The Miscellany News, Volume CXLVI, Special Issue (May 26, 2013)

The Miscellany News Since 1866 | miscellanynews.com

May 26, 2013

Volume CXLVI | Special Issue

Vassar Chenette greets new alumnae/i praised for Pell grants Ben Hoffman

Brewers finish strong Meaghan Hughes

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guest reporter

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Courtesy of the Office of the President

he New America Foundation, a Washington policy institute, recognized Vassar as particularly generous to low-income students in a report released this month. The report, titled “Undermining Pell: How Colleges Compete for Wealthy Students and Leave the Low-income Behind,” presents information kept and collected by the Department of Education about the price college and university students across the country can expect to pay for tuition (New America Foundation, 5.08.2013).

The report, written by analyst Stephen Burd, found that many colleges charged low-income students annual tuition at least as great as their family’s annual income. Certain institutions, however, including Vassar, had taken concrete steps to make education more affordable for all students regardless of their economic background.

The reason behind the lack of support for those students who are economically underprivileged is a significant shift from need-based to merit-based aid and scholarships.

The report’s figures show a dramatic transition in the span of less than twenty years.

See FINANCIAL AID on page 4

President of the Class of 2013 Vince Marchetta receives the reunion banner from a fellow Vassar graduate as Acting President Jon Chenette looks on. This moment signifies the students’ transition from seniors to Vassar alumnae/i.

Noble Ingram neWs eDitor

with additional reporting by

Emily Hoffman

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reporter

his spring’s Convocation took place on Wednesday, May 1 in the Vassar Chapel. Acting President Jon Chenette welcomed the crowd to the event. In his opening speech, Chenette reflected on a particular theme that he linked to this school year. He explained his theme as “putting yourself in another’s place.” Focusing on the

ways in which this theme related to Vassar’s commitment to diversity and inclusivity, Chenette brought up several events that took place on campus this year with special emphasis on the counter-protest of the Westboro Baptist Church in February.

In speaking to the events with Westboro Baptist Church, Chenette reminded the audience of the process through which his theme is realized. “‘Learning to’ put yourself in another’s place’ is a lifelong

Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY

process, not an event, and certainly not one we perfected on February 28th. But our collective response that day provided signs pointing us in the right direction.”

Chenette also mentioned the incidences of racist, homophobic, and misogynistic graffiti that have affected the Vassar Community this year. While these events are saddening, he said, the unified and determined response was hopeful and typified by the conviction that See CONVOCATION on page 4

sports eDitor

he end of this school year has seen a strong finish for many Vassar sports teams. From NCAA finals to League recognition of coaches to senior awards, there have been many surprising finishes at end of the 2013 season.

After defeating Skidmore to win the Liberty League Championships, Men’s tennis played Marywood University for the first round of NCAA finals. The match got off to a quick start, with all three doubles teams blanking their opponents to give the Brewers a 3-0 lead. Senior tri-captain Dan Freeman won his singles match with a perfect 6-0, and freshman Christian Phelps’ win gave Vassar the final winning score 5-0. The win provided the team with their second consecutive advancement to the pool of 32 NCAA Division III finals.

The next day the team faced ninth-ranked Johns Hopkins University in the hopes of continuing to advance in the NCAA tournament. However only senior tri-captain Andrew Guzick and freshman Daniel Cooper in the number one doubles position were able to put points on the board, as Vassar fell 5-1 to their opponents.

See SPORTS on page 6

Steve Martin to act in Multi-programs prep for move Powerhouse Theatre Powerhouse summer apprenticeship program teaches VC, high school students stagecraft Mariah Vitali

guest reporter

his summer, The Powerhouse Theater will welcome Steve Martin back to campus along with an eclectic mix of actors, directors, writers and musicians for six weeks of plays, readings and musicals. An annual collaboration between Vassar College and New York Stage and Film, the Powerhouse Theater is about to enter its 29th season.

The program this year will include Martin working with Edie Brikell on their production of “Bright Star”—a musical set in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Based on an original story by Martin and Brickell, the production also features 11 songs from their new bluegrass album “Love Has Come for You.” Many of the summer’s productions are set in New York City.

“Downtown Race Riot,” written by Seth Zvi Rosenfeld of HBO’s How to Make it in America and directed

by Scott Elliott tells the tale of an 18 year-old Pnut McPartland and his life in the city’s gang scene. On a different note, Director Michael Mayer

Inside this issue

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ARTS

A look into the Powerhouse Theater program.

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HUMOR

Courtesy of Spencer Davis

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will return to the Powerhouse to develop a new musical inspired by The Brooklyn Hero Supply Company about one Brooklynite who fantasizes about becoming a super hero and another who wishes to escape both her life as a superhero and her father’s heroic legacy. Along with these two shows, the Powerhouse will feature even more productions that are both finished and in progress as well as a series of readings at the Susan Stein Shiva Theater.

The Readings Festival will include Tony Award winner Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “The Hamilton Mixtape.”

The Powerhouse provides a supportive space for performers, writers and directors; they are able to present their work in a productive environment before going in front of national reviewers. This allows shows develop in a unique way on Vassar’s campus.

Producing Director of the Powerhouse Theater, Ed Cheetham, is especially excited about this summer’s program. This is Cheetham’s 17th year with the Powerhouse and he is See POWERHOUSE on page 2

Students and professors pose in front of New England Building, the home of Vassar’s multi-disciplinary programs for the last 30 years. The multi-disciplinary programs, which include Women’s Studies and Latin American and Latino/a Studies, will be relocating to the Old Laundry Building this fall as New England undergoes renovations.

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or the multidisciplinary programs, it’s all about space.

New England Building has been home to many of Vassar’s multidisciplinary programs for almost 30 years, but that will all come to an end this fall when construction will force them to make the move to the Old Laundry Building (OLB).

Some, such as the Women’s Studies program, have been housed in New England Building since their inception, while others, including Latin American and Latino/a Studies, made

A humorous take on the rest of your life,

by Ms. Doyle.

New England their home far more recently.

“Even though we don’t know the exact dates, there has been a steady drive toward integration and consolidation and getting all the [multidisciplinary programs] under one roof,” said Associate Professor of English and Director of Women’s Studies Leslie Dunn.

According to some of the directors of the multidisciplinary programs, housing all of them in one location has been particularly beneficial to students and faculty, and New England has served this purpose well.

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According to Leslie Offutt, Associate Professor of History and Director of Latin American and Latino/a Studies, the common spaces of New England serve an important purpose in allowing students and faculty to mingle and coexist.

She said, “Proximity matters and the respect and affection and appreciation that comes out of that proximity is what better allows us to advise our students.”

In stark contrast with common space rich New England, the new home of the multidisciplinary proSee NEW ENGLAND on page 4

Seniors reflect on their VC careers.

2009 -2013

The Miscellany News

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May 26, 2013

Professors offer historical tours of campus Noble Ingram neWs eDitor

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n May 11, the first of three free historic walking tours took place on Vassar campus, highlighting the college’s history through its buildings. The first tour was led by Dean Emeritus of the College and Professor Emeritus of English, Colton Johnson. The following two tours, which will take place regardless of the weather, will be led by Professor of Chemistry Chris Smart ’83 on June 15, and Professor of Psychology Randy Cornelius on June 23.

According to Professor Cornelius, the idea for historic tours of the campus originated with Vassar faculty members. As Cornelius recalled, “As far as I know the idea came from Colton Johnson, longtime Dean of the College and Professor of English. His tours are wonderfully informative.”

Cornelius continued, “While Colton came up with the idea, the talks are now supported

by College Relation, in particular, the indefatigable Jeff Kosmacher (Director of Media Relations and Public Affairs at Vassar).”

Starting at Main Gate, the tours examine Vassar’s diverse array of architecture on campus and the ways in which Vassar’s buildings are reflective of larger historical themes. As one example, the tours will cover Main Building, which was, at its construction in 1865, the largest building in the United States. Its design was inspired by the Tuileries Gardens in Paris, France.

Each historic tour centers on the interests of the guide and thus each has its own focuses. One of the focuses of Cornelius’ tour is Main Building. Cornelius explained, “When I do a tour either alone or with Chris Smart, we start at the statue of Matthew Vassar in front of Main, talk a little about this family, his story, the significance of his niece Lydia Booth and Milo Jewett, and so on.”

He continued, “I then talk about how Vassar came up with the idea for Main Building, the architects Thomas Teft, and James Ren-

wick, the similarities between the Tuileries Palace, the Smithsonian Castle, and Main.”

Another building of note on the tour is the Judith Loeb Chiara ’49 Center at the Maria Mitchell Observatory. Along with Main Building, the Maria Mitchell Observatory is a National Historical Monuments. The observatory was built in 1864 for the preeminent astronomer Maria Mitchell, the first faculty member Vassar hired.

As Cornelius explains, much like student tour guides to prospective students, the historic tour guides try to include both historical information about Vassar’s buildings and campus as well as personal anecdotes. The Professor of Psychology noted, “What each of us tries to do is blend in a bit of all of these things along with little stories about our own relationship with the College that serve as tie-ins to give the stories the kind of personal relevance to which people relate.”

Main Building also serves a prime example of his unification of the formal historical information and personal narrative. “I add a little bit of the personal by describing the way the catwalks on the roof of Main used to be filled with students sunning themselves on nice days when I arrived here in the early 80’s,” Cornelius observed. “From there we head to the Library where I tell similar kinds of stories.”

A focal point of all historic tours of Vassar’s campus is the famous Frederick Ferris Thompson Memorial Library. The library is consistently named one of the world’s most beautiful libraries; this year, Travel + Leisure ranked the library as the fifteenth most beautiful collegiate library in America.

When it was originally opened in 1865 the Vassar library was a one-room building that held a collection of merely three thousand works. The library’s name is derived from a major early benefactor of the library, . Vassar Trustee Frederick Ferris Thompson.

Today the library is considered by many to

Courtesy of Mark Jackson

The Frederick Ferris Thompson Memorial Library is ranked among the most beautiful collegiate libraries in the world. The Thompson Memorial Library is one of the main stops in Vassar’s historical tours.

be a prime example of collegiate Gothic architecture. Its massive stained glass window depicts the first woman to receive a doctorate, Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia, defending her dissertation in philosophy in front of the scholars in Padua in 1678.

Also explored in depth in the historic tours is the Francis Lehman Loeb Art Center. In constructing the Lehman Loeb Art Center, Vassar College was the first college in the United States to be founded with a full-scale museum as part of its original plan. Even today, the Lehman Loeb Center is one of the largest college art museums in the United States, with a collection of over 18,000 works.

In addition to Vassar’s architectural treasures, the tours will also showcase Vassar’s diverse ecological reserves. According to the Vassar website, “The Vassar campus is a designated arboretum home to more than 200 varieties of trees and thousands of trees all told, along with a vast array of flora.”

Vassar’s campus also features the Vassar Farm and Ecological Preserve which was established in 1957. The Vassar Farm was converted from a functional farm that supplied the campus dining halls to an ecological preserve for scientific research.

Athletic teams have also utilized the Vassar Farm. Men’s and women’s rugby and cross country teams also practice and compete on fields; moreover, the Ultimate Frisbee team has held tournaments on a few of the fields.

Although these are a few stables of the historic tours at Vassar, the tours are also designed around the interest of participating individuals. Because of their timing and the nature of the tour, the sizes of the tour groups range widely. The first tour took place during the school year and allowed Vassar students who weren’t spending the summer on campus to enjoy the historical discussion by Johnson.

Although the academic year has ended, tour guides anticipate a change in participants, not necessariliy the size of groups. The professors hope that their tours will attract members of the Poughkeepsie community, potential applicants, students working on campus over the summer, and visiting families.

As Cornelius points out, “I’ve led groups, again sometimes with Chris Smart, sometimes alone, of anywhere from 3 people to 30.”

He continues, emphasizing the way in which the tours tend to attract people outside of the Vassar student body. “Many times the groups will include people who are Vassar employees who want to know more about the College.”

Cornelius goes further, explaining how he came to be involved in the tour process while also expressing optimism for the continuation of the program at Vassar. “As far as I know Colton Johnson has been doing these for years. Chris and I got ‘initiated’ into being tour guides (more historical than architectural) so that the program could go on. I love doing them and intend to continue.”

Interested individuals can contact Damara Ohlhoff in the Office of Communications via email at daohlhof@vassar.edu or by telephone at (845) 437-7400 to sign up for a historic walking tour of Vassar’s campus.

VC summer theater to perform Shakespeare POWERHOUSE continued from page 1

looking forward to both working with returning contributors including Martin and Mayer and also the changes that will be made to the program this summer. Cheetham has always valued the Powerhouse’s apprentice program.

This program brings high school and college students—including four from Vassar this summer—from all over the country to work alongside the professionals. “I’m excited that we have four Vassar students. I think it’s a great complement to what happens here in the academic year because it’s a really rigorous program and all you’re doing is just theater,” said Cheetham.

He further explained, “You’re not writing a paper or writing exams. You’re just thrown in and doing this, and you’re surrounded by just the spectrum of what the business is, what a career is, what the art form is, what the opportunities are.”

In his seventeen years with Powerhouse, Cheetham has witnessed many changes to

the program. A major transformation this summer will be the venue change of the apprentice program performances. Historically performed on Commencement Hill, this year the Performance of the Classics will take place on the Vassar Farm and Ecological Preserve.

Cheetham said, “Because of the construction on the hill, we’re moving [the classics performances] out to the farm in the courtyard. I’m excited about that—I think it’s a cool space architecturally.”

He continued, “It’s a clearly defined space, and we may be losing that vista we have on the amphitheater, but it will make the directors coming back who have all directed outside of the amp work with something different, they’ll have a whole different way of approaching it.”

This year, the apprentice program classics will be performed from July 5th to 22nd and will include Aeschylus’ “Agamemon” and William Shakespeare’s “As You Like It.” The last performance will be of Federico Garcia Lorca’s

“Blood Wedding,” directed by Emily Mendelsohn. Mendelsohn first became involved with the Powerhouse through a workshop in 2001; she has since earned a degree at Cal Arts and a Fulbright Fellowship that took her to Uganda to direct a performance about international aid in developing countries. “I’ve watched her grow into this extraordinary director and theater artist. The work she does around the world and kinds of questions she asks are fascinating,” said Cheetham.

Cheetham guarantees that this summer at the Powerhouse will include productions to appeal to a wide range of interests.

He said, “It’s a huge part of what makes Vassar accessible to the community, especially in the summer. It keeps the gate open.” The season runs from June 21st to July 28th and subscriptions are currently available online.

Single ticket sales begin on June 5th.

For more information and the latest news updates, visit http://powerhouse.vassar.edu/.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Editor-in-Chief Bethan Johnson

Senior Editors Chris Gonzalez Steven Williams

Contributing Editors Adam Buchsbaum

News Noble Ingram Features Aja Saalfeld Opinions Angela Della Croce Joshua Sherman Humor & Satire Lily Doyle Arts Jack Owen Sports Christopher Brown Photography Cassady Bergevin Spencer Davis Design Palak Patel Online Alessandra Seiter Copy Farah Aziz Business Manager Assistant Features Assistant Sports Assistant Photo Assistant Online Crossword Editor Reporters

Columnists

Photography Design Online Copy

David Rosenkranz Eloy Bleifuss-Prados Luka Laden Jacob Heydorn Gorski Jiajing Sun Youngeun “Ellis” Kim Victoria Bachurska Jack Mullan Amreen Bhasin Charlacia Dent Anna Iovine Margaret Yap Zach Rippe Max Rook Juan Thompson Eli J. Vargas I Jonah Bleckner Emily Lavieri-Scull Bethany Terry Rachel Dorn Sophia GonsalvesBrown Jacob ParkerBurgard

EDITOR’S NOTE The Miscellany News would like to congratulate the Class of 2013 at the time of their graduation on their extracurricular and academic accomplishments and contributions to the College.

LETTERS POLICY The Miscellany News is Vassar College’s weekly open forum for discussion of campus, local and national issues, and welcomes letters and opinions submissions from all readers. Letters to the Editor should not exceed 450 words, and they usually respond to a particular item or debate from the previous week’s issue.

Opinions articles are longer pieces, up to 800 words, and take the form of a longer column. No letter or opinions article may be printed anonymously. If you are interested in contributing, e-mail misc@vassar.edu.

May 26 , 2013

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Exhibit focuses on the historical value of bridal wear Jack Owen arts eDitor

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Courtesy of Arden Kirkland

edding dresses: there are entire television series dedicated to finding the right one.

The wedding gown has been seen as the ultimate statement in self-expression and status. Brides and grooms spend countless hours stressing over what to wear on their big day. But what are the greater implications of wedding wear on society, and how has it changed over the years? These are questions that the Vassar Costume Shop has been working diligently to uncover through its current exhibition, For Better and For Worse: Sixteen Decades of Wedding Wear at Vassar.

“We’re hoping that the outfits, photos, and stories on display will encourage our audience to think about not just the wedding, but also the marriage that follows, and all the complexity there-in - hence our title, For Better and For Worse,” said Costumer Arden Kirkland ’93.

The exhibition, comprised of sixteen pieces, covers approximately one hundred and sixty years of wedding wear, including garments from 1854 up to the present day. Every piece is related to the Vassar community, many worn by alumnae/i, professors and faculty.

Spearheaded by retired Vassar Costumer Holly Hummel, the Costume Shop has been organizing and preserving historic pieces since 1981. Kirkland, who worked under Hummel as a student, has carried on her legacy by establishing an organized system for the period pieces, preserving them in acid-free tissues and boxes.

“Alums and people in the community will clean out their attics and say— oh hey, they can use this as a costume,” Kirkland explained. “The historic pieces are often too small or too fragile, and if you tried to put them on a body and move around they would just fall apart. They’re not very valuable to wear, but they are very valuable for research.”

And as the Costume Shop worked to set up the exhibition, they found the pieces to be informative. Aside from collecting the garments, re-

The Palmer Gallery will display sixteen pieces of wedding dresses in an exhibit titled ‘For Better and For Worse: Sixteen Decades of Wedding Wear at Vassar’ for select days in May and June. pairing them, and filling out mannequins to display them on, they have worked to gain as much knowledge of the pieces’ actual backgrounds, inquiring donors about their wedding days and marriages.

“We try to make sure this is very student run, as well,” explained Assistant Professor of Costume Design Kenisha Kelly. “It gives them an opportunity to really get their hands in and learn more about doing oral histories, the garments themselves and doing restorations.”

“The really important part of this is having the students work with the objects and learn these stories,” added Kirkland. “Every once in a while someone will talk about how something they’re studying in the collection relates to a class.

These objects are another kind of document;

they also have a story to tell.”

The exhibition, along with the actual garments, includes plaques that describe the stories of the objects and photographs. In turn, the Costume Shop has reached out to alumnae/i whose gowns are not in the exhibition to send photographs and stories of their weddings that are on display.

Emily Goddard ’15, a Costume Shop student, conducted oral histories with the donors to record details about their dresses, weddings and marriages to tie the garments to their historical context and. Highlights from the audios of the oral histories are also featured in the exhibition.

“What’s been the most interesting part is listening to all the interviews and seeing how they play off of one another,” said Goddard. “Even

though all the interviewees were telling me about their weddings and marriages, they all had incredibly varied experiences and perspectives.”

Each item has its own story to tell, and, as Kirkland iterated, many of the anecdotes are surprising. “We received three photos from a woman, president of her class, who graduated in the morning, and then got married in the chapel in the afternoon. Same day. So really just knocking it all out in one shot,” Kirkland explained. “So there are some really fun stories, and I think it’s very interesting for us and for our students to see these different stories, to see how times have changed and, in many ways, haven’t changed.”

Jessie Tucker, daughter of Associate Professor of Drama Shona Tucker shared her wedding outfit with the exhibition. Tucker got married during her lunch hour, a practical decision made because her fiancée was working for the railroad, and the two wanted to marry before he went on the road again.

“The best time to do it was this particular day on her lunch break,” said Kirkland. “And then she went back to work, and he went to see a movie. She is far from the only one who has a story like that, of that practical choice— the timing was right to get married and forget worrying about the dress,” she added.

The exhibition also includes four dresses from the same family, all donated in 2007. The dresses represent three generations from four alumni.

Mary Lee Hartzell ’53 donated her 1954 gown.

Hartzell then donated her mother’s 1920 wedding dress, and her sister Ellen Phillips Baumann ’63 donated hers to the collection, and Hartzell’s daughter lent her gown as well.

“We have this one family with very different dresses,” Kirkland explained. “It’s fascinating to see how different the choices are, even just within the same family.”

The exhibition is on display in the Palmer Gallery through June 9: May 26, 12-3p.m., May 30June 1, 1-4p.m., June 6-8, 11-4p.m., June 9, 11-2p.m. and by appointment.

Writing professor receives Guggenheim Fellowship Chris Gonzalez senior eDitor

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to my writing to teach Faulkner, or Melville, or Chekhov, and to sit in front of a class and discuss the great work.”

Means plans on using his time off from the College to dig into several current fiction projects he already has in the works.

“I’ve been writing a longer narrative—I guess you could call it a novel—for a few years now. It’s a strange piece of work, and my inclination is to write short stories, so I’m hoping that the open space and time will allow me to go back in and to finish it. In addition, I’ve been writing a sequence of stories—one is coming out in Harper’s this fall, another in Vice. I’ve got a few more of those drafted, and I hope to go back and do the hard work of revision,” he wrote.

Though Means will use some of the next year to work on a longer narrative piece, his main body of work is comprised of shorter works of fiction.

His four books—A Quick Kiss of Redemption, Assorted Fire Events, The Secret Goldfish and The Spot—have all be collections of short stories.

Means observed, “I love the short story form.

You can hold an entire story in your head, work it over, turn it around and examine the various facets. I’ve felt safety in the short story form because I can go into the process of writing and get out safely. You take a great risk, and if it doesn’t work, you’ve only wasted a few months.”

He also noted, “With a novel you swim far from shore--out of sight--and the possibility of getting lost, at least for me, seems immense. To write a longer narrative takes days and days of solitude.”

Means, a native of Kalamazoo, Michigan, said his initial interest in writing and love for reading came about during a time when he spent a lot of time with himself and his own thoughts due to issues going on within his family.

Means stated, “I liked being alone, and I liked daydreaming, and I liked being a voyeur, poking around, listening to adults, taking in the landscape. I lived half a mile from a rail yard, and I used to go down there with my best friend and goof around and watch the workers eat their lunches, sitting on the sills of the paper factory. I had an awareness—from an early age—of taking part in an ongoing narrative, a story, and of listen-

Courtesy of Rob Penner

very year over 3,500 people apply for one of the prestigious John Simon Guggenheim Fellowships, which provide funds for professionals that assist with their research or creative endeavors. Approximately 200 individuals are awarded a fellowship, making it a competitive process for applicants. This year Vassar’s own Visiting Associate Professor of English and author David Means has been awarded one of the limited number of fellowships.

At this point in his career, Means has stacked up several accolades: He has won two O. Henry Prizes and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, in which he beat out both Philip Roth and Michael Chabon. Additionally, his work has been translated into ten foreign languages, and three of his works are to come out in China in the near future.

The Guggenheim Fellowship, then, is only his most recent achievement.

Means applied for the Fellowship once before; he waited seven years to apply again. The application process requires applicants to submit a history of past publications, a two-page project summary and a total of four recommendations from peers. The Guggenheim Fellowship provides recipients with grants from six months to an entire year, giving them the time necessary to devote to their work.

“The Guggenheim came at exactly the right time in my life. I’ve published four books, and about fifty stories, and was at a point—with a lot of creative energy stored up, waiting to be released—when a year off, with a steady income, was in urgent need,” Means wrote in an emailed statement.

Though Means needs the time off to focus on his own creative work, he explained that teaching and engaging with students helps his own writing in some ways, both because of their own artistic pulses and the literature discussed in classes.

Means explained, “It’s a juggling act, teaching and writing. The great thing about Vassar is that I’m exposed constantly to students who simply want to try writing, to test the waters, to begin to explore their inclinations, and because of that they provide a pure type of artistic energy.”

He continued, “It’s also terrifically helpful

Visiting Associate Professor of English David Means has been awarded the prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship. The fellowship will allow Means the time and funding to write his first novel and other fiction. ing to myself tell myself stories, partly as a way to escape what was a painful family situation.”

Of his memories about reading, he said, “And of course I read all the time, and when I was really young, my grandmother used to read me poetry. I can still feel that memory: the sing-song sound of the words and the delight they gave me.”

While many believe there to be a huge difference between the world of fiction and that reality, Means explained that in many ways both go handin-hand. Fiction works because of its connections and ties to the real world.

He wrote, “A good story deepens the mystery of life, thickens it while, paradoxically, seems to cast a light on existence. In other words, you might be surprised at something that happens in a story, but you’re partly surprised because you recognize something truthful in what has transpired, or in the language itself.”

Means finds that his life, particularly the people he knows and has known, influences the themes

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

he wants to write about.

Means explained, “Writing isn’t a form of escape. As a matter of fact, it’s exactly the opposite.

You’re trying to engage as deeply as you can. I’m interested in souls on the edge, submerged, lost in the margins, partly because a few people I’ve known and loved have found themselves isolated and pushed out of the mainstream, or maybe I should say the normal stream of life. There’s a fine line between fiction and non-fiction, and I’d be glad to cross that line sometime if it served the material.”

Means, who started out writing poetry as an undergrad, stated that during these years he came to the conclusion that he wanted to write for a living when he realized how much he enjoyed working on the craft.

“When you find your vocation, when you find the thing you really like to do, time changes shape and you suddenly realize the pleasure of hard work that you love,” Means stated.

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May 26 , 2013

Profs. reflect Pike-Tay advises seniors through anecdotes on space, history CONVOCATION continued from page 1

NEW ENGLAND continued from page 1

grams, the Old Laundry Building, has no such accommodations.

“For next year we are going to be very cramped, and we will have no common space, no flow. There aren’t even spaces for students to wait for professors outside of office hours,” said Senior Lecturer of Urban Studies and Director of International Studies Tim Koechlin.

Offutt was firm that the spaces the multidisciplinary programs need are quite different from the ones they will have next year.

“It’s one of the reasons we have been so insistent on staying together in a space that allows us to have the interactions akin to what we have in New England,” she said.

Other professors, such as Professor of Chinese and Japanese and Director of Asian Studies Peipei Qiu, have stressed the importance of students having a sense of belonging, and that the spaces afforded to them can easily change this important dynamic.

“The office space of the [multidisciplinary programs] is not simply a physical place. It is an intellectual home for the faculty and students at Vassar. We need to be able to come together at this intellectual home,” she said.

According to professors, space and, more importantly, having space that does not need to be shared, is something from which every program can benefit. Though the multidisciplinary programs do work together closely, they also each serve their own specific purposes within the group.

“We want to stay together, but at the same time, each program needs to have its own identity and its own spacial home within the multidisciplinary departments. With the shared offices in OBL this will be hard for individual programs to achieve,” said Qiu. The spaces in New England also have the ability to affect how programs are perceived within the greater Vassar community. Offutt said, “It’s hard for students sometimes to conceptualize what a multi major looks like,” the presence of the multidisciplinary students in one place can lend a sense of unity and cohesiveness to combat these ideas.

While this lack of common spaces has the potential to cause problems, professors are also optimistic about their future. For three years, members of the multidisciplinary programs and the administration have been in talks about the permanent future home of these programs.“We have a really excellent vision. We are very, very cautiously hopeful,” said Koechlin.

Other professors extolled the benefits of moving that have brought the programs closer together. Offutt, who came on as Director of Latin American and Latino/a Studies this year, said, “My joining this year has just showed me how wonderfully the directors work together and how they’re willing to talk about really hard things, not only among themselves but with the administration.”

Qiu, another recent addition to the team of multidisciplinary directors, also praised the camaraderie that formed from the move.

“I think the process of moving strengthened the solidarity of the multidisciplinary programs. I do feel that the directors of each program support each other and consult with each other probably even closer than before.

And the Administrative Assistants work together nicely and take initiative in planning and coordinating the move,” said Qiu. “[It is] very impressive.”

Ultimately, however, the time spent in the Old Laundry Building will be strikingly different from the many years that these programs spent in New England Building. Changing spaces mean that the programs have to make certain adjustments, but the directors said they were confident that the future would hold bright things for their programs.

Even though change is inevitable, inevitable, too, are the feelings of loss for a familiar space. Said Koechlin, “This is kind of a crazy building in a lot of ways, but I’m going to really miss it.”

“love conquers all”.

In his closing, Chenette gave a charge to the Vassar Community: “Carry the spirit of that moment with you, and challenge others to be similarly committed to a more compassionate, inclusive, and affirming world, wherever your paths should lead.”

Following Acting President Chenette’s speech was the guest speaker he selected, Professor of Anthropology Anne Pike-Tay. In a speech she entitled “There and Back Again, A Professor’s Tale,” Pike-Tay described the long and complicated process through which she became the professor she is today.

In describing her own speech, and acknowledging her literary reference, Pike-Tay said, “In this tale I encounter a series of obstacles and challenges along my way. Unlike Bilbo Baggins however, I’ve found that not all dragons can be destroyed, but with the help and support of family, friends and colleagues they can be tamed.”

Pike-Tay went on to describe the specific events and moments in her own life that contributed in some way to the person, and professor, she has since become. In particular she mentioned trying to find a balance between her loves of science and art, her struggles to attend college despite being in the first generation of her family to do so, and time she spent in Colombia and Japan in an attempt to see the world and satisfy her fascination with Japanese Studies and anthropological archaeology.

Pike-Tay repeated the old adage “where there’s a will there’s a way” several times throughout

her talk. She connected the idea of determination to her application to college, her attempts to see the world by traveling abroad, and her application to graduate school at New York University, which was initially rejected. The speaker included these personal examples in an attempt to inspire students destined for struggles outside of Vassar’s gates.

Another one of Pike-Tay’s messages emphasized the importance of allowing oneself time to try things that aren’t necessarily the logical or common next step in their imagined road to success. She mentioned the ways in which decisions in her own life didn’t always make seem to make sense in the context of her own interests and career goals, but they nonetheless helped her to become the fulfilled person that she is today.

As Pike-Tay stated, “Before speaking today, in addition to reviewing earlier convocation speeches, I asked my son, a VC 2004 grad, what useful point I could offer to the class of 2013. He said ‘tell them that many different paths lead to success (and there are many definitions of success).’ In other words, he, like me, and many of my former students, walked several paths until we landed on the one that provided fulfillment.”

The professor continued, “I hope that by sharing my experiences, that students (especially the class of 2013), will see that less worry and more flexibility can go a long way to finding a fulfilling career.”

This tradition of Convocation began in 1865 when President John H. Raymond gave a sermon in honor of the college’s opening and continued

until 1914, when a convocation ceremony was suggested. The student song “Gaudeamus Igitur” has been a part of the ceremony since the 1920’s. It has been, and this year was again sung by the Vassar College Choir. Attendance at convocation was mandatory for all students through the 1970’s and then it was required for freshmen and seniors until 1995.

The spring convocation ceremony is very similar to the fall convocation ceremony, but also features the ritual passing of the gavel to the next president of the Vassar Student Association (VSA). This year outgoing VSA President Jason Rubin ’13 passed off the gavel to incoming VSA president and outgoing Vice President for Operations, Deb Steinberg ’14. Another tradition, after spring convocation, juniors ring the bell at the top of Main Building to symbolize their transition into senior year.

This ceremony was especially significant to seniors because it marked the imminent end of the school year and took place only weeks before seniors will leave Vassar as students for the last time. For Senior Class President Vincent Marchetta, who had only been to spring convocation once before, this was an important day. At the ceremony, he was presented with the Class of 2013 Banner, which will symbolize the class’ time at Vassar until it proudly marches with it at their first five year reunion. In anticipation for the event, Marchetta said “To be the one to go on stage, receive the flag, and present it to my class is a great honor, and I am really excited for such a big moment.”

VC aid packages benefit low-income students FINANCIAL AID continued from page 1

Back in 1995, the overall proportion of private college students with merit aid was 24 percent. By 2007, that figure had jumped to 44 percent. The proportion of students receiving need-based aid remained fairly constant, changing from 43 to 42 percent over the same period (New America Foundation).

Schools have instead focused their resources on using small merit aid discounts to attract the attention of wealthy students who will still pay the majority of tuition, thus adding to the college’s treasury. “After all, it’s more profitable for schools to provide four scholarships of $5,000 each to induce affluent students who will be able to pay the balance than it is to provide a single $20,000 grant to one low-income student,” Burd noted.

Still, there is more to the move away from need-based aid than direct profit. Colleges also use merit-based for a very straightforward purpose—attracting the most qualified students to the institution. This increases the academic prestige of the college and elevates the institution in all-important rankings.

In his report, Burd maintains that wealthy students are more likely to succeed in academics, and thus end up with much of the financial aid that would in years past have gone to those with the greatest needs.

Figures from the 2010-2011 school year show that while 22 percent of its students have federal Pell Grants, Vassar kept tuition prices low for students in the lowest income brackets. A low-income bracket is defined in Burd’s article as an annual family income of $30,000 or lower.

The average cost of a college eduction for these students was $5,706 per year (New America Foundation).

Burd’s article classifies colleges and based on two factors. The first is the proportion of students receiving Pell grants—a total of around 82 percent of low-income students are awarded these grants, so a college’s propensity to admit Pell recipients is an accurate measure of its efforts to bring in students with fewer resources.

The second is the cost for the students whose families fall into the lowest income bracket.

Vassar is listed as one of the “best of the best” along with Amherst College, Cornell University, and Stanford University (New America Foundation).

Vassar College’s Director of Financial Aid Jessica Bernier offered insight into the process of awarding financial aid packages.

In an emailed statement, Bernier addressed what she looks for in a financial aid application in order to determine the proper amount a stu-

Above chart is courtesty of Stephen Burd, with data collected by the Department of Education. The data shows that Vassar College is ranked among “the best of the best of the wealthiest schools.” dent should be granted.

She wrote, “For me, the first thing I do is read the Special Circumstances section of the CSS Profile as this allows me to get a sense of what may be occurring within the family. One of the highlights of this section is that the families are able to express their greatest concerns in their own words. From there I will go through the normal process of analyzing the tax returns and assets of the family. However, based on their special circumstances I will dig deeper into different ways to help them (i.e., make allowances for high medical expenses, estimated income due to a loss of employment).”

She stressed, however, that each member of the financial aid staff has their own way of reviewing applicant information to make the best decisions about awards.

Vassar’s first concern is, according the college’s Financial Aid web page “to make a Vassar education affordable and accessible to all admitted students.” (Vassar Admissions).

Bernier commented, “The special opportunities that I have witnessed with Vassar’s needblind policy [are] the wonderful students who have been admitted to Vassar based solely on their academic and extracurricular achievements.” These achievements sometimes allow students to gain scholarships from sources outside the colleges.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Bernier continued, “Because we meet 100 percent of a student’s demonstrated need with financial aid, then when they receive an outside scholarship then we must reduce their financial aid package.

The College also aims to recognize the amount of work students were required to do in order to receive scholarships. Bernier explained, “However, we are cognizant of the fact that students worked hard to receive these scholarships and we want to reward them for their hard work. As a result, we allow students to use their outside scholarships to reduce two of the three ‘self-help’ components of their financial aid package.

She noted, “For this purpose we consider the self-help to be the following: 1) standard student income contribution ($1,700 for first years), 2) student loan and 3) campus employment.”

In his report, Burd was quick to point out the institutions that serve low-income students well, but he also noted that charging high prices to those least able to afford it is widespread at private colleges, and has spread to public universities in recent years as the flow of state funding has ebbed. He advocates that the government require that colleges provide more information about the disposition of their financial aid, and the socioeconomic status of the recipients (New America Foundation).

May 26 , 2013

COMMENCEMENT

Page 5

Lily Doyle outlines her foolproof plan for infamy Lily Doyle

Humor and Satire Editor

“S

o, what are you planning on doing once you graduate?” This question is a perennial thorn in my totally metaphorical paw (I just watched Harry Potter and I want to be 100% clear that I am not a werewolf because those guys did not fare well). For the last three years, my primary plans have been hour-tohour, like, for example, do I want to buy Natural Ice beer or do I want to spring for Coors Light? How many hot wings is too many hot wings? Should I go to the gym or should I find other ways to challenge my body, like by eating as many saltines as I can in one minute?

All of a sudden, as if those extremely problematic problems aren’t enough, my second cousin twice removed by marriage is expecting me to tell her exactly what I plan to do once I graduate. It’s one of those questions you ask the youth in your extended family when you don’t really know them.

This question USED to be awesome. “Lily, what is your favorite animal?” (It’s a platypus, they are one of the only mammals that lay eggs and are venomous, that is SO cool, I do accept any and all platypus related gifts or trips to Australia to see them in their natural habitat).

Once I advanced passed middle school, that question turned into “where do you want to go to college”, and now it has turned into a legitimate life question that makes me laugh loudly

and nervously for 30 seconds longer than is socially appropriate.

Here is the situation. My brother has informed me that you don’t become a real adult until, at the very earliest, 24. This makes sense, because I still lose my student ID card every other week and I don’t understand how mortgage payments work. Sometimes I yell at jars that are really tightly closed, and hit them with hard objects, in the hope that it will somehow persuade them to ease open. I’m very aware I’m not a real adult. However, while I am hanging out at college, where it is regularly a challenge for me to decide whether or not to shower in the morning, there are 10 year-olds out there getting nominated for Oscars, 14 year-olds on Broadway, and 18 year-old boys writing a formula on their dorm room window that later turns into Facebook (albeit after many dramatic twists and turns involving Justin Timberlake, I’ve seen the Social Network, I know stuff). Clearly, being an adult is not necessarily a requirement for being successful, or for being famous. So, hear this, people who insist upon asking me a question that I am not prepared to answer! Despite my extreme lack of legitimately marketable skills, I intend to become outrageously wealthy and famous upon finishing my career at Vassar College.

How will I do this, you ask? Allow me to enlighten you.

1) I will immediately drop out of college.

Did Kanye West’s album “College Dropout” teach you nothing!? Get out, get out while you still can! I think it even counts if you drop out the day before graduation, just as long as you don’t actually get that diploma. Forget about all those late nights at the library, hiding in a basement corner and throwing pieces of an old Nilda’s cookie at people who make too much noise, occasionally hallucinating that you could hear the vibration of friends trying to contact your phone in that god-and-cell-service forsaken land. Drop out, and all of that hard work will be rewarded. Bill Gates? Dropped out.

Mark Zuckerburg? Peace out, Harvard. Ke$ha?

Had a large scholarship to Barnard but, using the thoughtful foresight she is known for, didn’t even bother going in order to perfect her Jack Daniels hygiene routine before becoming crazy famous. Granted, all of these people were probably either certified geniuses who already had financial backing for their plans, or drunk, but still! Can’t fight that kind of evidence.

2) I will take the “How Famous Will You Be?” quiz on the Seventeen Magazine website.

No, this really exists. Are you a good (former) Vassar College student or not?! Do your research!! This research consists of such hard hitting questions as “what color dress would you want to wear to prom”, “if you were cast in

‘High School Musical’, who would you want to play?”, and “who would you choose as your date to a red-carpet event?”. I’m really, really, really not kidding about this. Not only will answering these tell you how famous you are going to be, guaranteed (FYI, I am “Set for the Spotlight!”), but they give you important insight into the world of the rich and famous you will soon be living in. For example, now you know that Nick Jonas is SO last year and the color red is only for Satan worshippers who don’t even know how to apply mascara. OMG. 3) I will be constantly vigilant and on the lookout for opportunities in which I can act heroically.

If the first two options fail, and no one offers to put my name up in lights, I’m resorting to my fail-proof backup plan, which is to walk around dangerous, high crime neighborhoods at night, alone, looking for people I can save. I have the flashlight app on my iPhone, and I watch a lot of Grey’s Anatomy which means that I know how to do useful medical things - so I’m guaranteed to be safe.

Congratulations on finishing college, class of 2013. When you guys need a basement to crash in, just give me a call. I’ll probably have a few extra rooms in my huge, platypus shaped mansion that I could spare.

Time to recharge: Vassar Loeb Art Center recounts professors go on sabbatical history through Polaroids Palak Patel

Design Editor

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he end of the year is bittersweet for the campus: students are leaving to go home, seniors are graduating, and professors are going on leave. While it only seems natural for professors to have to take a break from teaching every now and again for various reasons, including securing tenure, t is also important to note how their taking a leave of absence or sabbatical affects the students they are leaving behind.

Even after a short period of time students can become attached to their professors. Professor Christine Howlett, Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities, took a leave of absence during this past semester, leaving her choir students behind. “I have only been with Christine for a semester. However, it was still very hard to let go of her,” said Emily Omrod ’16.

When Howlett left, the college had to find somebody to take over her duties teaching and conducting two of Vassar’s classical music ensembles, the Women’s Chorus and Vassar College Choir.“Her replacement, while being a very nice man, didn’t have a ton of experience conducting. He also didn’t connect with the choir like Christine did. Many days it was hard for me to go to choir,” stated Omrod.

Others, such as Maddie Hayes ’15, thought having new perspectives could prove useful.

“I can see the value in working with different people. For instance, her replacement had a very different approach to conducting, and our rehearsal atmosphere was different as well.

I think it is important to be able to adapt and work with different kinds of people, so that was beneficial. That being said, I missed Christine’s style, and my experience was quite different this semester compared to last semester when we worked together,” said Hayes in an emailed statement.

However, it is important to understand what exactly the professors are doing during their time away from Vassar. For example, David Means, visiting associate professor of English, will be taking the next year off due to receiving the Guggenheim Fellowship, which is a private foundation that awards grants to those who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the sciences and the arts. During his leave, Means will be doing plenty of writing.

“This summer, before I start writing, I’m going to the UK for a short trip--including being a guest artist at something called the Latitude Festival--and then going out to Michigan to do some research,” said Means.

Means is a strong believer in the power of the sabbatical for professors.

“You have to refuel your brain,” said Means.

“A leave allows you to recharge the batteries and to sit in solitude and to do the work that can only be done outside the classroom. When I come back, I know I’ll be able to enter the classroom with new ideas, new energy.”

Sometimes professors do not have a choice in taking a leave. Associate Professor of Italian Rodica Blumenfeld took a medical leave this past semester. In this case, Associate Professor of Italian Eugenio Giusti took over in her absence. “My Italian teacher suddenly went on medical leave, and left us with a new teacher. He had much higher expectations and a much different classroom dynamic,” said Omrod.

Students become accustomed to how a class is taught, and changing professors in the middle of a semester has the potential to be a shock to the students.

“This was also after Spring Break, after I had had my teacher for almost the entire year,” said Omrod. “It will negatively affect my grade and also hurt my learning experience.”

Hayes had a more positive outlook on leaves of absences.

She wrote, “In general, what makes it difficult when professors go on leave is what is missing with their absence. I guess the positive aspect of this is forcing students to have to adapt, which is certainly a good life skill to have.”

Professors often are required to go on sabbatical to secure their tenure, and students have other options afforded to them while their professors are away.

Despite the fact that professors may not be physically present on campus, many professors give their students opportunities to maintain contact.

“I think my students know they can get in touch with me anytime they want via email,” said Means. The connection he has with his students makes it so students can always receive advice from their professors while they are away, while still allowing the professors the time they need away from the teaching atmosphere.

“I get the feeling they understand that I’m ready to take a little time away from the classroom,” said Means.

Taking a leave is meant to be helpful for everybody involved, including students. “When we take a leave, we’re not leaving. We’re going out there to work to find something, or to create something, or to explore something that we can somehow bring back to the classroom,” said Means.

Emma Daniels Reporter

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oday, instant photography is the norm – photos are taken with digital cameras, and more often, cell phones, providing immediate access to the image. When Polaroid’s famed SX70 camera was released in 1972, though, the idea of an instant color photo was ground-breaking.

And although Polaroid cameras were crafted and marketed as an instrument for the masses, there were those who saw its ability to instantly produce color photos as an exciting new medium for fine art.

Polaroid as an art form has been examined and exhibited in Vassar’s own Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center. On April 12, The Polaroid Years: Instant Photography and Experimentation, opened at the Loeb. It is a ground-breaking survey exhibit that includes Polaroid pictures by thirty-nine artists and collectives from 1972 to the present.

And it has notably gained national coverage with reviews in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, and the CNN photo Blog.

The exhibit’s origins trace back to 2008, when Mary-Kay Lombino, The Emily Hargroves Fisher ’57 and Richard B. Fisher Curator and Assistant Director for Strategic Planning at the Loeb, began researching art made with Polaroid after the Warhol Foundation gave the Loeb and 180 other institutions a smattering of Warhol’s Polaroid pictures.

“I realized that these small prints, which were once thought of as ephemera, were now entering museum collections and in turn this, and the fact that they were take by a major artworld figure, elevated them to the status of art. It made me wonder what other artists used Polaroid technology in their work. And as I began to answer that question, I discovered that many not only used Polaroid but also experimented with it in surprising ways. That discovery gave way to the theme of the exhibition and I began to gather the works that best present the idea that Polaroid technology inspired artists to make experimental work,” said Lombino.

Scientist and inventor Edwin H. Land founded the Polaroid Corporation 75 years ago, and the exhibit, the first of its kind since the founding of the company, highlights milestones in Polaroid’s past and present. And although Polaroid stopped the production of analog instant film in 2008, Lombino noted “Polaroid continues to attract new devotees drawn to its luminescence, distinct color, and the happy accidents that occur in the imperfect developing process—not to mention the convenience of instantaneous, direct one-toone prints.”

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

The exhibit consists of a diverse collection of these prints. Artists represented include such pioneers of instant photography as Ansel Adams, Ellen Carey, Chuck Close, Walker Evans, David Hockney, Robert Mapplethorpe, Joyce Neimanas, Andy Warhol, and William Wegman as well as a new generation of artists including Anne Collier, Bryan Graf, Catherine Opie, Lisa Oppenheim, Dash Snow, Mungo Thomson, and Grant Worth.

Although the work is diverse, Lombino emphasized the exhibit’s common core: “The thread is basically the idea that each artist might not have ever made this work or work like it, if Polaroid had never been invented. It’s one of those rare instances in which the output of a corporate entity inspired a particular way of working, similar to the ways in which certain computer software – photoshop, iMovie, Garageband - shapes what people make with it. But in the case of Polaroid, artists did things that were never intended by the makers of the technology,” she noted.

In association with the exhibition, the Art Center hosted several events, including a film series. The Art Center screened films on select Thursday evenings - one drama, one documentary, one thriller, and one comedy - in which Polaroid pictures played a leading role. One of the films was Time Zero, a documentary about the last year of Polaroid film, 2008. Time Zero introduces the “magic” of the Polaroid through the perspective of Polaroid artists and former Polaroid employees by covering the grass-roots movement to keep instant film alive and by following the Impossible Project’s against-the-odds effort to reinvent instant film. The Loeb also showed Alice in the Cities (Wim Wenders, 1974), Memento (Christopher Nolan, 2000), and Boogie Nights (Paul Thomas Anderson, 1997).

And in March, the exhibition catalogue – a 224-page book with 230 illustrations, is being co-published by The Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center and DelMonico Books/Prestel.

The catalogue features essays by Lombino and British scholar Peter Buse that address the unique technology of instant photography and the marketing genius of the Polaroid Corporation; statements from many of the participating artists revealing how Polaroids affected changed the way they captured the world around them; and numerous color images depicting the myriad ways Polaroid photographs have been used and ingeniously manipulated.

After Vassar, The Polaroid Years will travel to the Mary & Leigh Block Museum of Art at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, where it will be on exhibit from September 20 through December 1, 2013.

Page 6

COMMENCEMENT

May 26 , 2013

Senior leadership crucial in teams’ postseason victories SPORTS continued from page 1

Photos courtesy of Vassar Athletics

Though this ended the season for the team, Guzick will be one of 32 players participating in the NCAA Division III Singles Championships. His win in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Northeast Regional Semifinals and 17-10 record overall qualified him to compete in the Championships on May 23.

Men’s tennis has received accolades for their coach, John Cox, as well. He was one of four coaches named Wilson/ITA Coach of the Year for the Northeast Region. The 2012-2013 season is Cox’s second at Vassar. Of the four coaches nominated, he is the only one whose team is not nationally ranked. However men’s tennis has had one of their toughest schedules yet, going up against such teams as fourteenth ranked Case Western University and Army in the regular season.

Women’s tennis has recently wrapped up their season as well with three consecutive days in the Liberty League Playoffs. On May 3 the team faced Union College in the quarterfinals, where they swept in doubles and took the win, 5-0. The next day, in the semifinals, the Brewers went against St. Lawrence University. All matches were very close, with sophomore Ava Sadeghi narrowly won in the number one singles spot, and freshman Winnie Yeates and freshman Lauren Stauffer were one of three doubles teams who swept their opponents.

To finish up the Tournament, the number two seeded Brewers faced the number one seed, Skidmore College. Despite wins from doubles teams of Sadeghi and fellow sophomore Samantha Schapiro as well as Yeates and Stauffer, Vassar fell to Skidmore 2-6. This year marked the seventh consecutive year that Skidmore and Vassar have met in the Championship match.

Friday May 3 marked the last home meet for men’s track, whose strong showing means that many will continue in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships. Senior Mathue Duhaney set a school record with his second place win in the 200 meter with a time of 22.97. Freshman Jonah Williams, who had already run an ECACqualifying time in the previous meet, had a personal best in the 1500 meter. One of the many highlights of the meet was Sophomore Harris Gordon’s performance in the pole vault, as he became the first Brewer to clear the bar, vaulting 3.15 meters.

The following week, the team competed at the Oneonta State Last Chance Meet, where several more runners made ECAC qualifying times. The 4x400 meter relay team of Duhaney, senior Sam Wagner, freshman Dylan Manning, and junior Abe Gatling had a qualifying team and were only .29 seconds away from first place. Other qualifying times came from the 4x100 meter relay team of Duhaney, freshman Elijah Mondesir, freshman Corey Terwilliger, and freshman Peter Winkeller, and Wagner’s 1:54.83 time in the 800 meter.

In one of the last runs of the season, two of the men’s relay teams had faced fierce competition in ECAC’s, hosted at Springfield College. The 4x400 team of Wagner, Gatling, freshman Dylan Manning, and freshman Taylor Vann finished in 24th of all teams with a time of 3:20.40. The 4x100 relay team of Mondesir, Terwilliger, Duhaney, and Winkeller finished 28th.

Women’s track has also had many recordbreaking performances, which began in the Matthew Vassar Twilight Meet on May 3. Senior Kelly Holmes ran a 2:11.62 time in the 800 meter, which places her eighth in the national Division III rankings. In the same race, sophomore Payton Johnson qualified for ECAC’s.

Fellow sophomore Heather Ingraham not only broke a school record with her 57.82 time in the 400 meter dash, but she also is ranked 32 nationally for the race. Finally, sophomore Ariel Bridges broke a school record in the 200 meter dash, and sophomore Maria Rose set a new record with her 2.7 pole vault.

At the Oneonta State meet, many runners set new individual bests and improved on their previous records. Senior Kate Warrick, sophomore Maggie Sowa, and freshman Sarah King all cut down their times on the 400 meter hurdle, 800 meter dash and 1500 meter dash, respectively. The 4x400 meter relay team of

Clockwise from top left: seniors Josh Kessler, Nicole Guerrero, Kelly Holmes and Mike Perone participate in their respective sports.

Ingraham, Bridges, Holmes, and senior Emily Crnic, are now ranked 28th nationally after their 3:54.15 time—seven seconds shorter than their previous Liberty League-winning time.

Holmes has recently received many accolades honoring her track and cross country career at Vassar. At the Athletics Banquet on Wednesday, May 8, she was awarded the Matthew Vassar Outstanding Career Award.

Holmes finished second in ECAC Championships for the 800 meter dash, and has qualified for NCAA Division III Track & Field Championships for the third time this year.

Additionally she made Liberty League AllAcademic Teams for track and cross country.

Men’s baseball made program history when they qualified for Liberty League Playoffs.

The team split their last away series with Union College, winning the first game 4-0 and losing the second 2-7. A highlight of the series was junior pitcher Joe Lovizio’s third shutout of the season in the first game.

The next day the Brewers returned home to play another doubleheader against Union on Vassar’s senior day. They again split the series, losing the first game 3-4 and winning the next 4-2.

Vassar’s 12-14 record in the League qualified them for Championship Playoffs, and six players received League Honors. Senior pitcher Zander Mrlik, senior shortstop Mike Perrone, junior first baseman Brett Zaziski and freshman designated hitter Brooks English made First Team, while freshman relief pitcher Connor Cucalon made Second Time and freshman outfielder Nick Johnson made Honorable Mention.

The Liberty League Championships began on May 9 when Vassar again faced Union.

The first round went into extra innings until

Union won 3-2.

Despite the loss, the Brewers continued to play in the Championship Tournament, defeating St. Lawrence 8-6 on May 10. Senior outfielder Sean Morash, Zaziski and Johnson all had three hits for the Brewers in that game.

This win then qualified Vassar to play against Union College later that day. The Brewers lost to the top-seeded team 6-1, but finished their season with the second-highest win total in the program’s history. Both Morash and Zaziski were named to the All-Tournament Team.

Mrlik, a two season athlete, was honored at the Athletics banquet for his accomplishments on the soccer and baseball teams. He received the Matthew Vassar Outstanding Career Award, and has also been named First Team NCAA Division III Men’s All-East Region and NSCAA College Scholar All-American. Additionally Mrlik made Liberty League All-Academic Team for baseball and soccer.

Women’s lacrosse ended their season with a loss in the Liberty League Playoffs, but had many notable accolades. The fourth-seeded Brewers were matched up against Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the top seed for the first round of League Championships on May 3. Despite a close first half, RPI led at the start of the second and continued to stay ahead, winning 12-5.

The loss leaves Vassar 12-4 in their season overall, which ties the highest number of wins in program history. Additionally several players and Head Coach Judy Finerghty received honors from the League. Sophomore defender Jacqueline Palma was named to the First Team, sophomore attack Dara Davis and junior midfielder Phoebe Tzannes made Second Team, and senior midfielder Marissa

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Reilly and freshman midfielder Isabelle Goldstein received Honorable Mention. Finerghty was named League Coach of the Year for the third time in her nineteen years at Vassar.

The Athletic Banquet marked the end of most season, and athletes in addition to those already mentioned were recognized for their hard work throughout their seasons.

The Betty Richey Performer of the Year Award went to senior Andrew Nicol of men’s lacrosse and junior Cydni Matsuoka of women’s basketball.

Nicol’s record of 207 saves puts him in third place in Vassar history, and his saves and saves per game put him ahead in the Liberty League. Matsuoka was the youngest player to achieve 1,000 points total, and was the only non-senior to earn Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Division III All-American. She also made All-Academic Liberty League Team.

Other awards included the Frances D. Fergusson Coaches Award to senior Ali Higgins from women’s soccer, and the AFAVC Award to senior Chloe McGuire of women’s volleyball. Higgins was commended for her leadership on and off the field by Head Coach Laura Williamson, and is tied for second place in Vassar history for career saves as well as for the most career wins. McGuire achieved 1,000 kills during the Seven Sisters Tournament this season, and led the volleyball team with 240 total kills.

As demonstrated by the outstanding performances of these student-athletes, the College continues to be a place where athletics thrive. Led by players from the Class of 2013, many teams and individuals have set new records for players to try to beat in the years ahead at Vassar.

May 26 , 2013

SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES Angela Dumlao

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here are times that my friends and I talk about going back in time. What if we had the ability to return to the beginning of freshman year and do it all over again? “With the knowledge we have now?” I’ll always ask. “Of course,” they always respond. The idea of a second chance seems beautifully enticing, especially as we spend our final days at Vassar, having way too many feelings as we swim in nostalgia.

But there’s a reason we can’t go back.

In The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams writes, “Time is the longest distance between two places.” I have always loved this quote and I find that it defines my Vassar experience. My heart has traveled miles upon miles in the past four years—light years, eons, even. And I will acknowledge that I cannot help but describe Vassar in hyperbolic terms. That’s exactly what Vassar was for me—an extraordinary place, an awesome one. And by “awesome”, I am referring the precise Oxford English Dictionary definition: “full of awe; profoundly reverential.” My time here was glorious and sacred.

In these four years, Vassar taught me to love. I have loved so fully, hard and fast.

But my understanding of love is not wholly a singular relationship or experience.

If nothing else, Vassar is about my friendships—“my people.” They are the greatest people you’ll ever meet, the anchors of my life. These are the people with whom I have drafted and proofread

many an angsty e-mail, taken too many Photo Booth pictures, gone on spontaneous rides to the Eveready. These are the kind of people who remember to wake you up because you don’t trust your alarm, who go far back into your embarrassing Facebook profile pictures to like them.

They are the people who put everything else aside to hold you when you cry, when you feel that your heart might just burst, when the heartache has seeped deep down into your bones. They are the people who understand you without needing to say a word. And that is special. Magical, even.

I believe that Vassar is magic. It is a place that made my dreams come true.

Dreams that I never dared to have before.

Tell freshman year Angela, standing on the footsteps of Joss House, that she would go on direct a senior thesis in the Drama department, and she’d blow you off. Tell her that she would meet her first love in just a few weeks, she would laugh in your face.

Vassar made the impossible possible. It let me become a DJ after all (and bestowed upon me a truly baller DJ name that is still my nickname to this day.)

As a Drama major, I cannot help but continue to quote playwrights. Sarah Ruhl writes in In the Next Room that there are “many shades and degrees of love.” This love is not always easy.

It came to challenge me in late night rehearsal rooms, torment me in rejection, make me question my worth in the face of heartbreak. But this love also made me

realize who was important in my life.

To those people, I say thank you. I am grateful for you. Everywhere and always. I love you to the moon and back.

The time has run out for hypothetical scenarios of going back to freshman year.

I do not have a second chance at Vassar.

But I don’t need one.

hose of you who know me know that when I like a song, I will listen to it over and over again. It doesn’t even necessarily have to be a good song. They’re usually not. It just has to be something catchy.

These songs have come to define moments in my life, particularly the past few years.

As graduation gets closer I’ve gone back to some of my old favorites. I play them now and take a trip down memory lane: Freshman Year

“Wake up in the morning feeling like P Diddy, Grab my glasses I’m out the door I’m going to hit this city, Before I leave brush my teeth with a bottle of Jack, Cause when I leave for the night I ain’t coming back.”

It’s the beginning of freshmen year again.

I remember the days leading up to August 25th. I don’t think I’ve ever been that scared.

I hated high school but I hated change more and this felt earth-shattering. I remember driving up to Lathrop for the first time to the cheers of the house team. Before I knew it my bags were gone and I was wearing mardi gras beads. I remember meeting my fellow group. I was pretty awkward but so were they so it worked out ok. We attached ourselves at the hip and journeyed through camp Vassar together. I remember meeting my best friend. She had this crazy curly hair and a personality to match. We were walking to the TH’s in the rain and she was complaining loudly. I told her to stop whining. Some things never change. I remember Freshmen Class Council. Lots of personality, not as much productivity, but we had a great time.

I remember going home for October break. I walked into the door of my house and the first thing my dad said was “so tell me honestly, how is it?” I smiled and replied, “I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy before.”

Sophomore Year

“Let’s go all the way tonight, No regrets just love, We can dance until we die, You and I, we’ll be young forever, You make me feel like I’m living a teenage dream, The way you turn me on, I can’t sleep, Let’s run away and don’t ever look back, don’t ever

look back.”

I remember coming back to a campus that felt like home. I set up my room with my parents. I finished putting up my Broadway posters and moved on to hanging my rainbow flag. When I got it up on the wall, I asked my dad if it was hanging straight. He laughed and said there was nothing straight about it. It’s funny how quickly things can change in a year. I remember my house team. We weren’t always the most functional (the lip sync fiasco of 2010 comes to mind) but we had a really good time. Danny or Sal would make a comment or a face during meetings and one by one the rest of us would just break down into giggles. I miss seeing your faces every week. Especially Batia’s. She’s perfect. I remember moving the freshmen into Lathrop. It was a blast, but it was also my first experience with change here. Just like that we weren’t the little freshmen anymore and there was a whole new group to take our place. Time keeps moving forward and Vassar time seems to move quicker than most.

Junior Year

“Hey I just met you, and this is crazy, but here’s my number, So call me maybe? And all the other boys, try to chase me, but here’s my number, So call me maybe?”

My introduction to the VSA. Both last year and this year have been transformative in more ways than I can say. At its highest highs I had the time of my life and at its lowest lows, I learned a lot in the most difficult but most valuable of ways—by making mistakes. I’m grateful for that but most of all I’m grateful for the people who came into my life because of it. I’ve met some really special people. I remember Halloween. I didn’t have a costume so I decided to wear my rainbow flag and stick a toilet paper roll on my head and call myself a gay unicorn. As I pranced through the snow of the October blizzard I wondered what high school Jason would say if he could see me now. Vassar really changes a person in some incredible ways. Of course, I remember the class of 2012. They taught me what Vassar was all about and how to have a good time here. They were mentors and friends and I still miss them very much. I remem-

Daniel Lampert

I remember walking to my first day of classes in the Fall. It was a sunny day and everything looked beautiful. I walked past the golf course and the creek and all of the pretty Vassar trees. I walked passed the houses where all of my friends now lived, just steps away from my own. It just seemed too good to be true. I remember election night. Watching UPC erupt when it was finally over was a sight to see. It felt really good to be a part of that, in the same way it felt good to be a part of the WBC protest. It was that final confirmation that I was part of this wonderful community.

There are lots more memories from this year but they just happened. I wont go through them all. But I remember feeling a certain pride throughout this year. It’s been pretty incredible watching the silly little freshmen I knew become leaders on this campus. From directing shows, to captaining sports teams, to leading organizations, to advocating for change, there are some remarkable leaders and people in this class and it’s been really special growing with all of you these past four years.

I have memories enough to fill novels but I’ll save the rest for drunken Senior week reminiscing. I do have one more though before I close. Winter break—my senior year of high school. I was sleeping in and my mom being mom couldn’t resist opening the letter from Vassar that arrived. She ran upstairs yelling “you got in you got in” and pulled me into a hug as she started to cry. I didn’t know it then but it was the start of everything. Four years of friendships, memories, songs, laughs, tears, and so much love.

This has been magical. Thank you all for the memories.

hen I first arrived at Vassar, I was grumpy. I had been let off the wait-list around early May, and in an uncharacteristic moment of decisiveness, I decided to withdraw my deposit from Tufts and go with my gut (we lost the $800, don’t bring this up to my mother—she still complains about it). My high school self didn’t go with his gut. He was neurotic and careful and looked to everyone else to make this college decision for him. But in the end I was so tired I just got out of my own way and went for it.

That didn’t mean my rumination over the summer made me feel any more content with my choice.

There are only so many times you can tell your colleagues at IHOP that next year you’re going to Vassar College and watch as their blank eyes dart from you to a nearby baby eating a short stack like a wood chipper—“Oh, well, that’ll be fun!” said in an intonation that suggests: will it be fun? I really don’t care. I think that baby just swallowed a fork!

I arrived at Vassar with my parents, looked at the majestic campus, and felt a loosening of the knot in my stomach. We marched our way to the 3rd floor of Lathrop aided by kindly sophomores and that’s when I saw it. I opened the door to 316 and, in a room that is probably the size of Beyonce’s closet (like, one of the smaller ones), there was a bunk bed. I turned into one of those girls on My Super Sweet 16 when she thinks her parents didn’t get her a car, but she’s trying to still seem grateful for the whole party while secretly being a totally brat. That was me. Only I didn’t get the car at the end. Bunk beds are for summer camp! I am supposed to be entering a time of growth and maturity. Who gets laid in a bunk bed?! Bunk beds always make me think of the Hardy Boy novels for some reason—which was not helping my case. After a summer of blank stares, and second-guessing myself, I looked at this tiny double with its eerily stacked beds and thought to myself: let’s just go home. I’m too tired for this. Remember when I said brat?

Luckily, over the course of freshman year my indignation rapidly grew into flirty adoration, which then turned into coyness, which then led into an aloof period that finally culminated into true blue love my sophomore year. And as much as I’ve given to this school, I’ve received tenfold. The amount of personal growth I’ve experienced is mind-blowing! I used to wear ill-fitting tank tops. Around my hall! (I still do this).

But in all honesty (here’s comes the mushy part), I’ve had an incredible four years. I’ve been absolutely so fortunate to have the most interesting, caring friends around. I got two surprise birthday parties, and one breakfast in bed—you usually have to raise kids before that happens! I’ve been able to pursue my passions, and fall in love with both academia and this strange world of comedy. I don’t know what the future holds, but I know I’ll be the better for my time here. And when I’m rich and famous (read: eating out sometimes and popular among my parent’s friends) I’m going to give back to VC as best I can.

In fact, I’ve actually contemplated several future donations to the school. The first being an on-campus IHOP—if Vassar became the first liberal arts college with an IHOP, those blank stares will turn into smiling faces of recognition. Plus chocolate chip pancakes. My second gift would be to renovate all the basements that look like sets from a Saw movie [Lathrop, Raymond, Joss, I’m looking at you. Jewett, keep looking good]. And my actual donation would be to turn Juliet’s back into the movie theater it used to be.

Wouldn’t that be cute? Actually, I’d bring back chips and pickles at the Retreat in a second. That first.

All in all, it’s been a pretty wild ride. I started out hesitant. Is this the right place for me? Now I count among my friends some incredibly interesting individuals. That’s what I love about Vassar, the eclectic interests of the student body. Only here could you find a pre-med music major, or Victorian Studies major who also does Shakespeare! This beautiful institution is made all the better thanks to the student body that inhabits it.

As Matthew Vassar said at the first meeting of the Board of Trustees on February 26, 1861, “It is my fervent desire that I may live to see the Institution in successful operation; and if God shall give me life and strength, I shall gladly employ my best faculties in cooperating with you, to secure the full and perfect consummation of the work before us.” Beautiful words...but honestly VC, don’t try and pull this bunk bed thing again when I come back for reunion. I’m serious. I’m not trying to play that game

—Jason Rubin is the outgoing President of the Vassar Student Association.

—Danny Lampert is the outgoing President for HEL and a member of Shakespeare Troupe.

“I believe that Vassar is magic. It is a place that made all of my dreams come true.”

I will still be able to visit my last four years of memories; they will always live in a little room at the back of my heart.

And even if someone were to give me the opportunity—to choose between graduating on Sunday or starting Vassar all over again—my choice is clear. I would undoubtedly choose to move forward filled with this Vassar-learned love.

And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

—Angela Dumlao is a Drama and Psychology double major. She is an outgoing executive board member of both the Future Waitstaff of America and Philaletheis. Last summer she worked as a directing apprentice at the Powerhouse Theater program.

Jason Rubin T

W

Page 7

ber friends coming back from abroad in the Spring. It felt so good to be together again as we geared up for the final stretch.

Senior Year

“Hold on, to me as we go, as we roll down this unfamiliar road. And although this wave is stringing us along, just know you’re not alone. ‘Cause we’re going to make this place our home.”

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES

Page 8

May 26 , 2013

Aashim Usgaonkar W

hen in Macbeth our hero laments “all our yesterdays” and tomorrows stringing together in a monotonic march towards death, he seems to be channeling an anxiety I had when arriving as a freshman at Vassar in the fall of 2009. I was too naïve to worry about the futility of life as Macbeth does, but I was worried that my time at Vassar would be but a sort of blip on the radar, signifying nothing. I had collected several drops of wisdom from elders and other sages about college life, but the one most culpable for my Scottish state of mind was about how these four years would go by so very quickly, how the journey from start to finish would seem to go by in just a few minutes.

So freshman year I had the single agenda to be involved in everything before it was too late: student theater, the campus newspaper, random governance committees, and so on; I even signed up for the Gentleman’s Sandwich Club, which became defunct after the Earl of Sandwich graduated with departmental honors in medieval and renaissance studies. One by one, as I went a mile wide and an inch deep, I began shedding those activities that were pursued for their own sake (my career as an actor, though one of the aforementioned “dropped” pursuits, should still be remembered for what critics call the best Mistress Overdone in Shakespeare’s Measure of Measure, ever) and what was left was truly cherished and meaningful to me.

One of those activities that continued to command my attention was working for The Miscellany News. I started as a guest reporter not knowing my “Catharine Bond Hill” from my

“Catherine Bond Hill”; moved on to news reporter; then jumped to the news editor position in my sophomore year; worked my way up to the executive board as a senior editor; and finally became editor in chief my junior year. Looking back, I think I knew the October of my freshman year that one day I would be the paper’s chief editor; I wasn’t sure when, I wasn’t sure how, but it was going to happen. And when you believe that something is going to happen so strongly, you leave the universe with no choice but to effect it for you. But to this day I am unclear as to what drew me to this organization.

I was never really interested in journalism, per se; but I suppose the draw was in the day-today activities of my job. As a reporter and editor for the news section, I had the opportunity — under the guise of “reporting” – to speak with trustees, professors, administrators, and other guests and friends of the College whom I would have no access to without this paper’s endorsement. As editor in chief, I had the opportunity to lead a team of talented and strongly opinionated editors towards producing the rough equivalent of four undergraduate theses every week for what seemed like both the longest and shortest thrill ride of my life. And suddenly, collegiate journalism became one of my interests.

In many ways, Vassar as whole was very similar to The Misc: just by virtue of the day-to-day activities the College requires, I inadvertently became interested in everything Vassar stood for; not just my major, not just my own dorm, not just my own friends. Everything. Even the things I hated became dear to me my senior year, be-

cause they would soon be gone (I will actually miss not being able to buy bottled water; where else will I encounter such a novel problem?).

Though an economics and English double major with an immediate professional interest in sell-side finance, I felt equally at home in the famous Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center and in Blodgett’s econometrics lab. I found a way to enjoy both Paul Volcker’s thoughts on Morgan Stanley’s exotic derivatives and Judith Butler’s on Zionism, both Eric Holder’s outlook on criminal justice and Rebecca Eaton’s on the fate of Matthew Crawley in Downton Abbey. The value of the liberal arts snuck up on me—but pervasively—by the time I was a senior.

I also had the unique privilege of keener insight in to the benefits of the liberal arts; the Class of 2013 was lucky to be a part of Vassar’s sesquicentennial celebrations that focused on, among many aspects of the College, its academic method through the ages. While it is easy to proceed under the assumptions that our notions of academic freedom and liberal requirements are best suited to serve the undergraduate scholar, the precise reasons why we value a liberal arts experience merit explicit exposition from time to time; if not to reaffirm our faith, such an exercise at least allows us to continue, in true Brewer spirit, to leave nothing unquestioned. Through panels that pulled in leaders across fields and events that attracted students from all corners of the country, Vassar during its 150th academic year once again established that even after rigorous scrutiny, its academic structure not only stood the test of time but also re-

Vince Marchetta S

itting in the passenger seat of my team captain’s car, I returned to campus from Wappingers Falls one brisk October night my junior year with a dull pain in my forearm and a new lease on life. In a bold moment, one preceded by months of careful planning, I had taken the plunge and gotten a tattoo. It was not meant to be a statement of rebellion or a super-edgy expression of my collegiate independence, but rather a means of reclaiming my body. The ink in my skin became a physical representation of the personal philosophy I had come to know through my most difficult times. Both in reflecting and in looking forward, my understanding of those words has greatly defined my time here at Vassar — Your darkness belongs to you just the same way your light does — People always say that college is a time for discovering yourself, and clichés aside, they’re right. It is a time for recognizing what makes you who you are and establishing a continued self-understanding as you grow with each new moment. As a senior ready to graduate, I look back at who I was when I first arrived and realize how much I’ve grown.

Having had an amazing senior year at my allmale, predominantly white, Catholic school on Long Island, and a summer with my “bros” that is unrivaled to this day, I arrived at Vassar nervous but confident. With a freshly pierced ear and cool-guy attitude I chose for whatever reason to abandon Vin, Vinny, and Marchetta and to introduce myself as Vince. The earring lasted ten days, but the name stuck. I can still remember what it was like to be freshman year me, and probably know him better now than I ever did, but despite the many unforeseen changes that have come simply through living life, I have always remained Vince.

Along with my chosen name I’ve been easily recognized since my freshman year as a member of the rowing team, but this experience has been more than just a means of identification. If I wanted to I could devote an entire retrospective to speaking about the physical and emotional roller-coaster that has been my life as a rower.

With every stroke, 5 a.m. alarm, pair of spandex, and even serious injury, I have grown from the freshman who thought himself too good for such a small and inexperienced team. I finish my career as both Team President and Men’s Captain, incredibly proud of all that my team, or rather my family, has accomplished in four years.

Through the pain, sweat and triumphs set against Hudson River sunrises, I have come to recognize that just as I have helped the team to grow, it has done the same for me. I am excited for what the future holds for my teammates and know that I leave behind a legacy that will con-

tinue even after my own calluses fade. Vassar Rowing will always be a part of me, and I am incredibly thankful for that.

I have, however, an unwillingness to allow myself to be defined by just one thing. This has motivated me to take on as much as I have in my time here. Rather than being known as Vince the Rower, the PoliSci Major, or even the Class President, I have actively engaged many parts of me.

In doing so I have grown passionate about everything I’m involved in, and these experiences have influenced me in more ways than can be listed on a resumé.

“Your darkness belongs to you just the same way your light does.”

As a self-proclaimed “do-it-all” I’m known for being overwhelmingly busy, and have found it increasingly difficult over the years to justify the fact that I still don’t drink coffee. Exhausted from early mornings, late nights, and jam-packed days I sometimes wondered what it would be like if I had more time to be a regular college student.

But I realize now that somewhere between the emails, practices, and meetings I managed to find time for life — to fall in love, to dream, to fail, to laugh, to hurt, to make lifelong friends, and to grow the entire time.

I’ve learned a great deal about myself in my four years, including many things that freshman year Vince would have never expected, and I am still learning as I continue to grow. In reminiscing though, I recognize that along the way every moment hasn’t been perfect. I have experienced my share of hardships, moments when I hated myself or it felt like the end of the world, but I have learned that only by accepting can you truly change anything in your life. Everything that you do, everyone you encounter, and every experience you have makes you who you are, from the scars, the blisters, and the freckles to the jokes, the memories, and the most subtle aspects of your character.

How you choose to recognize these influences, both good and bad, to accept yourself, your history, and every part of you, and to continue forward with this understanding determines the life you are able to live and enjoy. Vassar has helped me to realize that although it isn’t always easy it is absolutely worth it.

-Vince Marchetta is the outgoing President of the Class of 2013 and the Captain and Team President of the Men’s Rowing Team.

mains best suited to serve the needs of students in today’s context as well.

Vassar sesquicentennial year was also the year that I had the opportunity to lead a student-philanthropy effort that continues to set the bar for all such efforts until today. Raising over $300,000 for the Annual Fund, the 2011 AllSchool Gift pioneered the participation of the entire student body towards one goal, and in this way students had the opportunity to concretely display their enthusiasm and belief that their school’s mission is strongly aligned with their own and generations of students to come deserve the privilege of being at the receiving end of a truly transformative experience.

And so as I ready myself to leave the Magnificent Enterprise, I am eager to ensure that generations to follow can enjoy this enriching process of moving from student to scholar. I encourage my peers to remember what this place has meant to them, and to continue to evince that love by being active alumnae/i, constantly supporting the College’s mission, whether financially or through selfless volunteering as leaders in the graduate community from across the world. As co-Chair of the Class Gift this year, I have witnessed a philanthropic spirit in the senior class that I hope will continue to grow and strengthen over time. We will never forget Vassar, but we need to make sure that Vassar never forgets us.

—Aashim Usgaonkar served as editor in chief of The Miscellany News during its 145th volume.

He is an economics and English double major.

Luke Steele I

f you’re looking for any advice as to how to succeed in life (success being defined as professional, financial, and personal attainment), I’m afraid you’re going to be very disappointed in this article. As I write this, my graduation has gone from “distant future” to “matter of days,” and I still feel like I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop, like at any moment the magical life fairy is going to pop out and announce that I need to do this, learn this skill, and apply for this post, by a certain time and date if I want to reach my fullest potential.

Unfortunately, I think that fairy just went on break. I don’t know what the next step is or what will guarantee me steady employment, and if I will have the utter privilege of living somewhere that doesn’t involve moving back into my parents’ basement.

Okay, okay, that’s not completely true. I am going to Germany this fall to teach English for a full year, but the point is that I have no idea what comes after that. It might entail coming back to the United States to try my luck with Teach for America, or attempting remaining in Germany with some kind of full-time job, or pretending like I have a chance to join the State Department.

But I really have no idea, and I expect that this coming January will be very much the same as this past one -- feeling that writhing sense of unease twisting about my stomach that I might have missed an opportunity somewhere or not explored something to its full possibility leaving me this unable to be happy in the future ever again.

It’s only natural to want to know what’s going to happen, to want answers to questions you subconsciously know will only come with time, if they ever come at all. If there’s one thing the human race does really well, it’s trying to figure out what we know we can’t actually figure out.

How do you think talentless hacks like Miss Cleo and the National Weather Service stay in business? But the crux of the matter is that it’s no good worrying too much about those big life problems now because in truth, you’ll just deal with them when they happen, and somehow you’ll get through it.

Over the summer I lost my passport the night before I was planning to fly home from Berlin, and despite Elizabeth Bishop’s reassurances, it really did look like disaster. My travel agent said I should show up at the airport anyway, but of course it didn’t do any good, and my father and my stepmother had to go home without me. It was a very humbling ride in the bus from Berlin Tegel to U-Zoologischer Garten.

When something terrible happens, it’s almost impossible to see a way out of it. But although

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

it seemed pretty dark to be in a foreign country with no passport and no way home, there always comes a point when you have to evaluate your options and figure out how you’re going to move forward. Sitting on the X9 toward Zoo, wondering how anything in life would ever work out, I wouldn’t have guessed that five hours after being turned away at the gate, I would have an emergency passport from the American Embassy in my hand. It wasn’t necessarily what I had in mind, but it worked.

The best I thing I learned at Vassar is flexibility. If something doesn’t work out, you get creative. Don’t have three hundred internships doing the conga all over your resumé?

Find some place to volunteer. Get rejected from your ideal grad school? Eat a full pint of Ben and Jerry’s Fish Food ice cream, swallow your pride, and apply somewhere else. Is it three minutes before class and you’re feverishly attempting to print your final portfolio of work and the only printer on campus for 15 miles announces it has no paper but still accepts your $1.15 in VPrint? Okay, that one’s not really as important, but I still wanted to rant about it anyway.

“I am going to Germany this fall to teach English for a full year, but the point is that I have no idea what comes after that.”

Am I still clueless as to what the future holds?

Pretty much. This time next year, if I haven’t secured something, I will be, yet again, feverishly panicking about what on earth I’m going to do with my life. But I think that’s just normal.

Anyone who claims to have their life completely sorted out is, to quote Tina Fey, “a liar and a socialist.”

So if you’re planning on walking across that stage on commencement and have no idea what happens next, don’t worry about it (at least, not too much). You’ll sort it out somehow, and you might be surprised with the results.

And who knows? There may be an opening for a position that involves popping out and giving people unexpected life advice. Check your local listings.

-Luke Steele is a Fulbright Scholar. He served as the German Department Academic Intern and has been involved in the Vassar College Choir.

SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES

May 26 , 2013

Michael Hofmann 2

40,000. That’s the approximate number of dollars that have gone into the education of each of us who are four-year students at Vassar College. Nearly a quarter of a million dollars was invested in my academic pursuits at this school. Was it really worth it? If I was really concerned about getting bang for my buck, I probably should’ve gone to the community college 15 minutes from my home, or the state school that accepted me the day after I applied; either option would’ve been under a third of the cost of a Vassar education. Why did I decide that going here was the better option? What did Vassar have to offer me and what could I offer it back that would make this $240K investment worthwhile?

I could cite the various tangible things that made my time here worthwhile. The thirty-plus courses, ranging from Ballet to Introductory Biology to British History to Beginning German to Bach, certainly kept me busy. Close to forty performances, including three to five choir concerts per semester, solo and studio recitals, an aria with the college’s orchestra, and a national tour to celebrate the college’s 150th birthday all get a spot on my professional resumé. While not all of my classes were small, and attention to my success was not a priority for all of the professors I encountered, the lion’s share of my education was of exceptional quality. My access to thousands of musical scores, recordings, books, journals, pieces of art, and other resources through our library system and art gallery was certainly worth at least a few dollars

from my personal quarter-million. The campus, with its scenic landscape, iconic architecture, and proximity to a good number of local, diverse, and tasty restaurants was an added bonus.

However, the point of my education, or even this retrospective, is not to create a Buzzfeed-esque list of “69 Reasons Why Vassar is Worth It.” The value of Vassar’s education is a brew of experience that is uniquely my own. The things in which I have found power could be inconsequential or problematic to my noisy neighbors, and elements of Vassar I haven’t even approached are crucial to the experience to many other students, some of whom I probably haven’t met. It is in those deeply personal and unqualifiable experiences that have made this quarter-million dollar investment completely and distinctly worth it for me.

There’s the time I danced alone like a crazy person in my freshman year hallway to the Spice Girls and Britney Spears, realizing that I didn’t have to submit to the fear of judgement if I truly enjoyed what I was doing. I talked to a friend about my sexuality for the first time the following semester after painful years of hiding an important part of my experience, and thus opened the door to establishing a positive self-identity.

Then, too, at some point in my time at Vassar, I realized that in order to be successful as a student and as a musician, my career would need to be marked with conviction and joy in my work and journey.

Perhaps even more importantly, Vassar

taught me how to think and speak critically about and potentially act on concepts and issues I never would have imagined before entering its gates. I never anticipated being a leader of Do Something VC, as someone who had a hand in the operation of what became the most controversial organizations in my entire time here at Vassar.

“The value of Vassar’s education is a brew of experience that is uniquely my own.”

I am so thankful I did, though, because it opened my mind to dialogue about issues of inclusion, plurality, community, and both personal and systematic –isms in higher education; I hope to see such conversations continue into the future here. I am pursuing a career in classical singing, a field of music-making that is extremely and unnecessarily steeped in classism, and my experiences at Vassar have prepared me to examine and critique the very institutions in which I will be involved while still maintaining a solid conception of my own personal worth as a person and artist.

So yes, Vassar, Mom and Dad – I think the $240,000 was well-spent.

-Michael Hoffman is a Music major. He is the outgoing director of Camerata.

Alex Koren A

s a kid, I was always nervous. I doubt my family, friends, or teachers ever suspected this—I was outspoken in class, acted in plays, and competed on the debate and mock trial teams. In other words, basically the exact opposite of the definition of “nervous.” But on the inside, I was self-conscious. I worried about what people thought of me. I was scared to make risky decisions and lived in perpetual fear of leaving my comfort zone. I stuck exclusively to my strengths and avoided things I wasn’t good at, like sports, math, the hard sciences, large doses of social interaction, and the outdoors.

“When in doubt, stay inside, close the blinds, and play computer games” was my motto, and it worked pretty well at keeping me out of what I perceived as trouble.

My anxiety peaked immediately before I came to Vassar. I got contacts because I thought I would look dumb in glasses. I sorted through all my clothes and picked out the “cool” stuff to bring to school, leaving the rest behind (admittedly, even my “cool” clothes were not very cool).

I went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond and bought everything listed in the “Room Essentials” catalog.

I tried my hardest to look as generic as possible, because if TV had taught me anything, it was that you would be judged exclusively based on your physical appearance or possessions, and once the results were in, they were permanent.

It took me only a few days at Vassar to discover people didn’t care about such trite matters. In fact, on the whole, the residents of Lathrop House, the place that would become my home for the next three years, had an extremely tolerant, “deal with it” attitude.

And I don’t mean tolerant in a liberal, environmentalist, socially conscious, “okay with the gay thing” (as the evereloquent Mike Bodnarik put it) sense— I mean your mattress was infested with bedbugs, the paper-thin walls were crumbling around you, half of the lights were broken, and the bathrooms were so revolting they made a gas station look like the lobby of the Ritz Carlton…and you dealt with it.

This mantra extended beyond the physical plant. Raging party in the hallway on a Tuesday? Random guy crawled

into your roommate’s bed and won’t leave? Senior dumped a delicious ketchup, hot sauce, and Busch Light mixture on your head during Serenading? B&G hasn’t responded to your nine service requests from last month?

Deal with it, deal with it, deal with it… deal with it.

Why put up with all of this? Why not just say, “screw, it—I’m not dealing with it?” In retrospect, I have no idea. I could have transferred dorms. I could have moved off-campus. We all could have collectively revolted and staged “Occupy Davison” until conditions improved. We could have made a conscious decision to improve our living environment by saying, “hey guys, what if we, like, didn’t flood the bathrooms every weekend?

Wouldn’t that be cool?” But for some reason, we didn’t—we loved our home for what it was. We were fiercely proud of it (stinkbugs and all).

Over the next three years, Vassar took drastic steps to improve Lathrop’s conditions (if only to keep pace with Department of Health safety regulations). Despite this, the catchphrase I had learned in my first few months stuck with me. I resolved that whatever Vassar threw at me, I was going to take it head on.

On the academic side, I challenged myself in new ways. I sorted instructors on Rate My Professor by difficulty and took seminars taught by James Merrell, Wendy Graham, and other professors famous for their harshly graded but incredibly rewarding courses. I took classes on everything from race to philosophy to gender to economics (though I still kept a safe distance from biology and chemistry).

Finally, with a little pushing from my parents, I declared a Computer Science major, and committed myself to struggling through a half-dozen introductory courses heavily loaded with math and computation that I almost certainly would have failed in high school.

Socially, I also branched out. I forced myself to go to parties, join a bunch of clubs (and even more mailing lists), and do…well, stuff.

At first, I kept things fairly tame and typical: drink some crappy vodka, march to the THs, mill around awkwardly, eat two slices at Bacios, and go to bed. Slow-

T

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Siobhan Reddy-Best

his is the tour I’d give my pre-Vassar self.

BEGINNING THE TOUR

Make sure all your (our? my?) bags are packed so that you can enjoy your last night at home. Your stuff might not fit in the car and Dad might get you lost on the way there (it’s OK, Dad. We’ll blame the GPS).

WALK TOWARD THE CDF: BACKGROUND INFO

You become obsessed with the college’s history/tradition. In your freshman year, your major changes every week. You think about Drama, Women’s Studies, English, Greek and Roman Studies, and English. You also got involved in the Polo and Quidditch teams. You wind up majoring in Victorian Studies, stop playing both Polo and Quidditch (but get involved in the Equestrian team), and are now the Vice President of the Philaletheis Society and in two different theatre ensembles.

STOP IN FRONT OF CENTER FOR DRAMA AND FILM

This is where you’ll meet the people you spend the rest of college with, so get excited. You are in a total of 13 full length shows at Vassar. That’s a lot of rehearsal. Be prepared.

EXIT OUT ORIGINAL ENTRANCE TO AVERY

You’ll get remarkably good at climbing out onto that roof, and you will come close to being caught EVERY time. But it’s worth it.

SUNSET LAKE

Go stargazing at Sunset lake, but DO NOT swim in it.

Trust me, you will want to, but that doesn’t make it a good idea. Have camp outs in the orchard with the Quidditch team.

ACADEMIC QUAD

Highest concentration of buildings you’ll take classes in, but by no means all of them: Sanders Classroom: Literature, and your advisor’s office. Sanders Physics: Astronomy. Yup. Olmsted Hall: Poetry and literature.

THE PRESIDENT’S HOUSE

Have dinner at Cappy’s house freshman year. Compliment her amaryllis and she’ll give you one of your own.

MAIN BUILDING

ly, I got braver.

When some friends duped me into DJ’ing Dormal Formal (despite me having no experience) and then plastered posters all over campus advertising that “Sexii Lexii” would be playing, I wanted to crawl under my bed and never come out. Instead, I taught myself the basics of DJ’ing, put together a set, and managed to pull off a not-disastrous performance.

Occasionally, I even took the maxim literally—for example, when some other friends of mine and I happened upon a large yellow car barrier in our way walking back from the SoCos, rather than go around, we displaced the barrier, placed it on our shoulders, and transported it funeral-procession style all the way back to my room on the 4th Floor of Lathrop (where it remained until I emailed Tom Allen to have it removed).

The Rose Parlor, the best place to eat lunch or nap before class. This is also where you, Violet, Corinne, and Lyla hatch the idea of Britomartis. Fall in love with the way the library looks at night.

THE LIBRARY

For the love of all that is good, USE THE WRITING CENTER! AND THE RESEARCH LIBRARIANS! They will make your papers SO. MUCH. BETTER. If you sit under the window of Lady Elena, you will actually get your work done.

ROCKEFELLER HALL

You’ll become really familiar with Rocky between the hours of 7 p.m. and 1 a.m. Student theatre rehearsals take place in here every night. The bathrooms might be haunted, so always use the buddy system.

THE RESIDENTIAL QUAD

You and Sandy will spend six hours listening to “Daylight” by Matt + Kim instead of doing homework. Davison House is your home. Go to the MPR during orientation, because that’s where you meet Tyler. He cheats at games, though, so watch out.

HEAD TOWARDS ACDC/NOYES

“I resolved that whatever Vassar threw at me, I was going to take it head on.”

I applied for various leadership positions on campus and forced myself to interact with people in a variety of capacities and contexts—I became a Student Fellow, Student Advisor, President of the Debate Team, a representative on the Judicial Board, and last but not least, Vice President for Finance of the Vassar Student Association. Not because I wanted accolades or awards (if high school had taught me anything, it was that nobody cares about anything you did before you graduate), but for the experience of it all.

For my old self, “dealing” with all this stuff would have been overwhelming, and I probably would have just run away. But thanks to Vassar, I didn’t.

From now on, whatever’s next, I’m ready to deal with it.

—Alex Koren served as Vassar Student Association Vice President for Finance and previously served as the Head of the Deabte Society.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

The food really isn’t that bad. Noyes Circle is where you’ll do your Hamletmachine presentation. It will be icy. It will be cold. Danielle will slip and fall. It’s worth it, because the performance looks amazing.

ELY HALL/THE AULA

Swing dance is every Wednesday, so GO! Don’t eat too many mini-bagels at Admissions Open House. Also, come up with a better excuse to walk away from families than “I’m going to grab some coffee,” otherwise you’ll end up drinking 7+ cups.

THE COLLEGE CENTER

You will lose your mailbox key within 24 hours of getting it. It’s okay, it only costs $20 to replace. Brian runs the computer store. He will save your ass (and your thesis) so many times when your computer stops working throughout senior year. By the way, SAVE YOUR THESIS ON GOOGLE DRIVE. You’ll thank me later.

THE RETREAT

Your Retreat points never make it past Thanksgiving.

But you can refill them, so don’t freak out. DO NOT TRY TO DO WORK HERE. It won’t happen. Go to the library.

Two words: CHILI WEDNESDAYS. ENDING THE TOUR AT ADMISSIONS

Turn in your tour guide application! It’ll be late, but it’ll work out! Don’t be too scared of Paola, she’s on your side. Learn all the words to Jeremy’s “Vassar Song.”

Keep your comment cards. They’re fun to look at when you’re sad.

Say goodbye to Vassar. It’s been an incredible four years. You have a lot to look forward to, and so do I. —Siobhan Reddy-Best is a founding member and President of Britomartis and Vice President of Philaletheis.

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SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES

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May 26, 2013

Daniel Sohval “W

hat is a squirrel’s favorite bedtime story?” began the first joke I ever told at Vassar. It was early September of my freshman year, and I was performing in an open mic between two other students. The first one read his favorite poems by Sylvia Plath. The other student performed an original work written in the style of Sylvia Plath. My punch line—“Furry Tails”— was not written to sound at all like Plath; however, it was equally depressing. None of my jokes received any laughs. Thankfully, neither did any of the other performers’ poems. Somehow, as I exited the mic I felt invigorated. By some neurochemical fluke, my brain had registered the evening a tremendous success. I knew I simply had to spend my time at Vassar performing comedy.

That month I auditioned for four different comedy troupes, all of which hastily rejected me, (The Limit did give me a callback though). Still, my drive to tell more squirrel jokes was strong, and so I formed my own troupe. That November, Comedynormative had its first meeting in the Davison basement. In Comedynormative we focus exclusively on stand-up comedy rather than sketch or improvisation. Anyone is welcome to join regardless of skill or experience. Our first show that spring had an audience of about 30 people. Our most recent show about drew a crowd about seven times as big. Thank you to all my fellow troupe members for lending me their time, talent and effort. My stand-up dreams could never have come true without you.

Performing comedy here has colored nearly every other facet of my academic and social life..

Stand-up has taught the power of a well-executed pun, and that the existentially terrifying prospect of telling joke after joke to a silent, scowling, fish-eyed audience isn’t so bad. Bombing can be liberating. (I submitted that line as a catchphrase for the Obama 2012 campaign. They didn’t use it.)

Stand-up also taught me this college can be your oyster. This year I’ve written a sci-fi novel, fallen in love with an amazing woman and secured a Fulbright grant to South Korea. The prospect of leaving everyone I know is at times so terrifying

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my diarrhea gets diarrhea. I’ve learned to ignite that spark of confidence within myself even when it’s not there. “Everything will probably be okay,” as a man of medium intelligence once said.

Above all else, performing stand-up has taught me how deeply and profoundly unoriginal I am.

Vassar College is filled with individuals just like me: outspoken, cerebral and opinionated folk who wish to have their thoughts aired. Never again will I find myself in such a passionate community. I will miss how argumentative this campus is. Every space seems to be a floor for debate: from the discussions on the best way to model the ontogeny of red harvester ants in a Cognitive Science lab, to midday Retreat arguments on the prison-industrial complex to the half-stoned quarrels on some Brett Easton Ellis novel outside the THs on a Saturday night. I can only hope that the Vassar community stays opinionated in future years. Contrary to popular thought, the greatest threat to our way of life at Vassar is not neoliberalism, fossil fuels, patriarchy, privilege, conservatism, capitalism or second-hand smoke.

It is silence. Make no mistake, forces both inside and outside our community hate the freedom and confidence with which we express ourselves.

Should we give in to them and sacrifice our right to free expression at Vassar—even just slightly— our campus climate will suffer. A healthy college community needs a large diversity of opinions flowing through it, as well as speakers willing to articulate themselves with temerity. Fighting for freedom of speech may not always feel worth it, after all you will be working to protect the rights of those who vocally disagree with you. Trust me, we need those disagreements. They broaden our minds and make us better debaters and more compassionate human beings. And if in future semesters you find yourself unable to speak your mind, I know a comedy troupe you can join.

They’ll give you a microphone and audience, just try to crack a joke or two while you’re up there.

-Daniel Sohval was a founder of Comedynormative.

May 26, 2013

SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES ADVERTISEMENTS

Christine Marsico I

cannot reflect upon my time at Vassar without recounting my experiences studying Chinese, the very subject that taught me how to reflect.

I began studying Chinese in middle school. Enthralled by the nuances of the language and the newness of Chinese culture, I quickly became somewhat addicted to China. As a senior in high school, I went on a school trip to China, leaving the U.S. for the first time. For two weeks straight, our group was on the move, sleepily climbing onto a bus or boarding a plane, just to be awoken a few hours later by beautiful natural scenery or ancient historical architecture. The adventure was enough to convince me that I needed to go back.

I went back during the fall of 2011. My participation in a study abroad program brought me to Kunming, a city in China’s southwest.

While equally novel and stimulating, this trip was not all fun and games. Suddenly, I was among strangers with only my knowledge of Chinese to communicate my identity and experiences. While I had been studying Chinese for a while, my lack of confidence in speaking the language prevented me from talking as much as I should have. I did not want to sound dumb, so my response was to remain quiet.

After the first couple of weeks of stifled interactions, I realized that I needed to change my outlook and behaviors if I wanted to improve my language skills, form meaningful friendships and have any kind of fun.

I forced myself to talk. I began happily tallying my errors rather than hiding from them, because it meant that I was talking more and more. I spent hours reviewing lessons, so that I could have more confidence in my language skills.

I put myself out there, and by the end of my semester abroad I had learned so much; not just in terms of new vocabulary and sentence patterns.

Page 11

I learned to go outside my comfort zone, and persist even though it was uncomfortable. As a result, I had more access to people and experiences that taught me even more about myself and about the world.

Studying Chinese at Vassar was hard. Living in another country with limited access to the language was also hard. But that’s exactly why studying Chinese has been important for my education.

Challenges force us to introspect. When outside of our comfort zone, we can analyze the ways in which we are responding to unease. We have the chance to reflect upon and change our reaction styles. My reflection process resulted in persistence, a skill I can apply to multiple areas of my life, not just my schoolwork.

Studying Chinese has been a lesson in gratitude. My experiences studying Chinese at Vassar have culminated in my desire to work within the education field. I began taking education classes because I realized that my experience studying Chinese was rare and privileged. I wanted to learn how to share the educational opportunities that I received. Chinese has taught me about the potential of education.

Schools teach so much more than words and numbers; we need to make sure that the additional socialization occurring in schools promotes reflective processes.

In a couple of months, I will be moving to an outlying island of Taiwan to teach English. Many of my Chinese teachers and professors are from Taiwan; I will attempt to return the favor that they have given me.

My job is to teach English, but my goal is to challenge my students, in an effort to teach them about introspection, persistence, and, ultimately, about themselves.

—Christine Marsico has been named as a 2013 Fulbright Scholar, travelling to Taiwan to teach English.

Mara Gerson A

couple weeks before graduation, my painting teacher made the observation that I was finally making what she called “bad-girl paintings.” I was amused and surprised; I’d been called a “good girl” my whole life, and as far as I knew had acted accordingly. Yet here I was throwing brushes at the canvas and spilling paint around with a furious passion. Perhaps she was speaking to my newfound confidence to follow my own rules rather than prescribe to someone else’s vision of how I should act.

When I came to Vassar, I was approaching my art in a similar way I approached life - carefully, respectfully, and methodically. I always had a clear, perfected image of what a drawing would look like before I even made it. In fact, I had a clear image for almost anything I did before I did it. When it came to choosing a college, I had an exact picture in my mind of not only where I would go, but also how I would act when I got there and who I would be once I got out. The Vassar-grad me of the future was eloquent, polite, creative, and knew exactly what she wanted out of her future - essentially, she was a “good girl.”

During my first two years here, I tried my best to stay true to this image. I took my parents’ advice about which classes to choose, handed in all of my essays on time, became a student fellow, declared an Art History major, and prepared to go abroad in my junior year all things that seemed to fit into my narrative for being a smart, average, and “good” Vassar student. Yet all the while, I was confused. I supposedly had everything together and was living up to my vision. But there was something missing; I was holding back an aspect of myself that I couldn’t put my finger on, and I wasn’t happy.

This all turned at the end of my sophomore year, when I eventually realized that both Vassar and myself in relation to Vassar were very different than how I had initially imagined them to be. So when it became clear that following my original script wasn’t working, I decided to flip everything on its head. I didn’t go abroad, moved off campus with some peers I didn’t know well, joined a performing dance

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

group and the ski team, and took a full schedule of more artistic classes. Most importantly, spending more time here allowed me to change my major to Studio Art - something that had felt radical and scary to me as a freshman and sophomore.

Since that fall semester, I have not only strayed organically from my original vision of how I would be at Vassar, but have also actively sought out situations and people that have pushed me to learn more and have unusual experiences. The exploration I’ve done in the past two years has helped me realize what I actually want to be doing with my future - whether that be travelling, becoming an artist or a teacher, or doing work to further my political beliefs. This time, I am painting a larger and more courageous picture of who I want to be. My aspirations are high, but they are no longer prescriptive.

I don’t think this shift within myself would have happened if it wasn’t for the time and space Vassar granted me when I was here for an extra semester. During that period I was able to take careful and ambitious stock of what this school has to offer. Ultimately it doesn’t matter what activities I did or classes I took. What matters is that I was in an environment where I was told it was okay to stray from my original vision, where I was told not to be “good” but rather to be bold.

I hope that every current and future Vassar student feels that he or she has the freedom to explore, mess up, re-start, and even be a little “bad” in his or her time here. These are values that are too often neglected in the busy and competitive aspects of contemporary life, especially for people our age.

I greatly appreciate that Vassar supports its students to find and re-find themselves repeatedly, simultaneously encouraging us to hold strong to our visions and cast them away when there is a new, stronger or truer side of us that needs to come out.

—Mara Gerson is a Studio Arts major from Berkeley, California.

SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES

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May 26 , 2013

Amanda Zeligs M

y TA has a quote wall. It’s a recent decorative addition—one part nostalgic indulgence, two parts final paper procrastination—and is mostly full of things my housemates and I have said that sound really dirty when taken out of context. Some of my own gems include, “It’s so good because it’s hot, and supple, and juicy...” (I’m referring to broiled grapefruits, I swear) and “I’m totally 100% stuck to the couch.” We’ve documented another housemate declaring, “I’m just figuring out new and awkward ways to touch you.”

Then there is our house motto: “Take it. It doesn’t own me. I don’t own it.” And I’m proud to report that we, the residents of TA 41, have collectively recorded the question of our generation: “What would Lindsey Lohan’s British twin think about her now?”

I am tempted to sum up my time at Vassar in witty, innuendo-laden quips, song lyrics, and movie quotes, a fragmented and not entirely accurate portrait of my college experience.

(I’m still recovering from writing my thesis on T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land, so fragments— what they leave out and what they reveal—are fresh on the brain.) But how can I possibly capture four years worth of seminars, student fellow one-on-ones, VSA meetings, and three

o’clock a.m. bestowings of great truths in decontexualized pieces of what people have said?

Alternatively, I could zoom in on a single moment. I could exercise my steel-trap of a memory and attempt to wax poetic about an enlightening class freshmen year, a successful House Team event, or a heartfelt conversation over chili in the DC. I could conduct a close reading on each recollection, extract universal truths, and say how the micro-moment stands for everything that I feel about this school. But a single memory, even fully fleshed-out, is too small, too constrained, and not compelling enough to be representative of my undergraduate education.

I can’t pin my time at Vassar down. No series of fragments—arranged alphabetically, chronologically, biographically, in a mixed tape, a slide show, one of those new-fangled Prezis—no single moment defines my whole experience in one fell swoop. That’s frustrating but also tremendously satisfying. I don’t want to be able to neatly pack my time at college in a to-go container and tie a symmetrical bow around it. How boring. How not “Vassar.”

Vassar doesn’t belong in a box because there is nothing tidy about this experience.

I feel like I have worn a hundred hats, piled

one on top of another at skewed angles— house student advisor, research assistant, high school teacher, voice of reason, rapper, fedora, uptight roommate, and, you know, student.

I imagine that my peers will report resumes that are equally all over the place. Whether it’s finding an unorthodox way to conquer your fear of public speaking (giving no less than a million tours to prospective students), auditioning for (and not getting in) AirCappella, or blindly taking on a VSA executive position while writing a thesis and recovering from a semester of student teaching, this college has pushed all of us to radically expand how we define ourselves. These new definitions are bittersweet, nuanced, still in a state of flux, and beyond anything our high school selves could have every conceived.

Or, at least, mine is. Four years ago, I never thought that I, blonde-haired, blue-eyed, and a self-proclaimed kindred spirit of Elle Woods, would spend a semester not only listening to every single Jay-Z song ever released (I could write a term paper on the evolution of his preferred watch brands), but also learn to write my own rudimentary raps. I never thought that I would participate in freshmen orientation not once, not twice, but three times. And

I never thought that I would accept (well, sort of accept—excuse me while I fight the sudden, overwhelming urge to hyperventilate) the fact that I’m rebelling against every Type A fiber in my being and graduating from college without a concrete plan for the future. At Vassar, I have surprised myself on more occasions than I can count. But here I am, doing exactly what I was trying to avoid: resorting to fragments and moments to exemplify how my time at Vassar has changed me.

Anecdotes aside, Vassar has had this transformative effect on me because it taught me to let go. I have learned to let go of my own (selfimposed) limitations, my definition of success, and my standards for a well-balanced meal. A Vassar education can’t be ordered. And it’s in this chaos, this liberal arts environment that we find what we are passionate about and catch glimpses of the adults that we will someday become. No wonder I can’t find a single quote to capture the entire experience. But it doesn’t matter; I wouldn’t trade these last four years for the best one-liner in the world.

—Amanda is an English major and is the outgoing VSA Vice President for Academics for the Spring 2013 semester.

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To our sister Lindsay, We know you can accomplish whatever you set your mind to, and cannot wait to see where life will lead you!

Love,

Kimberly, Emily, and Maddie

Lindsay,

Dream

big

and reach for the stars!

Love, Grandma

Congratulations to Carmen M. Angleton on her graduation!

Love, Mom, Dad, Monica, Sophia and Nick MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

May 26 , 2013

SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES

Page 13

Natalie Santiago “E

njoy your time at college, they will be the best four years of your life, but they will fly by.” These were the words I heard repeatedly from nearly everyone I encountered as I commenced my college search. I shrugged off this wise advice assuming that my time at college would be much like my years spent in high school: filled with stress, work, and sleep deprivation. I could not have been more wrong.

My experience at Vassar has far surpassed the hopes of what I planned for in a college experience and it still seems surreal to me that I will soon be graduating from the institution that has truly become a second home to me.

I can honestly say that I would never have discovered Vassar had it not been for the women’s tennis team coach, Kathy Campbell. I had never heard of Vassar until my junior year of high school so it did take some convincing on Coach Campbell’s and my parent’s part to plan a visit, but once I stepped on to campus I fell in love with the school. I must admit, my role as a student athlete has been the most influential upon my experience here at Vassar. Tennis has been a part of my life since I was a child, but when high school rolled around tennis began to feel more like an obligation rather than a source of enjoyment. Coach Campbell and all

of my teammates changed that for me. Coach Campbell, or Kathy, as everyone on the team calls her, is one of the most supportive, positive and hard working coaches on campus. She along with our assistant coaches, Mark Chase and Steve Guernsey, managed to not only rekindle my love and appreciation for the sport but also have been essential to my growth as an individual.

“Once I stepped onto campus, I fell in love with the school.”

Yet it wasn’t until this year that I could truly wrap my head around how much my time as a student athlete has taught and changed me.

Every year, and on every athletics team, team members come and go, team dynamics change, and new challenges emerge. This is not a easy process for anyone, coaches or team members, but it has been essential to my growth as an athlete and an individual. I honestly believe that nowhere else could I have learned the true value of commitment, responsibility, and

teamwork. For the first time as an athlete playing an individual sport I had other players relying on me to perform. From each scrimmage match to playing the deciding match at the Liberty League Championships, every player on our small team has had to instill a sense of trust, understanding, and support that is unshakable. The friendships that grow from this trust and teamwork are truly lasting and, like a member of any team, I can’t describe how much these friendships and the support they have provided has meant to me.

The support and lasting friendships I have made on the team have helped me to expand my college experience beyond my role as an athlete. One of the most important things I have learned during my time at Vassar is to never let an opportunity you are interested in pass you by. This is one of the few institutions that gives students the opportunity to establish a balance between the things they are passionate about. All throughout middle and high school, I was labeled as a tennis player, and these preconceptions (even positive ones) are difficult to break through. But part of the beauty of this liberal arts school is that you can move outside your comfort zone, expand your interests, and grow as not only a student, an

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athlete, or however you were previously defined, but as an individual.

“Nowhere else could I have learned the true value of commitment, responsibility and teamwork.”

So I guess what I wanted to say in this rambling retrospective is to take advantage of every day you have at Vassar, there truly is no other place like it. This is one of the few places that not only accepts change but encourages it. Don’t be afraid of changing, of growing, and creating friendships and relationships that remain with you forever. Your time here may be brief but what you take away from your experience here at Vassar will always remain with you.

—Natalie Santiago is the outgoing Women’s Tennis Captain and is from Isle of Palms, South Carolina.

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Angélica Gutierrez ­ he Most Dangerous Thing a Professor Can Do T As I sit here and finish writing my thesis I can’t help but cry Cry because we did it Cry because as much as I said “you’re lying to me”, I secretly knew I wasn’t being lied to Cry because this is a culmination of all of our efforts Everything perfectly (and imperfectly) falling together to prove to the world that I have a voice -- a roaring voice regardless of the many times I told myself I didn’t Telling myself that no one would listen Because I’m just a brown skinned mujer But like I told my professor today, the most dangerous thing a professor can do is believe in you I still remember first semester freshman year walking into Professor Eve Dunbar’s office and asking for advice on my paper toward the end of our conversation, as I had just finished telling her my insecurities with writing blaming it on my English-as-a-SecondLanguage classes she looked at me and saw more she told me “Have you ever thought about going to law school?” here I was a freshman just trying to survive my first semester at vassar and she saw more in me more than I had given myself credit more than I’ll ever believe in myself You see, Vassar is a place of many contradictions While we learn about systematic and institutional oppression in the classroom, spending countless hours outside of the classroom strategizing and implementing ways of combating these forms of oppression We are simultaneously in an institution that seeks to do nothing more than reproduce forms of oppression How do I encourage high school students to apply to college while I am dreading my own experience?

By reminding myself that although I may have a love-hate relationship with Vassar, I have a familia here Professors, administrators, and students -those that have helped me challenge the institution those that have inspired many before me those will continue to inspire those after me But especially Professors for mentoring us, Teaching us to believe in ourselves Keeping us in touch with our potential Letting us get away with our rants about this and that but never letting us forget that there is an end goal and no matter what they will stand by our side until we graduate so Thank You Thank You for believing in me When I forgot to believe in myself, because I wouldn’t be graduating if I didn’t believe in myself —Angélica Gutierrez is the outgoing President of Movimiento Estudiantil Chicana/o de Aztlán (MEChA).

SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES

May 26, 2013

Cassidy Hollinger W

henever I give a tour, there is one question that I dread. I wait with gritted teeth for some parent to ask it, because I know one of them will. They always do. “So, why did you choose Vassar?” And every time I hear it, I am even less prepared than before.

Of course, it’s a valid question, and why shouldn’t your tour guide be able to provide you with a satisfactory answer, like the class sizes, or the great overnight stay she had, or even just seeing this beautiful campus in the spring. But the truth is that I don’t have an answer for that question. The truth is that Vassar chose me.

My journey to Vassar was nothing short of divine intervention: I was three thousand miles away in California, a first-generation college bound kid who had never even toured a campus, and somehow I found myself on the Vassar website and I just knew.

That’s never changed. Vassar still has mysterious powers to lead me places I never knew existed. Never been in a play? Take Drama…or, you know, major in it. Dance all night, even when you’re totally sober and you hate the music. Fall in love so hard that you can’t recognize yourself when you come out the other side. My life looks nothing like I thought it would have. In fact, just about now, my life is looking pretty exactly like “The Ballad of Me and My Friends” by Frank Turner: “We’re going nowhere slowly/But we’re seeing all the sights.” I haven’t studied the things I thought I was going to, or participated in the organizations, or spent my summers in the way I would have imagined. I have never spent long nights in the library working on a paper (I prefer

to work in my room, hermit-style). I have never been inside Mudd or Sanders Physics or the gym.

I didn’t streak. These are the thoughts that eat at me as senior year winds down, and I ask myself if I have succeeded, if I have done what I came here to do. But, looking past those early expectations, what emerges is the perfect experience, where I learned more than I ever knew I could.

I have learned my own passions and interests; I have learned how to harness my creativity and make it productive; I have learned what it truly means to bare your soul to a friend and trust them with the contents – and to do the same in return. (And, yes, I learned that I am gay, which I did not know on the first day of orientation when I asked my student fellow where I could find the “straight boys,” but what can you do…)

It doesn’t matter if I did “what I came here to do,” because the person who came to Vassar is a far cry from the one who leaving. What I have done in these four years is exactly what I needed to do to come to this point, and that’s the most important thing. And if it weren’t for the incredible people I have met over the years, that wouldn’t have been possible. Some people blazed in and out and transformed everything in their wake, like the brilliant professors who can open up entire worlds in one semester, or the seniors I idolized when they seemed to do everything and still go to class, or the changing rotation of beautiful comedians in Indecent Exposure. And sometimes, you find the constants—the people who are always there, always ready and waiting— and they are the foundation on which I have built everything I know. Most importantly, I leave here

knowing my whole heart. For that, I’m grateful.

I have a million stories. I can go week by week from freshman year, thinking about what happened then, who I met, what I did, and I can feel exactly how I felt. And sometimes those memories are painfully overwhelming, like now, when I need to get ready for formal, but I’m trying to summarize the most glorious four years of my life. And I don’t feel particularly resolved about any of it. I don’t know how I’m going to handle the next few weeks, because the strongest constant for me has always been Vassar; now, I can’t live on this campus, which I haven’t left since I first arrived, or rest easy knowing that everyone I love would return to it again. I can only hope that because I have loved everything about this place and this time so passionately, I will be blessed with the memories forever, and welcomed back if I need to reconnect.

So, when I am giving a tour, and some parent asks me why I chose to go to Vassar, what I can say is that I chose it totally blindly from the other side of the country, and I never thought twice about it. This has been a totally unique and irreplaceable experience, and it’s going to be hard to say goodbye. And I wish, like many of us, that I could approach the next step of my life wideeyed and excited as I was four years ago, but that isn’t the case. I approach the next phase with anxiety and trepidation, afraid to leave the safety of the world we created, but then I remember that is exactly what this world is for–it is home.

—Cassidy Hollinger is the outgoing Co-President of Indecent Exposure.

Justine Paradis T

he first time I tried to visit the Farm, I got lost.

It was my first day at Vassar. After I moved into my dorm, I had a couple hours to spare, and my family and I decided to escape the madness of orientation by visiting the Poughkeepsie Farm Project (PFP) on the Vassar Ecological Preserve.

We weren’t quite sure how to get there, but we decided to just hop in the car and go for it.

We immediately took a wrong turn and found ourselves in the deteriorating post-industrial landscape of downtown Poughkeepsie. The city is a labyrinth of one-way streets and dead-end cul-de-sacs, and soon, we were hopelessly lost.

After an hour and a half of erratic driving, misguided advice and bickering, I found a tiny map on the back of a glossy “Welcome to Vassar!” brochure, and we managed to drag ourselves back to Raymond Ave. When we finally pulled into the Farm, we spent a few minutes giving the parking lot a perfunctory once-over before retreating with injured pride back to campus.

My second visit to the farm was more successful. During orientation, a hall-mate invited me to join her on a walk around the Preserve. I accepted, but neither of us understood the commitment—we were practically strangers, and it took three hours to complete the five-mile loop around the 600 acre Preserve. Luckily, the walk passed without irremediable awkwardness, and our friendship survived. Today, she remains one of my closest friends.

That spring, I did field work on the PFP, but I also foraged for wild greens and ramps in the surrounding forest. I formed friendships on the basis of a love of nettles or desire for morels—which we never did find, but I know they’re out there.

The property has also been a place for parties.

Once, walking back from a midnight fire, I heard coyotes howling on the drumlin. At that moment, I didn’t know that I’d be tracking them the following semester as a part of an independent study in

biology. I only knew that the sound stirred some spine-deep part of me.

The tracking project was one of many studies I conducted on the farm. Over the course of four years of natural sciences, I have sampled soils, collected stream organisms, identified spring ephemerals, cored trees and counted their growth rings, calculated leaf decomposition rates, and created historical GIS maps of the property.

Environmental work can be disheartening: sometimes, it felt like the more I learned, the more problems I found. Because of the human pressure, the property must be intensely regulated, mowed and burned to maintain its mosaic of ecosystems. The urban forest began to feel less valid than wilder landscapes—I could hear car traffic even in the heart of the forest. During my sophomore year, after spending so much time thinking about the space, I grew restless and discouraged. I considered transferring to a small, rural college in Maine, where I could study a wilder place.

But I stayed, and I kept visiting the farm—foraging, exploring, running the trails. I signed up for a share at the PFP, and I visited the farm Saturday mornings in the fall to pick up my vegetables.

I weeded the strawberry patch with Vassar students and Poughkeepsie residents.

Despite my studies, I now believe that I barely know anything about the Preserve. As time passed, constantly revisiting it, my relationship to the landscape shadowed and deepened. It takes time to grasp a place, and four years really isn’t enough. To become bored, I came to realize, suggests a lack of creativity, and a measure of presumption. The work of understanding is difficult for the simple reason that the world is constantly changing, and ecosystems shift. The Preserve is no exception. For example, last spring, a pair of beavers moved into the Casperkill, the stream that runs through the property. They built a dam

beneath the southern bridge, flooding the surrounding meadow. The diverted stream washed away the charred remains of our illicit fireplace.

Today, my family laughs about our adventure getting lost in Poughkeepsie, but the incident highlights an odd feature of the Preserve: it lies within City of Poughkeepsie limits. Poughkeepsie is divided into town and city, and the border is not only physical. It marks a racial and socioeconomic divide. That’s why the Preserve’s location within the city limits feels so significant: John Reps once wrote that “to conceive of New York without the park is to imagine the intolerable.”

The right to open space belongs to everyone, and that is how we maintain our connection with our surroundings, and how we consider that right to space can transfer to other species. The Preserve provides a home—for them, its importance cannot be understated. I might be graduating, but they’re not going away. For beavers and coyotes, and, but also for caddis flies, nematodes, and humans, the Preserve means life.

For me, the landscape is storied. It contains four years of memories. I found a fox den and a coyote kill, stepped on a wasp nest, watched a snake eat a frog, hooted at a barred owl, and of course, almost walked into a deer. I list these memories—but to demonstrate that it took a long time to accumulate. I don’t know how many times I have walked to the Preserve, but, except for deer, I’ve encountered significant wildlife only on a few occasions. I can conclude only that more wildlife lives around us than we think, and they can adapt to our influence better than we realize—but also, it is more difficult for them than we know. I can’t say much more than that.

My experiences have coalesced into a baseline consciousness, a prerequisite for the rest of my life on earth.

-Justine Paradis is an Art Center Docent.

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Congratulations, April! You've accomplished so much. We are extremely proud (and exhausted!)

We love you- Max, Mom, Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle Ricky, and Aunt Rhonda MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES

May 26, 2013

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Jill Levine T

he cramped bar in the dusty back alleys of Beijing had been one of our haunts that summer. It was the summer before senior year.

I was working at an internship in the Chinese city, living on the floor of my friend’s apartment (Yes. The floor). We owned one knife and a few pairs of disposable chopsticks. It was difficult in a beautiful way; I now look back romanticize the experience of packed sunrise subway rides and greasy street food lunches. One night at the same dusty bar, thousands of miles away from Poughkeepsie, through a few instances of pure serendipity, eight Vassar students who barely knew each other on campus, shared cold cheap beer and travel stories.

The sense of community on campus is powerful and I didn’t understand until I left to live abroad. The pull of Vassar is immense: when we are outside of the community, we search for it.

We huddle together in dusty bars and cramped apartments talking about TH parties, the Library Lawn in the springtime, our professors, papers, books, Twisted Soul and Founder’s Day. I have spent a fair amount of my time at Vassar abroad but have managed to never quite leave. I spent three summers in China. The first two were on a Vassar program. The third summer I lived with my current housemate. I studied in London my junior year and found three best friends, who happened to be Vassar students. I have since realized that in all of my travels I have never been able to escape the pull of the Vassar community. It is that strong.

The community comes from the people: the administrators and professors that represent permanence in a place that can often feel so impermanent, the friends and the idea of shared experiences. The professors here have provided everything. I know that when I go to Fubing Su’s office hours he will always provide a challenging new angle to consider for whatever paper I am working on. Martha Kaplan writes the most thoughtful and careful recommendations and genuinely cares for her students.

The supervisors at my campus jobs have been important as well. Librarians Julia and Bonnie, my tutor and my confidant and Lourene in the Dean of Students Office whose heart is only rivaled by her sense of humor. I now leave

Vassar and know that these people will continue on to help and support other students. In short, I have never met so many unique, intelligent and caring people in one place.

We also make our own communities. The squash team, my friends in my Asian Studies and Chinese majors (who actually love to engage in debate over Chinese development and society and don’t think I’m weird) and writing as a Humor & Satire columnist for The Misc have provided important communities and connections. These experiences have all strengthened the pull of Vassar for me and make it impossible to ever truly leave this place behind.

The community provided by joining the squash team has shaped my Vassar experience in a large way. Even though my athletic abilities could be described as slightly above mediocre at best I was able to join the team as a freshman at Vassar. The squash team has been a part of my community from the beginning. I met one of my best friends on the team (and in life) as a propsie. I lived with the team junior year. We suffered together through morning lifts, bus rides and long tough matches. We came out with a close and supportive team.

There are a few things I will always remember about squash. One is that we are the only team in the college league that announces our lineup before matches (a very pretentious aspect of the already pretentious sport) using extremely creative nick names instead of real names. I will never get over watching, “Fiesta Fiesta,” “Doctor Dre,” and “Nancy Pants,” among others, step out of line to shake the hand of their extremely preppy and serious opponent.

These small moments, inside jokes and connections are so important. These are the things that matter and what will carry us into the next stages, always connected to each other and to Vassar. There are so many moments from my four years, so many moments in which I took a conscious pause and really thought wow, this is a good thing.

And honestly, what more can you ask for?

Page 15

“May you live all the days of your life.”

Jonathan Swift GO FOR IT, RACHEL!!!

Love, Dad and Mom

—Jill Levine is the Captain of the Women’s Squash team and an outgoing Humor & Satire columnist for The Miscellany News.

B

Nathan Hoston

etween Broadway reprises and sun-soaked daydreams, we would share our infinite freshmen wisdoms on the corner of Davison and boundless reveries. As she handed me an unwashed, dusty carrot, she’d muse. Everyone should eat a pound of dirt in his or her lifetime.

Our first class at Vassar was there, lounging on the quad, basking in pop-fueled rhythms. She taught me humility, and through mythical bee resurrections, omelet breakfasts, and Russian costume contests we would recreate ourselves as fun house reflections of each other.

Hundreds of words typed, thousands of pages read, and hours of lectures later, and my Vassar career is over. However, much to the dismay of my professors, their inspiring words of Algerian rebels, green utopias, and queer performativity will be lost in the manifolds of my memory. The theoretical notions that sustained most of our starving young liberal minds will always be eclipsed in mind by lazy afternoons with my friend, confidante, and kindred spirit.

Between Broadway reprises and sunsoaked daydreams, we would share our infinite sophomore wisdoms on the corner of the stir-fry station and the stresses of tomorrow.

Pouring over names and players, we would choose the players joining us for the fourth Quidditch World Cup and she would reflect.

Sometimes it feels nice knowing someone has simply thought of you. And it was here, in the confines of the Deece, that she handed me another lesson. She taught me thoughtfulness, and through bludgers, boyfriends, and quiet meditation we would recreate ourselves as fun house reflections of each other.

She is the garden of love and compassion, saturated in yellows and jingly bracelets, blossoming in euphoric smiles. She is a vegan oatmeal cookie, burnt a little on the bottom, but still baked to perfection. She is a songstress, carrying tunes in abandoned staircases that echo and echo and echo until they penetrate

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

my quiet heart. She is my best friend, holding and nurturing my peachick dreams until the mature in multi-color, grand fruition.

Between Broadway reprises and sun-soaked daydreams, we would share our infinite junior wisdom on the corner of Mongolia and carefully crafted postcards. Laid within blog posts, letters, and capstone projects, she would relay. We are what we carry. And it was here, miles apart, that she imparted her wisdom. I became my possessions, and through surprise visits, yaks, and a year alone, we would recreate ourselves as fun house reflections of each other.

As I look forward, past receptions, rehearsals, and the correct pronunciation of my last name, I find I don’t fear the loss of Vassar as an institution. Instead, I look forward to the unintentional lessons that I’ve been so acutely aware of during these four years.

Between Broadway reprises and sunsoaked daydreams, we would share our infinite senior wisdom on the corner of a town house and a slowly filled memory jar. Over a quickly learned and often practiced dance routine she’d reveal. Dancing is also a priority. And it was here, in a cozy home, that she disclosed another truth. I started to let go, and through farm shares, house meetings, and family dinners, we would recreate ourselves as fun house reflections of each other.

She is moving to India, I am moving to Denver, and these transitions will turn into indefinite adventures in worlds that are far and foreign to each other. She has taught me that good memories reside right beneath the skin and will stain us like tattoos. I will wear her, like my fond memories of Vassar, when I breathe, eat, and sleep. I will never be without her.

-Nathaniel Hoston was formerly the captain of the Quidditch team and a member of Black Students Union.

SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES

Page 16

May 26, 2013

Rachael Borné M

y sister and then boyfriend, now fiancé, came up to Vassar in celebration of my 21st birthday a little over a year ago. After spending the majority of the weekend ‘exercising my right’ at a brewery in Hyde Park and a vineyard in Millbrook, we decided to visit Dia: Beacon to conclude their journey. One particularly interactive exhibition at the museum was called Work As Action created by Franz Erhard Walther.

A sterile room greeted us with a collection of strange fabric ‘instruments.’ Each piece promised to ‘activate’ our perceptions of time, space and the human body. Think oversized padded vests, long lines of fabric pulled taut between two people’s heads, a velvet church-kneeler, a human pita-pocket in which to crawl and contemplate life’s most puzzling questions.

The whole experience was chaperoned by a disillusioned, black-clad gallery attendant who was obviously taking the art more seriously than we were. My sister, “Sissy” as I have always called her, turned to the young woman to ask, “Which piece is the most fun to watch people wear?” After receiving a response about the four person dunce hat concept, Sissy then looked at me with such a pleased grin across her face.

She offered some advice that I will never forget: “You know, Rachael, good journalism is all about the questions you ask.”

She is absolutely right. Writing for The Miscellany News for all four years of my time at Vassar College has only fine-tuned my grasp of this notion. The college newspaper has certainly borne witness to a slew of articles that once showed dazzling potential to hook and captivate the reader throughout. However, all too often, these pieces fall flat when guided by the cursory ‘W’s” we are taught early on in elementary school: who, what, when, and where.

Such queries are liable to produce a shallow read on the article’s topic and characters therein, leaving the reader disappointed and

hungry for more.

What I have found, more often than not, is that the key to a good article is not just asking the right questions, but letting the speaker’s voice usher the story. Interrogating the character behind the idea, program or plot is often more enriching than the action itself. When the person you are interviewing is brought to a subject they have been waiting to discuss, their response out-pours with a richness and clarity unmatched: you have struck gold.

“You know, Rachael, good journalism is all about the questions you ask.”

The most satisfying moment in an interview occurs when you find that latent chord in the person with whom you are speaking. You ease into a topic they hold near and dear to their heart, but may have never verbalized before. If the speakers are humanized enough to touch the reader in a moment of introspective or sentimental concurrence, the story should follow your thoughts onto the next page.

Part of asking the right questions is ridding oneself of any fear, apprehensions or pretensions in seeking out answers. This process of developing confidence, sincerity and a little spunk has been at the heart of my growth as a inquirer here at Vassar. Serving as Contributing Editor for The Miscellany News this year has allowed me time to cultivate this tact like never before. The position of Contributing Editor entails just that—making a meaningful contribution to the paper in whatever way you see fit.

My interpretation of the job has consisted of a handful of responsibilities, most notable of which include making a commitment to hon-

oring events and issues relevant to the Poughkeepsie community, and unforgettably, my role as self-appointed director of snacks.

Though both important, the former has played a more prominent role in my understanding of the proverbial “Vassar Bubble,” a buzz word I hear thrown around this campus like nobody’s business. Certainly the towngown divide permeates most institutions of higher learning, but the huge wealth gap and relative segregation of Poughkeepsie into town and city districts does not help the situation here at Vassar.

Thanks to many opportunities through fieldwork, my decision to move off campus my junior year, and general feelings of wanderlust throughout my time in college, I ultimately came to realize the deeply self-imposed nature of this so-called bubble. It is what you make it, and as such, I knew covering off campus issues in The Misc. might encourage folks to experience Vassar as part of a spectrum rather than an island.

And, for more selfish reasons, it gave me the chance to be a bit more adventuresome in my approach to the newspaper. I was tired of writing the same old previews and stock articles I had endured as an underclassman.

Through reporting and strategic academic choices, I grew to learn my experiences on and off campus did not have to be so separate. Taking a course on mass-incarceration brought me to write articles on the ongoing jail expansion debate within the Dutchess County Legislature. I learned about the local group E.N.J.A.N. (End the New Jim Crow Action Network) that fights against racism in the criminal justice system, and I have worked to publicize their work efforts.

After several fieldwork placements at the Family Partnership Center, I got to know community leaders like Tree Arrington, Mae Parker Harris and Odell Winfield. These role models were quoted periodically in my arti-

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cles, but also helped shepherd me through the historical landscape foregrounding the topics I covered.

“I grew to learn my experiences on and off campus did not have to be separate.”

I did a story on the public murals that pepper the downtown area after riding my bike past the artworks on countless occasions. The vibrant colors enliven the facades of buildings foreclosed upon, my favorite heralded the message “Poughkeepsie Revitalization.” This impulse to cover such topics surged rather naturally.

My experiences on and off-campus have been intertwined over the years, and I believe that to separate the two would only diminish the constituent parts. It is my sincere hope that other Vassar students share in this sentiment, that any accusations of Poughkeepsie as unwelcoming or ‘sketchy’ be dispelled immediately, as they are complete and utter heresy.

Whether The Miscellany Newspaper gave me an excuse to venture further than the quaint district of Arlington, or simply served as a vehicle in my doing so, I could not tell you. But what I do know is that I have grown to view my surroundings through the lens of journalism. This prism is necessarily self-reflexive; it is critical, bold and forever curious, and for this, I am endlessly thankful.

—Rachael Borné is an outgoing Contributing Editor for The Miscellany News. She is an Anthropology major with correlates in Hispanic Studies and Art History. She was also named as a 2013 Fulbright Scholar and plans to work in Argentina.

John Plotz I

got my Early Decision acceptance letter to Vassar on December 15, 2008 at 1:30 PM. I had overslept and arrived late for a final exam that morning, so I knew that if I didn’t get into Vassar I’d totally FAILED my first semester and wouldn’t get in anywhere (I got a B+ on that test, it turned out okay.) Vassar was my first choice school; everywhere else was last place. I was lingering at my front window, waiting for the mailman, convulsing with anticipation. When I caught sight of him up the block I nearly had a seizure before running up to him, still in my socks, asking if he could give me the mail for my address. I told him I was expecting a college letter. He rifled through the mail while I stood there, nervous and twitching. He pulled out a large envelope. I screamed, tore open the envelope and upon seeing the words “You’re in!” ran home, full of joy. That was the glory of someone who considered everything taken care of.

It may have been foolish to think that everything was set just because I’d gotten in. I admired Vassar’s high standards, and craved the concentration of high caliber students it attracted, but hadn’t realized that meant it wouldn’t be easy. My first semester showed me Vassar meant business. I loved Math in high school, if for no other reason, because I could get an “A” without trying. Unfortunately, after a whole lot of trying, I received a B in Linear Algebra.

That’s one example out of a large number that taught me that, yeah, I’d have to work hard.

It was during crunch time for my senior recital this spring that I finally realized that my problem was that I needed to slow the f**k down. My piano teacher told me countless times that I was playing my repertoire too fast and loud. I couldn’t see what he meant (despite hearing this from almost every piano teacher I’ve ever had) and I resisted. I wanted to coast through, and laboriously holding back seemed as though I were dumbing myself down.

I finally forced myself to take his advice. The piano was not going to sound good just because I was playing it, so I went through the laborious motions of taming my performance. After adjusting to slower tempos, I recognized the extra time as a gift that enabled me to better hear

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the beauty of the music, and to make choices to enhance the phrases and harmony with my own expression. Playing as fast and loud as I can- forcing the music- is not as impressive as taking the time to care for the details.

At the same time, so many of my fondest memories of the past four years are not the result of conscious or deliberate thinking. I came in denying that I would be a music major; I found I didn’t have much of a choice. I consciously decided to study abroad in Australia, but it wasn’t until I under-cooked chicken and spilled boxed wine on a drunk Irish girl’s laptop that I started having any fun. (On a side note though, I do NOT suggest tempting the temper of a drunk Irish girl.) One Saturday night, I had a bold strategy for being a friend’s wingman, but it ended not with a new couple but with me meeting some of my best friends here and anywhere. I became an art history correlate by accident. I became a music director mostly because I don’t know how to say “no.” It seems like all of the good things that have happened have been by accident, and should I have overthought any of them, they may not have happened at all.

I realize the ideas in this retrospective are conflicting: on the one hand, I’m saying that what I’ve really learned is to slow down and make good choices. On the other hand, I’m saying that I hope no choice I ever make will have its intended consequence. Blogger Gretchen Rubin says that “The opposite of a Great Truth is also a Great Truth,” and perhaps this is what she means. The point is, though, what Vassar means to me is so much different than what I thought it would as a high school senior. This is what I’m so grateful for though, because if I spent all my time consistently ecstatic like on that December day in 2008, I would not have been able to learn my most important lessons.

Whether or not the choices I made were deliberate or accidental, they happened because of everything Vassar and the people here have been able to give me. You are all wonderful.

—John Plotz was a musical director for FWA, staff reporter for The Miscellany News.

May 26, 2013

SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES

Page 17

Katie de Heras I

got started with The Miscellany News before I even had really gotten started with Vassar.

The summer before my freshman year, I lost the password to my brand-new Vmail account and didn’t recover it until after the deadline to sign up for VANS had already passed. Some of the VANS sounded fun, but some involved things like slam poetry, so I was incredibly anxious I wouldn’t get my first choice—a scavenger hunt hosted by The Miscellany News.

When I finally arrived at Vassar a few weeks later and found a yellow piece of paper taped to my dorm room door assigning me to the Misc’s VANS, I was beyond relieved. (Coincidentally, this was the first time I learned how much I could get by with in terms of deadlines at Vassar. My apologies to all my professors.) I was struck by all the editors I met, because a) some of them were seniors and b) this group of kids managed to do weekly what my high school, under the tutelage of paid instructors, failed to do monthly--put out a twenty-page newspaper, both in print and online, that people actually read.

And so, with a Canon Rebel XSi gifted from my parents in hand and a dream of being a photojournalist in heart, I went to the Misc’s interest meeting the following week and signed up to join the photography section.

One of my first assignments as a contributing photographer for The Miscellany News was to take a portrait of a senior chemistry student. I made a rookie mistake and forgot to search her on StalkBanner before meeting up in the basement of Mudd, so I spent a painful five minutes wandering around, trying to look casual while emphasizing the fact I was carrying a camera, hoping the student would just approach me.

(She did). I had brought the wrong lens for the cramped and poorly-lit basement and almost knocked over a set of brand-new test tubes, but managed to get a shot I was proud of.

“I got started with The Miscellany News before I even had really gotten started with Vassar.”

My four years with The Miscellany News took me to professor’s offices, far-away lacrosse fields, poorly-lit concerts, and offcampus org meeting spaces. I learned how to stealthily creep up the aisles of lectures,

and from what angle Ira Glass looks best. A whole section of my bookshelf was devoted to old copies of the Misc—multiple copies of the ones featuring my photography, because I’d occasionally mail them home. The rush of seeing my work in print is something that still hasn’t abated.

At the end of my junior year, when the then-photo editors suggested I apply to be the 2012—2013 photo editor, I was both excited and terrified. I had heard tell of the infamous Production Nights, in which every Tuesday the editors toiled in the Misc office until four or five in the morning. With my contradictory low tolerances for both caffeine and sleep deprivation, I was hesitant. But I thought back on the pride I felt at being a part of the newspaper, and applied anyway. Hearing I had been elected was one of the best moments of my Vassar career.

As editor, I got to work with some of the greatest people I’d ever had the privilege of knowing. We came from different states, dorms, class years, and major divisions, but we all had in common a fierce devotion to documenting life at our beloved home--Vassar.

I learned to increase my awareness of events both on campus and across the country. I finally mastered how to send kind yet forceful

reminder emails. I taught others about photojournalism and watched their skills and aspirations grow. I never got more than five hours of sleep on Tuesdays, but I don’t regret it for a second.

“Hearing I had been elected was one of the best moments of my Vassar career.”

So to all those who were good sports when I awkwardly posed you for photos, to my fellow editors and my staff photographers who put up with my unending sass, and to everyone who picked up a copy of the Misc in the last four years--thank you.

Being involved with The Miscellany News has been the most rewarding part of my years at Vassar, and though this is my last contribution to the paper, I will forever hold a greater appreciation for free time on my Tuesday nights.

—Katie de Heras is the outgoing Photography Editor for The Miscellany News.

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Congratulations, Rinny!

You ROCK! Love, Mom, Dad, Graham, Nick, & Grandma.

John, You are truly amazing and always have been.

We are so proud of you.

—Mom and Dad Ben and Mike

Page 18

SENIOR RETROSPECTIVES

May 26, 2013

Lane Kisonak I

t me upside the head last year as I stood in line at the Retreat, a Nilda’s blondie in hand. Out of the blue, it was a momentary shock, like déjà vu, but it carried the weight of years upon years, not just a single memory. It wasn’t the first time this had happened, nor would it be the last. I think it happens to everyone. It’s profound but subdued, maybe but not surely nameless, and you can’t get it back if you try. It’s almost imperceptibly short, the pivotal moment that comes between before and after, when you switch from feeling like you’ve just begun something huge to feeling like you’re speeding headlong toward the end.

Just months before, I had come home from my fall semester in Scotland. Those three months had of course been their own dividing line. Nudged between my freshman and sophomore years (which at times felt like a haze as I emerged from my unfulfilling high-school past) and my senior year (when I was engulfed by the tasks of writing my thesis and applying to law schools), my abridged junior year at Vassar was an odd little interlude, one that lent itself to reflection. More and more, conversations with friends hinged around phrases like “Remember when,” and “It’s been such a long time since.” These things rarely came to mind before the end of the fourth semester, because all the memories were completely clear, and everything still shined brand-new. But now this is no longer

so true. As I write this, over a year afterward, and days away from graduation, Vassar has almost fully transformed into just the last of several chapters, bound in one volume with all the others.

I was always amazed when, as a kid, I would talk to my parents about their childhoods, and they struggled to remember certain details, like the names of their teachers, or the years when lifedefining events occurred. But now I get how that happens. It happens because there are so many memories that the brain’s reservoir has to overflow or it will burst. Every year I’ve been here, I’ve found new friends, grown closer to old ones, and stumbled upon weird new experiences. This has had an interesting effect. For every constant memory—from my first production night with The Miscellany News, to clambering down the foot of a Scottish Highland hill through an unwatched sheep farm, to laying under the sun on Founder’s Day with my girlfriend—there’s the kind of memory that barges in unannounced, sticks around for a while, and then rushes off as fast as it came. One never knows if a constant memory will become a come-and-go, but whenever one appears, it always reminds me just how much I’ve lived and seen in this place, and the other places it has allowed me to go. From Poughkeepsie to Edinburgh to Athens to San José to Washington, D.C., Vassar has flung me around the world and made me more fulfilled.

When good things like this come to an end, we try and find meaning that makes the end a little less difficult. In the beginning weeks of my freshman year, I always thought about becoming better, of framing my time at Vassar as an always upward progression. Naturally it has not been, and as a senior I realize that thinking like that was silly. What has become apparent with the highs and the lows is that such a large kind of meaning isn’t something I can impose upon my own life, but rather something that comes from the random coincidences, the victories, the falls, the little moments.

Perhaps the most rewarding little moments I’ve had here at Vassar were the ones where I found myself uncomfortable. Not only physically, such as when I stood for hours, knees locking from the cold, as my eardrums got enjoyably pummeled by the bass of Titus Andronicus, but also mentally.

The moments of doubt that piled up alongside a thesis, scattering my thoughts as my laptop buckled under the weight of the massive document, notes and PDFs. The trepidation that came with the slow burn of waiting for internships and test scores and law schools. The unease that came with starting a new activity, reaching out to people whom I needed to depend on, leading, teaching and passing torches, and starting conversations— first the small ones and then the meaningful ones.

But as I remember each occasion I realize that the

knees locking, the writer’s block, the tension and doubt, we all know and feel. And much of the time we succeed in helping each other overcome it. I’m not sure if any place could have taught me that as well as Vassar has done. I’ve found the same is true as I’ve begun to learn when to care and not to care what others think, where I can succeed and where I meet my limits, how failure is just as valuable as success, how to give help to people who need it and accept it when I do as well.

Maybe the dividing moment between before and after is nothing less than the sum of all these little moments coming together and hitting you all at once with the realization that you’re no longer the same person you once were, years ago. The experiences and memories change you slowly, rebuilding you piece by piece from the outside in.

It’s not exactly college as the Ship of Theseus, but it sometimes feels close. When you become conscious of it, it’s wonderful.

But perhaps my most constant memory is not so much a memory as a permanent imprint—that we carry each other during the climbs and falls, past the end into new beginnings. As we all move on somewhere else, we’ll carry with us our memories and this mutual covenant.

-Lane Kisonak is the outgoing Opinions editor for The Missclany News.

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Way to go Lindsay!

All your friends at HAGGERTY MUNZ, PLLC

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

May 26, 2013

FOUR YEARS AT VASSAR

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

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FOUR YEARS AT VASSAR

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

May 26, 2013