022613 Chicago Maroon

TUESDAY • FEBRUARY 26, 2013

ISSUE 29 • VOLUME 124

THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO SINCE 1892

CHICAGOMAROON.COM

FLY, SHE protest opening day at CCD Southsiders face off in Madhu Srikantha News Editor

2nd district primary

In response to the opening of the $700 million Center for Care and Discovery (CCD) on Saturday, Fearless Leading by the Youth (FLY) and Students for Health Equity (SHE) held a march in protest of the University’s refusal to re-establish a level-one adult trauma care center as part of their ongoing campaign. The demonstration was the groups’ second protest at the site of the new hospital.

On Wednesday, an email from Kenneth Polonsky, executive vice president for medical affairs and dean of the Division of Biological Sciences, asked people to stay away from the hospital to facilitate a smooth transfer of patients to the new facility. UCMC spokeswoman Lorna Wong said the e-mail was not intended as a response to the January 27 protests.

Hamid Bendaas News Staff

In response to the opening of the UCMC’s new Center for Care and Discovery, students and community members from Southsiders Together for Organizing Power (STOP) and Fearless Leading by the Youth (FLY) protest outside President Zimmer’s house and call for the demands on their petition to be answered by the University Saturday afternoon.

SYDNEY COMBS | THE CHICAGO MAROON

Marlon Lynch, chief of UCPD, Eleanor Daugherty, assistant VP for student life, and an administrator from UCMC met on Monday with third-years

Patrick Dexter and Michael McCown from SHE and Molly Cunningham, a graduate student in the anthropolog y department, to ensure that the demonstra-

tion would abide by restrictions including temporary noise ordinances and roadblocks.

FLY and SHE held a brief CCD continued on page 2

Residents in parts of Chicago’s South Side and the southern suburbs will be casting their votes in the 2nd Congressional District primary today to decide the Democratic nominee expected to take the Congressional seat formerly held by Jesse Jackson, Jr. Front-runners among the 15 Democrats on the ballot are former Congresswoman Debbie Halvorson, Ninth Ward Alderman Anthony Beale, and Cook County Chief Administrative Officer Robin Kelly.

While the only area of Hyde Park included in the 2nd District is the streets east of Stony Island Avenue and south of 53rd Street, its influence on the race has been notable.

Hyde Park political figures like Alderman Will

Burns, Congressman Bobby Rush, and State Senator Kwame Raoul have all endorsed Kelly and supported her campaign. Cheryl Whitaker, wife of University of Chicago Medical Center’s Executive Vice President of Strategic Affiliations Eric Whitaker and friend of the Obamas, signed on to be Kelly’s campaign chair.

“I think we’ve had a significant impact on the race, but I wouldn’t say it’s inordinate,” Cheryl Whitaker reflected. “[Kelly] has a list of supporters that is quite extensive, but we were early supporters, and I’d like to think we’ve been instrumental [in] bringing others to the table to support her.”

Whitaker also saw major projects in the Hyde Park area as integral issues affecting the larger South Side, including the 2nd ELECT continued on page 2

Part I: Rent an increasing burden for HPers Uncommon: Harunobu Coryne Senior Editor Hyde Park renters are paying heavily for their homes—more so than in recent memory—and the current supply of affordable housing may not be enough to keep people in the neighborhood, according to a study published last month of Census and housing data since 2000.

The majority of Hyde Park

residents rent, but more than half of them are paying at least 30 percent, and even as much as 50 percent, of their income on rent alone, the study found. The trend is especially pronounced among the neighborhood’s lowest earners, for whom the costs of housing are disproportionately high and the shortage of affordable options is sharpest.

The threshold for what is considered affordable rent by fed-

eral guidelines is 30 percent of household income, adjusted for family size.

Families are facing particular difficulties, since few affordable rental units have three or more bedrooms, while the disabled and elderly have fewer options still.

The portrait that emerges from the data complicates the long-held impression of Hyde

Toussaint Losier Madhu Srikantha News Editor

When fourth-year Mauriece Dawson was arrested in the Regenstein Library in 2010, prompting a backlash from students who felt the arrest was racially-motivated, Tous-

saint Losier co-chaired the ad hoc committee that reviewed the procedures involved in the incident. Three years later, on January 27, Losier, an eighth-year history Ph.D. candidate, found himself handcuffed to a bench in the 2nd District Police Station LOSIER continued on page 3

RENT continued on page 2

Uncommon: David Plouffe Noah Weiland & William Wilcox News Staff As senior advisor to President Obama from 2011 to 2013, David Plouffe said his challenge was “to make sure you’re giving advice that’s consistent with what he’s promised the American people and [with] his record.” Plouffe also served as campaign manager for Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign and, according to the Chicago Tribune, was “the mastermind behind a winning strateg y.”

Before giving the keynote address for the Institute of Politics panel

High Tech and Highly Targeted: Inside the Obama Campaign’s Digital War Room at the Booth School on Saturday, Plouffe sat down with the Maroon to talk about privacy in politics, how his college classes informed his career, and his old boss. Read the full interview at www.chicagomaroon.com.

Chicago Maroon: What kind of effect did your undergraduate education have on you as a consultant and advisor?

of political science is of value, but it’s no substitute for real world experience. I learned a lot in my undergraduate days in terms of macroeconomics, microeconomics, constitutional law, the classes I took that weren’t necessarily just about politics that helped inform my worldview. The magical formula here is great education that you’re able to use, [and] not all of it, but a lot of it into your professional life, married with real world experience.

CM: President Obama’s White

David Plouffe: I think the study

PLOUFFEcontinued on page 3

In the wake of his recent arrest by UCPD during the protest at the UCMC’s new Center for Care and Discovery, History Ph.D. candidate Toussaint Losier discusses his experience fighting for a trauma center on the South Side. He will face misdemeanor charges of trespassing and resisting arrest in his trial against the University this afternoon.

SYDNEY COMBS | THE CHICAGO MAROON

IN VIEWPOINTS

IN ARTS

IN SPORTS

The greatest gift of all » Page 4

At Logan, directorial screening keeps the true Bird out » Page 7

Wins across the field: Maroons take five individual UAA titles » Back Page

For Sendak fans, posthumous tribute is a lovely, wild thing » Page 8

Individual performances come into focus at Midwest Invitational » Page 11

Study group dynamics » Page 5

2

THE CHICAGO MAROON | NEWS | February 26, 2013

Protesters marched from the new hospital to President Zimmer’s house CCD continued from front

press conference in front of the CCD before marching to President Zimmer’s home at 59th Street and University Avenue.

There, demonstrators presented enlarged print-outs of two petitions that demanded that the charges against the protesters who were arrested during the January 27 UCMC demonstration be dropped and that the UCMC expand access to trauma care on the South Side. According to Jim Wessel, one of three Deans-on-Call at the protest, Zimmer was not at home.

During the press conference, Veronica Moore, a member of FLY, urged the University to consider its location with respect to the high proportion of gun violence in the surrounding communities.

“We can’t help but think about what can these institutions do to help us make those rates come down. As a youth, I’m tired of seeing my friends die; I’m tired of seeing my friends bleed out; I’m tired of seeing youth on the ground with no help.

That’s a hard sight to see when you’re twenty years old, and you’re thinking about tomorrow, and you’re recognizing that tomorrow might not come,” she said in her speech.

Chants of “We’ll be back” at Zimmer’s home as the demonstration was winding down sent a second message: The community and student organizations have no intention of stopping the campaign.

“We couldn’t just give up because the University’s statistics don’t agree with us.

Because there’s actually a lot of statistics produced by other parties and other researchers that do agree with us. What the University and the hospital put on their FAQ is only one side of the story,” Dexter said.

“The highest figure they ever quoted for what a trauma center would cost to operate is $15 million a year, which is a lot of money, but it pales in comparison to the scale of the building that they just opened.”

The march, which began at the corner of 60th Street and Cottage Grove Avenue, was punctuated by a variety of slogans that have become associated with the trauma center campaign.

“There ain’t no power like the power of the people because the power of the people don’t stop,” said Jesus Campu-

zano, a member of Southsiders Together Organizing for Power (STOP), through a bullhorn to the crowd during the march.

Porschenetta Calhoun, a member of FLY, also led call-and-response chants.

Wessel received the petitions and was ordered to deliver them to Karen Warren-Coleman, VP of Campus and Student Life, later that afternoon. Wessel said he did not know when the petitions would reach Zimmer.

The peaceful nature of the march stands in sharp contrast to the events of Jan. 27, the last trauma center demonstration, during which Toussaint Losier, an eighth-year graduate student in the history department; Alex Goldenberg (A.B. ‘06), an organizer for FLY; Jacob Klippenstein; and a minor were arrested.

According to both University administrators and the organizers of the protest, that was no accident.

“What we did today was exactly what we intended to do. We didn’t have anything up our sleeves. We didn’t at all want to recreate what happened a few weeks ago,” Dexter said.

Lynch and Daugherty told the students that there would be three deans-on-call during the demonstration.

“At this point I still don’t know what a dean-on-call does,” Dexter said regarding both the meeting and lack of clarification on what the “resources” and “support” a dean-on-call is obligated to provide mean.

The University is currently reviewing the dean-on-call process, and has declined to comment on the events of Jan. 27 in regards to the timeline of the dean-on-call’s actions. Losier, who as a graduate student is privileged to the services the deans-oncall provide, was never able to speak to a dean-on-call prior to or during his arrest.

Virginia Parks, professor at the School of Social Service Administration and member of the faculty council of the University senate, collaborated with faculty members in several disciplines to create a petition aimed at demonstrating faculty support for the three protesters arrested.

Parks presented a draft of the petition to faculty on Saturday and expects to give the petition to administrators today as a last effort to get the University to drop charges.

Political strategist predicts a win for Kelly ELECT continued from front

District, like job creation.

“If we can fund the Promontory Point Project, if we can fund the bridge at South Shore Drive and 67th Street, those projects would bring needed jobs to the South Side and improve quality of life here. They go hand in hand.”

An early surprise in the race occurred when State Senator Toi Hutchinson, considered by some to be the biggest challenger to Kelly and Halvorson for much of the campaign, dropped out of the race on February 17.

Another major story of the race has been the influence of a pro–gun control superPAC started by Mayor Bloomberg in October. The super-PAC has spent $2.1 million on television ads attacking Halvorson, who has an “A” rating from the National Rifle Association (NRA), and endorsing the “F”-rated Kelly.

According to Kevin Lampe, a political strategist and former consultant to Jesse Jackson, Jr., the ads might have influenced Hutchinson to drop out of the race, as Hutchinson had an “A-” rating from the NRA, and the ads began to attack her as well.

“The Bloomberg money makes a big difference, because the Kelly campaign didn’t have to spend any money on television attacking the perceived frontrunner [Halvorson].”

Whitaker was wary of the influence of PACs in these types of elections.

“I do think that’s going to be a new thing that we see in American politics. I can’t say I agree with it—in this case it’s benefiting my candidate—but overall, I think [for] congressional races that the wars should be at the grassroots level, trying to connect with voters on the ground.”

Though a late poll showed Halvorson with a slim lead, Lampe predicted Kelly would win the primary, with Anthony Beale coming in “a strong second.” Beale had made the need for a trauma center a part of his platform and attended a forum on campus addressing the issue.

Lampe recognized the trauma center as an issue important to the South Side, but he didn’t think it was enough to overcome Kelly’s image as the anti-NRA candidate.

“I don’t think it’s as emotional [as gun control] or as easy to explain. But it’s a good campaign issue, and [Beale’s] got a good record to run on.”

The number of Hyde Park residents burdened by their rent has jumped 15 percent in ten years RENT continued from front

Park as a mixed-income neighborhood, according to the organization which commissioned the study, the Coalition for Equitable Community Development (CECD).

“People think of Hyde Park–South Kenwood as being [a combination of renting and owning ], but it’s a renter community,” said Heather Parish, a consultant who was hired to conduct the survey.

Compounding the issue is the fact that the limited supply of affordable rental housing is concentrated in the western part of the neighborhood, between Cottage Grove and Woodlawn Avenues.

“Hence families, particularly those that are low to moderate income, are more likely to live in the West submarket,” the study says.

14 of 17 subsidized housing projects do not accomodate disabled residents.

The suggestion is that Hyde Park may be losing some of its economic diversity, as different parts of the neighborhood solidify into blocs determined by income.

Perhaps the study’s most striking find is the considerable growth since 2000 in the number of the neighborhood’s lowest-earning residents who are “burdened” by their rent. Ten years ago, 43 percent of people making less than half of the area’s median income (or less than $37,900) were rent-burdened. Today, that number has grown to 58 percent, higher than the city average.

One fear is that high rents are driving the flight of low-income people—families in particular—from the neighborhood, which is projected to continue for at least another five years.

“People may be leaving the community in search of more affordable rental housing that is a better fit for their household size,” the study says.

The findings parallel similar trends in Chicago at large, where urban flight sapped the city of 200,000 residents between 2000 and 2010 (principally in the south and southwest), and foreclosures have thinned the rental supply.

The report does point a path forward, however. One option it suggests is to work within the neighborhood’s existing construction projects, catching works-inprogress and negotiating with developers to set aside units for affordable housing.

Some 39 units were secured this way in City Hyde Park, the retail-residential complex going up at the former Village Foods site.

Antheus Capital, the company which owns as much as one-third of Hyde Park rental housing , put the City Hyde Park project under the charge of its local subsidiary, MAC Property Management.

Both the CECD and MAC have touted the development as being the first in years to set aside below–market rate units for low-income renters, an arrangement called multi-family housing.

But Linda Thisted, who chairs CECD’s affordable housing advocacy committee, qualified that praise. She stressed the need to force concessions from private developers, such as the encouragement of Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) vouchers for low-income renters and

the inclusion of affordable units in new buildings.

“For-profit developers want to make money,” she said, adding that affordable housing advocates need to continue to “push these guys...when we do have an opportunity to push them.”

Peter Cassel, MAC’s director of community development, pointed out that the company was under no obligation to put subsidized units within City Hyde Park, but chose to do so, at a loss, in order to work with the community. It would have been cheaper, he said, to circumvent the requirement for affordable housing by putting money into a fund for city improvements, as recipients of tax-increment financing are allowed to do.

Cassel also suggested that solutions to the problem may lie elsewhere than in subsidies.

“The most important element is addressing this from the demand side, and ensuring that people have good wages, so they can afford the cost of safe, quality housing ,” he said.

However, according to the report, the most compelling reason for why so many households are cost-burdened is precisely the growing mismatch between supply and demand for affordable housing , not a poor economy in general.

This is especially the case for larger families, the report claims, since most of the affordable units in the neighborhood are one- or two-bedroom apartments.

Just seven percent of apartments that are affordable to low-income families have three or more bedrooms.

58% of the lowest-earning residents are rent-burdened.

The problem compounds itself: Families who cannot find affordable apartments that can accommodate them resort to entering the market for higher-cost housing (if they want to avoid doublingup in cramped conditions or leaving the neighborhood), which places them in competition with higher-earning families who are already vying for a limited number of affordable units. Such families, the report contends, must either leave or become cost-burdened.

The shortage intensifies for the poorest families: For the 5,051 households in the lowest income bracket (those earning less than $22,740), there are just 154 affordable three-bedroom apartments. The vast majority cater to smaller families.

It is unclear how many residents are choosing to put up with high rents because they are attracted to Hyde Park’s amenities, its relative safety, and its schools, and how many are persisting for lack of options elsewhere. There is agreement, however, that people still want to live here.

“Who wouldn’t want an affordable rental in Hyde Park, where they know it’s safer for their kids and for themselves?” said Russel Riley, a frequenter of Leona’s restaurant on 53rd Street who rents in a section-8 housing development in Chatham.

Lorene Shiraiwa, who grew up in the neighborhood and still rents on South Dorchester Avenue, spoke to her own stubbornness.

“Hyde Parkers are a special type of creature,” she said. “For the same amount of money, you could live in Lincoln Park.”

THE CHICAGO MAROON | NEWS | February 26, 2013

3

Plouffe on President Obama: “He is a remarkably sane human being.”

PLOUFFE continued from front

House has been criticized for a lack of transparency. What does privacy mean in politics?

DP: I think our approach has been to be as transparent as possible. We’re the first White House to release our visitor logs, for instance. You look at fundraising during the campaign: We voluntarily released the people who raised money for us; our opponent did not. So I think we’ve been very transparent. Obviously, there are matters of national security that have a high sensitivity. I think the standard should be to try and seek transparency. You’re not always going to be as transparent as everyone would like, but we try and meet that standard when it’s not going to compromise people’s lives and national security objectives.

CM: You’ve spoken out against the insider tendencies of Washington, but in what ways did you have to give in to the system and the tradition in order to get what you wanted?

DP: In the campaign, not at all. We ran a grassroots campaign that was very focused on not the Washington Beltway, but what was going on out in people’s lives. We relied on our grassroots volunteers that were really the engine of our campaign. In terms of Washington itself, in terms of getting things done, there’s still going to be an element of the insider deal. One good thing about technolog y is that Washington is a more transparent world than it used to be, so many people are blogging themselves

David Plouffe discusses his experience as a senior advisor and campaign manager for President Barack Obama. | THE CHICAGO MAROON

CHRISTIAN VERHULST

or on Twitter, and the inside deal is a little harder than it used to be. Though there is still some of that….It’s a challenge to navigate in a way that’s transparent, that’s true to your principles in a very messy democracy where you have a lot of elected officials who obviously are thinking about the national interest, but also have their own self-interest.

CM: What is it like working with President Oba ma in the White House?

DP: He is a remarkably sane human being. He’s measured; he’s good-tempered; he deals with crisis well; he’s got a great sense of humor, and I don’t think you can overstate how important that is, because

he’s a calm captain. We hit a lot of rocky waters in the White House, so to have a calm captain….There’s a lot of people out there who can be mercurial, who can be erratic, who can lose their temper over small things. He doesn’t do any of that, so you never have to worry about how he’s going to react to something. You just can do your job.

Losier: According to admin, dropping the charges is “out of their hands” NEWS IN BRIEF LOSIER continued from front

after UCPD arrested him during a protest against the University of Chicago Medical Center’s lack of a levelone adult trauma care center.

Today, he will go to trial to face charges of misdemeanor trespassing and misdemeanor resisting arrest. He sat down with the Maroon to talk about his arrest, the future of the trauma center campaign, and the chance encounter that led to a private meeting with President Zimmer.

Chicago Maroon: Could you describe your role as police liaison and how it played out on January 27 as compared to past demonstrations in which you played the same role?

Toussaint Losier: Well, you know, the thing that was ironic was that the officers, when I got arrested on the 27th, you know, one of the officers…there was a moment when I had already been handcuffed and I was laying on the ground and I was really, really frustrated and I was saying to any officer that would listen to me that I want to speak to the Dean-on-Call, I’ve been asking to speak to the Deanon-Call, where are they? And there was actually one officer, Officer de la Cruz, who was like, ‘Calm down. Relax. I’ve seen you at these demonstrations beforehand, you’re a real gentleman, you’re a nice guy,

like, relax, take it easy.’

CM: Since the protest and your arrest, what has been the most frustrating part of the aftermath and responses?

TL: I think the thing that was most frustrating really comes out of my experience with that committee where, you know, I spent a lot of time working with, a lot of time that I volunteered working with people in the University to try and figure out how to make this aspect of the University work better. I was really disappointed that in my experience those things didn’t work. Like, the whole process.

One of the goals of me being at the demonstration in the first place was to ask that the Dean-on-Call be brought to the scene, and I never got to speak to the DOC.... This is something that didn’t work, something that we spent a lot of time on, that failed. None of those people have followed up with me.

CM: We heard you had a meeting with President Zimmer. How did that come about, and what came from it?

TL: It came about just by coincidence. I was actually out down on Ellis Avenue, saw President Zimmer getting out of his car, and was just like ‘Hey, President Zimmer, how you doing?’ and

approached him, shook his hand and started talking to him and just basically asked him if it might be possible to sort of sit down and have a conversation…. And so I had a meeting with President Zimmer and Vice President of Campus and Student Life Karen Warren-Coleman....

I asked whether they were considering dropping the charges and Karen WarrenColeman said...as far as the University understood it, it was out of their hands. I was not surprised by that answer, because that’s the same thing that I had heard after Mauriece had been arrested....We kind of talked back and forth about completing one’s dissertation....at one point, when he was sort of saying, ‘Look just make sure you sort of sit down and write the thing, that’s the most important thing to do,’ I said, ‘Well, being able to maintain progress on one’s dissertation is difficult when the minimum sentence that comes with a resisting arrest charge is mandatory jail time. So it comes with either 48 hours mandatory jail time and 100 hours of community service. And in response to that, President Zimmer was like, ‘Well, that’s only two weeks. If you get convicted of that, it’s really not that much time that it’s going to take you away from the work you need to do.’....That was kind of.... meant as a joke, but it was just a bit disconcerting.... It made

me feel like there was a lack of appreciation not only for the circumstances I was going through but the fact that the primary reason for me having been in that position in the first place was in an effort to try to make sure that students involved in this act of civil disobedience... could be safe.

CM: In your honest opinion, do you think that the campaign for the trauma center will be successful?

TL: I think if it’s simply a question of STOP, FLY, and SHE demanding a trauma center, then it’s not going to happen. I think the constituencies which those groups represent are already so marginal in the larger decisionmaking process.... The sad thing about it is if you talk about people who matter in the eyes of the University, like, poor, working-class black kids from Woodlawn, Grove Park Complex are the least important folks in the calculation of the University. They’re not donating money, they’re not likely to come to the University, they’re not likely to graduate from high school.... the best chance the trauma center has at actually being successful as it directly relates to the University of Chicago is if other people who see the importance of the demand that’s being raised, even if.... they don’t understand it as a life or death matter.

UC Press goes on the Web

going to join as well.”

—Spencer McAvoy

University of Chicago Press Director Garret Kiely announced the launch of Chicago Scholarship Online, the University of Chicago Press division of the scholarly database University Press Scholarship Online (UPSO), on Thursday.

The launch marks the beginning of a new partnership between the University of Chicago Press and Oxford University Press, the founder of UPSO. With the latest additions from Chicago, the database is now home to more than 11,000 books from 10 different university presses.

As of now, the University of Chicago Press has uploaded nearly 300 titles in biology, economics and finance, literature, sociology, and education to the database, which is available to UPSO subscribers. It plans to add over 400 more titles in March. “[We’re excited] about opening up our books to a worldwide digital market,” Kiely said. “We like to think of this as two of the leading university presses in the world coming together in a venture that we hope other presses are

Activists protest talk Approximately 40 protesters, including individual members of UChicago’s Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and the Chicago based activist group US Palestinian Community Network, protested a talk given by IsraeliAmerican Law Professor Amos Guiora from the University of Utah at I-House last night.

In addition to picketing, some of the protesters faced their chairs away from Guiora in the middle of the talk, and one student continuously interrupted him until being escorted out of the room.

Sami Kishawi, a fourth-year biology major and member of UChicago’s SJP who was present as a protester, said, “[Guiora] was protested for many reasons, namely his support of drone warfare as a ‘moral’ thing.”

The talk, “Legitimate Target: A Criteria Based Approach to Targeted Killing,” at the International House on Monday, discussed the benefits and risks of targeted killings as a military weapon through the lens of “law, policy, morality, and operational details,” according to the UChicago Events page.

—Jennifer Standish

TIDBITS Due to their high numbers of passengers, the Central and East Shuttles will each run with one additional shuttle in order to maintain their stops every 15 minutes, according to first-year Holly Rapp, SG Transportation Safety Advisory Board representative.

VIEWPOINTS

Editorial & Op-Ed FEBRUARY 26, 2013

Classing up the joint Changes to course request could make the registration process more efficient and enjoyable The student newspaper of the University of Chicago since 1892 JORDAN LARSON Editor-in-Chief SHARAN SHETTY Editor-in-Chief COLIN BRADLEY Managing Editor HARUNOBU CORYNE Senior Editor DOUGLAS EVERSON, JR Senior Editor JAMIE MANLEY Senior Editor CELIA BEVER News Editor MARINA FANG News Editor MADHU SRIKANTHA News Editor JENNIFER STANDISH News Editor AJAY BATRA Viewpoints Editor DAVID KANER Viewpoints Editor EMMA BRODER Arts Editor HANNAH GOLD Arts Editor DANIEL RIVERA Arts Editor DANIEL LEWIS Sports Editor VICENTE FERNANDEZ Sports Editor MATTHEW SCHAEFER Sports Editor SONIA DHAWAN Head Designer BELLA WU Head Designer KEVIN WANG Online Editor ALICE BLACKWOOD Head Copy Editor JEN XIA Head Copy Editor BEN ZIGTERMAN Head Copy Editor SYDNEY COMBS Photo Editor TIFFANY TAN Photo Editor JOY CRANE Assoc. News Editor ANKIT JAIN Assoc. News Editor STEPHANIE XIAO Assoc. News Editor EMMA THURBER STONE Assoc. Viewpoints Editor ALICE BUCKNELL Assoc. Arts Editor SARAH LANGS Assoc. Sports Editor JAKE WALERIUS Assoc. Sports Editor JULIA REINITZ Assoc. Photo Editor FRANK YAN Assoc. Photo Editor TYRONALD JORDAN Business Manager TAMER BARSBAY Undergraduate Business Executive QUERIDA Y. QIU External Director of Marketing IVY ZHANG Internal Director of Marketing VINCENT MCGILL Delivery Coordinator HYEONG-SUN CHO Designer ANDREW GREEN Designer

On January 12, 2007 (“Integrate course selection tools”), the Maroon Editorial Board advised, “To provide consistent information and further improve the [course] registration experience, administrators should create a single site that integrates all available resources.” A little over five years later, on February 20, 2012, the University rolled out the new Class Schedules and Registration site, in an initiative that answered this and other criticisms. Despite the vast improvement this new site represents in the course selection and registration process, the Classes site is not a panacea for the inefficiency of that process, and the University ought to continue to improve the means available for students to structure their academic experience online.

The Classes site is by no means a failure. In fact, it’s quite the opposite: The site is easy to navigate, has introduced some helpful new features to the selection process (such as course swap), and has brought course evaluations, times, and listings all to the same online location. But it does not, as it should, eliminate the need for cross-referencing of other Web sites, nor does it make up for the shortcomings of other Web sites

Senior Class Gift boycott would benefit UChicago

NICHOLAS ROUSE Designer CATIE ARBONA Copy Editor KEN ARMSTRONG Copy Editor AMISHI BAJAJ Copy Editor MARTIA BRADLEY Copy Editor SHANICE CASIMIRO Copy Editor

SHERRY HE Copy Editor NISHANTH IYENGAR Copy Editor CECILIA JIANG Copy Editor MICHELLE LEE Copy Editor CHELSEA LEU Copy Editor KATIE LEU Copy Editor CARYSSA LIM Copy Editor JONAH RABB Copy Editor LINDSEY SIMON Copy Editor ESTHER YU Copy Editor The Chicago Maroon is published twice weekly during autumn, winter, and spring quarters Circulation: 5,500.

The opinions expressed in the Viewpoints section are not necessarily those of the Maroon. © 2012 The Chicago Maroon, Ida Noyes Hall, 1212 East 59th Street Chicago, IL 60637 Editor-in-Chief Phone: 773.834.1611 Newsroom Phone: 773.702.1403 Business Phone: 773.702.9555 Fax: 773.702.3032 CONTACT News: News@ChicagoMaroon.com Viewpoints: Viewpoints@ChicagoMaroon.com Arts: Arts@ChicagoMaroon.com Sports: Sports@ChicagoMaroon.com Photography: Photo@ChicagoMaroon.com Design: Design@ChicagoMaroon.com Copy: CopyEditors@ChicagoMaroon.com Advertising: Ads@ChicagoMaroon.com

The Editorial Board consists of the Editors-in-Chief and the Viewpoints Editors.

If Hillary declines to run in 2016, Democrats will have to figure out what their party stands for

KELSIE ANDERSON Copy Editor

ALAN HASSLER Copy Editor

istration Web site represents a move in the right direction toward a more integrated online course request system, but many of the frustrating aspects of the course selection process remain.

As reported in a February 2012 Maroon article, “[former University Registrar Gabriel Olszewksi felt that] it was an inconvenience that students needed to have four separate sites open to get all of the information they needed for registration: time schedules, course catalog, evaluations, and finally the registration site.” The goal of the Classes site was to minimize the hassle students face when figuring out schedules for each quarter, and while that hassle has been reduced, it could certainly be eliminated. The discrepancies between the course catalog and other online course information—along with the lack of personalized academic history and incomplete course descriptions on the Class Schedules site—detract from the otherwise laudable increase in user-friendliness and efficiency brought about by the Classes site.

The greatest gift of all

JONAH RABB Designer

LISA FAN Copy Editor

scriptions are largely absent from listings, which, combined with the aforementioned inaccuracy of the course catalog, makes for a difficult course selection experience.

The fulfillment of Core requirements—and major and minor requirements—is another aspect of the student decisionmaking process that is currently overlooked by the Classes site.

Although the Classes site does include in its course descriptions whether or not a class meets a Core requirement, there is no direct way to find Core classes beyond browsing by department, nor any personalized way to track fulfillment of Core requirements.

While the former issue could be resolved by tagging classes that fulfill Core requirements so that they comprise a searchable category, the latter issue would require a more extensive redesign. That said, the University’s planned transition on March 26 from cMore to an expanded MyUChicago site presents an opportunity for such a service to be explored. For example, the site seemingly has the potential to provide a personalized online widget for students to track their progress on completing Core and major requirements.

The Class Schedules and Reg-

Party planning

SNEHA KASUGANTI Designer

CONNOR CUNNINGHAM Copy Editor

meant to be helpful resources.

One of these shortcomings, identified by this Editorial Board in 2007 but that has remained unaddressed, is the inconsistency of the online course catalog.

Although the site states on its homepage that it was updated on April 20, 2012, many listings are incongruous with the classes actually offered this year, and thus with the information on the Classes site. Because it is by no means a reliable resource for academic planning, the course catalog’s benefit to students is only vague: They may get an idea of what the courses offered by a certain department are like, but they cannot firmly plan to take those courses, or factor future course schedules into decisions about when to study abroad or perhaps take a leave of absence. This is generally less problematic for sequence courses, which are offered fairly regularly, but for students looking at major programs without sequence requirements, it is at least an annoyance and at most a real inconvenience.

Although the Classes site does consolidate information, including course times, descriptions, and course and instructor evaluations, some of this information is incomplete. For example, course de-

By Luke Brinker Viewpoints Columnist When University of Chicago Institute of Politics Director David Axelrod interviewed former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in Mandel Hall last week, the GOP’s intra-party tensions were on full display.

Gingrich, who sought the Republican presidential nomination last year, blasted former rival Mitt Romney for his hardline position on immigration. Arguing that if the GOP wishes to reclaim power it must court the nation’s growing Latino population, Gingrich assailed Romney’s infamous call for unauthorized immigrants to “self-deport.”

“It’s anti-human,” he declared.

While Axelrod didn’t raise the topic, Gingrich also recently urged his party to accept marriage equality. “It is in every family. It is in every community,” he told The Huffington Post in November.

“The momentum is clearly now in the direction in finding some way to...accommodate and deal with

reality. And the reality is going to be that in a number of American states—and it will be more after 2014—gay relationships will be legal, period.”

Beyond advocating a big-tent approach on immigration and gay marriage, Gingrich also pushed back against far-right Republicans’ reflexive opposition to government. At one point, the erstwhile Tea Party alternative to Romney mocked Tea Party protestors who notoriously exclaimed, “Keep your government hands off my Medicare!”

Gingrich’s remarks are an intervention in a fierce debate within the Republican Party. Rising stars like Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and Florida Senator Marco Rubio contend that the GOP doesn’t need to change its policies, but rather how it markets them. Gingrich, on the other hand, wants his party to rethink key policy stances. Given that polls show that voters find the GOP’s hard-right platform unattractive, Gingrich appears to have the better of this strategic argument. But because fervent conservatives are the individuals most likely to vote in GOP primaries, it’s unclear whether the party will reverse course anytime soon.

Democrats, unsurprisingly, delight in the GOP’s internal squabDEMS continued on page 5

Julia Sizek Viewpoints Contributor With the campaign for the Senior Class Gift in full swing, I’ve been reflecting on my time as a UChicago student.

There are many things I’ve loved about my life here. I loved running around campus as part of the track and crosscountry teams, I love the diversity of student backgrounds and viewpoints, I love the extreme amount of coffee I imbibe... the list goes on and on. Most of all, though, I love the spirit of intellectual inquiry that abounds among students and faculty. Universities should be communities of scholars debating, discussing, and making progress together. In my opinion, no place fulfills that ideal better than our university.

And yet, I’m not so naive as to deny that the University also plays a massive corporate role. I know that my gift will funnel into a massive pool of money, directly or indirectly, that the administration and Board of Trustees use in a wide range of ways. At over $6 billion, our endowment is the ninth-largest among private universities in the United States.

And while the endowment is used sparingly, the financial leverage it provides is indicative of the capitalistic clout the University wields. Without the endowment and other income generated by tuition, donations, and the University’s extensive financial dealings, the classroom experience I value so dearly would be impossible. But the administration and Board of Trustees’ reluctance to examine the impact their financial choices

make on the world is dismaying and unethical.

On a basic level, it shows that the University is willing to support intellectual inquiry only up to a point. As soon as a critical eye turns toward the University’s own financial dealings and practices, our culture of rigorous debate disappears. “Be sure to question your professors and interrogate Marx’s theory of surplus labor and we’ll keep Bartlett stocked, order more rare books, and worry about keeping the lights on—just don’t ask us how we’re doing it,” the administration and Board seem to say.

So how are the administration and trustees doing it? How do our investments work?

It’s very hard to tell. The administration is extremely reluctant to divulge information about its investment policies, other than to give the occasional statement about conflicts of interests in hard-to-find four-year-old reports.

Unlike at peer schools such as Harvard and Yale, there is no body of students and faculty that advises investment policy. Instead, investment decisions are made by the University’s off-campus investment office. The group that oversees and audits these decisions is the Board of Trustees’ Standing Committee on Investments. Presumably, if you wanted to find out more about our investment policy, these would be the people to talk to—but there is no list of which trustees compose this important subcommittee. They meet at an SCG continued on page 5

THE CHICAGO MAROON | VIEWPOINTS | February 26, 2013

5

Study group dynamics Studying with others can provide academic help and solidarity—but only if participants prepare properly ahead of time

By Eleanor Hyun Viewpoints Columnist Recently, my daily excursions to the Reg have morphed from solo to partner, and sometimes small group, treks. Initially, I was grateful for the change, which added some sparks of joy to the usual drudgery of the Alevel. But when the quarter suddenly burst into a never-ending stream of midterms and papers, I was forced to reconsider those hours lost in the small, seemingly innocuous breaks for jokes and chatter, and had no choice but to move myself and my friends upstairs, where silence would be forced upon us.

With my next math midterm looming over me from its perch on Wednesday, I’ve been drawing on these experiences to consider how best to study, and if it can be done more efficiently in certain types of groups.

A page on the Suffolk Law School Web site entitled “Why Study Groups are Not

for Studying” advocates for the term “review group,” explaining that a discussion-based study group is only effective if the students have spent some time familiarizing themselves with the material beforehand. Without prior preparation, study groups become akin to a Hum class where no one has done the reading. In such a situation, students either choose not to participate, attempt to fake their way through, or try to read the passage right then and there in the discussion.

Without a firm initial stance based on their own understanding, they are blown at random from opinion to opinion. Comments are shallow, disjointed, and relatively few in number, and the ever-present temptation to socialize, rather than participate in the stilted conversation, becomes very strong.

Contrast this with a discussion-based math class, in which all students come in having prepared proofs for each problem that will be discussed in class. Intuitively, such discussion appears likely to be much more beneficial for students. Keith Sawyer of Washington University in St. Louis discovered that, in study groups, students often began by looking down at their notes as they tried to learn new material but, as they grasped concepts, began to look up and converse more easily. These findings indi-

cate that the collaborative nature of groups is only useful once students have already attained some firm understanding of the concepts at issue—later, in presenting these concepts to each other, students are able to make the transition between knowing the concepts and folding them into their own thought processes. Furthermore, discussion is easier for the socially anxious when they feel prepared.

These findings have significant ramifications not only for how we use study groups, but also for group projects and classes. In collaborative situations, it seems that it is more effective for group members to come together after they’ve done significant individual work—probably coordinated in an initial meeting—and are comfortable with their understanding of the project topic.

Many discussion-based Hum classes are ineffective simply because a significant number of students have not done the reading, or have only skimmed it. This can be partially remedied by changing the way in which we assign Hum reading: Instead of assigning large chunks of material without checking for completion and understanding each class, students should be assigned smaller and more manageable readings. These should be complemented by writing assign-

ments that lead them to start analyzing and understanding the texts on a deeper level before coming to class. As a result, students would not only feel more prepared for class; they would likely learn and internalize more as well.

The person I study with most often is in my chemistry class, but we do not share any other classes. We usually do our problem sets separately and then check answers later, or study for a test privately, occasionally asking each other questions. Our dynamic is characterized by physical proximity, but mental separation. I know that I study most efficiently alone, but when I am alone, I can’t help but wish that my friends were there with me, even in the second-floor silence.

My study group seems to actually be more of a support group—it provides a component of quiet emotional support that feels at least as important to my studies as any intellectual contribution it could make. Even after rejecting the myths of the all-powerful study group, I can’t deny its significant value.

Instead, I view that value differently, not as that of a study tool, but as that of an unassuming vehicle for student solidarity.

Eleanor Hyun is a first-year in the College majoring in English.

Gov. O’Malley (MD) and Sen. Warren (MA) could be progressive standard-bearers in Democratic primaries DEMS continued from page 4 bles. Yet, as President Barack Obama enters his final term and the Democrats ponder a future without him, they too will confront critical choices about what kind of party they wish to be.

Liberals and moderates within the party are united in hoping that former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton seeks the presidency in 2016. If she does, the nomination is almost certainly hers. She boasts sky-high favorability ratings, credibility among centrists (thanks largely to her moderate husband), and the good will of many liberals who, on second thought, wonder if she may have been a stronger figure than Obama to go toe-to-toe with John Boehner.

Unlike 2008, the last time conventional wisdom held that the nomination process would be a cakewalk for Clinton, there is no obvious Democratic up-and-comer with the ideas, charisma, and fundraising prowess necessary to topple her. The only question is whether, after three exhausting decades in the national spotlight, Clinton

wants to go through the rough-and-tumble of another campaign.

If Clinton opts to sit 2016 out, the Democrats will be forced to tackle crucial questions of principle and identity. On social issues, the party is clearly moving in a progressive direction. Never again will the Democrats nominate an anti-gay marriage presidential candidate. For party progressives, this marks a double blessing. It’s heartening to see a party that once tiptoed around social issues reach consensus on one of the key civil rights questions of the day.

Moreover, now that the party has largely embraced reproductive freedom and gay rights, progressives can focus more intensively on income inequality and the necessity of a robust public sector.

Without Clinton in the mix, some of the leading Democratic contenders in 2016 are likely to be New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, and even Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Cuomo earned liberal plaudits for signing New York’s same-sex marriage law

in 2011, and he recently launched a bold effort to shore up abortion rights in the state.

Cuomo and Emanuel have both been at the forefront of the recent push for gun control measures, to the ire of conservatives.

But looking beyond Cuomo and Emanuel’s enlightened views on women’s rights, gays, and guns, one finds establishmentarian centrists uninterested in questioning neoliberal economic orthodoxy. Cuomo, like his New Jersey counterpart Chris Christie, fancies himself a budget-slashing, business-friendly executive. While he’s cut state government jobs, Cuomo has been cool to proposals to increase taxation on the wealthy—perhaps not surprising for a governor who enjoyed strong Wall Street support in his 2010 campaign. Emanuel, long the bête noire of Democratic liberals, is no more a friend of egalitarians than Cuomo. So far, the signature episode of his mayoralty has been the Chicago teachers’ strike of 2012, during which Emanuel peddled tired anti-union tropes and firmly aligned himself with the so-called education reform

movement, whose agenda includes privatization, a religious devotion to standardized testing, and the demonization of teachers.

O’Malley, who signed Maryland’s gay marriage law last year and has been positioning himself for a presidential run for quite some time, would likely run to the left of Cuomo and Emanuel on economic issues, challenging the austerity agenda to which the latter two have hitched themselves. While she’s disavowed any interest in a 2016 run, if Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts were to enter the race, there would be a titanic clash of visions between the corporate and progressive wings of the Democratic Party.

The GOP’s spirited deliberations on what comes next are grabbing all the political press corps’ attention for now. But if the 2016 field does not include Hillary Clinton, it will almost certainly force Democrats to do their own soul-searching.

Luke Brinker is a graduate student in the MAPSS program.

University’s commitment to openness and debate does not extend to its investment practices SCG continued from page 4 undisclosed location, at an undisclosed time, release no meeting minutes, and do not allow outside comment.

Clearly, financial transparency is lacking. The only time the administration seems willing to discuss its investments is when controversy emerges.

In 2007, after protests on-campus and nationwide, President Zimmer released a statement about the possibility of divesting from companies associated with the genocide in Darfur. He thanked students for their contributions to the debate and then dismissed their demands. The Board of Trustees had decided, in secret, not to divest.

President Zimmer and the Board justified their decision using the Kalven Report. Created in 1967, in the midst of the Vietnam War and a wave of student activism, the Kalven Report affirmed the University’s commitment to neutrality on political and social issues. Forty years later, President Zim-

mer and the Board were using the Kalven Report as a shield. As those of us who’ve passed through Sosc know, not acting is a form of action in and of itself: By refusing to divest, the administration and Board were implicitly endorsing companies perpetrating the worst crimes imaginable.

But our opaque investment procedures and glaring lack of oversight are problems regardless of the publicity of the issue at stake. In the most recent year of publicly available financial information released by the Securities and Exchange Commission, our University continued to financially support companies that quicken the pace of climate change, like ExxonMobil and even Arch Coal, which practices mountaintop removal mining. Moreover, the University remains the sole major investor in HEI Hotels & Resorts, a hospitality management company infamous for its sweatshop conditions and unjust labor practices.

Our University’s continued support of HEI puts us at odds with schools like Harvard, Brown, Yale, Princeton, and Notre Dame, all of whom have publicly refused to reinvest in the firm.

Clearly, the administration and Board of Trustees have, to some extent, chosen to invest in these questionable companies. And although much of our financial dealings are done indirectly, through private equity funds and other financial instruments, it is still possible to check investment decisions in a fair and open process. Many of our peer schools—including Harvard, Dartmouth, and Yale—have set up investment committees made up of students, faculty, and alumni in order to advise the administration and Board on just investment practices. Doesn’t that approach seem more in line with our University’s commitment to free and open inquiry?

All fourth-years now have a choice to make. As UChicago has taught us to

do so well, we should think about what causes we choose to support, and how we support them. By donating to the Senior Class Gift, we tacitly support the opaque financial policies of the University. Even if our money won’t be directly invested, we’ll be signaling our approval by increasing the amount of money the University has to invest. We should all consider the legacy we are leaving behind at UChicago, as well as what it says. Do I feel comfortable leaving the University more money to spend as it wishes? Or do I want to spend time supporting the mission of the University as a place of self-reflection and intellectual inquiry? Rather than give the University a gift of money, my gift will be to help it reconsider its actions and beliefs through self-reflection in the spirit of intellectual inquiry.

Julia Sizek is a fourth-year in the College majoring in international studies and anthropology.

SUBMISSIONS The Chicago Maroon welcomes opinions and responses from its readers. Send op-ed submissions and letters to: The Chicago Maroon attn: Viewpoints 1212 East 59th Street Chicago, IL 60637 E-mail: Viewpoints@ChicagoMaroon.com The editors reserve the right to edit materials for clarity and space. Letters to the editor should be limited to 400 words.

Op-ed submissions, 800 words.

PHOTO Pierce Sports Frolic

By Julia Reinitz Every year on the last Saturday in February, the four Houses of Pierce Tower compete in a series of sporting events to determine which House is the One House to Rule Them All. This event, called “Sports Frolic�, is a treasured Pierce tradition. Through smiles and tears, victory and defeat, and endless bad calls by the refs, Sports Frolic is a unique and beloved part of Pierce culture that will be sorely missed when the building is closed at the end of this year.

Photo Essay FEBRUARY 26, 2013

ARTS

Trivial Pursuits FEBRUARY 26, 2013

At Logan, directorial screening keeps the true Bird out Tianyuan Deng Arts Contributor Xan Aranda, the director of Andrew Bird: Fever Year, was at the Logan Center on Saturday night to field questions from the audience after a screening of her film. The 80-minute documentary, initially released in 2011, follows musician and songwriter Andrew Bird on a yearlong concert tour. The film can be bravely authentic or slightly boring, depending on how much you appreciate Bird’s music. Half of the documentary consists of scenes from his concert performances: Bird sings, fiddle and violin in hand, with his old-timey live sets and temporary band. The fact that such a large part of the film shows Bird on tour is in keeping with one of the major themes in the film as a whole, which is “the creative process,” according to Aranda, who is also a longtime friend of Bird.

The film is not intended to address Bird’s personality, yet he comes off as immensely interesting through the piecemeal interviews and scant voiceovers we are given. The merit of the film is that it piques the viewer’s appetite for Bird, and its flaw is that it does only that—we do not get to know Bird much, and, consequently, can’t get too deep into the professed theme of “creative process.”

The more I got to know Bird

In Xan Aranda’s Andrew Bird: Fever Year, the titular musician performs at the Pabst Theater in Milwaukee wearing a suit and mismatched socks.

COURTESY OF WEGAWAM MUSIC CO

through the film, the more fascinating he was. By the end of the film, I was almost in love. Bird has a strong indie vibe to him that is curiously down-to-earth. He is lean, slightly hunched, performs with his shoes off (his socks mismatched,

one green and one red) and, often, with his eyes closed, as if his music transports him to the place he has made for himself—a barn in west Illinois, which is featured in the film as his creative center.

What is most charming about

Bird, though, is his unique way of talking. He speaks mostly in a very matter-of-fact manner, yet somehow he has a knack for making his words sound philosophical. When he went back to his barn after his yearlong tour, the zucchini he had planted

Style

Chicago Manual of

before leaving home had grown to a gigantic size. He chuckled and said, “Nothing should get this big.

Things are best when they are minisize, you know? Like those cookies they sell in the supermarket.” If you BIRD continued on page 9

Oscar the slouch?

Jessen O’Brien byby Alexandra McInnis

The showcase of fashions worn to the Academy Awards is inevitably followed by the buzzing of television commentators and fashion journalists. The phrases “he pulled it off,” “she nailed it,” and “he took a risk” are usually heard ad nauseum. At this year’s event, however, there weren’t many risks to be taken, with few overtly extravagant or unusual pieces.

Female guests instead favored classic gowns characterized by details in silhouette and fit, and were generally intent on highlighting the shape of their (generally slim) figures.

One of the standouts from the 2012 Academy Awards was Gwyneth Paltrow in a sleek, columnar, white Tom Ford gown, and this year it appeared that many guests took a cue

from her elegant and simple silhouette. Charlize Theron wore a slim white V-neck gown

by Dior, the razor-sharpness of which was only softened by a peplum at the waist. It was a strong, minimalist look further accentuated by her cropped haircut. Helen Hunt was the image of simplicity in a straight, strapless navy gown; the only shock-factor here was the label,

Soon-to-be-iconic: Jennifer Lawrence trips, looks more graceful than any of us ever will.

COURTESY OF STYLEITE.COM

which apparently is H&M. Ironically, in a sea of elaborate, sequined dresses screaming for attention, it’s often the subdued gowns that stand out.

Several guests opted for halter necklines that further emphasize this column structure, which was met with varying success.

Amanda Seyfried wore a silvery Alexander McQueen with collar neck and an opening in the front, which ultimately worked the way a halter neckline is supposed to—that is, it played up her beautiful shoulders.

However, other elements distracted from this desired effect in Salma Hayek’s black velvet Alexander McQueen, which had an embroidered gold pseudo-turtleneck that swallowed up her neckline. In the case of Anne Hathaway in petal-pink Prada, oddly sharp seams at the bust of her dress and a princess-length necklace that almost appeared to be attached to the top all lessened the potential appeal of her choice.

Strapless necklines have unfortunately become synonymous with brides, who seek to flaunt as much skin as possible on top while dealing with the length and volume of

their dresses. In many instances, female guests looked like they had raided a bridal boutique, with pale gowns featuring bustier tops. This look was seen on Amy Adams in the form of a frothy, ice-blue Oscar de la Renta, and Kristen Stewart in an ill-fitting white lace Reem Acra, which was perhaps yet another attempt of hers to convince the world she does not like being a Hollywood actress.

Jennifer Lawrence took a slightly more unique approach to the strapless gown, which was a Dior number in the lightest shade of pink and a gently dappled print. It was fitted to the thigh and then flared out into a voluminous trumpet shape composed of simple folds, and Lawrence looked lovely even as she fell while receiving her award for Best Actress.

The rejection of unusual shapes, prints, and elaborate beading in favor of simplicity was certainly refreshing, but also strange in the context of contemporary red carpet trends. With increasingly high standards from the public eye, celebrities use their formal appearances to garner more appeal; it’s rarely enough just to

look good—one must also look unique. For younger actresses, strategic red carpet dressing has the potential to further their careers, and the likes of Rooney Mara, Emma Stone, and Jennifer Lawrence all shot onto the scene in the past few years after wearing surprisingly assertive red carpet looks.

The black-tie choices for this year’s Oscars may seem unconnected to the average woman, but they are in fact representative of evening trends for non-celebrities as well. For the past few years young women have been opting for a formulaic look, which generally consists of a short, tight dress, with sky-high heels.

And although the ubiquitous Hervé Léger bandage dresses (and their knock-offs) don’t convey the same elegance of a long, slim gown, they similarly make emphasizing the figure the priority and any kind of uniqueness secondary.

But evening clothes are most glamorous when they convey a sense of whimsy, so when creativity is consistently absent, one does wonder whether these fashion choices are “classic” or just plain.

8

THE CHICAGO MAROON | ARTS | February 26, 2013

Director’s Chicago theater debut tries for meaning already manifest John Gamino Arts Contributor Don’t be afraid to show up hungry to Julius Caesar. British director Jonathan Munby, making his Chicago debut at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater, has opted for a distinctly modern rendition of Shakespeare’s classic. If you have a hankering for a hot dog or a beer, you can buy one from the street vendors onstage, who invite you to join them in celebrating Caesar’s victorious escapades even before the start of Act I. Munby calls Julius Caesar “a cautionary tale for our time.” And it is. Shakespeare’s tale exposes us to the humanity in brutality, the challenges of reconciling deep-seated convictions and deeply unsettling doubts, and the vulnerability of man in the face of a man-made crisis. The problem is that in bringing the play to the modern age, Munby has overplayed his hand. He seems to hold us in little more regard than Shakespeare’s fickle populace, whose allegiances sway with the succession of every sweetsounding speech. “What does it mean for [the audience], coming to see this play, in 2013, in this theater?” Munby asks. “How can I release the play for them?”

The short answer is that the play means many of the same things for us today as it did for Shakespeare’s audiences and Caesar’s own contemporaries. As Cassius remarks of Caesar’s death in the play; “How many ages hence / Shall this our lofty scene be acted over, / In states

unborn and accents yet unknown!” The truth is that modernized versions of Shakespeare can lend topical perspectives to his timeless ideas, but they also run the risk of crowding them out. We don’t need the play “released” for us to appreciate its life.

JULIUS CAESAR Chicago Shakespeare’s Courtyard Theater Through March 24

But when the street peddlers run off, we’re left wondering. Caesar (David Darlow) has apparently triumphed, and he enters the stage with much pomp and circumstance. A mammoth of a banner hangs from the ceiling advertising http:// www.CaesarForAll.com, the play’s Web site; gold eagles line the red curtains, more reminiscent of yesteryear Germany than the contemporary America Munby cites as his inspiration. It’s not clear how this vaguely modern political sphere is supposed to bring Shakespeare’s tale closer to home. We don’t even know where we are.

The play’s best moments come when its characters are allowed to be themselves. Larry Yando brings unsettling humor to the conspirator Casca: His expressions twist manipulatively, and his voice twangs with contempt for the lowly commoners. Jason Kolotouros, as Cassius, infuses his eloquent plots against

Caesar with conviction and verve. When he kneels, he kneels rapturously to us. Who would not be seduced?

Thankfully, these scenes soon move us from the befuddling start to the real meat of the play; the political allusions retreat, and the human moments finally come forth. We’re left with actors, a stage, and Shakespeare’s language— and little else to get in the way. It works, for these are not just characters with separate private and public faces. They mix themselves up in their own complexity. Few know what they want or what they’re dealing with, and no one knows what will transpire.

As the plot unfolds, this uncertainty catches fatal hold in even the legendary Caesar. Darlow brings a brusque sense of general confidence to the role, amplifying those instances in which his confidence does give way. While he ruminates over showing up at the Senate on that fateful day, his face exposes real apprehension, even as it retains a half-grin. He is a man who is truly half-convinced—and tragically halfconverted. The conspiring senators march in all at once, clapping emphatically, before he can even finish announcing to Calpurnia his new intentions. It’s a nice, subtle directorial touch.

When Caesar proceeds to denounce flatterers before the Senate, it comes with an even more poignant foundation.

The senators, meanwhile, pounce on Caesar with ebullient, yet joltingly inhuman cries of “Freedom!” and callously livid eyes. It’s a scene

that should be disturbing, and disturb it does.

After the murder, the conspiring senators stand warily around Caesar’s body: As they tremble, we can already see that they have no control over the situation they have wrought. If the modern twist succeeds anywhere in the play, it’s with the frightening image conjured by their rolled-up white oxfords, splattered with blood.

Unfortunately, the one character who never really gets off the ground is Brutus ( John Light). This is a shame, because he represents the play’s most profound and elaborate figure.

As Marc Antony (Dion Johnstone) puts it, “the elements” were “so mix’d in him that Nature might…say to all the world ‘This was a man!’”

But we would hardly think him more than a mere conspirator if it weren’t for Shakespeare’s lines. When he talks of his “sad brow,” we don’t see it. In a play marked by blood, it’s telling that the knife Brutus eventually uses to stick himself falls clean and unspoiled to the ground. His inner woes are never brought to light.

The battles at the end come with remarkable sensual effects: We can smell the smoky, metallic demolition, and we see the hot dog cart now burnt to a black crisp, its umbrella ripped to shreds. Yet we don’t need guns to make the destruction and despair real. In the end, the little things prove most compelling: the personal, the physical, the human. Amidst the war-riddled scene, it’s still the frightful eyes of Cassius and Titinius that draw us in, revealing the story that truly hits home here.

For Sendak fans, posthumous tribute is a lovely, wild thing Sarah Tarabey Arts Contributor In his last published work, Maurice Sendak convincingly showcases both the old and the new. My Brother’s Book is a culmination of the artistic breadth cultivated over the span of his long and successful career. It is, at the same time, an ode to his beloved departed brother Jack and to many other people he has lost. His verse is classic with a hint of the absurd: a relatable fairytale, a sad human search through a phantasmal land. It is in his artwork—a range of images that are sometimes impressionistic, sometimes gothic, sometimes something else entirely—that the full potency of this creativity is revealed. And with it, one of those rare pieces for readers of any age.

Sendak’s work is said to have been inspired by Shakespeare’s A Winter’s Tale, and elements adopted from the play are evident throughout: the “bleak midwinter’s night” upon which the story begins, the descent into Bohemia, the menacing Bear reminiscent of Ursa Major. But My Brother’s Book is much more than an adaptation. It verges on a prophecy of its own.

A deceptively simple theme—the eternal need for love—is tastefully executed, but could seem, at first, a bit cryptic. Brothers Guy and Jack are apocalyptically separated as the Earth itself is cleaved in two by a crashing sun. Guy is thrown back into the starry rays of the Universe under the euphoric gaze of the light; his brother is left astray, eyes covered in sheer horror, not at the end of the world, but at the torment of seeing his other half taken away. For such is the depth of love, one comes to understand.

Through this allegory, the portrayal of the utter real-life despondency that comes with lost love is nothing if not palpable.

It is Guy’s subsequent search for Jack through many realms and “soft Bohemia” that is so very endearing. His is a reflection of the myriad “lost” dispositions in which we find ourselves when embarking on the search for love. Along the way, we, like Guy, fall into the many unknown worlds of which life is composed. “Diving through time so vast—sweeping past paradise/…/ Guy listened to the meadow bird’s solemn song,” writes Sendak. It is, perhaps, the uni-

versality of this image that is so striking, the unanimous understanding that, difficult as it could prove to be, anyone would cross worlds for a brother or a friend. It is here, at the apex of Guy’s journey, that Sendak’s poetry is at its most powerful—a subtle mix of beauty and simplicity reminiscent of something written long ago.

Adult though this may seem, the very childlike elements that distinguish and inform Sendak’s work are by no means missing. At one point, Jack is flung into the ice and frozen for five years, along with his nose—a veritable Jack Frost. Sendak’s cunning employment of the ubiquitous Bear is equally silly. The book’s lack of unanimous symbolism works to its advantage, for it raises a slew of unanswerable but tantalizing questions. Does the Bear represent the obstacles one must face to arrive at, to achieve, to retrieve what has been lost?

Or does this Bear who “hugged Guy tight/ To kill his breath/and eat him—bite by bite” demonstrate the agony of life’s journey, at times an inner torment that brings the breath to a stuttering halt as would asphyxia by Bear? Luckily this potentially life-threatening creature is just a humorously impatient (and hungry) Bear who just doesn’t want to listen to Guy’s riddle.

The variability inherent in his imagery is, therefore, all the more noted. His artwork employs a striking mélange of colors discernible by the depth of their vibrancy: deep yellow hues and varied greens, shaky blues, and hints of the rainbow as one would imagine them reflected on a pearl.

The constant backdrop of the Universe only adds to the piece’s elusiveness, as if to imply that it is the sort of rendition the scope of which could only be captured in space.

These features are offset by a cohesive, yet absurd, style that does not shock, but does not entirely soothe. The animation in the brothers’ despondent faces and the cruelty of the Bear’s snarl reflect the depth of Sendak’s grief. It is an eerie thing to witness the airy, pallid luminosity of a frozen Jack intertwined with jade trees. Each image is, indeed, marked by the presence of nature. The progression to its more colorful rendition (Guy finally meets Jack near the pink cherry blossom trees) is wonderfully

In My Brother’s Book, Sendak’s shifting color scheme mirrors the journey of his characters.

COURTESY OF HARPERCOLLINS PUBLISHERS

symbolic of the change in perception that occurs when in the vicinity of those one loves: Reality is a kaleidoscope as “Guy sat upon a couch of flowers in an ice-ribbed underworld,” finally reunited with his longlost brother.

My Brother’s Book is touching without being sentimental, concise yet memorable.

For the avid reader of poetry, the fan of children’s tales, and the ponderer of the traits that unite us all, it is a must-read.

More than once, for good measure.

THE CHICAGO MAROON | ARTS | February 26, 2013

Salonen and Wagner transcendent John Lisovsky Arts Staff Opera would be nothing without its love duets. From Don Giovanni’s touching “La ci darem” to the Duke and Gilda in Rigoletto, Rodolfo and Mimi in La Bohème, and CioCio-San and Pinkerton in “Bimba, bimba” from Madama Butterfly, the mutual expression of passionate affection is a bulwark of the genre.

“Bimba, bimba” runs a quarter of an hour—at least three times the length of your normal love duet— but Puccini has nothing on Richard Wagner. Whether Tristan und Isolde features the greatest love duet of all opera, it certainly features the longest—“Esa-Pekka Salonen,” a solid 40 minutes and fully half of the second act. The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) performed it last Thursday and Saturday, along with the prelude to the first act, in a concert that lasted 90 minutes on the dot (there was no intermission).

Tristan und Isolde is an essentially plotless opera. In Act One, the title characters sail from Isolde’s native Ireland to medieval Cornwall to meet Isolde’s fiancé (in an arranged marriage), who is Tristan’s uncle and king. They drink a love potion and fall in (forbidden) love. In Act Two, which the CSO performed, King Mark goes hunting, Tristan sneaks into Isolde’s chambers, and they have an affair and are eventually discovered by Mark and his henchmen. In Act Three, a wounded Tristan and Isolde are reunited in Tristan’s ancestral Brittany and die

in ecstatic love. Wagner’s interest in medievalism is significant, but the plot is little more than an excuse to ruminate on Schopenhauer (one of Wagner’s heroes), here by connecting the Phenomenon to the world of Day (in which love is forbidden by the dictates of Mark’s court) and the Noumenon to Night (in which they can consummate their affair).

Even the philosophy, though, is not much more than a hanger on which to present the proverbial de la Renta that is a Wagnerian score—heavy, complex, rich, luxurious, and the musical equivalent of a great novel

by Eliot or Proust—often, to further the comparison, lasting five hours in the theater.

Among Wagner’s many innovations (which include dimming the lights during operatic performances) is a vastly expanded orchestra, and his corresponding interest in focusing his soprano parts on the middle of their range forces those who would sing them to have much more powerful voices—capable of cutting through a large orchestra— than those of the lyric sopranos who can float above a (much smaller) orchestra in Donizetti or Gounod.

Linda Watson, who sang the role of Isolde, is already being hailed as a singer on par with Jessye Norman, if not quite Birgit Nilsson and Kirsten Flagstad. Watson is a veteran of Bayreuth, the annual Wagner-only festival begun by the composer himself in 1876. I saw her sing Isolde in Los Angeles in 2008, as well as Brünnhilde in Die Walküre in 2009, and although she was superb then,

her voice has only become richer. It is a rare thing to have the mixture of power, grace, and artistry that Wagner, who conceives of the voice more like a virtuosic instrument than anything else, requires, but Watson has all of them in spades.

Stefan Vinke, playing Tristan, was solid, as was John Relyea (Marke) and the rest of the cast, but none was comparable to the soprano.

We last heard Salonen in the autumn playing Beethoven’s Second Symphony and Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique with London’s Philharmonia Orchestr a—the group for which he left the Los Angeles Philharmonic—and last season with the CSO in a pair of concerts featuring Bruckner’s Seventh, Sibelius’s Second, his own Violin Concerto, and the prelude to Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (of which a magnificent production is currently playing at the Lyric Opera). Saturday was the latest demonstration of what Salonen can do when working with an orchestra of his own caliber. I heard, at most, two wrong notes all evening in a score renowned for its stunning complexity; the playing, particularly in the strings, made this performance especially sumptuous. The difference between Salonen leading the Philharmonia and leading the CSO is the difference between an Audi R8, certainly an outstanding car in many respects, and a Bugatti Veyron. In the hands of a world-class conductor like Salonen, there really is no comparison.

9

Birds of a feather flock together, but at the expense of a cohesive narrative BIRD continued from page 7 connect it to what he said earlier in the film—that his music is going big to the point that all these tours are detracting from his creative effort— then this comment is probably not just about zucchini. The whole film is peppered with just such ordinary, yet extraordinary, remarks that slowly gather momentum.

The least interesting parts of interviews with Bird, ironically, are his remarks about his creative process. Bird is a musician with a very strong work ethic (hence his yearlong tour), so the name of the film is a clever pun on fever as an illness and on the degree of popularity Bird has reached.

However, the creative process shown in the film is orthodox. At times, Bird says, he hides in his barn to take a break and find inspiration; he also likes performing onstage because there is more human connection—all honorable, but unmemorable sentiments. The only story that intrigued me was one about how, when Bird started out, he mailed something like a selfrecommendation letter, along with his CD, to an indie record label.

The letter was apparently a sort of manifesto about music. I could not have paid enough to be able to peruse that spicy letter, with all its youthful ideals and ignorance, but the film, unfortunately, glossed over it.

In the Q&A session following the screening, Aranda addressed

Apollo Chorus of Chicago presents

SPECIAL DEAL! $10 tickets for UC students, faculty and staff at the door on night of concert.

HAYDN’S

Theresienmesse and

CHARPENTIER’S

Te Deum IN COLLABORATION WITH THE RENOVO STRING ORCHESTRA

Saturday, March 2 at 7:30 pm ROCKEFELLER CHAPEL University of Chicago 5850 South Woodlawn Avenue, Chicago

Stephen Alltop, Music Director and Conductor Order tickets now at 312-427-5620 or www.apollochorus.org.

the question of narrative and stated that the presence of a storyline does not concern her. Several comments about not getting enough of Bird’s personal story cropped up. One viewer specifically said that he wanted to hear more stories about the engaging Michael Lewis, one of the band members in the film.

Aranda replied that she was aware that the viewer was not going to walk away knowing every story about Bird, but that she did not care about having a plotted story.

The audience member mentioned that Bird had commissioned her because he knew she would strike the right balance between understanding what he wanted the film to convey and not being afraid to push him toward new territory. Her firm tone reassured the audience that minimizing the film’s narrative elements was a wise, conscious decision.

This simple documentation of performance and shedding of storylines could be construed as courageous, but it could also be a cop-out. In the dramadominated (indeed, melodramadominated) entertainment world, giving the audience the world in its plainness—just Bird singing, or talking about his schedule— is a risky move. It takes guts to showcase life’s inevitable banalities.

It could also be that the gist of an idea—what exactly matters in the so-called creative process—has yet to be discovered.

THE CHICAGO MAROON | SPORTS | February 26, 2013

10

Down goes Denison Men’s Tennis Jake Walerius Associate Sports Editor The Maroons are making a habit of beating higher-ranked opponents. They beat their second in as many weeks on Sunday, defeating 27th-ranked Denison with a score of 6–3.

Chicago got off to a disappointing start as second-year Deepak Sabada and thirdyear Krishna Ravella lost their No. 1 doubles match, 9–8 (7–3), but the Maroons were able to take some encouragement from a hard-fought contest.

First-year Neil Karandikar and secondyear Ankur Bhargava helped Chicago bounce back with an 8–3 win at No. 2 before first-years Gordon Zhang and Jake Crawford won 8–5 in the No. 3 spot.

“As a team, we had a very dominant performance,” Bhargava said. “It all started in doubles, where we dominated at positions two and three and had a great opportunity to win at one.”

On the back of those two doubles victories, Chicago was able to secure wins at Nos. 1 and 2 singles. Sabada earned a comfortable 6–1, 6–2 win at number one and Bhargava overcame an uncomfortable first set to win 7–6 (7–2), 6–2 at No. 2.

Bhargava attributed his improvement in the second set to more clinical play on game and set points.

“Overall, I feel like I am playing very well in singles,” he said. “In my match today, I struggled in closing out games; it took me seven set points before I was able to win the first set, which is why the score was very tight. In the second set, I was able to convert all my opportunities, which made it a little

bit easier to separate myself from my opponent.”

The Maroons suffered their only two singles losses at Nos. 3 and 4. Crawford fell to Denison’s Casey Cempre, 3–6, 6–4, 6–2, and at No. 3 third-year Alexander Golovin lost on a super tiebreak, 6–7, 6–4, 1–0 (10– 6).

With Chicago leading 4–3 after doubles play and four singles matches, there was still a lot to play for in the final two singles matches of the day. Zhang was able to win the first with relative ease, 6–3, 6–3. Fourthyear Harrison Abrams had a tougher match, but ended up with a 4–6, 6–3, 6–2 win to secure a 6–3 overall victory for the Maroons.

The significance of this win was not lost on Chicago’s players, who are now on a three-match winning streak.

“This was a great win for our team especially since we were considered the underdogs on paper. We came out and showed how the rankings do not truly represent how good we are,” Bhargava said. “We are fired up by our past few wins and are hoping to continue to keep our streak going.”

The Maroons can make it three wins in their last three matches over higher-ranked opposition when they face No. 28 DePauw in two weeks time. But they are determined not to allow those rankings to become an unwanted distraction.

“It was definitely an important win [against Denison],” Sabada said, “but as a team we are just focused on winning the next match and aren’t too concerned about sending a message.”

Chicago plays next on March 9 in Greencastle, IN, where they will face DePauw and Earlham.

Lack of hustle evident in loss

Knoche: “[Jenna] has been

MEN continued from back

WOMEN continued from back

also were able to knock down their open looks, and we were not.”

In the second half, Wash U added to its lead, extending it to 19 points at one time.

During that span, a shooting drought hit Chicago, which missed 11 straight shots.

The Bears comfortably held on to their lead and finished out the 72–54 win.

Wash U outscored the Maroons 36–20 on points in the paint and outrebounded them 41–39. That second number will be particularly frustrating for Chicago, whose January victory over the Bears was fueled by a strong rebounding performance.

Overall, Gage thought Wash U hustled more than the Maroons, which ignited better all-around play from the Bears.

“Wash [U] is a very consistent team in terms of the effort they give on both sides of the floor,” he said. “In the second half, they did a good job turning up the effort on the boards, the defensive end, and getting to 50–50 balls. I thought their effort wore us down a bit, which was a big part of their run.”

Chicago was certainly the underdog going into this season finale, but it was still a disappointing loss and disheartening way to end the season.

However, the Maroons will only lose one fourth-year in forward Matt MacKenzie, and will bring back the core of their team, which will be led by Gage and fellow third-year forward Charlie Hughes.

Second-year shooting guard and leading scorer Alex Pyper and second-year point guard Royce Muskeyvalley will also return, looking to carry this young and talented Maroon squad into next season.

“ We were down 12–0 at the 10 minute mark, but that’s actually pretty good defense. We only gave up 12 points, and then we started to catch fire a little bit and started to get ourselves back into the game.”

Ultimately, it was not enough to win.

The Bears dominated the paint, outscoring the Maroons by 16 points inside, and took control of the boards by a margin of 39–32. Wash U also took 23 free throws compared to Chicago’s two. Nevertheless, the team was able to compete in shooting percentage, as both teams shot in the high 30s.

However, the most notable feature of the game was that it was fourth-year captain Jenna Lillemoe’s last time playing for Chicago—a fact that has a special meaning for her coach. “[ Jenna] was the first kid I recruited, so she has been with me the entire time I have coached here, [and] I will definitely miss her,” Knoche said. “She has been an unbelievable player for us. She has tremendous energ y and enthusiasm at practice and in everything that we do. She has done an incredible job on the floor and off the floor just leading and making sure that the team is a team. It has been a good run for her, and she has had great moments over the last four years. She is going to be missed by all of us.”

Although this season did not bring the success of last year’s, Chicago will return all of its players but Lillemoe. With another year of experience under their belts, the Maroons will be ready to compete next season.

an unbelievable player...”

EGG DONOR NEEDED The University of Chicago Law School presents

I]Z 9ZlZn AZXijgZ ^c AVl VcY E]^adhde]n

Giving Corporate Agents Their Due — and Only Their Due Philip Pettit

We are an Ivy League couple seeking the help of a special woman who is a healthy, Caucasian, with highest percentile ACT/SAT scores, tall, slender, dark to light blonde hair, blue eyes, and under the age of 28. Please contact our representative at: info@aperfectmatch.com Or call 1-800-264-8828 $20,000+ compensation and all expenses paid

Jc^kZgh^in 8ZciZg [dg =jbVc KVajZh! Eg^cXZidc Jc^kZgh^in VcY HX]dda d[ E]^adhde]n! 6jhigVa^Vc CVi^dcVa Jc^kZgh^in

CLASSIFIEDS Classified advertising in The Chicago Maroon is $3 for each line. Lines are 45 characters long including spaces and punctuation. Special headings are 20-character lines at $4 per line. Submit all ads in person, by e-mail, or by mail to The Chicago Maroon, Ida Noyes Hall, Lower Level Rm 026, 1212 E. 59th St., Chicago, IL 60637. The Chicago Maroon accepts Mastercard & Visa. Call (773) 702-9555.

Thursday, February 28, 2013 – 4:30 p.m.

Weymouth Kirkland Courtroom University of Chicago Law School 1111 East 60th Street Chicago, Illinois 60637

CELLO LESSONS with a Grammy winner, retired CSO cellist. Beginners or advanced, convenient downtown location, reasonable rates.

Donald Moline, 312-810-6267, don.moline@ gmail.com

NEED HELP WITH LAUNDRY? FREE PICK & DELIVERY Wash & Fold or Dry-Cleaning Call or Click www.kimbarklaundry.com or 773-493-3320 10% discount for students/faculty MC-VISA-AMEX-DEBIT

Reception Follows

I]^h ZkZci ^h [gZZ VcY deZc id i]Z ejWa^X# ;dg heZX^Va Vhh^hiVcXZ dg cZZYh! eaZVhZ XdciVXi GZWZXXV @aV[[ Vi ,,(#-()#)('+#

IDEAL LOCATION - CLOSE TO CAMPUS - LARGE 4 BEDROOM APT 54th & University - June 16th- Attentive Landlords - Email Betsy betnewton@msn. com $2400

YOUR AD HERE advertise in the maroon ADS@CHICAGOMAROON.COM

THE CHICAGO MAROON | SPORTS | February 26, 2013

11

Crowd pleasers: Chicago nets resounding home victory Women’s Tennis Alexander Sotiropoulos Senior Sports Staff The Maroons were not about to lose with the crowd on their side.

In front of an unthinkable 212 fans, No. 3 Chicago (2–2) buried Denison (0–2) by a final score of 8–1 on Saturday’s Friends and Family Night at the Five Seasons Sports Club in Burr Ridge, IL. “We were all really surprised at the number of people who came to watch,” second-year Kelsey McGillis said. “Having the 2012 graduates here made a huge difference; being together and seeing them in the crowd and hearing them cheer for us was a great experience.”

The impact of the crowd became clear early on.

With a large focus on attacking the net in practice, first-year Helen Sdvizkhov and

second-year Megan Tang stormed to an 8–5 victory at No. 1 doubles.

“I think our match against Denison was the best example of [attacking the net],” Tang said. “We would use our serves and groundstrokes to set one another up to finish points at the net. It has been going really well so far, and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do against stronger teams.”

McGillis and fourth-year Linden Li showed similar aggression at the net in an 8–4 win at No. 2 doubles.

“On the serve, if we were able to put our first serve in play, we had no trouble finishing the point at the net,” McGillis said.

The lone loss of the evening came in doubles match where first-year Stephanie Lee and second-year Maggie Schumann were shut out 8–0.

But with a 2–1 lead going into singles,

the Maroons never looked back, sweeping all six singles matches.

McGillis faced a familiar opponent in her singles match. The second-year had already beaten Denison’s Taylor Hawkins in doubles when she played her again at No. 3 singles. That familiarity put McGillis at an immediate strategic advantage.

“She had a weak second serve and got nervous at important points; she also did not like when I took the ball early and gave her less time to react,” McGillis said. “Oftentimes, however, players are much better at singles than doubles, or vice versa, so it is important not to underestimate your opponent under any circumstances.”

This time, McGillis’s estimations were correct, and she won 6–3, 6–2.

Tang relied on her footwork for a 6–2, 7–5 win at No. 1. Last week, head coach Jay Tee said that Tang was one of the

quickest players in DIII. “When I get in position and move my feet quick enough, I am able to execute the shots I want in matches,” Tang said. “Ultimately, it comes down to my footwork. If I don’t move fast enough, I won’t be able to hit the offensive shots.”

Li edged out Alex Marcell 7–6 (7–3), 6–3 at No. 2 while the rest of the Chicago lineup had decisive wins. Sdvizkhov cruised to a 6–2, 6–2 win at No. 4, and first-year Sruthi Ramaswami dominated her opponent in a 6–0, 6–2 victory at No. 5.

First-year Stephanie Lee rounded out the Maroons’ lineup with 6–0, 6–1 win at No. 6.

Chicago will play its most important matches to date this weekend at the ITA Indoor Championships. Matches take place from Friday through Sunday in Greencastle, IN.

Individual performances come into focus at Midwest Invitational Swimming Tatiana Fields Sports Staff The team took a backseat at the Midwest Invitational this weekend as the Maroons shift their focus toward individual qualification for the NCAA Championships next month.

In a field of eight, the men’s team finished fourth with 265 points while Emory took first with 531 points. On the women’s side, the South Siders placed third with 224 points. D-I UW–Milwaukee finished first with 597 points.

Despite that less than stellar team finish, Chicago had reason to be pleased with some strong individual performances.

“We did very well,” head coach Jason Weber said. “We didn’t have many [swimmers] compete at this meet, but more of the fo-

cus for us was on the swimmers who didn’t compete at UAA Championships and had rested and shaved for this meet. All of them performed really well.”

Because UAAs limit the number of swimmers per event, there were many members of the team who had to sit on the sideline during the conference championships. After months of training, these individuals were ready to race, and got their chance to finish out the season on a high note at the Midwest Invitational. First-years Gabriel Nathan, Brian Yan, and Joyce Lu all swam at the Invitational after resting through UAAs. The Invite also served as a last-chance meet for those swimmers hoping to qualify for the D-III National Championships in Texas next month. With the NCAA Championships rapidly approaching, this meet was the final chance for many swimmers to

achieve an NCAA time cut to compete at nationals.

“For our team, we had some women swim the 200-yard free to see if we could get a better aggregate time to qualify for our 800yard free relay,” Weber said. “We had some good swims in that, particularly from firstyear Karen Chu, and it looks like that relay will qualify now.”

The standout performer on the men’s side was third-year Eric Hallman. Hallman has already qualified for NCAAs, but got the opportunity to swim off events this weekend.

Hallman showed prowess in both breaststroke events, finishing second in the 100 breaststroke and third in the 200 breaststroke.

On the women’s team, fourth-year Kathleen Taylor finished second in the 400 IM,

while second-year Elizabeth Millen took fourth in the same event. First-years Ciara Hu and Gabrielle Wimer also had good swims, with Hu taking second in the 200 butterfly and fifth in the 100 backstroke and Wimer finishing fourth in the 100 freestyle.

With the final meet before NCAAs now behind them, the swimmers that will be going to nationals continue to train hard, while the diving team is thinking about its last chance to qualify for NCAAs at the Diving Zones this weekend.

“We won’t know until the first week of March [how many qualify], as we have four divers competing at the NCAA Zone meet this weekend,” Weber said.

The diving team will be traveling to Grand Rapids, MI to compete at the NCAA Diving Zones this weekend.

ATHLETES OF THE WEEK

Head Coach Chris Hall: “Pam has been working extremely hard to get back into competition after being diagnosed with a stress fracture in her foot in the autumn. For the past few months, I don’t feel we have had an athlete on our team putting in more time to the sport; and she was forced to do everything on her own on cardio equipment and in the weight room.

This past weekend, in her first opportunity to compete, Pam won both of her events. Her long jump moves her to seventh in the UAA and her triple jump mark puts her fourth in the UAA.”

COURTESY OF HANS GLICK

CATHERINE YOUNG, WOMEN’S TRACK

COURTESY OF JOHN BOOZ

The executive boards of the Women’s Athletic Association and the Order of the “C” have implemented a program, “Athlete of the Week,” to highlight athletes making a big impact on the campus community—both on and off the field. We hope the MAROON’s series on these ‘Uncommon’ athletes can start a conversation...and not just within the walls of Ratner.

JOE ELLIS, WRESTLING Head Coach Leo Kocher: “In his two years at Chicago, Joe’s defining characteristic has been his competitive intensity. He can make mistakes in matches, but he will never give up. With the team down 10–0 in the UAA Championship dual against NYU, Ellis delivered a come-from-behind victory by scoring four points in the last minute of the match for a 7–3 win. It clearly ramped up the team and was followed up with a pin and a decision by his teammates that gave Chicago a 12–10 lead.”

SPORTS

IN QUOTES “Jen Aniston has too much dress on.”

—Former Major League Baseball player Jose Canseco on Aniston’s Oscars wardrobe.

Wins across the field: Maroons take five individual UAA titles Track and Field Isaac Stern Sports Staff Chicago’s men’s and women’s squads placed an impressive second and third, respectively, this past weekend at the UAA Championships. Thirteen different Maroons landed on the podium, and the South Siders brought home five individual UAA titles.

The men, who finished the first day in fourth place, rallied on Sunday to accumulate a total of 87 points.

Carnegie Mellon took home the conference title with a score of 139. Rival Wash U slipped after defending the UAA Championship for three straight years and finished third with 78 points.

“I am beyond proud of our efforts. People definitely rose to the occasion and left it all out on the track.

It was truly exciting to be a part of UChicago track and field this weekend,” first-year sprinter Jake Romeo said.

The women, on the other hand, contributed to a massive upset with their thirdplace finish, since they stole crucial points away from eighth-ranked Wash U. Emory won the meet with a score of 132 points—one more than Wash U (131) could muster. The Maroons followed with a hard-earned 96 points.

“I’m very proud of how

our team did performancewise in the meet, but most of all I’m proud of how our team really gathered together and really supported each other,” second-year Kelly Wood said.

The first-years continued to impress, winning three events outright. First-year thrower Nkemdilim Nwaokolo dominated the shot put and the weight throw, taking first place in both with distances of 11.74m and 15.27m, respectively.

First-year Michael Bennett continued to exceed expectations, too, as he reached 4.68m in the pole vault and took maximum points for the Maroons.

“This weekend was amazing,” Bennett said. “I couldn’t be prouder of the way we competed this weekend. It felt incredible to win the conference as a freshman; the atmosphere and support from my teammates were great.”

Fourth-year Billy Whitmore and second-year Semi Ajibola also achieved first place finishes. Whitmore ran the 5,000-meter run in 14:33.99, and Ajibola jumped 1.94m in the high jump.

The Maroons must now shift their focus to the NCAA National Championship set to take place in two weeks. Traditionally, the Maroons would compete

A University of Chicago long jumper competes at Henry Crown Field House as teammates look on.

COURTESY OF HANS GLICK

in the North Central Last Chance before NCAA’s in order to allow all individuals within range of qualifying for the national meet a final chance to post better times or distances. However, because North Central (IL) will host the national championship this year, the Cardinals decided to cancel the Last Chance meet in order to prepare for Nationals.

“Coach Hall will most

likely be taking a few people who are in contention for a chance to compete at Nationals to a meet this weekend,” second-year thrower Reecie Dern said.

Current standards allow only the top 10 in each event to qualify for the national meet. As of this weekend, only fourth-years Julia Sizek and Billy Whitmore have posted high enough marks to qualify. Sizek is ninth in

the nation in the 5,000-meter and Whitmore is 10th in the same event.

Only a few other Maroons have realistic shots at qualifying. Fourth-year Kayla McDonald currently ranks 25th in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:16.48. McDonald would have to shave close to 2 seconds from her time to have a realistic chance at qualifying. Bennett ranks 23rd in the pole vault and

would need to add .14m to qualify. The men’s distance medley also has a chance to qualify, as they rank 18th in the nation. They would need to cut off a little more than five seconds to make it.

For now, all that’s left for those with a shot is to practice and hope for the best.

More will be clear in a week.

The DIII Championships are in Naperville on March 8 and 9.

Can’t fool them twice—Bears dominate

Same old story in St. Louis

Men’s Basketball

Women’s Basketball

Sam Zacher Sports Staff

Mary MacLeod Sports Staff

Lightning doesn’t strike twice in the UAA. After upsetting No. 22 Wash U (20–5, 10–4 UAA) on January 5, when they were ranked fifth in the nation, Chicago (11– 14, 10–4) fell to the Bears on Saturday, 72–54, in their final game of the season.

The Maroons battled well early in the first half and were down by only one point after 10 minutes, but that was as good as it would get for Chicago. The home Bears promptly went on a 13–3 run and had built up a 39–26 lead by halftime.

First-year shooting guard John Steinberg believes the Maroons could have executed more consistently on Saturday.

“We were off and on with our game plan,” Steinberg said. “When we correctly executed it, Wash U was unable to run their offense; and we got defensive stops. However, we lost focus throughout the game; and they were able to run their stuff.”

The Maroons also struggled to shoot the ball in the first 20 minutes, converting on just 27.3 percent of their field goals while Wash U made 41.7 percent of theirs.

Third-year forward Sam Gage attributes some of Chicago’s problems to fundamen-

The Maroons fought until the end.

In their last game of a grueling season, the Maroons were defeated by No. 22 Wash U, 65–48, on Saturday. Wash U improved to 20–5 and 10–4 in the UAA, finishing third in the conference, while Chicago ends the year with an overall record of 7–18 and 3–11 in conference play, finishing last.

The end was bittersweet, as it was the last time this Maroons team took the court together. “ We were coming off a weekend where we didn’t play very well, and we didn’t compete very well. So before this game we talked a lot about doing both of those things and leaving it all out on the court; because it was the girls’ last chance to do that,” head coach Carissa Knoche said. “ We also talked about how it was their last chance to be this team and play a game together, because it doesn’t matter how many teammates they lose this year; they are going to be completely different next year.”

The South Siders obviously took her words to heart. Despite getting off to a rough start, missing seven shots and committing six turnovers before scoring their

Fourth-year Matt MacKenzie prepares to shoot a free throw.

COURTESY OF HANS GLICK

tal defense along with shooting.

“Aside from the game plan, we didn’t do a very good job of executing some of our basic defensive principles, which led to easy baskets for them,” Gage said. “They MEN continued on page 10

Fourth-year Jenna Lillemoe posts up in a game earlier this season vs. Case.

COURTESY OF HANS GLICK

first points, Chicago showed remarkable teamwork. In fact, the Maroons went into halftime only down by 10 points.

“I was very happy with how the girls continued to compete,” Knoche said.

WOMEN continued on page 10