The Tufts Daily - Tuesday, September 24, 2019

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WOMEN’S SOCCER

‘The Goldfinch’ stuns visually, lacks emotional depth see ARTS&LIVING / PAGE 5

Jumbos defeat Mules, move to 5–1

Editorial: Rove should be held accountable for Iraq War involvement see OPINION / PAGE 9

SEE SPORTS / PAGE 10

THE

INDEPENDENT

STUDENT

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TUFTS

UNIVERSITY

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T HE T UFTS DAILY

VOLUME LXXVIII, ISSUE 13

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, MASS.

tuftsdaily.com

Merchant to serve as Tufts’ new Muslim Chaplain by Jilly Rolnick

Assistant News Editor

Abdul-Malik Merchant has begun his role as the new Muslim chaplain for the Tufts University Chaplaincy. While at Tufts, he also will continue to serve in his current position as the Associate Imam of the Islamic Society of Boston Cultural Center (ISBCC), a mosque and community center in Roxbury that serves around 1,500 congregants. According to an email from the University Chaplaincy, Merchant began his new role on Sept. 1. According to the email, Merchant has a wide range of experience working with a diverse group of people. “He has experience across communities and age ranges, including working with inner city youth in Washington, D.C. and teaching classes as a Junior Resident Scholar at the MAS [Muslim

American Society] Community Center in Alexandria, VA,” the email read. The email added that Merchant is enrolled at Boston University’s master’s program in theology and social work. Merchant, originally from the Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia metropolitan area, has always aspired to work in a spiritual context. “It’s my calling,” he said in an email to the Daily. “I pray I’m able to do so sincerely for God’s sake and effectively.” After spending almost 10 years overseas at an Islamic seminary within Umm al-Qura University in Mecca, Merchant has been working in the Boston area for three years. Prior to his current post at the ISBCC, which he has held since 2016, Merchant served as the Muslim spiritual advisor at Northeastern University. The search process to fill the chaplaincy vacancy was mostly conducted over the summer and kickstarted by former

IGL receives 5-year $100,000 grant from Cummings Foundation

University Chaplain Greg McGonigle, according to the Office of the President’s Chief of Staff Michael Baenen. “The interview process gave students, staff and faculty a chance to meet with candidates, and campus stakeholders indicated they were very excited by what Abdul-Malik would bring to the position,” Baenen said. “I am delighted that he has joined the Chaplaincy team.” Merchant replaces Celene Ibrahim, who left Tufts last spring after five years to teach at Groton School. Merchant’s appointment comes during a range of changes taking place within the chaplaincy, such as McGonigle’s sudden departure this summer and the appointment of Jennifer Howe Peace as interim chaplain. In the fall of 2018, Rabbi Naftali Brawer began his new position as university Jewish chaplain, replacing Jeffrey Summit.

JULIA PRESS / THE TUFTS DAILY ARCHIVES

by Daisy Hu Staff Writer

The Institute for Global Leadership (IGL) has received a $100,000 grant titled “$100K for 100” from the Cummings Foundation, one of the largest foundations in New England, according to the IGL September newsletter.

Please recycle this newspaper

Mostly Sunny 78 / 56

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The grant will fund an IGL project titled “Human Rights, Human Security and Preparing the Next Generation of U.S. and Global Policy Leaders” and will be dispersed over five years and will also fund other IGL programs and initiatives, according to the newsletter. see TEAM EFFORT, page 2 For breaking news, our content archive and exclusive content, visit tuftsdaily.com @tuftsdaily

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see ABDUL-MALIK MERCHANT, page 2

After Community Day, Tufts organizations prepare for inaugural OUTREACH Day by Jilly Rolnick

Assistant News Editor

Karl Kaiser speaks on ‘The Future of Europe’ panel at the Institute for Global Leadership’s 31st annual EPIIC International Symposium on ‘Europe in Turmoil’ on Friday, Feb. 19, 2016.

The University Chaplaincy is excited to welcome Merchant to its team and learn from his pool of knowledge, according to Catholic Chaplain Lynn Cooper. “Abdul-Malik is passionate about the intersection of mental health and spiritual life,” she said in an email to the Daily. “His warmth is contagious. I look forward to learning from him and seeing him walk with students on their paths at Tufts and beyond.” Peace highlighted Merchant’s unique training and skills that he brings to Tufts, including his fluency in both Arabic and English. “Abdul-Malik Merchant is a thoughtful, personable, and deeply knowledgeable religious leader,” Peace said in an email to the Daily. “He has extensive training and background in both Islamic studies as well as pastoral care and counseling.”

Disclaimer: Mitch Lee is a staff writer at the Tufts Daily. Lee was not involved in the writing or editing of this article. Tufts will host its first full-scale OUTREACH Day, a day of service in the area around Tufts aimed at introducing firstyear students to service opportunities at Tufts and connecting them with the broader Medford and Somerville communities, on Sept. 28, according to Tufts Community Outreach Project (TCOP) organizer Matthew Soderberg. “The four of us … had a common desire to energize students around service, something that had played a large role in our lives before Tufts,” the four main organizers, Soderberg, Ailie Orzak, Mitch Lee and Patrick Liu, said in a joint statement to the Daily. “We saw the creation of OUTREACH Day as an opportunity to offer opportunities of service early in students’ Tufts experiences for those at Tufts who might otherwise miss out.” Last March, a smaller pilot OUTREACH program with 70 participants occurred to test different ways to coordinate this year’s event. “This experience taught us so much about service learning and organizing, and ulti-

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mately it encouraged us to pursue a full program this fall,” the statement said. This year, the organizers hope to have up to 200 participants and volunteers and are working with 17 community organizations, including The Elizabeth Peabody House and Friends of the Middlesex Fells, across Medford, Somerville and other communities near Tufts, according to the organizers’ statement. The event is focused on first-years, but the service groups will include upperclassmen and staff, according to Soderberg. All the service events will be carried out off campus in Tufts’ host communities and will be followed by a barbecue for students. There will also be a time for reflection and goal setting before and after the community service. Medford Mayor Stephanie Burke will also give a keynote speech, and TCOP will set up a small “mobile museum” so participants can learn more about the organizations they visited and their host communities, according to the organizers. The event is related to the Tufts Community Day held last Sunday on Sept. 22, according to the joint statement. TCOP has partnered with the Office of Community and Government Relations, which hosts

NEWS............................................1 FEATURES.................................3 ARTS & LIVING.......................5

see OUTREACH, page 2

FUN & GAMES......................... 7 OPINION.....................................8 SPORTS.....................................10


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