4.14.15

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The Emory Wheel

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Since 1919

The Independent Student Newspaper of Emory University www.emorywheel.com

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Brown’s Book of Poems Wins National Award College sophomore Zachary Issenberg remembers the moments when his Intermediate Poetry Workshop professor sang Prince lyrics in class, and when he ran through the quad during a class break to get a King of Pops popsicle. Issenberg is not the only one showcasing admiration for Jericho Brown, assistant professor of English and creative writing. Earlier this month, Brown was one of five winners of the 80th Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards — an American literary award honoring written works that contribute to larger discussions about racism and diversity — for the latest of his two poetry books, The New Testament. Past awardees include Martin Luther King, Jr., Langston Hughes and Toni Morrison. “[The New Testament] is about what is means to be a citizen, a brother and a lover in a nation that rejects your citizenship, refuses your brotherhood and denies your love and how you come to terms with calling yourself a citizen of that particular nation, if you know that everything about that nation is set up so that it can thwart you in any and every way it possibly can,” Brown said. The Louisiana native, who began teaching poetry workshops at Emory in 2012, has not only published his poems in The New Republic and The New Yorker but has won the Whiting Writers Award, the American Book Award and others. Before ​earning his Ph. D. in literature and creative writing from the University of Houston, Brown was a speechwriter for a former mayor of New Orleans. The general acclaim for The New Testament, which touches on racism,

blackness, sexuality, nationhood and citizenship with the use of biblical language, is part of a moment in which our culture is more ready to face the truth that the book’s poetry brings, Brown said. “I think people have been afraid of poetry in the past, because it makes the complexities of life and realities of life and the truths of life all the more clear,” he said. “Over and over again, our country and our culture are told not to deal with those things as they are.” Brown, who said he draws inspiration from “old-school music,” like Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson, characterized much of poetry, including his own, as works that take “all of history and bring it down to the scale of one.” He said he hopes that, while vulnerable in the face of the real conditions that his poems illuminate, readers discard the “hallmark” version of themselves that is “only informed by tradition” and take action. “When I was a young person, poems were so important to me,” he said. “They sustained me. They helped to keep me alive. My hope is that, whether or not I am ever aware of it, that my poems can do that for other people.” While he said he wished that he could say that awards do not matter and that he does not care, Brown said he was filled with gratitude upon hearing about his recent award. “[It] feels like I might have done something right in this life, and it feels like I might be living up to my potential, that I might be actually taking on my purpose and doing what I am supposed to be doing on this planet.” Brown said. “I feel love. It feels like magic.”

See students, Page 3

46

Every Tuesday and Friday

SHAKING LIKE A LE1F

award

By Karishma Mehrotra Executive Editor

Volume 96, Issue

public health

Partnership Creates India Disease Center By Lydia O’Neal News Editor

cally on methods to ensure “students [are] being given the information and the tools they need to understand and address the multiple health problems associated with climate change,” McCauley said. At the meeting, the coalition signed a commitment to ensure that the next generation of health professionals will be trained to effectively address the health impacts of climate change, according to the White House press release. “It’s just a commitment of recognizing climate change is happening and that the events that we’re see-

As part of a collaboration with three other health institutions outside the U.S., the Rollins School of Public Health helped develop India’s Center for Control of Chronic Conditions (CCCC), a research institute for the study of chronic health problems. The center will serve as a facility for researchers studying causes, preventative measures and treatments of chronic diseases, such as diabetes, mental disorders, strokes, cardiovascular problems and cancer. These conditions are responsible for 53 percent of deaths in India and 60 percent of the world’s deaths, according to World Health Organization’s most recent data. “Chronic diseases are a major problem in the U.S. but also a problem in mid-level countries like India,” Rollins Dean Jim Curran said, when asked why a country with a lower GDP per capita would need such a research center. India’s 2013 per capita GDP, according to the World Bank’s most recent data, was a meager $5,411.60. Curran, along with five other Rollins administrators, attended Indian Minister of State for Science and Technology Y. S. Chowdary’s formal launch of the CCCC at its New Delhi headquarters within the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) on Tuesday, April 7. The center is a product of a part-

See mccauley, Page 4

See Emory, Page 4

N

Courtesy of Julia Howard

ew York-based rapper Le1f (pronounced “leaf”) drew around 100 students to the Cox Hall Ballroom on Friday night for WMRE’s annual Spring Band Party. Mykki Blanco, a rapper and poet, opened for Le1f.

public health

Dean Talks Climate Change in D.C. National Public Health Week, which was announced with a series of actions “to set us on track to better understand, communicate and reduce the health impacts of climate change on our communities,” according to an April 7 White House press release. McCauley, the only Emory representative at the meeting, said that although “there’s a lot of activity in the White House about climate change in general, they had never [until this meeting] pulled a group to talk about the consequences.” Since almost all of those present at the meeting were educators, the meeting focused on the health workforce of the future, and more specifi-

By Annie McGrew News Editor Linda McCauley, dean of the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, attended a meeting of deans from around the country in Washington, D.C. as part of a White House initiative to protect communities from the impacts of climate change. McCauley was invited by Barack Obama’s administration as a representative of the School of Nursing to the April 9 meeting of 30 medical, public health and nursing schools from around the country. The meeting was part of Obama’s

live-action ‘ROCKY HORROR’

student government

SGA Appoints Eight New Members By Harmeet Kaur Senior Editor

The newly elected 49th Legislature of the Student Government Association (SGA) convened Monday evening in its first meeting of the year. Incoming SGA President Raj Tilwa, a College junior, and Vice President Max Zoberman, a College sophomore, led the legislative session, confirming seven new members to the executive board. The legislature unanimously voted to confirm seven of the new members, while Tilwa directly appointed an eighth member, whose appointment the legislature did not have to confirm. Goizueta Business School

E

Melissa DeFrank/Staff

mory Pride and Relay for Life at Emory University hosted a live-action showing of the 1975 musical film “Rocky Horror Picture Show” on Saturday night. During the screening, members and friends of both organizations lip-synced and danced to the film’s many musical numbers.

junior Sumaali Chheda was confirmed as chief of staff, while Oxford College sophomore Christopher Lam was confirmed as attorney general. B-school sophomore Benjamin Baranov will serve as the associate vice president of communications and College freshman John Baker will serve as associate vice president for alumni relations. College sophomore Kyle Nelson and College junior Goldy Tenreiro-Braschi will be University-wide representativesat-large. College sophomore Ethan Morris will be the College of Arts and Sciences junior representative. College freshman Zoey Lande will

See tilwa, Page 3

NEWS BRIEF

Brief: WellStar, Emory Agree on Merger AJC Names Emory Healthcare as a Top Workplace

Healthcare

By Samantha Goodman Staff Writer The Atlanta Journal-Constitut​ion (AJC) ​selected Emory Healthcare Inc. (EHC) as one of the best places to work in the region on March 19. ​​With 12,270 regional employees, EHC made spot 21 on the list of large companies. EHC, the largest health care system in the state of Georgia, has received the AJC Top Workplace

title four times according to Melanie De Gennaro, Emory Healthcare corporate director of Communications. This year, EHC fell just below the Northeast Georgia Health System and Waste Management Inc. and before Atlanta Women’s Health Group PC and Quest Diagnostics Inc. “Being a top workplace is important, because our employees are critical to our success as an organization, and we want to create an environment in which they are supported and can

News Photo collage:

hip-hop artist

B.o.B. comes to Emory ... PAGE 3

thrive,” De Gennaro said. In a statement congratulating all of Emory Healthcare after the AJC released its 2015 list, the EHC executive team wrote, “We are all in this together and all create the environment in which we work. These are successes that can come only from a true commitment to each other.” The executive team highlighted accomplishments in daily patient care, high UHC quality rankings and global acknowledgement for the care

OP-EDs Student

discusses the benefits of biking in

Atlanta ... PAGE 6

provided to Ebola patients. Founded in 1905, EHC includes the Emory University Hospital, Emory University Hospital Midtown, Emory University Orthopedics & Spine Hospital, Emory Rehabilitation Hospital, The Wesley Woods Center, Emory Saint Joseph’s Hospital and Emory Johns Creek Hospital. Every spring since 2011, the AJC​ has compiled a list of the top plac-

See companies, Page 4

A&E ‘Seussical’ draws

laughs, relives childhood stories

...

PAGE 9

By Rupsha Basu Executive Editor

Emory Healthcare (EHC) and WellStar Health System have concluded a 45-day initial discussion and decided to enter the “design phase” of a health care system merger, both organizations announced Thursday evening. The University first announced a merger between Emory and the largest not-for-profit health system in Georgia on Feb. 9. Each institutions’​ Board of

Sports Softball wins

doubleheader, celebrates

Senior Day ...

Page 11

Trustees approved a resolution to begin more detailed planning last Thursday (April 9). In an interview with the Wheel at the time of the first announcement, WellStar CEO Reynold Jennings wrote that the merger would allow hospitals to be “better prepared to deal with the challenges in health care, while still being able to provide world-class care to our communities.” University President James W.

See merger, Page 4

Next Issue More

EmoryWellStar merger ... Friday

details on the


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