KICKED OUT, 2
WELCOME HOME, 3
ROOFTOP VEGGIES, 5
BEHIND THE BENCH, 10
Elderly tenants in Fenway are rising up against the Catholic nuns who evicted them.
Student Government President welcomes students to campus.
FYSOP paired with the Boston Medical Center rooftop farm for the first time.
Of the three new head coaches hired for the 2018-19 seasons, all are BU alum.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2018
THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER AT BOSTON UNIVERSITY
Boston drivers rank second worst in U.S. BY RILEY VILLIERS DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
You’re wrong if you think Boston drivers are the absolute worst — they are actually the second worst. Allstate released its annual report ranking the safest cities to drive in, and Boston was not one of them, landing the second-worst spot on the list. The report compiled data from all the Allstate-insured drivers who submitted claims in the Greater Boston areas. This ranking is an improvement from last year, when Boston was ranked as having the worst drivers. Dave Scopac, 30, of Allston, said he has seen drivers tear through the streets of Boston as if they were the only cars on the road. “This is the only place where I see people run through red lights constantly with pretty much reckless abandon,” Scopac said. This year, Allstate reported that for every 1,000 miles they spend on the road, Boston drivers have to brake hard an average of 25.7 times. The national average is 19. Mary Maguire, director of public and legislative affairs for AAA Northern New England, which provides safety and defensive driving courses to automobile owners, wrote in an email that Bostonians spend an average of 60 hours a year sitting in traffic. “Given the number of hard-braking events referenced in the study, it’s possible that traffic congestion in Boston is a factor,” Maguire wrote. “It’s possible that congestion leads to distraction, which could
YEAR XLVI. VOLUME XCIV.
All-gender bathrooms to open in GSU BY LILLIAN ILSLEY-GREENE DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
PHOTO BY VIVIAN MYRON/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Boston was ranked second in a recent study by car insurance giant Allstate for the worst drivers in the United States.
then lead to fender benders.” While the study makes no specific mention of where the property damage may have occurred, the report does not come as a surprise to seven-year Brighton resident and current Auburndale resident, Pamela Swift. “I’ve had some people drive like idiots and cut me off,” Swift, 60, said in an interview. “I’ve seen people on highways driving in a way I just can’t get over … cutting in and out of lanes and going too fast.” Maren Chiburis, 24, of Allston, said Boston’s pedestrians, rather than its drivers, are most at-risk when it comes to reckless driving in Boston.
“I work right near Fenway, so getting around there at lunchtime is when you have to be really careful because it’s crazy,” Chiburis said. Allstate also found that 10 years is the national average of time between claims. Boston drivers, however, submit claims an average of 3.9 years apart. Maguire wrote that a potential reason for the frequency of accidents in the city could be that numerous drivers in the New England area might find roads and signage in the area to be confusing. “… it’s possible that confusion on the part of drivers—who may be unsure as to where they are going—
could be a factor,” Maguire wrote. And it is not just the drivers who are confused. Despite living here since childhood, Chiburis said she still did not completely understand the pedestrian rules of the road. “I was confused crossing the street,” she said jokingly. “Are you supposed to run when it doesn’t say to walk? I don’t know.” Frank Harris, director of state government affairs for Mothers Against Drunk Driving, an organization that advocates for safe and sober driving, said that there is an urgent need for traffic safety reform in Boston. CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
An independent architecture firm specializing in installing gender-inclusive bathrooms in pre-existing spaces will break ground on Boston University’s first, specifically gender-inclusive bathroom in October. The current plans for installation on the second floor of the George Sherman Union would cut the GSU operations desk in half and put two gender-inclusive bathrooms in its place, said Brian Stanley, internal liaison for the Center for Gender, Sexuality and Activism (CGSA). CGSA Public Relations Coordinator Ethan Liu, a sophomore in the Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, said that the BU administration is planning to release a map showing all pre-existing, gender-neutral bathrooms on campus. Once the first bathroom is completed, it is their plan to continue the efforts across campus and finish roughly by the end of the 2018-2019 school year. “We’re just starting with the GSU first, and then we’ll be moving off from there,” Liu said. The endeavor to add gender-inclusive bathrooms on BU’s Charles River Campus has been an ongoing effort by different groups, Stanley said. The organization raised the possibility in a Student Government meeting as far back as 2012. CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
Professor Stan Sclaroff named interim CAS dean BY JENNA MANTO DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Boston University computer science professor Stan Sclaroff has been selected as interim dean for the BU College of Arts and Sciences, replacing former Dean Ann Cudd, who has accepted a new position as provost at the University of Pittsburgh. After a two-week information-gathering process by BU Provost Jean Morrison, which included meetings with all of the associate deans, some of the department chairs and the CAS dean’s administrative staff — as well as faculty input — Morrison recommended Sclaroff to BU President Robert Brown. According to the faculty handbook, the process requires that the president make the selection. Morrison described Sclaroff as someone who “is currently one of the senior-most and most experienced associate deans at CAS.” Before starting the position as CAS interim dean on Aug. 1, Sclaroff
held the positions of Computer Science Department chair and associate dean of the faculty for mathematical and computational sciences in CAS. This closeness to the the previous dean influenced Morrison’s ultimate recommendation for Sclaroff as interim dean, the provost said. “He is a highly regarded computer scientist,” Morrison said, “He’s won national awards, he’s among one of our most distinguished faculty members in computer science, but for the interim dean role, some of the most important qualities are knowledge about the current processes and activities within the dean’s office, and he’s been deeply involved in that for the last two years or so.” Another factor in Morrison’s recommendation was other faculty’s favorable opinions of him, she said. “You want someone who has the respect of the faculty, and everyone that I spoke with spoke
very highly of his thoughtfulness and his willingness to listen and his knowledge about BU,” Morrison said. Michael Sorenson, associate dean of the faculty of natural sciences in CAS, wrote in an email that during Sclaroff’s time as an associate dean and department chair, the two often consulted each other on various issues. “Stan’s experience as a department chair and associate dean, his strong working relationships with staff and faculty colleagues in the Dean’s office, and his commitment to supporting excellence in all of the college’s programs make him an ideal choice to serve as interim dean,” Sorenson wrote. “We are fortunate that he agreed to continue his service to the college in this important role.” After serving various roles in the college for 23 years, Sclaroff said that he is looking forward to representing the college, acting as an ambassador and collaborating CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
PHOTO COURTESY OF CYDNEY SCOTT/ BOSTON UNIVERSITY PHOTOGRAPHY
Professor Stan Sclaroff was tapped as the interim dean of Boston University’s College of Arts and Sciences following the departure of former Dean Ann Cudd.