February 19, 2010 issue

The Chronicle T h e i n d e p e n d e n t d a i ly at D u k e U n i v e r s i t y

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010

ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTH YEAR, Issue 99

www.dukechronicle.com

In 3rd year, Andrews tackles budget challenge Mangum

faces felony charges

by Sabrina Rubakovic THE CHRONICLE

The Medical School hopes to balance a budget and a vision in the coming year.

Dr. Nancy Andrews, vice chancellor for academic affairs and dean of the School of Medicine, spoke to students, faculty and administrators in the annual State of the Medical School address Thursday. Andrews encouraged optimism for the school and health system in 2010, her third year serving as dean.

“Budget challenges and a continual volatility of the economy will be our companion moving forward,” Andrews said. She added that administrators must juxtapose careful fiscal management and new initiatives that will carry the institution.

Andrews said there will be a $75 million backstop fund for support in the case of a future economic crisis.

She discussed primary goals of the medical school, which include the construction of a new School of Medicine Learning Center, approved in May 2009. The center will be funded by a $35 million donation from the Charlotte-based Duke Endowment as well as an initiative to raise $15 million from alumni. It will aim to reshape medical education with a focus on team-based learning, interdisciplinary education and an increased use of technology.

Andrews noted the advantages of implementing virtual learning environments, where students can practice administering medical care through a video game-like simulation.

See med school on page 8

Lax accuser arrested for arson, attempted murder

by Zachary Tracer THE CHRONICLE

libby busdicker/The Chronicle

Dr. Nancy Andrews, dean of the School of Medicine, said the effects of the recession on the medical school’s budget will be a continual challenge in the future at the annual State of the Medical School address Thursday.

Crystal Gail Mangum, the woman who falsely accused three members of the men’s lacrosse team of rape in 2006, was arrested early Thursday after a fight with her boyfriend.

Durham Police Department officers responded to a 911 call about a domestic dispute at 11:55 p.m. Wednesday and found Mangum, 31, attacking Milton Walker, 33, by scratching, punching and throwing objects Crystal Mangum at him, according to court documents. Mangum also set Walker’s clothes on fire in a bathtub.

“I’m gonna stab you motherf- !!!,” Mangum said to Walker, a court document states.

Mangum faces charges including attempted murder, arson and assault. She is currently being held in the Durham County See Mangum on page 6

Report pushes for unification of civic engagement

by Nicole Kyle THE CHRONICLE

The University is taking major steps to improve the role of civic engagement in undergraduate education, as a result of concerns expressed in the Klein-Wells Committee’s “Engaging Excellence” report issued Jan. 15.

The report focuses on the somewhat disjointed relationship between DukeEngage and the Duke Center for Civic Engagement, and suggests ways to improve and integrate civic engagement into the Emily Klein Duke experience and research mission.

“Launching DukeEngage was a huge endeavor and it’s no surprise that it’s needed a lot of attention, but we realized we needed to have more than just a signature program,” said Steve Nowicki, vice provost and dean of undergraduate education. Nowicki was also the Klein-Wells Committee’s facilitator. “In people’s minds, DukeSam Wells Engage and the DCCE have become conflated... We never intended for that.”

Nowicki appointed the Klein-Wells committee in March 2009 to analyze and decipher a clear mission for the DCCE. Nine faculty and staff members and two students comprised the committee. Dean of the Chapel Sam Wells and Emily Klein, senior associate dean and director of undergraduate studies at the Nicholas School of the Environment, co-chaired the Klein-Wells Committee and wrote the report.

The report defines civic engagement as an “activity that integrates academic learning, personal development and community developnews ment.” Among the committee’s findings are seven goals for the University’s analysis value of civic engagement, including faculty ownership, financial resourcing and curricular engagement.

Klein agreed that most of civic engagement reform needs to occur within the DCCE to make it an umbrella organization of civic engagement opportunities. “[DCCE] was created three years ago, at the same time of DukeEngage, and we recognized it would form a logical hub for coordination in practices of civic engagement,” Klein said. “Now its time to give DCCE life so it will most effectively serve the Duke community and partners.”

To accomplish this transition, the administration ap-

ONTHERECORD

“We have a chance now... to really carry the torch forward that President Kennedy first handed our country.”

­—Peace Corps Director Aaron Williams on civic service. See story page 3

pointed Leela Prasad, associate professor of ethics and Indian religions, faculty director of the DCCE. Prasad will partner with Eric Mlyn, director of DukeEngage and DCCE, to develop a strategic planning system for DCCE and establish an identity for the center.

“The report correctly points out that the center does not yet have its own identity,” Mlyn said. “The appointment of Leela Prasad is the perfect thing to do as we think about strategic direction for our center.”

Klein said the appointment of a faculty director is the most important suggestion of the report.

“It allows for connections to be made between teaching and research missions,” she said. “It represents a commitment on part of the University to bring civic engagement closer to the core missions of the University—I think it is a very smart decision.”

Prasad will officially start July 1. Prasad wrote in an e-mail that she hopes civic engagement among students, faculty and staff will become more intertwined and methodical.

“I think in time we will be able to truly speak of a culture of civic engagement at Duke that doesn’t let up on its ability to be self-critical and imaginatively proactive about social change, a culture in which civic engagement

Bring on the turkey Pull out the middle of this paper and take it to Cameron Sunday, CENTERSPREAD

See civic engagement on page 7

Duke returns home against ACC rival Hokies, Page 13

2 | FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 the chronicle

worldandnation

TODAY:

5227

SATURDAY:

5629

Arrests reflect improving U.S.-Pakistani cooperation

U.N. requests $1.4 billion Fed slows critical support in recovery aid to Haiti WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Federal Reserve took another step toward winding down its expansive efforts Thursday to prop up the financial system by raising the interest rate banks must pay to take out emergency loans.

Banks that need emergency funds through the Fed’s “discount window” will now have to pay 0.75 percent, not the 0.5 percent they have been paying. That higher rate is not likely to flow through to borrowing costs for ordinary households and businesses, and the move does not represent an effort by the Fed to drain the money supply, as it would if it were to raise its target for the federal funds rate, traditionally its main tool for managing the economy.

Rather, Thursday’s step was part of an effort to withdraw the Fed’s extraordinary support for the financial system.

“

All we got is precious time.

— Axl Rose

”

NEW YORK — The United Nations said $1.4 billion is needed to provide food, water, shelter and sanitation to 3 million Haitians throughout 2010, the largest appeal following a natural disaster in the world body’s history.

The request includes the $577 million initially sought for the first six months after the Jan. 12 earthquake that killed about 230,000 people in the Caribbean nation and left more than 1 million in need of emergency shelter. The United Nations has received $619 million so far from its member nations.

“It is designed to finance the continuing costs of emergency relief, but more than that it is designed to help lay the foundation for Haiti’s recovery and reconstruction,” U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said. “Done right, we can turn tragedy into opportunity—an opportunity to reinvent Haiti.”

KARACHI, Pakistan — The capture of senior Afghan Taliban leaders in Pakistan represents the culmination of months of pressure by the Obama administration to persuade Pakistan’s powerful security forces to side with the United States as its troops wage war in Afghanistan, according to U.S. and Pakistani officials.

A new level of cooperation includes Pakistani permission late last month for U.S. intelligence officials to station personnel and technology in this pulsating megacity, officials said. Intercepted real-time communications handed over to Pakistani intelligence officials has led to the arrests in recent days of Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Afghan Taliban’s No. 2 commander, and two of the Taliban’s “shadow” governors for northern Afghanistan.

The detentions, which have taken place in a wave since early last week, were ini-

tially kept secret to allow intelligence operatives to use information gleaned from captures to lead additional militants to expose their location and movements, according to officials who discussed the ongoing operations on the condition of anonymity. Final agreement on the Karachi operation came during the last week of January, with the intercept system up and running by the first week of February.

“The ISI and the CIA are working together, with the Americans providing actionable intelligence and the Pakistanis acting together with them” to track down the insurgent leaders, a Pakistani official said.

The arrests offer stark evidence of something that has long been suspected: Top Afghan Taliban leaders have found refuge across Pakistan, and particularly in its cities—a fact the government here has long denied.

TODAY IN HISTORY 607: Boniface III begins his reign as Catholic Pope

Bill O’Leary/The Washington post

The Dalai Lama, exiled leader of Tibet, talks to reporters after meeting with President Barack Obama in Washington, a meeting that angered the Chinese government but delighted Tibetans world-wide.

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the chronicle

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 | 3

Peace Corps head speaks at Sanford DUHS’ swine

flu vaccine in steady supply

by Ciaran O’Connor THE CHRONICLE

As a young man from the South Side of Chicago fresh out of college, Aaron Williams decided to spend two years volunteering in the Dominican Republic for the newly formed U.S. Peace Corps in 1967. Now, more than 40 years later, he finds himself the director of a drastically expanded organization boasting a budget unparalleled in its history.

Williams spoke Thursday afternoon at the Sanford School of Public Policy on the importance of public service and his agenda for the globally known agency.

The Peace Corps works to further international development and increase respect and understanding between Americans and the citizens of other nations.

Williams, who was appointed director of the Peace Corps last July by President Barack Obama, was invited to the University as part of a Corps tour in the Triangle.

Rep. David Price, D-N.C., who represents Durham, also spoke to the approximately 50 attendees, sharing a legislative perspective on the Corps.

In his remarks to an audience comprised primarily of ex-volunteers, Williams touted the Peace Corps as “the humanitarian face of America” and implored young people to consider joining the agency.

“We have a chance now... to really carry the torch forward that President Kennedy first handed our country,” Williams said. “We need you, we need your talent, we want your leadership, we want your vision, we want your enthusiasm, we want your passion.”

Williams said he was pleased to be speaking at an institution that places such a high premium on civic engagement.

by Sabrina Rubakovic THE CHRONICLE

We can go into new countries... [and] build on successful existing programs.”

The director added that he plans to create a food security initiative, as espoused

by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and reach out to young people in host countries to aid in the Corps’ mission.

Today, the majority of Peace Corps volunteers are recent liberal arts graduates who sign up for a three-month training period and a two-year commitment to

The once scarce supply of H1N1 vaccines at Duke is now relatively plentiful.

Since December, Duke University Health System has kept each clinic comfortably supplied with vaccines, said Dr. Cameron Wolfe, an infectious disease physician at Duke University Medical Center.

More vaccines can be ordered on a weekly basis, and a “good few thousand” are in reserve, he said.

“We have a lot of news swine flu vaccine right now sitting in the reanalysis frigerator which has not been administered to anybody, which is kind of sad considering how many people wanted it at one point,” said Dr. George Jackson, director for employee occupational health and awareness.

The surplus of vaccines was the result of inconvenient timing of supply and demand, Jackson said. In the face of high demand in the Fall, shipments were scarce and lastminute. But when the supply became large enough to accommodate students and employees in December, the hype over swine flu had largely passed, he noted.

If a sufficient amount of swine flu vaccines had been available earlier in the Fall, more people would have received the

See williams on page 5

See H1N1 vaccine on page 7

naureen khan/The Chronicle

Aaron Williams, director of Peace Corps, speaks in the Sanford School of Public Policy Thursday afternoon.

Williams urged students to join the volunteer organization, touting it as “the humanitarian face of America.”

The Peace Corps is currently active in 76 countries and has taught more than 250 languages to volunteers who bring back invaluable cultural perspectives and experiences to their home communities, Williams said. He also expressed hope for expanding and improving the agency’s programs, adding that the Corps is currently enjoying broad bipartisan support in Congress with a $400 million budget.

“I want to see targeted measured growth,” Williams said. “I want to give more Americans the opportunity to serve in the Peace Corps.

4 | FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 the chronicle

Campus council

Individual damage may hurt future RGAC scores

by Maggie Love THE CHRONICLE

Throw a burning couch out of a window and lose points.

Residential Group Assessment Committee points, to be precise.

At a Campus Council meeting Thursday night, members incorporated this and other hypothetical forms of damage into their first discussion of the review of the residential group assessment process. RGAC assesses residential communities—including selective living groups and fraternities—each November.

“We’re trying to get rid of people saying this is completely arbitrary,” said President Stephen Temple, a junior.

To clarify the assessment process, council members defined various levels of damage in terms of student safety and whether the damage makes an object unusable. The group also discussed who should be accountable for the damage.

“I don’t think we should make allowances for the kind of things college kids do when they’re drunk,” said Programming Chair Ben Goldenberg, a sophomore.

“I say it’s the group’s fault unless there is an extenuating circumstance and then there should be an evaluation.”

Opinions among members were split between keeping the current system of consequences for individual damage in which groups are not penalized and alternatives where the group takes either a full or lessened charge for all damage.

Traditionally, half of a group’s assessment has been based on “section stewardship,” or a residential group’s overall cleanliness and damage control, and another half has been based on a group’s community interaction. In the version of the process under revision, 60 percent of the score will be based on section stewardship and 40 percent will be based on community interaction.

“The document, frankly, is ambiguous in a lot of places. This is a working document. We’re showing this now to get some feedback,” said RGAC co-Chair John Pryor, a junior. “It’s going to go through so much revision at so many levels.”

Temple said the Interfraternity Council and the Selective House Council, in addition to administrators, must contribute to the revision process before any changes are finalized.

Campus Council did not vote on any changes Thursday night,

tyler seuc/The Chronicle

Campus Council President Stephen Temple (left) and Vice President Alex Reese (right) discuss revisions to the RGAC process at the group’s meeting Thursday night. Damage caused by individuals may negatively impact a group’s RGAC score in the future. but Temple said they hope to finalize the process within two weeks.

In other business: Vice President Alex Reese, a junior, said all applicants to the

2010-2011 Campus Council will be asked to provide the council with a “publicly acceptable resume”— one that would not include GPAs, for instance—to be published online. This is the first time applica-

tions will be available for viewing by the general student body.

Reese added that even if a candidate does not wish to have his application published online, his name will still be published.

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the chronicle

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 | 5

Q & A with Aaron Williams

by Ciaran O’Connor THE CHRONICLE

Aaron Williams served as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Dominican Republic from 1967 to 1970. Since that time, he has served as coordinator of minority recruitment and project evaluation officer for the Peace Corps in Chicago, a senior manager at the U.S. Agency for International Development and executive vice president of the International Youth Foundation. He was awarded the U.S. Agency for International Development Distinguished Career Service Award, and was twice awarded the Presidential Award for Distinguished Service. The Chronicle’s Ciaran O’Connor sat down with Peace Corps Director Aaron Williams before his speech at the Sanford School of Public Policy Thursday afternoon.

The video of the interview can be viewed in its entirety online at http://bit.ly/AaronWilliams.

naureen khan/The Chronicle

Prior to his speech Thursday, Peach Corps Director Aaron Williams sat down with The Chronicle’s Ciaran O’Connor for an exclusive interview.

williams from page 3 serve in a foreign country.

Williams said he hopes to increase diversity within the Corps and shepherd the growing organization into the future.

“Volunteers now in the 21st century are very technologically savvy,” he said. “We’re going to create an office of innovation... and look at our [information technology] platform. We’re running to catch up.”

Price spoke after Williams and offered high praise for the new director.

The Chronicle: What first drew you to Peace Corps, and can you tell me a little bit about the Dominican Republic and your work there?

Aaron Williams: Well, I think I was inspired, even though I was very young, by what I heard from President [John F.] Kennedy in his speeches. I was about to start a career as a high school teacher on the South Side of Chicago, and I said, let me see if I can think about going to a place where I could learn a new language, where I can experience a dif-

“I’m very satisfied to see [Williams] move into this role, this leadership position, at a time when the Peace Corps’ future, I think, has never been brighter and his role has never been more important,” Price said.

Price added that he supports increased funding for the organization and that he has been working as chairman of the House Democracy Partnership to spread the Corps’ influence around the globe.

“It extends our involvement in the world in ways that work to the mutual benefit of us and friends and neighbors,” Price said.

“In the end, it will be our smart power...

ferent culture, and so I decided the Peace Corps was the way to do it. When I told my family and friends about this, they said, ‘Why are you doing this?’ The one person who thought it was a marvelous idea was my mother. [In the Dominican Republic], I was a teacher trainer. I was assigned to work with a large group of rural schoolteachers who were in a program whereby they were going to gain a high school diploma and at the same time improve their overall teaching techniques. They gave up their Saturdays during the school year and gave up their summers during vacation so that they could improve the way they taught their children in their classes—pretty amazing group of people.

TC: As Director of the Peace Corps, do you have an agenda? Are there any specific policy changes that you’d like to see implemented?

AW: I have three areas in terms of my priorities for the Peace Corps. First of all, we want to have growth. We now have received a significant increase in our budget because of strong bipartisan support in the U.S. Congress.

We’ll grow by going into new countries... and building on successful programs in countries where we now serve, in education, health, microfinance, environment and agriculture. The second priority is innovation. We’re going to See Q&A on page 8

and our capacity to do good that lead by example and that make for a strengthening of our moral leadership in the world and the esteem in which we’re held.”

Williams’ half-hour speech and subsequent question-and-answer session were organized

by Stephanie Alt Lamm, assistant director of Program in International Development Policy. Alt Lamm volunteered for the Peace Corps in Costa Rice in the early 1990s.

Many former volunteers said Williams’ message resonated with them.

“It’s great that with the expansion of the budget comes a person that has been a volun-

teer, that understands what it’s like to be a volunteer and the things that volunteers might like,” said Rossana Zetina, a former volunteer who served in Antigua and is currently pursuing a masters degree from the PIDP. Some, like Rebecca Johnson, a secondyear masters student in the School of Public Policy and also a former Peace Corps volunteer, also stressed the need for increased recruitment.

“More needs to be done on campuses.

[The Corps] wasn’t recruited for on my campus,” she said. “There’s not a huge awareness for it on a lot of levels.”

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6 | FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 the chronicle

mangum from page 1 Jail on $1 million bond.

Police officers called the Durham Fire Department to the red brick duplex at 2220 Lincoln St. after Mangum set the fire, according to a news release from the Durham Fire Department. Firefighters responded to the scene at 12:14 a.m., at which time they saw light smoke emanating from the building. The apartment, located across the street from North Carolina Central University’s School of Education, sustained heavy smoke damage, the release states.

Mangum’s three children, ages three, nine and 10, were home at the time of the altercation, but were not injured. The nineyear-old made the 911 call that brought police to the apartment, according to a recording of the call obtained by ABC News.

Two people can be heard yelling in the

background as the child tells the dispatcher that her mother is involved in a fight.

When DPD officers H.P. Thompson and John Tyler attempted to arrest Mangum, she resisted and gave them a fake name, “Marella Magnum,” and fake date of birth, leading them to charge her with identity theft.

Mangum was booked at the Durham County Jail at 4:52 a.m. Thursday on charges of attempted first degree murder, five counts of first degree arson, assault and battery, identity theft, communicating a threat, injury to personal property, resisting a public officer and three counts of misdemeanor child abuse, jail documents state.

Mangum appeared in court Thursday morning and her next appearance is scheduled for Feb. 22, WRAL reported Thursday.

Thursday afternoon, the entrance to the duplex where the fight occurred was

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marked off with caution tape. A black Buick Park Avenue with flat tires and cracked windows sat in the driveway.

Mangum has faced legal trouble before.

In 2002, she was jailed for larceny and driving while intoxicated.

In 2008, Mangum co-authored “The Last Dance for Grace,” a book about her life and the 2006 incident in which she falsely accused three Duke lacrosse players of raping her. In the book, Mangum maintains that a sexual assault occurred.

In a statement released Thursday, Mangum’s co-author and agent, Vincent Clark, expressed concern and support for Mangum while promoting the sale of her book.

“We take seriously any criminal charges that have been leveled,” Clark wrote. “We wish to reaffirm our belief in the ultimate fairness of the justice system. We hope that the courts will adjudicate this case with fairness and without bias. Nevertheless, we support Crystal in her effort to heal from abuse and past injustices.”

KC Johnson, a history professor at Brooklyn College and author of the Durham-in-Wonderland blog, which analyzes the effects of the lacrosse case, said he thinks the arrest further diminishes Mangum’s credibility. Still, he said he does not think the arrest will change the minds of those who think Mangum was sexually assaulted by the lacrosse players.

“My guess is that for the small minority, you know 5 or 10 percent or however much it is who still believed her three days ago, they’ll rationalize this in some way and continue to believe her,” he said. “If you’ve believed in Mangum’s story up until now, nothing is going to change your mind.”

In March 2006, Mangum was hired by Duke lacrosse players to dance at an offcampus party in a house on Buchanan Boulevard. Mangum, who was then an exotic dancer and a student at North Carolina Central University, accused three players of raping her in a bathroom at the party.

Former Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong pursued charges against the three lacrosse players, despite a lack of evidence and a mishandled investigation.

All charges against the players were ultimately dropped, and Nifong was disbarred and briefly jailed for his handling of the case.

Attorney Joe Cheshire, who represented one of the three wrongly accused players, David Evans, Trinity ’06, said Mangum’s arrest is sad and further shows the falsity of her claims against the players.

“It just appears that nobody ever listened to who she really was... they just used her for their own purposes,” he said. “On the other hand, of course, it helps demonstrate the false accusations that were made against my client and all the lacrosse players.”

University and athletics officials said they had no comment on Mangum’s arrest.

the chronicle

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 | 7

civic engagement from page 1 is understood as an integral way of thinking and being in the world,” Prasad said.

The administration is also working to create a coordinated Web presence for DCCE, as suggested by the committee, Nowicki said. Susan Kauffman, director of undergraduate communications, is spearheading a comprehensive Web site that will gather information regarding civic engagement opportunities in one place.

“We know that civic engagement at Duke is represented in a very scattered manner across the web,” Kauffman said.

“It’s difficult to get the big picture or to see how programs overlap or interact­—it’s difficult for students to see how to get involved—those are some of the questions that we want to answer.”

Nowicki, Prasad, Mlyn and Lee Baker, dean of academic affairs of Trinity College, are also developing a suite of new courses to connect civic engagement and curriculum. These courses should be available in the Fall, Nowicki said.

The administration is also looking into the possibility of creating a writing class that corresponds with DukeEngage programs, Baker said.

“The preliminary plan is that it’s going to be a writing class that teaches how to write creative non-fiction,” he said.

“The idea would be to use your reflections, writing and experiences, but go beyond blogging, and actually write the long-form essay, as seen in magazines like Vanity Fair.”

This summer, the administration also plans to hire global advisers to help students with planning their international experiences. The goal is to continue to connect DukeEngage, and other civic engagement experiences, to the curriculum, Baker said.

The Klein-Wells report characterized the status of civic engagement as needing improvement, coordination and focus. Administrators are looking toward inevitable change.

“I see this as a crossroads moment,” Wells wrote in an e-mail. “Either Duke integrates civic engagement into its core mission—education and research—and leads the field in its ethos and programs, or civic engagement becomes a spare-time peripheral activity for the service minded. I think it is perfectly placed to take the former route.”

Licensed from the USACE/Creative Commons

Although once in great demand and limited supply, swine flu vaccine stocks have piled up at the Duke University Medical Center.

h1n1 vaccine from page 3 vaccine, Jackson said.

Approximately 16 percent of the student body has received the swine flu vaccine, said Dr. Bill Purdy, executive director of Student Health. According to data provided

by Jackson, 29 percent of employees were vaccinated.

The decline in public attention to swine flu may be in part due to less news coverage, noted Julie Henry, H1N1 communications specialist for the North Carolina Division of Public Health. “[Swine flu’s] just not getting as much media attention as it was in the Fall,” she said.

The nation as a whole seems to be experiencing this phenomenon, leaving providers unsure of what to do with extra vaccines, Henry said. She added that many are giving the surplus to other health care providers or local health departments.

Swine flu remains a significant health concern, however.

This week, almost 400 people were hospitalized from swine flu complications, and three patients died, Henry said.

“We don’t want to scare people, but we want them to know it’s still out there,” Henry said.

Another issue facing health care providers is the shortened expiration date of vaccines, which has resulted in a buildup of unusable vaccines.

Earlier this month, vaccine manufacturer Sanofi Pasteur shortened the expiration period of the 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccines, which are supplied to Duke. Now, providers are waiting for advice from state health departments on what to do with these vaccines, Henry said.

In turn, state health departments are waiting for instruction from the federal government.

Despite problems in vaccine distribution, Jackson said the process was effective overall, considering the outbreak of the epidemic was in April and vaccines were delivered to the University by October.

“It’s an astounding feat to make this come together the way it did come together,” he said.

8 | FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 the chronicle

Q&A from page 5 create an office of innovation in the Peace Corps and take a look at all of our operations: how we recruit volunteers, how we train volunteers, improve ways of training our staff, improve and modernize our information technology platform to be more innovative and more interactive with our volunteers. We’re going to look at our finance. Finally, I want to engage with this wonderful community of 200,000 returned Peace Corps volunteers who are leaders in all walks of life, in medicine, in education, in business and engage them in ways that will help the Peace Corps enhance its profile here in the United States and encourage more people to join.

TC: How do you specifically plan on bolstering recruitment, especially on college campuses, with young people?

AW: Well, one of the great advantages we have, such as is the case here at Duke, is that we have a large cadre of returned Peace Corps volunteers and they’re our best spokespersons actually because they’ve lived the experience and they’re enthusiastic about the Peace Corps.

TC: What about the Peace Corps in crises? Do you ever do things with natural disasters, like the earthquake in Haiti for example?

AW: In terms of natural disasters, it depends on the country where this occurs. If we were in that country, and there’s a natural disaster, you can be assured that Peace Corps volunteers respond. In the case of Haiti, we did not have a program in Haiti.

We left Haiti in 2006 because of political turmoil. But in fact, we have a small group of Peace Corps staff working in Haiti as part of the U.S. government’s interagency relief efforts.

TC: Why do you think you were chosen

as Director?

AW: First of all, I have always had a lifelong love for the Peace Corps because the Peace Corps changed my life forever. I never imagined, growing up on the South Side of Chicago, that I was going to have the opportunity to have a career in foreign service, that I was going to become an international development professional and at sometime in the future have the opportunity to lead the Peace Corps. And I think it’s a wonderful thing for a former volunteer to have the chance to be the lead person at the Peace Corps. I will be eternally grateful to President [Barack] Obama for giving me the opportunity to serve.

TC: Did you know the President before you were nominated?

AW: Well, I had been one of his supporters from the time that he ran for the Senate, but we really had never worked together. I left Chicago way before he came.

TC: When you were in the Dominican Republic, I thought it’d be interesting to ask, what’s one experience there that really stood out for you and solidified the Peace Corps as what you think of it today?

AW: When I got there and started working with a group of 15 rural schoolteachers, I was only 20 years old. I had just graduated from college. I saw that they were dependent on me to help them move through this course to attain their high school diploma.

When I saw the level of sacrifice and the fact that they saw me as being an integral part of what they wanted to achieve personally and professionally, it was just overwhelming commitment. I was determined to work 24/7 for the two years that I was there to really try to make a difference, and that was an extraordinarily amazing learning experience. For a young person at the age of 20 to have this responsibility in a complicated and complex situation—it’s really an experience that will change you forever.

libby busdicker/The Chronicle

At the State of the Medical School address Thursday, Dr. Nancy Andrews, dean of the School of Medicine, said the budget will continue to be the biggest challenge in the upcoming year.

med school from page 1 She also elaborated on a new faculty recruiting initiative. Andrews said she hopes to attract two recruits each year who will work across departments, complementing existing research initiatives, citing the collaboration on hepatitis C research between David Goldstein, director of the Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, and John McHutchison, associate director of the Duke Clinical Research Institute.

“It’s great to see these collaborations emerge organically, and I’m committed to helping advance them when they do,” she said.

Andrews said she wishes to increase the number of underrepresented mi-

nority faculty members, such as women.

Diversity is apparent in medical school classes, she said, but faculty and leadership can be more diversified. She later added that the medical school is not as effective as other institutions at recruiting female faculty, although Duke is the only top-10 medical school with a female dean. Andrews has appointed two female department chairs as deans.

In addition, Andrews noted the importance of looking beyond Duke’s campus to Durham and the rest of the world. She highlighted the Durham Health Innovations initiative as a model for how an academic medical center can partner with its community to improve health and wellness. She added that the medical school will likely have a role in the University’s expansion in China.

green in 3

Duke’s Nicholas School of the Environment presents

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3 Win $500!*

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*There will be 15 first-place winners chosen in 3 contest periods between Jan. 19 and April 9, 2010. Winners receive $500 each.

the chronicle

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 | 9

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Sports

>> MEN’S TENNIS

The Chronicle

Women’s basketball

ACC play heats up for Duke

FRIDAY

February 19, 2010 www.dukechroniclesports.com

Men’s basketball

DUKE

Men’s Lacrosse

VT

CAMERON • SUNDAY • 7:45 p.m. • FSN

THE CHRONICLE

THE CHRONICLE

Usually the Blue Devils have at least three days of rest between games, but this time, they must recover quickly and face two ACC opponents—a ranked team on the road and a rival at home.

But the players aren’t daunted by their almost backto-back matchups No. 19 against Georgia Ga Tech Tech tonight at vs.

8:30 p.m. and No. 8 Maryland Sunday Duke at 1 p.m.

“We’re always FRIDAY, 8:30 p.m.

Atlanta, Ga. preparing for these kinds of games, and it’s... a quick turnUMd around,” junior vs. guard Jasmine No. 8 Thomas said.

Duke “[Head coach Joanne P. McCalSUNDAY, 1 p.m.

Cameron Indoor Stadium lie] always compares it to the ACC [tournament], and we’re looking at this as practice for the ACC tournament.”

No. 8 Duke (21-4, 9-1 in the ACC) traditionally has a high-powered offense, See w. bball on page 15

margie truwit/Chronicle file photo

Duke has yet to lose a game at Cameron Indoor Stadium this year, and no opponent has come closer than 14 points.

Surprising Hokies come looking for ACC glory

by Gabe Starosta THE CHRONICLE

melissa yeo/Chronicle file photo

No. 9 Irish visit Sat. at Koskinen

by Alexander Stuart

by Patricia Lee

Junior guard Jasmine Thomas is the ACC’s fifthhighest scorer at nearly 16 points per contest.

Duke returns to the court after a two-week break from action when the Blue Devils travel to Richmond, Va. to take on Virginia Commonwealth Sunday at 10 a.m.

A month ago, a mediocre Virginia Tech team lacking quality wins didn’t look like an ACC contender.

That’s not the case anymore. In a conference season that has been full of surprises, the Hokies have become the ACC’s most unlikely success story.

Virginia Tech (21-4, 8-3 in the ACC) has been right on the brink of an NCAA Tournament bid the last several years, but the Hokies are currently in second place in the conference—unfamiliar territory for a team still considered to be on the NCAA bubble by many experts. With a win over No. 6 Duke Sunday at 7:45 p.m. in Cameron Indoor Stadium, Virginia Tech could seal that place in the field of 65.

The Hokies lost their ACC opener, a sloppy game against North Carolina in Chapel Hill, Jan. 10. Since then, though, the boys from Blacksburg have reeled off a series of exhilarating victories, including late-game comebacks against Virginia in Charlottesville, Va., and, most

recently, Wake Forest at home.

Tuesday night, the Hokies trailed the Demon Deacons by 11 with 12 minutes to go before mounting a massive comeback to earn the win and stay perfect at home this season.

“It was a great win for our basketball team,” Virginia Tech head coach Seth Greenberg said. “Our reward is now we get a chance to go to Durham.”

Of course, visiting Durham has been anything but a reward for visitors in the recent past. Duke (22-4, 10-2) has not lost a home game to anybody but North Carolina the last three seasons, and nobody has played the Blue Devils closer than 14 points at home this year.

“We really want to protect our home court,” senior Jon Scheyer said after Duke’s last home game, a 21-point pasting of Maryland last weekend. “Outside of my freshman year, we’ve done that pretty much since I’ve been here. This year, as an older, veteran group, you really feel See VA. TECH on page 16

No. 2 Duke has been no stranger to close finishes in this young season. In an exhibition against the U.S. National Team, the Blue Devils scored a goal with 5.8 seconds left to win the match. Last weekend, it took overtime to determine a winner against No. 19 Bucknell. According to senior Max Quinzani, tests like No. 9 these have already ND proven to be benefivs. cial to the team.

No. 2 “This has been Duke the most gratifying opener I have had in SATURDAY, 1 p.m. my four years here,” Koskinen Stadium Quinzani said. “I’ve got a smile on my face and I think everyone does—we know we aren’t invincible anymore.”

Though Duke (1-0) has faced its share of difficulties in the previous two matches, head coach John Danowski has been particularly impressed by his team’s effort at this early stage.

“The thing that we liked in both contests was that we played hard start to finish—maybe not smart for 60 minutes or well the whole time, but hard,” Danowski said. “The other stuff is going to come. It’s still February.... We’ve only been out for a month, [and] the hope is that it will help us down the road in crunch time.”

Duke faces another stiff early-season test this Saturday when No. 9 Notre Dame (0-0) visits Koskinen Stadium at 1 p.m. The Irish come into this season hungry to erase See m. lax on page 16

chase olivieri/Chronicle file photo

Head coach John Danowski’s Blue Devils face a second consecutive ranked opponent in Notre Dame.

14 | FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 the chronicle

women’s tennis

women’s lacrosse

After loss to UNC, Blue Devils head north schedule gets no easier for nonconference tests

by Nicholas Schwartz THE CHRONICLE

With the 2010 college tennis season now in full swing, the time has come to forget about last season’s triumphs and focus on new challenges. Still trying to escape the shadow of a national championship, a new set of No. 7 Michigan Blue Devils will look to make their own vs. mark when No. 6 No. 6 Duke (7-1) hosts No. Duke 7 Michigan (6-2) Saturday at 12 p.m.

SATURDAY, 12 p.m. at Ambler Tennis Ambler Tennis Stadium Stadium.

Although the Blue Devils began the Furman season atop the ITA vs. polls, a trip to Wisconsin for the ITA InNo. 6 door Championships Duke last weekend yielded SUNDAY, 12 p.m. the first loss of the Ambler Tennis Stadium season to current No. 2 North Carolina. To head coach Jamie Ashworth, the trip north couldn’t have come at a better time.

“This team needed to prove to themselves that they could compete with anybody,” Ashworth said.

Duke beat No. 9 USC 4-2, but against North Carolina, the Blue Devils lost the doubles point for the first time all season, en route to a 4-3 loss to the Tar Heels.

“They were points away from winning,”

Ashworth said. “That was a match that we could have won, and should have won, but it was important for our team to learn.”

Duke returns to the relative safe haven of Durham this weekend, where the Blue Devils have only dropped two points out of a possible 35 all season. Senior Elizabeth Plotkin, recently named to the ITA Indoor Championship All-Tournament team, has been a major reason for the success as she has gone 8-0 in singles competition thus far. Plotkin missed the entire 2009 season due to injury, but her resurgence has been a boon to the Blue Devils.

“She’s done a great job getting back, physically and mentally,” Ashworth said.

“There’s not a lot of players that I’ve ever had that could go through [an injury] and come back the way she has.”

The Wolverines are led by No. 16 singles player Denise Muresan (6-2 in dual matches) and boast a strong lineup from top to bottom.

Sophomore-freshman tandem Michelle Sulahian and Mimi Nguyen have posted a 7-1 doubles record on the year, and Michigan has won all but one doubles point this season.

“The doubles point is so important,” Ashworth said. “If we win the doubles point [against Carolina], we win the match.

We’re hard to beat in singles.”

On Sunday, the Blue Devils will face Furman (3-3) at 12 p.m. at Ambler Tennis Stadium. The surging Paladins are winners of three straight after a 7-0 meltdown loss against Clemson.

Term 1: May 19 - July 1 Term 2: July 6-August 15

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summersession.duke.edu

margie truwit/Chronicle file photo

Sarah Bullard has more goals, but senior Lindsay Gilbride (above) leads Duke in points with nine.

by Stuart Price THE CHRONICLE

After convincing 16-6 and 19-10 victories over Denver and No. 11 Vanderbilt last week, No. 5 Duke travels to Virginia to face Richmond Friday at 3 p.m. and No. 20 William & Mary Sunday at 1 p.m. The Blue Devils (2-0) face the Richmond Spiders (0-1) and vs. the Tribe (1-0) in a weekend series for No. 5 the fourth year in a Duke row and are aiming FRIDAY, 3 p.m. for their fourth conRichmond, Va. secutive sweep.

Duke will lean No. 20 heavily on its forW&M midable offensive vs. players, led by senior captain and No. 5 midfielder Lindsay Duke Gilbride, a reigning SUNDAY, 1 p.m. third-team All-AmerWilliamsburg, Va. ican and ACC Player of the Week. Pacing the offense, Gilbride has scored five goals and dished out four assists through Duke’s first two games.

In addition to Gilbride’s offensive charge, juniors Virginia Crotty and Christie Kaestner both registered career-high performances in Duke’s 19-10 victory over

Vanderbilt as Crotty netted four goals and Kaestner contributed five points.

Against William & Mary, however, the Blue Devils’ explosive offense will be tested by the presence of junior All-American Sarah Jonson. Last year, the standout defender ranked sixth nationally with 2.29 forced turnovers per game and 33rd nationally with 2.65 ground balls per game.

On the defensive side of the ball, Duke will face difficult challenges from both Richmond’s and William & Mary’s offensive attacks. Despite its youth, Richmond has multiple weapons on the offensive side of the ball. In Richmond’s 17-7 loss to No. 2 Maryland last week, seven different Spiders, including five freshmen, found the back of the twine. The Blue Devils also will have to keep a particularly close eye on sophomore Sam Tajirian, who was an Atlantic 10 All-Freshman selection last year.

On the other hand, William & Mary’s attacking unit has a bona fide All-American in junior Ashley Holofcener, who scored 34 goals and had 30 assists last season. In its victory against No. 16 Ohio State, the Tribe scored 15 goals, including four by senior Mary Zultry and three points by Holofcener.

While Duke cannot overlook its road trip through Virginia, it is easy to be distracted by the beginning of ACC play next Saturday.

Still, the Blue Devils will be prepared for two more challenging early-season contests.

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the chronicle

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 | 15

w. bball from page 13 but seems to have developed its perimeter and interior defense over the season, making it one of its bigger assets.

And during tonight’s away game against the No. 19 Yellow Jackets (20-6, 6-4), both sides of the Blue Devils’ game must come into play to counter Georgia Tech’s aggressive press defense.

That defense is anchored by senior forward Brigitte Ardosi, who leads the team in points, rebounds and steals.

“They press a lot and have a lot of much-improved players, so they have a lot of confidence,” said Thomas, who is just 21 points short of becoming the 26th Duke player to reach 1,000 points. “We have to play very physical and aggressive and put a lot of pressure on them.”

McCallie stressed the same thing—going to her team’s strengths, like defense, and picking up broken plays—and has confidence in her players for their upcoming games.

“I think we’ve been growing, and we’ve learned lessons every game. It’s hard to chase the higher level that teams like UConn play, and it’s a constant chase and a constant work in progress,” McCallie said. “We just want to keep growing our style of play, whether that is being aggressive at defending or becoming a rebounding team, and we want to have the tempo to control the game.”

Following the Georgia Tech game Fri-

day, Duke will fly back to Durham to face the Terrapins (18-8, 5-6), whom the Blue Devils overcame by one point in their first meeting of the season.

Against Maryland Jan. 24, Duke snuck out of the Comcast Center with a win, but did so behind only 32.8 percent shooting. In contrast, Maryland shot over 40 percent.

“It’s hard to chase the higher level that teams like UConn play, and it’s a constant chase.”

— Joanne P. McCallie “Defensively, we have to buckle down more, and we have to be able to hold them to fewer points and not have as many turnovers,” Thomas said. “We’re hoping for more assists and to continue on our way to accomplish our goal this season to be regular season champions.”

“We’d certainly like to play a whole lot better offensively, like attacking at the basket, getting offensive rebounds and shooting better at the free throw line,” McCallie said.

And with a much more developed team, both offensively and defensively, since the last time they faced the Terrapins, the Blue Devils are prepared for one of their toughest weekends of the year.

nate glencer/Chronicle file photo

Joy Cheek scored nine points on 3-of-17 shooting when Duke defeated Maryland just three weeks ago.

 RELIGIOUS DIRECTORY  Trinity

HINDU STUDENTS ASSOCIATION Come Join Us For

• Weekly Gita Discussion • Diwali Puja • Shivratri Puja • Temple Trips • Hinduism 101 • Yoga • Ram Navami • Garba • Meditation • Open Discussions and Speakers on issues that deal with campus life and Hinduism and many other events!

Join our Facebook Group: Hindu Students Association @ Duke University or visit our website: www.duke.edu/web/hsa for frequent updates!

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Everyone Welcome!

Evening Meditation & Buddhist Thought

Teachings from Thich Nhat Hanh’s “The Miracle of Mindfulness” When: Mondays from 7-8 PM Where: Multicultural Center in the Bryan Center What: 20 minutes of meditation followed by discussion Accessible to beginners and experienced practitioners alike!

Morning Meditation

When: Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays from 8:30-9 AM Where: Chapel Crypt (stairs left to altar) What: 20 minutes of meditation

Temples in the Area we visit: 1.) HSNC Temple 309 Aviation Parkway, Morrisville, NC 27560

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2.) Sri Venkateswara (Balaji) Temple 121 Balaji Place, Cary NC 27513

OF CHRIST

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wherever you are on life’s journey,

11am

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9pm

Duke Chapel

inclusive, Open and Affirming community of faith.

Monday

5:15pm

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Tuesday

12 noon

Duke Hospital Chapel (6th Floor)

3011 Academy Rd. Durham NC 27707 919-489-1381

E-mail: church@trinitydurham.org Web Site: www.trinitydurham.org Phone: (919) 683-1386

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Wednesday 5:15pm

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Thursday

11:30am

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Friday

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Fuqua School of Business, Seminar B

catholic.duke.edu

Quran Study Group led by Imam Abdullah will be held at 8 PM in the Center for Muslim Life on Wednesday.

Weekly Friday meetings at 6:30 PM in the Center for Muslim Life.

Daily Mass Schedule

(between University Dr. and US 15/501 Business)

Rev. Duke Lackey, Senior Pastor

Sisters’ Roundtable-- Come to the Prayer Room at 8 PM on Tuesdays for this event.

Sunday Mass Schedule

Pilgrim United Church of Christ is an intentionally

www.pilgrimucc-durham.org

Sunday Early Worship: 8:45 a.m.

Sunday School: 9:45 a.m.

Sunday Worship: 11:00 a.m.

Muslim Life @ Duke.

you are welcome here.”

Please join us Sunday mornings at 10:30 am.

215 N. Church Street

Muslim Student Association &

PILGRIM

UNITED CHURCH

“

In the heart of Downtown Durham Between Mangum and Roxboro Streets

(919) 684-8959

037 Duke Chapel Basement (office) & 402 N. Buchanan Blvd.

Jumu’ah on Campus--Join us for our weekly Friday Service: 12:45 in the York Room; refreshments will be served after the service.

Join MSA Listserv to find out more about these and other events in the future Center for Muslim Life: 406 Swift Ave.

OPEN TO ALL!

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Live like Family.

Sundays at 5pm Downtown Chapel Hill (919) 360-4320 www.greenleafvineyard.org

16 | FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 the chronicle

VA. TECH from page 13 that much more pride and wanting to not lose at home.

I think we’ve done a better job of handling the game situation at home than away from Cameron just because it’s a little easier to communicate.”

To stay undefeated in Cameron, the Blue Devils will have to be wary of Virginia Tech guard Malcolm Delaney, the ACC’s leading scorer at 20.2 points per game. Delaney is a good shooter, but he is most effective slashing to the basket and drawing fouls. The junior has already attempted nearly 200 free throws this season for an average of over eight per game.

And yet, Duke should be able to survive another 20-point outing from Delaney if it can handle Virginia Tech’s swarming defense, the second-best scoring defense in the conference at 62 points per game.

The Duke offense hasn’t always played to its potential, as it showed Wednesday against Miami. The Blue Devils shot the ball extremely well in the second half and were

able to break down the Hurricane zone to get easy looks.

But in the first period, Duke turned the ball over 10 times and barely shot 30 percent from the field. Not surprisingly, the Blue Devils trailed by 12 at the break. “[Miami’s] zone definitely threw us off, and a lot of that

“Our reward now is we get a chance to go to Durham.”

— Virginia Tech’s Seth Greenberg I feel was us not being aggressive against it [and] being hesitant on shots,” junior Nolan Smith said. “And in the second half we were able to adjust.”

Late-game adjustments were key for Duke Wednesday, and they have been a hallmark of Virginia Tech’s season. Only one of those teams, though, can make the right adjustments Sunday in Cameron to push closer to an ACC regular-season title.

samantha sheft/Chronicle file photo

Senior Max Quinzani and the rest of Duke’s forwards could find the path to goal well-defended by Notre Dame goalie Scott Rodgers.

m. lax from page 13 the memories of last year. With a talented collection of players, the Irish went 15-0 in the 2009 regular season before losing to Maryland in the first round of the NCAA tournament. This year’s team features some of the same talent and Danowski expects the Fighting Irish to be hungry.

“They have a lot of guys back,” Danowski said. “I’m sure they look at this game as a benchmark. You play Duke in anything, any sport; you play Duke in chess, you get fired up. It’s such a big game for them.”

The Irish figure to test Duke’s powerful offense with a stout defense led by one of the nation’s top goalies in senior All-American Scott Rodgers. Rodgers led all Division I goalies last season in goals-against average (6.14) and save percentage (.663). According to Quinzani, the Blue Devils will have to have a short memory if Rodgers continues with his stellar play.

“Their goalie is a big man-child,” Quinzani said.

“He’s going to get a lot of saves, so we are going to have to be persistent, keep on shooting. We concentrate on every facet of attack, we kind of have instant amnesia [and] we know he is going to get a couple stops. We just have to keep on bearing down.”

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courtney douglas/Chronicle file photo

Malcolm Delaney scored 12 points in Virginia Tech’s loss to Duke last season, but the junior and his teammates are playing at a higher level this year.

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CLASSIFIEDS Announcements GEO-U Summer Deadline Extended Did you miss the Duke

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summer study abroad application deadline? Don’t get left behind!

The deadline has been extended for select programs. Summer programs allow students to earn credit towards graduation requirements. Financial aid is available. Programs are open to rising sophomores. See the Global Education Office for Undergraduates website at global.duke.edu/geo for more details.

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the chronicle

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 | 17

Diversions Shoe Chris Cassatt and Gary Brookins

Dilbert Scott Adams

Doonesbury Garry Trudeau

The Chronicle other corps we direct: the East corps: ���������������������������������������������������������������hon, lakhita news corp: ���������������������������������������������������������������� will, emmeline i’m the union boss: ��������������������������������������������������������������� sanette the rowdy letter writers corps: ������������������������������������������������ drew the fat slob group: �����������������������������������������������gabe, clax, jscholl whatever they call the people who run AA: �naclerio, crod, melissa this meaningless dining thing: �������������������������������������������������klein the hard corps: ������������������������������������������������������������������������� carter Barb Starbuck doesn’t direct—she produces!: ������������������������� Barb

Ink Pen Phil Dunlap

Student Advertising Manager:...............................Margaret Potter Account Executives:.................... Chelsea Canepa, Phil DeGrouchy Liza Doran, Lianna Gao, Ben Masselink Amber Su, Mike Sullivan, Jack Taylor Quinn Wang, Cap Young Creative Services Student Manager............................Christine Hall Creative Services:................................Lauren Bledsoe, Danjie Fang Caitlin Johnson, Megan Meza , Hannah Smith Business Assistant:.........................................................Joslyn Dunn

Sudoku

Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9. (No number is repeated in any column, row or box.)

TO DO: SUDOKU ADUTA

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prof

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Reward good teaching (by 2/22)

www.ADUTA.dukealumni.com ww Answer to puzzle www.sudoku.com

The Independent Daily at Duke University

The Chronicle

18 | FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010

“

Too quiet in the Library This year, library parties rate with the Duke Partnership will be limited to the typical for Service and Purple, two study session on the fourth new student groups that profloor of Perkins. mote undergraduate involveIn what has quickly be- ment in community service. come a much-anticipated Plans for DPS’s library party, yearly event, titled “The Benstudent groups efit,” fell apart editorial have organized in recent weeks, a weekend party in Perkins and the event has since been and Bostock libraries in con- canceled. junction with the University This is disappointing news Libraries system. The effort, for Duke students, as dancing spearheaded in 2007 by the in the The Link, sipping a cocknow-defunct DukePlays stu- tail in von der Heyden and mindent organization, was fol- gling in Bostock are fun ways to lowed by a Mi Gente-hosted spend a Friday night. party in 2008 and the InternaBut more importantly, the tional Association’s “Pangaea” library party provides an inparty last Spring. clusive, upbeat venue for stuResponsibility for planning dents and professors to intereach year’s party has rotated act beyond the confines of the among major student organi- classroom, consume alcohol zations, and this year, the li- healthily and enjoy lively mubrary system chose to collabo- sic and culture. Unfortunately,

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this type of opportunity is hard to come by on Duke’s campus.

So although we will miss hobnobbing with professors on the first floor of Perkins this year, we hope Duke revives the library party next year— though with a few changes that will help bring the event back to its roots.

Library officials should return to collaborating with student cultural groups. Although a party focused on service would have fit well with Duke’s commitment to civic engagement, the library party has huge potential to showcase the diversity and talent of Duke’s many student organizations and boost the fledging undergraduate arts scene.

In addition, the library party does not need to have the same steep price tag as in previ-

ous years. A large budget is unThe Chronicle’s realistic given the University’s Independent financial situation, and it also Editorial Board makes the party more difficult Spring 2010 for student groups to manage.

Extravagant decorations and catering are unnecessary, and Duke should not outsource en- Michael Blake (Chair) Cory Adkins tertainment when students can perform for free.

Gabriela Borges Finally, the library party Charles Colbert would benefit from a formalized Chelsea Goldstein structure to promote continuAlyssa Kuhn ity from year to year. In light Lucy McKinstry of what happened this Spring, Dan Romero there must be some oversight Christina Rosivack and accountability during the Michelle Sohn party’s planning stages to ensure that student groups are on track Chelsea Allison to successfully follow through (non-voting) with the event’s planning.

Shuchi Parikh With these changes, the (non-voting) library party can return from Will Robinson its one-year hiatus better (and (non-voting) cheaper) than ever.

For whose sake do we engage?

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Duke student spends a summer building ment as an educational tool, but the committee solar cookers for an impoverished commu- members I spoke to were split on that issue. Civic nity through DukeEngage. Throughout the engagement should be its own end. Although recourse of the next year, that student search and academic coursework can learns from those she helped that augment civic engagement, service is some of the cookers are breaking. not cheapened just because it isn’t folThe student turns to Duke for help, lowed by a thesis paper. Sometimes, but DukeEngage cannot provide adsuch an academic focus can create ditional funding. Where does the perverse incentives that ever-so-subtly Duke student go? harm a community. The diversity of The Klein-Wells report, “Engagcivic engagement opportunities on ing Excellence,” released publicly this campus calls for organic reflection, elad gross month, offers proposals to restructure be it academically oriented or not. kitty babies civic engagement at Duke to better The report discusses some of the serve students’ needs. But the report, finer points of what civic engagement unfortunately by design, fails to seriously consider the is and what role it should play at Duke. Some of the impact civic engagement has on a community. structural recommendations are well made, but the The Klein-Wells report defines “civic engage- report stopped too short. It mentions “community ment in a university setting” to be “activity that in- benefit,” but then fails to consider what impact that tegrates academic learning, personal development should have on civic engagement at Duke. There is and community benefit.” This definition is illustrat- no discussion about project sustainability, a requireed by a triangle diagram, with “academic learning” ment for responsible engagement. at the top and “personal development” and “comWhen a student, or Duke as a whole, makes a munity benefit” at the bottom corners. In both the commitment to a community, that commitment has definition and the diagram, “community benefit” to be lasting. A broken promise could be more devhappens to bring up the rear. astating than not making that promise in the first The co-chairs of the committee that produced the place. Does DukeEngage ensure project sustainabilreport, Dean of the Chapel Sam Wells and Emily Klein, ity? Will the new civic engagement setup at Duke ensenior associate dean of the Nicholas School, both able students to maintain their involvement when it wrote in an e-mail that they did not speak with commu- requires funding and resources? The report doesn’t nity partners because the purpose of the report was to ask these questions. address internal Duke stakeholders. But if part of civic Senior Adam Nathan, also on the Klein-Wells engagement is actually engaging a community, an inte- Committee, stressed that the group was not charged gral piece of the “triangle,” how could the committee with fundamentally changing how civic engagement afford to leave out community opinion? was performed at Duke or to assess individual proJunior Ben Dean, one of two students on the Klein- grams. Instead, the group was supposed to find new Wells Committee, said the omission of community ways for service programs on campus to collaborate partners’ perspectives “could have been a fault of the re- more effectively. Then where is the committee that port.” But Dean said many of the committee’s members asks whether these service programs actually work in had experience working with community partners. the first place? Are we building a better house withEvery committee member, however, was a Duke out checking for cracks in the foundation? student, alumnus, faculty or staff member. Thus, the In its current form, it seems that after a civic enimpacts of civic engagement the committee found gagement experience, Duke will push students to important were those involving the student academic extract academic production out of their service. experience, rather than those affecting a community. But when it comes down to providing a lasting comThe report views civic engagement within the con- munity benefit, that outcome is up to students to text of the research university machine, but why? Join- provide alone. Such a system will inevitably lead to ing a fraternity or a sorority, or playing a sport, or act- broken promises, and an irreparable fracture in ing in a play is a big part of the college experience for the “triangle.” many students, but no one seems to be so concerned The child who doesn’t know the alphabet cannot in connecting those experiences to the classroom or read a Duke student’s research report on the failures to research. of the American education system. We have to decide Duke today is faced with an important question: what we believe as a University—Should we teach that Should civic engagement be a means to achieving child his letters for his sake, or for our own? the University’s ends, or should it be an ends in and of itself?

Elad Gross is a Trinity senior. His column runs every The Klein-Wells report envisions civic engage- other Friday.

the chronicle

Paris envy

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ver wondered why French women don’t get fat?

Well, I read that diet book (conveniently titled “French Women Don’t Get Fat”) and discovered the irritatingly simple answer. Long story short: French women eat smaller portions, don’t order late night Domino’s and curb their mid-morning cravings with a cigarette instead of an Alpine bagel.

Mais oui, the French woman eats little and smokes often, but that wasn’t the mystery I planned on solving when I left the good ol’ U.S. of A. for my study abroad in Paris (pronounced, Par-ee) this past summer.

Had I studied in Madrid like many of my molly lester fellow Dukies, I would have researched bullmore taste, fighting and the mystery behind that notorious red cape. Had Rome been my host city less filling for my summer stay abroad, I probably would have investigated the history of Italian cuisine and the origin of the guido.

Had I found myself Down Under, it would have been my personal goal to ride in the pouch of a kangaroo, but I did not study in any of these places.

No, I went to Paris and my query about French women, specifically “la Parisienne,” was something I’d pondered ever since I flipped through my first Vogue and laid eyes on my first pair of Christian Louboutin red-bottomed heels. I’d puzzled over the legacy of Coco Chanel and the legendary little black dress. I’d unsuccessfully attempted to replicate that French look, “regard français,” with cheap Euro knock-offs from Zara and H&M. If I was going to spend time in Paris, the fashion capital of the world, I just had to crack the code: Why are French women so damn fashionable?

If you’ve been to Paris, surely you know the enigma I describe. The French woman, with so little effort yet so much natural elegance, dresses herself every morning, head to toe, in beautifully tailored clothes and shoes. Each piece molds perfectly to her curves, as if it were custommade for her shape. Her ensembles are strategic as no two garments are from the same designer or the same season. In fact, many of her pieces aren’t even designer brands, but chosen instead for their everlasting style. The French woman’s individual pieces complement one another, but not in the matchy-matchy American way we wear our royal Duke sweatshirts with royal Duke sweatpants.

A small element of surprise lies in her accessories, whose splashes of bright color and unusual texture inimitably complete her ensembles. Her outfits are a host of unlikely combinations, Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley or having Spanish class in the Bio Sci building. The French woman’s style, confidence and grace combine to form a lethal presence as she struts down the Champs-Elysées; she is a fashionista à la française.

With French fashion readily available to her, la Parisienne has an immense variety of shops, designers and couturiers to peruse. Her sense of style is unique, unlike any other on this planet. For moi, the French woman embodies all that is fashion and style, and while in Paris I wanted nothing more than to follow her lead. I’d return to Durham a new woman: well dressed, cultured and fabulous.

“I must dress like a French woman!” I declared after a week of practically salivating over these fabulously feminine, real-life models clacking down the Parisian streets. I’ll just buy a bunch of French clothes and voila, I’ll be instantly à la mode,” but my elementary plan was short-lived. After one too many trial and errors with frilly scarves and black leather pants, I tragically discovered that an American admirer such as myself couldn’t effortlessly reproduce this chic French style. I suffered from an incurable case of Paris envy.

My envy sparked me to ask my French idols questions—questions, in retrospect, I realize only a naive American girl would ask. My only references were my “well-dressed” American girlfriends in their Barbour jackets and tall Hunter Boots, but not even they were comparable to the French woman. I desperately needed to know how she looked so effortlessly fantastic—all of the time.

“Is it hard keeping up with all the latest fashion trends?”

“You must spend so much money every month on clothes and shoes!

How do you afford to look so chic?”

“However do you have enough closet space in your ‘petit appartement’ for so much attire?”

Truly American, I asked first about trends, money and quantity. Fashion to me meant expensive taste, countless outfit options and the latest styles. Isn’t that what it means here? I was asking the wrong questions.

Turns out, the French woman is unfaithful to designers and popular trends.

She owns very few pieces and picks and chooses when to spend her money; but when she spends, she spends. Her mindset is timelessness—buy that which will forever be in good taste, no matter the price. Comfort is a secondary consideration because if it is truly beautiful, she will wear it no matter its feel.

The French woman’s elegance, however, stems not entirely from her clothing, but from the way she carries herself, the pride she has for the importance of her own image, her regard.

Why isn’t the Duke girl as fashionable as her French counterpart? The answer lies in her impatience to find that perfect piece and constant desire to be “in style.” In France, the woman defines fashion, but in America and at Duke, the woman is defined by her fashion.

After feeling underdressed in Paris for an entire summer I realized therein lies “la différence.” Besides, being “well dressed” at Duke is a relative term anyways.

Molly Lester is a Trinity junior. Her column runs every other Friday.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010 | 19

commentaries

A novel approach to RSA cryptosystem

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he first several-hour study session for an be pragmatic and not harp on it. An abundance impending midterm is not as much a of intriguing stuff in academia never really garners walk through memory lane as it is a mis- our attention because it’s not an important part of guided crawl. survey courses. In fact, most of the What I mean by this is that big (and, transitively, unsolved) many of the things one hazily requestions in the popular fields members about a course are trivaren’t even approached at the unial and many of the things one dergraduate level because, presumcompletely forgets are essential. ably, they’re deemed too complex Thus, broken strings of memories for non-experts. about exceptions to rules and unThese pursuits are saved for ben brostoff intentionally comedic questions graduate school or careers in re(“So the derivative of the velocsearch. In exceptional cases, an bro’s stuff ity of money is acceleration, corundergraduate working with a facrect?”) hampers any progression ulty member may legitimately assist— toward total recall of material. Even if one does meaning, offer value beyond data entry or coffee somehow remember everything covered in lec- supply—his or her field in expanding its body of ture, there is the necessarily tedious process of knowledge. Unfortunately, the crude reality is that bridging neural synapses in order to connect In- most of us will spend four years answering quesformation Set A to Information Set B. The whole tions that have already been answered thousands enterprise never ceases to be annoying. of times by our predecessors. Midterm week, more So frustrating is the process that it often leads so than other weeks of the year, is perhaps the most to extended musings about the unimportance of depressing reminder that success—at least, for the grades in the grand scheme of things. Undoubted- science and math inclined—is more often than not ly a defensive mechanism, these meditations gener- reproducing knowledge than creating it. ally involve successful college dropouts Bill Gates, My lamenting would be unwarranted, howMark Zuckerman and Kanye West. Phrases like “In- ever, were I not to acknowledge the important ternet start-up company” and “take some time off” functions midterms do serve. Midterms are likely also figure prominently. the only way to incentivize mastery of complicated I found myself in a similarly fanciful state when and disparate groupings of information. As such, I came across the heading “RSA Cryptosystem” these tests are crucial for increasing the probabilwhile studying for a mathematics midterm. What ity students will succeed should they take a crack followed on the page was an unseemly mess of at wiping out Wikipedia’s Unanswered Problems technical jargon about cryptography, prime num- pages. The flaw in logic is that midterms proceed bers, multiplicative inverses and the Chinese Re- to piss so many people off—test takers, teaching mainder theorem. As per usual, I skimmed the assistants and faculty included—that everyone entire page until I found a sentence in English: wants to eliminate them from memory as soon as “Nobody knows how to factor large integers effi- possible. Case in point: I skipped out on a lecture ciently.” A novel idea was born. on RSA Cryptosystem the day after my test.

Figure out how to factor 10^9,999 quickly and Faculty are perhaps in the best position to sell the idea for more than the hypothetical mon- solve the midterm hangover problem. Short of etary value of all my midterms. eliminating midterms altogether, professors can Surprisingly enough, I’ve actually hatched sev- at least discuss the issues that will determine the eral variations of this plan since middle school. All viability of their respective disciplines. These isof these schemes more or less involve answering a sues have a nice tendency to make otherwise dry question no one knows the answer to, deriving a class work infinitely more interesting. Fourier gigantic lump sum from the solution and then quit- series (a Math 32 staple), for instance, become ting school. The major flaw in the plan is that the in- slightly less dry if you know that they were the ception of each one inevitably occurs near a test of building blocks for the encoding of MP3s. Of grade-breaking magnitude, so I never have enough course, attempts by teachers to dramatize every time to properly consider nuclear fusion, electron element of their course gets old rather quickly. clouds and the quantum field theory. Alas.

I’m sure there’s a happy medium that can be Every student is in some sense familiar with factored from a huge integer. this quandary. You come across something legitimately compelling in the course of studying for Ben Brostoff is a Trinity sophomore. His column a test or working on a problem set, but decide to runs every Friday.

lettertotheeditor The price of salt As I trudged through the snow and up icy stairs during the blizzard two weeks ago, I wondered how expensive snow-clearing salt was.

I found out just before the next snowstorm when I went to Home Depot and purchased some. The answer is $7 for a 40 lb. bag.

Answering this question just filled me with more questions, like, “If I can buy 40 lbs. of salt to clear snow off Duke’s property, why can’t Duke?” This question echoed through my head when I salted my own stairwell as the snow fell for the second time in as many weeks. During the first snowfall, a trip to 2011 Yearby J was a death-defying trek where it was literally impossible to walk on the concrete part of the stairs—it was all ice, all the way up.

Without gripping the handrails and praying, you’d surely crack your head. During the second snowfall, the salt kept the stairwell snowless.

I have a lot of salt left, if anyone would like

to buy it. About $6.75 worth, meaning I really only needed 25 cents to remove that perilous snow and ice. If Central Campus Council or Residence Life and Housing Services would be willing to refund the, say, 22 cents of public good I provided to the residents of 2011 Yearby, that would be much appreciated as well.

After all, Duke is the landlord here. If we’re rent-paying tenants, the landlord shouldn’t make us maintain its property.

And if I could make a recommendation to whoever would be in charge of Duke groundskeeping in the event of another snowfall: Please spring for the salt and labor to lay that salt the next time it snows. If you absolutely can’t afford the $7, then you absolutely should not make us risk paralysis on icy stairwells to come to class. Either way, never make me do your job again.

Jared Blau Trinity ’10

20 | FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2010

the chronicle