this event has been the muddy water. cancelled twice in recent The cleanliness of the years because of hazardPotomac has long been an ous levels of sewage in the issue, exacerbated by the water. doubled flow of the DisMaxwell Menard (SFS trict’s raw, partially treat’16), a member of the ed sewage into the river Georgetown crew team, between 1932 and 1956, described some of the according to the Interstate problems that he has enCommission on the Pocountered with the Potomac River Basin. tomac.

Potomac Conservancy “I don’t think we’ve President Hedrick Belin had any health issues described the state of the because of the Potomac, MICHELLE LUBERTO/THE HOYA Potomac in the 1960s.

50 years after President Johnson instigated efforts to clean up the but we do run into debris.

“If you came up the Po- polluted river, the Potomac remains tainted by the District’s sewage. … Garbage, a lot of big tomac toward Georgetown logs, also a deer carcass from the national airport, once, it’s a pretty steady in August, between Georgeamount of debris and gar[is that] there’s been a 40-year focus … of town and the Kennedy Center there’d be investing millions of dollars in updating bage,” Menard said. “We just take it as a solid green mat of algae that your boat sewer treatment plants,” Belin said. part of the river, we don’t really queswould have to go through,” Belin said.

Despite this progress, pollution re- tion it.”

Johnson’s 1965 proclamation catalyzed mains a major issue. A 2014 report Additionally, Belin explained that the an effort to conserve waterways nation- titled “State of the Nation’s River,” re- state of the river continues to have a unwide and culminated in the Clean Water leased by the Potomac Conservancy, natural effect on the river’s bass, causAct of 1972, which increased funding for expressed worry about continued con- ing more than 80 percent of the male the sewage system and marked a turning tributors to river pollution, includ- smallmouth bass to lay eggs. point in pollution prevention. ing aging sewage infrastructure and See POLLUTION, A6 “A large result of the Clean Water Act the disappearance of healthy forests,

Hoya Staff Writer

Jack Bennett Hoya Staff Writer

The Center for Investments and Social Responsibility has yet to release the results of their Jan. 16 vote on divestment, leading members of GU Fossil Free to release an open letter urging CISR to respond promptly.

CISR Chair James Feinerman released a statement on the day of the scheduled vote explaining that the committee required more time before making their final recommendation.

See DIVESTMENT, A6

ISABEL BINAMIRA/THE HOYA

GU Fossil Free led a sparsely attended rally before the Jan. 16 vote.

$5K Raised for Jesuit Golf Cart Lucy Prout

Hoya Staff Writer

COURTESY GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY

The Let Freedom Ring Celebration Choir performed at the eponymous event at the Kennedy Center, sponsored by the university.

MLK Day Ceremony Honors George Jones Emma Rizk

Hoya Staff Writer

Bread for the City Director George Jones received the 2015 John Thompson Jr., Legacy of a Dream Award at the annual Let Freedom Ring Celebration on Monday evening at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

The event featured performer Natalie Cole who was accompanied by the Let Freedom Ring Celebration Choir.

Jordan Blackwell (COL ’15), a student selected to open the event, spoke about his gratitude for Martin Luther King Jr. “Lord, if I could have just one prayer it would be thank you,” Blackwell said. “Thank you for the opportunity to celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Thank you for his courage to take the first step without seeing the whole staircase, which caused ripples of jus-

tice throughout the globe.”

Kennedy Center President Deborah F. Rutter and Target group Vice President Lydia Diaz spoke following Blackwell’s invocation. Both women spoke about the ways in which the Kennedy Center and Target are following in King’s legacy by their commitment to service.

Next the Let Freedom Ring choir, directed by Reverend Nolan Williams, performed an original composition titled “I Got a Right to Vote.” Williams, who has conducted the choir for 12 years, is commissioned by Georgetown University annually to write or arrange a composition that captures the meaning and purpose of the gathering. “[My composition] commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, but it also captures, I think, the spirit of civil unrest that we are experiencing

More than 500 Georgetown students rallied together to raise over $5,000 to purchase Fr. Richard Curry, S.J., a golf cart at a fundraiser dubbed “Golf Cart Throw Down” on Jan. 15 at Malmaison.

Three students in Curry’s “Theater and the Catholic Imagination” class planned the event and aim to raise $10,000 in order to buy the golf cart. They will continue fundraising and propositioning alumni for donations until they reach this goal.

Curry founded the Dog Tag Bakery, located off of Wisconsin, with the intent of giving veterans suffering from disabilities and unemployment a job and opportunity.

Having developed an ailment over winter break for which he is currently hospitalized, a street-legal golf cart would allow Curry to commute to the bakery. The cart will be used not only to transport Curry when he is released from the hospital, but will also deliver goods from the bakery to the Georgetown area to bolster the

DAN GANNON/THE HOYA

Students held a fundraiser to raise money for the purchase of a $10,000 golf cart for infirm Dog Tag Bakery founder Fr. Curry. bakery’s current delivery service.

The university will not provide a golf cart for Curry, but it currently owns a fleet of 40 E-Z-Go brand golf carts for local travel only, which cost from $3,000 to $5,000, less than half of the cost of a street-le-

gal golf cart.

The fundraiser featured drinks, dancing and DJ-ing from Jamie Sharp (COL ’15) and Sim Allan (MSB ’15). The event organizers See CURRY, A6

FEATURED News

Business & Technology

DOG TAG BAKERY The Georgetown addition provides veterans with business opportunities. A4

CORP LEADERSHIP Meet the newly elected team, and reflect with the outgoing leaders. A10

Opinion

EDITORIAL Obama’s community college plan represents a promising endeavor. A2

Guide

Sports

SENIOR DAY SPLASH The swimming and diving team competed in its last home meet of the year. B9

LUXURY SUMMIT GUWIL and GRLA have partnered for a New York City conference. B1

See CELEBRATION, A6

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A2

OPINION

THE HOYA

friday, January 23, 2015

THE VERDICT Founded January 14, 1920

EDITORIALS

Boost College Community Amid lofty rhetoric and a discussion of inequality in America, President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address Tuesday featured a bold education proposal — eliminating the cost of community college. Although Congress is unlikely to tackle such an initiative, it is one that should not exit the American consciousness as quickly as it has entered.

From 2000 to 2010, attendance rates at community college in America rose by 2.5 million students, reaching an enrollment of 8 million in 2011 according to the U.S. News & World Report. The rise has coincided with the understanding that, in an economy still struggling to regain its footing, non-traditional forms of higher education are crucial in expanding opportunity and growing our economy.

Expanding access to community college obviously comes at a cost. A similar plan has been put into place in the state of Tennessee, which has shown that, with the proper oversight, emphasis can be put on accessibility in addition to keeping costs low for taxpayers. President Obama’s ambitious proposal requires a sensible way to

make it a reality.

The proposal speaks to the needs of those Americans who may not have the resources or the time to invest in a four-year degree at schools across the country.

The reality of today is that some higher education is crucial for social mobility.

But with consistently rising college tuition rates, this proposal seeks to create an alternative path for those that need a different way to achieve their higher education goals.

Community colleges have done a wealth of good for so many across this nation.

They are able to give students access to classes in fields that require more specialized skills, such as computer science, engineering and the technology industry. As much as this nation is billed as a land of opportunity, if Americans are not able to acquire the necessary skills and training, the appellation is meaningless.

It is easy to look at this proposal through the eyes of a political cynic, but the mission of expanding access to higher education is nevertheless extremely important and should not be pushed aside so easily.

A Right to Discourse This Saturday, students from across the country will converge on Georgetown’s campus for the Cardinal O’Connor Conference on Life, the largest pro-life conference of its kind in the United States.

With a lineup that includes polarizing speakers such as Damon Clarke Owens and Mary Hasson, the conference has already been criticized by the pro-choice group H*yas for Choice.

Last year at the Cardinal O’Connor Conference, in a terrific display of expediency, Georgetown University Police Department officers confronted members of H*yas for Choice within just 18 minutes of their arrival in Healy Circle to protest the event.

The officers asked the group to relocate to either Red Square or outside the front gates on 37th Street.

H*yas for Choice chose the latter, affirming to the Georgetown community that the university’s existing free speech policy was lopsided at best, unfair at worst.

Since last January, many things have

changed. In November members of Hoyas United for Free Speech, a group founded last semester, presented a petition to Vice President for Student Affairs Todd Olson, advocating for changes to the long-standing Speech and Expression Policy. These included the extension of free speech zones to all areas of campus and the diversification of speakers invited to campus. The university responded with clarifications to existing guidelines on protesting and tabling.

Should members of H*yas for Choice or any other campus group choose to protest at the conference this weekend, the university should respect their rights as dictated by the updated Speech and Expression policy.

The Cardinal O’Connor Conference is an opportunity not only to showcase Georgetown University as a seat of Catholic activism but also as a university that prides itself on rigorous debate and freedom of expression.

If executed properly, Saturday’s conference will highlight both.

C C C C C C

Carolyn Maguire, Executive Editor Alexander Brown, Managing Editor Jess Kelham-Hohler, Online Editor Katherine Richardson, Campus News Editor Kshithij Shrinath, City News Editor Kara Avanceña, Sports Editor Hannah Kaufman, Guide Editor Jinwoo Chong, Opinion Editor Daniel Smith, Photography Editor Shannon Hou, Layout Editor Zack Saravay, Copy Chief Emily Min, Blog Editor Molly Simio, Multimedia Editor

Editorial Board

Jinwoo Chong, Chair

Madison Ashley, Kit Clemente, Francisco Collantes, Daniel Sandoval, Johnny Verhovek

Bombs Away — A cannonball was found within a chimney at a residence in Georgetown. Rumor has it that DeGioia has been testing the functionality of the Healy Lawn cannons.

Campus Standstill — Following a hearing Thursday, Virginia state senators remain undecided and unable to reach a concensus on a statewide approach to campus sexual assault, Drone Congress — Yesterday’s hearing of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology featured a demonstration of an unmanned drone in the Rayburn House Office Building, the hearing’s first automated witness.

Metro Overhaul — D.C. Metro is considering fare raises and reduced services a week after its first fatal accident in five years.

New Blood — Bowser announced the potential appointment of prominent LGBTQ activist Sheila Alexander-Reid and civil rights activist Terrance Lane to head the newly retitled Office of LGBT Affairs.

A LITTLE BIRDIE TOLD US ... @JoshZumbrun Jan. 19 Happy 95th Birthday to The Hoya -- America’s greatest newspaper (#2: WSJ, #3 Onion, #4 WaPo) @LaurenWeberHP

Jan. 19 Must be the #BEATNOVA signs from @thehoya @thehoyasports @ckormis

Jan. 21 Love the retro @Georgetown student newspaper @thehoya 95th anniversary masthead! @GeorgetownOCM Jan. 21 @thehoya although we’re really excited about @GUFrancisProjct and love to support it, credit for its parentage should go to Student Afffairs (sic) @marcahertz

Jan. 22 @GUVoiceSports @thehoyasports Hoyas demonstrate formula for success. Defense, Rebound get to rim on Offense. Rinse and repeat

To Serve Our Home Washington, D.C.-area universities are full of passionate students seeking to serve their communities in any way possible.

Unfortunately, the requirement that anyone serving on a District board or commission must be a legal resident of D.C. precludes students who could otherwise be valuable members of these committees from participating.

Recognizing this issue, Georgetown University Student Association Speaker Tyler Bridge (COL ’17) and Vice Speaker Abbey McNaughton (COL ’17) have proposed a treaty to remedy the situation, which has since been passed by GUSA senate. This treaty has been sent to other D.C. universities’ student organizations in an attempt to alter the requirements for service on the D.C. Boards and Commissions.

It seems counterintuitive that our local government would place such a restriction on an organization with the self-stated goal “to recruit the best people to serve the residents of Washington, D.C.,” when there

Muriel Wowser — D.C.’s new mayor, Muriel Bowser, has launched a $20,000,000 initiative called “Empower Males of Color,” aiming to help black and Latino students succeed in the District’s public schools.

are so many bright, talented people ready and willing to serve waiting at the District’s doorstep.

Although GUSA and Catholic University of America strongly support the proposal, the future of this is unclear at the moment because it has yet to move past the interest of student groups.

However, should the coalition of college students involved in this treaty be successful in reaching the D.C. Council, the D.C. Office of Boards and Commissions and the desk of Mayor Bowser herself, the results will affect students in D.C. for generations to come.

Our new mayor’s administration has yet to cement itself as an ally of college students in the area, but this could be a prime opportunity to do so.

For the moment, we should celebrate the efforts of Bridge, McNaughton and all those involved in this attempt to gain more opportunities for students in this city we are privileged to call our home — at least for eight months of the year.

This week on

[ CHATTER ]

Be sure to check Chatter, The Hoya’s online opinion section, throughout the week for additional opinion pieces.

DUY MAI (SFS ’18) comments on the potent issue of Islamophobia, not just in America, but the world: It seems no matter how hard the true, honest, and peace-loving Muslims condemn and denounce the actions of a few, it is not enough. While major Muslim leaders around the world have already voiced their objections and condemnation to the recent bloodsheds and senseless killings, they somehow carry no weight. The majority of Muslims are still seen by many as accomplices to the extremists​. ... ​In the face of evil, it is easy to disregard reasons, to succumb to xenophobia, and to generalize about things we have little knowledge or do not fully understand But as we speak, it is also heartwarming to know that things like #Illridewithyou exist.

“

My only hope is that my fellow Hoyas know better.”

WILLIAM FONSECA (COL ’16) reflects on his experience getting coffee with an old girlfriend:

When we met up that morning, she didn’t talk about her dating life and I didn’t talk about mine. We didn’t talk about ‘Cash Cab’ or my car either.

Instead we talked about books and movies and what we wanted to do with our lives, just like we did in 12th grade. I left the coffee shop thinking about how lovely she was, and how I wish we did that more often. She said the same thing, that we should do a better job of keeping in touch.​​At some point during the car ride home or after that it occurred to me that this was precisely what I was trying to avoid. I wanted to look back and laugh, but instead I found myself interested in the present. I didn’t want to keep in touch, I wanted the finality of that hour in the coffee shop.”

“

Find this and more at

thehoya.com/chatter

Mallika Sen, Editor-in-Chief

Brian Carden, General Manager

Toby Hung Deputy Campus News Editor Andrew Wallender Deputy Campus News Editor Kristen Fedor Deputy City News Editor Elizabeth Cavacos Deputy Sports Editor Tyler Park Deputy Sports Editor Andrew May Sports Blog Editor Michael Fiedorowicz Deputy Guide Editor Gianna Pisano Deputy Guide Edtior Daniel Almeida Deputy Opinion Editor Parth Shah Deputy Opinion Editor Sarah Kim Opinion Blog Editor Isabel Binamira Deputy Photography Editor Dan Gannon Deputy Photography Editor Julia Hennrikus Deputy Photography Editor Cleo Fan Deputy Layout Editor Elana Richmond Deputy Layout Editor Matthew Trunko Deputy Layout Editor Katherine Cienkus Deputy Copy Editor Becca Saltzman Deputy Copy Editor Gabi Hasson Deputy Copy Editor Reza Baghaee Deputy Multimedia Editor

Jason Yoffe, Director of Accounting Brenna Muldrow, Director of Corporate Development Genie Douglass, Director of Marketing Ellen Zamsky, Director of Human Resources Lena Duffield, Director of Sales Matthew De Silva, Director of Technology Laura Tonnessen Monika Patel Sean Choksi Kevin Wilson Joseph Scudiero Tessa Guiv Christine Cha Sarah Hannigan Gregory Saydah William Lowery Zoe Park

National Accounts Manager Local Accounts Manager Accounts Manager Treasury Manager Operations Manager Alumni Relations Manager Institutional Diversity Manager Organizational Development Manager Local Advertisements Manager National Advertisements Manager Web Manager

Contributing Editors & Consultants

Sam Abrams, Katy Berk, Zoe Bertrand, Kim Bussing, David Chardack, Nick DeLessio, Robert DePaolo, Ben Germano, TM Gibbons-Neff, Michal Grabias, Chris Grivas, Emma Hinchliffe, Emma Holland, Penny Hung, Nicole Jarvis, Sheena Karkal, Hanaa Khadraoui, Natasha Khan, Lindsay Lee, Charlie Lowe, Hunter Main, Jackie McCadden, Suzanne Monyak, KP Pielmeier, Eitan Sayag, Katherine Seder, Sharanya Sriram, Sean Sullivan, Natasha Thomson, Kevin Tian, Laura Wagner, Emory Wellman, Christina Wing, Michelle Xu, Janet Zhu

Board of Directors

Sheena Karkal, Chair

Brian Carden, David Chardack, Lindsay Lee, Mallika Sen, Zach Singer, Laura Wagner Letter to the Editor & Viewpoint Policies The Hoya welcomes letters and viewpoints from our readers and will print as many as possible. To be eligible for publication, letters should specifically address a recent campus issue or Hoya story.

Letters should not exceed 300 words.

Viewpoints are always welcome from all members of the Georgetown community on any topic, but priority will be given to relevant campus issues. Viewpoint submissions should be between 600-800 words.

Send all submissions to: opinion@thehoya.com.

Letters and viewpoints are due Sunday at 5 p.m. for Tuesday’s issue and Wednesday at 5 p.m. for Friday’s issue. The Hoya reserves the right to reject letters or viewpoints and edit for length, style, clarity and accuracy. The Hoya further reserves the right to write headlines and select illustrations to accompany letters and viewpoints.

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OPINION

friDAY, January 23, 2015

EIGHTEEN WEEKS

THE HOYA

A3

VIEWPOINT • Oni-Eseleh

Naming the Fire That Defines Me T

Kendall Ciesemier & Camille Squires

Trade FOMO for Patience L

et’s talk about Friday night, or rather, late Friday evening — right around 7:30 or 8 p.m. — when classes are over, Leo’s is closed and the true weekend is dawning.

It’s an awkward, transitional hour. For some, it is dedicated time for the nap before the inevitable rally. For the committed few, it is a time to get a head start on weekend homework. But for others — like the freshmen versions of ourselves — it was the most stressful time of the week.

For us, this was the time we spent sitting uncomfortably in our dorm rooms, wondering how the rest of the night was going to play out. It was a time of scanning Facebook for event invites and sending last-ditch-effort texts to friends saying “What are you up to tonight?” This is prime FOMO hour.

FOMO — “The Fear of Missing Out” — has been deemed the social ill plaguing our millennial generation. It is, at its root, the worry that somewhere, people are having loads of fun without you.

At best, it is the mild nagging feeling that you could be having more fun than you are currently having. At worst, it is the feeling that you are being excluded from social activity and are therefore inept, awkward or otherwise inadequate.

Perhaps not everyone’s FOMO took shape like ours — for the outgoing and determined underclassmen, the challenge of finding a party to crash is an easy and enjoyable one. But for some people, it is the crushing disappointment of being rejected from a coveted club and the knowledge that they have been passed over for the chance to have a ready-made group of friends to stabilize their social life. No matter the exact circumstances, each one of us has felt the sting of loneliness and disappointment at one point or another during our time on the Hilltop.

In retrospect, we realize from our own personal experiences that the thing we were craving on those desperate weekend nights was not warm beer or loud, bass-heavy music, but friendship. The appeal of any social gathering was the ability to meet interesting people and cultivate new friendships. And it seemed, at first, that every weekend spent alone in our rooms watching Netflix instead of out at a party was a missed opportunity to make those friendships. FOMO made it seem that every weekend was a chance to make a crazy memory and that every failure to seize that opportunity was one less chance at a fulfilling social life.

But this is the lie of the FOMO. Our anxiety convinces us to put too much importance on the short term, the immediate present. It says to us: If I don’t go out this weekend, I’m a loser. If I don’t get into this club this semester, I won’t have any friends. If I don’t act now, my time here will mean nothing.

But let us repeat: This is a fallacy. Experience has shown us that friendship is certainly all about the long game. When we each reflect on our friendships, we find clear and convincing proof that the most meaningful and worthwhile friendships are grown over time, in a number of settings — on the dance floor on a Friday night, but also in Leo’s on a Wednesday afternoon and in a random exchange on a study night in Lau. The human connection that we all seek is available to us in so many ways, especially during college. But the connection does not flourish unless we work at relationships — and this takes time.

Framing friendship in this long-term view also leaves us open to the possibility of forming new relationships at any point in our college careers. Between the two of us, we can cite plenty of new, strong friendships that came about in the fall of our senior year. When we refuse the temptation to firmly define our social circles by the clubs we join or the freshman floor we lived on, we open ourselves up to so many more opportunities and experiences. You may not realize until senior spring at Tombs that the buttoned-up kid from your freshman seminar has sick dance skills.

You may not learn until a capstone class that the snobby girl from your freshman floor is actually very thoughtful.

But perhaps the greatest gift of rejecting FOMO in favor of the long-game is the intense pressure we take off of ourselves. This attitude shift dispels the pressure to collect acquaintances like trading cards just to prove that we have a social life. It gives us the grace we need to realize that we are not inadequate if we are not accepted into a club, or do not know what parties are happening on a given weekend. It reassures us that as long as we make a reasonable effort, friendship, and its bounties, will all come in time.

Kendall Ciesemier and Camille Squires are seniors in the College. Eighteen Weeks appears every other Friday.

he first time I ever had to speak as the voice of my entire race, I was four. It was during a kindergarten lesson about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Lucas, a fellow classmate and fashion victim of the classic ’90s DIY mushroom cut, however, was not down for the cause.

“I’m glad that Martin Luther King is dead,” Lucas said.

“You don’t want to drink from the same fountain as me?” I said.

I couldn’t even spell my name, let alone define the word “racism”.

However, there it was, clear as the plastic on my glitter sandals.

“I just think white people are better than brown people,” he said.

The events that transpired following this statement can best be described as the kindergarten version of an uprising.

The reason why I share this story is because 16 years later, on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, I’d like to issue a formal letter of gratitude to Lucas.

Lucas, thank you for being the first of many, many people to inform me that I am “less than.”

Before that fateful day in our kindergarten class, I had four years of blissful ignorance.

Since then, my life has been a cocktail of “-isms” and phobias: two gallons of racism on the basis of my melanin content, three cups of sexism because of my pair of X chromosomes, one pint of xenophobia for my thickly accented parents, two tablespoons of tokenism so I could represent the “diversity” of my schools and a sprinkle of colorism for not being the racially ambiguous, loose curls, “lightly seasoned” black seen in all the motion pictures.

I am grateful because he ignited a fire in me that has been burning ever since. Somewhere in between our teacher trying to defend you by saying, “everyone’s entitled to their

I am grateful for the first person who ever made me feel oppressed. own opinion,” and me rebutting, “unless it’s stupid,” and definitely before I evoked the names of my ancestors the way I had seen my parents do when they get mad, it was ignited.

This fire burned later that day when the teacher spoke to me pri-

vately and explained, “he doesn’t know any better.” This fire burned throughout grade school when I was characterized as “smart, for a black girl.” It dimmed the day I allowed my classmates to call me “Blackie,” “Oreo,” and, “not real black” because I was afraid of being

THE CENTURY CAP

perceived as an angry black woman.

So instead, I became submissive. Sometimes there were strong winds, and on those days the fire was only an ember. On those days, I wanted to bleach my skin just as my aunts had. I wanted to change my name so it would sound less foreign. I wanted privilege.

Lucas, while I don’t know who you became (though part of me likes to think of you as president of the College Republicans at some “liberal” school down South) I think of you often, usually in my prayers. And though I used to hate you, I now pity you.

Barney the Dinosaur, my childhood hero, always said, “Sharing is caring.” The people who cared for Lucas must not have cared for him. Same with the people who made excuses for him, the people who insisted that he didn’t know any better and in the process made themselves no better.

Every time I talk about the black experience in the presence of my clearly uncomfortable white friends, I am caring, and in writing this piece, I am caring.

I am grateful for the first person who ever made me feel oppressed.

I am also aware that this is an uncommon stance to take.

However, given the historical context of this country we share, it was an inevitable occurrence. If not Lucas, it would have been someone else, somewhere else, at some other time. I am grateful for my complete lack of inhibitions that allowed me to side-eye a fellow classmate. I am grateful for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a man whose dream I hope will one day come to full fruition.

And lastly, I am grateful for fires that burn bright.

Alexis Oni-Eseleh is a junior in the College and a staff writer for The Fourth Edition.

VIEWPOINT • Grace & DeLaurentis

The Dubious Ethics An Affirmation of Of Self-Driving Cars Our Right to Kn*w

G

olden rays of sunshine kill the child, or to swerve right stream through the moun- into the tunnel’s wall and kill taintops, illuminating the yourself. This question is known rugged contours of the ocher- in ethics as the Tunnel Problem, hued landscape. Past the curves and in this context, the driver of the road and peeking between would rely on her gut moral code trees lies a glimpse of frothy to make a split-second decision. waves lapping against a pristine However, what would happen in sandbar. Paradise, also known as an autonomous car? Can we trust the Pacific Coast Highway, spans a computing system to make the the gorgeous coastline of Califor- right ethical decision, if there is nia and beckons me to visit. As a even a right choice in the first Jersey girl, scenic highways and place? reasonable climates are not part Ever since Google announced of my life; perhaps this is why Cal- its goal to develop a driverless car ifornia seems so attractive. in 2010, there has been immense According to Google Maps, coverage of the engineers who it takes 1.875 days of driving to have masterminded this revolutravel from New Jersey to Cali- tionary technology. The value of fornia. This route cuts across 11 computer science has exponendifferent states. Though I may be tially increased since society has crazy for considering a road trip realized what programming is to the other side of the country, I capable of accomplishing. have technology on However, there my side. Thanks to has not been an Google’s driverless autonomous car car, I could reach developer that has the golden state discussed the ethwithin 45 hours of ics involved with nonstop driving. such vehicles. This Most of the is where science country has never has failed us; sciNikita Deshpande seen a driverless ence can tell us car prototype how to build astonchugging through ishingly complex local streets, but and intelligent California, Nevada, systems, but it Florida and Michidoes not tell us the gan residents regusocial and ethical larly see Google’s implications of our iconic Lexus model making creations. rounds throughout the area.

According to a Patrick Lin, a proWith Google’s plan to release fessor at California Polytechnic, indriverless cars by 2017, however, dustry representatives are shocked it is time for all states to prepare to hear that self-driving car develto see these vehicles on their opment requires ethical considerstreets. ations. When Time tried to contact This technology will usher in different automobile agencies for an age of safer streets. With au- their opinion on this issue, BMW, tomobile accidents responsible Audi and Ford refused to comment. for 1.24 million deaths per year, Car companies are not programand 90 percent of those accidents ming their cars with an ethics code caused by human error, technol- — which means that if nothing is ogy’s ability to reduce these hor- done to convince them otherwise, rific statistics would be extraor- the first decade following the redinary. Driverless cars will also lease of self-driving cars could be minimize traffic jams, increase marked by ethical controversy over fuel efficiency and let commuters certain kinds of accidents. regain time lost travelling.

We need to start having this conThe basic concept of a driver- versation now, rather than wait less car is that machinery mimics until years after serious concerns human drivers with robotic pre- arise. Programmers, ethicists, encision so less error occurs. How- gineers, and legislators must deever, to truly emulate the human termine how to give these vehicles mind, the machinery would seem an ethical system. This process will to need a conscience, an issue that require maturity and foresight, raises some concerns. but it is crucial to address these Driving sometimes requires concerns before self-driving cars ethical decision-making. If a pi- are released. I fervently hope these geon lands on the road, you will issues are properly addressed so not stop driving since you know we have complete confidence in the bird can fly away. Now imag- the product and the new era into ine entering a tunnel when a which we are heading. child suddenly runs into the road and trips. You don’t have enough Nikita Deshpande is a freshman time to brake and avoid a crash. in the College. The Century Cap You have the option to hit and appears every other Friday.

Can computers approximate human ethics?

A

sk any Georgetown student what they know about H*yas for Choice and they are bound to reference what seems like a perpetual conflict with the university administration. Given the recent and historical tension between the two bodies, this answer is understandable.

However, it is only part of the story. While H*yas for Choice is more than willing to oppose unfair speech and expression policies, we have decided that it is time to remind the general public what our driving force has been all along — providing a necessary service to the Georgetown community.

H*yas for Choice’s core mission has never been to argue with administrators. Rather, we seek to fill the gaps left in sexual health resources by a university administration that puts dogma over pragmatic, common sense policy. The stickers plastered all over campus this week and the corresponding pamphlet represent a return to the core of HFC’s mission: improving our campus by providing services and information to the student body.

Throughout last semester alone, H*yas for Choice distributed over 10,000 free condoms to the student body. This allowed members of the university community to have safe sex and did more to reduce the spread of STIs and the number of unwanted pregnancies than any recent university program.

However, we do recognize that solely providing access to contraception is not enough. Students need information to successfully utilize these resources. In an effort to provide this information, H*yas for Choice members worked diligently last semester to create a comprehensive, sexual health resources pamphlet.

Just like the “Kn*w your Options” tagline implies, HFC’s pamphlet does not seek to encourage students to make particular sexual and reproductive decisions.

Instead, it aims to empower students to make informed choices.

By informing students of their full range of options, including those not provided through Student Health Services, this pamphlet enables Georgetown students to remain in control of their sexual health.

H*yas for Choice recognizes that much of Georgetown’s sexual health policy is heavily influenced by current Vatican doctrine. However, we believe that Georgetown still has an obligation to provide information to its increasingly di-

verse student body.

In using its Catholic identity to justify its refusal to provide medical information, Georgetown comes dangerously close to assuming that all students, by virtue of their enrollment at this university, strictly follow Catholic teachings. This is a complete departure from our university’s mission of cultivating a pluralistic community.

Maintaining a supportive environment on campus is an important first step for students to feel comfortable speaking honestly about their sexual and reproductive health. If Georgetown purports to care for the whole person, then university policy must support the sexual wellbeing of its students.

Our friends and classmates have expressed their discomfort in speaking with their doctors at Georgetown’s Student Health Center. Some students have even felt compelled to lie about cramps, heavy acne and sexual history in order to receive birth control prescriptions from the Student Health Center. Not only does this constitute an ethical failure by the university, it also lays the groundwork for a campus health crisis.

By refusing to provide students with a full range of options, university administrations remove agency from students and deny them the ability to make informed decisions about their sexual health options. While ignoring sexual health is dangerous in any college environment, it is especially frightening given that Georgetown is located in Washington, D.C., a city with one of the highest HIV/AIDS rates in the nation.

What makes Georgetown remarkable is its community of unique people with diverse understandings of all things — including sexual and reproductive health. H*yas for Choice calls on the university to create an environment that aligns with this reality.

Hoyas deserve — and should demand — a Georgetown that provides them with adequate medical infrastructure and access to accurate, comprehensive information.

Every Hoya has a right to kn*w his or her options.

A new H*yas for Choice pamphlet seeks to inform.

Abby Grace is a junior in the School of Foreign Service and President of H*yas for Choice. Vincent DeLaurentis is a sophomore in the School of Foreign Service and Vice President of H*yas for Choice.

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THE HOYA

PAGE FOUR

NEWS

FRIDAY, JANUARY 23, 2015

INSIDE THIS ISSUE Congressman Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) discussed his first two weeks in Congress on Wednesday. See story on A8.

Your news — from every corner of The Hoya.

IN FOCUS

POLITICS JUNKIES

verbatim

“

Obviously, the university is not going to tell you about contraception.”

Abby Grace (SFS ’16) on H*yas for Choice’s new informative stickers.

See story on A7.

from

AFFORDABLEPSYCHICREADINGS

DANIEL SMITH/THE HOYA

Students gathered in Sellinger Lounge Tuesday to watch President Barack Obama’s second-to-last State of the Union address. The watch party was organized by the Georgetown University College Democrats.

DMFO or Dating?

4E gives love advice to a confused freshman.

Read on to learn about the pitfalls of Facebook relationships and college shenanigans. blog.thehoya.com

Dog Tag Bakery Supports Veterans LUCY PASH

Hoya Staff Writer

COURTESY L. COLLIER HYAMS

Professor L. Collier Hyams’ graphic design students submitted their artwork to a competition, and the winning car, designed by Tori Hideshima (COL ’15), is featured at the Washington Auto Show.

Student Wins Design Contest ANDREW WALLENDER Hoya Staff Writer

Tori Hideshima (COL ’15) did not know much about graphic design until this fall. But after only a semester in Professor L. Collier Hyams’ Intro to Graphic Design class, her artwork will be featured in a Mazda display at the Washington Auto Show, which opens today.

“You’ll walk in and you’ll look down and you’ll see all these cars, and I expect that Tori’s car is going to scream off the floor because it’s so wild and bright,” Hyams said.

The car art Hideshima designed was part of a competition within Hyams’ class and sponsored by Mazda that challenged the Intro to Graphic Design students to create concept art for a five-door Mazda 3. The only requirement was to in some way celebrate the opening of the company’s new auto factory in Salamanca, Mexico.

One hundred designs, five from each student in the class, were submitted with themes drawing inspiration from the Aztecs, Mexican fabric patterns, Day of the Dead and textile art. Hideshima’s winning design was a mesh between modern art and Aztec art.

“It’s beautiful,” Mazda spokeswoman Tamara Mlynarczyk said of Hideshima’s design. “It’s very vibrant and the colors are just very celebratory of the enthusiasm of the people who are now working in that plant.”

Hyams’ class spent weeks working on researching Mexican culture and coming up with drafts designs.

The final designs were submitted mid-December and the winners were announced in early January.

Mazda’s director of design narrowed the 100 options down to a field of 10, from which employees chose the top three winning designs.

Holly DiClemente (COL ’15) won second place with a design inspired by floral textiles and Olivia Huppman (COL ’15) received third place for her design featuring elements from Day of the Dead.

“We spent a lot of time on this project,” Hideshima said. “We went through looking at a lot of styles and artwork and we did a research project looking at different art cars because BMW has a lot of really famous artists who do art cars every year.”

Hyams’ class has produced a number of design projects including an 18-car series of student art sponsored by BMW and the contest that produced the artwork for the new Georgetown University Transportation Shuttle bus fleet. Although the class has only been in existence for about two years, students have produced hundreds of potential designs for real-life projects, opening the opportunity for future graphic design jobs. Olivia Duff (COL ’16), the artist whose winning art now adorns the exterior of the new GUTS buses, recently received a design job as a result of her artwork, according to Hyams.

Hyams said that the idea for his project-based graphic design course originated with his own experience in college in which he could never take classes that provided applicable experience for the real world.

“I build classes that are basically reflective of the classes I would have wanted to take when I was in school,” Hyams said. “In most cases the schools I went to didn’t have anything that nearly related to the stuff I was interested in.”

Once Hideshima’s car finishes its debut at the auto show, it may make some other stops around the District before the vinyl wrap with the artwork is eventually removed and the car is sold to a dealership.

Until then the car will be dis-

played at the Washington Auto Show, which runs from today until Feb. 1 and will feature a student day on Monday during which tickets will be discounted to $7 for students.

Hyams said that he has another car project in the works along with a project that will task students with creating designs for phones.

Tamara Mlynarczyk, the spokeswoman for Mazda, said that the company was happy with the partnership with Hyams’ class and hopes for another project in the future.

“I hope that we maybe get to do this again and pick a different theme,” Mlynarczyk said. “It was really interesting getting to see what the different students came up with.

And I didn’t even see all of the art.

We just had it whittled down to the top ten. But they were all so creative.

It will be interesting to see where the students end up.”

Ultimately, Hyams said that he hopes to facilitate student excitement about art and expose student’s to careers in graphic design.

“We’re in a period of time where students that are interested in art are scared of art because they think they can’t make any contribution to their future career,” Hyams said.

“I mean that’s true in certain cases, but I think we’ve been able to redirect that idea a little bit. It certainly makes us proud.”

Hideshima is a perfect example of how Hyams sees students applying the skills they learn in his class to their future careers. She said she plans on taking her new-found graphic design skills to the business world.

In the meantime Hideshima is enjoying the surprise and excitement of being featured at the Washington Auto Show and plans on taking her family to see her car art in person.

“It was really a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” Hideshima said.

The new storefront Dog Tag Bakery, which opened on Grace Street in December, supports veterans’ reintegration to civilian life through a work-study program in partnership with Georgetown University. It offers veterans the chance to practice business skills and take courses in pursuit of a certificate in business administration from the university.

Founded by Director of the Georgetown Academy for Veterans Fr. Richard Curry, S.J. and local business owner Connie Milstein, the bakery is a non-profit organization focused on helping veterans. The opening in December was the culmination of an idea eight years in the making.

Dog Tag’s director of public relations and media for the bakery RaeAnn Pickett, said both Curry, who trained as a baker with the Jesuits, and Milstein share a love of baking and a conviction that no veteran who wants to work and pursue his or her career goals should be unemployed.

“The two things that both of our cofounders bring to the table really are what make Dog Tag such a unique place,” Pickett said.

The bakery offers workers a certificate program in business administration through the Georgetown Center for Continuing and Professional Education in the School of Continuing Studies. Its storefront includes a bakery, a kitchen and classroom space for workers to take classes.

“The bakery itself is a training ground for small business and entrepreneurship.

We provide a great education through Georgetown and a great job opportunity through business, which is the bakery,” Chief Operating Officer Megan Ogilvie said.

The business administration curriculum, customized to the bakery and its employees, consists of nine courses, including accounting, management, communication, corporate finance, marketing, business policy and entrepreneurship. Employees must complete all requirements in order to receive a certificate, learning all aspects of a small business, such as business and staff management, product creation, customer service, marketing and operations.

Pickett emphasized the work-study focus of Dog Tag Bakery and its benefits for veterans and families.

“They go to lectures and take regular course loads as any student of the School of Continuing Studies would, but they’re also going to the bakery and learning how to bake and run a business,” Pickett said.

ISABEL BINAMIRA/THE HOYA

Dog Tag Bakery helps veterans earn a certificate in Business Administration.

The current bakery staff consists of 18 people, and the current non-profit staff consists of four people. The first set of workers entered the program June 2014 and received their certificates in a ceremony at McGhee Library on Nov. 20. Dog Tag will take in its next set of members this coming spring.

“We have a mix of veteran, military civilians, and regular civilians as employees, but everyone in the program is either a veteran with a disability or the spouse of a veteran with a disability,” General Manager Justin Ford, an Army veteran of Iraq and Kosovo, said.

The proceeds from the bakery are reinvested in the education program in order to reach out to as many veterans as possible. Additionally, customers can add their own dog tag to the bakery in order to reach out to as many veterans as possible.

The bakery itself has a wide variety of goods on its menu, including breakfast pastries, breads, soups, salads, sandwiches, quiches, desserts, snacks and beverages.

Ford also said that the bakery’s business has been doing very well.

“Sales have gone up each month; there’s been a steady increase since day 1,” Ford said.

Alex Patti (COL ’18) said she is looking forward to visiting the bakery soon.

“I’ve heard about the mission behind the bakery, and I’m definitely going to check it out, especially because the food is supposed to be great. Maybe it will become my new study spot,” Patti said.

A5

FRIday, JanuaRY 23, 2015

news

MHIC Celebrates 5th Anniversary

Professor Creates PTSD Pilot

Toby Hung

Hoya Staff Writer

The Minority Health Initiative Council, a student-led group in the School of Nursing and Health Studies dedicated to minority students pursuing studies in health and minority health issues, celebrated its fifth anniversary last week.

In celebration of the anniversary, the council will be hosting a lecture series titled “Leaders in Health Disparities,” featuring leaders who work to solve minority health issues and eliminate inequalities. The series began in mid-January and will conclude in April, which is Minority Health Month.

The speakers, who were chosen by the council, will include Amerihealth D.C. Market President Karen Dale, Georgetown University National Center for Cultural Competence Director Tamara Goode, AmeriCorps Vista Director Paul Monteiro and Center of Excellence Programs National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities Program Director Derrick Tabor.

NHS Assistant Dean and MHIC Advisor Brian Floyd said that the speaker series will address issues related to health disparities in various fields.

“The goal of the speaker series is to provide our students in our various majors with the opportunity to gain fundamental knowledge of the social, political, educational, economic and biologic determinants of health disparities across numerous populations and then provide them with key tools for what they as future leaders working in various health fields can do to address some of these important issues,” Floyd said.

The MHIC has provided resources and support for an increasing number of minority health students since it was founded in 2010.

“MHIC has grown so much in the past five years,” MHIC Co-Chair Aspen McCoy (NHS ’15) said. “After all, MHIC started off as just a gathering of male NHS students of minority backgrounds simply discussing some of their issues with inequities in the health field and in Washington, D.C. [Today,] the MHIC provides a platform for NHS students of minority backgrounds to not only discuss these issues amongst themselves but to discuss these issues with the NHS community and greater D.C. Metropolitan area in general.”

In addition to serving current and prospective minority students in the NHS, the MHIC also partners with other organizations on campus and in D.C. to discuss and publicize issues related to minority health.

“During the academic year, they have also partnered with local campus and community organizations to design and implement initiatives raising awareness and funds for key issues that disproportionately affect minority communities,” Floyd said.

In 2013, the MHIC started “Mission Nutrition: Good Nutrition is Our Mission,” a

program that educates adolescents about healthier lifestyles by providing nutrition courses in local public schools.

MHIC member Beemnet Neway (NHS ’16) said that participating in Mission Nutrition was one of the council’s highlights from the past few years.

“Last year I was part of the pilot program which was an after-school program which was designed to teach some of the public school students about nutrition, so I think that its mission is preaching to the community to have discussions on health disparity issues within the minority health community and really helping us to become more aware,” Neway said.

MHIC Co-Chair Khadijah Davis (NHS ’15) said that she was proud of the concepts that MHIC’s initiatives have helped to promote.

“I am proud of the work the council has done and will continue to do to put concepts like equity, pluralism, diversity and cultural competency on the radar of our peers pursuing careers in healthcare,” Davis said.

In light of its fifth anniversary, the MHIC leadership is planning to further expand their initiatives in both the university and the D.C. area.

“In the future, it is my hope that the MHIC will develop a mentorship program for NHS underclassmen, particularly those from disadvantaged or minority backgrounds,” McCoy said. “From my personal experiences and those of some of my classmates who fit this description, it has been expressed that adjusting to the NHS curriculum was not one of their easiest feats to deal with. Therefore, a mentorship of this nature will provide not only guidance but also even tutoring to minority students from minority students.”

Neway said that she would like to see MHIC include students outside of the NHS who are interested in health disparity issues.

“I hope that [we] can get some nonNHS students [to] take part in the council,” Neway said. “It would be cool to see it expand to other parts of Georgetown, whether it’s Georgetown College, [the School of Foreign Service] or [the McDonough School of Business], health disparity is an issue that requires all types of backgrounds and not just health ones directly. I think that it would be really cool to see that collaboration come onto the council.”

Floyd agreed that the experiential learning MHIC provides would benefit all students who are interested in health disparity.

“Research has shown that millennial learners, in particular, report a need to understand how learning will link to their real lives,” Floyd said. “So with such important issues as health disparities and health equity, I cannot think of a better way than this for students to apply what they are learning in the classroom [into] making a difference in someone else’s life.”

2015-16 Schedule Altered Matthew Larson

ple,” Pierce said. “What appears to be a change is simply following the standard formula for calendars.”

Georgetown students will enjoy an The Registrar’s Office plans each calextra two days of rest during the next endar two years ahead so that students, academic year because of a scheduling faculty and staff may have them as earphenomenon that occurs once every ly as possible. Pierce said that while no seven years. major changes are occurring the next The 2015 winter break will last a to- academic year or the year after, there tal of 21 days, up from the 19-day break have been talks in the past of changing that students received following the the template slightly. fall 2014 semester. The number of days “There was a discussion about startin the spring semester, however, will re- ing school after Labor Day instead of main unchanged. before Labor Day,” Pierce said.

The fall 2015 semester will begin The last major change to the temSept. 2 and conclude Dec. 22 and the plate occurred ten years ago when the spring 2016 semester will commence decision was made to move graduation Jan. 13 and end May 9. from Memorial Day weekend to the Classes at Georgetown are required by weekend before it. the Registrar Office’s pol“For a variety of reaicy to begin the Wednessons, people thought that day before Labor Day and [graduation] should be conclude the week prior the weekend before Meto Commencement Weekmorial Day,” Pierce said. end, which ends the week “That required redoing before Memorial Day. But the start of the spring [seunlike 2014 when Labor mester].”

Day fell on Sept. 1, the Students appear happy earliest possible day, it with the calendar shift falls on Sept. 7 during the next year, but many said next academic year, the they still want to see lonlatest possible day. ger breaks.

University Registrar “I would love to have John Q. Pierce said that a longer winter break or this shortening of the fall melissa lou martin a longer Thanksgiving,” (COL ’16) Brittany Logan (MSB ’18) semester has precedent.

When planning the acasaid. “My friends at home demic calendar, he looks back over the have more time off.” past 25 years to see which of the years This academic year, Georgetown had most closely align to the upcoming a shorter winter break, at 19 days, than year. Using the old calendar as a start- many of its peer institutions such as ing point, Pierce designs the new calen- Yale University (20 days), Boston Coldar, scheduling for three-day weekends, lege (21 days), Stanford University (23 an add/drop period and holidays while days) and the University of California, attempting to keep the number of class Berkley (24 days). days per semester constant.

Melissa Lou Martin (COL ’16) said that “The draft is constructed based on the two extra days over winter break the previous-like years when the dates will help students relax more after a for Memorial Day and Labor Day were stressful examination period. the same as in the year that we’re try“I think there needs to be a healthy ing to plan for,” Pierce said. “We apply middle ground,” Martin said. “My the same template for the new year.” break in high school was way too short, Pierce said that although the sched- but some of my friends at state schools ule looks significantly altered, it fol- have way too long of a break. I would lows specific protocol that keep the go crazy. I think the registrar is on number of in-class days constant. the right track -- we need to have the “[Our] starting point is attempting to chance to decompress and get a break maintain continuity from year to year from Georgetown without it being too so that there are no surprises for peo- long.”

Hoya Staff Writer

“We need to have the chance to decompress and get a break from Georgetown.”

Maddy Moore

The Hoya Staff Writer

Georgetown University Associate Professor Jennifer Woolard will work on a three-year pilot program titled Project Cohort, which was created in a partnership between Project Rebirth, Georgetown University, Outward Bound for Veterans and Sierra Club Military Outdoors.

The program, which aims to provide veterans with mental healthcare, will launch by the summer of 2015.

Woolard, a professor in Georgetown’s Psychology Department, joined Project Rebirth’s organization after attending a screening of the trailer for the film “Project Rebirth,” which was produced by Georgetown alumnus Jim Whitaker (CAS ’90), who also started the eponymous organization. The documentary explores how the nation recovered after the events of Sept. 11, 2001.

“The Project Rebirth organization was interested in thinking about how the film and related projects could be used to promote resilience for first responders, veterans, and other communities experiencing trauma and disaster. I’m trained as a community psychologist and the idea intrigued me, so I began talking with folks. This began about eight years ago,” Woolard wrote in an email to The Hoya.

The pilot program aims to provide veterans with alternative treatment options. Groups will spend time in the outdoors with peers and engage in experiential learning through evidencebased therapies. The program hopes to be the first treatment option for veterans when they return home.

“Project Cohort will produce measurable outcomes regarding the success of our participating veterans in entering and sticking with a mental health care program,” Woolard wrote.

“The Project Cohort model is easily replicated and very adaptable and will be shared with [veterans] around the country.”

Although there are currently options for veterans to enter community support groups and job training programs, there is a shortage of options to ensure

THE HOYA

that veterans are psychologically and emotionally healthy, according to Woolard.

Professor Woolard has done extensive research on post-traumatic shock disorder and the impact of group therapy, and she hopes that Project Cohort will provide a needed change to current group therapy methods.

“Veteran Associations around the country use the group therapy model for veterans in need of care -- the Project Cohort program will make the existing model work better for veterans by changing those groups from a collection of strangers into a supportive, emotionally bonded unit of soldiers who have a real commitment to helping each other face life’s challenges,” Woolard wrote.

Project Cohort will be receiving support from several organizations and partners on Georgetown’s campus. Currently, University President John J. DeGioia is a member of the Project Rebirth Board and the Georgetown University Veterans’ Office, and he is eager to work with Professor Woolard’s team.

“The key is figuring is how you combine the strengths of these individual groups with the resources of the national organizations like Department of Veteran Affairs and Georgetown university,” Georgetown Veterans Office Coordinator David Shearman said. “The key is figuring is how you combine the strengths of these. If it can come together, you are going to see really great things start to happen and find new solutions to existing problems. I think it’s very exciting because it’s new and it is being run really well.”

Shearman said that the study was an especially appropriate undertaking for Georgetown since St. Ignatius, the founder of the Jesuits, was himself a wounded veteran.

“It was when [Ignatius] was convalescing and recovering, he found the Society of Jesus,” Shearman said. “Just think about his path and his progression in relation to Georgetown University through Project Cohort and the veterans on campus. I think there are some really strong connections to be made with our identity as a Je-

COURTESY JENNIFER WOOLARD

Professor Jennifer Woolard willl head up Project Cohort.

suit university and what we are doing day to day to help student veterans.”

Student veteran Jimmy Sutton (COL ’15), who served for seven years in the U.S. Army, said that he believes the program will have a strong effect on suffering veterans.

“I think that Project Cohort will prove to be very insightful for those studying PTSD and it very closely fits with the Georgetown value of cura personalis,” Sutton wrote in an email to The Hoya. “I am glad that Professor Woolard is taking a different approach in studying issues like PTSD [which] are very complex; its effects range from person to person. Sometimes providers only view PTSD as a mental health illness rather than a deficit of social interaction but the effects can look similar.”

Sutton said that he appreciates the new angle Woolard is taking on the study of PTSD, and he thinks it may lead to new breakthroughs.

“While serving in the Army for seven years, I created some very close relationships and was accustomed to a very strong camaraderie. Since separating from active duty, that same sense of community has been difficult to replicate,” Sutton said. “Studying the effects of social support systems may demystify PTSD, decrease the negative stigma associated with it and lead to better treatment.”

State of the Union Addresses Community College, Student Loans Margaret Heftler Hoya Staff Writer

President Barack Obama discussed his recently revealed plan to guarantee two free years of community college for all qualifying students along with new methods of student loan relief during the State of the Union address Tuesday night. “[Middle class economics] is preparing working Americans to work for higher wages.” White House Deputy Press Secretary Jennifer Friedman said Wednesday in a conference call with college media outlets. “Some of the proposals … that the president has been rolling out [are] making two years of community college free for responsible students, making student loans more affordable, partnering with businesses to talk about onthe-job training and apprenticeship opportunities.”

The primary proposal from the president to provide college tuition relief involved simplifying the tax code. White House Domestic Policy Director Cecilia Muñoz explained that the current system of college tax incentives was complex, preventing families from fully taking advantage of the system.

“There is a whole host of different ways to pay for college and different ways to get federal support in paying for college.

And it ends up being bewildering and complex. … So the president is proposing to consolidate these systems,” Muñoz said. “The idea is to make sure that our system works and is accessible.”

According to Muñoz, the Government Accountability Office found that 27 percent of families who claimed a tax credit should have claimed a different one, while another 14 percent did not claim a benefit despite being eligible. The White House estimates that the plan would cut taxes for around 8.5 million students and provide up to $2,500 of assistance yearly.

Obama also announced his community college program, which would provide tuitionfree classes to students who can maintain a 2.5 grade point average and are either making progress towards a technical degree

or working towards transferring to a four-year institution.

Muñoz explained that the plan would improve the United States work force, citing that two-thirds of job openings require technical skills and postsecondary education experience.

“The proposal to make community college free for every responsible student is really based on the notion that, 100 years ago, when we made high school free and universal, it created the best-educated workforce in the world here in the United States and that related to how we led the world economically in the 20th century.” Muñoz said.

McCourt School of Public Policy Professor E.J. Dionne applauded the plan in his biweekly column for The Washington Post, praising community colleges as “central to restoring social and

“The idea is to make sure our system works and is accessible.”

CECILIA MUNOZ White House Domestic Policy Director

economic mobility,” referencing research by MSPP Professor of public policy Harry Holzer that pointed to the need for a college degree to gain a competitive wage.

However, Holzer was more critical of the plan. While he liked the minimum GPA requirement and the emphasis on either further education or employment, he questioned whether the monetary resources could be better used to support students.

“Most of the money will not go to the most needy people who already have Pell grants,” Holzer said. “Most of the money will go to middle class people who could maybe afford this expenditure already.”

He also worried that it would affect the educational outcomes of students wo would potentially choose to attend community colleges first instead of four-year

colleges, noting a discrepancy between four-year and community college education.

“I worry that if community college is free and four year schools are not free… people who could go to good four-year schools will now start at community college and they won’t do as well,” Holzer said. “They won’t get the same level of guidance, the same level of instruction, so it could end up hurting educational outcomes for the people it’s trying to help.”

Muñoz disagreed, claiming that more students would have the opportunity to receive a four-year degree through the program.

“In order to qualify for free tuition, you have to show that you’re in a program to transfer to a four-year institution or an occupational program with a really good track record,” Muñoz said. “We think more people will be getting credits toward a four-year degree and then more people will be getting a four-year degree.”

Holzer noted that the program will likely have a marginal impact on private universities like Georgetown, primarily affecting second-tier state universities, who might see students choose to attend community colleges instead.

“People would not stop going to Georgetown to go to community college,” Holzer said. “What I imagine would happen would be people who would otherwise go to other state colleges, not the flagship schools but the secondtier schools, will now instead start at community colleges so they’re the ones that I would more worry about, not so much the ‘Georgetowns.’”

Beyond his concerns about the program itself, Holzer remained skeptical about the possibility of the program being implemented on the federal level but saw the potential for states.

“The Republicans control Congress, and most of them have not reacted really well to this idea,” Holzer said. “Individual states might choose to go that way. …

You can compare what happens to the states that do this in comparison to the states that don’t and test out my hypothesis.”

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THE HOYA

FRIDAY, JANUARY 23, 2015

‘Let Freedom Ring’ Celebrates MLK CELEBRATION, from A1

ISABEL BINAMIRA/THE HOYA

Members of GU Fossil Free rallied Friday to urge the Committee on Investments and Social Responsibility to divest from fossil fuel companies. CISR delayed the decision pending further discussion.

Fossil Fuel Divestment Delayed DIVESTMENT, from A1 “The Committee on Investments and Social Responsibility today had a thoughtful and engaged discussion on the Fossil Free proposal and is making progress. We continue to finalize our work and will make a public statement when our deliberations are complete,” Feinerman wrote.

Members of CISR declined to comment about the vote after Jan. 16. Additionally, the university has not commented on the delay of the vote.

GU Fossil Free released an open letter Jan. 22 admonishing CISR for its slow response.

“As of January 22 the CISR has not made public the minutes of this meeting, their final decision on GUFF’s proposal, or a specific date of release for the result of their vote,” the letter, signed by the GU Fossil Free Coalition, said.

“We write this letter to communicate our expectations regarding CISR’s decision, in light of the CISR’s role in ensuring that Georgetown fully carries out its responsibilities to social justice and the common good.”

The letter also reiterates the organization’s rationale for divestment. GU Fossil Free member Patricia Cipollitti (SFS ’15) helped draft the letter and said that she hopes it will galvanize a quick response from CISR. “We felt the need to speak with the Georgetown community about our expectations for the CISR vote and just present our rationale for divestment in terms once more and put it forth and put that in the context of the CISR vote and its results,” Cipollitti said. “We hope that other

folks will join on board and support us.”

CISR’s vote came after months of negotiations between GU Fossil Free, CISR and the administration to address the issue of divestment. GU Fossil Free’s divestment proposal calls for the university to divest its holdings from the 200 largest fossil fuel companies.

CISR, which consists of 12 voting members, will give its recommendation on divestment to the university’s board of directors during its meeting in February.

In November, University President John J. DeGioia met with GU Fossil Free and informed them that CISR would give their recommendation on divestment in January, as opposed to the end of the academic year.

Regardless of the recommendation given by CISR, GU Fossil Free will be present at the board of directors’ meeting to voice their support for divestment.

Before CISR’s meeting on Friday, GU Fossil Free organized a rally outside of the McShain Lounge in order to urge CISR to vote in favor of divestment.

At the rally, GU Fossil Free organized a mock call-and-response wedding ceremony between GU Fossil Free and CISR, which included the exchanging of vows and rings. The ceremony was framed as a symbolic marriage between CISR and Georgetown’s values as an environmentally conscious university.

The rally participants sang common chants, such as “This is what democracy looks like” and “Hey CISR, it’s time that you deliver.”

During the mock wedding ceremony, they also chanted “I do.”

One passerby made an obscene

hand gesture at the group during the protest.

GU Fossil Free and CISR member Caroline James (COL ’16) spoke to approximately 20 protesters about the significance of divestment.

“I want to see clean energy that’s available to everyone,” James said. “It made me sad to think that my education was being paid for by investments in fossil fuel companies. Why am I fighting against climate change when my education is being paid for by the people who perpetuate it?”

During the rally, James said that she did not expect CISR to vote in favor of full divestment.

“I’m anticipating that the members of CISR will divest in some capacity. I’m predicting it will be a recommendation to divest from the worst actors,” James said. “I don’t foresee them saying yes to full divestment. Even if it’s a partial yes, we are going to be disappointed without a full yes.”

Maxwell Menard (SFS ’16) said he joined the protest to demonstrate student support for GU Fossil Free.

“We want to make sure [to show CISR] that there’s large student support in favor of divestment,” Menard said.

Theo Montgomery (SFS ’18) said that another reason for divestment was the instability of fossil fuel companies’ performance on the stock market, citing the recent decrease of oil prices.

“I think this price drop has shown the volatility of oil prices, and even with how high oil production is, it is still subject to such incredible drops,” Montgomery said.

throughout this country as people of good will stand up to demand equality from our justice system,” Williams said. “It is my hope that you will not only recognize your right, but you will exercise your right.”

Williams then conducted “We Shall Overcome,” which was commissioned in 2006 for the Let Freedom Ring Celebration. The song, which became the anthem of the Civil Rights Movement, was sung at the dedication of the MLK memorial in D.C. in 2011. A commemorative recording of the song was also played on NASA’s newest spacecraft Orion, which last month completed a successful test flight that was the first step toward an eventual manned mission to Mars and an asteroid.

“As we were standing there watching this space craft about to go further than any space craft has gone in some 40 years through our space program I kept thinking about protests underway from Ferguson to Cleveland, from New York to L.A,” Williams said. “And then I thought about the irony of Orion carrying as a part of its cargo the civil rights anthem ‘We Shall Overcome’ … with this message, ‘We shall live in peace someday.’ What a powerful reminder that is to us all.”

After the performance, University President John J. DeGioia was welcomed to the stage to speak about the John Thompson, Jr. Legacy of a Dream Award, named after the former basketball coach who led the team from 1972 to 1999. Thompson grew up in the projects in Washington, D.C., and after leading his high school to multiple championships, he earned a scholarship to Providence College and went on to play for the NBA Celtics.

“I think it’s more important in life for those kids when they leave here and they use the good education they got here at Georgetown and they go

out in the world and apply what they did and they try to help someone else or try and educate someone else,” Thompson said in a video played at the event.

This year’s Legacy of a Dream Award recipient, George Jones, has served as the chief executive officer at Bread for the City, an organization that provides services including food, clothing, medical care, legal and social services for vulnerable members of the community. Bread for the City has been operating in D.C. for almost 20 years.

“Every day hundreds of people walk through our centers looking for help,” Jones said in the video. “We fight poverty with a sense of dignity, respect, justice and service.”

Since Jones joined Bread for the City as CEO in 1996, the organization has grown to employ 100 staff members at two centers, serving nearly 33,000 D.C. residents each year. Leonard Edwards, currently a client advocate at Bread for the City, was one of the thousands that the organization provided aid to.

“A place like Bread for the City gives you a voice. A place like Bread for the City allows you to keep your pride — allows you to stop the dissention into poverty,” Edwards said in a video played at the event.

Natalie Cole closed out the ceremony with her performance of several hits, including “This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)” and a rendition of “Unforgettable” set to a video of her father, the late Nat King Cole. She dedicated the song “I Miss You Like Crazy” to Dr. King.

“There is a song [“I Miss You Like Crazy”] with a lyric that expresses our feelings about people that have gone before us, either left us with a great legacy or left us with great thoughts, great moments, that we can be proud of,” Cole said. “I would like to say that I think we miss Dr. King. We miss his voice. We miss his energy, his spirit.”

Waste Still a Problem For Potomac River POLLUTION, from A1 “It’s interfering with their biological systems, which is clearly a canary in the coal mine,” Belin said.

Belin’s organization is at the forefront of attempts to protect the river. The Potomac Conservancy, founded in 1993 by a group of kayakers that Belin described as a “merry band of river warriors,” encourages local policymakers to create smart planning that will contribute to river health.

“We’re seeing a lot more green roofs on buildings to capture the rain water where it falls … using materials that allow the rainwater to percolate in the ground rather than having it run off their driveways,” Belin said.

In a similar vein, the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority began implementing a $2.6 billion Clean Rivers Project to reduce 96 percent of the sewage overflow in the Potomac and Anacostia Rivers and Rock Creek by 2025, a target that exceeds both Environmental Protection Agency requirements and the systems of other major cities.

The project will overhaul the sewer system of about one-third of the region,

ciently equipped to handle large rainstorms. D.C. Clean Rivers Project Director Carlton Ray said the ambitious project is feasible.

“It’s a very high capture rate, we understand, but we feel like our rivers and streams are worth it,” Ray said.

Ray added that D.C. residents will see noticeable improvements in the cleanliness of the city’s waterways, as portions of the project will be completed in the next few years.

“Ultimately we need to continue to build the tunnel system up into the northeast part of the district to help with the Anacostia, but it will be dramatically improved in the near term by 2018 once we finish the tunnel system up to RFK stadium,” Ray said.

Belin stressed the necessity of making smart choices in the future to protect the river and to allow both conservation and progress.

“I think supporting our region’s growth and restoring the Potomac is not mutually exclusive, but it’s going to take a lot of work,” Belin said.

Hoya Staff Writer Kristen Fedor contributed reporting.

Students Fund Cart for Fr. Curry CURRY, from A1 used Palander, an event calendar for Georgetown students, to reach more than 1,000 students. “$10,000 is a lot of cash for Georgetown to part with, even if it is for a worthwhile cause, so I, along with some other guys in the class thought why not try to get together and see if we could raise the money ourselves to help him pay for this?”

Sharp said. “Why not just put on a party and see if we can get people to chip in and donate?”

Martha Strautman (COL ’18) said she appreciated the creative method of fundraising.

“I think that the event went really well and it’s great that Georgetown students can find such unique and fun way to support a good cause,” Strautman said. “I think that the event was representative of the larger balance Georgetown has between community service and helping others, while knowing how to have fun.”

The $5,000 was raised through both donations and drinks. Malmaison kept a portion of the bar earnings, but

gave the student organizers discounted rates on the staff and security members. Sharp said he plans to sit down with Curry to plan ways to raise the final $5,000.

“We’ve had people who didn’t even come to the event donating $20, $50 each,” Sharp said.

“You can really see the loyalty he has from his students. He really is one of those guys who has a lot of personal connections with people. He cares a lot about students even if they haven’t taken his class.”

Matthew Fried (COL ’16) attended the event and said that the party was an effective way of raising money.

“As people enjoying that kind of fundraising method, it was definitely successful,” Fried said. “People went primarily for the party of course, but I think people were excited that they could do that while also supporting someone who is so fundamental to the Georgetown community.”

However, Fried said that he was unsure as to why the university was unable to purchase a golf cart for Curry.

“Each of us pays $60,000 a semester and the university

can’t afford to take care of Father Curry’s $10,000 golf cart,” Fried said. “This man embodies the spirit of Georgetown and for them to ignore him is simply ungrateful. I’m glad the students could come together here.”

Curry said he was thrilled with the student engagement.

However, he hopes that this event raises more awareness about the Dog Tag Bakery. “[The publicity from the event] was my dream come true because I really want the undergraduate students at Georgetown to bond with Dog Tag Bakery, as it is really an amazing Georgetown-sponsored enterprise,” Curry said.

Curry said that his true desire is to connect Georgetown students with disabled veterans.

“My real desire was for undergraduates to meet the disabled veterans because first, they are their own age,” Curry said. “And second, it is important to realize that war has a cost. To see so many students respond to this call is so amazing and really shows that the undergraduates are becoming men and women for others — which warms the Jesuit heart, let me tell you.”

TOP: FILE PHOTO: DAVID WANG/THE HOYA; BOTTOM: FILE PHOTO: MICHELLE XU/THE HOYA

Despite progress in cleaning up the Potomac River since the 1960s, conservationists continue to push to relieve the remaining pollution.

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FRIDAY, January 23, 2015

THE HOYA

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H*yas for Choice Stickers Library’s Rare Books Excite Inform Student Body Tom Garzillo Hoya Staff Writer

In an effort to inform the student body of the wide range of contraceptive and sexual health resources available to them, H*yas for Choice put up 700 “Know Your Options” stickers in campus bathrooms this week that direct students to their informational blog.

Unlike the university-sponsored stickers in bathrooms that lead students to Student Health Services, the H*yas for Choice stickers provide more comprehensive options.

“Obviously, [the university is] not going to tell you about contraception.

They’re not going to tell you where abortion clinics are,” H*yas for Choice President Abby Grace (SFS ’16) said.

“They’re only going to tell you one side of the story.”

While Grace conceded that the university does make “genuine efforts” to help pregnant students, she said that students are not given the full range of options.

The H*yas for Choice website lists birth control methods, abortion resources in the D.C. area and sexual assault resources on and off Georgetown’s campus. It also lists place that test for sexually transmitted infections testing in D.C.. Students are able to see the price of each of these resources on the website.

The blog also warns students of Crisis Pregnancy Centers. Anti-abortion advocates operate these clinics, found in cities across the country. They are not legitimate medical establishments, and these centers have come under fire for providing false information and misleading pregnant women in an effort to prevent them from having an abortion.

The pamphlet includes information on how to contact Georgetown Health Services, but Grace said that it is dangerous for the university to assume that all students adhere to Catholic beliefs on these issues.

“If you’re putting up stickers that only direct you to one side of the story, then you should simultaneously have

information on the full picture,” Grace said. “That’s where the ‘Know Your Options’ tagline comes from.”

H*yas for Choice Vice President Vincent DeLaurentis (SFS ’17) elaborated on the mission behind the stickers.

“We found that it was necessary to put these up because we know that Student Health is limited in the types of resources they can provide to students,” DeLaurentis said. “More so, many of our friends said they feel uncomfortable and have even had to lie when they approach Student Health for sexual health resources.”

DeLaurentis further said this is just one part of a H*yas for Choice effort to expand their focus beyond free speech and condom distribution and become a group that provides students with services that the university fails to provide.

Administration has not yet commented on the hundreds of stickers that H*yas for Choice has put up, but DeLaurentis said that some stickers have already been taken down by unknown perpetrators.

Grace said that web traffic on the blog has dramatically increased to five times its normal rate and that student response has been positive.

Emma Konopka (COL ’18) said that it is important for students to understand that H*yas for Choice does more than hand out condoms.

“It’s really about reproductive justice and letting people know that there are these options available to them,” Konopka said. “People don’t really know you can get pregnancy tests at the Women’s Center and have all these different options.”

Another student, Lydia Bubniak (SFS ’18), said that the information provided

by H*yas for Choice gives women choices that the university may not.

“The stickers are much better because they give women actual options as to what to do with their life, rather than just ‘you should keep the baby,’” Bubniak said. “How am I supposed to finish school? What am I going to do now? How will I get back into my career?”

Arts Coalition to Revive Abandoned Tunnels Sarah Smith Hoya Staff Writer

The Arts Coalition for the Dupont Underground has begun renovating the abandoned streetcar tunnels under Dupont Circle to create a lively new space to showcase arts in the city.

ACDU Founder Julian Hunt and Communications Consultant Braulio Agnese, who are spearheading the process, began their collaboration in 2010 after the city requested proposals to redevelop the space, which has been abandoned since the city stopped using streetcars in the 1960s.

Hunt came to Washington to set up his own architectural practice in 1996 and was inspired to work on the Dupont Circle project after proposing an ultimately unsuccessful redesign of Connecticut Avenue.

“We began to realize that Dupont Circle was a critical public space for the city but terribly underutilized,” Hunt said. “As an architect and a kind of observer of urban conditions I noticed that there were nine entries that bounded the circle that people thought were ventilation shafts but I gradually discovered led down to an enormous abandoned streetcar station. And that was more or less when I began to explore, study, think about and then put together a proposal.”

The financial crisis halted the project, as the project was, and continues to be, funded entirely through donations and private fundraising. However, the group eventually signed a lease and currently are in the early stages of developing the space.

Hunt said projects like the streetcar tunnel renovation are important to developing the culture of the city.

“Washington, D.C., as a city is a

city with an emerging identity of its own — distinct from the federal government,” he said. “What we’re trying to do is create a great public space — a place for people to gather in Dupont Circle and in the institution we are creating under it — that adds to the social fluidity of the city.”

Agnese echoed his partner, adding that the new space could showcase other city artists.

“We hope to showcase things from within D.C., the culture that’s produced here, whether that’s art or design. We’d like to be able to partner — D.C. has a number of great small galleries and other collective groups that might benefit from having 15,000 square feet to play with and create something new,” Agnese said.

Both architects said they believe that the project would appeal to students and hopes neighboring university communities get involved.

“We’d love to be able to tap into the knowledge base here in the city — there’s so many universities,” Agnese said. “There are some projects like this in Europe but real estate works in a different model there. We’re hoping to engage the thinkers of tomorrow. We’d like to get people involved in different ways. If people are interested they can reach out to us and let us know how they’d like to contribute their time and talents.”

Art student Emily Smith (COL ’18) said this new space offers another opportunity to explore the arts and other passions.

“I think that it’s a brilliant way of turning something essentially useless and neglected into a place that’s beautiful and well kept by society,” she said. “Whether or not a person thinks art is useful it’s undeniable that the renewal would make the tunnels better than they are now.”

ARTS COALITION FOR THE DUPONT UNDERGROUND

The Arts Coalition for the Dupont Underground will renovate abandoned streetcar tunnels to promote arts in the District.

MICHELLE LUBERTO/THE HOYA

The Booth Family Center for Special Collections, which will reopen in March, will allow students to get a hands-on look at Georgetown’s rare book collection, which features books costing up to $1 million.

Ashley Miller Hoya Staff Writer

Students often mention how Lauinger Library, with its harsh fluorescent lighting and brash cement exterior, is the least inspirational study space. But with the planned opening in March of the Booth Family Center for Special Collections and the November addition of Ethan Henderson, a curator of rare books, that lack of inspiration may change.

Students will soon be able to hold and look through first editions of Thomas More’s “Utopia,” Euclid’s “Elements of Geometry,” John Locke’s “Two Treatises of Government” and Isaac Newton’s “Principia Mathematica.”

Georgetown University’s rare books collection will soon become more accessible to students than ever before, according to Henderson.

Most universities have special collections that are narrow in the kinds of holdings they have, but Georgetown’s collection of over 140,000 rare books defies such trends in higher education. Georgetown’s rare books range in price from $25 to nearly $1 million, according to Henderson. Not only do the books range in price, but they include a variety of topics, including math, Shakespeare, philosophy and the Modernist Age. “I think [the collection] completely reflects Georgetown’s identity as global,” Henderson said.

The librarians and curators have struggled to make students feel welcome and aware that they have the opportunity to interact with the collection. But Henderson, who was hired by the library in the fall, hopes to change things.

“I am the biggest proponent of anybody, but students in particular, being able to touch and hold the books,” Henderson said. “That’s the whole reason why I got excited about books and people get excited about books.”

Students often feel intimidated when given the opportunity to handle fragile, rare books, a factor that may be contributing to the current low usage of Georgetown’s rare books collection, according Booth Family Center for Special Collections Director John Buchtel.

“There is a real intimidation factor but that is what the curators and librarians are for. We’re here to help and we’re here to help people, to train people on how to handle things and what to look for, how to make use of things in research,” Buchtel said.

For Buchtel, the magic lies in the fact that when students hold some of the rare books in the library’s collection, they are establishing a direct link to authors, holding the same books that some of the world’s greatest minds from Shakespeare to Newton once held. Students cannot check the rare books out of the library, but are able to read the books inside the collection’s reading room.

But students are not the only ones not often utilizing the Booth Center. The number of professors taking advantage of Georgetown’s rare books is smaller than the library would like. In the past five years, 49 faculty members from 17 departments and programs utilized the collection for their classes, according to Buchtel.

Much of the Booth Center’s collection comes from donations and only a small percentage of books have been purchased.

“A lot of [the collection] comes from alumni, people who have gone here or who have had children attend. We’ve gotten some incredible gifts from just parents,” Henderson said.

This opportunity to handle the books is a rare opportunity.

“One of the things that makes a collection really special other than just the items in it is the fact that people can access them and that students can use them. There is a point to preserving books for the sake of preserving them, but we are interested in preserving them for research,” said Jenny Smith, coordinator of Communications, Outreach and Programs.

Emily Morgan (COL ’17) said that she is excited to visit the new Booth Center once it is open in March.

“I haven’t heard of it [the Rare Books Collection] at all, but I would be interested to see what it’s about,” Morgan said. “I think it’d be really cool if professors implemented [The Rare Books collection] in some way.”

Clare Skakel (COL ’17) said that she is excited to see the collection’s access expand after it is opened.

“Well [the collection] is cool, but if nobody uses it then what’s the point?” Skakel asked.

Henderson thinks that the future for libraries will lie in their rare books collections.

“Going forward university libraries are going to look the same because everyone’s going electronic. … What’s going to make the different institutions stand out is their special collections and their holdings. So having a strong holding of rare and unique materials that reflects the institutions and reflects what Georgetown was, is, and — I may sound hokey but — will be.”

Professor Wins Psychology Award MICHELLE McCann Hoya Staff Writer

Psychology professor Anna Johnson won an Early Career Research Contributions Award from the Society for Research in Child Development this month for her research on the impact of public policy on early childhood development.

The award is presented every two years to emerging scientists and scholars who have published notable research in the field of child development.

A ceremony honoring Johnson and the other four recipients of the award will be held in PhilaCOURTESY ANNA JOHNSON delphia this March.

The SRCD is a professional so- Professor Anna Johnson received an award from the Society for Reciety of researchers in childhood search in Child Development for her innovative research. developmental psychology with said. “My particular goal is to do drafting and passing legislation.

5,500 members from over 50 In November 2014, President high-quality research that policy countries.

SRCD member and assistant Obama signed legislation reautho- makers can use to make things betprofessor in the department of rizing the Child Care and Develop- ter for kids.”

Psychology professor Deborah psychology Rebecca Ryan praised ment Fund for the first time since Phillips, who also studies the devel1996.

Johnson for earning this award.

“One of my articles found that opmental impacts of governmental “This is such a prestigious award, incredibly competitive,” Ryan said. the subsidy program gets you OK programs on childhood develop“It’s the highest honor for some- quality care but maybe not as good ment, explained that Johnson is one at her professional level in our as it could,” Johnson said. “So they unique in her field because of her cited my research and said, ‘Look, advanced training in both policy field.”

Johnson’s research focuses on we have evidence that subsidies issues and developmental science.

“Anna represents a new breed the intersection of public policy can buy better quality care, but and childhood development. In they don’t really go all the way to of hybrid scholars who are exquisitely well trained as developmenparticular, she studied the impact do as much as they could.’”

Johnson’s research suggested tal scientists but also have deep of the Child Care and Development Fund, a federal program offering that the subsidy was ineffective knowledge of contemporary policy issues affecting children,” Phillips childcare subsidies to low-income given the size of the program.

“Since 2011 I’ve written two arti- said. “Her ability to use the tools of families, on childhood developcles that say there aren’t really any developmental science to inform isment.

“I study how public policy affects benefits [of the subsidy] for kids sues regarding child care and pre-K some areas of childhood develop- learning, it’s not bad for them, it’s policy is unparalleled.”

Phillips also mentioned that past ment, not childhood development not good for them, it’s just kind of in and of itself,” Johnson said. “I neutral,” Johnson said. “And the recipients of this award have typiwas interested in how this pro- fact that it’s a ton of money and a cally continued to conduct breakgram that affects so many kids ac- ton of kids, so the fact that it’s neu- through research throughout their tually serves the kids … because it tral is kind of a waste. If we could careers to become some of the most wasn’t designed to help kids. It was make it better we should make it prominent scientists in their fields.

“Historically, the young scholars designed so that mothers could go better.”

Johnson acknowledged that the who have won the SRCD dissertato work.”

Since Johnson published her re- political climate of the time is tion award go on to fill the ranks of the rock stars in the field,” Phillips search on the Child Care and De- prime for her field of research.

“It’s a good time to be doing what said. “Those who select the awardvelopment Fund, her research has been cited in Senate hearings and I do because there’s a lot of interest ees have a track record of recognizwas considered by policymakers in in it right now publically,” Johnson ing early promise.”

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THE HOYA

Friday, January 23, 2015

Rabbi Discusses Jewish and Catholic Relations Ashley Miller Hoya Staff Writer

Rabbi Dr. Abraham Skorka, who co-wrote “Sobre el Cielo y la Tierra” (On Heaven and Earth) with Pope Francis, spoke about Jewish-Catholic relations as well as the need for limits on freedom of speech regarding religion in a discussion. The event was organized by the Office of the President, the Embassy of Argentina and Masorti Olami (also known as The World Council of Conservative/Masorti Synagogues) in Riggs Library Tuesday afternoon.

Skorka accompanied the pontiff as part of the papal entourage in the Middle East in May 2014. Since then the two have been working closely together in an attempt to develop meaningful dialogue between Jews and Catholics.

For Skorka, “real dialogue” in-

volves active planning and commitment to future events as opposed to talk for the sake of talk.

“We approach each other knowing that both of us are very, very committed with the idea of real dialogue, not just tea and sympathy, but the real dialogue,” Skorka said.

Skorka then turned his focus to the role of the Catholic Church under Pope Pius XII during the Holocaust. Skorka said that that some critics say that the Pope had the opportunity to save Jews, but his silence instead permitted the death of more Jews.

Skorka also discussed the current Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the connection between anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism, largely due to the role of the media. For Skorka, the media have distorted the meaning of the word Zionism.

“As all of you know, the word

Zionism was transformed by the media into a bad word, a bad term.

And the image of the Jews in the Diaspora was distorted by the misuse and misinterpretation of the word Zionism,” Skorka said.

Program for Jewish Civilization Director Jacques Berlinerblau moderated the discussion, and said he recognized this shift from anti-Zionism into anti-Semitism.

“I see an equation that we are very familiar with in Washington that anti-Zionism degrades easily into anti-Semitism,” Berlinerblau said.

This shift towards anti-Semitism has had lethal effects, most recently with the recent terrorist attack in Paris, which targeted Jews.

“Nowadays Zionism is a kind of anti-Semitism. Think about what occurred in Paris,” Skorka said.“Okay, the conflict is in the

Middle East, it is between Israel and Palestine. Why did they attack a kosher supermarket? They didn’t know exactly if the clients in the supermarket are more Zionist, against the idea of a Jewish state in Israel — they knew nothing. … The only thing they knew is ‘We must attack Jews.’ And the ideology of them is anti-Zionist.”

The question of freedom of speech that has arisen in the context of the Charlie Hebdo attack brought up a debate about the depth of media criticism. Skorka said that today’s media and public fail to evaluate information as critically and deeply as those living a generation ago. Historically, Jewish intellectuals have been strong supporters of freedom of speech.

“Here in the United States, freedom of speech has traditionally been a Jewish issue,” Berlinerblau said.

“Some of the greatest defenders of the right of American freedom of speech, especially in the 1960s, were Jewish intellectuals.”

However, Skorka said he supports limited freedom of speech in cases where the speech is meant only to degrade others. Skorka said that this type of speech is only an abuse of the freedom.

Trixia Apiado (SFS ’18), who attended the event, applauded the common ground that Pope Francis and Jewish leaders have been able to reach in their dialogue.

“I’m from the Philippines and I followed Pope Francis’ visit in the Philippines this past week, so it’s nice to see another religious denomination speaking about the same thing,” Apiado said. “It’s just [about] helping the poorest no matter what their identities are and no matter what their religions are.”

New Congressman Shares Experiences Katherine Richardson Hoya Staff Writer

Congressman Seth Moulton (D-MA) spoke about his campaign, goals for his term and problems facing Congress Wednesday in Riggs Library. The event, moderated by the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy Director Ambassador Barbara Boudine, was the second of the ISD’s Distinguished Practitioners Discussion Series.

Moulton was sworn into Congress Jan. 6, 2015 after serving as a U.S. Marine for four combat tours in Iraq and receiving degrees from Harvard Business School and the Kennedy School of Government.

Bodine began the discussion by summarizing problems currently facing Congress.

“I think there’s little debate from the right or the left that our governing structure is not working exactly as we might hope, and that’s both within the legislative branch and within the executive branch, and certainly between them as well,” Bodine said.

According to Bodine, American citizens have begun to ask questions about both the effectiveness and make-up of Congress.

“Some of the questions that get raised are: Is congress truly representative any longer? Is it too dominated by money? Is it dominated by an aging and entrenched leadership? Does it need more veterans and others who pay the price for the decisions that are made?” Bodine said.

Moulton then spoke about his road to Congress, which did not begin until col-

lege, where he developed an interest in service.

“I looked at lots of different options [after college at Harvard University],” Moulton said. “I looked at the Peace Corp, I looked at teaching over seas, but at the end of the day I had so much respect for the 18- and 19-year-old kids who serve on the front lines of our nation’s military, that I said, ‘I’d like to do my part in this too.’”

While serving in the Marines, Moulton said that he began to discover how the politics in D.C. affected the people around him.

“Over the course of those four tours in Iraq, I felt that I saw some of the consequences of failed leadership in Washington,” Moulton said. “I think Congress didn’t know what they were doing when they got us into Iraq, and they didn’t have our backs while we were there. There was actually a day in 2004 when a young Marine in my platoon looked up at me at the end of a tough day and said, ‘You know sir, you oughta run for Congress so this doesn’t happen again.’”

Moulton defeated the incumbent congressman in his district for the first time in 22 years. He attributed his victory to his campaign, which championed bipartisanship.

“My message was that Congress is too partisan and that we need to be willing to work across the aisle... I think it resonated with people,” Moulton said. “And I think people on both sides of the aisle and even that small set of Americans who actually get out and vote at primaries recognized that hyper-partisanship is a real problem

NATASHA THOMSON/THE HOYA

Congressman Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) discussed his campaign and first two weeks in office, as well as his hopes for the future Wednesday in Riggs Library.

in Congress today.”

After just two weeks in Congress, Moulton said that although he is still learning, he has noticed a few problems he will face throughout his term.

“I’ve been in Congress two weeks so I know all the answers,” Moulton joked.

“I’m still figuring out where the bathroom is. But, what I have done already is to make a proactive effort to reach out to people on the other side of the aisle. I’ve been surprised by how much the institution is set up to discourage that.”

According to Moulton, the Congress orientation provides little opportunity for cross-party mingling.

“Every time we went out in the evenings to socialize and meet our new friends, it was divided by party,” Moulton said. “I would say 95 percent of the events in that eight days were divided by parties, so we barely had an opportunity to meet people on the other side of the aisle.”

Moulton said that although this separation was discouraging, he has hope for the congressmen of the newest generation.

“I think it’s very important that we get new blood into Congress,” Moulton said.

“I have a lot of hope for our generation, the younger Americans because I think we are more pragmatic, more service-oriented. I think we’ve seen the results of an incredibly divided generation in our parents. So, I’m hopeful, but it’s going to take a lot of work, and fundamentally, it takes more people with this attitude.”

Matthew Censullo (COL ’18), one of Moulton’s constituents, said that Moulton’s commitment to service inspired him as he watched the campaign unfold.

“I have followed his campaign pretty significantly, even while I was in D.C,” Censullo said. “I was very excited when I heard that he was coming, and I was on board with a lot of his policies and platform ideas and just wanted to meet him in person and hear what he had to say. I was definitely inspired by him.”

Another constituent, Brian Poirier (MSB ’17), said that he appreciated how Moulton connected his experiences in Iraq to his service as a congressman.

“He spoke at length about the role of being a veteran and how it played an integral role in working in Congress, so it was something that I was really excited to hear about tonight. ... His talks on service leadership were really genuine because of all of the experiences that he’s had,” Poirier said. “Now, he’s really interested in taking those experiences and applying them to working in this Congress.”

Molly Simio

Hoya Staff Writer

gram,” Wilson said.

Wilson added that the streetcar program must be safe in order to fulfill the needs of D.C. passengers.

“The goal to have a light rail system that is suitable for the transportation needs of residents and visitors is within reach. Mayor Bowser has said that D.C. streetcar will open once it is in compliance with all federal safety and security requirements. Until then, testing will continue,” Wilson said.

Hoya Staff Writer Kristen Fedor contributed reporting.

Hoya Staff Writer Katherine Richardson contributed reporting.

Margaret Heftler Hoya Staff Writer

FILE PHOTO: DANIEL SMITH/THE HOYA

The H Street-Benning Road NE streetcar project has been delayed again after safety testing revealed the potential for dangerous collisions. and eliminated parking spaces along the busy H Street corridor.

District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services director of communications Timothy Wilson said that the State Safety Oversight Office, despite the fact that it operates independently within the department, needs to comply with federal safety regulations. “[The mission of the SSOO] is to ensure compliance with federal safety requirement. … It is their practice to perform a comprehensive examination with regard to safety and security of the streetcar pro-

O’Brien Voices Solidarity Vice President for Mission and Ministry Fr. Kevin O’Brien, S.J., sent an email to members of Georgetown’s Jewish and Muslim communities on Saturday, expressing solidarity with both groups. The email was sent in the wake of the heightened instances of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia that have broken out across Europe since the Charlie Hebdo and kosher grocery store attacks earlier this month.

“The recent tragic events in Paris and elsewhere in Europe have affected us all deeply, in many, many ways,” O’Brien wrote. “On behalf of my colleagues in Campus Ministry, I write to assure you of our support and esteem. We grieve with you for the loss of life. We stand with you in ardently rejecting antiSemitism, Islamophobia and violence in all forms.”

The email, which was sent to students on the Jewish and Muslim campus ministry Listservs, was received well by student leaders of different faith groups.

“Fr. O’Brien’s email was powerful, beautiful and reassuring,” J Street U Co-President Natalie Magioncalda (COL ’16) wrote in an email. “As a Jewish student at Georgetown, I find the recent events surrounding anti-Semitism and Islamophobia in Europe to be extremely tragic and disheartening. I am appreciative of Fr. O’Brien’s letter; it comforted me, as well as many other students.”

Muslim Student Association President Zahid Syed (COL ’16) said that he feels that the university typically does a good job of fostering interfaith dialogue and creating a community for individuals of all religions.

“I think that Georgetown does an amazing job of bringing together all the different faith leaders and getting them to see that they’re all in the same boat.

Georgetown has the infrastructure to support this,” Zahid said.

In his email, O’Brien emphasized the importance of Georgetown remaining a safe place for individuals of all religious identities. He included resources for students to file bias-related incident reports.

“The inter-religious understanding that we foster here at Georgetown offers a footing for all of us to work toward a lasting peace in our world,” O’Brien wrote. “Our friendship across religious differences is the most powerful witness against bigotry and intolerance.”

Magioncalda said that in the midst of heightened levels of hate crimes and discrimination, it is important for different faith communities to work together.

“During these challenging times, we must continue supporting one another and working together as one student body,” Magioncalda wrote. “As individuals we can either perpetuate injustices or fight to end hatred once and for all, and I have great faith that our students will always choose to speak out against discrimination.”

O’Brien said that he, along with Imam Yahya Hendi and Rabbi Rachel Gartner, are committed to providing support to the Jewish and Muslim communities at Georgetown.

“At a global and religiously diverse university like Georgetown, we appreciate how what happens in the world affects our religious communities here,” O’Brien wrote. “In the wake of the tragic events in France and beyond, we wanted to reach out to our Muslim and Jewish communities in particular to assure them of our support, our shared values, and our commitment to creating a safe and nurturing space for them.”

Streetcar Project Delayed Repeatedly The start date for the H Street-Benning Road NE streetcar has been delayed again due to the safety issues that have been plaguing the streetcar project since it began testing in September.

Former Mayor Vincent Gray intended to have the streetcars fully operational at the end of his mayoral term. When the testing began in September, the D.C. Department of Transportation estimated that the service would begin operation by the end of 2014.

However, the streetcar simulation service was involved in eight collisions throughout the testing process.

The most recent of these incidents involved a minor collision with a motorist on Jan. 7. Though the D.C. Department of Transportation cited the vehicle’s close proximity to the streetcar as the reason for the accident, incidents such as these have raised concerns about the streetcar service’s compliance with federal safety and security requirements. The unwieldy streetcars run only on rails installed in the street, preventing them from changing lanes or stopping quickly in response to traffic.

The project was delayed with a planned opening on Jan.19. However, the streetcar was indefinitely delayed again, with no firm rescheduled date. DDOT did not respond to several requests for comment on the most recent delay.

Construction on the corridor began in 2012, and the city hoped to open the service by summer 2013. In the course of the oft-delayed project, DDOT limited cycling

FILE PHOTO: ALEXANDER BROWN/THE HOYA

Fr. Kevin O’Brien, S.J., voiced solidarity for Jewish and Muslim community members in an email.

BUSINESS & TECH

FRIDAY, JANUARY 23, 2015

THE HOYA

A9

Corp Leadership Changes MSB Hosts Rural Entrepreneur Challenge

CORP, from A10

increase The Corp’s collaboration with student groups across campus. With such a vibrant student body, there’s so much to be done through partnerships among groups and collaboration on events, and I want to continue to strengthen The Corp’s campus involvement beyond our storefronts. Within the company, we’ll be looking to expand product variety, especially at The Hilltoss, and we’ll continue to look internally to see where we can tighten up operations.

Billy Bowers (COL ’16), COO: I have two main goals for the upcoming year. First, I want to empower Corpies at all levels of our company to create innovation for both their storefronts and the larger Georgetown community. Second, I’m looking to increase the educational opportunities that The Corp offers to its employees. Both goals will have a distinct and immediate impact on our employees and their storefronts.

Will Spach (SFS ’17), CFO: From a financial perspective, my goal is for The Corp to both improve overall efficiency and diversify its income sources. The Hilltoss was a step in the right direction and continuing to develop our newest storefront is crucial for our continued success. Outside of the financials, our new leadership team is focusing on continuing to improve the quality of our products. The past leadership developed an excellent framework for us to build on, and reinforcing the importance of quality is a top priority of our team.

Is there anything that you plan to change? Any new plans to be implemented?

Wallach: The Corp is coming off a huge year of projects — from the opening of The Hilltoss to the excitement surrounding Kickback — as well as some smaller operational switches, including expansion of vendors and product quality. I’m really excited to continue this momentum into the next year. We have some big changes coming, including a major switch in coffee vendors and transformation in our company-wide Spring Service Day.

ENTREPRENEUR, from A10

FILE PHOTO: DANIEL SMITH/THE HOYA

During the first weekend in January, The Corp elected a new CEO, COO and CFO for the upcoming year It’s going to be a really exciting couple of months.

Bowers: One of the main chang-

es I wish to see is a greater look at our impact on the larger Georgetown community. This year, The Corp has made great strides toward improving its impact on the Georgetown community with its creation of Kickback and the opening of The Hilltoss. I would love to see this trend continue in our term and expand on the efforts made this year. The officer team also wants to continue to improve The Corp experience for the customer by continuing our move toward affordable but high quality goods.

Spach: In a couple of weeks, we

are going to be changing coffee vendors and retraining our baristas. We want the Georgetown community to know that we are genuinely committed to serving them the best cup of coffee as possible. We are working to both maintain affordability and financial feasibility and assure that quality becomes a central focus in every storefront.

What excites you most about the future of The Corp?

Wallach: The thing that most excites me about the future of The Corp is the innovation that can come from a company of 350 incredibly motivated, dedicated, and passionate students. As

we’ve seen over the last year with The Hilltoss and Kickback, The Corp has been able to take an idea and make it a reality. With a strengthened focus on campus involvement and partnership, I can’t wait to see what we’ll be able to accomplish in the next year.

Bowers: The thing that excites

me the most about the future of The Corp is the larger on campus impact that we as an officer team wish to achieve. There are many innovative ideas that our team wishes to accomplish in the upcoming year, and many of these not only affect our company, but the Georgetown campus as well.

Spach: As a sophomore, I’m not

even halfway through my time at the Corp, but I have already seen more than I could have expected. The focus on innovation that Billy and Marnie bring to the officer team assures me that I will continue to be impressed by what The Corp has to offer.

What excites me about The Corp is having the ability to help transform the ideas in the Georgetown community into a reality both in my time as CFO and beyond. The potential for innovation at all levels of The Corp assures me that its future will be both strong and exciting.The potential for innovation at all levels of The Corp assures me that its future will be both strong and exciting.

SHAPE OF THE FUTURE

2015 to Feature Tech Leap CHISHOLM, from A10 convince every phone company to universally agree on a hardware, when you can simply use software? By downloading Venmo instead of necessitating chips in phones and receivers in stores, we approach a future we did not realize we were heading towards. And so it must be, for some may fear it if we saw it coming.

On one hand, no one in society is more likely to embrace ideas only to revoke them than college students. The time of life we decide who we are is also when we most change who we are. Is it not only natural that we would adopt new technological fads regardless of whether they can endure?

Conversely, young people show an aptitude towards embracing innovative concepts, whereas adults first desire proof of a technology’s utility.

Fundamentally, it is a matter of taste for each individual, and for each locality.

The other three finalists in the competition were Pasturebird, LLC of Temecula, California, Golden Bridges, Inc. of Palmyra, Missouri and Pulaski Grow of Pulaski, Virginia.

The finalists then moved on to the ultimate round of the competition to vie for the $25,000 grand prize at the AFBF San Diego convention.

Jeff Reid, the founding director of the Georgetown Entrepreneurship Initiative, said that the competitors were also judged by the public.

“A panel of expert judges questioned each company and then chose the Rural Entrepreneur of the Year, while the audience

The longevity of smart watches and smart wallets, just like smart phones and smart glasses, depend on local fashion sense. Even my short drive from Charlottesville to D.C. was deep enough into the heart of urbanity to see a stark difference in receptiveness to new things, as well as a higher saturation of different tastes.

We may enjoy things until we discover that socially, they flop. A social barrier thwarted the adoption of Google Glass, for myriad reasons — not wholly because the move to what was practically a headset was too austere, not wholly because it was essentially a prototype of something much greater, but undeniably because it was still simply too out of the ordinary for people to catch on.

Some products have the latent ability to spark widespread adoption — not only by merit of something’s convenience, or superiority, but also the product’s interaction with society.

Average age, social orientation

and political tones of a locale weave deeply into the fabrics and mentalities of how people feel using technology in public.

But if there were ever a year for change, it would be this one. Plenty of new technology is here. It works, and it looks good. If I exaggerate, it is for selfish desires, because I want my phone to become my wallet, and I want my watch to become my phone, and I know that cars would be better off driving themselves. I alone can conceive so many ideas that are not abandoned because they do not work, but simply because they do not gain momentum. Personally, I find that tragic.

So this year, I have decided that my New Year’s resolution is to buy a product, and believe in it. It might even be a Moto 360, if they ever make a women’s version.

Celeste Chisholm is a senior in the College. SHAPE OF THE FUTURE appears every month.

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COURTESY OF GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY

ScoutPro LLC won the Rural Entrepreneur of the Year award earlier this month.

voted for a People’s Choice award winner using both in-person ballots and a mobile app available to all convention attendees,” he wrote in an email to THE HOYA. MSB Global Social Enterprise Initiative Executive Director Ladan Manteghi emphasized the importance of Georgetown working together with the AFBF with the goal of helping to strengthen rural America both economically and socially.

“We wanted to help address some of these needs particularly around economic growth,”she said.“In the rural parts of the country, whatever we are facing as a nation is more acute,” Manteghi added. “The first step is building rural entrepreneurship initiative that will help spark opportunities for rural entrepreneurs.”

Reid echoed Manteghi and praised the process.

“I was proud to work on this initiative because I believe there are talented aspiring entrepreneurs everywhere, and helping them achieve success can be transformative for an entire community,” Reid said. “A program like the Rural Entrepreneurship Initiative might just provide that one thing that helps a rural entrepreneur succeed and make a huge impact on their community.”

Georgetown students worked as interns on the initiative project, conducting research and developing the challenge and the summit. Interns also helped to develop a sort of toolkit so farm bureaus at the state level can do similar challenges.

Additionally, alumni served as judges, experts and guest speakers over the course of the challenge.

“Even though Georgetown is by no means a ‘rural’ campus, many members of our community come from rural communities and wanted to help with the effort,” Reid wrote. “ Even if you have never lived in a rural community and never expect to, you should be concerned about the future of rural America. These communities provide the food, fiber and fuel that urban communities depend on, so the challenges they face are important to all of us.”

Business & Tech FRIDAY, January 23, 2015

business bits

The Corp Introduces New Leadership

Business School Boasts Increased Recruiting Presence

In fall 2014, 79 prospective employers visited the McDonough School of Business to meet with applicants from the MBA programs. More than 30 were consulting and finance companies, including Deloitte, Citi and Goldman Sachs. Around 10 were nongovernmental organizations such as Winrock International and the World Bank. Students also turned out in large numbers, with attendance increasing by 260 students in comparison to 2013.

Carpenter Advice

Offers

Career

As part of the Stanton Distinguished Leaders Lecture Series, CRT Capital Group Vice President Ben Carpenter, who wrote the book “The Bigs: The Secrets Nobody Tells Students and Young Professionals,” spoke to a group of about 50 students Jan. 16 about lessons from his book and career that they would find useful in their future careers, encouraging them to take informational interviews and build confidence in themselves.

Panel to Discuss Mergers

Former FCC and Federal Trade Commission chairmen will discuss mergers in the telecommunications space, including the pending Comcast/Time Warner Cable merger, in a panel titled “Declaration of Independents: Not All Mergers Are Created Equal” at the School of Continuing Studies Jan. 28.

Master’s Program Finalist for Program of the Year

For the seventh straight year, the Master of Professional Studies in Public Relations and Corporate Communications program, housed at the School of Continuing Studies, was named a finalist for the PR Education Program of the Year Award from the magazine PRWeek. This year, the program added a zero-credit course to help students plan their future careers, which received positive reviews from those in the class.

MSB to host Global Luxury Summit

On Jan. 29, 2015, the MSB will host a panel titled “Building a Global Luxury Brand” to discuss brand integrity and market expansion in the luxury business at the Time Warner Center in New York, N.Y. The panel, which will include representatives from Tom Ford, the Estee Lauder Companies, Michael Kors, Kara Ross New York and the Ermenegildo Zegna Group, will be moderated by Ricardo Ernst, the director of the Global Business Initiative at the MSB. President DeGioia will also be speaking.

ISABEL BINAMIRA/THE HOYA (LEFT), DANIEL SMITH/THE HOYA (TOP, BOTTOM)

Will Spach (SFS ’17) (left), Marnie Wallach (NHS ’16) (center) and Billy Bowers (COL ’16) were elected in January as the new leaders of The Corp, whose storefronts include Uncommon Grounds and Vital Vittles. They will assume their roles in March after a period of training.

Charlotte Allen Hoya Staff Writer

After a year which featured the first new storefront in 14 years, Students of Georgetown, Inc., underwent a change in leadership in January, electing a new Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer. The Hoya sat down with the outgoing and incoming leadership to reflect on their terms.

Outgoing Leadership Reflect on your experience in The Corp. Do you think that you met your goals?

Sam Rodman (MSB ’15), CEO: It’s interesting how any leadership role works. You set an agenda when you come in to any role.

You come in with a lot of ideas, and the more that you learn about the nature of the company through your own role and yourself as a leader, your goals and agenda change. [One of the] main goals that I had was to open The Hilltoss. We definitely nailed that. Obviously there is a load of work to do now that we are off the ground, but in terms of my role and making sure we can han-

SHAPE OF THE FUTURE

2015: A Knockout Year for Technology I

grew with anticipatory delight wave that began some time earlier.

Last autumn, for instance, I witas I traveled back into Georgetown this winter, and I remember nessed how social leverage could be my immediate satisfaction as I was channeled by an app called Venmo, greeted with different storefronts, a as friends began to beg me to sign rapidly evolved local fashion sense up so they could repay me for debts I and the tiwck-tock steady pace of didn’t care about anyway. Surely it is the intended business technology as it nesmodel of the service, tles more and more infor the angle is to contimately into our lives. vince users to always The holidays are the have a balance on their time of evolving tastes, Venmo account, in as parents shower colanticipation for needlege students with ing to pay back private gifts to delight and debts. To construct a surprise, and among program that convincthem this year was a Celeste Chisholm es users to convince close friend of mine friends to use it is the who received the first ultimate advertising, Moto 360 smart watch and explains the overI had ever seen. night, wildfire spread At first sight, I knew of the service among this watch would be college students. my ambassador for the I see how Venmo has year 2015.

Its gyroscopic controls were tight, the popularity and thus the capabilits surface sleek, the watch face itself ity to muscle its way into stores, imialways dimly displayed. When I see tating and eventually becoming our the watch quietly converse with the wallets. Already with Venmo you can cell phone, like the ergonomic next choose to trust certain users to seamstep that it is, I am bent to question lessly bill you, and doing so for busiwhy I ever assumed machines to be nesses functionally solves the probincompetent, or whether it is just lem that prevented NFC chips from now that our relationship to tech is being universalized in phones: Why becoming such a trustworthy one.

In truth, we are on the crest of a See CHISHOLM, A9

2015 promises to be a year of tech change.

dle the financing, construction, design and payback plan, I am really happy with how the team handled that.

I’m happy with our philanthropy overall. We’ve been able to give away $85,000 this year. I think we found a lot of interesting ways to do that.

Patrick Moore (MSB ’15), COO: It’s

hard to really understand the entire scope of the job until you’re in it. A lot of my goals came up as my time as COO, but I am excited about the stuff we have accomplished and initiatives that we’ve started. Hopefully the next year will continue to show growth. I was really happy to work with Sam and [Gene Ball (MSB ’16), CFO], and I thought that we accomplished a lot that we talked about. We go on an annual retreat where we talk about our goals for the year, and we reflected on everything and hit on a lot of those points.

Looking back, what would you have done differently? Is there anything that you wish you could have done?

Rodman: There is always room to

do new things. Within The Corp, every year you look back and

there is always so much more to do as far as strengthening our ties to the community and expanding our products. I wouldn’t say that there’s anything I regret doing or would’ve done differently, but in terms of things I wish I could’ve [been here for], I am excited to see where we take The Hilltoss. There is so much room for growth potential there in terms of introducing new products like smoothies and acai bowls and seeing how we can expand to new salads and hours.

Moore: There’s always more to be

town community or employees or providing good customer service, it is that idea to give back to the community. So, remembering that and returning to the roots is very important. Being a leader in any Georgetown organization, the community of motivated people that you get to work with is hard to replicate, so cherish the opportunities you have to really make an impact and have fun along the way as you do that, even when times are stressful.

Moore: One of our themes was re-

What advice do you have for the incoming leadership?

invention and thinking of things in new ways, by bringing in new products and vendors. So I would say just continuing that trend.

The Corp is lucky in that we have our own financial resources and our personnel changes all the time. Remember we have a lot of flexibility, and continue the spirit of reinvention.

Rodman: We found three incred-

Incoming Leadership

done. There are some initiatives that we are still working on that are in the pipeline that I think still have to be accomplished. But on the whole, there is not too much that I regret taking on.

ibly qualified kids. The Corp is an incredibly complex organization that becomes more and more difficult to define as we add more facets to it. At its core, everything we do comes back to this idea of students serving students. Whether you are providing for the George-

What goals do you have for the upcoming year?

Marnie Wallach (NHS ’16), CEO: In

the upcoming year, I’m really excited to See CORP, A9

Iowa Firm Wins MSB Competition Charlotte Allen Hoya Staff Writer

ScoutPro LLC team from Lone Tree, Iowa was named Farm Bureau Entrepreneur of the Year Jan. 14, winning the first-ever Rural Entrepreneurship Challenge.

The McDonough School of Business Global Social Enterprise Initiative and the Georgetown Entrepreneurship Initiative’s Startup Hoyas, along with the American Farm Bureau Federation, organized the challenge and announced the winner at AFBF’s 96th Annual Convention and IDEAg Trade Show.

“Rural entrepreneurs continue to be a major driving force in our nation’s economy,” AFBF President Bob Stallman said in an article in the McDonough School of Business Newsroom section. “We congratulate all the finalists and wish them well in their future business endeavors.”

Michael Koenig led ScoutPro’s team, and its winning business idea is software will assist farmers with crop maintenance.

There were over 200 submissions for the challenge, 10 of which were announced as semifinalists in October at a national summit on rural entrepreneurship. After multiple rounds of interviewing and judging, these semifinalists were narrowed down to 4 finalists, each of whom received $15,000 to fund their business ideas.

See ENTREPRENEUR, A9

Visit us online at thehoya.com/business

agrinewsdotcom

Stuart McCulloch, left, and Michael Koenig won the Rural Entrepreneurship Challenge, sponsored by the MSB and Startup Hoyas.