The Harvard Crimson - Volume CXLVI, No. 72

The Harvard Crimson The University Daily, Est. 1873 | Volume CXLVI No. 72 | Cambridge, Massachusetts | Wednesday, May 29, 2019

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Admission to Harvard is more than an award bestowed on elite applicants.

Dean Rakesh Khurana recommits to hearing student voices.

Harvard Baseball wins Ivy championship over Columbia.

Corp. Supports Divest Activists: Alums, Don’t Donate Sullivan Ouster

By Alexandra A. Chaidez Crimson Staff Writer

By Aidan F. Ryan Crimson Staff Writer

Harvard Corporation Senior Fellow William F. Lee ’72 said the Corporation — the University’s highest governing body — was briefed on and supports Harvard administrators’ recent decisions to relieve Ronald S. Sullivan, Jr. of his Winthrop House faculty deanship and to sanction former professor Jorge I. Dominguez.

In an interview Thursday, Lee said that though he and Sullivan are friends, he ultimately supported Dean of the College Rakesh Khurana’s choice not to renew Sullivan and his wife Stephanie R. Robinson as faculty deans of Winthrop House be­

cause the climate in the House had become “untenable.”

Khurana announced his decision May 11 — ending more than three months of activism calling on Sullivan to step down after he decided to represent Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein in his sexual abuse case. Sullivan told the judge presiding over the case May 10 he would no longer represent Weinstein.

A day before Khurana’s announcement, The Crimson reported allegations brought by a dozen current and former Winthrop students, tutors, and staff that Sullivan and Robinson — who both teach at Harvard Law

See lEE Page 5

Harvard fossil fuel and prison divestment activists launched pledges this week calling on alumni to withhold donations to the University until administrators concede to their demands.

The campaign comes as part of a broader effort to publicize their causes during Commencement this year. Divest Harvard and Harvard Prison Divestment Campaign — which advocate for divestment from the fossil fuel industry and companies with ties to United States prisons, respectively — have called on students to wear orange to commencement and petition Harvard alongside the donor pledge. ­

Divestment activists decorate their graduation caps with orange cloth outside the Casper Student Center Monday evening. Orange is the color of the fossil fuel divestment movement. KAthryn S. kuhar—Crimson photographer

See Divestment Page 5

College Seniors Attend Black, Last Call for John Harvard’s Latinx Commencements Brewery: Restaurant to Close

By Declan j. KnIeriem and Amanda y. Su Crimson Staff Writers

College students gathered Tuesday evening for two commencement ceremonies honoring students from underrepresented backgrounds, one for Latinx students and another for black students.

The Harvard Latinx Graduation Ceremony — which took place in Radcliffe Yard — and Black College Graduation — which took place in Memorial Church — each celebrated more than 100 graduates. ­

See Grad Page 8

Tatyana Ali ‘02 spoke to students and families as part of the Black Commencement ceremony Tuesday. AWNIT SINGH MARTA—Crimson photographer

John Harvard’s Brewery & Ale House, which will close May 30th, is located at 33 Dunster St. Kai R. mcnamee—Crimson photographer

By Ellen M. Burstein Crimson Staff Writer

Family members draped graduating students with Latinx stoles as they walked on stage. The Latinx Commencement took place Tuesday evening at Radcliffe Yard. AWNIT SINGH MARTA—Crimson photographer

As students head out of Harvard Square for the summer, another familiar place will be packing up too. John Harvard’s Brewery & Ale House will leave its flagship location May 30th.

The restaurant, which opened its Dunster Street location in 1992, operated a brewery until 2016, preceding the larger eatery’s departure later this month.

The departure caps a year of extensive commercial turnover in Harvard Square. Multiple restaurants, cafés, and stores

— including Urban Outfitters, Crema Café, Chipotle, and Au Bon Pain — have closed their doors in recent months.

Denise A. Jillson, the executive director of the Harvard Square Business Association, said that the restaurant’s longevity in Harvard Square was a sign of its quality.

“As with many things… a restaurant life doesn’t usually exceed a couple of decades, and the fact that they went three decades is a testament to John Harvard’s Brewhouse,” Jillson said.

Several employees at the restaurant referred comment to

Trinity Property Management, the real estate company that owns its space.

John Harvard’s Brewery spokesperson Paul Pettas said that the restaurant appreciated local residents’ support after nearly 30 years.

“We appreciate being part of the community and we are grateful to everyone in the community,” Pettas said.

Pettas declined to provide further comment, including why the restaurant closed.

Pettas said that John Harvard’s had an “agreement” with

See Brewery Page 8

Boston Calling Impacts Businesses, Residents

By Brie k. buchanan Crimson Staff Writers

A s concert-goers swarmed Allston over the weekend for the annual Boston Calling music festival, local businesses and residents were divided on their feelings about the shows happening in their own backyard.

The festival, which takes place at the Harvard athletic complex on the Boston side of the Charles River, brings significant business to local restaurants over its three-day run, according to Harvard Square Business Association Executive Director Denise A. Jillson.

“It has become a significant weekend in The Square,” Jillson said. “We’re grateful for the... opportunity to help our businesses.”

Jillson also said that the festival, which is a member of the Square’s business association, encourages younger visitors to the area. ­

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Harvard Today 2

“It’s becoming almost a rite of passage for young teens, and the number of young teens and families that attend the event is growing,” Jillson said. “The hope is always that they’ll.... want to come back a lot.”

For years, Boston Calling was hosted at City Hall Plaza in the heart of Boston, but moved to Allston three years ago. This year, it featured performances by Twenty One Pilots, Tame Impala, and Travis Scott, among others.

Douglas Cho, who owns Boston Tea Stop in the Square, said that the first year after the move to Harvard, the music festival caused some disturbances that resulted in his store deciding to close earlier in the day the following year.

“The first year, we had a really, really high number of drunk people that… caused problems,” Cho said. “We actually ended up

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Festival-goers flooded John F. Kennedy Street Saturday night as they left the Harvard Athletic Complex. Kai R. MCnamee—Crimson photographer

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MAY 29, 2019

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Harvard today Today’s Events See Al Gore ’69 speak at Class Day 2 p.m.

Head to Tercentenary Theatre to listen to former United States Vice President Al Gore ’69, 2019’s Class Day speaker, as part of the College Class Day exercises. It’s sure to be an interesting and well-attended speech, so be sure to get there early!

in The Real World Kansas City Area Struck By Large Tornado

The Kansas City area was struck by a large tornado last night, causing major damage to areas west of the city. In recent days, tornadoes and storms have been reported in eight states.

Supreme Court Avoids Ruling on Abortion in Indiana Court Case Band, Choral, and Glee Club Concert 8 p.m.

Tercentenary Theatre will be the place to be once again this evening, with a free band, choral, and glee club concert that’s open to all. There’s sure to be great music, so make sure not to miss it!

Hozier performed during the second day of Boston Calling, a music festival hosted at the Harvard Athletic Fields over Memorial Day weekend. AMANDA Y. SU — Crimson photographer

In the case of Box v. Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky, the Supreme Court turned down an appeal asking the court to reinstate a law prohibiting abortion conducted solely on the basis sex or disability. They also, however, upheld the part of the same law requiring the burial of fetal tissue.

Economic Worries Cause Bond Yields to Drop to Multiyear Lows

Daily Briefing Activists fromDivest Harvard and Harvard Prison Divestment Campaign are calling on alumni to withhold donations to the University until it divests its nearly $40 billion endowment from fossil fuel companies and corporations tied to prisons.

The campaign is part of a broader effort to publicize their causes this week. The groups are also asking supporters to decorate their mortarboards with orange for Commencement exercises Thursday. In other news, Corporation Senior Fellow William F. Lee ’72 said in an interview that the Corporation supports the actions taken against Winthrop Faculty Dean Ronald Sullivan and former professor Jorge I. Dominguez by administrators.

Worries about the possible end of the post-crisis economic expansion have caused government bond yields to decrease to multiyear lows. Bond yields fall as prices rises, and their decrease can be a warning sign for other assets with more risk.

Around the Ivies Dartmouth

A student committee on sexual assault at Dartmouth College released a petition urging the administration to alter its policy regarding student transcripts during and after sexual assault investigations, The Dartmouth reported last week. Under current policies, students who are under investigation or found responsible for sexual assault can transfer to other educational institutions or employment without any notation on their transcripts indicating any violations or investigations. The petition suggests a temporary notation be added to students’ transcripts while investigations are ongoing and that a permanent notation be added to the transcripts of students who are found responsible.

yale

A Yale senior who was suspended after being found responsible for sexual assault sued Yale University for alleged gender discrimination, the Yale Daily News reported last week. This is the fifth case filed against Yale by a male student since 2011, when Yale formed the University-Wide Committee on Sexual Misconduct. The complaint is similar to those of the other four cases, all of which allege that Yale’s methods of adjudicating instances of sexual misconduct intentionally discriminate against men. The senior was suspended in March through the end of the fall 2019 semester after he was found to have engaged in “non-consensual unprotected sexual intercourse.”

columbia

America’s oldest and largest oral history archive, the Columbia University Center for Oral History Research, will work alongside the University of Chicago and the University of Hawaii to compile the official oral history of Former President Barack Obama who graduated from Columbia in 1977, according to the Columbia Spectator. In addition to the focusing on President Obama’s two terms in office, the oral history will include the work of Former First Lady Michelle Obama. The goal of the project is to recreate and reconstruct events that took place in The Oval Office. Prior to Obama, The center was tasked with producing the presidential oral history for former U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

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THE HARVARD CRIMSON | May 29, 2019

LEE From Page 1

Corporation Backs Decision to Not Renew Sullivan School — had created a toxic environment in the House for more than three years.

“Ron Sullivan’s a friend. I’m on the Law School faculty with him. My daughter has taught for him. And so I know Ron and Stephanie well and I respect them,” Lee said. “We recognize the things they’ve done, but it was the right decision.”

Sullivan did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Lee — who also serves as one of the head trial lawyers for Harvard’s case against anti-affirmative action group Students for Fair Admissions — drew on his own experience as an attorney

and said he understands the issues with the scandal were never about the right to representation, but rather about the environment in Winthrop.

“I think that this has never been about the right to counsel or representation. It can be hard to be faculty dean and trial lawyer at the same time because you can have competing imperatives,” Lee said. “It has always been for Dean Khurana and Dean [of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Claudine] Gay a question of ‘Are we acting in the best interest of the students in Winthrop House? Is there an environment where they can prosper

and succeed?’”

Sullivan, his colleagues at the Law School, and media commentators have argued that Harvard should not discipline him for fulfilling his duties as a lawyer and representing an controversial defendants. Some undergraduates have contended that Sullivan’s representation conflicted with his job as a faculty dean.

Lee added that students spend three years in undergraduate houses, and one of those years should not include “discomfort.”

“Having in mind that once you go to a house, you only have

three years. So a year of discontent, discomfort, and ambiguity is one-third of your experience,” Lee said. “And as Dean Khurana said in his letter, that was the critically important issue, and we fully support the decision.”

Lee also said he and the Corporation support Gay’s decision to strip Dominguez of his emeritus status and ban him from Harvard’s campus after a months-long probe found that he had engaged in “unwelcome sexual conduct.” The Office for Dispute Resolution launched an investigation into Dominguez after the Chronicle of Higher Education reported that Domin-

guez faced sexual misconduct allegations spanning four decades from 18 women.

Shortly after Gay’s announcement on May 9, University President Lawrence S. Bacow informed members of a Government committee that Harvard would conduct an external review of the circumstances that led to the department’s failure to maintain a safe work environment.

Lee said Gay and Bacow presented the recommendations to revoke Dominguez’s emeritus status and bar him from Harvard’s campus to the Corporation.

“The recommendations that were implemented by the President and by Claudine, by the Dean of FAS, were reported to the Corporation simply because of the importance of the recommendations, and we fully supported their decision,” Lee said.

“When I say came to us, it didn’t require any action on our part.

It was reporting to us on something that would be of some significant interest to the community.”

A lawyer for Dominguez did not respond to multiple requests for comment. aidan.ryan@thecrimson.com

Divestment From Page 1

Activists to Alumni: Don’t Donate The Harvard Prison Divestment Campaign released their donor pledge Monday, while Divest Harvard recirculated a pledge originally issued in 2017. Both pledges urge alumni to pause their donations to Harvard until it withdraws its nearly $40 billion endowment from fossil fuel or prison-related companies and reinvests its money in causes the groups believe to be more sustainable.

HPDC’s pledge reiterates its call for Harvard to disclose its investments in prison-related companies, divest from those entities, and reinvest in rehabilitating people affected by “the prison-industrial complex.”

“We, the undersigned, pledge not to donate to Harvard until it discloses its endowment holdings in and divests from companies that are profiting from the prison-industrial complex, and takes meaningful steps to repair harm and rebuild wealth for Black, brown and poor communities pursuant to the demands of the Harvard Prison Divestment Campaign,” the pledge reads.

HPDC’s pledge also encourages donors to invest in a new fund for organizations that will redistribute the donations among those locally affected by mass incarceration.

Harvard Law School student and HPDC organizer Anneke F. Dunbar-Gronke said the pledge was designed to prioritize reinvestment, especially for an institution like Harvard.

“We’re showing them that this is what reinvestment looks like,” Dunbar-Gronke said. “It looks like putting money into democratically led, community-led groups and pools where people who are most impacted by the harms that these institutions have benefited from then get to do with that money what is best for the community.”

Divest Harvard organizer Isa C. Flores-Jones ’19 said the group decided to recirculate their two-year old donor pledge after HPDC released their own.

“As result of conversation together, we also thought that now it might be a good time to relaunch and sort of strengthen this call across the College, asking everybody not to donate,” Flores-Jones said.

The pledge calls on Harvard to “show moral leadership” by divesting from fossil fuels and urges signatories to withhold their donations to the College until the University entirely divests its fossil fuel holdings and reinvests in “just and sustainable” alternatives.

This is not the first time Divest Harvard and HPDC have collaborated.

In April, the groups coordinated a protest at the John F. Kennedy Jr. Forum during an event in which University President Lawrence S. Bacow was slated to speak.

The groups’ April protest came amid a semester of intensifying calls for fossil fuel and prison divestment. Divest Har-

vard and HPDC have held their own rallies in Harvard Yard, released several petitions, and met personally with Bacow.

In addition to the donor pledges, alumni from the classes of 1964 to 1975 wrote a letter in coordination with Divest Harvard and HPDC to Bacow supporting the two groups and urging Harvard to “play a far more public leadership role” in addressing the issues of climate change and mass incarceration.

Alumni who signed the letter — members of a particularly political generation on Harvard’s campus — said they saw divestment to be imperative.

“Investment in fossil fuels and prisons are moral evils,” Heather B. Cantino ’72 wrote in an email. “Harvard’s wealth and commitment to science and truth obligate it to divest.”

Harvard Corporation Senior Fellow William F. Lee ’72 said he believes climate change is “one of the great existential crisis.”

He added that over the course of meetings with alumni and faculty about divestment, he has come to recognize the disagreements that exist among people’s opinions on divestment.

“As I’ve said at the end of many of these meetings, the one thing I can guarantee you in the Harvard community is there are enough different views that sometimes you have to agree to disagree,” Lee said in an interview last week.

The latest on student life.

Both Divest Harvard and HPDC are also uniting for another in-person demonstration during this year’s Class Day and Commencement.

The groups are planning on wearing orange pins and wristbands for the College’s Class Day Wednesday and decorating their mortarboards with orange for the University-wide Commencement exercises Thursday.

“We are asking all students to use the space provided by their mortarboard cap to send the message to the University… and to anybody who might be watching this graduation ceremony that we will not remain silent and complicit in the actions that our university is taking elsewhere around the world,” Flores-Jones said.

“Essentially, we’re asking that our diplomas and degrees remain free of investments in the climate crisis and prison industrial complex, respectively,” she added.

Flores-Jones said these actions were an example of “joyful organizing” at the close of the academic year.

“I think it’s celebrating the community that we’ve built together here on campus, in calling for awareness of these issues and calling for awareness of all of our institution… of all of the ways that institutions are implicated in these violent industries,” she said.

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Editorial The Crimson Editorial board

mireya c. arango—Crimson illustrator

What Admission to Harvard Means

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his past year has raised a number of questions about what it means to be a part of Harvard — what defines student activism, what students should expect from the Houses, and what workers should expect from the administration. But one question raised underpins the rest: How do students get here in the first place?

Last fall, the lawsuit alleging the College’s admissions processes discriminates against Asian American applicants went to trial — a three-week ordeal that roiled Harvard’s campus and higher education more broadly. The lawsuit has left us grappling with the great privilege, the complicated socioeconomic dynamics, and the tremendous responsibility of admission to Harvard. In light of these challenges to the admissions process, complacent pride in the achievement of admission is no longer acceptable or sufficient.

Harvard has set an example for race-conscious admissions since its inception, which provided a model for higher education across the board. The “Harvard Plan,” implemented in the early 1970s, served as an important alternative to other methods that set numerical targets for identity groups. The plan showed that diversity was not merely a box to be checked, but a critical component to a vibrant student body.

We need to ask ourselves what admission to Harvard means in terms of its criteria and its purpose. Is admission just another award bestowed on elite applicants, or is it more? We believe it must be the latter.

Yet almost 50 years later, Harvard now faces accusations that it has failed to live up to its pioneering approach.

Harvard has repeatedly denied the charge that it discriminates against Asian American applicants since anti-affirmative action group Students for Fair Admissions first filed its lawsuit in 2014. The October trial featured testimony from administrators, experts, and students, and revealed intimate details of Harvard’s admissions process to the public. Though arguments concluded in February, the judge in the case is expected to deliver a verdict in the coming months — a decision with the potential to determine the fate of affirmative action in America. The verdict, however, will likely be appealed — regardless of the outcome — and experts have said the case could go all the way to the Supreme Court.

The revelations from the trial expanded well beyond alleged discrimination against Asian American applicants.

Documents in the case confirmed that the College’s admissions process lends a significant advantage to wealthy and legacy students.

Months later in March, news of a national scandal came to the fore, revealing that wealthy parents paid athletic coaches to lie about the athletic ability of prospective students at several top colleges.

While Harvard has not been implicated in the scandal, the Boston Globe reported that the College’s head fencing coach sold a house substantially above market price to the father of a former and current Harvard fencer.

All the while, admissions became more selective, as the admit rate dropped yet again to a

record-low 4.5 percent for the incoming Class of 2023.

We need to ask ourselves what admission to Harvard means in terms of its criteria and its purpose. Is admission just another award bestowed on elite applicants, or is it more? We believe it must be the latter.

Admission to Harvard is a remarkable opportunity to develop the skills and intellect necessary to change the world — hopefully for the better. In the face of recent challenges and skepticism, Harvard must reaffirm its ed-

Beyond these historic facts of systemic inequity, a diverse student body allows all who enter the gates of Harvard Yard to broaden their perspectives and engage in immersive learning experience that reflect our society today. ucational mission and the importance of affirmative action in fulfilling that purpose.

In pursuit of that vision, we reaffirm our support for affirmative action and its positive impacts it has for students on campus from all backgrounds.

Affirmative action takes a step towards correcting the systematic inequalities and disadvantages present for marginalized groups in our society.

Affirmative action acknowledges that, in some ways, our standardized test scores or high school grades are a measure of the resources we had access to in the past — not our potential for the future.

Beyond these historic facts of systemic inequity, a diverse student body allows all who enter the gates of Harvard Yard to broaden their perspectives and engage in immersive learning experience that reflect our society today.

The allegations of discrimination in Harvard’s admissions process — and other aspects of it that might privilege some groups over others — are not to be taken lightly. The College should critically evaluate its admissions process and immediately rectify systematic biases it may be assigning to Asian Americans, even if these biases are unintentional.

In the same vein, we believe any preference in admission given to legacy applicants or applicants from wealthy families undermines the entire process.

This practice is especially contradictory when we think about leveling the playing field for those of disadvantaged backgrounds.

While we understand that there must be com-

Harvard must ensure it does not compromise the integrity of its admissions practices in the process. promises to these values to fund University programs, Harvard must ensure it does not compromise the integrity of its admissions practices in the process.

We stand by Harvard’s holistic admissions processes that seek to gain a sense of a student as more than any one measure of success such as standardized test scores or grade point averages. If the society that produces individu-

als who apply to Harvard is in itself inequitable, how can success — or merit, for that matter — be quantified or judged equitably? How do we even define merit in this case? Certain factors beyond the control of a high school student, such as their birthplace, race, or gender, greatly impact students’ ability to display “merit” along these quantifiable lines. This impact is indicated through evidence that standardized test scores, for example, benefit white and high-income high school students.

Once we come to the understanding that admission to Harvard is not a matter of merit per se, as that idea is not as simple as it seems, the possibility of humility for the College’s students emerges. Admission to Harvard is a privilege, not a right. The opportunities, therefore, that come with it must be understood as something we have been lucky to experience — not something we were owed.

With that comes a responsibility to make a tangible impact on the world for the better and we must not take that lightly.

We believe that the type of students a selective college chooses to admit speaks to the institution’s mission. Accordingly, it’s critical to view Harvard’s admissions practices through the lens of how well these practices serve its mission to “educate the citizens and citizen-leaders for our society.”

University President Lawrence S. Bacow has traveled across the United States defending and promoting this aim as he has made

If the society that produces individuals who apply to Harvard is in itself inequitable, how can success — or merit, for that matter — be quantified or judged equitably? How do we even define merit in this case? the case that institutions of higher education like Harvard should provide a space where students can spend their time “learning how they can best serve the world.”

To be sure, this work is not merely a matter of admissions. In particular, Harvard must work not only to recruit a diverse group of students onto its campus, but also to provide those students with the education and means to take on a range of challenges as they graduate.

As such, we have been particularly concerned with the limited degree to which students go on to engage in public service work — a field that fits neatly into Harvard’s stated mission.

We urge the University to put more effort into providing the pathways and resources to make public service an exciting, respected, and plausible career, much as there are for other private sector ones.

For each student who commits to Harvard, the College commits to cultivating an environment that will work to provide the tools, intellectual depth, and sense of self to be a “citizen leader.”

In recognition of this commitment, we continue to stand behind Harvard’s efforts to create a diverse campus of varying backgrounds and academic interests, and, in that vein we applaud the College’s long-standing commitment to financial aid.

During their time at Harvard, we believe students should also have the opportunity to study a diversity of fields from faculty of diverse backgrounds.

As we have previously opined, students who are learning how to best serve the world, benefit substantially from doing so in an environment where they actually encounter insights from as varied an array of viewpoints as possible.

SFFA’s challenges to affirmative action and the ongoing national admissions scandal have left institutions of higher learning to evaluate their current admissions processes and determine how they should ideally function.

This presents an important opportunity to Harvard to reaffirm its mission and to clarify

Harvard is at a crossroads.

Though the legal question of affirmative action will ultimately be decided in the courts, this year’s developments present challenges to Harvard’s mission that the University must confront. its admissions practices to successfully serve this goal. In Harvard’s case, this means the College has the chance to distinguish itself — at least in terms of its goals — from common public misconceptions such as charges that Harvard is self-serving and elitist. By clarifying the service-minded nature of its institutional mission, Harvard can strive to regain the public trust it has lost in the whirlwind of admissions scrutiny over the past year, while also articulating its mission and great commitment to broad accessibility more definitively than ever. Such a renewed effort would not only strengthen the University’s ability to pursue its own mission, but would also serve to strengthen the position from which Harvard may serve as a vigorous defender of affirmative action on campus and on the national stage.

Harvard is at a crossroads.

Though the legal question of affirmative action will ultimately be decided in the courts, this year’s developments present challenges to Harvard’s mission that the University must confront. As it fights to protect affirmative action, Harvard must make it clear to the world that its main mission is to cultivate and educate its students so that they can make a difference.

The goal of the admissions process must be to find the right individuals to create a student body that benefits of all its members through shared learning, rich discourse, and productive collaboration.

As the members of the Class of 2019 graduate, they have the opportunity to reflect on their admissions into the College and the live they built here as friends and classmates.

But that reflection — and the knowledge that so many others will not get this opportunity — must underscore the importance of the fact that they will go forth into the world after having benefited from an imperfect admissions process. That privilege comes with great responsibility. We hope they find purpose and joy in the chance to use their Harvard degrees to build a better world.

This staff editorial solely represents the majority view of The Crimvson Editorial Board. It is the product of discussions at regular Editorial Board meetings. In order to ensure the impartiality of our journalism, Crimson editors who choose to opine and vote at these meetings are not involved in the reporting of articles on similar topics.

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THE HARVARD CRIMSON | MAY 29, 2019

EDITORIAL OP-ED

Navigating the Dilemma of Uncertainty

By ARIEL PHILLIPS

T

here is a particular dilemma that sometimes arises during my private conversations with students at the Bureau of Study Counsel. It may be especially fitting to mention this dilemma this Commencement week — a time of beginnings and endings — as it points toward a kind of continuity. It is a dilemma deserving of respect and exploration, as it can be long-lived and deeply felt.

It might be expressed as a tension between impression management and true learning, and might begin with a statement like this:

Some students have a ready answer: to get a degree, or to gain financial security, or to have influence, or to honor their family, or to find something they can commit to, or to learn. Or, they say, it’s for all of these. But, I’ve learned that it’s not easy to aim for all of these at the same time.

“I want to do justice to Harvard and to myself and to everyone who has supported me. So, I know I should get started right away on assignments and do my absolute best on them. But Instead I find myself doing them at the last minute and feel disappointed in them and myself.

Why do I do this?”

If I listen well enough, the student above might elaborate: “I guess if I start a paper and realize that it’s not going to be amazing, I feel I can’t let that represent me. I get paralyzed and start doing emails or something.

When I finally turn something in, I feel relief, but not exactly joy, even if the grade is fine. Maybe I’m just lazy… I want to be able to love learning again.”

Eventually, many of these conversations arrive at a deeper set of questions and some answers that can set the stage for navigating life not only during, but also after Harvard.

Sometimes, it comes down to, “What is higher education for?”

And some students have a ready answer: to get a degree, or to gain financial security, or to have influence, or to honor their family, or to find something they can commit to, or to learn.

Or, they say, it’s for all of these. But, I’ve learned that it’s not easy to aim for

When students arrive, it’s no wonder if they feel pressed to demonstrate, both to others and to themselves, that they are one of those best and brightest — that they are brilliant, already accomplished, and thus worthy of the investments bestowed upon them. all of these at the same time.

In fact, they often collide with one another.

Here’s how one such collision can look

in the Harvard context: Students know perfectly well that they are frequently evaluated based on performed results — whether a paper, project, GPA, or thesis — in a sense, their “smooth image.”

These evaluations come not only from others; students also tend to judge themselves based on the image they present.

And it’s not a crazy idea; realistically, some of their future options might be affected by that image.

On the other hand, they may have come to Harvard hoping to find or to follow what interests them — to engage in transformative, rather than performed education, to pursue what they love or discover what they love.

This predicament arises here partly because Harvard itself has an established image as a place to which the “best and brightest” gravitate.

So, when students arrive, it’s no wonder if they feel pressed to demonstrate, both to others and to themselves, that they are one of those best and brightest — that they are brilliant, already accomplished, and thus worthy of the investments bestowed upon them.

So, sometimes it’s not just their image in the eyes of the world; it’s their image in their own eyes.

However, this focus on image presents a challenge in complex, emergent situations.

Here’s the thing: it’s hard to demonstrate what you know — to produce amazing results — and at the same time honor

This dilemma can take on various shapes in postHarvard life. It can manifest in career choices and an avoidance of professional risks, even those risks that might lead to more satisfying careers and unexpected discoveries. what you don’t know — the not-knowing, the messy process of coming to know.

It’s hard to be open to uncertainty and ambiguity, things critical to learning, when we are intensely focused on showing what we already know.

If we think each product we make — a paper, a thesis, a professional accomplishment — has to carry the weight of showing the world our true potential, the high stakes can become paralyzing.

And often a second challenge arises: The inclination to discuss this predicament collides with the concern about risking one’s image.

Many of us, including faculty members, save this subject for the situations in which we feel the most secure, or we don’t discuss it at all. The Success-Failure Project at Harvard is one effort to create places for reflection and discussion of these issues.

This dilemma can take on various shapes in post-Harvard life. t can manifest in career choices and an avoidance of professional risks, even those risks that might lead to more satisfying careers and unexpected discoveries.

Some scientist colleagues tell me they shun some innovative research directions in favor of research that is more likely to produce clear, expedient results.

Some students and alums say they feel a

powerful obligation to their families for years of guidance and financial support and, understandably, that can pull them toward more certainty and less risk in their decision-making.

But I also know some students and alums who ask themselves what they genuinely enjoy and what kind of life they want, and then they pursue some version of that, even as they keep their families’ wishes and needs in mind.

Of course, there isn’t a single solution to this dilemma, but some students, alums, and faculty eventually arrive at some questions that help them approach it with integrity and discernment: As a leader, how can I help create systems that affirm the dignity of real learning—systems that recognize mistakes as integral to true excellence?

And many families, if not immediately, eventually appreciate their students’ efforts to make an authentic, meaningful life.

Some graduates decide to devote years to exploring an idea.

And an increasing number of companies and graduate schools say they want colleagues and scholars who can take intelligent risks, who understand that the best discoveries and innovations often involve many mistakes and false starts.

Of course, there isn’t a single solution to this dilemma, but some students, alums, and faculty eventually arrive at some questions that help them approach it with integrity and discernment: As a leader, how can I help create systems that affirm the dignity of real learning— systems that recognize mistakes as integral to true excellence?

How can I invite friends and colleagues to discuss what helps them take intelligent, worthwhile, creative risks?

What problems seem worth solving?

What might bring me genuine satisfaction in the long term of my life?

Entertaining such questions over time will seldom lead to simple, permanent answers, but it can lay the founda-

Entertaining such questions over time will seldom lead to simple, permanent answers, but it can lay the foundation for a different kind of security, the security of living a life that, while perhaps less predictable, honors the reality of how knowledge happens. tion for a different kind of security, the security of living a life that, while perhaps less predictable, honors the reality of how knowledge happens: through disturbance, confusion, failure, and the unforeseen possibilities they unlock.

—Ariel Phillips is an academic counselor at the Bureau of Study Counsel, and she directs the Success-Failure Project.

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OP-ED

Forward Together

By RAKESH KHURANA

T

he end of the 2018-2019 academic year has arrived. I began my year with a long to-do list and, while I didn’t get through all of it, I am proud of how much we accomplished across the College this year. I am particularly proud that we opened our new Dean of Students Office, created the new pre-matriculation summer service program, and will launch our new General Education program this fall. I am also grateful for the opportunity to work with our new leaders, University President Lawrence S. Bacow, Dean of the Faculty of the Arts and Sciences Claudine Gay, and Dean of Undergraduate Education Amanda Claybaugh — and all of our dedicated Harvard College staff.

More important to me than any one achievement is my realization that I have ended this year with a different perspective on many issues. We engaged in difficult conversations about complex issues this year, including the admissions lawsuit, #MeToo, and questions of environmental stewardship and investment. Students have brought their concerns and opinions to me, pressed me to see their perspectives, and challenged my assumptions.

More important to me than any one achievement is my realization that I have ended this year with a different perspective on many issues. We engaged in difficult conversations about complex issues this year, including the admissions lawsuit, #MeToo, and questions of environmental stewardship and investment.

Our students have been integral to transformg my thinking on different issues over the years such as the need for a program like the First-Year Retreat and Experience, and how the College should think about its connection to mass incarceration — and for that, I am deeply grateful. This year we marked the 50th anniversary of a historical milestone in student activism on our campus, 1969. Without that student activism, Harvard wouldn’t be where it is today, and without continued advocacy, Harvard will not be where we need to be tomorrow.

Harvard continues to grapple with the many challenges facing higher education, including protecting free expression, guaranteeing equal access to educational resources, nurturing a community based on inclusion, belonging, and mutual respect, and ensuring the we are accountable for environmental stewardship and responsible investment. We must continue to participate in robust and open dialogue about these issues.

Sustaining a college that enables all of its members to fulfill their potential is not easy work. Real and lasting dialogue in our community depends on treating each other with respect and dignity. Shutting someone down before they’ve had a chance to speak, communicating in 240 characters or by posting memes, retorting viciously against someone you disagree with, or assuming you have a monopoly on the truth rarely changes minds. On the other hand, we can make real progress when we engage in serious, respectful conversations in the classroom, over dinner in the dining hall, and at formal presentations.

Increasingly, I have come to believe that the polarization we see in society is exacerbated by the breakdown in the art of listening and dialogue. We get stuck because of fear that we will hear uncomfortable things. We get stuck because we fear we will not be heard. And yet, I have found even in my most difficult conversations this year that there is often common ground to be found.

We all want to act to improve our collective future. We all want our friends, fellow students, colleagues, and everyone in the Harvard community to thrive. We all want to thrive ourselves.

As we end this year, I am recommitting myself

Increasingly, I have come to believe that the polarization we see in society is exacerbated by the breakdown in the art of listening and dialogue. We get stuck because of fear that we will hear uncomfortable things.

The Crimson @thecrimson

to hearing you, to engaging with you, and to seeking common ground and areas of agreement. To find this common ground, we need your voices, your advocacy, and your ideas.

And we all need to commit to creating an environment in which we are willing to listen to each other and to hear each other’s points of views and perspectives.

There will be moments where we might agree to disagree on issues or decisions, but I promise you that I will take to time to really understand where you stand on an issue and why. I know you will do the same.

In the meantime, I want to offer congratulations to the Class of 2019 on your commencement.

You have left an indelible mark on this community through your leadership and advocacy, listening and inquiry, creativity and hard work, and I am excited for all the future has in store for you.

Thank you also to our staff and faculty for the guidance you’ve given students and the commitment you’ve shown to Harvard College.

Classes of 2020, 2021, 2022 — I look forward to continuing our conversations in the fall.

—Rakesh Khurana is the dean of Harvard College.

THE HARVARD CRIMSON |

May 29, 2019

Page 8

Festival From Page 1

BREWERY From Page 1

Boston Calling Impacts Residents John Harvard’s Brewery to Close closing early a couple of the days just because it wasn’t worth the trouble.”

Cho said the beverage shop resumed regular hours this year after a marked decrease in disruptions.

“This year was probably the most mellow,” Cho said. “This year we just stayed open and it was fine for the most part.”

The move to Allston, however, has also caused issues for local residents who have complained about the volume of the music festival.

Angela Tang, a retired resident of Oak Square, said she was not notified in advance of the festival in a manner accessible to her, resulting in confusion on Sunday night when she could hear the music but could

not identify the source of the noise.

“I walked about five blocks,

I do think that they do a very good job of controlling the environment around it making sure that people are...safe.

Elaine Meehan Oak Square Resident

at least five blocks, to see where the loud party comes from,”

Tang said.

Tang said she hopes that in the future, the music festival will hand out flyers to notify senior residents that do not see social media alerts.

She also said she believes that Boston Calling should end performances at 10 p.m. in order to respect residents.

“I think 10 o’clock all the bands should be shut off,” Tang said.

Boston Calling did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday afternoon. The festival maintained a community hotline to field concerns throughout the festival’s run from Friday to Sunday.

Elaine M. Meehan, another Oak Square resident, offered a different perspective, noting

that she enjoyed seeing Boston Calling hosted in Allston.

“I think it’s great where it is, I think it is very much in line with who Allston has really become as a part of the city,” Meehan said.

“I would kind of be sad if they took it away.”

Meehan also commended Boston Calling and Harvard for its organization and communication in the form of traffic signs and social media postings.

“I do think that they do a very good job of controlling the environment around it making sure that people are… safe and the people are aware that Boston Calling is coming,” she said. brie.buchanan@thecrimson.com

its property owner not to say anything further.

“It was kind of the agreement that we made with the property owner that we would just say that, and that was the statement that we put out,” he said.

A spokesperson for Trinity could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Several John Harvard’s patrons said they had enjoyed eating there and that they were surprised to hear it was closing.

Charlie M. Needle ’59, who was visiting Harvard for a reunion, dined at the restaurant Tuesday with his former Winthrop House roommate. He said

that it was “excellent” and that he hadn’t known about the impending closure.

Harvard Law School student Christopher P. Childers, who also ate there Tuesday said he was sad to see a common Square destination close.

“I’ve been here a few times,” he said. “I feel like it’s a staple.”

Another patron lamented the changing landscape of restaurants in Harvard Square.

“I would rather support, you know, a smaller business than a chain,” said David R. Childers, Christopher’s father. ellen.burstein@thecrimson.com.

Grad From Page 1

Never miss a moment.

The Crimson @thecrimson

College Seniors Honored at Black, Latinx Graduations Before the College-specific event, undergraduate and graduate students gathered in Radcliffe Yard Tuesday afternoon for a University-wide black commencement.

At the Latinx commencement ceremony, graduates received sarape stoles and listened to speakers who discussed their experiences at Harvard as Latinx students. The ceremony was narrated in both English and Spanish.

Harvard Extension School student Adan Beltrones Orozco began the event’s speaking portion with an address in Spanish. After that, Zoe D. Ortiz ’19, a Crimson editorial editor, delivered the undergraduate address, during which she urged her fellow graduates to remain proud of their Latinx heritage.

“I am a product of so many struggles and so much perseverance in the face of a country that doesn’t believe that I belong within its borders,” Ortiz said. “I am a brown girl, a Latina, taking up space and places that were not made with her in mind.”

Ana R. C. Andrade ’19, who attended the Latinx graduation ceremony, said she appreciated the inclusion of languages other than English in the event’s proceedings.

“So many parents, maybe Spanish or Portuguese speaking, who maybe feel a bit out of place in other Harvard events... can come into that space and really be greeted by a language that they know and have that bit of culture there,” Andrade said.

The College’s black graduation ceremony featured musical performances from students, presentations of awards, and a speech from Tatyana M. Ali ’02 — an actress best known for her role as Ashley Banks in the comedy series “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.” Though Professor of the Practice of Public Policy Cornel R. West ’74 had been scheduled to speak, he was unable to make

it to the ceremony.

In her keynote speech, Banks commended students for their accomplishments and encouraged them to make a “lasting impact” through meaningful relationships and support systems beyond college.

“Investing in your community will give you a sense of purpose much greater than yourself,” she said. “Continue to create community wherever you find it.”

Student speaker Devontae A. Freeland ’19 urged attendees to continuously examine “the meaning of black community” after graduation.

“How do we increase black solidarity that is inclusive of mixed race, queer, transgender, and Afro-Latinx communities?” Freeland asked. “How do we make space for other narratives of blackness?”

After the speeches, attendees took a moment of silence to remember Courtney S. Blair ’19, who passed away in 2018.

To conclude the event, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Claudine Gay presented kente stoles to the graduates with John S. Wilson — the former president of Morehouse College and a senior adviser and strategist to Harvard’s president. Gay became the first African American FAS dean in August.

This year’s ceremonies were not the first time Harvard hosted commencement exercises for students from historically marginalized groups. This year marked the fifth annual Latinx commencement and the third annual black commencement.

Several College students said they were frustrated that the University-wide Latinx graduation overlapped with the College’s ceremony for black students because they were unable to attend both.

Melonie N. Vaughn ’19, who attended Black College Graduation, said the conflict was “unfair” to students who identify as

both Latinx and black.

“I identify equally with both.

I’m a black Latina,” Vaughn said. “I shouldn’t have to choose between my identities.”

Andrade said she thinks of both parts of her black and Latinx identity as “each a piece of the puzzle that is me.”

“By themselves, none of them really makes me feel complete,” she said. “That’s why I wanted to be part of both of those [events] to fill those different parts of my identity.”

Andrade and Vaughn said they think the conflict stemmed from the fact that the Latinx graduation was organized primarily by graduate students who might not have known about the College-specific event for black students.

Andrade said she reached out to the Latinx Graduation Committee to inquire about the conflict.

She said the organizing committee told her to notify them if she decided not to attend the University-wide event so they could open up a spot for someone on the waitlist.

“Immediately being hit with the, ‘If you’re not going, we’re giving your spot away for someone else’ in the moment felt a little jarring,” Andrade said.

The committee, which comprises nine graduate students and two administrators, did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Andrade said she does not hold “any hard feelings” with either of the event planning committees despite the scheduling conflict.

“I think a lot of this comes from Harvard’s institutional lack of support, supporting all of these events, because it then falls on all students themselves,” she said.

College spokesperson Rachael Dane did not respond to a request for comment. declan.knieriem@thecrimson.com amanda.su@thecrimson.com

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SPORTS

IN OTHER NEWS

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | MAY 29, 2019

SOFTBALL

BASEBALL

After winning the Ivy League Championship Series, Harvard faced off against Arizona, the sixth-ranked team in the country, falling short in the Tucson regional.

Harvard will open up the NCAA Tournament in Oklahoma City against the region’s hist and top-ranked team, Oklahoma State. The region is rounded out by Nebraska and UConn.

BASEBALL

Harvard Wins Ivy Championship Over Columbia

By AMIR MAMDANI CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

It hadn’t happened in 14 years.

For the first time since the 2005 season, Harvard baseball won the Ivy League Playoff Series, defeating Columbia by an 8-6 score in a pulse-racing 11-inning affair and advancing to the Regional round of the NCAA Tournament.

“It feels amazing,” said junior pitcher Hunter Bigge on reaching a mark that Harvard baseball had been unable to accomplish for nearly a decade and a half. “Just knowing how far this team has come and seeing how hard everybody works every single day when we’re at the ball field, it really feels good to enjoy the fruits of our labor.”

A season-high three-inning performance from junior closer Kieran Shaw was crucial on Sunday, as the hard-throwing righty pitched the 9th, 10th, and 11th innings, shepherding the Crimson (27-13, 14-7 Ivy) through several stressful situations. While the win was the Los Gatos, Calif., native’s first of the season, it was hardly the only highlight of what has been an incredible, record-breaking campaign for the third-year.

If Shaw closing out the game felt appropriate, it was equally apt that senior first baseman Patrick McColl had the two biggest hits of the series-clinching victory. With Harvard trailing Columbia (19-23, 13-8) by a 4-1 score in the 6th inning and with two runners on base, McColl delivered one of the biggest hits of the season, crushing a ball over the center-field fence to tie the game and send Lions’ starter Ethan Abrams to the showers.

Five innings later, McColl came to the dish with the score knotted up at six. The bases were loaded with one out, and Columbia’s ace reliever Dan Harrington quickly earned an 0-2 advantage in the count. But just as he has all season, the Los Altos, Calif., native came through in the clutch, driving a double to left field to knock in the winning runs, giving the Crimson the 8-6 lead in the 11th.

McColl’s five-RBI performance was a fitting conclusion to a terrific campaign out of the three-hole in the Harvard lineup from which he hit .396 and knocking in 12 home runs and 46 RBIs. His performance was crucial in helping the hosts snap the program-record Ivy League Championship drought.

“Everybody knows who Pat is now,” said Harvard coach Bill Decker of his star first baseman, who led the country in batting average for a brief spell at the beginning of the season. “He just finds a way to have ice in his veins, he’s part of that resilient ­

PILE UP Following its extra-inning, 8-6 win over conference rival Columbia, the Crimson celebrate its first birth in the NCAA Tournament since 2005. TIMOTHY R. O’MEARA—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

factor that we talk about. Wonderful, outstanding human being, he’s just unbelievable.”

Sunday’s contest lasted just shy of four hours, featuring several momentum swings in front of a packed house of 1,050 at Joseph O’Donnell Field. The Crimson swept the weekend series from the Lions, but both games were thrilling affairs, an appropriate conclusion to an Ancient Eight campaign that featured a tintillating threegame series between the two sides a mere three weeks ago.

Columbia jumped out to a 3-0 lead off of Harvard senior starter Kevin Stone, who yielded three runs in three innings on Sunday. Stone, a fouryear starter who was moved out of and back into the rotation this season, struggled early, but found a way to work out of trouble and keep his team in

the ballgame.

“Those guys have been troopers our entire Harvard baseball careers and they’ve thrown the ball really well for us,” said Bigge about Stone and his fellow senior starter Ian Miller. “Kevin gave us a good start today and kept us in the game and that’s all it’s about for starting pitchers.”

Stone’s start might not have occurred under different circumstances, but with star sophomore starting pitcher Buddy Hayward returning from injury, the veteran was thrust onto center stage for the series-clinching victory. Although Hayward was unable to start, he entered the fray in the 7th inning with Harvard leading by a 6-4 score, recording a crucial out from the bullpen to strand a pair of runners.

When Hayward returned

for the 8th inning, the starter turned-reliever did not fare as well, surrendering a twoout base hit that would score a pair of runs, tying the game at six apiece. Hayward was able to escape the 8th inning without further damage, setting the stage for nerve-wracking 9th and 10th innings, before the Crimson finally broke things open in the 11th.

If Sunday’s game featured back-and-forth offense from both sides, Saturday’s series opener was the epitome of a pitchers duel. Bigge toed the rubber, the staff’s No. 1 pitcher in Hayward’s absence, and threw a complete game masterpiece. The third-year surrendered just one 9th-inning run on a questionably-called balk, tossing a herculean 128 pitches, but was matched practically inning-for-inning by Columbia’s

DRIVING ‘EM HOME Senior slugger Pat McColl drove in five baserunners in the series’ clincher to keep his final season alive and advance to his first NCAA Tournament appearance. TIMOTHY R. O’MEARA—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

Josh Simpson.

Simpson and Bigge posted goose eggs until the bottom of the 7th inning, when Bigge made yet another imprint on the game — from the batter’s box.

Bigge drove a Simpson fastball out to right field to lead off the inning, and the ball carried over the right field wall to break the impasse, giving Harvard a 1-0 lead that it would supplement with two 8th-inning runs.

Bigge’s performance was particularly impressive in a league that rarely features pitchers that bat for themselves in lieu of a designated hitter. The deadlock-breaking home run embodied the age-old baseball adage about the importance of pitchers “helping themselves”.

“It just comes down to preparation,” said Bigge of his twoway performance. “I don’t really think about it too much on game day.”

With the Crimson leading by three runs entering the 9th inning, Coach Decker had a decision to make. Stick with Bigge, or go to the pen for a closing performance from Shaw. The first two runners reached base on singles, bringing the tying run to the plate in the form of Columbia’s star Chandler Bengtson. With Bigge’s pitch count well over 100, Shaw’s entrance into the game felt inevitable.

The right-hander was loose in the bullpen, and ready if called upon.

But Decker trusted Bigge to finish what he started, a decision that paid off in more than one respect. While Bigge’s shutout was spoiled by the balk call by the home plate umpire, he was able to finish off Saturday’s final three outs, preserving Shaw’s arm for Sunday’s contest. Shaw would have unlikely been able to throw three innings on Sunday were it not for Bigge’s complete-game performance.

Bigge, Stone, Shaw, Hayward, and so many others embody the success Harvard baseball has experienced all season.

Many players have had their opportunities to contribute, and also trust their teammates to finish the job.

This is a Crimson team that has not lost a series all season.

That is a statistic that should not be overlooked, particularly as Harvard departs the confines of the Ancient Eight for the NCAA Tournament, an entirely new ballgame. In just over a week, the team will gather on Memorial Day for College Baseball’s selection show, when the Crimson will discover their fate for the Regional round of the tournament.

Powerhouses like UCLA, Vanderbilt, Stanford, and Oregon State loom large in the distance. But with a respite of play for two weeks, Coach Decker’s team can afford to take a step back and appreciate what it has accomplished.

“There’s been some challenges,” said Coach Decker of his journey at the helm of a Harvard program that went went 10-31 and and 11-28 in his first two seasons in 2013 and 2014.

“This is the best moment that I’ve personally had, it’s just my feeling about this group of kids.”

Harvard baseball hadn’t been to the NCAA Tournament since the 2005 season. But in 2019, not only did they win the league outright, they won two out of three games in each Ancient Eight series, ironically earning its first sweep of the conference season in the Championship series.

There are 11 days between now and the Crimson’s first game in the Regional round of the NCAA Tournament, on May 31st. There will be hours of preparation, scouting, flight-booking, hotel-reserving, and practice, between now and then. But those are worries for another day.

Ultimately, everyone who was in attendance at Joseph O’Donnell Field on Sunday will be left with the memory of over 30 Harvard baseball players storming the field and mobbing Shaw, reveling in the taste of an Ivy League title that has been 14 years in the making.

For Coach Decker and his players, it’s a moment they will surely never forget. amir.mamdani@thecrimson.com.

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THE HARVARD CRIMSON | MAY 29, 2019