Monday, January 28, 2013

Daily

the Brown

vol. cxlviii, no. 4

INSIDE

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Plaza people

Herald

since 1891

Monday, January 28, 2013

planning in progress

Committees reveal initial recommendations

Haffenreffer exhibit features Kennedy Plaza footage

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Actor’s guilt Trinity Rep. brings ‘Crime and Punishment’ to life

Herald File Photos and Courtesy of Brown University Clockwise: President Christina Paxson, Dean of the Graduate School Peter Weber, Executive Vice President for Planning and Policy Russell Carey, University Librarian Harriette Hemmassi, Provost Mark Schlissel P’15, Director of Financial Aid Jim Tilton, Dean of the Faculty Kevin McLaughlin P’12, Dean of the College Katherine Bergeron.

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Divine comedy Romero ’14 discusses the line between jokes and offense today

tomorrow

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Discussions highlight diversity and internationalization as University goals

By SABRINA IMBLER SENIOR STAFF WRITER

The University published interim reports Friday for the six strategic planning committees that are expected to guide President Christina Paxson’s tenure, offering preliminary recommendations and soliciting community involvement in the coming months.

The committees — which concern financial aid, educational innovation, online education, doctoral education, infrastructure and faculty retention, recruitment and development — will submit finalized recommendations to the Corporation in May. “The hope is over this semester to do more outreach to various constituents, students, faculty and alumni groups,” said Kimberly Roskiewicz, assistant to the president, adding that administrators hope by the end of the semester, “to have more of a focus where we might be heading and how to utilize resources going forward.”

“We presume that a lot of the ideas will evolve, some ideas will drop and some brand new ones will be added to the fodder,” said Provost Mark Schlissel P’15. “Prioritization is very important, a big part of the strategic planning process.”

The committees first presented their findings at a retreat last Tuesday, where all committee members present discussed the broad direction of planning.

“An eight-hour conference the day before school starts is not what one would say is the best way to spend the last day of break, but the conference was actually very fun,” said Patricia Ybarra, co-chair of / / Plan page 6 the Committee

Inside Report emphasizes expanded curriculum: 6 Committee looks to diversify, retain faculty with recruitment and support: 7 Committee recommends increased support for grad students: 7 Plan endorses universal need-blind admissions: 8 Report emphasizes community integration: 8 Report prioritizes integrating, incentivizing online courses: 8

U. staff members display artistic flair Twelve employees showcase their diversity through 16 works of art in a Granhoff exhibition

By APARAAJIT SRIRAM Senior Staff Writer

Though most students know him for his long golden hair and post at the entrance to the Sciences Library, few are familiar with Steve Gervais’ second career, which showcases his more

creative and artistic side.

“I like to call my two pieces ‘Strange Bedfellows,’” said Gervais, who in addition to being a library clerk, has worked as an artist since the 1970s and illustrated for the likes of Stephen King, Clive Barker and other horror novelists. His two works, currently on display at a staff art exhibition at the Perry and Marty Granoff Center for the Creative Arts, juxtapose gruesome and beautiful scenes — the first inspired by the 1979 film “Alien” and the second in/ / Staff page 3

DAVE DECKEY / HERALD The Department of Planning and Development will select the best proposal to revamp the study area around Thayer.

Thayer redevelopment spurs collaboration

Committee seeks the lowest bid that represents the community’s interest and boosts the economy

By KATE KIERNAN Contributing writer

Consultants will submit bids at a Board of Contract and Supply meeting in City Hall this afternoon for a project spearheaded by a committee of College Hill stakeholders to focus on the commercial and residential devel-

opment of Thayer Street and the surrounding area. A committee headed by the City of Providence’s Department of Planning and Development will review the proposals and accept the plan from the lowest bidder that best adheres to the city’s guidelines and goals within 60 days, according to the Request for Proposals published by the city in December.

The proposals will be evaluated by a small committee of representatives from the Department of Planning and Development, the College Hill Neighborhood Association, the

Thayer Street District Management Authority, the Providence Preservation Society and the University, who will be working together to craft a plan to improve the area’s economy by drawing a new market of retailers and consumers to College Hill.

As the committee considers how to modernize the study area — which is the portion of College Hill enclosed

by Thayer Street, Lloyd Avenue, Hope Street and Waterman Street — it aims to address the concerns of stakeholders who wish to beautify the cityscape, / / Thayer page 3 maintain the

ALEXANDRA URBAN / HERALD An exhibit at the Perry and Marty Granoff Center for the Creative Arts features mixed media works by staff drawn from a variety of inspirations.

2 university news calendar Today

jan. 28

4 P.m.

ToMORROW

jan. 29

4 p.m.

MLK Letter Discussion

Political Judgment & Decision Making

MacMillan Hall Room 115

Metcalf 101

5 p.m.

7 p.m.

Classics/India Initiative Lecture

Film: “The Last Station”

Macfarlane House Room 101

Smith-Buonanno, Room G01

VERNEy-WOOLLEY

LUNCH Pesto Pasta, Garlic Bread, Broccoli Rabe, Meatball Grinder, Fresh Whole Green Beans, New Potato Salad

Honey Mustard Chicken Sandwich, Vegetarian Pot Pie with Biscuits, Krinkle Cut Fries, Roasted Beets

DINNER Vegan Stuffed Acorn Squash, Baked Sweet Potatoes, Flamed Grilled Vegan Patty, Bourbon BBQ Chicken Quarters

JanLab builds undergrad networking Undergrads connected with alumni from a variety of professional backgrounds

By KIKI BARNES SENIOR STAFF WRITER

menu SHARPE REFECTORY

the brown daily herald Monday, January 28, 2013

Roast Beef Au Jus, Wax Beans, General Tso Chicken Stir-fry, General Tso Vegetable Stir-fry, Rotini

Sudoku

Crossword

Students and alums gathered for a weekend of networking and career exploration at the second annual January Career Laboratory, or JanLab. The workshop, hosted by the Center for Careers and Life After Brown, was held on campus Jan. 17-19.

This year, 150 students and 85 alums attended the event, an increase from last year, when 70 alums came to campus, said Andrew Simmons, director of CareerLAB. Simmons said CareerLAB extended the deadline for the online application due to the large influx of last-minute applications. Unlike most of CareerLAB’s workshops, JanLab had a $150 fee, an increase from last year’s $130.

“The fee increase represented a higher cost of the first program than we anticipated,” Simmons said. He added that the fee helps to ensure students accepted to the program are officially committed to participating.

CareerLAB worked with the Office of Financial Aid to waive the fee for students who demonstrated need for financial assistance, though Simmons said he was uncertain of how many students took advantage of this option.

Though last year’s inaugural JanLab was met with interest from students, CareerLAB made a number of improvements this year, Simmons said.

“The major difference was a focus on networking and giving students and alumni more time to talk to each other,” Simmons said.

Last year, students could hear from 30 alums in over-the-phone sessions, but Simmons said organizers eliminated this component in order to facilitate more personalized contact for this year’s workshop.

Sharon Sun ’14, who attended JanLab two years in a row, said last year’s event was longer and more intensive.

“It was way too much,” she said.

“This year they managed to keep the core principles without it being overwhelming.”

Dani Grodsky ’14, a student intern at JanLab, said she was inspired by the selection of speakers, many of whom held prominent jobs in their industries.

“This year it ran more smoothly,” she added. “There was more time in between panels for students and alums to talk.”

Courtesy of Ileana Wu

During this year’s JanLab, students and alums met face-to-face to forge personal connections and prepare for the job hunt.

Of the student participants, around half were seniors and the other half were mostly juniors, Simmons said. But more underclassmen participated this year than last year, said Chad Buechel ’03, a consultant who participated in a panel discussion on careers in business consulting. “It’s really never too early” to begin the job hunt, he added.

Alums who came to campus said they felt this networking experience delivered solid preparation for undergraduates.

“It’s a place where you can talk about your skills and the real-world application of them,” said Miles Hovis ’08, another alum.

Ileana Wu ’16 said she went to JanLab to get her first experience writing resumes and pursuing internships. “I wanted to see what I have the chance to do with my life,” she said.

Some upperclassmen said they had a more clearly defined idea of which career fields they wanted to explore by talking to alums.

“I came back (this year) because after sophomore year, I had a better idea of what I wanted,” Sun said.

But students still uncertain about their futures also participated in JanLab to explore different post-graduation options. Finance, consulting and entertainment accounted for three of the most well-represented career paths

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among alums, Simmons said, adding that government, journalism, law, science and technology were also featured at the workshop.

“If you don’t fall easily into a specific category, this is the program for you,” Simmons said.

Alums expressed excitement to help students and said they viewed JanLab as a valuable resource for students trying to bridge the gap between their academic studies and their career options.

Hovis, who was an anthropology concentrator, now works in project development for a solar power firm in Massachusetts. “I didn’t know I would be working in the tech sector,” he said.

“Finding a job and figuring out your path after Brown is stressful,” said Lauren Alexanderson ’06, who helped moderate a panel on public health. “I wanted to see if I could help (students) figure out what the next step is they should be taking.”

JanLab also offered networking opportunities for students to keep in touch with alums after the workshop.

Buechel, Hovis and Alexanderson all said a few students have already contacted them for additional advice.

Hovis noted the importance of cultivating personal relationships when exploring potential careers. “That’s the big thing about networking,” he said. “It’s the people you know and they know.”

CareerLAB organizers said they plan to host another JanLab next year, adding that applications will be available in the fall.

arts & culture 3

the brown daily herald Monday, January 28, 2013

Pedestrian art exhibit walks through city life Final project draws on student research to display Kennedy Plaza in a wider urban context

By KATHARINE GROETZINGER Contributing writer

“City Plaza People,” an exhibit currently featured at the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology, brings the hustle and bustle of downtown Providence to the Main Green. The sight of buses rolling to a stop and people milling about greets visitors, thanks to a projector running footage taken at Kennedy Plaza on one of the museum’s main walls.

The exhibit is the brainchild of Rebecca Carter, postdoctoral fellow in anthropology and professor of last semester’s ANTH 1236: “Urban Life: Anthropology in and of the City.” Instead of assigning a traditional paper, Carter used the exhibit as the final project for the class. The Haffenreffer has a long history of partnering with students and faculty members to put together exhibits using artifacts from the museum’s collection, said Chief Curator Kevin Smith.

But this exhibit uses only studentgathered research, a move that Smith described as controversial. “I advocated for this project despite, and because, it was different,” Smith said.

A typical journey through the exhibit begins with the video footage described. Next, a brief look at famous city squares throughout the world gives global context to the plaza. In the following section, the viewer learns about the history of the plaza, which originally functioned

/ / Thayer page 1

university news

Thayer Street District Management Authority Providence Preservation Society Brown University

BOWEN

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College Hill Neighborhood Association

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Department of Planning and Development

shot down in the face of opposition from neighborhood residents, and a 2011 proposal for the same project is still pending.

Due to the absence of a local grocery store or pharmacy for residents and attractions — like art galleries and boutiques — for tourists, Thayer Street currently serves primarily as “a food court,” Bishop said. In order for Thayer Street to appeal to residents, students and visitors, there must be a balance of restaurant and retail establishments, said Allison Spooner, president of the College Hill Neighborhood Association.

In order to make the study area a physically beautiful, financially successful and sustainable place to live and visit, the area’s utilities and landscape should be improved by providing additional parking, wider sidewalks and new signage, Bishop said.

Planting new greenery, restoring older buildings, reestablishing the boundaries of the neighborhood’s historic district and demolishing ugly buildings — like the strip that includes FroYo World and the Metro Mart — could help beautify the area, Hall noted.

In ongoing talks with the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority, the Department of Planning has discussed constructing a streetcar line on fixed rail to connect Thayer Street to the Jewelry District and to areas in downtown Providence to increase ridership and support economic growth, said Amy Pettine, RIPTA’s director of planning and marketing. While the streetcar plans will require additional

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partment of Facilities Management.

Now, instead of focusing on projects on a contentious case-to-case basis, the committee — which aims to represent all parties with vested interests in the area — looks to revitalize Thayer Street so that it can be successful and sustainable, McCormick said.

Past efforts to expand the University’s campus have been met with resistance by College Hill residents, said James Hall, executive director of the Providence Preservation Society, as the two parties clashed over their diverging interests, leaving neither wholly satisfied with Thayer Street’s development. Though the University “has become a much better neighbor” over the years through its support for the neighborhood’s historic preservation efforts and annual payments in lieu of taxes to the city, “old suspicions die hard,” Hall said.

A more cohesive vision of Thayer Street’s future can be realized if all parties with a vested interest in a prosperous Thayer Street collaborate with one another, McCormick said.

Despite its prime location near the University’s campus and easy accessibility from downtown, Thayer Street lacks many businesses that could serve the community and attract tourists to the area, said Ed Bishop ’54 P’86 P’91, chair of the Thayer Street District Management Authority and board member of the College Hill Neighborhood Association who owns properties in the area. Bishop’s 2004 and 2008 bids to build a luxury $35 million hotel on Brook Street were

spired by a photo Gervais took years ago of a snowy Charlesfield Street.

Along with 11 other University staff employees, he currently has work featured in a “Staff Appreciation Exhibit” on display in Granoff.

From photography to etching, acrylic to oils and even bamboo to fabric, the exhibit showcases 16 works created by 12 staffers in a variety of media.

The exhibit was the brainchild of Shayna Zema ’15, whose connections to both the Granoff Center and to staff across campus readily positioned her to organize the event, she said. The exhibit was curated by Elyse McNiff, associate curator at the Granoff Center.

Zema formed the idea for the exhibit last semester, McNiff said. The two sent out a call for submissions from staff members early in the year to ensure sufficient time to submit work. Richard Fishman, director of the council and professor of visual arts, was committed to the idea that everyone who submitted work would have at least one of their pieces shown, McNiff said.

The exhibit fits well with the ethos of the Granoff Center, which aims to be a hub of a variety of creative endeavors on campus, McNiff said. “We weren’t looking for just fine art. We were looking for ... a more holistic approach to art,” she said, noting examples of mixed media presentations and textile works in the exhibit.

Much of the work reflects the diversity of the participants. An administrative assistant at the Warren Alpert Medical School, Esther Escotto said her work, “Bushel of Bamboo II,” was inspired by her life in the Dominican Republic before she immigrated to the United States. “Bushel” is made up of a bundle of four-foot long bamboo

sticks bound together with rope, which hangs from the wall to create a mock shelf holding authentic Dominican iron and tin containers laden with dried lentils, which Escotto and her family would use to cook rice and meat on Christmas and other occasions. “I wanted to incorporate a piece of my history, my heritage in it,” Escotto said.

Lisa Noble Reenan, an administrative coordinator for the Public Health Program, submitted a work titled “Hartford Sunset,” which she said was inspired by a “pointillismtype effect.” The painting was Reenan’s artistic reaction to a beautiful sunset playing out before her eyes while driving back home from an old job in Hartford, she said.

The remaining works vary in subject and medium. Tracey Maroni, administrator at the Center for Vision Research, has some of her recent paintings on display. Close friends with Reenan, the two decided to participate in the exhibit together and have been attending campus art shows for some time, Reenan said.

Nancy Baker, administrative assistant for the School of Engineering for 27 years, submitted a work in quilting titled “Welcome.”

The event garnered interest in expanding the opportunities University staff members have to share their experiences and histories with the Brown community. “It would be really nice to have any kinds of events to showcase what staff members do outside of work,” she said. “I think that oftentimes translates into a better work environment. It makes you feel appreciated as an employee.”

The exhibit will be running through Friday, Feb. 8, and there will be a closing reception for artists, organizers and other guests at 5:30 p.m.

Thursday, Feb. 7.

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safety of the community and preserve the area’s history, according to the Request for Proposals. Consultants will be chosen based on their work experience, ability to cooperate and communicate with the public and the quality and cost-effectiveness of their plans.

This is not the first time individual stakeholders have initiated discussions about transforming the economy and conditions of Thayer Street. Over the years, groups in the area have disagreed over particular development projects instead of collaborating to improve the area as a whole, said Mike McCormick, assistant vice president for planning, design and construction in the De-

BRITTANY COMUNALE / HERALD

The “City Plaza People,” created by students as a final project for their Anthropology course, exhibit showcases past design plans for Kennedy Plaza. as a train station and has since served for the plaza cover the exhibit’s fias an important civic forum, once nal wall. The pictures range from a as the venue for a speech given by disgruntled-looking woman whose President John F. Kennedy. sign reads “more bathrooms” to one The exhibit also showcases a col- of a beaming young man who wants lection of past and present plans for “basketball courts.” While many of the plaza. the signs suggest a widespread desire “We went into this with the ques- for more bathrooms, others advocate tion of who is involved in planning for a safer, more commercial plaza public space,” said Aaron Reyes ’13, where people might congregate for who worked with other students to reasons other than taking the bus. put the section together.

Finally, visitors are asked to write A wall covered in photos of peo- down their own wishes for the plaza, ple who use the plaza illustrates the an idea Carter said was proposed public space’s human aspect, and by the students. “The idea is to get a sound station allows visitors to people to think about and understand listen to student-conducted inter- how they connect with and dwell views with the people photographed. within public places,” she added.

Pictures of people holding up signs “City Plaza People” will be on disdescribing their hopes and wishes play through March 31.

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WATERMA

Greg Jordan-Detamore / Herald

funding, Pettine added, RIPTA also plans to implement improvements, including new safety measures, to the Thayer Street tunnel with a recent $1 million grant from the federal government.

The University hopes students can be involved in the development process due to the regularity with which

many use the Thayer Street area, McCormick said. Though many will not be on campus long enough either to understand the context for many of the concerns or to see the projects implemented, Hall said, it is time to look at how to best utilize the area and plan thoughtfully for its future growth.

4 arts & Culture

the brown daily herald Monday, January 28, 2013

‘Crime and Punishment’ adaptation questions morality, justice Trinity Rep reimagines Dostoevesky’s classic novel in a modern light with only three actors

By CAROLINE SAINE STAFF WRITER

There is no escaping your conscience, Detective Porfiry warns Raskolnikov, a man about to be charged with the robbery and murder of an old pawnbroker. Trapped in his own mind, Raskolnikov suffers the greatest penalty for his crimes — the guilt that stems from committing a seemingly senseless crime — in the Trinity Repertory Company’s production of Marilyn Campbell’s and Curt Columbus’s adaptation of “Crime and Punishment.”

In a decrepit, one-room apartment in St. Petersburg, former student Rodion Raskolnikov, played by Stephen Thorne, contemplates his crime. Poor, unemployed and without promise, Raskolnikov drives himself to the brink of insanity through the act of murder. This stage adaptation of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s classic novel brings to life his struggles with morality, God and motivation in the aftermath of his crime.

Detective Porfiry Petrovich, played

by Dan Butler, both a friend and adversary to Raskolnikov, leads the investigation of the pawnbroker’s murder.

His interrogations are the vehicle for intellectual dialogue between the two and concern the psychology of criminal motivation and the question of earthly and divine judgments.

Director Brian Mertes highlights the novel’s most provocative themes, emphasizing a moral debate in which the characters question whether murder and crime can ever be justified.

Porfiry is enamored with Raskolnikov’s claim that all men are divided into two categories — ordinary and extraordinary. The latter, Raskolnikov claims, have the right to transgress the law in order to benefit humanity.

“Dostoevsky’s everyman, Raskolnikov, wants to succeed,” wrote Curt Columbus, the Richard L. Bready Artistic Director for Trinity Repertory and co-adaptor of the play, in a note to the audience. In the context of the global financial crisis, “Raskolnikov is all over our world right now, so his situation concerns us as much as ever.”

Trinity’s “Crime and Punishment” condenses Dostoevsky’s nearly 600page tome into a 90-minute play, using only three actors to portray several roles. Complex philosophical questions are handled elegantly in dialogue between the three central characters, Raskolnikov, Porfiry and Sonia, played

by Rachel Christopher MFA’11, though several subplots and supporting characters from the novel were omitted to focus on the overarching theme of Raskolnikov’s misdeed and its consequences.

The use of only three actors is effective. While Butler and Christopher shift effortlessly between characters, Thorne remains Raskolnikov throughout. The constant changes in time, location and characters create a sense of psychological confusion reflective of Raskolnikov’s state of mind.

Thorne speaks with a hollow, empty voice as Raskolnikov, portraying a man without strong motivations, defeated by the seeming injustice and meaning-

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lessness of life. He brings energy to a man driven near-lifeless by fever and psychological turmoil, highlighting Raskolnikov’s duality — a man who can be both benevolent and callous.

Christopher falls seamlessly into her roles, appearing broken yet hopeful as the prostitute Sonia, harsh as the old pawnbroker Alyona and vivacious as Alyona’s kindly sister, Lizaveta.

But Butler is the standout, bringing sensitivity to Porfiry and igniting the audience’s compassion as the shameless drunkard, Semyon Marmeladov.

The 19th century characters are reimagined in modern attire. Raskolnikov wears a dirty t-shirt, a pair of sweatpants, a grey overcoat and a baseball cap, while Christopher’s and Butler’s clothing change as the actors shift roles. Traversing between young and old, Christopher dresses in jeans when playing Sonia and wears a headscarf to embody the old pawnbroker, Alyona.

The contemporary outfits highlight the universality of the conflicts and emotions in the psychological drama.

The set design remains the same throughout the play and Raskolnikov is onstage at all times. There is a sense that the world has become compressed, underlining the claustrophobia of Raskolnikov’s emotional punishment as he is trapped within the confines of his own mind. The play moves fluidly between past and present to illustrate the buildup and aftereffects of the crime.

Raskolnikov’s apartment is cluttered with carpets, stools, chairs, lamps and a Crucifixion wall hanging, artfully portraying the squalor in which he lives. Three television screens, projecting scenes from a camera stationed

COURTESY OF MARK TUREK

Actors take to the stage in a one-set, three-man rendition of Dostoevsky’s timeless tale of retribution, ‘Crime and Punishment.’ onstage, highlight different characters’ sociated with guilt in the novel. faces throughout the play. A fourth The play deals masterfully with the projection — screened against the back darkest and most haunting questions wall of the stage — symbolically sug- of morality, justice and the presence of gests the notions of both watching God in the human experience. Trinity’s and being watched, themes inherently stage adaptation is a faithful retelling linked to Raskolnikov’s psychological of a classic story with deep import. struggles and introspection. But these “Crime and Punishment” runs projections distract from the larger through Feb. 24 at the Lederer Thethemes of loneliness and isolation as- ater Center.

Alums collaborate on mixed media exhibit

By UDAY SHRIRAM CONtributing writer

After four years as visual arts concentrators, Cecilia Salama ’12 and Jill Silverberg ’11 are no newcomers to exhibiting their artwork at Brown. This winter they collaborated on a mixed media installation, “ssided,” at the List Arts Center.

“Though the approach may be sculptural, in my eyes they are all paintings,” Salama wrote in an email to The Herald.

Salama’s previous works have included similar application of sculptural elements in conventional painting gallery settings.

The exhibit was designed to convey

“a visceral sense of materiality and a nod to new technology ... while still staying largely within traditional art mediums,” Silverberg wrote.

In addition to traditional materials, works in the exhibit incorporate latex, spool, vinyl, cellophane, oil and tea, as well as media elements including a digital audio-video composition. Despite their nontraditional elements, the works do not seem disjointed but rather part of a larger, more homogeneous set of ideas. As Salama wrote, the artists seem clearly “aware of what material (they) use as canvas.”

The installation comprises many individual pieces working together. Some

of these works are untitled, but those named include “Baby Face,” “Lukewarm Set-Up” and a series of smaller, narrative canvases including “Back off! You’re a lesbian.”

Both artists had several influences, and their work reflects these varying themes. Salama listed artists Karla Black, Gedi Sibony, Franz West and Esther Klas as continual sources of inspiration.

“There was no concrete, specific message that I intended to convey with our show, but I think that both Cecilia and I approach our work with many of the same concerns,” Silverberg wrote.

The exhibition can be viewed until Jan. 30.

arts & culture 5

the brown daily herald Monday, January 28, 2013

Committee recommends increased support for grad students Report prioritizes health care, financial aid and professional support in pursuit of excellence

By SONIA PHENE Senior Staff Writer

The Committee on Doctoral Education released an interim report Friday with recommendations for improving the University’s commitment to graduate studies.

The report highlighted initiatives specifically centered around achieving two objectives — excellence and distinctiveness — for graduate programs.

‘Bottom line’ of excellence One of the committee’s central recommendations for excellence suggested removing constraints the report said inhibit graduate students from performing at their best. Such initiatives include offering more financial support during the summer and improved health care packages.

“While we do offer summer support, some graduate students receive less money than students on (Undergraduate Teaching and Research Awards) do, and it’s not enough to pay the rent here sometimes,” said Peter Weber, dean of the graduate school and chair of the committee.

If graduate students have to get jobs over the summer to support themselves, it takes time away from potential research opportunities and skill-building activities, he said.

Samuel Franklin GS said he is glad the committee recognized that excellence is the “bottom line” of graduate education and is linked to material support from the University.

The report also recommended allowing students to use their studies for more than just the “traditional goals,” said Elizabeth Harrington, associate dean of biomedical graduate and postdoctoral studies and a member of

/ /Courses page 6 goal of 250 online or partially online courses in honor of the University’s 250th anniversary next year. These would include massive open online courses, for-credit summer courses and academic-year “flipped” courses, which often combine online lectures with in-person problem-solving and participatory work.

Also included in the report were recommendations to boost Brown’s connection with its surrounding community. The committee’s proposed Program in Engaged Scholarship would incorporate community involvement components throughout the curriculum, as well as a TRI-lab — teaching, research and impact — that would combine students, faculty and local leaders to address specific societal issues.

Both ideas — the Program in Engaged Scholarship and the TRI-lab — were already set in motion by the Swearer Center for Public Service last year, said Roger Nozaki MAT’89, director of the Swearer Center and associate dean of the College for Community and Global Engagement. “I felt like it was a strong statement of the values and context and culture of the Brown curriculum,” he said of the report, adding that the TRI-lab might be piloted as early as this fall.

the committee, perhaps by permitting graduate students to pursue off-campus educational experiences, like traveling abroad, in order to help them acquire skills outside of their research.

Another initiative looks to provide graduate students with more professional skills, like leadership and writing, though the specific methods of this program are yet to be determined, both Harrington and Weber said.

“How do you handle personal encounters? How are you an effective boss?” Harrington said. “These sorts of things are valuable to students both inside and outside of academia.”

The last two parts of the effort to bolster excellence are reviewing graduate studies — which would focus on gathering more data on students’ careers after they graduate — and boosting mentoring through initiatives like the Early Start Program.

The Early Start Program would offer a transition period for students who are qualified to enter the University but are not at the same level as their peers, Harrington said. “The idea is to give them a sort of boot camp in the summer to bring them up to the same point as someone with a stronger background,” she said.

Staying distinctive The other aspect of the report focused on maintaining the program’s distinctiveness from those at peer institutions through pilot programs like the Open Graduate Education Program, which allows students to gain expertise in a secondary discipline, and the Integrative Studies program, through which students can design their own fields of study.

Feedback from students and faculty members for the Open Graduate Education Program has been very positive, and the number of applicants exceeded the number of spots available last year, when the program began, Weber said.

The final initiative focused on iden-

tifying “curricular bridges,” through which students could engage in doctoral studies different from those that they pursued as undergraduates.

Weber said students sometimes feel constrained when choosing an undergraduate concentration because it “locks them into a track.”

“Sometimes students might want to break out of that mold, which is perfectly valid,” he said. “The question is how the University can enable students to do that.”

Some students said they are happy to see the University recognize the interdisciplinary needs of their studies.

“I’m in an interdisciplinary program, so I was glad to see them breaking down disciplinary silos or boundaries that have been erected over the past hundred years,” said Franklin, who is in the American Studies program.

Graduate students concerned The report stated the committee is “mindful” of the University’s commitment to doctoral support for five years, with a possibility for a sixth, which raised some student concerns.

Franklin said while he is appreciative of the current support he receives from the University, each program is unique and requires a different amount of time for completion. He added that he is nervous about the possibility of running out of funding if he spends more time completing his degree.

“Many degrees simply take longer than (five to six years), and pretending that they don’t — trying to cram everyone through in the same amount of time — will only come at the expense of excellence, which is a tenet of the report that I wholeheartedly support,” he said.

“Shortening the length of our programs may be all very well and good in theory,” wrote Brooke Lamperd GS in an email to The Herald, noting that she does not want to drag out her time in school. “But how are we going to

Summary of Recommendations Doctoral Education The University is looking to pursue distinctiveness in its doctoral programs through three initiatives: Expand/systemize the pilot Open Graduate Education Program, which allows students to gain expertise in a secondary field Expand and advertise the model of PhD in Integrative Studies, which lets students design their doctoral field of study Identify “curricular bridges” among disciplines to let students with strong undergraduate backgrounds in one discipline switch disciplines The University is looking to pursue excellence in its doctoral programs through four initiatives: Advance the graduate degree program by stating needs/ expectations/resources and conducting reviews Remove constraints that inhibit students from achieving at their highest level by offering summer support, health packages, create graduate student center Complement academic training of students with professional/ transferable skills like languages, leadership skills, teaching skills Set clear expectation for doctoral programs and further mentoring compete in the job market if we don’t have the skills that are at the core of our fields?”

The average completion time for a PhD in the humanities or social sciences is 10 years in the U.S., Lamperd wrote.

According to a survey conducted by the National Science Foundation, the average time to complete a doctorate degree across all fields is around 10 years. Given this statistic, Lamperd wrote that she is concerned about competing with peers at other institutions who may have had more time to attain their degrees.

“How can I produce an excellent dissertation good enough to rise above all of those qualified applicants if I’ve spent my entire time in graduate school trying to meet a deadline that is both arbitrary and nearly impossible?” she wrote.

Doctoral students in good academic standing are guaranteed health insurance and financial support from the University for five years, Weber

wrote in an email to The Herald. “In short, we believe that our financial aid for doctoral students is very strong,” he wrote. “But it is true that there may be room to develop a stronger support during the summer months, as the interim report points out.”

‘The best university we can be’ The committee noted in its report that nothing they recommended is final, and all proposals will be subject to further consideration and approval.

The changes suggested in the report do not necessarily mean detracting from the undergraduate experience, Weber said, adding that it is important to remain focused on both graduates and undergraduates.

“It’s not a competition but rather about being the best university we can be,” he said.

Having great graduate students can help improve the undergraduate experience, he said, citing examples of undergraduate students participating in research led by graduates.

6 planning in progress / / Plan page 1 on Educational Innovation and associate professor of theater arts and performance studies.

Without committees of their own, the University’s priorities of diversity and internationalization permeated discussion and proposal generation throughout the process. Diversity and internationalization are such crucial considerations that segregating them in specific committees “wouldn’t adequately allow us to pursue these important goals in everything that the University does,” Schlissel said.

“President Paxson and I want to pursue excellence in all that we do, in teaching, in research, in service to the community,” Schlissel said. “We want to make sure Brown remains accessible to students of all backgrounds and financial needs.”

Funding for many of the proposals will come from the University’s existing sources of income, such as tuition, research grants, annual giving from alums and the yield of the University’s endowment. “A lot of the things we’re working on in terms of strategies do not require major capital campaigns,” Schlissel said.

“They’re ideas improving how we focus ourselves and how we work.”

The more financially burdensome proposals will be fundamental in the University’s next large capital campaign, the details of which have yet to be determined, Schlissel said. But with the University’s 250th anniversary approaching in 2014, strategic planning may take advantage of the publicity garnered by the sestercentennial celebrations, he said.

Schlissel selected the chairs and members of the committees in September after determining the scope of each committee and consulting various bodies on campus, including deans, department chairs, the Undergraduate Council of Students, the Faculty Executive Committee, the Graduate Student Council and members

of the staff. He said he created academically balanced committees to reflect the diversity of the campus and strike the right representative balance.

Many committees build on or modify progress the University made in the Plan for Academic Enrichment — a blueprint for academic initiatives under former President Ruth Simmons. “We’re always evaluating or discarding less attractive ideas,” Schlissel said. The PAE “gives us a framework to make sure everything we’re doing is consistent in where we want to go.”

Just as the PAE guided Simmons’ tenure at the University, Schlissel said the current strategic planning will provide high-level guidance for Paxson’s time at Brown. But unlike in 2002, when the PAE was created, the University is in a great position already, Schlissel said.

In addition to the six committees, the strategic planning process solicited Signature Academic Initiatives, faculty-driven proposals distinguished by interdisciplinary focuses. By December, faculty members had submitted 82 “white papers,” two-page outlines describing how the proposals stood to serve the community, nation and world. The contents of the initiatives range from combating international healthcare disparities to developing human-robot interfaces.

These initiatives follow a different timeline than the proposals of the six committees. The Academic Priorities Committee is still reviewing and assessing the white papers and will identify six themes that will most likely be the results of merging and modifying proposals into heftier research opportunities. Out of these six themes, which will be developed during the summer, the president and provost will select two or three Signature Academic Initiatives and submit them to the Corporation in spring 2014. Some proposals that were not selected but were still compelling will be funded with any available funds, as determined by the provost’s office.

the brown daily herald Monday, January 28, 2013

Report emphasizes expanded curriculum Among committee recommendations are new PLME, online and international programs

By ELI OKUN UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITOR

The University took initial steps toward charting new paths for the curriculum with the release Friday of the interim report of the Committee on Educational Innovation.

The set of preliminary recommendations included a three-year bachelor’s degree, 250 online courses, a reconfiguration of the Program in Liberal Medical Education and programs to incorporate international and community engagement experiences into select courses.

Along with the other five University strategic planning committees, the Committee on Educational Innovation will seek input from the campus community this semester, honing its recommendations for a final report to be released in May, said Dean of the College Katherine Bergeron, the committee’s chair. It will also present its preliminary ideas at the Corporation meeting next month.

The committee’s outreach will begin Wednesday with a meeting with the Undergraduate Council of Students, Bergeron said. Open forums, potentially in conjunction with other strategic planning committees, will follow throughout the semester, she said.

The recommendations are part of a University effort to adapt its core strengths and ideals to a modern age, Bergeron said. If finalized and implemented, the changes would likely guide much of President Christina Paxson’s tenure. Many of the recommendations address untethering students from traditional expectations of where, when and in what modes they learn, with particular emphases on interdisciplinary, global, practical and online education.

Throughout the committee’s process of discussing and formulating plans, members were committed to preserving the tenets of the New Curriculum and building on Brown’s existing strengths, Bergeron said.

As conversations continue this semester, some of the committee’s ideas might merge with those from other committees, Bergeron said, adding that the process of soliciting campus feedback will allow the administration to choose “the best ideas or the ones that have the most potential for enhancing what we do at Brown.” Timelines for the recommendations will vary widely, Bergeron said, with some to be implemented within months and others to take years to build.

The recommendation of a threeyear degree program, which would draw primarily on pre-Brown credits and allow more students to enter the University with sophomore standing, is one of the committee’s most significant proposed changes, Bergeron said.

Rather than “a program where students would try to cram four years of credit into three,” Bergeron said, the option would provide a path for students to intentionally accumulate college credits in high school. The University currently allows students with enough International Baccalaureate

Summary of Recommendations Educational Innovation A three-year bachelor’s degree, incorporating pre-Brown credits, to make the University more accessible 250 online or partially online courses Short-term study abroad experiences embedded within select courses “Paired courses” with interdisciplinary connections that students would take simultaneously An interdisciplinary, case study-based retooling of the Program in Liberal Medical Education More creative modes of instruction in introductory science courses Greater curricular emphasis on community engagement credits to apply for advanced standing, but this recommendation might also entail a retooling of current policies on accepting online transfer credits. The latter was already recommended in the June 2012 report of the Ad Hoc Committee on Online Education. Bergeron said she did not know how Advanced Placement credits might factor in.

The program would be an attempt to help make a Brown education more accessible to those who cannot afford it, Bergeron said. The report specifically marked it as a way to attract student populations underrepresented at Brown, including veterans.

Chaney Harrison ’11.5, a veteran who served on the Task Force on Undergraduate Education from 2007 to 2008, said the proposal would be suited to the reality of individuals who serve in the military. “A lot of veterans, especially in today’s military, are getting lots of access to pretty advanced academic curriculums,” he said, providing them significant academic credit. Though Harrison had an associate’s degree when he left the Air Force, none of his work translated to Brown credits.

But offering a three-year degree would be meaningful only if it were accompanied by changes in transfer credit policies, he said.

The program would also tie into another of the committee’s recommendations — a greater sophomore-year emphasis on issues of equity, diversity and justice. These would include a sophomore seminar program not unlike first-year seminars but “focused on questions of identity and difference,” according to the report, and recommendations that students consider “diversity education” in the concentration declaration process.

Under the heading “Flexible Brown,” the report also recommended the creation of a competitive five-year program that would allow students to combine undergraduate studies with a master’s degree, an internship or other research and service.

The committee’s report focused significantly on interdisciplinary learning and included a recommendation to create “paired courses” — two connected classes from different disciplines that students would take simultaneously over the course of a semester or a year.

And under a recommendation titled “Liberated Pre-Medical Education,” the committee proposed changes to the PLME curriculum that would capitalize on students’ flexibility to forge new modes of learning. These could include courses that combined biology and chemistry or math and physics, with an emphasis on integrated and case study-based learning,

Bergeron said.

“If we were to come up with the right idea, we might really become a leader in this field,” she said. The concept had already been set in motion by Associate Dean for Medical Education Philip Gruppuso, she added.

The report also included a recommendation to introduce more innovative methods of learning into the University’s large introductory science courses. Bergeron said studies have proven the value of “more hands-on learning, more experimental practices and creative assessments,” and the committee hopes to make such changes “a reality in every single department.”

Another main emphasis of the report was global learning. The committee recommended embedding short-term study abroad components — potentially over spring or winter break — into select small courses, which would be chosen and funded through a competitive process, Bergeron said.

That could tie into another recommendation to forge ties with courses at international partner institutions, many of which have expressed their interest in greater academic connections, Bergeron said. Through live video chats, short visits or other means, classrooms at Brown would establish relationships with their counterparts abroad.

The proposals would help boost the University’s overall efforts to expand the international nature of students’ learning, said Matthew Gutmann, vice president for international affairs. “The more that undergrads at Brown can learn about and spend time abroad … the more they’re going to be able to participate as global citizens in the long run,” he said, adding that the University wants more students to study abroad at locations outside of Europe in particular.

A proposed International Center — another of the report’s recommendations, which would centralize international students, faculty members and studies on campus — has already been developing as an idea, Gutmann said, but still needs staffing and a site, among other priorities. “We really need it at Brown. Most major universities have it, and we’ve suffered because we haven’t,” he said, adding that the committee’s emphasis on the center could rejuvenate efforts to get it off the ground.

After the University announced last semester that it would pilot three notfor-credit courses open to the public online through Coursera, as well as some for-credit online summer courses for Brown students, the committee / / Courses page 5 submitted a

the brown daily herald Monday, January 28, 2013

planning in progress 7

Committee looks to diversify, retain faculty with recruitment and support Policy proposals include improved research assistance and recognition

By ALEXANDRA MACFARLANE AND RACHEL MARGOLIS university NEWS EDITOR AND SENIOR STAFF WRITER

The Committee on Faculty Recruitment, Career Development and Retention advised the University to prioritize recruiting talentedfaculty members, nurturing them as scholars and educators, and maintaining their commitment to Brown in the face of recruitment efforts by other institutions, according to its preliminary report released Friday afternoon.

To achieve these goals, the committee presented three strategic methods designed to strengthen the faculty.

These priorities include elevated support for faculty research, a specific and comprehensive plan to further diversify the faculty by gender and ethnicity and increased compensation and recognition for faculty excellence throughout and beyond the tenure process, according to the report.

In the report, the committee argued that the expansion of the University’s graduate programs is necessary for supporting research and teaching and for moving Brown “to the very top tier of the peer group.”

The committee wrote that increased support for research should fulfill the goal of elevating Brown in the national rankings.

Support for research The role of research under Brown’s university-college model was one of the main subjects committee members discussed, said Kristi Wharton, one of the members and associate professor of medical science.

At a university like Brown, the faculty research is centered around promoting the level of teaching, Wharton said, adding that a higher level of research increases interaction between professors and students.

To support faculty research at all levels of the tenure track, committee members recommended the University enhance the sabbatical program by mentoring junior faculty members before they go on leave and implementing a program of post-tenure sabbatical programs for professors to complete a second research project after receiving tenure.

Under the current senior faculty sabbatical policy, created in 2008, faculty members may receive 75 percent of their usual salaries for sabbaticals lasting for a semester or a full year, depending on how many semesters they have spent in residence. Full-salary sabbatical semesters are available only after 12 semesters in residence at the University.

Chung-I Tan P’95 P’03, professor of physics and former chair of both the Faculty Executive Committee and the Campus Advisory Committee that helped select President Christina Paxson, said he was pleased the committee was able to identify the specific and differing issues facing junior and senior faculty members.

“Over the last two or three years we’ve had a focus on tenure issues,” he said, adding that the report was “very

appropriate and timely.”

Current sabbatical policy presents two problems, said Kevin McLaughlin P’12, dean of the faculty. First, many faculty members cannot afford to live on three-quarters of their normal pay.

Secondly, this partial salary is at odds with the full workload expected of professors on leave.

But while a stronger sabbatical policy for tenured faculty members is attractive, it is also expensive. Rather than offer full-salary sabbaticals to all faculty members, the committee proposed that additional funding be supplied to the most high-performing professors, a designation that would be determined by the dean of the faculty and dean of medical and biological sciences.

“Maintaining a competitive aspect to the program would encourage stronger programs” in addition to making the plan more financially viable, McLaughlin said.

The committee also recommended the University further integrate undergraduates into faculty research. This could be achieved by providing more opportunities for faculty members to approach department chairs and request funding to hire undergraduates, McLaughlin said. While Undergraduate Teaching and Research Awards already foster collaboration between students and faculty, McLaughlin said many faculty members find the program “restrictive” because it imposes inconvenient deadlines.

Future research should focus more on faculty engagement, Wharton said.

This interaction between students and faculty research is directly in line with the University’s mission and will help faculty members who feel like they do not have enough time to complete aspects of their research, she added.

Students should know “they’re the central and foremost and the main concern” of the strategic planning commit-

tees, Wharton said, adding that faculty members focus both on teaching and maintaining competitive research that increases the quality of teaching.

A push for diversity The report also outlined the longterm goal of increasing both the number of female tenured professors in the sciences and the number of tenured underrepresented minority professors across all academic departments.

Throughout the course of the Plan for Academic Enrichment — the cornerstone of former President Ruth Simmons’ academic agenda — the number of faculty members dramatically increased but did not sufficiently diversify, Wharton said. Though the committee was not ready to divulge the specific policies that could increase diversity, it did identify a specific desire to aggressively increase minority representation among the faculty, she said.

The committee recommended developing specific guidelines to be implemented in the hiring process at all levels of tenure, including using the Office of Institutional Diversity to discover promising minority candidates for specific positions and programs.

Departments should receive specific criteria for minority hires and the resources to fulfill these requirements, the report stated.

Once minority faculty members are hired, they should be given support throughout their careers, including mentorship for research, according to the report.

Committee members highlighted a direct correlation between diversity among faculty members and diversity among students.

“Diversity of the faculty is very key to the diversity of the student body and the diversity of thought on campus,” said Patricia Ybarra, a member of the

Summary of Recommendations Faculty The committee on faculty recruitment, career development and retention goals include: Recruiting quality faculty members Nurturing faculty members as researchers and teachers Encouraging faculty members to remain at Brown as they become known in their fields Methods for achieving these goals include: “Increasing support for faculty research” “Implementing an aggressive integrated plan to diversify the faculty” “Enhancing compensation and recognizing continuous faculty excellence in research, teaching and service. With regard to each of these areas, we also propose criteria for measuring success.”

Committee for Educational Innovation and an associate professor of theater arts and performance studies.

Recognition and retention The report recommended recognizing existing faculty members for “excellence in research, teaching and service” to increase the strength of both research and teaching at the University.

Supporting existing faculty members is crucial to retaining the high caliber of professors already with the University, according to the report, which also stated that a salary committee has been created in order to potentially raise salaries for tenured professors who have held their posts for more than seven years.

McLaughlin said faculty retention is “not a huge problem” at Brown, estimating a roughly 75 percent retention rate.

Nevertheless, as faculty members publish important works and are recognized for their discoveries, Brown must compete with other institutions vying for their talents, McLaughlin said.

Rewarding high-performing faculty members with increased recognition and salaries will help keep them within

Current faculty diversity Humanities 17% minority Life Science 10% minority Physical Science 24% minority Social Science 23% minority

Humanities 47% female Life Science 31% female Physical Science 15% female Social Science 39% female GREG JORDAN-DETAMORE / HERALD Data Source: Office of Institutional Diversity

the Brown community, according to the report.

McLaughlin said the University will shift its focus from acquiring new faculty members to supporting the faculty and departments it built under the PAE. “There’s a tendency — it’s a bit of human nature — to overlook some of the things you have because you’re focused on the things that you don’t have,” he said, adding that more emphasis will now be placed on the University’s commitment to its current faculty.

While the faculty will not increase greatly in numbers, he said he expects significant turnover in the years to come.

“There’s going to be a demographic shift,” he said. “We have a significant number of the faculty who are older than 65. We will rejuvenate and reinvigorate the faculty as retirements take place.”

The report briefly addressed spousal hiring as another potential method to recruit and retain faculty. When Brown hires a new faculty member with an academic spouse or partner, McLaughlin said, it is customary to check if a position is available in the spouse’s department. A formal spousal hiring program, however, does not exist at Brown or at any peer universities.

“It would be a break with all past experience here to introduce the concept of spousal hiring,” he said, though he noted the issue may be discussed further at the coming faculty forum.

Finding the funds Though the committee identified several areas where increased and dedicated resources could improve the faculty experience, the committee did not discuss actual efforts to raise funds.

“Our charge was to identify policies that could most likely lead to enhancement in faculty productivity,” McLaughlin said, stressing that not all of the “very hypothetical” ideas presented in the interim report will necessarily come to fruition.

“President Paxson is in a good position to make a decision on how to move forward and setting priorities,” Tan said.

The report will serve as the foundation for a faculty forum that will likely take place in mid-to-late February, he said. The discussion, hosted by the committee, will cultivate crucial faculty input before a final report is completed later in the spring, McLaughlin said.

The committee then plans to approach the Corporation “with ideas about what is of value to the University,” Wharton said, adding that this will be a chance to show what faculty members feel are the critical issues facing the University.

8 planning in progress

the brown daily herald Monday, January 28, 2013

Plan endorses universal Report focuses on community integration need-blind admission Strategic plan proposes Summary of Recommendations Committee seeks to improve financial aid and increase international diversity

By MARK VALDEZ Senior Staff Writer

The Committee on Financial Aid endorsed need-blind admission for all undergraduate applicants as a longterm goal for the University in its interim report released Friday. As part of the strategic planning process, the committee also proposed reducing the student summer earnings expectation, simplifying the calculation of parent contribution and allowing international students to reapply for financial aid each year.

Former President Ruth Simmons decided the University’s current policy — need-blind admission for all U.S. applicants and need-aware admission for international, transfer and resumed undergraduate education students — in 2002, following years of tumultuous protests and contentious campus debate.

“I think the quality of students after going need-blind went up in terms of academic qualifications and the eagerness to do independent work,” said Ken Miller ’70 P’02, a member of the committee and professor of biology.

“The perception among international students was that we were admitting principally people from very wealthy backgrounds,” he said. “It’s not a crosssection of really bright and hardworking international students.”

The committee held several meetings with administrators, faculty members and undergraduates throughout the semester, including two open

forums in November, said Alex Mechanick ’15, president of the student group Brown for Financial Aid and one of the committee’s undergraduate representatives. One of the forums was co-hosted by the Undergraduate Council of Students and the other by the Brown Conversation.

“There was a deep understanding and agreement that we should be accepting or rejecting applicants without regards to how wealthy they are,” Mechanick said.

The Herald previously reported that Beppie Huidekoper, executive vice president for finance and administration, said implementing universal need-blind admission would be unsustainable under the current University budget.

The interim report specifies that universal need-blind admission is a “long-term commitment.”

Funding this proposal would require a capital campaign, said Jon Vu ’15, an undergraduate member of the committee.

“I’m optimistic that international sources will see this as a goal worth having, increasing chances for raising endowment funds,” Miller said. “If we raise enough, we can make admissions need-blind.”

The committee agreed that the policy would attract “an exceptionally talented, diverse, and global student community,” the report stated.

“RUE students are some of the most interesting students we have, with lots of life experience others can’t bring,” Miller said. “It widens up what goes on in the classroom, the laboratory and the University.”

The committee also discussed “taking care of the students who are already here,” / / Aid page 9

Summary of Recommendations Financial Aid Long-term commitment Need-blind admission for all students, including international, RUE and transfer students Immediate needs Reducing summer earnings expectations by at least $1,000 Altering calculation method of parent contribution in financial aid packages Allowing international students to reapply for financial aid each year

departmental collaboration and improved facilities

By SABRINA IMBLER SENIOR STAFF WRITER

The Committee on Reimagining the Campus and Community stressed ideas regarding the creation of shared, collaborative spaces between departments, renovations to existing classrooms, further expansion into the Jewelry District and the construction of several new facilities in its interim report released Friday.

Like the other committees, the Committee on Reimagining the Campus and Community has collected community feedback from faculty members, staff members and students through focus groups and additional outreach.

“We started with an overview of the development of the campus, thinking about the growth and patterns and how the campus interacts with the city and surrounding neighborhood,” said Russell Carey, committee chair and executive vice president for planning and policy.

Many of the preliminary recommendations in the report featured the idea of shared spaces in which complementary departments could engage in intellectual collaboration. The report proposed the creation of an interdisciplinary building housing several social science or humanities departments, which would free up the buildings currently occupied by those departments for other purposes.

The committee also proposed a common community space and more work space for graduate students, citing the space in the Metcalf Chemistry and Research Laboratory for Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences graduate students as an ideal example of avoiding the relegation of graduate students to basements or attics.

The committee consulted design firms Sasaki Associates and Payette to gather data to help strategically rework the infrastructure of the campus.

Sasaki will be launching an interactive online survey called MyCampus, which will be available to all students, faculty and staff members with an interactive map of Brown and its surrounding community. Participants will be able to tag the map with various icons to mark where they live, study and park,

Reimagining the Campus and Community The committee on faculty recruitment, career development and retention goals include: Renovate classrooms to be well-equipped, configurable teaching spaces Construct a large interdisciplinary building for complementary departments in the social sciences Adapt a laboratory space for the social sciences Construct one major new science research building Ensure adequate work and community space for graduate students Move more facilities to the Jewelry District, including but not limited to: a cultural center that would house the orchestra; instructional buildings; administrative buildings; housing; and research infrastructure among other things, to help Sasaki discern how members of the community travel around campus. The study is expected to reveal how most people use the campus, therefore highlighting common areas of travel that require lighting attention, among other improvements.

Sasaki has already successfully used MyCampus at several campuses, reorienting construction improvements around what students and faculty members actually needed, Carey said.

A desire for flexible teaching spaces that could be used for many different purposes emerged as a major theme during committee discussion and faculty input, Carey said.

The University’s current classrooms fall all across the spectrum of flexibility. Recently renovated classrooms feature projector technology separate from a blackboard or whiteboard and allow for furniture to be rearranged for different teaching styles and activities, Carey said, features that are especially necessary in language classrooms.

Older classrooms, especially those in old homes that have been converted to teaching spaces, often employ the room’s writing surface as a projector screen and hinder furniture movement.

The report recommended creating new research laboratory spaces in social science departments and the construction of at least one major new science research building, alongside extensive renovations of current research facilities. Physical and life sciences departments should have “social and convening spaces near laboratory facilities, where faculty and students can gather informally over food and drink (not allowed in laboratories),” according to the report.

The committee sketched out preliminary plans for locating University facilities in the Jewelry District for instructional, administrative, research or even residential purposes. The Jewelry District, which includes land made available by the relocation of I-195, is currently home to the Alpert Medical

School and the center of Providence and University officials’ goals to build a “knowledge economy” centered around science and technology research and entrepreneurship.

“We had to reimagine our place in the Jewelry District, which is very much up in the air,” said Iris Bahar, committee co-chair and professor of engineering.

Faculty feedback “will guide that and figure out how best to take advantage of the new land available in the Jewelry District and how we can build up on the already significant commitment we have there.”

The Jewelry District currently houses medical and graduate student instruction spaces. “We’re trying to figure out what would be an appropriate next place to expand there, and how we can do that in a way that still keeps the tight-knit community of Brown intact,” Bahar said.

The committee proposed possibly creating a cultural center in the Jewelry District to house the orchestra as well as foster a better relationship between the University and the city.

The University lacks a suitable performance space for its orchestra, according to the report. The orchestra currently performs in Sayles Hall but practices in Alumnae Hall, meaning most students must transport their instruments across campus for each practice.

“I see no reason why it couldn’t work,” said Director of Orchestras and Chamber Music Paul Phillips of the proposal.

“We have a relatively small campus compared to some of the enormous universities across the country … but it all depends on transportation.” He noted the potential for such a space to be used by all of the University’s performance and musical groups as well as guest speakers and other events.

The report stressed that any recommendations for the Jewelry District beyond the preliminary suggestions would require more planning on connectivity and comprehensive transportation.

the brown daily herald Monday, January 28, 2013

planning in progress 9

Committee prioritizes developing, incentivizing online courses Discussion topics include faculty compensation and intellectual property

By MOLLY SCHULSON Senior Staff Writer

The Online Teaching and Learning committee’s interim report recommended the University develop online education initiatives by encouraging faculty members to create online courses, outlining policies regarding ownership of courses taught online and determining a stance on Brown’s place in the larger movement toward massive online education.

The report also recommended creating a single webpage to tie together all of Brown’s current online offerings, future and ongoing intiatives and web-based student projects created for Brown classes.

The report is the first tangible result of a series of meetings in the fall, during which committee members discussed online initiatives and massive open online courses. Other committees, such as the Committee on Educational Innovation, also participated in those discussions.

“We treated our meetings like seminars ... and we would talk about, ‘What does online learning mean? How might this impact universities, not just Brown, but more broadly?’” said Harriette Hemmasi, University librarian and chair of the Online Teaching and Learning committee.

But the recommendations outlined in the report are still preliminary — administrators will next “evaluate the range” of ideas outlined and determine which should become University priorities.

Ideas varied from developing online classes that will build professional skills to improve Rhode Island’s economy to creating teaching spaces designed for online learning.

“I appreciated the specificity of it,” said Anamta Farook ’14. “It talks about actionable things that can be done. I

/ / Aid page 8 said Jim Tilton, director of financial aid and chair of the committee. Listed under “immediate needs” were policy changes — including reducing the summer earnings expectation — the committee saw as “more doable” in the near future, Vu said.

Students have voiced concerns that the summer earnings expectation has prevented them from taking unpaid internships, Tilton said.

“The price tag for it was fairly modest and something the University could do right away,” Miller said.

Among other immediate needs listed was altering the way parental contribution is calculated in financial aid packages.

“We are looking at middle income and how we calculate income from middle-class families to make sure that we are treating people fairly,” Tilton said. The report provides an example of expecting up to a 15 percent contribution requirement on incomes up to $150,000.

Harvard requires a zero to 10 percent contribution from parents who earn between $65,000 and $150,000 annually, according to the university’s

thought that was great.”

The committee built its ideas in part from a report by the Ad Hoc Committee on Online Education, which outlined several recommendations last year to bring Brown into the arena of online education.

The last page of the report lists seven “priority action items” related to encouraging faculty members to use online technology in the classroom, deciding whether Brown will offer credit for online courses, determining ownership of the online courses and finalizing Brown’s stance on MOOC platforms like Coursera.

“They still need to discuss how online education can be integrated with the Brown curriculum and still allow students to be the architects of their own education,” said Marguerite Joutz ’15.

Items were not put on the priority list because they were most important, but rather because the committee felt they could be acted on now, Hemmasi said.

The committee hopes to have drafts for most priority action items ready by early fall, she said. Some items, like “defining Brown’s position on open learning,” as stated in the report, would need draft statements from senior administrators, she said.

The recommendations could still change, as the committee will continue to evaluate which items should become University priorities, said Kathy Takayama, director of the Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning. In the report, the committee suggested collaborating with the Sheridan Center to help faculty members develop online courses.

“The most fundamental thing here is to make sure that we have a staff and skilled experts who are ready to assist faculty and peers,” Hemmasi said.

Though no online courses are currently available to students, three summer classes will be offered online for free through the online platform Coursera.

There will also be a few for-credit website. Their policy is “very simple” compared to Brown’s current policy, Miller said.

The report also listed allowing international students to reapply for financial aid each year as an immediate need. The committee predicted “this change would be effectively budgetneutral for the university scholarship budget,” the report stated.

Potential costs dictated which financial aid initiatives were chosen.

Miller said the committee found the price of cutting loans “would be more substantial than reducing summer earnings expectations.”

Brown for Financial Aid is currently circulating a petition that suggests “admitting all students needblind within 10 years” and “lowering the summer earnings expectation by at least $1,000.”

“BFA wanted to get behind concrete proposals that our membership think are most important to change and can achieve immediately,” Mechanick said.

The report is not a final recommendation, but a preliminary list of goals that “the larger strategic planning committee should consider,” Tilton said.

courses online offered to Brown summer session undergraduates. The report recommended reviewing both the Coursera pilot and the for-credit courses as part of determining how to move forward with online education projects.

One of the for-credit courses will be ENGL 0180: “Introduction to Creative Nonfiction,” taught by Elizabeth Taylor, senior lecturer in English and co-director of the Nonfiction Writing Program. The class will still be capped at 17 students as it is when offered in the classroom.

“This is exciting to me because the whole world is living online and figuring out how to translate what has been a success in a hard-copy classroom,” Taylor said. “It’s an intriguing challenge.”

She has translated her syllabus into an online format and has been participating in weekly training sessions to prepare for the transition.

Another priority action item deals with faculty incentives, both monetary and non-monetary, for those who create blended and online courses.

“I’ve been working on (the online course) since last fall, using the whole year to create a course that won’t start until June,” Taylor said. She added that she believes faculty incentives are “necessary” because those who develop online courses have to put in additional work on top of the courses they already teach.

“Incentives (are in the report) so that we don’t create an unfair situation among faculty,” Hemmasi said. The issue of whether one online course should count more or less for faculty members than one classroom course is still being discussed, she said.

The committee also aims to develop policies about transferring online course credit. “If a course is online and known to be a great class taught by an outstanding faculty member, why shouldn’t you be able to (transfer the credit)?” Hemmasi said.

The report also raised questions about intellectual property policies dealing with course ownership.

Summary of Recommendations Online Teaching and Learning Priority action items: Form team associated with Sheridan Center Develop policies for transfer credit of online courses Provide incentives for faculty members who create online courses Create intellectual property policies for online courses Define Brown’s position on open learning Plan out online course content archives Have a central webpage for addressing online teaching initiatives

Though faculty members develop content, videographers and even students might be involved in creating the course itself, Hemmasi said. “So who owns the class? It needs to be clarified, and it is not part of the faculty policy right now.”

The multiple team members and hours of production needed to create an online course raise the price. “Based on other universities’ experiences, it costs around $50,000 to generate one fully online course,” Hemmasi said. Every image and sound is copyrighted, so faculty members have to pay attention to that, she said.

The report also listed Brown’s position on opening its online courses to the public as a priority item. The committee recommends that copies of classes taught online be made available for reuse, she added.

“It’s important for Brown to think about what’s the point of view in educating the masses,” Hemmassi said.

“Coursera — we’re doing it because it gives us good exposure and it gives us good experience, but do we have other motives for doing it? Are any of our motives related to open access? That’s kind of the vision and future for Brown that all of us need to grapple with.”

Though not a priority action item, supporting student needs is listed in the report as a preliminary initiative. Integrating online learning into a Brown education can meet “the diverse learning styles, capacities and goals of individual students,” the report states. By develop-

ing online education, the University can “free itself from the strictures of a fixed curriculum,” the report adds.

“Brown students already have considerable freedom and flexibility as architects of their degrees and learning experiences and this just adds one more layer to that,” Hemmasi said. “It no longer matters where you are or how long it takes, this kind of learning at your own pace and at your own place.”

In the interim report, the committee recommended various forms of “digitally-mediated instruction” including fully online classes with either live or pre-recorded lectures, blended or hybrid classes or simply increased technology in the classroom.

Online courses should be more than just videos of lectures, Hemmasi said.

One of the preliminary action items was to offer short “mini” courses, taught by either Brown faculty members, invited faculty members or field experts.

A student who wants to talk about the environment or the Middle East, for example, might go to a faculty member and then create an online dialogue, Hemmasi said. Peers from around the world could work on a problem or issue together, she said.

“This demonstrates the capability of the technology that is available to us,” Hemmasi said. “For example, an expert in Russia who wants to teach at Brown doesn’t have to come to Brown.

They can interview by Skype and have a real-time, synchronous exchange. I just think this is fantastic.”

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10 editorial & letters Editorial Re-entering the Van Wickle Gates The weekend before most students returned to campus, the Brown Conversation hosted its inaugural “Re-Orientation Boot Camp,” which engaged over 50 students and faculty members in discussions about the meaning of a Brown education. The program, aimed at underclassmen, allowed students to evaluate their Brown experiences thus far and discuss options for its potential improvement. First-years reflected on their first semesters and sophomores gained more perspective before choosing their concentrations. Though geared toward underclassmen, this program serves as a reminder to the undergraduate body of Brown’s limitless opportunities, both in and out of the classroom — a reminder we should all keep in mind as we navigate our remaining time at Brown.

The Open Curriculum provides students “a chance to do wonderful things, but it’s up to you to take the responsibility to do them,” as Elliot Maxwell ’68, one of the architects of the New Curriculum, reminded students at the conference. Brown’s unique curriculum enables students to chart the best possible educational experience for their needs. But students must take ownership over their own learning. This program is a perfect example of the intent behind the New Curriculum that we celebrate so often. The “Re-Orientation Boot Camp” is exactly the type of program we should support as a community, and we strongly hope it will be continued in the years to come.

But this kind of discussion should not stop with the Brown Conversation’s re-orientation event. In the spirit of the program, we should take the opportunity to re-orient ourselves. Some of us have set our educational paths, and taking similar courses in familiar departments might be the most attractive choice. In addition, our social lives mainly consist of spending time with familiar friend groups, participating in our established extracurricular activities and settling into a comfortable routine. While this sort of lifestyle may work well for some, others may recognize in it potential for ossification. We encourage those who feel this way to work conscientiously to broaden their horizons, consequently improving their respective Brown experiences.

This may seem intimidating, but we are all capable of acclimating to significant changes — after all, we all left our high schools or other universities to come to Brown and were forced to adapt to some degree. When we started at Brown, whether as first-years, transfers or resumed undergraduates, we all introduced ourselves to strangers, joined new activities and most likely took classes outside of our comfort zones. These types of exploration and risk-taking are essential for adjusting to a new environment, but they should not be abandoned once we become settled.

We only have four years as undergraduates, and many of us will never again have the same freedom and flexibility that we enjoy at Brown. Until then, we can all benefit from shaking things up. Students can introduce themselves to someone new in class, at the Sciences Library or even at Starbucks. We can shop classes in departments we have never set foot in. We can take advantage of Morning Mail’s sleek new layout and all the opportunities the announcements offer.

When we were first-years or new students, we all received something along the lines of these words of wisdom, and most of us took this advice to some degree. Though we are certainly more comfortable as we return to Brown than we were as new students, we should retain our exploratory and adventurous tendencies. When we look back on our undergraduate experiences in the years to come, we will not regret the chances we took.

Editorials are written by The Herald’s editorial page board: its editor, Dan Jeon, and its members, Mintaka Angell, Samuel Choi, Nicholas Morley and Rachel Occhiogrosso. Send comments to editorials@browndailyherald.com.

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letters to the Editor

Financial aid should be fundraising priority To the Editor: The members of Brown for Financial Aid strongly disagree with Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration Beppie Huidekoper’s assessment in Friday’s article (“Full needblind unsustainable under current finances, says finance VP,” Jan. 25). No one suggests today’s budget can support going need-blind. The question is whether new fundraising should support financial aid. BFA and student government, the Strategic Planning Committee on Financial Aid and over 90 percent of students polled agree increasing aid should be a top fundraising priority. Students realize there is a trade-off when priorities are set: They support more fundraising going to academics and aid

even if it means less spending on dorms and facilities. Brown for Financial Aid believes the long-term interests of Brown are best supported by investing in the quality of students it can attract.

By going need-blind Brown could accept the best class possible, cease to discriminate against applicants on the basis of wealth and greatly increase its institutional reputation. If fundraising is targeted for financial aid, BFA strongly believes alums will step up to the plate and fund the same program that helped them receive a strong Brown education. We hope the administration will give alums the chance to have every Brown student enter through the front door.

Alex Mechanick ’15 President, Brown for Financial Aid

Economics degree requires mathematical rigor To the Editor: In a recent editorial (“Rethinking undergraduate economics,” Jan. 25), Lucas Husted evaluates Brown’s economics concentration by considering its requirements. He writes that the lack of rigorous math detracts from the program. As a graduate math student, I like it when math is given a positive image. I was curious and looked at the current requirements for the concentration. Husted was right to be upset.

The current economics concentration requires exactly one math class, at the level of introductory calculus. I was a teaching assistant for this course, and it’s fraught with problems.

Most prevalently, the course is offered only S/NC. This is done partly to prevent students from pursuing an easy A. On the

other hand, it seems to lower motivation in the class. Isn’t it easy to focus on other classes, where every point matters?

It is impossible to distinguish between students who have mastered the material and those who performed the minimal passing requirements. Further, the minimal passing requirements are very low and do not indicate mastery.

The best way to see if a student has acquired the skills expected from introductory calculus would be to see if the student passes the second semester class. I’m happy to say it seems the economics department thinks similarly, and, in 2016, second-semester calculus will be required.

David Lowry GS

Correction

An article in Friday’s Herald (“Same-sex marriage passes R.I. House,” Jan. 25) incorrectly stated that all six Republicans in the House voted against the bill. In fact, one Republican, House minority leader Rep. Brian Newberry, R-North Smithfield, voted with 50 Democrats in favor of the bill. A graphic representing the representatives’ party affiliation and vote on the bill reflected this inaccuracy and was removed from the article until it could be updated. The Herald regrets the errors.

quote of the day

“One told me that I run like an old lady.”

— Adam Kopp ’15 See service on page 12. facebook.com/browndailyherald

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the brown daily herald Monday, January 28, 2013

The boundaries of comedy David Romero Opinions Columnist Last summer, famous comedian Daniel Tosh performed at a Los Angeles nightclub and reportedly began his stand-up set with a joke about rape. Tosh said, “Rape jokes are always funny. … How can a rape joke not be funny?” A female audience member yelled back, “Actually, rape jokes are never funny!” Tosh responded by saying that it would be funny if the woman “got raped by like, five guys right now.” The woman was shocked and quickly left the show with a friend. The friend later blogged about the incident.

Tosh’s comments went viral. Some media outlets bashed Tosh, some comedians came to his defense and Tosh apologized.

Then, everyone mostly forgot.

Though the controversy didn’t last, the Tosh incident illuminates the ill-defined limits of comedy. Comedy is an inherently boundary-pushing, communicative act, but we are constantly asking ourselves: When does a joke go “too far”?

The more important question is this: When do harmless words, meant to entertain, become tools of cultural oppression? I am particularly interested in how humor can reinforce dominant societal stereotypes and hierarchies and be harmful to underprivileged groups such as women and people of color, whether it’s Daniel Tosh telling a joke, or just the guy next door.

Tosh’s joke is a perfect example of

poor execution resulting in the shaming of a historically oppressed group. First, Tosh began his joke with the crass, sexist statement that “all rape jokes are funny.” Tosh attempted to use shock comedy to get a cheap laugh at the expense of people, mainly women, who have experienced rape. His statements weren’t meant to further a discussion on sexual assault, but simply to say to the audience, “You may think joking about this is wrong but I’m joking about it to be edgy!” Indeed,

have been assaulted, let alone navigating a legal system that is further traumatizing — but he nonetheless used rape as fodder for cheap laughs. Although Tosh — or anyone who makes sexist and misogynistic jokes — isn’t to blame for the shameful state of American sexual politics, it is still up to people like him not to exacerbate and justify its existence.

To avoid Tosh’s mistake, anyone who chooses to joke about such topics should instead use humor to satirize an aspect of

As a comedian, your priority should be to make your audience laugh while not shaming an undeserving group of people.

Tosh used rape as a punchline and, in the process, disregarded the pain of sexual assault and the fact that someone in the audience may have been offended by the abrupt and insensitive joke.

The biggest mistake that Tosh made other than telling the joke in the first place was that he made it at the expense of a group that has considerably less privilege than he does and that did not consent to the joke. Perhaps Tosh is unaware of the politics of gender and sexual assault in America — that the grand majority of sexual assault is by men against women and that women often have a difficult time even telling anyone that they

these sensitive issues, rather than using these topics to shock audiences.

Comedians like Stephen Colbert joke about difficult topics by using satire alongside shock value. Colbert makes himself the butt of the joke — he plays a character that makes overtly shocking comments, so that the punchline is his character’s ignorance. This technique does not offend non-consenting members of the audience. Colbert makes obviously shocking and silly comments on sensitive topics to show his character’s ignorance, therefore satirizing anyone who is as ignorant as his character. The joke is about an insensitive person who is igno-

rant of the experiences of others.

Though I am not suggesting a complete ban of any humor that is potentially offensive, I believe there is a difference between telling a good-natured joke and offending someone from an underprivileged minority. In the latter instance, the joker exerts his or her power at the expense of a non-consenting member of society who is often a minority. These “jokes” are actually thinly veiled shaming methods that mock oppressed minorities.

If you are the type of person who, like me, enjoys inserting humor into nearly every interaction, then I would suggest asking yourself the following questions before making a risque joke: Is the joke merely an attempt to use a taboo or sensitive topic to shock an audience into laughter? Will this joke be potentially damaging to someone who doesn’t deserve it? Is the joke about a group that has been historically oppressed? Does it use someone else’s experiences, culture or beliefs as a punchline?

If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” then you should reconsider the joke and choose to add substance to what would otherwise be hollow and offensive shock value. As a comedian, your priority should be to make your audience laugh while not shaming an undeserving group of people.

David Romero ’14 loves talking about privilege and is open to any discussions about it. He can be reached at David_Romero@Brown.edu.

When tragedy strikes claire gianotti Opinions Columnist In ancient times, a natural disaster was often thought of as a collective punishment from the gods. Whether that punishment was just was irrelevant. It was served.

Mankind today is an Olympian force, 6.9 billion strong and growing. Climate scientists tell us we are the cause of massive changes in the gaseous makeup of our atmosphere, a shift that will cause the natural world to change in drastic and often unpredictable ways. One such shift is the rise in ocean temperatures that have led to and will continue to produce more frequent and more severe hurricanes.

The climate change movement enjoyed a brief heyday in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, only to be largely forced off the agenda after the 2008 recession.

Now, Hurricane Sandy has reintroduced the vocabulary of climate change to the political sphere. Environmentalists grab hold of Sandy in an attempt to convince people to fight the good fight — to remind us that despite all the wonders of human genius and innovation, we fundamentally depend on our natural environment for survival.

They show us human suffering — the dead, the homeless and the misplaced.

Congress shakes its fists at the billions

of dollars worth of damage and devastation.

Yet in this political moment, it is the tragedy at Newtown, Conn. and the battle for gun control that has riled Americans and resulted in immediate action from the White House and New York State.

So what is the difference between the

tion, but the action we will see is unlikely to be the action we really need.

The difference between the easy fixes and the legislation worth fighting for rests in what these solutions demand from us as a country. Gun control is solely a political issue. The debate going forward is practical, not about ideology but about the present realities of guns in

What is the difference between the fight for gun control and the fight for climate change legislation?

fight for gun control and the fight for climate change legislation? A carbon tax won’t stop a hurricane any sooner than stricter gun laws will stop a mentally unstable person from killing innocent strangers.

The tragedy at Newtown shattered the false sense of security enjoyed by those of us who live in quiet suburban neighborhoods surrounded by people who seem just like us. Hurricane Sandy was a violent wake up call for those of us who live cradled in the crib of technological innovation, apart from the chaos of the natural world. Both call for political ac-

America and their role in everyday life.

Therefore, greater gun restrictions are probably in our future.

Likewise, the solution we will probably see to address climate change — the very useful and necessary carbon tax — appeals to self-interest. The economic incentives it will apply to decrease pollution will also reduce our national deficit.

What is not so readily addressed about gun violence and climate change are how these two issues are caught up with our notions of community, and whom we want to include in that community. Mass shootings such as those in Newton and

Aurora, Colo. pose the challenge of how to care for the mentally ill. They force us to address the terror of gang violence in our nation’s cities perpetuated by those driven by desperation and economic necessity. The dangers of climate change force us to consider ourselves part of a global community in which we are inextricably linked to one another by shared resources, atmosphere and oceans.

These are moral issues — demanding on our consciences and habits and perhaps even requiring some self-sacrifice.

So the progress is sluggish at best.

This is precisely why it is easier to legislate about gun control rather than the structural deprivation of the mentally ill and the urban poor. It is also why it is so effective to point to China’s monstrously high carbon dioxide emissions to justify the United States’ status as the world’s largest polluter.

We can no longer afford a false sense of security. You may not live in a community ravaged by natural disaster, industrial pollution or unremitting gun violence. But that does not mean you are out of harm’s way or that you are free of any responsibility for it.

Whomever we may blame for catastrophe, punishment is collective when it strikes. The only way to cope with that is as a community, invested in each other’s well being.

Claire Gianotti ’13 can be reached at claire_gianotti@brown.edu

daily herald sports monday the Brown

SCOREBOARD

Monday, January 28, 2013

M. ICE Hockey

W. ICE Hockey

M. Basketball

M. Squash

W. SQUASH

Colgate 2 Brown 1

Colgate 4 Brown 3

Yale 76 Brown 64 (OT)

Brown 5 Bates 4

Brown 9 Bates 2

Cornell 3 Brown 0

Cornell 4 Brown 2

Bowdoin 5 Brown 4

Brown 7 Bowdoin 0

W. Basketball Yale 59 Brown 47

m. Basketball

w. Basketball

Bulldogs shoot past Bruno in overtime Bears fall to Yale in second matchup Yale proved too fast for Bruno in their second season match-up, provoking foul play

By SAM WICKHAM

SPORTS STAFF WRITER

The men’s basketball team suffered its first loss in two weeks Saturday, falling to Yale 76-64 in overtime after dealing with foul trouble throughout the night.

Despite beating the Bulldogs (7-12, 1-1 Ivy) last weekend, the Bears (7-9, 1-1) struggled to keep pace with Yale’s offense in the extra period.

“We had 10 turnovers in the first half yesterday, and 10 turnovers in the entire game in our first meeting,” said Head Coach Mike Martin ’04. “I thought that their defensive Yale 76 pressure was Brown 64 better than it was the week before, but I’m still disappointed with how we handled that.”

Bruno had a quick start, putting up eight unanswered points in the first three minutes. But the Bulldogs answered with 10 straight points of their own, due in part to early foul trouble for the Brown front-court. Consistent scoring from Yale’s Justin Sears, who ended the game with 18 points, gave the Bulldogs a 10-point lead at the half.

“I was disappointed with our performance offensively in the first half,” Martin said. “I thought the first half really put us in a tough spot at the beginning of the game.”

The Bears clawed their way back into the game in the second half with

scoring from Captain Matt Sullivan ’13, who totaled 11 for the half, and strong rebounding from Tucker Halpern ’13.5.

Cedric Kuakumensah ’16 slowed the Bulldog offense, providing three blocks.

“We fought hard to come back against a double-digit deficit,” Martin said. “Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough.”

Bruno pulled even after a pair of three pointers from Stephen Albrecht ’13 and Sullivan, but a quick bucket from Yale put the Bears down two with one minute, 10 seconds on the clock. A late foul sent Halpern to the line, and he sunk two clutch free throws to once again level the score. The Bears had a chance to win as Albrecht came off a screen and put up a shot with two seconds left, but the wayward shot sent the game into overtime.

“If we could have it all over again, and get a chance in that spot again, I’d sign up for it,” Martin said. “I think we have a chance to make that shot most of the time.”

The Bears could not stop the Yale offense in the extra period, allowing 18 points while only putting up six. Foul trouble for Kuakumensah and Rafael Maia ’15 limited the Bears’ defensive post presence.

“They scored on practically every possession,” Martin said. “We didn’t defend the way we’re capable of, nor the way we have in the past.”

Ivy League play continues Feb. 1 as the Bears travel to Dartmouth (4-12, 0-2).

The game is the first of four upcoming away games for Bruno.

“We’re beginning to understand how well you have to play on the road to get wins, and we’re definitely going to take that away,” Sullivan said. “We’ll come back next week ready to go from the start.”

Clarke ’15 was named Ivy Co-Player of the Week following a 20-point performance

By MEG SULLIVAN Sports Staff Writer

TOM SULLIVAN / HERALD

Sean McGonagill ’14 aims for a three to close the gap against the Yale Bulldogs in a game that was pushed into overtime.

Brown alum succeeds as west coast coach Player-oriented coaching philosophy translates to big wins for former Brown basketball player

By NIKHIL PARASHER SPORTS STAFF WRITER

As head coach of the women’s basketball team at the University of California at Berkeley, Lindsay Gottlieb ’99 has made the transition from a Brown Bear to a Golden one. In her second year in the position, Gottlieb is leading the No. 7 team to a 17-2 record.

The Golden Bears already have five wins against top-25 ranked teams, including a victory over Stanford that snapped Stanford’s 81-game winning streak against conference opponents.

Gottlieb had previously been an assistant coach at Syracuse University, the University of New Hampshire, the University of Richmond and Cal. She was then promoted to associate head coach at Cal before leaving to become head coach at the University of California, Santa Barbara in 2008.

In her three seasons at UCSB, she

twice led her squad to first place in the Big West Conference and was named the 2009 Big West Coach of the Year.

Then, after Joanne Boyle left her post as Cal’s women’s basketball head coach, Gottlieb returned to Berkeley, this time as head coach. In her first season, she led the Golden Bears to a 25-10 record, second-best in the Pac12 conference.

Gottlieb credits her success to the athletes she coaches.

“We have really good players that have decided it’s important to them to be part of a great team,” she said.

Gottlieb said forming bonds with players is key to her coaching philosophy.

“I think I pride myself in my ability to form relationships,” she said. “I would say the overarching philosophy is my players need to know that I care about them as a human being first — as a real student-athlete.”

Brittany Boyd, a sophomore guard on the team who was named an allPac-12 honorable mention last season, said that Gottlieb is “probably one of the most understanding” coaches she has ever had. “(Gottlieb) has a loving, caring spirit,” Boyd said. “That’s rare for a coach.”

Gottlieb became interested in coaching when she was a shooting guard at Brown. She spent most of her time on the bench but was still able to gain an understanding of the game and of the student-athlete experience, something she said she still uses to this day. Jean Marie Burr, who has been Brown’s head women’s basketball coach since 1989, allowed Gottlieb to “kind of be a student-assistant coach while still playing” when Gottlieb was a senior, she said. Gottlieb’s nickname on the team was even “coachie.”

“I think (my time on the team at Brown) gave me a perspective on basketball and I think it gave me a perspective on the experience of young

women,” she said. “That is invaluable to me.”

Following her graduation, Gottlieb’s nickname came to fruition, and she is now coaching one of the top teams in the country. Gottlieb has lofty goals, not just for Cal this season, but also in terms of its reputation beyond this year.

“We want to make a name for ourselves on the national stage and be one of the nation’s elite teams,” Gottlieb said. “Going forward, I want Cal to be a school where, particularly on the West Coast, kids can know they can get one of the best educations in the country and still compete at the highest level in women’s basketball.”

Regardless of whether Cal achieves Gottlieb’s goals, the bonds with her players will remain. Gottlieb’s commitment to her players and her ability to form relationships has made her more than a coach in the eyes of the team, Boyd said. “(Gottlieb’s) like a coach, a mentor, like a mother,” she said.

The Bears (7-9, 1-1 Ivy) suffered a disappointing loss to Yale (6-10, 1-1) last Friday in the Pizzitola Center in a 59-47 decision just one week after defeating the Bulldogs 68-67 in a buzzer-beater in New Haven.

In their first matchup, which kicked off Ivy League play, the two teams dueled in the first half before the Bears established a slim but persistent lead in the second. With five seconds left in Yale 59 the game, the Brown 47 Bulldogs tied up the score 67-67, but Bruno stopped them in their tracks. With one second remaining, Co-Captain Sheila Dixon ’13 sank a free throw, sealing the deal for Brown.

Lauren Clarke ’14, who is tied for leading the league in scoring, continued her dominance as she racked up her fourth 20-point effort this season.

For her efforts in the victory over Yale and for a Jan. 15 victory over the New Jersey Institute of Technology, Clarke was named Ivy Co-Player of the Week.

But the Bears failed to duplicate their success in the rematch as the Bulldogs doubled down on their defense, limiting Bruno’s shooting percentage to 30 percent from the field and just 25 percent from the arc.

Sophie Bikofsky ’15, who led the Bears with 11 points, said the Bulldog’s defensive pressure created a lot of turnovers during the match. She added that the Bears’ defense was not as strong as in the first game.

“We allowed them to penetrate deep into the key, which gave them easy scores,” Bikofsky said.

Yale’s aggression paid off in the second half — the team took a 12-point lead at the eight-minute mark that Brown couldn’t overcome.

“We were more aggressive in attacking the basket in the first game, getting to the foul line much more than we did in the second game,” Bikofsky said.

The Bears’ next game will be Feb. 1 at home against Dartmouth.