Spring 2022 Edition 4 April-May 2022

This Issue:

The Herald

Established 1879

By and for the Students of Hobart and William Smith Colleges

www.HWSHerald.com

Ani Freedman, Editor-in-Chief

Paul Janes, Design Editor

Morgan Murphy, Copy Editor

Hrithik Biswas, Operations Manager

Olivia Broomes, Social Media Manager

Julissa Ramirez, Social Media Manager

Contributors

Morgan Murphy Emma Lucas Abby Leyson

Katelyn Oswalt Paulina Tejada

Molly Matthews Caleb Austin Olivia Broomes Jaheim Pierre

Copy Editing

Morgan Murphy

Katelyn Oswalt

Cover Photo

Caitlin Carr

Submission Guidelines

The Herald is currently accepting submissions for upcoming issues.

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must be made via file attachment.

Beautiful Minds hosts fifth annual AFSP Out of the Darkness Fundraiser

By Morgan Murphy ‘22 Copy Editor

On Saturday, April 9, the Beautiful Minds club hosted a successful event. The Out of the Darkness Fundraiser engaged stu dents, faculty, and members of the community to raise awareness of mental health resources in collaboration with the American Founda tion for Suicide Prevention (AFSP).

Club presidents Angel ica Knudson ’22 and Shea McIntyre ’22 told the Herald they were extremely pleased with the turnout.

“Setting up the event, seeing how people respond to it, and seeing how the community actively engag es with us is such a great payoff to the time and effort put into it,” said McIntyre. “It was such a great feeling to see community members there. Moving beyond the student focus to a broader community reach was great to see in action.”

Representatives from Finger Lakes organizations included the Western NY chapter of AFSP, Safe Har bors of the Finger Lakes, and Seneca County Sub stance Abuse Coalition, who handed out resources and contributed to the conver sations. Laura Black and other members of Darwin the band played live origi nal music and spoke about mental health as well.

Knudson said, “see ing community members involved and outside organizations supporting us was really cool. There were people from downtown Geneva coming in and out, asking us ‘why don’t they do

stuff like this more often?’ The community building was really encouraging.”

Beautiful Minds has been on campus since 2014 with the goal of raising mental health awareness and providing support and crisis resources. Knudson joined as a first-year in 2018 and joined club leadership

an amazing opportunity to build a unique community and meet people I would not have otherwise met,” Knudson said, reflecting on three years of leading Beautiful Minds. “Meeting other students from dif ferent majors, class years, and social groups who care about mental health and

friends,” McIntyre said. “Having the space to be vul nerable and talk about your emotions and making sure there is time and a place to keep those conversations going in all spheres of cam pus life is so important.”

Knudson added, “I want to emphasize the impor tance of self-care. Make sure you are making time to take care of yourself de spite the high pressures of college life. We might feel like if we’re not sleeping or we’re not eating full meals, or we’re staying up late to do work that we are doing what we are supposed to do as college students. But we need to make sure to take steps to take care of our selves.”

as a sophomore in 2019, and McIntyre became co-president in the Fall of 2021. Despite COVID-19 setbacks, the co-presidents are optimistic for the future of the club following their graduation.

“COVID made recruit ment really challenging for all clubs on campus. Now that we have more freedom to hold events and meetings in person, we are more hopeful that club membership will stay active,” McIntyre explained. After holding the Out of the Darkness Fundraiser, the club is excited to continue its momentum and get more students involved.

“The club has led to

suicide prevention has been really meaningful. For all of us during COVID, our club meetings turned into sup port groups, but that was what we all needed.”

Finding connections and opening up the dia logue surrounding mental health has been profoundly impactful to Knudson and McIntyre and students and faculty. Both co-presidents want to encourage all mem bers of the HWS commu nity to take mental health seriously.

“Continuing conver sations on mental health should be something found in all areas of campus life whether it be in the classroom, sports, or with

Knudson also expressed, “It is so important to take care of each other. We would be nowhere without the people around us and community care. Supporting one another and bringing awareness along with action to mental health related is sues is important to produce change for everyone.”

Angelica Knudson and Shea McIntyre have cultivated a community within the Beautiful Minds club that is inviting to all. Whether in a club meeting, assisting with tabling or an event, or just walking around campus, any chance to speak to either individual is a conversation that will leave everyone smiling and feeling reassured. Their im pact on the Colleges is one that will be remembered, and hopefully a legacy that will continue through future leaders of the club.

Photo Courtesy Angelica Knudson ‘22

The leaders of the Beautiful Minds Club

Why Housing Options are Being Removed Next Year

By Jack Hanson ‘25 Staff Writer

When the Colleges announced a series of changes to housing for next year, some students imme diately leapt into action to air their concerns. In an interview with the Herald, Vice President for Campus Life Dr. Becca B. Barile dis cussed the administra tion’s perspective.

Disclaimer: This interview was edited for clarity and concision.

The Herald (TH): Could you explain your position at the Colleges and how it relates to the housing issues that have been raised recently?

Barile: I’m the Vice President for Campus Life and the Dean of Students. Each division on campus has a Vice President who oversees a variety of initiatives and offices. One of those offices within my area of Campus Life is Student Engagement, which oversees Housing, Stu dent Activities, Orientation, Greek Life, and Interna tional Student Success. What was once called Res idential Education is now called Housing, within the office of Student Engage ment which reports to me.

Engagement is because a lot of the programming that takes place and a lot of facil ities management requires that staff to work together. For instance, the Residen tial Education staff would help the Student Activities staff and vice versa, so from a personnel perspective, it made sense for their func

Barile: One major change is that seniors who live on campus have more flexible meal plans start ing next semester. That’s something that didn’t quite get communicated—it’s a big change that students were asking for. Students were also asking for more single room options, so we

TH: Could you describe the goal of the Link House proposal?

380 South Main, one of the housing options that is not available for students to live in next year

TH: What is the role of Student Engagement in the broader context of the Colleges?

Barile: The reason Resi dential Education and Stu dent Activities were merged into Student

tions to be merged. It’s kind of one-stop shopping. It’s Student Engagement’s main purpose to bring all these services into one spot. When it relates to Housing, their job is to facilitate the Col lege’s building and grounds work orders, the needs for move-in and move-out, the needs for early arrival, so they facilitate several pro cesses for the Colleges.

TH: Could you summarize the changes made to Housing this year?

looked at square footage in buildings like Comstock, Hale, Bartlett, and other rooms around campus, and we were able to turn some double rooms into single rooms for a while, to provide more single rooms. The biggest change was the rebranding of the theme house program. The theme house program was rebranding to Link Hous ing. That was frustrating to students, and after going to Student Government and getting some feedback we understand why.

Barile: We got requests from a group of students who asked if two offices on campus could become what’s called a legacy theme house. Some theme houses have been here for so long that they are ongoing year to year. As more houses got added to that legacy program, there were fewer houses for new propos als. Some times you might have thirty pro posals for new houses and only two houses available because the other houses are successful. Sometimes, houses that are not successful choose not to reapply, and that house becomes available, but most houses are suc cessful. The goal of link housing was to guarantee the same themes year to year and reduce the process of making houses reapply for their house the following year. I think a few things could have happened to communicate that goal more effectively: we could have communicated to houses in advance about the changes, asked house managers what they thought about the program, and

Photo By Caitlin Carr ‘22

explained what the goals of Link Housing originally were.

TH: How do you evaluate the success of theme houses?

Barile: When houses are successful, we know because they reapply, and they tend to have long wait ing lists. When there are a lot of applications to sift through and you’re looking at the essays in determin ing who’s the best fit for a house, that’s how you know that a house is successful. When you have ten spots and only ten students, that doesn’t mean the theme isn’t important, it just means it’s not as popular with the wider population. But we try to figure out how we drum up interest for every theme house, how we create the best website so students know what themes are available, and the longevity of themes is indicative of their success as well. One of the informal indicators is when a house becomes a name around campus, when that theme becomes an identifier around campus for that theme house.

TH: How have the Colleges responded to the backlash to the pro posed changes, and are there any more plans in response to this back lash in the future?

Barile: The biggest change that had concern was the Link Housing and Theme Housing process. After the Student Govern ment meeting where we heard some great feedback, we announced that we would expand senior inter est housing the next day. We always have students

in groups that want to live together that may not all get into a theme house, or they don’t all get into Odell’s, so we expanded the number of senior interest hous ing that was available for groups. There were some of those houses that didn’t get selected during senior interest housing, so we were able to allow for students again to go back to that first stage, groups of students to propose new themes for those houses. We were able to offer two new themes for the upcoming year. We went back to that original idea of allowing students, no matter how many houses are available, the opportu nity to propose new themes. We want to maintain the idea that theme houses have resources that are offices on campus. The office doesn’t run the theme house, but the other way around: the theme house has that office as a resource.

TH: Are there ele ments within these changes, and the way these changes were rolled out that you regret?

Barile: I would have liked to see more upfront com munication, transparency in the process and involve the theme house manag ers and the students who live in theme houses more on the front side. I teach communication studies and it’s important that people have a clear understanding and are operating from the same frame of reference when evaluating some thing or deciding whether something works for them or not. I think there were good intentions with the rollout of the program, but I don’t think there was great communication about it.

We are going to evaluate how we communicate with students, particularly before a decision is made, to get feedback, and then specifi cally also when a decision is made to make sure there is a clear understanding and that we are all operating under the same framework.

TH: Do you consider the changes made this year to be a finished product or a first step in a greater shift?

Barile: This change with the Link House and Theme House program was made this year in the hopes to strengthen and reduce the application process for next year. We had heard lots of feedback that “our housing application process starts in January and ends in May”— it’s a long process! Student Engagement’s goal was to consolidate it and make it easier, and it didn’t do that. This came out of this past summer, so it’s not as though there is a strategic plan to make changes in the housing program and we’re rolling them out every year. The proposed change was rolled out this spring in the hopes for next year. I don’t think there are any other larger changes out there that were not communi cated. As we hear feedback, we make changes; we evalu ate policies and decide what we can do for the future to meet a specific need. So right now, there are no changes on the horizon from the Student Engage ment standpoint. Please visit hwsherald.com to read the rest of this interview.

The Factual Myth Surrounding the Value of College

By Jaheim Pierre ‘25 & Paulina Tejada ‘25 Staff Writer

Access to education in the United States has been unequal for centuries and has affected all facets of the social, economic, and cultural life of America. The first African American to attend college was report ed to be Alexander Lucius Twilight who graduated from Amherst College in 1823, and the first woman, Catherine Brewer, obtained her degree 17 years later at Wesleyan College in Geor gia.

The academic landscape at that time was brutal to economic, racial, and reli gious minorities– a legacy that persists today. Laws have been set up to legalize boundaries that created generations of people in society that have extremely limited economic mobil ity. This limited access to economic mobility dwarfed prospects of future gener ations having any tangible benefits from an economic system they contribute to.

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) cites that diversity helps the overall economy whereby more factions of society have the access to creating more output in the econ omy. A Harvard Business Review report concluded that “Teams solve problems faster when they are more cognitively diverse.” The normative reference to di versity is oftentimes limited to appearance which often times results in ridicule and questioning of the qualifica tions of said constituent.

Hobart and William Smith Colleges played a critical

role in ushering “differ ence” in academic circles on the national stage. The first woman in 1849 to gradu ate from medical school, Elizabeth Blackwell, earned her degree at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, nine years after the first Af rican American matriculant at Amherst, Isaiah George DeGrasse, became the first African American to study on the shores of the Seneca Lake. Additionally, in 2002 the Colleges became the first college to offer an under graduate major in the field of LGBT/Critical Sexuality and Queer Studies.

Beyond Geneva, modern academia has responded to that change in sentiment through systematic amend ments and has changed norms, attitudes, and bylaws to accommodate a diverse population that will help to construct a pipeline for economic inclusion. The rating systems for colleges are based on prestige and a demographic that is repre sented by a certain econom ic class, typically a higher class. In recent times, how ever, colleges have made substantial attempts to destigmatize a college value away from these rating categories.

Williams College, a small liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachu setts recently announced that in the fall of 2022, financial aid packages will not include any loans and increase the number of grants in those categories. Harvard University an nounced a similar incen tive to attractive economic diversity by announcing

that members of the class of 2026 would have a $0 contribution towards their education if their family income is less than or equal to $75,000.

Across online forums like College Confidential and student opinions on campus, the HWS is wide ly seen as a rich, preppy haven for boarding school graduates. According to the school’s website, however, 96% of students receive merit awards, scholarships, and/or financial aid. 63% of admitted students in the Classes of 2024 are from public high schools, as well as a population of 25% mul ticultural students in that same class year– a number that is not unusually differ ent from HWS peer schools.

According to the New York Times Upshot, howev er, the Colleges are among the top in the Liberty League, New York, and private selective colleges in family median income. In 2013, the Upshot report ed that the median family income of an HWS student is $161,200 which makes it 6 out of 173 colleges in New York and 71 out of the 2,395 colleges reviewed in this category. That median income surpasses other highly ranked schools such as Cornell, Columbia, and N.Y.U. This begs the ques tion– what culture persists in the 1,824-student pop ulation with that median number?

The top 1% is talked about frequently in the media but loosely defined, according to the New York Times Upshot, one percent is defined as families who made above $630,000. In that category HWS again does extremely well, as

it is ranked 8 out of 173 colleges in New York and 69 out of 2,395 colleges. From that data, it can be concluded that the Colleges have a higher population of students with families in the one percent category than in the high median category nationally.

On the other side of the data, HWS scored 154 out of 173 families making 20,000 or less per year in New York state and 2,051 out of 2,395 in the country. After look ing at the data, one student wrote to the Herald:

“Where this may be true, looking at the data provided by the New York Times article, one can see that the results may just be warped. The number of students accepted into this school tends to be students who come from a higher class, meaning that the people who are truly coming from economically impov erished places are very minimally accepted. One can conclude that there is not much economic growth for many students in a way that is truly impactful. The people who are already in good economic standing end up going to a higher class. The article states that 77% of the students who attend HWS have parents who make more than $100,000. While 18.7% of students come from parents that are above the poverty line, meaning that they make less than $100,000 but more than $35,000 in a 4-mem ber household. Meaning that the 4.3% of students who attend HWS that are below the poverty line are not as impacted after grad uation in terms of elevated economic status.”

Along with the limited

admission of students with low-income, the question of how the Colleges plan to support these students per sists. Today at the colleges there are programs such as Posse, HEOP, and the First-Generation Initiative. According to Forbes, HWS slightly falls below its peer group but significantly above the national average

creasing student and faculty diversity to better reflect national and international demographics. Improving the ability of all students to traverse the range of diverse environments that they will experience throughout their lives and careers must become part of the HWS experience.”

In 2013, the Obama

Juniors and Seniors take to the stage

By Molly Matthews ‘22 Staff Writer

On Friday, April 8, and Saturday, April 9, the Dance department held their Junior/Senior Choreogra phers Concert in Deming Dance Theater. The concert was dedicated to Professor Cadence Whittier, who passed in October 2021.

department preparing for these performances.

The Salisbury Center for Career, Professional, and Experiential Education

with a graduation rate of 73%.

The HWS adminis tration is aware of the contemporary challenges surrounding economic diversity and inclusivity and has made tangible steps to support solving those challenges through its most recent strategic plan. The HWS plan has three major themes including increasing academic effec tiveness, building financial and operational excellence, and enhancing the college’s reputation. A subcategory of increasing academic effec tiveness is the appointment of the new Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, which accord ing to the plan intends to “strengthen and augment inclusion programming and moving toward the goal of all members of the HWS community becoming integral parts of a diverse, inclusive, and equitable campus. This includes in

administration declared a war on college rankings outlets, urging them to change the focus from rank ing to evaluating student outcomes. Obama argued that if colleges are incentiv ized for rankings they may “game the numbers and in some cases, [get rewarded] for raising costs.” Anoth er argument made by the former president was that “It’s impossible to capture an institution’s value and its impact on students with a single metric.” The Obama Administration urged students to see college as an investment and any invest ment information is key to making a college decision.

Professor Whittier taught at The Colleges for over twenty years and left an unforget table mark on the depart ment and all her students. After the intermission, the department held a tribute to Professor Whittier with the performers and choreogra phers. Dancers presented an improvisational dance in her honor using a back drop of her favorite color and bands from a prior performance by Professor Whittier.

Students were excited to be back performing in Deming as this event did not take place last year due to COVID-19 guidelines. The show allows upper classmen students within the dance department to share what they have been working on this year. With in the show, the choreog raphers drew inspiration from many different styles including modern, ballet, and tap, to name a few. One of the dances incorporated a previously recorded video segment displaying dancers interacting with colorful paints and each other.

Other students in the department controlled the lighting, audio, and curtains making the performance as a whole fully student-led–a testimony to the time and effort put in by the whole

Senior choreographer Bryna Gage ‘22 spoke about the show. Gage told the Herald, “This show was our first live performance in Deming theater since the pandemic. For many danc ers except seniors, this was their first time performing with the dance department. I think that’s what made this performance so special. We all were so excited to be on stage again and it truly showed in the quality of the works and the dedication of every dancer’s perfor mance.”

It was not just the dance department that was excited about the show. Parents, students, and community members all came out to support, selling out the the ater, for the Saturday night show.

Photo Courtesy Office of Communications

Fibrworks wins Annual Todd Feldman ‘89 Pitch Contest

By: Emma Lucas ‘22 Staff Writer

On Thursday March 3, four contestants took to the stage to present their ideas for a start-up at the annual Todd Feldman and Family ’89 Pitch Contest. This year, the winners were Moritz Marchart ’22, Wil liam Kline ’23, and Brenden Bennett ’23, creators of Fibrworks, on their idea of using a sustainable hemp com posite for common lawn and garden care products. Fibrworks won the grand prize of $10,000 for their continued research to make their idea a reality. The Herald asked Fibrworks creators about the next steps for their project.

Living and Learning and the final was and paper on assessing the efficacy and environmental sustain ability of any product and I chose hemp and through research found out it was a super material and reached out to our engineer and

pursuing them.

TH: How will the $10,000 from the Pitch be used?

Mo: The first bit of money will be given to an architecture student at HWS

textiles (mats that go under roads to hold back weeds and deal with runoff), basic garden tools, and silt fences for hurricanes to showcase the different uses of hemp and then license the intel lectual property and move up the ladder.

The Herald (TH): How did the idea of using hemp as a sustain able substance come to light and why did it interest you?

Will: My FSEM was Sustainable

mentor Joseph Curcio and got his help with co-found ing and jump starting the idea.

Mo: I joined during Summer Sandbox 2021 and helped with continued research. Will first pitched the idea of using hemp for skis, but we later found out through research about weedwhackers and the impact that they have on the environment and now are

who is helping to redesign our logo.

Will: Originally the plan was to buy an extruder, but now the focus is getting our product out. We need to register trademark and file for intellectual prop erty, and we are working to update our logo. We hope to test and sell product by the summer of 2022. We want to create a four-part product line of weedwhackers, geo

Both Mo and Will want to give a huge thanks to the alums from the Centennial Center and other connec tions that have helped them throughout the process of developing their pitch, telling their story, and cre ating their product. Special shoutout to Todd Feldman, Mattie Mead, Ed Bizari, and Amy Forbes.

Photo Courtesy Kevin Colton

winners of the Todd Feldman Pitch Contest from Left to Right: Moritz Marchart

William

Brenden Bennet

Philanthropy is a Vehicle for Change, Get into Ignition: Classes of 2022 and ‘72 Partners to Create Outdoor Space

By: Jaheim Pierre ‘25 Staff Writer

At 20 Seneca Street lies one of Hobart and William Smith Colleges’ Office of Advancement. It’s the office that keeps alumni engaged, provides substantial financ ing to the school’s overall budget, and influences the philanthropic goals and objectives of the institu tion. The Office of Advancement houses several departments that oversee a vari ety of projects and initiatives that help achieve the overall goals of the office. Within it are the Office of Annual Funds and the Office of Alumni Rela tions, which all work closely together at HWS.

An import ant aspect of the Advancement Office is the Annual Fund. This department is responsible for ath letic, academic, and other various fundraising initiatives such as the emer gency COVID fund that helped the HWS community during the pandemic. The annual fund oversees an important campaign called the Senior Class Gift, a project headed by Student Trustee Gib Shea ‘22. The Herald reached out to Shea to learn more about the Senior Gift fund.

Shea told the Herald, “The Senior Class Gift is a way for current seniors to give back and pay it forward to the Colleges.”

He emphasized the philanthropic goal of the

Senior Gift, saying, “Having been HWS students for the past four years, we hope to cultivate a sense of gratitude and philanthropy from the graduating class before we depart for the next phase of life. We feel it is important to give back to our campus community– one that has supported us tremendously and will continue to be an integral part of our lives!”

note from Advancement

saying that a donor gave in their name. Seniors can also be involved in the Countdown to Com mencement events and Senior Week celebrations, where the opportunity to give will be made avail able to them and where they can reflect with their

tution that we have called home the past four years. By giving as current stu dents, we give thanks for the opportunities given to us and help make HWS a better place for us to return to in the future,” Shea said.

Shea further urged seniors to take part in philanthropic acts. He explained, “The first thing you can do to get involved is to give! There are ways for those who give to the future wellbeing of Colleges to ben efit in real-time.”

Shea also added, “Cur rent seniors can give in honor of a campus mentor or in memory of someone who helped get them to this point in their academic career.”

Those who are men tioned in donations will be mailed a thank you

fellow graduates about the past four years. There will also be opportunities to enter a free diploma frame raffle or receive discounted Senior Week bracelets.

The Herald asked Shea why this campaign is important beyond the fundraising aspect.

“The Senior Class Gift is important because it is an opportunity to leave a legacy of support ing the campus and insti-

Shea also announced that the classes of 1972 and 2022 will partner to create an out door learning space between Smith Hall and Stern Hall. Shea told the Herald, “With the Classes of 1972 returning this summer for their 50th reunion, the senior class will be able to give towards a Classes of 2022 bench as part of this initiative. It is an excellent opportunity for students to leave a tangi ble gift on campus for us to visit when we return to our alma mater, for our peers and professors on campus to enjoy, and to create a partnership between current students and alums that future

Senior Class Gift cam paigns can replicate.”

Hobart Hockey Loses in Quarterfinals of NCAA Tournament

By: Emma Lucas ‘22 Staff Writer

On Saturday March 12, the Hobart ice hockey team took to the ice for the first round of NCAA against the Elmira Soaring Eagles. The following Saturday, March 19, the Hobart Statesmen traveled to Adrian, MI for quarter final play, falling short against the Adrian College Bulldogs.

The Geneva Ice Rink was packed full of students and parents watching the Statesmen skating to a 4-2 victory over Elmira. The scoring was opened by senior Blake Coffey at the 7:50 mark of the first period, followed by senior Zach Tyson six minutes later, leading the Statesmen 2-0 in at the end of the first period. First-year Luke Aquaro scored the States men their third goal in

the first 22 seconds of the second period, followed by sophomore Artem Buzov erya in the 8:49 minute. The third period was score less for both teams. Elmira scored both of its goals in the second period. Hobart goalie senior Liam Lascelle saw action all 60 minutes of the game, with a total of 25 saves.

This match-up was exciting and dominated by the Statesmen from the first whistle. The Hobart Statesmen were cheered to victory by 850 guests at the rink to see seventh-ranked Hobart and tenth-ranked Elmira. Entering the game, the Statesmen were 19-5-2 overall and Elmira was 18-6-2. Talking with stu dents, they were excited for the game because it gave them something to do on a cold Saturday evening.

One student-attendee

commented, “[ice] hockey is my favorite sport and I wanted to support the school.” The air was filled with cheers and happy yells as the end of the game grew near and Elmira pulled their goalie for a man-up advantage while the States men held themselves together limiting Elmira to just two shots on goal, saved by Lascelle.

Against the Adrian Col lege Bulldogs, seniors Jake Gresh and Aaron Maguyon, junior Brenden Howell, and first-year Matthew Iasenza scored four goals for the Statesmen. Lascelle played 40 minutes in goal with senior Joseph Halstrom entering in the third period. Top ranked Adrian College went on to win the NCAA tournament with wins over Augsburg University in the semifinals and SUNY Geneseo in the finals out in

Lake Placid, NY. The Bull dogs concluded their 202122 season with an overall record of 31-1-0.

The Statesmen finished their season with a 20-6-2 record overall and 13-2-2 in conference play.

Congratulations to the Hobart Hockey senior class for finishing with an overall record of 61-19-7, 36-11-6 in the NEHC, and three appearances in the NCAA tournament!

Photo from Hobart Hockey’s first round match-up against #7 seeded Elmira College

Photo Courtesy Kevin Colton

Giving “Write” Now: The Power of Mentorship within the Writing Colleagues Program

By: Katelyn Oswalt ‘24 Staff Writer

Inspired by the Athletic Day of Donors, the Writ ing Colleagues Program is beginning a fundraising campaign entitled “Give Write Now!”, which will help to continue to fund equity planning, as well as other day to day functions of the program. The fundraiser is functioning as part of a pilot for an eventual, wider Academic Day of Donors.

When asked to describe the modality of the fund raiser, Co-Director of the Writing Colleagues Program Amy Howard Green replied, “It will primarily be a social media blitz… people can do nate as little as five dollars, or as much as they want, and every donation will count towards the matching based on number of donors that Suzanne Rutstein ’95 P’23 and Charles Rutstein ’94 P’23, whose generosity established The Rutstein Fund in Support of Writing Excellence in 2021, will do.”

The Writing Colleague Program on campus is designed for students who enjoy writing and want to aid their peers in the writing process. Writing colleagues act in a facilitative role and are a bridge between the faculty and the student. Stu dents apply to the Writing Colleague program and go through an application and interview process before they are selected. Once se lected, they take the Writing Colleagues’ Seminar course, where they strengthen their own writing, as well as learn techniques for aiding their peers.

Following the seminar, Writing Colleagues may serve in various classes across campus, including First Year Seminars, to help students meet their writ ing goals. The program is co-directed by Amy Howard Green, in addition to Associ

Laurel Society Excellence in Mentorship Award, which is given “In recognition of the powerful educational influence and outstanding mentorship in the life of William Smith students.”

The Writing Colleagues Program has been a fix

Colleague placements meet bi-weekly with Professor Green, where they discuss successes and challenges within their placement, as well as gain helpful insights into how they can improve as a Writing Colleague.

ate Professor of Writing and Rhetoric Hannah Dickinson and Associate Professor of Writing and Rhetoric Ben Ristow.

Co-Director of Writing Colleagues Program Amy Howard Green has been on campus since 2013 and has been one of the greatest mentors on campus to Writ ing Colleagues and Writing and Rhetoric students. She received her PhD from West Virginia University and moved back to the Finger Lakes region afterwards to begin her position at HWS. In addition to serving as the Co-Director of the Writ ing Colleagues Program, she teaches classes such as “Writer’s Seminar” and “Literate Lives: Rhetorics of Marginalized Education,” and is looking forward to teaching a First Year Seminar this upcoming Fall. Recently, Professor Green was honored with the

ture of the curriculum at the Colleges, even during COVID times. Especially during the Spring of 2020 and the 2020-2021 academ ic year, Writing Colleagues had to adjust to having their meetings across different modalities and increase their flexibility with stu dents and faculty. While we are not completely back to “normal” yet, the 2021-2022 academic year has allowed for greater shifts back to the in-person, collaborative nature of the Writing Col leagues Program.

When asked about what she enjoyed most about “getting back to normal”, Professor Green replied that she enjoyed, “being able to have meetings where we can see each other’s faces again. Communication and collab oration are the heart of the Writing Colleagues Program and my own personal ped agogy.” Students in Writing

A highlight of the Writ ing Colleagues Program is its emphasis on Belonging, Diversity, and Equity. “As a program, we have been concerned about issues of equity and inclusion and this year… we have been able to be more formalized and in depth with our equity planning,” Professor Green told the Herald. The Pro gram has begun to have a theme each semester. The Fall of 2021 focused on an ti-racism, while the Spring of 2022 has focused on disability justice. Through this emphasis, the Writing Colleagues Program hopes to develop a sense of be longing in the writing pro cess. The “Give Write Now!” campaign will help continue to fund these efforts by the Writing Colleagues Pro gram.

The campaign will take place from April 19–21. Stu dents and members of the HWS community looking to donate should be on the lookout for social media posts announcing when and how you can contribute on the Give Campus Page. For students interested in being a part of the Writing Col leagues Program, be on the lookout for applications to reopen in Fall of 2022.

Photo Courtesy Kevin Colton Co-Director of the Writing Colleagues Program speak ing at the Writing Colleagues Welcome Reception

Op-Ed: The Scissors

By: Abby Leyson ‘22 Staff Writer

The Martini has come back to our campus just in time to enjoy the light of spring blooming in Geneva, NY. Their most recent issue was published on March 28.

A new look is destined for the school’s satirical literary magazine according to Editor in Chief, Madeline Mood ‘22. New members have joined, Instagram fol lowers are rising, and pieces have been trickling in since their most recent issue.

The Martini is back to its usual hard-hitting at titude, especially with some of their latest issue topics. Poetry and prose express sex, love, heartbreak, disap pointment, and the most disappointing of them all: the scissors.

The literary magazine’s first piece is from co-edi tor Emma Cusanelli ‘22. The piece “A REQUEST TO ALL BICENTENNIAL GRADUATES” is a plea to the grad uating class “to stand up for culture, self-expression, and good taste,” said Cusanelli.

the arts, and a disconnect between the want of the students and the will of the school.”

Regardless, the scissors have become the center of attention yet again after years of neglect. Standing somewhat tall outside the Warren Hunting Smith Library, the scissors at tempt to represent a cut to the divide between Hobart College and William Smith College. They reflect a deep history of controversy borne across generations at HWS.

The infamous story of

The scissors were first installed in the spring of 1989 by students in Profes sor of Art and Architecture A.E. Ted Aub’s “3-D Design” class. The sculpture was originally made of wood, but by the end of the Spring ‘89 semester, they were alleged ly torn down by vandals that are still unnamed. In re sponse to the scissors being taken down, Professor Aub’s students released a state ment about the scandal.

“The scissors are not only interesting and exciting in a visual sense, but they

in Admissions exclaim while passing by the scissors that “[t]hese scissors represent the divide between Hobart College and William Smith College,” according to student tour guide Samari Brown ‘24.

On a tour, Brown would state this claim and proceed to gesture toward the Wil liam Smith hill to say, “Ev erything there was William Smith.” Then, points her group’s attention to Coxe Hall to say, “And everything on the quad was Hobart College. These scissors were actually made by students!”

The Scissors statue that was the subject of the Martini Article “A REQUEST TO ALL BICENTENNIAL GRADUATES”

“The piece is more of a critique towards the Colleges as a whole,” said Cusanelli. “Sure, the scis sors acted as my muse initially, but my contempt evolved into an explication of the school and frustration endured by students for the Colleges’ lack of care for its landscape’s aesthet ic, lack of care for

the scissors represents the Colleges’ coordinate system, which was founded when William Smith joined Ho bart College on December 13, 1906. Through this tran sition, Hobart and William Smith became united as one college and claimed that this campus would be a place of exploration and discovery to create a dual experience for its student body under one institution.

also symbolize the distinct coordinate system here at the Colleges,” the statement wrote. “Just as two parts of the scissors work together, so do the separate colleges of Hobart and William Smith.”

The following fall semester, a metal replica of the scissors was made in replacement of the original wooden sculpture.

Today, student workers

Brown, then, gathers her prospective tour group towards Warren Hunting Smith Library. A pass by the scissors with a fun historical fact, but nothing of substance is explained about one of the few visible pieces of art on this campus. Instead, a brief encounter is made and the scissors, per usu al, are left alone. They are isolated in an awkward patch of dirt as a reminder of what the Colleges once were, not what they are now.

The Martini’s latest issue is a testimony against the scissors that sent the HWS student body into existential contemplation about a sculpture that sim ply stands in silence outside the library. Cusanelli’s piece is a response to the lack of care for artistry at HWS and a rebuttal to the generaliza tions made to potential stu

Photo By Abby Leyson ‘22

dents while on their tours.

So what is it about these scissors? Why have they caused such wrath on this campus now?

Cusanelli’s piece may have to take responsibility for the reignited controver sy of the scissors and what they stand for.

In “A DESPERATE RE QUEST FOR ALL BICEN TENNIAL STUDENTS”, Cusanelli writes, “[c]ulture is dying and we’ve killed her with a scissor to the heart… In the eyes of that which wields the weapon, we can see something: an institu tion’s lack of imagination. A dead expression betraying a disinterest in progres sive ideals and meaningful change…a procession of the traditional binary that is outdated…”

Cusanelli continues to point out a notorious aspect of the scissors: they did not finish the job of cutting the divide between Hobart and William Smith. Instead, they stand stuck in the pro cess of cutting the divide, yet not getting close enough to complete their job.

The piece piqued students’ interests to the point that the conversation transferred over online discussions. The popular anonymous app Yik Yak has professed “yaks” about the scissors to express the cur rent opposition towards the scissors since The Martini’s release.

One Yik Yak from a student reflected Cusanelli’s piece. Echoing the senti ment, the student asked, “Should I just go scissor the scissors now?”

As an attempt to resolve the dissatisfaction from the student body and my own disdain, I reached out on behalf of the Herald to professors in the Art and Ar chitectural Studies depart

ment—the place where the scissors were born from an innocent idea that worked in the late ’80s but does not comply with the current stu dent body’s perspectives.

Assistant Professor of Art and Architecture An gelique Szymanek was able to share her thoughts on the scissors and raised the point that as a community, we must remember what the scissors stand for as a work of art.

Professor Syzmanek shared that whenever she sees the scissors, she thinks they represent a “celebra tion of creativity”, referring to their origins of students creating art for the school to celebrate.

Upon hearing claims made in The Martini’s “A DESPERATE REQUEST”, Professor Syzmanek begged to differ in the name of sav ing art’s premises.

“It is not intended to not have a single unshakeable meaning,” said Professor Syzmanek. “We have to be open to any and all inter pretations. All good art is creating a conversation that needs to happen. So, I think it is a really important work of art because it raises con versation. It is productive. What artist wouldn’t want that?”

By considering this ac count, the scissors are doing just what they were meant to do since their creation in 1989. They represent more than what tour guides claim while showcasing our cam pus. They represent a con versation that will always be relevant for students at HWS: what do the scissors mean to us now?

Art is always up for interpretation; it is subjec tive. The Martini’s take on the scissors is one perspec tive that does not define the HWS student body’s opin

ion on the piece. Instead, it serves the purpose to begin a conversation.

Despite the defense Professor Syzmanek provid ed for the scissors’ artistic integrity, she translated a similar attitude towards the scissors with an un derstanding of how they currently do not reflect our current community’s values and offered insight into how the HWS community can work together to re-envision the scissors.

“There are lots of ways to represent collaboration,” said Professor Syzmanek. “And maybe an object that can be so readily viewed as violent is not the best repre sentation. Perhaps, we need more art around campus to represent and translate what the HWS community values.”

Professor Syzmanek posed a what-if for the HWS community to consider: What if we could reignite the scissors to be used for an interesting and progres sive conversation?

“It would be interesting for faculty, staff, all mem bers of the community to utilize [the scissors] as a sight for conversation and community,” said Profes sor Syzmanek. “Maybe we can help shift people to see them in that light more if they are engaged with it in a more nuanced way moving forward.”

The scissors stand si lently in front of the library, awaiting a student, faculty, or staff member to take advantage of its simplicity so that it can continuously be reinvented in the eyes of the HWS community. The scissors invite engagement from its people, and it is due time for someone to take the scissors and make a state ment.

Scissor them for perfor

mative art, string yarn in an array of colors across its openings to represent the diversity of HWS, place a temporary sculpture beside it. Say something, anything.

Make the scissors complaisant, controversial, a conversation. A work of art is meant to give rise to interesting conversations.

The conversation of dis dain has been made known by The Martini, and the con versation of preserving the scissor’s truth and purpose is now accomplished here, so the next conversation is unbeknownst. Let’s make anew.

Perhaps the next con versation that the scissors incite helps the scissors’ reputation. Or perhaps it expands on the words of senior Cusanelli in the hopes of eliminating or transforming the scissors to be of greater substance. The next conversation, whatever it is, will happen eventually for art is eternally subjective and open to a conversation that allows dispute.

The scissors will con tinue to stand in resilience, so we should do the same as a student body. Stand with them in the hopes that progressive conversation continues to transpire from this piece.

HWS on the Russian Invasion of Ukraine

By: Caleb Austin ‘22 Staff Writer

On Thursday, February 24, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. Russian forces bombed citiimmediately advanced on metropolitan centers throughout the north and east. The in vasion and denunciation of Ukrainian sovereignty shook the world and, in re sponse to Ukrainian diplo matic efforts, many nations around the globe rallied together to oppose Russian imperialism and support the defense of Ukraine. The outbreak of war on a scale unseen on European soil in our lifetime rattled the HWS community and forces us to confront the real possibility of global war in a way we have never seriously enter tained.

In order to understand where HWS stands on the war, the Herald spoke with Professor David Ost, the Center for Global Educa tion, and President Jacob sen.

The Herald spoke with Professor of Political Sci ence David Ost to give con text to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and to help us understand how this affects the HWS community. Ost wanted the Herald readers to know:

“It’s been a brutal invasion that the Russians probably didn’t think had to be so brutal because they seem to be operating under somewhat false assumptions that there would be a lot of people who would join with them. They don’t seem to recognize that things have changed since 2014, and things have changed over 30 years.

As part of the

Soviet Union, those borders did not mean much for decades, but then suddenly, those borders came to mean everything. In 1991 they might have been able to get some territorial change. But 30 years later; first, you have most people, like in al most every society, most of the population is under 40 and that means they were never cognizant of being part of the Soviet Union,

will it affect HWS and the local community here, if at all?”

Professor Ost respond ed, “Look, it’s already affecting people; everyone is talking about it, and I am sure plenty of HWS students have heard that people are talking about the possible use of nuclear weapons as a real thing, and that, even in my lifetime… I was seven years old during the Cuban

hasn’t been talked about much. Ukraine and Russia are big grain producers and exporters. America is a giant grain producer, so it is not a big crisis. But in African countries and Asia where they are dependent, they are talking about skyrocketing prices and shortages, and hunger resulting from that, and all those things rebound on the international com munity and international politics. There is also obviously the impact on gas prices.”

He added, “I think it is still possible for people at the HWS community to just block it out as some thing happening over there, but I am sure there are people who are contemplating this as something that is more serious than other things – people are talking about some serious stuff.

they were only cognizant of being part of independent Ukraine and that matters. Then those who had sup ported Russia, especially after 2014, moved away from that. The nature of the brutality of the invasion has driven away people who otherwise were sympathetic to Russia, and now they just can’t believe the brutality they are being subjected to by Russia. Millions have left where they are, and it’s going to be hard, it’s going to slog on for a while.”

The Herald asked, “How

missile crisis and so I don’t know anything. In my adult life, I never thought that was a real possibility, and now Russia-NATO clashes are somewhat possible. Peo ple are worried, everyone was worried about COVID, and now there is more wor ry connected to this.”

Ost continued, “One of the big impacts is going to be on food prices. That affects America less than the rest of the world, but students, international students, may be affected, and that is something that

Ost elaborated, “Even Zelenskyy is talking about things like a no-fly zone, and the US government is saying we don’t want it because that will put us at war with Russia. And so those are important issues and right now, it is not so direct, but it can be.”

Speaking on how the Colleges will react, Ost said: “The provost has written me saying that she and the president would be interest ed in exploring and bringing a displaced scholar from Ukraine to HWS. I was very impressed and glad to see that they thought of that. It was like, we’re a university, what can a university do?”

Ost clarified that, “We can provide for some schol ars because there of course

have been some people who had to leave, and it is hard to maintain themselves as scholars when they are in exile. Maybe you don’t know the language, some of them may know English, but still what usually happens for people who are well trained and become emigres is that they take low-level work.”

Ost believed that the ini tial seminar was important. He told the Herald, “I would like the administration to support continuing talking about it because that is al ways an issue. Everyone has busy lives and there are new crises, and you want to keep attention focused on that, so that is what it can do as a college, and I am pleased to see some of that is starting.”

Professor Ost men tioned how HWS is con sidering acting as a refuge for an exiled scholar. To understand other actions being taken, the Herald spoke with Dean of Global Education Tom D’Agostino.

Study abroad programs in Russia already relocated to Ukraine in consulta tion with the Russian Area Studies Department, and these programs have since relocated to Latvia consider ing the recent invasion.

On this, D’Agostino said: “The Russian Area Studies Program decided conditions in Russia were not exactly what they would have wanted, and so we decided together to move the program. Conditions in Russia in terms of freedoms and safety and security got a little bit concerning, so we proposed a new program location and got it approved by the committee on aca demic affairs in Kyiv.”

He continued, “Once the impending invasion appeared likely, we then did a shift and proposed a new program in a city in Latvia

and that is where we’ll be sending Russian language students going forward. What’s been happening there even before the in vasion has had an impact on our programming and obviously, with the invasion, no one is going anywhere in those countries right now.”

President Jacobsen was also able to clarify the position of the Colleges and their prerogatives moving forward. She told the Her ald, “Part of the idea that we would all jointly grant Zel enskyy a degree in absentia, as an honor, and that would help raise awareness and show solidarity.”

Jacobsen then spoke about the students them selves. She stated, “We have our students– we have two Ukrainian students, a Russian student, and the Russian FLTA. We’ve been in close contact to make sure they feel supported, and if there are financial issues, we’ll deal with that too. We’ve also had several Ukrainians apply to come in and we’re offering scholar ships to a couple of those students. Those students have been writing us to in quire about the possibility of funding because they don’t have access to funds.”

President Jacobsen as serted other administrative considerations.

“I have also asked Pro vost Kirk, and she’s been working with Professor Ost. There’s a consortium out of New School that tries to help displaced scholars, so I’ve asked them to see if we can join that and if there’s somebody who would make sense coming here for a while.” She continued, “There’s also a movement at Columbia to allow in more students who are displaced in general who might be living in refugee camps, so

I’ve asked John and the Pro vost to think about if that is something we can be doing more of as well.”

President Jacobsen clarified the circumstanc es surrounding granting refuge. She told the Herald, “If we join this consortium, we would be in it, so if there are issues in other countries or other situations and a scholar that comes along would be appropriate, we could do that.”

However, this does not come without challenge, Jacobsen asserted. “Some times it’s hard because a lot of people will be in disciplines that we don’t necessarily have. I looked at the list of scholars they had right now, through schol ars at risk, they didn’t have Ukrainians, and most fields we don’t really cover here. So, it does have to be a situ ation where it makes sense to have them and would be useful for them to be here. I think for students it’s clear er. These students applied to us, so they were already interested and now we are going to help them.”

The Herald wanted to know if any more talks would be available for the community. President Ja cobsen responded, “I think both Professor Ost and John Sipher were good at answer ing” the initial questions at the first talk. As for the fu ture, she stated, “I feel there have been enough other things out at this point. We got in early, at this point we don’t have other plans, but if things change, we might plan to do more.”

The Colleges are affect ed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the Colleges are responding. Between President Jacobsen and Dean D’Agostino, we see HWS is doing what it can to secure global partnerships

while securing the safety of all study abroad students. Outside of the symbolic effort of giving Zelenskyy an honorary degree, the Colleges are trying to ensure the safety, comfort, and needs of the students we are hosting, and are also inter ested in easing the ability of displaced students to come here and study, as well as grant refuge to a scholar in need.

The Colleges are look ing to join a consortium that would allow HWS to receive displaced scholars so long as they’re a good fit for our academic system. What comes next depends on whether HWS joins a consortium and works with other colleges to host dis placed scholars and whether HWS plans on continuing to aid displaced students.

Letter From the Editor

Dear