The Miscellany News
BIRT releases bias incident records Bethan Johnson
Contributing Editor
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ccording to the Bias Incident Response Team (BIRT), amidst the tensions regarding racial profiling, sexual violence and gender and sexual discrimination that inspired open forums and protests, last semester a total of ten bias incidents and significantly more micro-aggressions occurred on campus. In a campus-wide email disseminated on Feb. 5, BIRT Coordinator and Associate Dean of
Volume CXLVII | Issue 13
February 12, 2015
Since 1866 | miscellanynews.org
the College for Campus Life and Diversity Dean Pittman the team had determined that four bias incidents occurred between November and the end of the fall semester. While officials state that this figure has not notably increased as compared to previous years and have attempted to recognize the growing impact of micro-aggressions on the student body by including them in the report for the first time, some within student See BIRT on page 4
Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY
Students leave school for success Erik Halberg
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Reporter
or most college students, trudging through four years of classes to get their degree is their ticket to getting a good job and starting a career. But Casey Hancock ’15 and Shannon Liao ’17 have both found opportunities to jumpstart their careers earlier than most. Hancock, a computer science major, left Vassar at the beginning of this semester, which would have been the second semester of his senior year, to
go to New York City and work fulltime growing a start-up company named vcemo. which he started with other Vassar students. Vcemo as a company is devoted to the development of virtual reality streaming as a form of entertainment. Hancock and his fellow Vassar coworkers have been creating a platform from which users can upload and stream videos that can be viewed on a virtual reality headset—such as the headline-making Oculus Rift—in full 360-degree detail.
Hancock’s decision to take time off from school came after the successful conclusion of a Kickstarter campaign for vcemo, as well as the company receiving its first primary investor. “I left mostly to get our name out there,” said Hancock. “The decision to go to New York City hinged on that we already have money coming in.” Right now, Hancock is focusing on hiring developers and building relationships with other tech start-ups in the city. See CAREERS on page 7
A last shot at love with Cupid’s SWAPR Julia Cunningham
Assistant Features Editor
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courtesy of Cathy Grier
or those singles on Valentine’s Day, there is still hope. The spirit of Valentine’s Day is not limited to loving your friends, family and significant others; loving the environment is equally valid. In honor of this, next Saturday, Feb. 14, the College Committee on Sustainability is hosting Cupid’s Flea Market in the Villard Room from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. While the flea market is hosted
on campus, it is by no means limited to student vendors. Local Foods Intern and member of the College Committee on Sustainability, Kayla Abe ’15, wrote in an emailed statement, “Campus orgs, individuals and off-campus thrift stores have signed up to reserve booths at the event, though everyone who attends is welcome to buy, sell, trade or donate!” Sustainability Intern on the College Committee on Sustainability, Evan Kamber ’15, added in emailed See SWAPR on page 6
Shannon Liao ’17 left Vassar after completing her freshman year in order to take a job at an independent newspaper. She fits into a larger trend of students who leave school before graduating to pursue professional opportunities.
VC screens ‘Dear White People’ Swim team makes a splash at states F Emma Rosenthal Arts Editor
eb. 12 and 13 will mark an exciting time for more than one organization on campus. The VSA, the Office of the President, the Senior Class, the Multiracial/ Biracial Student Alliance (MBSA), the Council of Black Seniors and ViCE Film are coming together to present a two-day screening and discussion of the film “Dear White People.” Senior Class President Zoe Fullerton ’15 wrote in an emailed
statement about her involvement in the organization of this event: “I saw a trailer for the movie and really wanted to bring it to Vassar. We reached out to a couple of producers and tried, however, it wasn’t until MBSA and ViCE Film got involved and mentioned they were doing the same thing that the plan really came to fruition.” She continued, “This event represents a collaboration... which is something not commonly seen on Vassar’s campus.” On the event itself, Fullerton
noted the times and places where the screening and post-film discussions will take place, “There will be two screenings of the movie, one on the 12th of Feb. and one on the 13th...The one on the 13th will be held in the Shiva and lunch will be provided, along with a discussion in the ALANA center.” As a ViCE Executive Board member, ViCE Film representative and a film major with a Hispanic Studies correlate, Sierra Garcia ’15 was involved with planning the See FILM on page 16
courtesy of The Huffington Post
‘Dear White People’ a satirical film by director Justin Simien focusses on issues of race and representation on college campuses. The screening, hosted by several offices and administrators, is an effort to foster dialogue on race at Vassar.
Inside this issue
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Families share VC memories FEATURES over generations
14 ARTS
Paul Bellino makes Skinner debut in faculty recital
Erik Quinson
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Assistant Editor
he men’s and women’s swim and dive team are headed to the Upper New York State Collegiate Swimming Association Championship, or, simply, states. The Brewers will be competing against their usual Liberty League rivals, with the addition of the eight Empire Schools. Steven Institute of Technology and Ithaca College are both Empire schools and consistently rank first and second at states. “Vassar tends to be in the middle of the pack but definitely pointed toward the upper end,” said Coach Prater-Lee. The competition works differently from in-season meets. Each race has heats in the morning to qualify the final 24 swimmers. Qualifications are based on time, but the difference is that if a swimmer gets the ninth-best time in the morning, no matter how well they do in the evening, they can only get ninth place. This is a tactic to discourage a really good swimmer from holding back in the morning to conserve energy so they can then swim even faster in the evening. The addition of the Empire schools to this competition adds a certain degree of unpredictability in regards to what the Brewers will be facing. “We’re a little more familiar with our LL opponents, and we’re familiar with where we are in relation to them but you throw in anoth-
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er eight schools and it gets a little murky,” said Coach Prater-Lee. It’s only slightly murky, however, because on Monday, a sheet was posted that has every swimmer from each school’s times and events. This allows for a certain amount of planning and strategizing from the coaches, who can shuffle their swimmers around to hopefully maximize their team’s chance of success. The number of events that swimmers will compete in varies greatly. Some will be swimming in 14, while others will be in three. The former will be those swimming in both individual and relay events. With such a big event coming up, the team has started “tapering,” which means they’re doing fewer yards and working more on technique in training. “What they’re doing now is building their races, through their skills. Which in some ways means less work because they’re getting more rest, but the level of expectation is higher as far as what they’re able to do,” said Prater-Lee. Senior and captain Charles Herrmann wrote in an emailed statement, “Our last two weeks before states sees us back off on the amount of yardage we do so we can recover, while still having very intense practices. This gets us into amazing shape, so although a lot of us are tired, we are swimming very fast and See SWIMMING on page 19
Student-athletes experience hardship SPORTS of consistent travel