The Daily Northwestern — May 17, 2021

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The Daily Northwestern Monday, May 17, 2021 Scan this QR code with your smartphone camera to listen to NU Declassified: You ask, students answer.

4 OPINION/Lowenthal

3 CAMPUS/Hiring

On graduating from a place of growth, with a memory of harm

NU policy to increase inclusivity in hiring

High 59 Low 52

EFBL, JVP hold teachin on Israel, Palestine Residents gather for second Reclaim the Block party By ALEX HARRISON

the daily northwestern @alexhairysun

Organizers with Evanston Fight for Black Lives and members of Jewish Voice for Peace-Chicago discussed the history of Zionism and Israeli settlements within Palestine at a Sunday teach-in outside of Evanston Police Department. Speakers centered historical events like the Nakba, when the newly-created Israeli state displaced over 750,000 Palestinians in 1948, and connected them to violence by Israeli forces in the West Bank and Gaza today. Carol Muskin, an organizer with JVP-Chicago, said during the event that her connection with a Palestinian exchange student she hosted radicalized her perspective around the issue. She said recent messages from the student, who lives in East Jerusalem, showed her how dire the situation has become for Palestinians.

» See RECLAIM THE BLOCK, page 6

Graphic by Meher Yeda, Source: Northwestern Now

Amy Falls. New VP and CIO Amy Falls discussed the University’s imminent financial future, transparency and fiscal goals.

CIO Amy Falls talks investment interests

In interview, NU’s first female chief investment officer discusses University’s fiscal goals daily senior staffer @yunkyomoonk

discuss the University’s imminent financial future, transparency and fiscal goals. This interview was edited for clarity and brevity.

Amy Falls started her term as Northwestern’s first female chief investment officer on May 1. Last week, members of The Daily’s editorial board sat down with Falls to

The Daily: You have previously served as CIO at biomedical research institution Rockefeller University as well as at Phillips Academy Andover. Given that

By YUNKYO KIM

these educational institutions have different needs than models compared to NU, how do you plan to adapt that experience to your new role? Falls: At Rockefeller, the endowment was about a third of the budget. At Northwestern, it’s exciting to take on a larger endowment that plays an equally critical

role in supporting the budget, in a way that is not tuition dependent and not government dependent. That can be important for the independence of the research institution. The average endowment return over the last 10 years has been just over 8 percent. If you don’t generate over eight, you’re falling behind. The top tier

endowments have been closer to 10 percent over that same period. So again if we want Northwestern to continue to grow and attract the best faculty and the best students, and do the best research, we don’t want to fall too far behind. My goal is to be in that top quartile, and to

» See FALLS, page 6

Low-income students reflect on SIGP CDPH discusses SIGP recipients reflect on a summer of unpaid, remote internships vaccine rollout By JACQUELYNE GERMAIN

the daily northwestern @jacquygermain

When SESP junior Glory Aliu’s practicum went remote as a result of COVID-19, she was surprised that she had to remain in the Chicago area as a requirement of her unpaid internship at the Public Health Institute of Metropolitan Chicago. The SESP practicum, a graduation requirement, can take the form of a summer field-studies internship in Chicago, San Francisco or Washington, D.C. As Aliu scrambled to sublet an apartment for the summer, she said she did her best to find a place that she could afford with the $3,000 grant she was awarded from Northwestern Career Advancement as part of the Summer Internship Grant Program. “I didn’t realize how hard it was… to find something that’s within the budget for rent,” Aliu said. “(I thought) I might have to cut down on food a lot which is not fine because you never really

Recycle Me

want to be the starving college student.” Unpaid internships have been criticized recently for gatekeeping opportunities from low-income students who can’t afford to work without pay while exploiting college students’ labor. SIGP seeks to alleviate the financial burdens of unpaid internships. Since 2007, NCA has administered SIGP grants to support undergraduate students taking on unpaid summer opportunities that indicate financial need. The grants provide $3,000 to students for unpaid internships, summer research positions and other programs to advance professional skills. In 2020, NCA awarded 415 NU students with SIGP grants in an unprecedented year in which almost every student took on a remote summer opportunity, according to the NCA website. Aliu, a first-generation lowincome student, said she eventually sublet from a friend who gave her a “friendship discount,” allowing her to have an affordable place to stay for the summer while

Allison Arwady talks vaccine obstacles, relaxed guidelines By ANGELI MITTAL

the daily northwestern @amittal27

Illustration by Meher Yeda

In 2020, NCA awarded hundreds of NU students with SIGP grants in an unprecedented year in which almost every student took on a remote summer opportunity.

partaking in her internship. However, she said living in Evanston is expensive and rent alone is enough to use up the majority of the funds from the SIGP grant. She added that the remote nature of the internship helped her budget because she didn’t have to factor in transportation costs.

“(With transportation costs), I probably would have had to dip into my food budget,” she said. Junior Ndayikengurukiye, a McCormick junior, said he used the SIGP grant he received last summer for a remote research opportunity. He remained in

» See SIGP, page 6

As COVID-19 vaccine eligibility expands to 12- to 15-year olds and vaccination rates fall, Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Allison Arwady discussed Chicago’s obstacles and initiatives to vaccinate the remaining population at a press conference Wednesday. Currently, Illinois has entered a “bridge phase” as the state looks to reopen entirely in the coming months. In Chicago, Mayor Lori Lightfoot anticipated a full reopening by July 4.

On misinformation and immunity

Arwady said one of the primary reasons remaining residents are not getting vaccinated is that they

don’t believe they’re at risk for COVID-19. Some residents who contracted COVID-19 are also refusing to get the vaccine, Arwady said, and are relying on natural immunity for protection against future infection. She said there are some false claims surrounding vaccine side effects, which are rooted in misinformation circulating online. Arwady said there isn’t a “magic number” of vaccinated individuals needed nationwide to achieve herd immunity, especially in the presence of emerging variants. While she predicts there will be geographic areas or social networks with high vaccination rates, mitigating spread if a positive case were to occur, for communities that are not as well protected, a single case can spread more aggressively. Similarly, Arwady said if vaccination rates don’t rise, Americans may see COVID-19 return. Arwady: “I really want folks to understand, we’re still at a high risk level from COVID, and

» See CDPH, page 6

INSIDE: Around Town 2 | On Campus 3 | Opinion 4 | Classifieds & Puzzles 6 | Sports 8


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