Misc10 6 16

The Miscellany News

Volume CXLIX | Issue 4

October 6, 2016

Since 1866 | miscellanynews.org

VC wants diversified courses

Posse students flourish Mack Liederman

Emily Sayer

Guest Reporter

Guest Reporter

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V Courtesy of Laurel Hennen Vigil

ike every other member of the Class of 2020, Brian Lepak arrived on campus for orientation on Aug. 22. Originating from Newport News, VA, Lepak acts just like many other Vassar freshmen. He’s ambitious, driven, interested in student government, plays sports and sometimes doesn’t love the food in the Deece.

What sets Lepak apart, however, is that at age 27, he is almost 10 years older than his fellow first years. While his peers are fresh off of puberty, prom, high school graduation and living with their parents, Lepak has spent the last two years living in DC, and before that, five years in the Marine Corps, serving two tours in Helmand Province, Afghanistan.

Despite his added experiences prior to Vassar, Lepak declares that he feels at home already. “I went to convocation, serenading and other first year activities to make a statement that I’m not any different than the traditional firstyear student,” Lepak said. “The age gap is noticeable, but students don’t really give it much attention. Everyone is very accepting for who you are. Students respect your experiences and really put forth an effort to make you feel safe and See POSSE on page 6

Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY

Students wait in line for their meal at the All Campus Dining Center. If the ongoing renovations continue according to plan, the interior of the building will be transformed into a more open, inviting space.

ACDC renovations to continue Laurel Hennen Vigil Guest Reporter

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assar’s All Campus Dining Center (ACDC), colloquially known as the Deece, is often the subject of students’ derision. “The Deece is not great,” said Nic Gedigk ’19. “The variety of food isn’t too good and the vegetables could be fresher and more flavorful.” Fortu-

nately, if all goes according to the plan that’s been in place since 2012, the Deece will be renovated and Vassar will have a new food service provider by next fall.

“Dining is central to campus life and socialization,” said Assistant Dean of the College for Campus Activities Teresa Quinn, who was instrumental in the development of the project, in an

emailed statement, “With an opportunity for renewal, coupled with intentionality and innovation, we can transform and improve the dining experience at Vassar.” In recent weeks, however, there has been talk that the Board of Trustees might put the brakes on the project due to an increase in the projected cost.

See DEECE on page 4

assar’s Philosophy Department features courses on the birth of Western philosophy, on Neo-Confucianism and on Hegel and Taoism.

However, the bulk of upper-level classes still focus on European and American philosophers and are taught by professors who specialize in Western philosophy. Despite efforts to increase the representation of non-Western perspectives through classes cross-listed with the Chinese and Japanese Department and Women’s Studies Department, Vassar’s Philosophy Department remains typical of many American departments in that its studies are tilted more toward the West than the universal title of “philosophy” might imply.

In the pushback against the Eurocentricity of many curricula in higher education, professors in American colleges and universities, including from Vassar’s Philosophy Department, are calling for either a restructuring of the program, or even a different label for the philosophy major more broadly. Professor of Philosophy Bryan W. Van Norden states in an article he co-wrote in the New York Times titled “If Philosophy Won’t Diversify, See PHILOSOPHY on page 7

Exhibit features Marist artwork Vassar coaches score big with new careers O Emma Jones Senior Editor

ver Under: A way of working, making use of actions; adding, removing, stacking, pairing, compressing.

After Over: Circling back around to layer a gesture, thought, moment.

The cryptic description of the exhibit at the entrance to the Palmer Gallery reads rather like an incomplete thought. Moving further into the gallery, it becomes clear that this imprecision characterizes the thought-provoking ambiguity of the nebulous collection of pieces, which range from collage-style images to

three-dimensional forms.

On Thursday, Sept. 22, an exhibition of sculpture and two-dimensional works on paper titled “Over, Under After Over” opened in the Palmer Gallery. The show features three Hudson Valley artists—Donise English, Laura Kaufman ’95 and Christina Tenaglia ’97–all of whom also teach in the Art Department at Marist College. The exhibition will be on view and open to the public through Oct. 13.

The show explores the processes of adding and subtracting from a space and of circling back to specific thoughts or moments in this process.

Newman elaborated in an emailed

Inside this issue

5

Rosh Hashanah services ring in FEATURES sweet new year

14 ARTS

Indian dance performance steals spotlight

Olivia O’Loughlin

Assistant Sports Editor

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he athletic department lost two esteemed coaches as the women’s squash coach Jane Parker and men’s baseball coach Jon Martin stepped down from their Vassar posts in August to accept job offers elsewhere. Both Coach Parker and Coach Martin had significant impacts on the athletics program and led their teams to many impressive accomplishments during their tenures. With their departures, the athletics department

has a challenging task of filling such large shoes.

After 13 years on the baseball squad, Coach Jon Martin announced his resignation to accept the head coach position at Bates College. Moving from the Liberty League to NESCAC, Martin will take the reins of Bates’s baseball team, which had an overall record of 14-21 and a conference record of 4-8 last season.

Although Martin will pack his bags for Lewiston, MN, his impact will See COACHES on page 18

Courtesy of Carlisle Stockton

Courtesy of Christina Tenaglia

Christina Tenaglia ’97 (work pictured) is one of three Marist art professors —and a Vassar alumna­—featured in the new Palmer Gallery show “Over, Under After Over,” which showcases sculpture and 2D paper pieces.

statement, “The three of us share a process that engages a structure (for me this is a system) that we then use to react to by layering, adding or subtracting gestures.”

While the three featured artists have markedly different styles, processes and purposes, the artworks in the gallery flow seamlessly and interact in ways that enhance the individual effects of each piece.

Each artist moves fluidly between sculptural and two-dimensional pieces, often blending the distinction between the two. English asserted in an emailed statement, “Honestly, I think our work looks great together. I love Christina and Laura’s work and am delighted that it is being shown together.”

Beyond the Hudson Valley, English has exhibited her work all over the United States, from the University of Wisconsin, to the Orange County Center for Contemporary Art in Santa Ana, CA, to the AG Gallery in Brooklyn, NY. English’s work explores a variety of mediums, but, she explained, “Whether using hand-stitching, tiny collage fragments, gouache or embedded wax, the obscure processes of all of the works share an intricacy that allows me to explore my ongoing interest in the sense of touch and the way that it embeds itself in, and indelibly records, human involvement in an object’s making.”

The artist has three different bodSee PALMER on page 17

Head baseball coach Jon Martin, shown above, as well as head squash coach Jane Parker are leaving Vassar athletics after long, successful careers.

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Leadership program hits SPORTS home run

The Miscellany News

Page 2

October 6, 2016

Editor-in-Chief Rhys Johnson

Senior Editors Zander Bashaw Emma Jones

Contributing Editors Elizabeth Dean Yifan Wang

News Eilis Donohue Opinions Nick Barone Arts Noah Purdy Elena Schultz Sports Hanna McGuire Design Talya Phelps Charlotte VarcoeWolfson Online Kelsey Quinn Copy Jackson Ingram Humor and Satire Evelyn Frick Courtesy of Jennifer Pineda

One of Jennifer Pineda’s favorite things about studying in Germany for the semester is the opportunity to travel to other countries. Jennifer visited Prague with a group of exchange students. She writes, “From the astronomical clock (Pražský orloj) to Prague Castle (Pražský hrad), each sight is breathtaking and memorable.” The Prague Castle is pictured here. You can read more about Jennifer’s trip at http://farandaway.miscellanynews.org.

The Miscellany News 6

October

Thursday

JYA Annual Fair

10:00am |Villard Room | Study Abroad/International Prgrams Office

Late Night at the Lehman Loeb

5:00pm | Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center | Art

Lisa Trivedi lecture

5:30pm | Taylor 203 | Asian Studies Program

CAAD- Philippe Petit Lecture 5:30pm | Martel Theater | Drama Department

CAAD Seeing Shadows, Hearing Echoes

7:00pm | The Environmental Cooperative MPR | Dean of the Faculty

Terry Gipson Talks Money in Politics and the Upcoming Election 7:00pm | Rocky 300 | Democracy Matters

Weekender_ 7

October

Friday

Applications of Physics: From Flash Gordon to Laser Surgery

4:00pm | Sanders Physics 206 | Physics and Astronomy Department

Life Right After Vassar

5:00pm | CCMPR | International Services and Special Projects

CAAD Seeing Shadows, Hearing Echoes

7:00pm | The Environmental Cooperative MPR | Dean of the Faculty

“Mary and Max” Film Screening

8:00pm | Rocky 200 | ACCESS

Karaoke in the Mug

8:00pm | The Mug | Big Night In

The Limit Comedy Show

9:00pm | Sanders Auditorium | The Limit

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October

Saturday

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October

Sunday

Field Hockey (W) vs. University of Rochester

Rugby (M) vs. SUNY Oneonta

Soccer (M) vs. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rugby (W) vs. SUNY Stoney Brook

1:00pm | Prentiss Turf Field | Athletics

2:00pm | Prentiss Gordon Competition Field | Athletics

12:00am | Rugby Field at the Farm | Athletics

Assistant Arts Assistant Sports Assistant Copy Assistant Social Media Web Designer Web Master

Patrick Tanella Olivia O’Loughlin Claire Baker Hannah Nice George Witteman Andy Carrera

Reporters Sieu Nguyen Sabrina Oh Clark Xu Columnists Jimmy Christon Jillian Elkin Jesser Horowitz Saachi Jain Steven Park Design Scarlett Neuberger Samana Shrestha Copy James Bonanno Gabriela Calderon Leah Cates Diana Henry Sumiko Neary Jessica Roden Laila Volpe Laura Wigginton

1:30am | Rugby Field at the Farm| Athletics

Lacrosse (M) vs. Alumni

4:00pm | Prentiss Old Competition Field | Athletics

Baseball (M) vs. Alumni

4:00pm | Prentiss Baseball Field | Athletics

Fall Fest

4:00pm | Library Lawn | Main House

Black Bonding Barbecue

5:00pm | TH Circle | Black Students Union

Vassar College Orchestra

8:00pm | Skinner Recital Hall | Music Department

HEL Show

8:00pm & 10:00pm| The Shiva | HEL

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

CORRECTION POLICY The Miscellany News will only corrections for any misquotes, resentations or factual errors for ticle within the semester it is

accept misrepan arprinted.

October 6, 2016

NEWS

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Theatre group, veterans combine for experimental piece Eilis Donohue News Editor

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original iteration. Performer Sofia Gutierrez ’18 explained that this familiarity made her more comfortable with the material. She explained in an emailed statement, “I was lucky to know Cody from a class last semester and was able to meet with him and talk about what I would be saying.”

The questions posed to civilians and soldiers range from “What is your favorite place in the Kabul Region?” and “What colors do you think of, when you think of Afghanistan?” to “What are the positive/negative outcomes of the foreign military presence in the country?” These reflect the company’s interest in finding the art in life, and in presenting a more complete depiction of life in a place that is often misrepresented in the media.

One of the company’s challenges was balancing their artistic vision with the violent reality of the material. “The subject matter is incredibly diffi-

Courtesy of Maria Höhn

erman theater group COSTA COMPAGNIE’s multimedia piece “Conversion/After Afghanistan,” developed in 2014 and performed to acclaim throughout Germany, came to Vassar this past weekend. The company stayed for a monthlong artist residency, to develop and perform a version of their work inspired by soldier and civilian experiences in Afghanistan, and incorporates spoken text, video, dance, sound and movement.

Before the performances on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, which were sponsored by the Creative Arts Across Disciplines initiative, members of the company and students participated in a discussion facilitated by the History Majors Committee.

Gathering in the Old Bookstore, students heard from COSTA COMPAGNIE’s Artistic Director Felix Meyer-Christian, who founded the group in 2009; Choreographer Jascha Viehstädt; and Posse veterans Cody Harmon ’19, Nicole Leadenham ’18 and Gaven Eier ’19. The panel, moderated by Nikki Lohr ’17, discussed the interview process, the contents of the piece and the veterans’ differing experiences in deployment.

The creative team behind “Conversion” travelled to Afghanistan for several weeks to gather materials. They arrived with a handful of contacts in Kabul and Mazar-i-Sharif, and soon discovered that there was no shortage of willing participants.

Meyer-Christian told an anecdote about finding a young interviewee by chance in a bakery, explaining that often they would often be approached by intrigued citizens who, upon learning that they were creating a documentary-theater piece, wanted to be a part of it.

Unlike most touring shows, “Conversion” did not make its US debut in its original form. To make the show more engaging for its American– and specifically Vassarian–audience, the company switched German voices for American ones. Not only was the entire show translated from the German into English, which each performer did for their own lines, but also most of the interviews with German soldiers were replaced by inter-

views with Posse veterans.

Just three of the original performers accompanied Viehstädt and Meyer-Christian to Vassar, and the rest of the company was composed of Vassar students and one West Point cadet. Word of the company’s arrival spread among students involved in theater. They then had just one week to learn their parts, including text and movement. Performer Ryan Eykholt ’17 remarked in an emailed statement, “I was drawn to the dance theatre aspects, because I think the choreography looked unlike a lot of the work done at Vassar currently. The magnitude of the text and technical elements were components that I was less prepared for.”

Recreating the piece in a college setting means that several of the performers and subjects were well acquainted, a marked difference from the

COSTA COMPAGNIE members and Posse veterans discussed their experiences with war and their collaboration on the experimental theater piece “Conversion/After Afghanistan.”

cult, challenging, and emotional. The whole team struggled at times to figure out how to translate the immensity of these experiences, without leaving anything out and without focusing too much a particular message,” dsecribed Eykholt. “It’s a place rich in culture, and I think culture is lived there through the arts...showing how pain and happiness and struggle and freedom is embodied,” Harmon observed. “People can say anything they want, but to feel it and see it is just more powerful, more profound.” Despite their efforts, Meyer-Christian acknowledged, “In the end, it’s a piece of art, which is always highly subjective.”

The creators and performers did recognize their Western perspective, despite all attempts to make the voices of citizens and civilians the focus. But this can be difficult to manifest. “What is a story, and who has the rights to it?” posited Meyer-Christian, describing the fine line between sharing and appropriating. Gutierrez added, “[E] ven though this was supposed to be based on Afghanistan and narratives that happen there, much of the text ends up being about the US and Germany.”

The company’s aim is to represent both civilian and foreign soldier voices, without consciously taking a side–an unconventional tactic when dealing with the topic of war. Meyer-Christian explained, “We want to make the panorama wider, to open the window [to this topic]” [translated from German]. Viehstädt agreed that their goal, through the combination of several artistic mediums, was to expand the conversation about the war in Afghanistan, saying, “We try to open the piece for everyone who sees it.” Harmon believes that having veterans at Vassar helps create that openness, bridging the gap between the many young college students who have little experience with this war, and people who have been on the front lines. “This space of talking about controversial issues without actually forming an opinion, I think that’s why this is [at Vassar]–so people can have a discussion about this,” He continued, “I hope...we’re going to take that conversation further, and have a national conversation.”

Student org offers alternative, inclusive weekend programs Clark Xu

News Reporter

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lcohol can play a significant role in the social lives of students at Vassar. However, for those dedicated to Big Night In (BNI), a student group that provides alternative programming and entertainment, a leisurely evening with friends focuses on activities besides alcohol consumption.

Ranging from movie screenings and bowling nights to laser tag and apple picking, most BNI events represent the passion projects of dedicated students. BNI Founder Kohei Joshi ’18 reflected, “Three things motivate me in continuing my efforts to create a more inclusive, interactive and accessible community on campus. These are simply seeing people have fun and smiling at our events, having a group of extremely enthusiastic and passionate friends who share my vision of creating a community through alternative programming and lastly knowing that we are in the midst of making a lasting meaningful impact at our very own school.”

BNI Member Antonella DeCicci ’20 elaborated, “Students generally attend BNI events to be a part of a community of fellow students who choose not to party every weekend. It creates a fun environment with lots to do and lots of opportunities to meet people and build friendships.” She continued, “As an incoming freshman, the pervasiveness of the drinking culture on campus was a bit shocking. I’m disappointed in how little there is to do in Poughkeepsie and on Vassar’s campus outside of partying on the weekends, but I’m happy to have BNI and I loved all the activities put on this weekend by various student groups!” BNI Member Zhuo Biao Cai ’19 agreed, “I am beginning to understand how valuable alternative programming can be to students who do not party or drink. College is stereotypically portrayed in TV shows as a place where students party, but there are so many students who are not comfortable with such activities. They also need a place for them to enjoy themselves and it’s important that such a community exists for them.”

Courtesy of Big Night In

Students gather under Blodgett Arch after a BNI Hide-and-Seek event. The student organization offers a range alcohol-free events for people looking for weekend alternatives.

BNI and similar groups have been backed by on-campus healthcare providers. Director of Health Services Dr. Irena Balawajder observed, “We support alternate programming. It would provide students with a healthy and safe outlet for stress relief and enjoyment.” Balawajder continued, “Reducing the effects of alcohol abuse would ultimately improve students’ well-being and academic performance as well as serve to reduce the impact on healthcare and community resources.”

Students involved in the events have fond memories of the time they’ve spent together. Zhuo recounted, “My favorite moment occurred during BNI’s Hide-and-Seek event at Blodgett. We didn’t have many people who wanted to be seekers, so the members became seekers. We all went inside a dark Blodgett with just glowsticks and tried to find as many people as we could.” A crucial aspect of events like this is collaboration between student groups, student government and the Administration. The Blodgett event, for example, was a new idea that required input from building managers as well as the Office of Safety and Security.

BNI’s most recent event involved collaboration with the Vassar Card Sharks. Co-founders Michael Oosterhout ’18, Baian Liu ’18, Clara Berard ’18 and David Deng ’18 wrote in an emailed statement, “We at the Vassar Card Sharks were approached by a friendly admissions officer at this semester’s Activities Fair, who saw some similarities in mission between our org and Big Night In and introduced us. After discussing some ways to structure a joint event between Card Sharks and BNI, we decided to help host a night of teaching and playing various card games. Card Sharks and BNI both believe in providing fun, alternative programming on the weekends for Vassar students, so it was an easy match to make.”

As BNI expands its programming and collaborative projects, the student group has become increasingly involved with the VSA. Joshi noted, “We now have a representative in the Health and Wellness Committee, and we have received financial and vocal support from various generous supporters.” But significant challenges remain to be resolved. Zhuo elaborated, “Budget has always been a major obstacle for us. As one of our members put it, it’s really hard to do alternative programming

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

with limited people and money.”

In addition, BNI has had miscommunications with VSA Finance regarding the status of funds alloted to the student group. Remaining positive, Kohei suggested, “There doesn’t seem to be much communication between the VSA and different organizations, except for times when someone is in trouble, or someone needs money. Having experienced the VSA and being a part of an org now, I hope to maintain a strong relationship with the VSA and work together to make some much needed change on our campus.”

Urging student government to continue to support alternative programming, event attendee Pietro Geraci ’18 explained, “BNI and organizations like it are absolutely on the right path and absolutely deserve support, and I think the VSA Senate should consider lending its support to them.”

Jewett and Raymond House Advisor Michael Drucker, who helped BNI get started, agreed that alternative programming is beneficial to students who feel uncomfortable with the party scene. “It is so important for programming like Big Night to exist because, quite simply, people need things to do!” he wrote in an emailed statement. “There are and always have been sober students having fun on the weekends here, but I’ve heard from many that it can feel lonely because heavy drinking seems like the campus norm even when in reality that’s only a section of our student population.”

In fact, perceptions of exclusion among students can be aggravated by commonly-held beliefs exaggerating the importance of alcohol use to social life. Balawadjer argued, “Surveys suggest that students overestimate the number of their peers who drink as well as the quantity and frequency taken. The college experience is what you decide to make it; don’t let others or faulty perceptions dictate what your college experience ought to be!”

Interested students and faculty members can help advance BNI’s vision for a more inclusive campus community by contributing ideas to the group and lending support. Joshi concluded, “Our strengths lie in the commitment and creativity of our members. Thus, if anyone else thinks that Vassar can use a stronger substance-free community, joining our team and directly contributing to the realization of our goal is the best way to help.”

NEWS

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October 6, 2016

Updated buildings, fresher food on the menu at ACDC DEECE continued from page 1

the school periodically requests proposals from providers in order to weigh various options. Of the three companies that submitted them, “Bon Appétit’s proposal resonated the most with our community,” he said, “In part because of its strong track record at other institutions and also for its impressive accomplishments on sustainability, farm-to-table and culinary education.”

The new and improved ACDC will have an increased focus on eco-friendliness in both its edible offerings and its design. Vassar Sustainability Coordinator Alistair Hall helped make the plans greener by suggesting ways to use more organic, locally grown produce, reducing water usage in the kitchens and replacing windows to increase energy efficiency.

Additional plans include extending ACDC hours to accommodate students’ schedules. Meal

plans will also change from the current Minimum, Standard, Enhanced and Plus options to “all-access,” which all students will have to purchase.

However, “This plan will not cost more for students,” Roellke said, adding, “The plan will benefit low-income students, as financial aid will apply.”

Some critics have raised the point that requiring the entire student body, including seniors, to dine at the Deece could undermine Vassar’s assertion that residing in senior housing prepares students to live independently after graduation, which includes cooking for oneself. The change could also impact the Ferry House co-op, whose members prepare communal meals. “One of the binding factors [of Ferry] and something that brings everyone together is making meals together,” said Ferry resident Meredith Ward ’18. “So if people have to pay for food for the house and then

Courtesy of Laurel Hennen Vigil

Dean of the College Christopher Roellke dismissed these rumors via email, saying, “The Board is very supportive of the plan and will vote on the funding for the next phase of renovations at the October board meeting.”

Vassar’s Dean of Strategic Planning & Academic Resources Marianne Begemann elaborated, “The issue was really surprise at what the cost was coming in at.” She added that the concern was more with the reality of budgeting than a reluctance to move forward with the project as a whole.

While the Board initially agreed to a $5 million budget, once LTL Architects was brought in and plans were drawn up, the price tag ballooned to $8 to $9 million, Begemann explained.

“We are making every effort to trim costs where appropriate and to fundraise for the space,” Roellke said. Since the first phase of renovations was completed this past summer, there’s no turning back now. The recent changes included removing the dining hall’s lowered ceiling, improving lighting, removing asbestos and building two hoop houses—agricultural structures similar to greenhouses—with the Poughkeepsie Farm Project in order to grow more produce. “[This] will enable our new vendor to purchase fresh produce from the Poughkeepsie Farm Project throughout the year so [the distance from] farm to table will be less than half a mile,” Roellke said.

The remaining renovations, scheduled to take place next summer, include installing new kitchen equipment and insulation, relocating the bathrooms and increasing continuity between the ACDC’s first and second floors. An additional goal, said Quinn, is “[To] accommodate the variety of dietary needs of our students including Kosher, Halal and an ‘allergen zone.’” According to Roellke, phase two renovations are projected to cost between $5 and $6 million.

Perhaps most exciting to Deece diners, however, is the news that in addition to renovating the campus eatery, Vassar will be switching food service providers, from the widely criticized Aramark to Bon Appétit. Roellke explained that

In addition to renovations to the ACDC building, the new dining partnership will include an all-access meal plan and produce sourced from the Poughkeepsie Farm Project.

also have to pay for the meal plan, this isn’t going to be an accessible space for some people. A lot of people are pretty upset about it.”

Begemann acknowledged that potential consequences of the meal-plan switch need to be further examined, saying, “[We need to] think about what the model is for residential living when you try to project forward 10, 15 years and then again, another 20 years, because whatever we do is going to be around for the next generations of students.”

Quinn, however, remains hopeful that the plan will benefit students. “There are many advantages for all students to be on the all-access meal plan in the newly designed ACDC,” she said. “The renovation will create a more open and welcoming environment that will better support student needs and desires for dining, and also for gatherings, meetings and study space.”

Some also wonder why the ACDC is being refurbished before other buildings that desperately need attention. In response, Begemann said, “We have limited resources for doing capital renewal on campus. The extra $3 to $4 million it [will] cost to renovate the ACDC is a whole lot less than it would cost to renovate Main or Raymond, or to even do the bathrooms in Raymond.”

Finally, those familiar with the recent episode of Malcolm Gladwell’s “Revisionist History” podcast entitled “Food Fight”—in which Gladwell compared spending on food and financial aid at Vassar and Bowdoin College, concluding that Vassar has such generous financial aid because it prioritizes that over other expenses—may wonder what’s being cut in order to pay for Deece improvements and better food. “When I first heard about the switch, I thought about Gladwell’s podcast,” said Kenji Nikaido ’20. “It got me slightly worried that this could raise the cost [of attendance]. Vassar’s already really expensive.”

Both Begemann and Roellke insist that this will not be the case. “It’s pretty clear that Vassar’s priorities have been on affordability, on access, on inclusion. The new food plan does cost more, but the cost is spread around [the budget],” Begemann said.

Grant encourages students to establish connections Samuel O’Keefe Guest Reporter

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t Vassar College and the world at large, desires to engage in one’s community, confront its challenges and work to improve and refine current systems are insufficiently met with a lack or total absence of adequate funding. Yet for students, staff, administrators and faculty members of Vassar, the Vassar Good Neighbors Committee (VGNC) can help alleviate this dilemma. Founded in 2001 as the Frances D. Fergusson Vassar Good Neighbors Committee, this grant-giving organization seeks to connect Vassar to its hometown of Poughkeepsie by encouraging and exposing members of the College’s community to projects and partnerships in Poughkeepsie; relationships between these two groups are expected to strengthen. The fund’s mission statement reads, “These relationships should build the capacity of each community to flourish.”

Should any member of the Vassar community wish to partake in such an activity, the VGNC requires each applicant to detail the ways that their proposed project will benefit Poughkeepsie and demonstrate how the money will be efficiently utilized. Part of this application process hence obligates the prospective volunteer to choose the appropriately sized grant amongst the varying ones they award. Some of the smaller grants do not exceed either $500 or $1000, targeting either current or novel projects. A $3,500 grant is given each year after the committee unanimously chooses a specific direct service project. Finally, a $15,000 grant awarded in annual $5,000 increments, serves to solidify the link between a local non-profit and the Vassar community, indicating that the project’s activities will continue after the final financial gift.

With these varying grant amounts and ensuing opportunities, the VGNC boasts an eclectic group of projects. Past initiatives have seen service work concerning women’s mentorship, tutoring for English language learners (ELL), prevention and organization against house evictions, physical health and well-being, race and cultural issues, and several others. One initiative was that of the Audit Program with

the Poughkeepsie City School District (PCSD), which permitted teachers in the Poughkeepsie community to enroll in Vassar courses and earn in-service credit at their schools. The VGNC’s involvement with the Rural and Migrant Ministry (RMM) also stands out. A three-year initiative, this project gave members of the Youth Arts and Youth Economic groups of the RMM to study social justice issues affecting their lives in new geographical locations such as Seattle, Alabama, D.C. and NYC. With its consistent, annual budget and evolving programs, the VGNC’s range of projects has reached several individuals, creating a lasting impact.

One of these figures is Sacha Pfeufer ’16, who served as the student liaison for the Clearwater and Nubian Directions (ND) youth from November 2015 to May 2016. This special ND program, known as YouthBuild, strives to prepare individuals aged 16-24 not currently in school, for jobs in construction, computer technology and other areas. Under the Clearwater Project, those from YouthBuild and also Dutchess Community College can attend workshops to gain more knowledge and experience in projects such as greenwater storm systems, watershed awareness and anti-pollution efforts. 2016’s main project involves students redirecting stormwater from a local house to a rain garden and advanced stormwater system, located at the ND training center. This collecting method is known as a Green Infrastructure (GI) stormwater system which boosts efficiency and care for the environment.

Pfeufer explained in an emailed statement, “The goal of the project is three-fold: it is to give Nubian-Directions-Youth experience in the construction of stormwater systems and permaculture gardens attached to houses in the City of Poughkeepsie, an attempt to strengthen ties between the Vassar community and the City, and an attempt to create a “green jobs pipeline” that would place graduates of the 6-9 month Nubian Directions’ Youthbuild program in environmental jobs.” The combined pedagogy and hands-on experience that this project offers gives these young students a consistent structure; the logical next step is for them to extrapolate what

they’ve learned, transferring those communication and technological skills to a full-fledged career. “This is a really interesting project, and deserves to have a little more attention from the school,” wrote Pfeufer. He envisions even further progress and potential for the organization, which he left this past May after graduating.

Siennah Yang ’18 is another invested Vassar youth supported by the VGNC, who has been working with the nonprofit Rescuing Leftover Cuisine (RLC) since the beginning of her freshman year. This national organization aims to reduce food waste and food insecurity in communities by salvaging and donating excess food to local soup kitchens and shelters. Through such endeavors, Yang and RLC as a whole hope to render people more conscious about the excess food that exists in the community and to encourage combating food waste.

Yang has been a driving force in Poughkeepsie’s RLC chapter. She recalled in an emailed statement, “Starting a branch of RLC in the mid-Hudson valley was not easy, but [a] Good Neighbors Grant helped me with some of the expenses to expand our operations.” In just over 18 months, the ambitious student’s initially small venture has developed rapidly, recruiting 40 volunteers and serving over 10 towns in Dutchess and Ulster County. This past year and a half has witnessed the Poughkeepsie RLC “rescuing” over 1,000 pounds of flour and various food items from local wedding events and the Arlington Farmer’s Market. The local RLC’s substantial record in such a short time has inspired the creation of Vassar Food Rescue, a new pre-org dedicated to rescuing food from the Vassar campus, allowing students interested in the concept to become involved; anyonewho knows of leftovers around campus is encouraged to contact the org.

But that growth and opportunity is not limited to Vassar students. For the past two years, Tracy Wright-Mauer has been president of the Poughkeepsie Crew, a non-profit organization that aids the Poughkeepsie City school district rowing team. Wright-Mauer notes how this team is unique in that it attracts high schoolers from all different socioeconomic backgrounds,

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

as there is no admittance fee. Yet without any incoming funds from the team members, Poughkeepsie Crew must turn to other sources in order to make equipment purchasing and food and housing at regattas possible. “Because many of our families are not able to donate or volunteer we rely almost entirely on the generosity of our community. If our organization did not search out funding, the Poughkeepsie Crew Team would not exist,” Wright-Mauer claimed.

For the president, who has two children that are veteran members of the team, the generosity of organizations like the Good Neighbors Committee strikes close to home. The group’s influence reverberates through the many Poughkeepsie rowing team families, families who would be unable to financially support their athletes if it weren’t for this collaboration between Vassar and its community.

Other contemporary projects include collaborations between Vassar’s Urban Studies and Film Departments in creating a “Digital Tour of Poughkeepsie,” and a partnership with the Catherine Community Center’s children’s program. And what does VGNC’s involvement in this diverse array of projects mean? For most, these grants’ values far surpass the particular monetary amount. Pfeufer reflected, “The Good Neighbors Grant breathed new life into this important project as its funds dwindled,” revealing the ability “to generate meaningful and potentially transformative relationships between the City and [Vassar].” Katia Chapman ’12, who now works for the RMM, wrote, “I started at RMM as a Community Fellow funded by Vassar. Thank you for shaping my life too!” And for all Vassar students, the VGNC bears noteworthy impacts: it helps fund the VAST and VELLOP programs where many students tutor, the Poughkeepsie Farm Project, the Vassar Haiti Project and several other opportunities that encourage students to get involved and step out of their collegiate bubble.

Interested in applying to receive a grant from the VGNC? The deadline is this Friday, Oct. 7.

Contact vassargoodneighbors[at]gmail.com or check out http://pages.vassar.edu/goodneighbors/ for more information.

October 6 2016

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Rosh Hashanah celebrations address diverse traditions Andrea Yang

Guest Reporter

R

Evelyn Frick/The Miscellany News

One of the traditions celebrated during Rosh Hashana involves throwing pieces of bread into a body of water, symbolizing the casting off of sins at the beginning of the new year.

Evelyn Frick/The Miscellany News

osh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year, an important fall holiday that calls for both rejoicing and introspection. From Sunday evening to Tuesday night (Oct. 2 through Oct. 4), students gathered for prayer services and celebratory meals and together welcomed the new year.

They blew the shofar, ate traditional brisket, apples and honey, which signify a sweet new year.

Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement, which takes place the following week, traditionally including a 25-hour period of fasting and praying.

According to the Co-President of the Chabad Jewish Community Jason Storch ’17, celebrating the Jewish High Holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur at Vassar can be exciting and challenging. “At CJC we’re constantly growing with our community, we’re always one anecdote away from adopting a new semi tradition!” wrote Storch in an emailed statement.

The Religious and Spiritual Life Office is working with two student organizations, Vassar Jewish Union (VJU) and Chabad Jewish Community (CJC) to host a welcoming celebration for Jewish students at Vassar. Storch commented, “The fact that there are two Jewish organizations hosting distinct and varying services enables Jews to choose from a wider spectrum of religious celebrating.”

Interim Rachlin Director for Jewish Student Life and Interim Assistant Director of Religious and Spiritual Life Joseph Glick noted, “We are bringing in Rory Katz, Vassar Class of 2009, to help lead our prayers. Rory is a rabbinical student at the Jewish Theological School. She brings a wealth of experience at connecting modern audiences with ancient rituals.”

VJU President Abigail Johnson ’17 said of the VJU’s celebrations, “We are doing interfaith torah

study and a meal to end the holiday. This year is also our second year doing Tashlich with Vassar Temple, a local synagogue. Tashlich is a ceremony where we throw bread into a body of water (in this case, Sunset Lake) to cast off our sins for the New Year.”

Both religious tradition and communal meals are key to the holiday. The VJU poster reads, “Come for the food, stay for the prayers, bask in the warm glow of community.” Both Storch and Glick commented on the importance of the meals and prayers. Storch explained, “The dinner always serves as a coming-together point to kick the new year off right with community and spiritual strength. I personally appreciate the fact that it coincides with the opening few weeks of the semester, that way I can get ready for a new year spiritually, religiously and academically all at once.”

Glick added, “The prayer services, filled with songs, silence and discussion, serve as a tool for the community to contemplate our past, present and future together.”

For many students, college might be their first time celebrating Rosh Hashanah away from home.

Yet Evelyn Frick ’19 [full disclosure: Evelyn Frick serves as humor editor on The Miscellany News], among others, found Vassar to be a place into which she can root her Jewishness. “Being a Jew at Vassar is a complex, strange experience. There are more Jews compressed into this tiny bubble than any other place I have been in my life. But we’re still a minority, and a lot of Jews here are more culturally Jewish than they are religiously (myself included). In that way, I think Jewish holidays have a distinct presence on campus.”

She continued, “I had never celebrated Rosh Hashanah or any other Jewish holiday away from my family before so I remember feeling nervous and melancholy. But when I went to services and I started to say prayers and sing songs that I have

Vassar students and local members of the Vassar Temple synagouge in Poughkeepsie gathered along Sunset Lake to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashana on Oct. 3. known since I was little. With new friends and a new Jewish community, Vassar became a home for me more than it had before.”

Storch seconded, “Being on a campus with people, Jewish and non-Jewish, of so many walks of life makes the holidays really different from my hometown where everyone is basically either reform Jewish or entirely secular. But having places like the VJU or, especially for me, the Chabad Jewish Community and the home of Rabbi Daniel and Dalia Sanoff make being away from home less of a curse and more of a unique blessing.”

However, students also face challenges when they are trying to balance schoolwork and holiday celebration. Storch recounted that for two of the past three holidays at Vassar, he had to study for a test or quiz while fasting for 24 hours.

Glick explained, “Many Jews abstain from work during Rosh Hashanah. At a place like Vassar, it can be incredibly difficult for students to pull back from the obligations of classwork and other activities to attend prayer services and rest over the Holiday. While it is up to every Jewish student to decide whether they are willing to miss class during this time, students should know that the College views religious observance as a valid reason to miss class.”

Understanding that it is not necessarily easy for students to ask their instructors for this time off, the Religious and Spiritual Life and the Dean of Studies Office sent out a reminder email about religious observance and class attendance to all faculty at the beginning of the semester. All students who struggle with balancing academic work and religious observance are encouraged to talk to advisors at the Religious and Spiritual Life Office or members of the VJU board.

Organizations like VJU are actively seeking solutions for students’ dilemma. Johnson stated, “Since Vassar doesn’t have time off for Rosh Ha-

shanah, we make sure that there a lot of different services being offered at different times so that students who feel they can’t take time off from class or other commitments can come to at least something.”

Johnson also felt that Vassar as a whole could be a lot more conscious of religious holidays of all kinds. “Vassar tends to keep going even when many students are stopping their daily lives to go to services and pray and be together and it can be very difficult for students to catch up with work.

It’s particularly hard this year because the high holidays fall during midterms.”

Frick said that including more Vassar community members in celebrations could help raise awareness of the holidays. She said, “Services and celebrations are welcome to non-Jews but I think there’s a difference between having celebrations be open to everyone and actively encouraging non-Jews to attend. We should be doing the latter. Jewish services and rituals are so unique that I think for any non-Jewish person who came, they would leave with an expanded knowledge of what Judaism is and would hopefully convey their new knowledge with others.”

Johnson also spoke about the ways in which VJU tries to make sure everyone feels included.

She wrote, “We always make sure to have people at the door to greet newcomers to the services so everyone feels welcomed into the space.”

Additionally, the VJU allows students to participate in majority of the planning, execution and leading of the services. Johnson noted, “We have students reading torah, opening the arc, sharing prayers and music and giving d’vars (sermons).

Additionally, we always emphasize that students are welcome to come the services, the meal or both. If you’re not religiously practicing but you want to spend Rosh Hashanah with people around a good meal, we want to make space for that too.”

Students organizations work to improve voter registration Jakob Eckstein Guest Reporter

V

oter registration day was last Tuesday, Sept.

27. Symbolically, it’s an important day, reminding us that November is approaching fast, that we all need to get it together and re-register.

But that can pose challenges.

The Vassar Democrats, Democracy Matters and the Vassar College Libertarian Union (VCLU) all agree: getting students to vote is hard. According to co-president of Vassar’s Democracy Matters chapter Sam Beckenhauer ’18, if 300 of Vassar’s 2,500 students vote this year, it’ll be a success. Voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts can’t be accomplished in a single day. They take sustained, highly-visible efforts. Especially on a college campus where students are often buried in readings, exams and campus activities, too busy to look up every once in a while and notice that the real world goes on.

Student groups that focus on political issues like the Vassar Democrats and VCLU also encourage their members to register to vote. The Vassar Democrats send emails and Facebook posts out to their members with instructions and deadlines on how to vote. And according to VCLU Treasurer

Christopher Kramer ’18, no voter registration efforts from his organization have been finalized, but says such initiatives are under discussion.

But it is Democracy Matters that does the lion’s share of the sustained work needed to get people to the polling place. Democracy Matters is a national nonpartisan, campus-based student organization whose primary goal is to get the influence of money out of politics. However, as its name suggests, the group also helps students get involved in the democratic process. Vassar’s chapter, run by co-presidents Beckenhauer and Sophia Goncalves-Brown ’18, tables regularly in the College Center. They help students register to vote in Dutchess County and navigate the often complex process of setting up an absentee ballot, and they register hundreds of students every year when first years sign the matriculation book. On Election Day, the group passes out pamphlets that list candidates’ stances on major issues, and facilitates a fleet of vans to shuttle students to and from voting booths. The Vassar Administration provides these vans to Democracy Matters, which, according to the organization’s executive director, Joan Mandle, is unusual. “The Vassar Chapter works closely with the Administration. This is something

that’s very good at Vassar that doesn’t happen a lot of other schools. The Administration is very supportive.” Still, the Vassar student voter turnout is never great, but that’s not necessarily because of uninterested students.

Vassar students face an unusual amount of obstacles on their way to the voting booth. Students can’t use their mailing address to register (124 Raymond Avenue). Instead, they have to use their specific dorm and room number. But this information changes every year, so students have to re-register every year as well. Furthermore, Vassar’s campus is heavily gerrymandered, actually broken up into three different districts. Beckenhauer explains, “We have three different districts on Vassar’s campus. You could be living in Main House and be in one district but then you move to, like, Cushing and you’re technically in a different district. So you could move 100 feet on Vassar’s campus and have to go to a different voting booth.” The THs are in one district, Cushing, Noyes and the TAs are in another district, and the rest of the dorms are in a third. Most Vassar students are unaware of this, so without the Democracy Matters shuttles that organize students based on which district they live in, many Vassar kids might show up at the

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

wrong voting booth on Election Day. Once there, the lost student could fill out an affidavit to prove they simply made a mistake, but these forms are rejected between 60 and 70 percent of the time.

According to Beckenhauer, Vassar’s gerrymandered status also reduces the political potency of its liberal student population, “It has a huge effect when we have faculty, especially librarians, run for office. I know there was an election a few years ago when this happened. A librarian ran for office, but since she lived on Raymond Ave, Vassar students weren’t her constituents. So if they lived in Main or the TAs, they couldn’t vote for her. This is extremely difficult, since there can be people Vassar students would want to vote for but can’t.”

The Administration itself tries to support student participation in voting by providing free shuttles for students during Election Days to local polling stations. These shuttles cater to the different districts which Vassar students fall into. Mandle said, “One of the big problems with student voting is that they can’t get to the polls. Because they’re far away and not all students have cars obviously.

So getting students not just registered, but making sure that they actually get to the polls is at least as important. I know Vassar’s started doing that.”

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October 6, 2016

From the military to Vassar, veterans discover new selves POSSE continued from page 1

welcomed.”

Lepak is one of seven freshmen at Vassar in this year’s Veterans Posse Program, an initiative to increase the rates at which veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces attend and graduate from selective colleges and universities. To study at Vassar, vets must go through the regular application process.

Admitted students are awarded a full scholarship with a combination of Vassar financial aid and benefits from the GI Bill.

Since the program’s launch in 2013, Vassar has gone a long way. “We all were learning about this population and their needs at the same time we were adjusting/reacting to things like child-care, the VA medical system, the VA benefit system, etc. It has been a learning experience for all of us,” stated Registrar and Veteran Adviser, Colleen R.

Mallet. Now, Vassar has become part of the Veterans Committee Consortium consisting of several Hudson Valley colleges, meeting monthly to discuss and improve services and programs for Posse students on and off campus.

For Lepak, his path to Vassar began with a flyer. “I saw a flyer for the interview at my community college and applied,” Lepak said. “I had the choice between Vassar, Wesleyan and Dartmouth.

I picked Vassar as my first choice because of the small curriculum requirements and the opportunity to explore different subjects and topics.”

And that decision still stands true. Since matriculating, Lepak was elected to the Judicial Board for the Class of 2020 and is also a walk-on student-athlete for the baseball team.

“I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to be a Vassar student. Seriously, I’m the happi-

Courtesy of Baptiste Genevée-Grisolia

Two posse students mingle with classmates, from left to right: Audrey Aller ’17, Will Chaudoin ’17, Alex Harrison (Posse) ’20, Stefan Richards ’17, Brian Lepak (Posse) ’20 and Kariel Granger ’18.

est I’ve ever been,” Lepak said. “For the first time in my life I feel comfortable being myself. I can’t speak for all veterans, but I can say for me, Vassar is a great place for veterans,” Gino Ruiz ’19 has already settled in to Vassar and now finds humor in the differences between him and his classmates. “They don’t get my movie or TV references,” Ruiz chuckled when talking about his younger Vassar peers. “I am a legit ’90s baby. Not many students remember the first ‘Power Rangers.’ Also, I had to learn a few new slang words. ‘Harry Potter’ is super big here where I never got into it. I once asked someone what a Dementor was and she had the face like, ‘What are you, a loser?’ Times change.”

Ruiz was raised in the inner-city neighborhoods of New York City and grew up in poverty.

His mother worked under-the-table odd jobs and collected Social Security and food stamps, while Ruiz attended overcrowded, underfunded and violent high schools. “Just getting through the day was an ordeal of not getting into situations with bullies, gangs and sometimes being stopped by the police to be asked where I was coming from.”

After high school, Ruiz enrolled in the military to move away from his environment and support himself and his family. He was a rifleman. “Shoot, move and communicate,” Ruiz said was his job in the army. “I never thought that I–from NYC– would be essentially learning how to kick down doors and throw grenades at targets. I only ever met three New Yorkers in my whole fours years in the infantry, typically a lot of guys from Ohio and other southern states who would join the job.”

After leaving the military, Ruiz went back to New York and couch-surfed with a friend. He then moved to Crown Heights, Brooklyn and worked night jobs. That’s when Ruiz found out about the Posse program. “What brought me to Vassar is an opportunity to leave my old life and end this cycle where my family did not find success,” Ruiz said. “I want to shed my past self. I know I am not this military guy, never really was, I’d enjoyed the perks of adventure and living on my own and exploring myself within the constraints of military

life.”

Ruiz said at first he struggled adjusting socially, but is working to find his way.

“I had this chip on my shoulder at the beginning of my freshman year. I was not sure how this small liberal arts college life would work so I just incorporated the social aspects I already knew from the military and living as an ‘adult’ in Brooklyn,” Ruiz said. “I always drifted through life, meet people for a short time and then be off. This new aspect of creating and maintaining relationships is new for me. I am not unhappy with my life here, just a little lost and confused on navigating the scene. I meet plenty of people who are really unique and cool.”

Ruiz added that he is very grateful for Vassar’s Posse Program. “I am thankful that they picked me, I never won anything so grand in my life before. A national scholarship, to a good school, I never would have thought this is where my life would end up,” Ruiz said. “I think Vassar is as good as it gets, not many other schools, especially private schools have open their doors to our demographic in such a welcoming way. We tried to pay that back by being good students who are getting involved on campus in a meaningful way.”

John Daniel Eubanks ’16 has already shown the ways Posse students succeed after Vassar. Last year, Eubanks became the first Vassar Posse graduate after finishing his undergrad degree in three years using transfer credits. Since then, Eubanks has remained in the Poughkeepsie area, currently acting in an all-veteran production of Comedy of Errors, as well as working on building an organic farm close to Vassar with the hopes to donate the food produced to local homeless shelters and veterans’ nursing homes.

Eubanks spent nine years in the Marines, serving in Iraq, Afghanistan and about a dozen other countries. While in the Marines Eubanks continued to work towards his degree, and had attended a dozen schools before Vassar.

“Vassar is the longest I stayed in one place in more than a decade,” Eubanks said. “It gave me a home after the war, a place to transition back to civilian life, and will always remain my home.”

Macs dominate PCs at Vassar, CIS tries to support both Emily Hwu

Guest Reporter

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Courtesy of Vassar Factbook

lowing Apples abound at Vassar. No matter where you are on campus, a MacBook is almost sure to be near. You can often witness herds of them congregated in the library or the Retreat. Sure, there are a fair amount of PCs to be found, but the percentage of PC ownership at Vassar flops in comparison to that of Macs. In addition, Vassar even has a mini Apple store as part of the Service Desk in the College Center.

Why does Vassar appear to be so “Mac-centric,” and how does Vassar’s technological makeup compare to that of the rest of the world?

Prior to entering Vassar, incoming students are encouraged to take the Freshman Technology Survey to help Computing and Information Services structure services and support based on technology trends. The survey asks what devices a student plans to bring to campus, as well as what brands these devices are. The latest edition of the Vassar Factbook contains the results of this survey from the past 10 years; although the percentages have fluctuated, the general relationship between the amount of Macs and the amount of PCs has remained the same. Notably, the percentage of ownership of Macs has increased from 56 percent in the fall of 2005 to 65.2 percent in the fall of 2015, and that of PCs has slightly decreased from 38 percent to 37.4 percent. This follows the trend of positive growth in MacBook sales as a portion of computer sales worldwide.

How much does CIS influence the computer brand makeup of Vassar? Technology Training Coordinator Chad Fust notes that although Vassar has an Apple-certified campus store, a majority of students bring their computers to campus from home, so the store has limited influence on student computer choice. In addition, Director of User Services John Collier says that CIS encourages departments and students to choose the operating system that best meets their need (and provides free Office downloads for both). Moreover, the Service Desk strives to ensure that they can provide equal services for either system. But if this is true, why does Vassar have a Mac repair shop but not a PC repair shop? According to Matt Duncan, a tech employee

of computing services, the purpose of a Mac-specific repair shop is to support as many students as possible, since the majority of Vassar students have Macs rather than PCs. Fust adds that, in the past, the store offered non-Apple products, but they have since been cut from the inventory due to a simple lack of sales.

So, if Vassar’s Mac store is not a driving influence, is Vassar’s MacBook dominance simply due to the worldwide trend of Macs over PCs? Fust proposes that it may also be due at least partly to the fact that Vassar is a liberal arts college. Not only does Apple cater its advertisements to students (with a tagline: “It makes the best years of your life even better”), but there is also a general perception that Macs are for artistic types of people. Macs come pre-installed with applications and are geared towards a more user-friendly experience, making them more appealing for those with artistic interests because they are known for running creative software well.

On the other hand, PCs offer more of a blank slate, leaving room for more programming and customization; thus, although there is no solidified data, a technical school would likely have greater PC over Mac ownership amongst students.

Fust also noted that the MacBook dominance may be related to the economic status tied to Apple products: Macs are more expensive than PCs are. Fust is not necessarily implying that students buy Apple products to show off, but rather claims that Apple products have essentially become symbols of modernity and advancement. Apple became the World’s Most Valuable Brand in 2013 and has retained the title ever since. The company has name recognition, and there is a prestige around the brand that draws buyers, according to Fust. He noted, “No other company across the board has that reputation for really well-designed stuff that does work really well and has that attention to detail. Regardless of Apple’s reputation of creating premium devices, Fust and Collier concur that you can, for the most part, do the exact same things on a PC that you can on a Mac. Collier summarizes that the difference between the two is more about design and brand recognition than hardware. Morgan Strunsky ’17, a student tech employee at Vassar, admits that he is a PC person: “A PC has basical-

As the graph shows, the percentage of computer ownership among Vassar’s incoming students have fluctuated over time, while the amount of Macs remained consistently higher than PCs. ly all the same parts on the inside but is going to be a fraction of the price.” On the other hand, he says, “If you need all of your devices to talk to each other really well, then a Mac product is great.”

Similarities between the majority of the hardware explains how even though the employees of computing services have varying degrees of familiarity between Macs and PCs, they are able to do repair and deal with the troubleshooting and software of either with general ease and skill.

However, not all students feel that the CIS offers enough support for its non-Mac users. Matthew Au ’19 said, “Linux and Windows get swept aside all too easily. CIS obviously does help with nonMac problems, but they focus on Macs.” However, he adds that he does not expect much, given that Vassar’s deal with Apple categorizes the college as a “Mac school.” Such a title creates resentment for students on the other side of the divide. Au re-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

marked, “Declaring an institution a computer-specific type of school is unhelpful, pointless and ludicrous.”

The debate over Macs versus PCs, and how much support should be offered for each, is never-ending, but how lasting will MacBooks’ dominance be on campus? Fust predicts that the trend of Macs over PCs will continue well into the future at Vassar due to Apple’s continuous ability to present themselves as user-friendly and luxurious to students. Collier has a slightly different view. “I’ve been around long enough to see many brands rise and fall. Apple was on equal footing with many computer companies in the ’70s and ’80s but lost its focus and almost went out of business in the late ’90s.” Since then, many marketing and innovative factors have propelled Apple to the top of the chain, but as Collier said, “Who knows how long that will last?”

October 6, 2016

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Students want better representation in philosophy courses

Courtesy of The Miscellany News

PHILOSOPHY continued from page 1 Let’s Call It What It Really Is,” “No other humanities discipline demonstrates this systematic neglect of most of the civilizations in its domain.

The present situation is hard to justify morally, politically, epistemically or as good educational and research training practice.” He asks readers to consider works such as the “Bhagavad Gita” and the writings of scholars like Frantz Fanon tantamount to those of the Western canon, and reminds his audience that no other humanities discipline underrepresents Chinese, Africana, Indian, Islamic, Jewish, Latin American, Native American or other non-European cultures to the degree that philosophy does.

Within the department, Vassar only has two courses in the this academic year specific to non-Western teachings, and this lack of diversity extends to colleges and universities nationwide.

Van Norden notes, “Of the 118 doctoral programs in philosophy in the United States and Canada, only 10 percent have a specialist in Chinese philosophy as part of their regular faculty ... Indeed, of the top 50 philosophy doctoral programs in the English-speaking world, only 15 percent have any regular faculty members who teach any non-Western philosophy.” Norden and his co-writer, Professor of Humanities at Yale-NUS College in Singapore Jay L. Garfield continue in their article to urge college philosophy departments to diversify their staff and offerings.

Yifan Wang ’17 [full disclosure: Yifan Wang is a contributing editor on the Miscellany News] is a senior philosophy major who is writing a thesis that focuses on Confucianism. She said, “As a philosophy major from China, I think the offerings in Asian philosophies at Vassar are definitely not enough to meet my interests. We are really fortunate to have Professor Van Norden here, who’s a great scholar in Chinese philosophy, especially Confucianism. Without him I wouldn’t even be able to write about my thesis topic. But there are still many thinkers not covered, and the diversity of approaches for studying non-Western traditions could be limited at times. Not to mention all the things not regularly offered in the department, such as Indian philosophy, Latin-American thoughts and many others.”

Philosophy major Diego Encarnacion ’18 responds directly to Van Norden’s sentiments

The Vassar philosophy department, which is housed in Rockefeller Hall, has worked recently to include more diverse philosophical traditions in its program and courses. saying, “Many smaller liberal arts schools tend not to have any faculty dedicated to Eastern philosophy at all. In most institutionalized academic settings, it’s heavily emphasized, Western philosophy–especially European and American–so I guess [non-Western philosophy] is underrepresented. But Vassar does a better job than a lot of schools in representing non-Western philosophy.” While some colleges relegate non-Western philosophy study to other departments like Asian Studies or Chinese, others attempt to integrate non-Western perspectives into their existing course structures. Wesleyan University, for example, offers one course in classical Chinese philosophy to balance its two courses in Western classics.

Wang pointed out that a lot of smaller colleges run into this problem in part because of the restricted nature of their faculty, course offerings and student bodies. She said, “I think the direct impact for me is that because there aren’t that many course offerings and not that many fellow students focusing on non-Western philoso-

phies, it can be hard to find peers to exchange thoughts and have conversations on the topic.

While I have many friends with whom I can talk about Plato or Marx, it’s much harder for me to find someone to talk about Zhuangzi in depth.

But that is not the case with my friends at larger universities, where there are significantly more course options and more students working on the subject.”

Asprey Liu ’17 acknowledges the Western orientation of the classes offered, making a critical distinction between the courses’ subjects and the content of classroom attitudes and discussion. She states, “It’s true, the philosophers taught in our department are mostly (but by no means entirely) white, Western men who lived either in ancient times or some time in the past 400 years...it misrepresents philosophy as a method of inquiry only practiced in the West, presents Western theories and concepts as universally applicable, fails to expose students to alternative, marginalized perspectives, and so on. Just because the department’s curriculum is

Eurocentric, however, doesn’t mean every class unquestioningly accepts the hegemony of the Western tradition. While analytic classes tend to look for universal philosophical truths by abstracting from the intuitions of Western-trained philosophers, continental classes are more sensitive to cultural difference, historical contingency and the ways in which power structures shape how we live and think.”

Liu went on to describe a particular class that gave her the chance to engage with more diverse philosophical traditions. She said, “For example, Giovanna Borradori, who teaches continental philosophy, includes Aimé Césaire and Franz Fanon in her Phenomenology and Existential Thought class to show how those philosophical methods can open up powerful anti-colonial critiques of European powers. Her class helped me understand the radical, globally-oriented political potential of certain modes of philosophical thought, which I’ve continued to pursue in departments like Political Science, Africana Studies, Women’s Studies and Jewish Studies, as well as the Philosophy Department.”

Liu also underscores her belief that a department representative of a plurality of cultural views isn’t necessarily one free of imperialist, Westernized rhetoric. “I think the fact that I’ve had to look to other departments to continue studying subaltern political philosophies–and the fact that the Philosophy Department isn’t very receptive to counting outside courses as Philosophy–speaks to its problem with Eurocentricity. However, I want to stress that this problem isn’t just about the absence of, say, ancient Islamic philosophy ... It’s about the failure in many (but not all) classes to problematize European philosophy’s discursive dominance and make explicit the political forces that exclude other voices from the conversation. If the Philosophy Department wants to engage its Eurocentricity problem, it needs to go further than offer more classes on Eastern philosophical traditions, and opening itself to collaboration with other departments is a good place to start. A diverse department is not the same as a decolonized one; even a department with a broad array of Eastern and Western classes could run into problems if it presented Western ideas as universal ideals and Eastern ideas as cultural curiosities.”

Never pay for vegan yogurt again with this frugal hack Brooke Thomas Guest Colunmist

T

Courtesy of Brooke Thomas

here is a prevailing notion on this campus as well as outside of it that being vegan is expensive. As a vegan from a low-income household, I would love to dispel this myth.

Don’t get me wrong, being vegan can be very expensive, but being an omnivore can be as well. I’m no more likely to buy artisanal vegan cheese than I am to buy some fancy dairy cheese just because I’m vegan. Luckily, there are plenty of cheaper options for both vegans and omnivores alike! The only problem with living vegan on a budget is that the information on how to do so (and still eat exciting food) is a bit harder to come by. Let me be your guide to cheap vegan eating!

I’ve always been worried that this is some fault in my character, but my favorite food is yogurt.

You may say that yogurt is boring, but I think that is why I like it so much. There is never a time when I don’t want to eat yogurt. The first year of my veganism was mostly great but unfortunately devoid of yogurt. First it was because I did not know that vegan yogurt existed and then, when I discovered that it did, because it carried a hefty price tag. After having splurged on it a few times in my second year of veganism, I decided that it was close enough to the dairy version that I needed to have it every once a while. I was fine with this for a while, but I stumbled upon a YouTube video last year that has rocked my vegan world since.

I don’t know why I had never thought to make yogurt myself before (big secret that capitalism doesn’t want you to know: it is almost always cheaper to make food yourself if you have access to the supplies and the time that you need to make it), but that is the radical idea that Jenny Mustard, a YouTuber and blogger, introduced me to. You can find her instructions for the original recipe on her blog, but I’m going to give you my

version of the instructions and thoughts on the recipe as well.

Basically, all you need is some soy milk and a container of soy yogurt from the store. Yes, you do have to buy the pre-made stuff in order to make this but once you make your first batch, you don’t need to buy any more of the store yogurt because you can use the yogurt you’ve made as the starter next time.

To begin, you need some soy milk–I believe you could use any non-dairy milk but I’ve only ever tried it with soy so I’m not sure about that.

I generally measure out the soy milk based on what container I’m going to store it in. For example, the first time I made this yogurt, I let it ferment in an empty tomato sauce jar so I’m not sure exactly how many cups that was, but you don’t need to be precise.

Heat your soy milk either on the stove or in the microwave until it is body temperature; you should be able to put your finger in it and not feel a temperature difference. Next, mix in approximately two tablespoons of the pre-made yogurt or your yogurt from the previous time you made it. It does not matter what kind of yogurt you use as long as it has live cultures in it, which you will be able to tell based on the ingredient list. I used yogurt from the brand Silk the first time I tried this.

Next, place the mixture in a container that you can seal. I usually use a jar, but it is better to use some sort of a thermos so the temperature stays more consistent. Leave the sealed container out to ferment for at least eight hours. If you want your yogurt to be more tangy than normal, you can leave it out longer. If you are not using a thermos, make sure the container is in a warm environment during that time. And that is pretty much it, yogurt magic!

If you find that it isn’t thick enough, you can strain it with a couple of stacked cheesecloths or coffee filters. Once it is has cooled in the fridge,

Ingredients

it will also thicken up a bit. I like to add some jam into mine to make it fruit flavored but you could also add vanilla or another extract, agave, maple syrup or fruit. It should last about a week in your fridge and don’t forget to save a few spoonfuls to start your next batch!

2 cups soy milk 2 tablespoons of soy yogurt Optional: Jam, fruit, agave, maple syrup, any other flavoring you want

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

OPINIONS

Page 8

October 6, 2016

The Miscellany News Staff Editorial

In name of academic equality, Vassar must go test-optional On Sept. 21, Reuters released an expose detailing that the College Board–the not-forprofit company responsible for designing and administering the SAT–acknowledged that the newly redesigned SAT was unfair, according to the company’s internal documents examined by Reuters.

Yet they moved forward with the test anyway. Starting this year, students taking the SAT will be subjected to a test many profess to be inherently flawed. According to the exposé, the new test actually widens the previously-decried score gap between upper-class and low-income students while also significantly exacerbating the score gap more specifically on the math section between Black and Latinx students and white and Asian students.

The SAT has long been subject to criticism and studies proving that it does not accomplish its stated purpose of evaluating students–no matter their background–on an equal ground. In 2014, the Wall Street Journal published a study in which they showed that a student’s income level directly correlated with a high score (The Wall Street Journal, “SAT Scores and Income Inequality: How Wealthier Kids Rank Higher,” 10.07.2014).

They rebranded the SAT the “student affluence test” because of the way it gives advantages to already-privileged students while setting low-income students back. While the redesign of the SAT was in part undertaken to address these issues, no design of the test can level the testing field. Students from wealthy backgrounds will always be able to afford more testing attempts (students requiring waivers are limited to two attempts), more prep materials, more tutoring and scores sent to more colleges than their low-income peers.

The new SAT does nothing to address its lengthy history of classism and instead, ac-

cording to Reuters, relies more on word-heavy math problems that worsen the achievement gap for Black and Latinx students, as well as students whose first language is not English.

By launching the new SAT, the College Board has further damaged the higher-education prospects of low-income students and students of color.

The SAT, however, is not the only problematic element. Its disproportionate control over students’ lives only exists because many colleges require students to submit scores for admission, and Vassar is one of thousands of institutions across the US who do so. It is easy to see why: the College Board advertises the test as a way to compare the achievements of students from disparate backgrounds.

Framed this way, the SAT almost seems like a way to avoid undervaluing students from low-income or low-opportunity backgrounds.

However, this promise has rung hollow in recent years. According to a 2014 study (PBS, “Do ACT and SAT scores really matter? New study says they shouldn’t,” 02.18.2014), standardized testing scores from the ACT and SAT are not statistically strong predictors of college success.

In light of this information, the Editorial Board of The Miscellany News would like to urge Vassar Admissions to reconsider its requirement of standardized test scores.

At a college that prides itself on its holistic approach to admissions and expanding opportunities for students of color and low-income students, the adoption of a test-flexible admissions policy would be consistent with Vassar’s principles and goals. It would make a meaningful statement in terms of Vassar’s commitment to educational opportunity, which is one of the most important parts of Vassar’s overall mission and public persona.

A test-flexible policy would be consistent

with Vassar’s already holistic, creative and inviting application process. Valuing the individuality of a student is not uncommon at Vassar; in no other way does the College endeavor to “standardize” its applicants. In fact, Vassar already encourages practices of destandardization through outlets such as the supplementary questions and Your Space on the Common Application. These are both means through which the College Admissions Office get to know students as people, not just as numbers such as their GPA, class rank, and standardized test scores.

Your Space is a particularly unique and effective component of the Vassar admission application that should set an example for the rest of the application process, for it provides applicants with a free space to express anything about themselves or show anything that they’ve done in order to supplement what may slip through the cracks of an otherwise formulaic college application. Another strength of Vassar’s current application process is the optional interview with alumnae/i.

Set up to be only a benefit for the student, these interviews are non-evaluative and allow Vassar to hear who applicants are as unique individuals, along with providing students with a chance to speak firsthand with someone who attended Vassar about their experiences here.

All of these are strong elements of Vassar’s application process, the spirit of which is in direct contradiction with Vassar’s test-required policy. While it would be ideal to be able to “standardize” a student to make the admissions process simpler, attempts at doing so have thus far proven ineffective, and have in fact exacerbated many of the inequalities they attempt to negate. For this reason, Vassar should consider changing its policy on requiring standardized tests to match

the rest of its admissions process, which attracts national attention as one welcoming of students of disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds. Despite this praise, Vassar still has room for improvement, and re-assessing standardized testing policies is one potential avenue for making changes.

Were Vassar to change its requirements for standardized testing, it would not be alone or even in the minority among its peer institutions. Many other liberal arts colleges like Vassar have opted to become test-optional, meaning that students can choose to submit a standardized test score if they wish, but not submitting scores will not count against them in the admissions process. The standardized test score then becomes supplementary instead of essential, a philosophy that prioritizes the applicant’s individual circumstances.

Smith College, Mount Holyoke College, Bryn Mawr College, Williams College and Bowdoin College have all chosen this route–Bowdoin since 1969–with some schools’ policies excluding homeschooled and/or international students.

Based on the research that has shown the SAT’s ineffectiveness and bias, a revised admissions policy may be a step further toward academic equality. Were Vassar to consider making this decision, now would be an optimal time with the imposition of the redesigned SAT. This may be a substantial change, of course; however, we at The Miscellany News believe that the option appears quite promising, and warrants exploration, especially given that our peer institutions have shown that it is a change that can be made successfully.

— The Staff Editorial expresses the opinion of at least two-thirds of The Miscellany News Editorial Board

‘2-2-1’ plan presents opportunity to refine academic life Nick Barone

Opinions Editor

O

n Wednesday, Oct. 5, Vassar’s faculty will vote on the “Proposal on rebalancing the curriculum and the teaching load (2-2-1).”

The proposal would alter a professor’s yearly course load from 3-2 (three courses one semester, two the next) to 2-2-1. Under this new system, professors would teach two courses each semester and one additional “Dash One” course, which is outlined in the proposal as “something for which students receive Vassar academic credit” (The Miscellany News, “Faculty propose curriculum changes,” 05.29.2016).

The ultimate goal of the proposal is twofold: to both reduce the often excessive workloads that burden faculty and students alike and endow different departments with the freedom to define “Dash One” as they see fit, encouraging independent studies and other individualized options for learning.

The major pratfall of the proposal is its effect on the overall number of courses offered.

It seeks to reduce both the amount of classroom units per semester and the amount of units a student can take per semester–the proposal would cap semesterly workloads at 4.5 units (specifically, 4 classroom units).

The proposal projects that there will be minimal or no increase in average class size, despite a significant reduction in course offerings. Accordingly, there will also be no increase in the size of Vassar’s faculty.

I was initially very hesitant when I first heard about the proposal. Such a reduction could prove to be very problematic in departments where meeting major requirements is already a major hurdle for some students.

When I brought the proposal up during a House Team meeting, many science majors specifically expressed concern that the reduction in the amount of courses offered would make already very-intensive majors even more difficult to complete. As a prospective double major, I was also worried about the potential barriers to my own program of study.

The proposal proactively took these concerns into consideration. To remedy this problem, the

proposal would cap major requirements across all departments and majors at 10 classroom units. In addition, the number of total units required for graduation would be reduced from 34 units to 32 units. The proposal does not mention if Vassar’s three graduation requirements (quantitative analysis, foreign language and freshman writing seminar) would be altered in any way.

Reception by Vassar’s community has been mixed. Some peers have told me that the proposal is a direct affront to academic freedom because it places generalized, vague parameters around many disparate fields of study without taking into account the nuances studying certain subjects entail.

In April of 2015, The Miscellany News wrote a staff editorial condemning an earlier incarnation of the Dash One proposal. While the 2-2-1 plan has departed significantly from the three initiatives the Committee on Curricular Policies proposed two years ago, reduction in the amount of units a student would take per semester was a major component. While over a year old, many of the editorial’s arguments continue to be rehashed.

The Editorial Board then argued, “The reduction in credits is another impractical proposal, especially for students who would not be able to afford four years at Vassar. Many students need to utilize the five-credit maximum to ensure that they can fulfill their college experience in four years or fewer, and decreasing the maximum number of credits would make this harder for students...Students apply to our school because of the academic freedom the College offers, and the trust it puts in students to choose their own intellectual paths for four years. If these proposals came to fruition, it would effectively rewrite the academic culture at Vassar and reduce the freedom students get with their education here” (The Miscellany News, “Proposed curriculum changes detrimental to VC experience,” 04.08.2015).

In my capacity as Lathrop House President and a member of the Academics Committee of the Vassar Student Association, I’ve heard different incarnations of this same argument numerous times. The phrase “academic freedom”

tends to lie at the center of these critiques.

Upon further examination of the proposal itself, I found that many of the rumors floating around condemning it as drastically changing academics at Vassar for the worst to be mostly unfounded or overly alarmist.

For one, departments have the option to opt out of the plan. The proposal reads, “Some departments may feel that the proposed 2-2-1 is not desirable in the context of their department. A department (or program with faculty appointed to it) may choose to maintain a 3­2 teaching load for its faculty and not produce a plan for Dash­ Ones. In this case, the number of classroom courses offered by the department or program can remain the same as it is currently.” Some concerns about the impacts the 2-2-1 plan might have on certain departments (for example, Music) are valid and need to be addressed. Inherent dissonances between the specific needs of a department like Music and the plan must be reconciled.

However, for those concerned about the implications the 2-2-1 plan might have on specific majors, petitioning departments to opt out is an available option.

Moreover, the amount of agency granted to specific departments to define Dash Ones appears to me like an expansion of academic freedom, not a diminishment. Many department requirements, in conjunction with the College’s graduation requirements, can be laborious and taxing for students and faculty alike.

Reducing overall classroom work while encouraging further individualized study resonates strongly with Vassar’s mission of making “possible an education that promotes analytical, informed and independent thinking and sound judgment; encourages articulate expression; and nurtures intellectual curiosity, creativity, respectful debate and engaged citizenship” (Office of Communications, Vassar College, Approved by the Board of Trustees, May 2012). Creating intellectual spaces for innovative alternatives to standard classroom education sounds to me like a strengthening and further embodiment of the College’s mission statement.

Perhaps most importantly, the 2-2-1 plan ac-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

knowledges the labor faculty members (and their students) already perform. Many departments already require things like senior theses, which would be enveloped into units counted as “Dash Ones.” The proposal takes into account the fact that much of one’s learning occurs outside of the classroom. Acknowledging this as part of official curricular policy is a realistic reflection of the character of academics at a liberal arts school.

Personally, I would love to take more independent studies at Vassar. Establishing a rapport with professors has been one of my favorite aspects of my education here thus far. The Dash One proposal seeks to create more opportunities for such relationships to flourish.

Some faculty members feel similarly. As Dean of Studies Ben Lotto told The Miscellany News last spring, “[C]oming out of a semester now where I was teaching three classroom courses, I think classroom courses suffer and I think my research students suffer because I’m less available. So I think in that way, there will be this subtle change to how everybody’s work flow is operating, and I think it would really change those interactions ... [Professors] want to engage with students in their courses beyond that.

They want to give them good and careful feedback ... And when you’re doing three courses, there’s only so much room for you to do that for all your students in all your courses.”

The 2-2-1 proposal superficially appears to limit student agency over their own education by reducing the number of units they are allowed to take per semester. The intentional vagueness of the policy does indeed open up many questions that may be tricky to navigate.

These issues need to be addressed. However, I urge everyone who has heard horribly negative and alarmist rumors about the proposal to actually read its content. No, the plan itself is not perfect. However, it provides space and potential for substantial improvements to academic life here at Vassar.

While the actual implementation of the plan will obviously vary by department, the barebones proposal appears inherently conducive to the character of a liberal arts education.

October 6, 2016

OPINIONS

Page 9

Entrepreneur Elon Musk must tame his imagination Steven Park Columnist

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lon Musk is at it again. During the 67th International Astronautical Congress held in Guadalajara, Mexico, last Tuesday, Sept. 27, the billionaire entrepreneur formally presented his grand vision to send humanity to Mars.

“What I really want to try to achieve here is to make Mars seem possible, make it seem as though it’s something we can do in our lifetimes,” Musk announced to a lecture hall filled with eager listeners (Business Insider, “Here’s Elon Musk’s complete, sweeping vision on colonizing Mars to save humanity,” 09.29.2016).

In his presentation, Musk provided everything from engineering details to timelines and even a video simulation of an enormous spacecraft carrying passengers to the Red Planet to show how much thought he and his company, SpaceX, have put into this incredibly ambitious plan. The audience was electrified as Musk talked about how he would use a huge 40-story rocket with 42 new and powerful Raptor engines to blast through space at tens of thousands of miles per hour (Wired, “Elon Musk Announces His Plan to Colonize Mars and Save Humanity,” 09.27.2016).

Then, when he vowed to establish a self-sustaining Mars colony of one million people in the coming decades, the crowd cheered as if they were at a rock concert (The Verge, “The biggest lingering questions about SpaceX’s Mars colonization plans,” 09.28.2016).

There was certainly a lot of excitement and fervor at the conference. Not only did Musk declare that the first trip to Mars could take place as early as 2024, but he also promised to make the voyage reasonably affordable for everyone (The New York Times, “Elon Musk’s Plan: Get Humans to Mars, and Beyond,” 09.27.2016). According to his calculations, the first few trips may cost about $500,000, but the price may drop to only one-third of that as time passes.

But here’s the thing: Musk is a madman. Humanity has made incredible technological leaps in recent times, but space travel isn’t something that should be accomplished on a whim. A lot of logistical issues and complications have to be

addressed.

At least under Musk’s current plan, it would be nearly impossible for this “Mars colonization” scheme to ever succeed.

“A lot of logistical issues and complications have to be addressed.

At least under Musk’s current plan, it would be nearly impossible for this “Mars colonization” scheme to ever succeed.”

First and foremost, the rocket has to travel across 54.6 million kilometers of outer space to get to Mars. According to Musk’s blueprint, the SpaceX rocket (nicknamed “BFR” by the company’s employees, and yes, the acronym is exactly what you think) will have 13,000 tons of thrust to launch the spacecraft all the way to Mars, all powered by extremely cold liquid methane as fuel (Slate, “Elon Musk Wants to Put a Million People on Mars,” 09.29.2016).

The rocket’s main selling point is that most of it, especially the propellant, will be reusable, which will allow the rocket to refuel itself in space and significantly cut down the cost. However, the big issue here is that no one knows if any of this technology can actually be built.

Nothing like this has been done before. While the plan may seem feasible on paper, constructing the right machinery and making sure every facet of the spacecraft works properly is an overwhelming task.

To put everything in perspective, the largest and most powerful rocket ever launched, the Saturn V, had a thrust of 3,500 tons.

Musk has not only promised to build a rocket with boosters that are 3.5 times more powerful than that of the Saturn V (Slate), but the rocket must also be twice the size of Saturn V to effec-

tively protect all of its passengers (Inc, “Here’s What an Astronaut Thinks of Elon Musk’s Plan to Colonize Mars,” 09.30.2016). Don’t forget that this rocket is also planned to utilize 42 high-powered engines.

The record-breaking Saturn V could manage only five (Inc). Most importantly, there’s the issue of cost, about which I won’t bother to go into detail, because at this point, anyone can tell that money is definitely going to be an obstacle for an endeavor like this. Yet despite all of these factors, Musk thinks that he can build his revolutionary Mars rocket in just a couple of years.

But let’s give Musk the benefit of the doubt.

Say that the rocket was successfully built according to his blueprints and the Mars mission was ready for takeoff. Then the problem changes to making sure that all of the passengers survive the voyage. According to Musk’s estimates, the trip would take 80 to 150 days (Business Insider). Scientists find these numbers difficult to believe.

“I couldn’t quite follow where [the estimate] was coming from,” said Bobby Braun, Associate Professor of Space Technology at the Georgia Institute of Technology. “When we send robotic missions to Mars, they tend to take nine months to get there” (The Verge).

There’s also the issue of radiation exposure.

The spaceship must have a shield in place in case a solar flare occurs and discharges dangerous waves of subatomic particles (Slate). For some reason, Musk didn’t felt the need to take this issue into account, calling it a “relatively minor” concern (The Verge). Given how he envisions numerous rockets making over 10,000 trips, the odds of a solar flare happening and killing all the passengers is not something for him to casually brush off.

We also have to examine the plan as a whole.

Musk is thinking big. He’s not satisfied with just visiting Mars; he wants humankind to claim it for future civilizations. Musk has stated that his ultimate goal is to turn humanity into a “multiplanetary species” so that our kind doesn’t die out in one fell swoop when an asteroid hits Earth (New York Times).

But this goal introduces a plethora of ques-

tions that Musk has failed to address in his talk.

How will this self-sustaining civilization be created? How will the inhabitants acquire essential life-support systems that create breathable air and obtain water? How will they obtain food?

Since initial trips between Earth and Mars will be few and far-between (speaking of which, how will the rocket have enough fuel to travel back to Earth?), the first inhabitants will have to live off of the land. Unfortunately, the soil on Mars is suspected to contain deadly concentrations of perchlorates, which are toxic for humans (The Verge). Not only that, Mars itself has dangerous levels of radiation due to its thin atmosphere. These are all logistical issues that Musk never really addressed. He didn’t even mention exactly where on Mars would be most suitable for human life.

Last but not least, Musk doesn’t have a particularly impressive track record. He is rather infamous for falling short of his ambitious promises.

Several times, his company, Tesla Motors, has failed to reach over 20 targets for improvement that Musk himself had set (The Wall Street Journal, “Elon Musk Sets Ambitious Goals at Tesla-and Often Falls Short,” 08.15.2016).

It also doesn’t help that just recently, one of his rockets exploded during fueling just two days before it was scheduled to launch (NPR, Elon Musk Unveils His Plan for Colonizing Mars,” 09.27.2016). Honestly, this is the guy who spoke on live television about nuking Mars to create two mini-suns in order to make the planet inhabitable (The Verge). He’s not exactly someone I would trust with my life.

But if nothing else, Musk is getting people to talk excitedly about space exploration again.

Considering how NASA is in constant danger of being defunded due to dwindling public interest, this is quite a feat. Maybe Musk’s ambitious, if not fantastical, plan to colonize Mars may inspire others to form a more legitimate one.

Former astronaut Tom Jones comments: “I think he’s not going to be able to deliver on those promises...[but] I think it’s less important to him that he actually get to Mars personally than that he lay down some steps that will help 76933 somebody else get there” (Inc).

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OPINIONS

Page 10

October 6, 2016

Claims of ‘pinkwashing’ rely on toxic, antisemitic tropes Jesser Horowitz Columnist

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srael is the only safe place for homosexuals in the Middle East. In Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen, homosexuality is punishable by death. In Gaza, homosexuality is illegal. In the West Bank, homosexuality is legal, but being outed would be a death sentence (Washington Post, “The State of Gay Rights Around the World”, 06.14.2016).

Israeli attitudes toward homosexuality are far less than perfect. Like every country, it has its fair share of bigots. However, Israel, unlike most countries in the world, recognizes same-sex marriages performed outside the country, welcomes LGBTQ+ people to serve in the military and allows same-sex couples to adopt children jointly. Tel Aviv is even considered one of the most gay-friendly cities in the world.

What if I told you that by giving you that series of objectively truthful information, I played my part in a global Zionist conspiracy to distract the world media from Israel’s human rights violations against the Palestinian people by co-opting the cause of LGBTQ+ rights?

You’d probably say that I’m an idiot, an antisemite and that I should go back to 4chan.

That’s because you are at least a semi-rational person. However, that is the philosophical basis of pinkwashing, an idea that has gained popularity among supporters of the BDS movement, anti-Zionists and other fervent critics of Israel.

Pinkwashing Israel, an LGBTQ+ pro-Palestinian organization, describes pinkwashing on its website as “Israeli efforts to transform public perception of Israel from an Apartheid settler state to a harmless, liberal, gay-friendly playground” and as a “disingenuous invocation of LGBTQ+ rights by Israel and its supporters to divert attention away from its atrocities against the Palestinians.”

This definition has probably divided my readership. There are those of you who may immediately believe that this concept is extremely

antisemitic and are outraged.

But I imagine the majority of you may feel that I’m overreacting. There’s no explicit claim of worldwide Zionist conspiracy, and perhaps their complaints are valid if you look into them.

After all, how many times have you seen homophobes like Rick Santorum lecture Democrats about Iran’s treatment of homosexuals? Isn’t that a similar concept? Aren’t they invoking similar tropes?

This attitude ignores the legacy of antisemitism. Antisemitic rhetoric, especially in today’s age, is oftentimes centered around Zionist conspiracy theories and actions by the Israeli government.

And keep in mind that this definition does at least imply a concerted effort to co-opt another movement. No, the word conspiracy is not used, but there’s still an implied conspiratorial element to this accusation.

Implying the existence of a concerted effort among Zionists to control the LGBTQ+ movement for personal gains is insensitive at best and bigoted at worst. It shows a complete lack of awareness on behalf of those who promote this idea regarding how their language affects others.

Not everyone who uses the term pinkwashing is an antisemite, but, when looked at practically, this view of Israel is not conceivably different than believing in a worldwide Jewish Zionist conspiracy. Both beliefs promote a narrative of a concerted worldwide Zionist effort to control other influential forces in the world, be it the media or the LGBTQ+ rights movement.

That same website complains that this image promotes a “portrayal of Palestinian and Arab societies as backwards, repressive and intolerant.” I acknowledge there is some legitimacy to their concern. Muslims and Arabs are oftentimes stereotyped in Western culture as being “backwards, repressive and intolerant.” People oftentimes assume that all Muslims are misogynistic, that all Muslims are homophobic, that all

Muslims are antisemitic. These tropes are vitriolic and deserve condemnation.

But that fear does not change the reality of the situation, that most Middle-Eastern governments are repressive and intolerant, and that is especially evident in their policies towards homosexuals.

And that does not change the fact that some of these countries have cultures that currently hold less than tolerant views towards homosexuality.

I do not believe that this is because Muslim culture is inherently intolerant, at least no more so than any other religious belief. There are some people who have attempted to argue this to be the case. I am not one of those people.

That type of rhetoric is racist and Islamophobic.

Obviously, cultural conditions are not static.

Historical context matters. American culture doesn’t currently view homosexuality the same way it did 50 years ago, and hopefully 50 years from most of the Middle East will hold more tolerant views towards homosexuality.

But doesn’t it set a troubling precedent to broaden the definitions of Islamophobia to include criticism of objectively repressive Middle-Eastern governments? Doesn’t that erase the victims of homophobia and bigotry in these nations?

Some of my readers will turn that back around on me. Isn’t it also true, then, that we ought not to broaden the definition of antisemitism to include any criticism of Israel? Absolutely. Criticizing Israeli policies is not inherently antisemitic, and just because Israel adopts an accepting attitude towards LGBTQ+ rights, that doesn’t mean the country gets free pass when it comes to everything else. There are many legitimate reasons to criticize the government of Israel, just like there are many legitimate reasons to criticize the government of the United States or Iran or any other country.

I don’t even believe that Israel is perfect. I believe that Benjamin Netanyahu exploits racism

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and fear to expand his political power. I believe that the Israeli government should be taking down the settlements. I imagine that 80-90 percent of you will probably agree with one or both of those sentiments. Israel isn’t perfect.

But the criticism of Israeli policy is uniquely different from that of other countries. Few people who criticize Saudi Arabia’s repressive regime would describe themselves as “anti-Saudi Arabia,” but people who criticize Israel’s policies oftentimes refer to themselves as anti-Israel or anti-Zionist. No one who criticizes the human rights record of the Egyptian government would suggest that country doesn’t have the have the right to exist. Many critics of Israel openly reject a two-state solution that would allow Israel to exist alongside a Palestinian state. Critics of Turkmenistan’s human rights violations don’t believe in a worldwide concerted effort by the Turkmen government and its allies to manipulate other civil rights movements to promote their own agenda. Critics of Israel frequently do.

And accusations of pinkwashing represent one of the worst aspects of this. It is no longer possible to celebrate an objectively positive element of Israel without being part of a worldwide Zionist conspiracy. It is no longer possible to point out LGBTQ+ rights as a reason to support Israel’s existence without being accused of attacking all critics of Israeli policy. I’m not attacking all critics of Israel. Share your beliefs, that’s fine. This argument does not invalidate an overwhelming majority of your criticism.

The only criticism I’m labeling invalid is that which implies conspiracy or encourages antisemitism. Most people who have problems with Israeli policy don’t do either, anti-pinkwashing advocates do both.

You have the right to criticize Israel. You have the right to question Israel’s existence. You even have the right to be antisemitic, if you so choose to be. But you don’t have the right to promote a form of advocacy that encourages bigotry and then be shocked when people call you out on it.

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OPINIONS

October 6, 2016

Page 11

Letter to the Editor One of my favorite political commentators is Yoel Marcus of the left-wing Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz. He used to publish columns called “Comments on the Situation.” This is my version.

1. Is it possible to talk about what happens outside of the West without talking about the West? We’re myopically obsessed with ourselves, and Joshua Schreier is the most nearsighted among us. Gay people are jailed in 21st century Egypt, stoned in 21st century Iran, and deported from 21st century Bahrain, but Josh wants to talk about 19th century French homophobia. Sorry, Middle East LGBTQ community. The academy has sacrificed you on the altar of post-colonial political correctness.

Rainbows require sunshine, and Joshua Schreier has focused all of his on Israel.

2. As long as we’re talking about color, Black Lives Matter. As my people say, Bimherah V’yameinu, may justice come speedily and in our time. But what did Schreier mean when he compared American racial justice campaign to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Is the United States the subject of an intensive international campaign to demonize its people and effect its dissolution? Israel is. Is the United States the subject of structural discrimination at the UN, where states with human rights records inferior to its own line up to condemn it? Iran condemns Israel as it stones gays to death. China condemns Israel as it occupies Tibet. Russia condemns Israel as it persecutes Muslim Chechens. Israel faces far more opprobrium than any of these countries. Tell me, Vassar students. Why is that? (Hint: It’s not just about the occupation.)

3. By the way, does Vassar have any actual students? None of them were quoted in the Misc’s coverage of Bret Stephens. Instead, we got a long quote from some mensch who gave a beautiful Talmudic dissertation about respecting one another’s strongly-held views and an even longer quote from some other guy who called Stephens a racist, misquoted

him, repeated discredited BDS talking points, and suggested that people who support dialogue and a two-state solution weren’t making a positive contribution. The professor is the Talmud guy, right? If not, he should be.

4. Speaking of mensches, Bret Stephens seems super-nice. Without raising his voice once, Bret called on people to respect each other’s viewpoints, and even apologized for expressing concern about being disrupted. His concern was legitimate. SJP, with Josh Schreier’s support, had chosen to preemptively slander him as a racist and had encouraged their members to attend his event. They even preplanned a post-Stephens whine fest to complain about the invasion of Vassar’s commune by a non-lefty Pulitzer Prize winner. And it’s not like SJP chapters across the country aren’t known for shouting down speakers and storming stages, when they aren’t forcing disinvitations or scaring speakers away, as they did at Brown, where SJP forced Janet Mock, an African-American trans speaker, to withdraw because her appearance was co-sponsored by Hillel, the Jewish students organization.

5. Of course, I josh, and my terrible puns are always intended. The real Bret Stephens was terrible, horrible, even. Stephens said that the two-state solution was the best moral outcome in a conflict where both peoples have strong political and ethnic identities. Terrible.

He encouraged grassroots, rather than topdown, activism. Horrible. He even encouraged people to take small gestures to help build trust between Israelis and Palestinians, and he asked us to recognize the humanity on both sides. Despicable. He also encouraged students to think critically and to reject those calling for Israel’s dissolution, something virtually every major BDS activist supports, or, in the case of Vassar’s SJP, regards as a desirable outcome. Stephens also took lots of questions.

Curiously, none came from Josh Schreier. He waited until he was among other BDSers to speak.

6. Speaking of BDS scholars-cum-shills, can gay Palestinians in Israel be openly gay? Of course they can; sexual orientation freedom is covered by Israel’s Basic Law: Human Dignity and Liberty and by Israel Supreme Court precedent, and it’s been that way for more than 50 years. The Israeli health system covers sexual reassignment surgery. Do gay Palestinians living in the West Bank or Gaza have these rights?

No, because their civil rights are determined

by Article 9, Section II, of Palestine’s Basic Law, which, like similar legislation throughout the Middle East, does not cover sexual orientation, and it’s not because they forgot to put it in. It’s just not safe to be gay and out in Palestine. That’s why gay Palestinians take refuge in Israel, and no, it’s not because the Mossad signs all of them up as collaborators. It’s because they want to survive.

7. Speaking of gay people in the Middle East, Schreier seems to be under the impression that criticizing the lack of LGBTQ rights in the Middle East is the same as assuming that their cultures have always been this way and always will be. Stephens didn’t say this, and neither do I. Unfortunately, change moves in more than one direction at a given time, and the same-sex relationships that may have been tacitly accepted in the Middle East two centuries ago have given way to a culture of fear and repression today. Again, Bimherah V’Yameinu, it should change speedily in our time. But it sounds like we have a long way to go. This year, the Grand Imam at Al-Ahzar University, generally considered Sunni Islam’s most prestigious educational institution, called homosexuality a “moral disease” that undermines the innate quality of humanity.

(The Jakarta Post, “Discourse: Homosexuality not human right but moral disease: Grand Imam,” 02.25.2016). But who cares about that guy? No one takes him seriously, right? Josh Schreier doesn’t seem to. How could he? The venerated clergyman did not even mention 19th-century France.

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Letter to the Editor Although unwilling to directly debate Bret Stephens regarding Stephens’ purported “pinkwashing,” Professor Schreier offered his thoughts in a closed session “talk back” two days later and in his recent opinion piece in the Miscellany News. (09.28.16: “Bret Stephens’ ‘Pinkwashing” Ignores Israeli State Violence.”). For those of you who find it difficult to follow Prof. Schreier’s tortured logic, here is his message in distilled form: “Dear LGBTQ Community: Although those of you living in the Arab Middle East and many other Muslim-dominant countries are at constant risk of imprisonment, torture and death (including by such choice means as being tossed off roofs or hanged from cranes), not to worry. I am doing my best to convince students and future leaders of the world that it is racist even to mention such things. Indeed, I am pushing them to focus instead on demonizing and vilifying the one nation in the Middle East where you can live openly and be true to yourselves, Israel. And I do this because of all the horrible things that Israel does to Palestinians–you know, the big bad security fence (that almost eliminated the suicide bombings that plagued Israel in the Second Intifada) and the usurping of Palestinian water (never mind that due largely to Israeli efforts, the Palestinian water supply in the West Bank has become much more abundant and technologically advanced than it was prior to 1967). And of course, there is that “low-octane genocide” accusation that I have been known to fling–notwithstanding that the Palestinian population continues to grow exponentially. Nope, not to worry. After all, who knows, someday the Arab and Muslim-dominant nations might change their homophobic ways and, if not, I am sure you don’t mind being sacrificed for the greater good of eliminating the world’s only Jewish state.”

It would indeed be funny were it not so terribly sad that at Vassar, Professor Schreier is the only faculty member teaching courses on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Word on the street What debate question would you ask?

“What did you eat for breakfast?

— Izzy Braham ’20

“What type of music do you like?”

— Noa Mendoza ’20

“Who of you rocks a jumpsuit better?”

— Kirk Testa ’19

“What late-night comedian does the best impression of you?”

— Sarah Mamlet ’20

“What Kardashian is your fav?”

— Sarah GarjioGarde ’20

“What’s your stance on goths?” ­­— Dakota Lee Snellgrove ’19

Evelyn Frick, Humor & Satire Editor

HUMOR & SATIRE

Page 12

October 6, 2016

Breaking News From the desk of Evelyn Frick, Humor & Satire Editor After menacing clown spotted on campus, rainbow wigs quickly become new fashion trend among ironic hipsters Brad’s1 Cool Career Corner Want to quantify how sad “Bridging the Gap” Edition your life is? Take our quiz!

Leela Stalzer and Gabrielle Anspach “Brad”

L

ooking for help with career development?

Not sure what working your net really involves? Look no further! Throughout the semester, Brad’s Cool Career Corner will be providing you with the best tips and tricks of the game!

You’re finally starting to get the hang of this semester’s classes. But there’s something on your mind... You remember reading those words “office hours” in your syllabi. The corresponding times and locations maliciously wiggle and dance through your dreams like evil, limp pieces of spaghetti. In today’s edition, we provide tips for “bridging the gap” between classes and office hours. These tips can lead you to your ultimate goal: building relationships with professors.

Tip No. 1: Contribute noticeably in class. If you are trying to build relationships with your professors, you will want to make your presence known in class. Make sure to participate in discussion as much as possible, even if it’s not a discussion-based class. We recommend raising your hand after every complete statement that your professor makes. Don’t be afraid to show some aggression toward fellow students–this will show the professor that you’re truly committed to learning, even at others’ expense. If you’re a cis white guy, this should come naturally to you. The amount of resources and teacher attention you have received for the past 20 years have prepared you well.

Tip No. 2: Get to know your professor. To further aid your class participation, check out some, or all, of your professors’ published works. Read these carefully. When you hear the professor or a fellow classmate say something even remotely related to something you’ve read, raise your hand! Don’t be timid! The best kind of contributions are challenging to fellow students and maybe even your professor. For an example of a spot-on comment, we caught up with Kris ’17 on her way to Chemistry class.

Kris: Yesterday, at the beginning of Urban Studies, my classmates were enthralled by a

womp-womp outside our window. I raised my hand. “Professor, I was reading your research on how prepubescent urban tree squirrels populations are affected by youths’ violent video game usage. I can’t help but notice the connection with what we’re seeing.”

Follow Kris’s example. Be bold and prepared!

Tip No. 3: “Build the bridge” between class and office hours. If you have advanced past levels one and two, you may have realized that there aren’t enough chances to share your knowledge with professors in class. That’s where office hours come in! Dave ’18 fills us in: Dave: After sharing my knowledge of my professor’s research in class several times, I still felt like I had more to say. I built up the courage to go to office hours. I arrived 10 minutes early and swear I saw him rounding the corner from down the hall. It was rather unfortunate though, because for some reason, he never showed up and he canceled his office hours for several weeks in a row afterwards.

Don’t give up Dave, we believe in you!

Senior Snippet: You might be worried that you haven’t built enough professor relationships during your time here. It’s possible that you’re even still intimidated by the other students in your classes. And let’s face it: You’re running out of time (unlike us, who have secured lifetime employment at Goldman Sachs thanks to our stellar professor recommendations and histories as VPs of the Vassar Business Club).

We strongly advise that you enroll in a freshman writing seminar next semester. As a senior in a class of first years, you’ll be slam dunking for the whole 75 minutes and your writing will be immaculate in comparison to that of your peers. Just be careful not to disclose your class year to anyone. If you run into problems with the registrar, consider taking the class not for credit. Either way, this is your chance to finally “bridge the gap,” or should we say, “build” “the bridge” or rather, the Bridge “Building.”

1 Named after the great entrepreneur, inventor of Brad’s Granola. Brad, if you see this, we would appreciate if you could please send the recipe to Box 2180 at your earliest convenience.

Evelyn Frick Not Buzzfeed

A

s fall has just begun, the anticipation for changing leaves and everyone’s fetish for pumpkin spice has everyone in the spirit of the season. And sure, fall is the perfect time to eat apple cider donuts and go apple picking, but all of these things are just a distraction. Rather, the changing weather is an ominous reminder that soon the sun will abandon us and daylight hours will only extend until 3 p.m. Not only this, but course loads will imminently be growing so large that our brains will explode while we have to smile through the pain; like a Jack-o’-Lantern that has been left out on a porch until Thanksgiving. If you don’t feel distraught already, you will soon. So why not take The Misc’s personality quiz: What Level of Despair Are You? 1. How many hours a day do you cry?

A) I haven’t cried since I was a baby!

B) I’m not sure, my vision is obscured because it’s full of welling tears.

C) All of them.

2. How do you feel about your classes?

A) Amazing! I’m taking five classes and I have a 4.0 GPA! B) Could be better. Could be worse.

C) Every time I look at the syllabus, I know it’s judging me.

3. Favorite fall look?

A) Scarves, boots and sweaters, all the way!

B) I think the material from my sweatpants has melded with my skin...

C) The bags under my eyes are a nice shade of purple, actually.

4. Favorite fall event on campus?

A) Halloweekend ;) B) I have to say my House Team’s Event...

C) Halloweekend. But only because it gives me an excuse to get cataclysmically wasted in a Power Rangers costume.

5. Favorite Autumnal Music?

A) I don’t want to be ~that~ person, but I’m already listening to Christmas music.

B) Bon Iver really resonates with me because I like the idea of moving to a solitary cabin in

the woods.

C) “Wake Me Up When September Ends” 6. Have you been sick yet?

A) Nope! I’m getting eight hours of sleep every night, washing my hands constantly and taking Vitamin C every day!

B) I just slam dunked a tissue into the trash.

C) My body is riddled with everything.

Now, tally up how many A’s, B’s and C’s you have! This may be difficult if you’re not a math major, but just try your best. Got the results?

Now see what level of despair you’re at! Or don’t. I’m not your mother.

1. If you have a majority of A’s...

You are not experiencing despair at all! You are a well-adjusted individual and are living your best life during this fall season. Go fuck yourself. The rest of us are here struggling and no one is interested in watching you frolic through the piles of fallen leaves, bake pumpkin bread and somehow still do really well academically. Seriously, tone it down.

2. If you gave a majority of B’s...

Fall is starting to get you a little low! You are not experiencing full-blown despair, but like they say in “Game of Thrones,” “There is a slight chance that winter may be approaching.” The next illness, less-than-satisfactory test grade or lack of Mini Wheats at the Deece.

Never fear, it is only slightly pathetic! But we’ve all been there, it’s okay!

3. If you have a majority of C’s...

Despair abounds... There is no hope. You may as well go hibernate with the wompwomps and try again in the spring.

If you don’t have a majority of any letter...

You did the quiz wrong.

Disclaimer: If you are experiencing despair, you’re probably going through a lot and that feeling is normal. We at The Miscellany News care about your well-being! Please consider visiting Metcalf or calling the Counseling Service at (845) 437-5700. If you are experiencing an emergency after their business hours, please call CRC at (845) 437-7333 to get in contact with the Counselor on Call!

Halloween costume ideas give students another reason to feel unprepared Chris Allen, New York Fashion Halloweekend

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pooktober is finally here, and you know what that means! It’s time to add the finishing touches to that Halloween costume you’ve been working on since Nov. 1, 2015.

What’s that? You don’t even have an idea yet?

Costume idea proposals were due last March!

What have you been doing this whole time?

Anyway, 2016 has been a crazy year in pop culture, news and general everything-ness.

There is no shortage of available costume ideas, so allow me to enlighten you.

All right, let’s address the demogorgon in the room. Everyone is going to have a “Stranger Things” costume this year. The Netflix series has struck a nerve in the zeitgeist by doing what Stephen King and Steven Spielberg have been doing for decades, but on a lower budget. I don’t mean to knock the show or the idea of Halloweening as one of the characters. But if you want your costume to stand out from the crowd, you should put a creative twist on it. For example, if you’re going to have your group of friends dress up as the “Stranger Things” gang and you’re assigned the role of Will, you should just mysteriously disappear at the beginning of the

night. Everybody will really appreciate your commitment to the character. If you’re lucky, your friends might even be so genuinely concerned by your absence that they’ll get the local sheriff involved, like in the show!

Contrary to popular belief, Netflix’s love letter to the ’80s was not the only thing that happened in 2016 pop culture. There are other group costuming opportunities besides the “Stranger Things” squad. Why not celebrate the final season of a masterful period piece and take the party by storm as the “Downton Abbey” squad? The elegant costuming may take an entire British working class to stitch, but critics will call it a tour de force! Or, you can be the female Ghostbusters! Just a headsup, though, make sure you’re aware of how society will respond to this. No matter how much work you put into your female Ghostbusters costumes, no matter how perfect they are, people will simply not accept them.

2016 was a sloppy year for western politics.

Do us all a favor and keep your Halloween costume away from the sloppiness. It doesn’t matter if you look good with a spray tan or you think your Brexit costume is a witty con-

cept (what would that even entail?). The last thing that a cheerful Halloween partygoer or trick-or-treater wants is to think about is the miserable reality that our world is hurtling toward its ultimate demise at the tiny hands of autocratic bigots. Instead, take the high road. If you want a political costume, go for the northern neighbor who everybody likes– Justin Trudeau. He’s the least controversial new politician of the year and unquestionably the sexiest.

What a year for technology! A new form of transportation emerged and slowly began to replace feet as the primary means of transportation. The hoverboard, or self-balancing scooter, or “swagway,” rolled the human race into the future...and then it exploded in our faces. When the glowing, two-wheeled gadgets began to spontaneously combust, they did not take any lives, but they sure did cause a lot of hubbub and damage. So on Halloween, people will know exactly what you’re going for if you costume as a hoverboard burn victim. This would require the device, some bandages and a reckless attitude. Another tech costume, and one of the easiest costume

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

ideas for Halloween 2016, is the iPhone 7. All you need to do is be sopping wet at all times to show off your water resistance and always speak at a loud yell because you don’t have a headphone jack for discrete listening. Sure, people will absolutely hate you. But at the end of the day, they will still flock to you.

Still not inspired? Okay, it’s time for the lightning round. I’ll rattle off a bunch of 2016 things that could make great Halloween costumes. An empty SCOTUS seat. The blurry, bewildered Mr. Krabs meme. George R. R. Martin. A fresh glass of Beyoncé’s new album.

The Oscars (just wear white). Ex-president of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff. A pair of Birkenstock sandals. The “V” from Batman v Superman.

The new squirt gun emoji. Michael Phelps and his therapeutic back hickies. Finally, if all else fails, you can go with a Vassar-specific costume. If zombies can teach us anything, it’s that no ending is certain. Those who die can be reanimated and those who leave their administrative position for other opportunities will always be welcome to come back. Celebrate those two universal truths by showing up on Halloween as Zombie Cappy.

HUMOR & SATIRE

October 6, 2016

Page 13

In administrator’s fantasy, party regulations well-received Zander Bashaw

Already on Probation

Re: Party Registration Policy and Practices Dearest Dean of Students, Those of us within Vassar’s Mathematics and Statistics Department would like to respond to your numerical limits. According to our calculations, the wildest policy-abiding night on Vassar’s campus would consist of 225 total students partying, which represents roughly nine percent of the student body. Yes, us Math scholars are aware that sometimes we brainiacs get left out of the collective ethanol-soaked TH’s and TA’s, but at this rate, the already repetitive party culture will become such an elitist system, Bernie will be making his speech about that nine percent and how we need to rise up, and turn up.

Integrally yours,

“Philosopher? I Hardly Know Her!” ACROSS

1 German for authentic 5 What a plant does 10 Late night last−minute studying 14 Zone 15 Art−making surface 16 Water spewing snake 17 Victoria, this to her friends 18 How I lay on my bed every day after class 19 Contains half of Russia 20 Wrote “A Vindication of the Rights of Women” 23 Makes a warm yet itchy coat 24 What you get stuck in 25 Primary Disney Junior princess 28 Small dogs are still doing this 31 Feminist scholar working to abolish the prison−industrial complex 35 Wrote “The Human Condition” 37 Bruce can fight 39 The first natural number 40 Heavenly avians 44 A, C, G, and U in it 45 Medical research facility in Maryland (Abbr) 46 When you’re real enough but not the realest

Answers to last week’s puzzle Dad Jokes

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Vassar Math Department Misc[at]Vassar.edu Staff Editorial Dearest Dean, We at The Miscellany News are moderately upset about the new party rules, but will stretch our opinion to a thousand words. Though we agree with the policy on preventing insufficiently lit students from entering registered parties, we believe that administration should be more transparent about the waitlist policy.

Our suggestion is that the bouncers should keep the entry waitlist and corresponding BACs on an LED scoreboard that updates in real time. This way, all students seeking to enter the party can calculate how much more they should drink to enter, which would afford every student the equal opportunity to vomit.

If there is any group of people that rely on partying for stress relief, it is the staff of The Miscellany News. Although our Editorial Board

Sanana Srestha/The Miscellany News

Party Registration Policy and Practices Dear students, Now that a bunch of you have been written up for rules that were never properly explained, we would like clarify the party rules so those of you know the full extent of your sins and can properly repent.

There can only be one (1, I) host for a registered party, and only three (3, III) people can pretend to be the host.

Only 25 of the turntest people will be allowed entry into registered parties. Bouncers will breathalyze all students at the door, and then let in the people with the highest BAC. Only Natty Lite or Franzia will be permitted at registered parties. After all, tuition costs a mint as is.

There can only be nine registered parties on campus, and we want to stress that this number is the result of collaboration with mathematicians and party experts. It certainly is not arbitrary.

This rule is not a change from previous policy, but more of a reminder that fun is still not allowed at registered parties.

Though these rules may already seem Crystal Palace clear, we know students often need the simplest concepts explained to them, so we’ll give it a shot. The main reason behind the policy is Vassar’s dedication to preventing fires on our campus. Some of you may not be aware, but Vassar proudly boasts a Smoke Free policy, and every year, students move their upholstered furniture and flammable items into their closets when the dorms are inspected for fire safety. The party rules are the next abstract step in this plan. Limiting parties to 25 people will greatly reduce the amount of static electricity generated within the party. Combining this with removing flammable hard alcohols from parties will prevent blazes like you wouldn’t believe. As we move forward, Administration

is open to ignoring student input about these policy changes.

XOXO, Dean of Students

would be able to fit under the 25-person limit, if we invited our numerous photographers, writers and people too timid to ask to leave our email list, it would certainly exceed that limit.

Plus no hard liquor would ruin our perennial favorite, “Take a shot for every comment from an angry alum.” While we understand that parties are not for fun and serve solely a functional purpose for common students and editors alike, we must warn that these heinous restrictions will only promote unregistered parties.

The Miscellany News Staff Editorial Represents 2/3 of the opinions of the Editorial Board, the remaining 1/3 is not suitable for printing.

Hello to all, I am sincerely excited to find my inbox impregnated with responses that were as cute as Ollie. I intend to pat them on the head, put them on a leash, and take them on a little walk before remembering that my ideas are far above them.

Besides, how could I possibly take seriously The Misc or the Math Department when their logos are nowhere near as illustrious or aesthetically appealing as my own personal crest.

One thing I would like to posit is that we are doubtless aware that increasing party restrictions is not only a fun way for us to reduce fun on campus, but also a way to spice up the student conduct system. These unrealistic limits and restrictions, combined with our delayed announcement of them, will doubtless lead to more students going through the conduct system, and getting to meet with me, and this will help me confront the existential realities that nothing in life matters and we are all alone.

At this point I would like to formally close conversations about the party rules with students until they are meeting with me for a student conduct meeting.

LOLOL, Anders van Minter Supreme Ruler of Residential Life

The Miscellany Crossword

by Kim Carlson and Mackenzie Little

47 The stars on a clear night, to poets 50 The degrees we’ll get (Abbr) 52 Lil fights 53 Pigeon noise 55 To hold up 57 They help you not drive through garbage 64 French philosopher and mystic 65 Bunch o bunnies 66 The most selfish of them all 68ACROSS Jason’s boat 1 691Not get hit for authentic German 705AWhat small case to hold needles, perhaps a plant does 71 10 Annoying small last−minute bug found in hordes 14 Late night 72 What to do when your plant gets big studying 7314 ANGER Zone 17

41 Teensy little lie 42 The Fable man 43 More dashing, more spiffy 48 Dali had one named Babou 49 According to Drake, it stands for “working on excellence” 51 Crudely, a “banana hammock” 54 Not the one 56 Every time I __ my password, I forget it 57 “If you don’t know what __ is, Steve, you 2 3 4 5 6 7

Philosopher? I Hardly Knew Her! Mackenzie Little and Kim Carlson

DOWN 15 Art−making

don’t have it” − Michelle Obama to Colbert 58 Bird with a black cap on its head 59 Latvian capital 60 Do this to every document or file you work on 61 “That’s a __!” − me, pointing at flatbread rolled around filling 62 Pro __, meaning in proportion 63 Tightly fitting, with a connotation of safety 67 One lonely dice 8 9 10 11 12 13

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39 The first natural number 32 There it is, there you are!

40 Heavenly avians 68 69 33 A thing that’s put in 44 A, C, G, and U in it 34 Trelawney and Cassandra 45 Medical research facility 36 A whole goddamn lot 71 72 in Maryland (Abbr) 38 Generally on the side of caution 46 When you’re real enough but not the realest © 2016 (Published via Across Lite) NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE 25 Company famous for its 47 The stars on a MISCELLANY clear DOWN night, to poets hummus 1 What you do to 2 down 50 The degrees we’ll get 26 A mechanical gasket when admitting you are (Abbr) shaped like a circle wrong

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October 6 2016

Indecent Exposure show burns bridges, jokes are ‘fire’ Adam Westerman Guest Reporter

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Elena Schultz/The Miscellany News

s women gain traction in comedy, Vassar’s only all-female comedy group Indecent Exposure is celebrating its 12th anniversary of claiming their rightful space in a male-dominated scene. IE held their first show of the 20162017 year in Sanders Auditorium last Saturday night, Oct. 1. Like any new year, the group has made changes, including adding new members Evelyn Frick ’19, Ashley Hoyle ’18 and Bianca Barragan ’19.

At Indecent Exposure callbacks each year, the president explains how the group was founded. IE President Elizabeth Snyderman ’17 says she “enjoyed hearing the story directly from the founder after having heard it passed down over the years.” Back in 2004, there were very few women in Vassar’s comedy scene. Heather Trobe ’05 noticed that the women in sketch groups were often relegated to wives, mothers or sex workers, roles that lacked nuance and demonstrated a pervading narrow-mindedness.

Trobe created “Indecent Exposure,” a one-night special event showcasing a group of female stand-up sets.

Over the next several years, Indecent Exposure gained its bearings as a feminist group that performed comedy, but eventually as it gained popularity it became a comedy-first organization.

“It very much did start with the idea of proving that women can be funny. We eventually became an org and did stand-up shows and sketch shows, but it’s interesting that for quite a while our idea was about proving the feminist angle,” commented Frick [Full Disclosure: Evelyn Frick is the Humor & Satire Editor of The Miscellany News]. “It shouldn’t be that we’re women who are funny, just that we’re funny in a conversation intertwined with the fact that we’re all women.

We want people to divorce those two notions but also remain empowered.”

The group was still in flux early in Snyderman’s Vassar career. Gals and Pals, an evening of

stand-up wherein anyone on campus can submit a set, had recently been introduced. While Gals and Pals was originally set in Ferry, Snyderman explained, “We had a small enough audience that we could just do it in Ferry, whereas now we could do it and fill up Sanders.” During the first years, very few sets were submitted, and IE members ended up “begging people to submit.”

Frick expressed, “I think it’s fantastic to invite new people to do comedy. With how the comedy group works it seems super exclusive, but Gals and Pals shows that anyone can do it, there are so many talented people on campus.”

As Indecent Exposure gained popularity around campus and shaped itself into one of Vassar’s premiere comedy groups, its members worked to create a distinct identity and maintain their reliable comedic freshness. As Snyderman reflected, “There was a conflict, we were figuring out who we wanted to be. Did we want to take people from other comedy groups?

Are we explicitly here for people who don’t get a chance to perform comedy?”

In fall 2014, Gals and Pals was performed in the Shiva, and attendance barely filled half of the seats that night. Presently Indecent Exposure can fill Sanders twice in one evening. Snyderman says a turning point of popularity came during the 2015 Valentine’s Day show. “We had to turn people away. It was amazing how much had changed in that one year. IE used to be just a space to goof around in, but the Valentine’s Day show showed that we were a comedy group. For the next Gals and Pals we got 15 sets.”

Another trait unique to Indecent Exposure is its versatility: it produces both sketch shows and stand-up shows. For the former, members write and revise sketches, then select them a week before they are to be staged. In the latter, each member develops her own routine and after sharing sets the order is then decided upon.

“Before IE, I hadn’t written sets, and I wasn’t sure what part of the writing of a joke makes it funny. Our sets don’t necessarily correspond with what the theme is but after Zoey [Wiseman

Vassar’s only all-female comedy group presented a night of stand-up for their first show. They also introduced new members Evelyn Frick ’19, Bianca Barragan ’19 and Ashley Hoyle ’18. ’19] proposed Burning Bridges we all wanted to write stuff that kind of called people out,” says Frick.

Looking ahead, Indecent Exposure wants to develop their sketch-writing insofar as finding and standardizing their comedic structure.

Snyderman took a sketch-writing seminar over summer break and she said, “We have always told our members to write sketches without talking about what a sketch is, so we’ll go more in depth with that this year.” There will be an emphasis on Gals and Pals, more shows and buckets of laughter.

Frick expanded on these goals: “It [sketch comedy] is a very white-dominated group on campus. My hope is that the comedy scene will become more welcoming to people of color over the time I’m here at Vassar.”

After 12 years, Indecent Exposure still holds true to its initial tenets. “We’re focused on thinking about the social justice, the social implications of what we do,” says Snyderman.

“Providing a safe place for women to do comedy on this campus is still a huge goal of ours.

We’re always very careful in our material to not be offensive, and we feel like not all groups take that as seriously.”

“It’s been such a powerful experience getting to surround myself with such brilliant, thoughtful, hilarious women,” new member Hoyle remarked. “It feels great that one of the most consistently well received groups on campus is all-female, and our leaders are very cognizant of the duty we all have to remain diligently respectful and thoughtful with our privilege of having a microphone to hold.”

Performer showcases expressive Indian dance form Noah Purdy Arts Editor

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his past Sunday, Oct. 2, a performer once hailed as the “cultural ambassador of India” visited Vassar to showcase her craft. In an event co-sponsored by the Asian Students’ Alliance (ASA) and the South Asian Students Alliance (SASA), Guru Sanchita Bhattacharya presented a selection of Odissi dance pieces in the Villard Room.

Odissi, a type of Indian classical dance, originated in temples of the southeastern Indian state of Odisha (also known as Orissa), and the first written record of the style dates back 3,000 years. Originally, women performed Odissi to recount Hindu narratives as part of the daily temple puja dedicated to Lord Jagannath, the Lord of the Universe.

Hindi temple sculptures based on Odissi poses helped dancers reconstruct the ancient dance in the modern era, and the British suppression of female dancers of Odissi led male students to add acrobatic elements that are present in its current

form. As Bhattacharya said, “The dance has moved out from the temple to the stage, with a purpose... to commune, to open all hearts.”

Not only is Bhattacharya a master of Odissi, having studied dance since she was two, but she has also introduced the dance to a global audience.

She has performed at Madison Square Garden and other venues in cities around the world, Singapore to Spain, and just last week danced at the Ford Theatre in Hollywood. She teaches Odissi in India and abroad and received the title of “Sri Kshetra Mahari” from the Jagannath Temple in Puri, where Odissi dance is said to have originated. Bhattacharya also started the Sanchita Odissi Dance Foundation in Kolkata, which sponsors young girls from underprivileged families. She was selling CDs of her dance music at the event to support the cause.

Bhattarcharya explained in an emailed statement how overjoyed she is to be able to bring her art form to an international audience: “I have been blessed enough to be invited by and to be traveling

Courtesy of Sanchita Bhattacharya

Guru Sanchita Bhattacharya visited Vassar on Sunday, Oct. 4. She performed a selection of Odissi dance, a 3,000-year-old art form that originated in the Hindu temples of Odisha, India.

extensively all over the world, explaining the form, format, story line and the layers of [the] value system and philosophy embedded in this dance...thus making it legible to the international audience.”

SASA made it a point to extend the invitation to the Poughkeepsie community. As SASA Co-President Dushyant Naresh ’17 stated, “[We hope] that we can slowly try and dissolve the Vassar bubble ... One of the ways we are tackling this is to mingle with other South Asians in Poughkeepsie.”

SASA Treasurer Aditi Chandna ’19 added: “ASA and SASA collaborated because we have a common unifying goal to expose people to different types of culture ... It’s nice to have Poughkeepsie residents from South Asia attend these events so they can feel closer to home and so they know that Vassar is open to the community.”

The event had a great turnout of students and Poughkeepsie residents alike, all eager to absorb and learn from this performance. They were not disappointed as Bhattarcharya, clad in red and adorned with a jeweled headpiece and bells around her ankles, led the audience through three varied and beautiful Odissi numbers.

The first dance was a graceful and joyous opening to welcome the audience, complete with flowers sprinkled over the front row. The second piece told the story of Lord Krishna’s stepmother Yashoda trying to get the infant Krishna to go to bed.

Bhattacharya embodied the motherly role, quieting the child while intermittently threatening him with all sort of fierce animals that will attack if he does not sleep. The story ends with Krishna opening his mouth and revealing the whole universe within, a stunning moment that encapsulated the power of Odissi expression. She even broke the fourth wall, as Bhattacharya shushed the applause with fear that it would wake the sleeping child.

The final number was based on scripture that portrays virtue as a woman. Though the dance was very graceful and feminine, it still incorporated elements of strength to demonstrate the connection between womanhood and spiritual fortitude. “I do not do it softly to make it look dainty,” Bhattacharya pointed out. “There is so much power in this.”

Evident in Bhattacharya’s explanations of her practice was the essential “grammar” of Odissi dance. SASA Secretary Adya Goyal ’19, who stud-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

ied Bharatanatyam dance at school in India and has seen many Odissi performances, illuminated, “Odissi showcases Hindu mythology using a lot of facial expressions, called abhinaya, and hand gestures, which are called mudras.”

Bhattacharya demonstrated all 28 mudras for the audience, which represent everything from snakes and deer to lotus flowers and the iconographic crescent moon on Shiva’s head. These manual mudras are accentuated with red dye on the fingertips and the expressive abhinaya with black eyeliner.

Bhattacharya also showed how Odissi relies on chakras in the body, utilizing a three-point bend at three crucial chakras. Her performance displayed a beautiful synthesis of elements that characterize the dance and how they create a narrative and a truly transcendent experience.

For Goyal, the event overall was a nice reminder of home. “Dance is a very integral part of our culture,” she asserted. “I’ve grown up with music and dance all around me, and when I came here I had nowhere to do it, so events like these make me feel connected to my culture while I’m on the other side of the world.”

Naresh agreed, adding that he hopes that this event, as well as SASA’s other programming, adds needed variety to the Western-centric music and art events common to campus. “SASA has been trying to make Vassar a more inclusive space over the last few years, and we hope events like the Odissi performance...open up avenues for other identity orgs to host large events such as this. [They allow] us to communicate across differences better, leading to greater global awareness and empathy...so that all of us can expand our horizons.”

Sachita Bhattacharya’s Odissi performance showcased just one captivating example of India’s diverse cultural landscape, exposing viewers to how this classical style conveys many themes like motherhood, strength, virtue and beauty. “Odissi dance culminates to basic human values and universal truths and philosophies and so actually irrespective of ethnicity, everyone understands and feels one with the dance,” Bhattacharya expressed. “[Odissi imparts] the unforgettable, aesthetic beauty, the soul-touching and heart-opening experience and most importantly the reaffirmation of humanitarian values through dance.”

October 6, 2016

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First orchestra concert showcases Romantic repertoire Patrick Tanella

Assistant Arts Editor

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re-audition every year, he knows the potential of the orchestra and can choose which pieces to use. The first concert of the season is always the most exciting, as it is the first time the firstyears step on stage. Navega enjoys seeing the excitement on their faces minutes before the concert begins.

You can tell how much Navega loves conducting by the way he describes the pieces and the instruments. When Navega explained how the violins are especially strong this year and that there are more bassoons than ever before, the passion in his voice is clear. He truly loves what he does. This is the first college orchestra Navega has worked with, and he has been conducting for Vassar since 1999. Conducting is his life, and Vassar is his home.

The program opens with the Fourth Move-

Courtesy of Vassar College

ach semester, Vassar College’s Orchestra puts on three different concerts. Its opening show will be on Saturday, Oct. 8 at 8 p.m. in the Mary Anna Fox Martel Recital Hall and will feature works by Mendelssohn and Dvorák.

Its conductor, Senior Lecturer in Music and Director of Orchestral Activities Eduardo Navega, promises that it will not disappoint fans of Romantic classical music.

Being a member of an orchestra is not an easy task. With two practices totaling five hours per week and constant individual practice, it may seem too much to handle. However, Navega’s students say it’s all worth it. Oboist Fiona Hart ’18 explained why she makes sacrifice: “For me, going to rehearsal is not work. Even though orchestra is a class, It’s a really good way to destress because playing an instrument is a passion of mine, and orchestra has proven to be a fun outlet for me.”

Hart has played the oboe since her sophomore year and is a biology major. She has found that the arts and sciences are continually vying for her attention, but through a meticulously scheduled Google Calendar, she makes it all work.

Lucy Ellman ’19, who has been playing the cello since the fourth grade, loves orchestra because of her excellent instructor. She commented, “Eduardo is truly wonderful ... Through his kind nature and patience, he gets us to sound the best that we can.”

As Hart exclaimed, “I love Eduardo—he’s really nice and approachable. He’s very serious about orchestra, but he critiques in a way that you’re able to change and want to play better.

There is a pressure to improve, but rehearsing is always a positive experience.” An orchestra is not complete without its instructor, and every member seemed to adore Navega and all of his efforts.

The orchestra performs predominantly Romantic classical music. There are fewer stu-

dents this year, but that might be a good thing.

Ellman explained, “I think we’re more attune to everyone and it’s more of a community. We’re going to sound really good, and the pieces are cool to play, which makes rehearsals fun and engaging.” The students are also quite passionate about the different pieces.

Hart remarked, “I was kind of feeling staggered in my way of performing in a large group setting, but every so often you get a piece that re-energizes your love for playing in an orchestral setting, and for me Mendelssohn’s Fifth has really reminded me why I love performing in orchestra.”

Now how does a show come together? During the summer, Navega researches a potential repertoire and has a few pieces ready to go. Once he has auditioned everyone, as every student must

The Vassar College Orchestra, under the direction of Eduardo Navega, will present their first concert of the year on Saturday, Oct. 8 in Skinner’s Mary Ana Fox Martel Recital Hall.

ment of Dvorák’s “Slavonic Dances.” Navega explained why he chose the movement: “It’s a very nice piece in terms of character. It has that very Slavonic character that Dvorák’s very good at. He uses a rich orchestration for that piece, so it shows the orchestra really well. You can pinpoint each instrument.”

After the opening piece is Mendelssohn’s Symphony Number 5, which Navega particularly appreciates because of its interesting history.

The symphony was performed two years after it was written, and then not performed again until 20 years after Mendelssohn’s death. Navega commented, “It was a piece that was forgotten.

But then it became very popular and is now a very traditional piece of orchestral repertoire, as the writing is very rich and goes well with the Dvorák piece.”

These pieces were chosen together to carefully highlight this year’s orchestra and to create a dynamic experience for the audience. Both works are from the Romantic period and, while technically challenging, are rewarding pieces to play.

Navega expressed, “Students like to play this kind of music. The themes are very recognizable, so you remember that tune from the first movement that shows up in the third. It’s an effective use of the orchestra, as it uses the full potential of the string section, woodwinds and brass, and you can hear the instruments very clearly.”

He went on, “It has some complexities, but the students are doing great in rehearsal.

They’re two pieces that use well the resources that we have in the orchestra, and I believe it’s going to be a good concert.”

These students are not just playing for the college credit, or to boost their grad school applications. They’re playing because they truly love what they do and are passionate about others hearing their work.

As Hart concluded, “There’s no point in playing an instrument unless you’re playing for people.”

Milan designers update classics for the modern day Kirk Patrick Testa Guest Columnist

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trimmings that were employed to accent stoles, envelope bags, necklines, pants cuffs and sandals.

The models themselves looked sleek and polished, hair parted at the left and slicked down to the right, adorning radiant faces sans makeup, or at least the illusion of this.

In all, Milan Fashion Week demonstrated an interesting approach by the brands’ designers and creative directors as they pushed the limits of their respective houses’ signatures by truly situating themselves in and connecting with the now. This is not to say that all of the fashion houses of Milan

adopted this approach. For example, Max Mara, Bottega Veneta and Jil Sander really went back to basics and let the clothes and the ateliers speak for themselves by sticking to traditional ways of constructing clothes, in line with the many years of designs that these brands have put out before. However, I choose to highlight and applaud the brands that have proven that instead of being institutions that try to change or control the way people dress, a brand is able to look to the trends in the world around them and be inspired by the visual feasts that the masses put on every day.

Courtesy of ImaxTree

rom London, we move to Milan for the third installation in the Big Four Fashion Week Capitals. Milan holds historical grounding in being a producer of very traditional, very Italian modes of dress: think classic Italian leather goods, outerwear and dresses. What was interesting in this year’s Milan Fashion Week was that most of the shows demonstrated an effort to step away from this notion of classical tradition. I must say, these designers truly stepped out with their best feet forward and presented shows that gave the urban chic of New York and the uncanny rebellion of London a run for their money.

A hot ticket show of Milan was Gucci by Alessandro Michele. Michele was appointed the creative director of Gucci in January 2015. This appointment of such a creative genius is one of the best decisions that the Gucci Group has ever made in choosing a talent to lead the brand’s image into the future. Michele set the scene of the catwalk as a ’70s nightclub with a pink carpet for the models to strut down. The show was a visual feast of very individualized looks—not a single model wore a similar silhouette, color or image as another. The collection was made cohesive with floral motifs in the form of prints as well as embroidery on jackets, skirts and cardigans. The fabric choices were also worth noting. There was a balance of tulle ruffles, sequined dresses and pants, even knitwear. The show was truly an eclectic mix of high and low fashion styles.

Michele has truly impacted Gucci by completely breaking away from the sleek and commanding sex appeal embodied by the brand’s previous creative directors, like Frida Gianini and Tom Ford.

He has paved his own way through adopting a sense of style for Gucci that is inspired by the way that today’s most fashion-forward individuals in the street dress. That is, he always mixes pieces of interest (think statement pieces of bold colors, silhouettes and accessories) with understated clothing options of comfort (such as over-sized jackets, cardigans, baseball tees and crewneck sweaters).

With Michele continuing on the path that he is in his very own way paving, Gucci’s future is looking

more brilliant than the impeccable sequined dresses that he created for this season’s runway.

Another brand that is pushing its DNA and taking inspiration from the now is Versace. Versace has always been a pinnacle of sex appeal, dressing women in provocative designs since 1978. You can imagine that it was to my surprise that this season’s collection took inspiration from the athleisure trend that has penetrated its way to the masses through the rise of fitness brands like Lulu Lemon all the way to the likes of Vassar students that wear Tevas with Adidas sweatpants, thrifted crop-tops and faux velvet choker. I know you know the archetype I am referring to.

Take that image of collegiate athleisure and imbue the sensual cuts and classic Versace tailoring and you have an image of this season’s collection.

The show features jumpsuits, tracksuits, leggings, sweaters and windbreakers. Even the platform heels looked like a direct quotation from the straps of Tevas. Many of the dresses also featured parachute-like fabrics that resembled the wet drapery on the sculpted toga of a classical Greek statue.

Donatella Versace and company truly achieved a balance of today’s contemporary modes of dress and style without compromising the brand’s sex appeal.

Finally, a show that delivered the same approach of being inspired by the present was Prada’s collection. Miuccia Prada, the brand’s founder and head designer stated, “Instead of exploring the history of women, which I have for a while, I decided to take care of now, the present, and trying to find elegance.” The designer could not have said it any better. The show was unlike any other Prada show for it truly featured designs and ways of constructing clothing for the female body that is nothing directly inspired by other trends. Of course there were dresses, jackets, skirts, etc., but Prada interpreted these very basic clothing items in a way that is, for lack of better terms, modern. I was highly impressed by the use of skirts because Prada designed them in a way that was not of any classical sense of femininity, but rather the skirts were more streamlined and just pieces of well-cut fabric wrapped around the waist—nothing fussy, suggestively sexual nor revealing. Another point of visual interest was the use of ostrich and marabou

The third major fashion week of this year took place in Milan, showcasing well-known Italian fashion houses, like Gucci, Prada and Versace, bringing their sleek designs into today’s runway

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

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October 6, 2016

New eclectic Danny Brown sets new hip-hop standards album charms listeners Jimmy Christon Columnist

Atrocity Exhibition

Danny Brown Warp

Izzy Braham

Guest Columnist Ape in Pink Marble

Devendra Banhart Nonesuch Records

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love this album. When I first heard its lead single, “When It Rain,” I was a little disappointed. The track sees MC Danny Brown spittin’ bars over a beat that sounds like it’s building up to a drop that never comes. But then I listened to it repeatedly, and now I can’t stop. The beat feels like it skirts right up to the edge of a bottomless pit, and Brown brings the energy to match. More than anything, however, “When It Rain” left me desperately craving to hear the rest of the album.

Without a doubt, “Atrocity Exhibition” effortlessly matches the excellence of its lead single.

This album could easily be the best hip-hop release of the year. During a year in which rappers are releasing mediocre albums (Chance) inspired by past albums from legendary MCs who release their own mediocre projects (Kanye), “Atrocity Exhibition” feels like a breath of fresh air. Rather than trying to build on anything that has come before, it instead carves out its own lane.

Brown, born and raised in Detroit, is an MC who had the best verse on ASAP Rocky’s posse-track “1Train.” Brown has also released two solid records before this one, “Old,” and “XXX,” which is technically a mixtape, but since it’s release, it’s gotten a full re-release as an album.

“XXX” cemented Brown’s style: the vulgar lyrics, the simplistic beats and the dualism that he would reprise on “Old.” Both of these albums would see Brown question the lifestyle he lives, the reasons behind his drug abuse and the ramifications that the drugs are eventually going to bring to him. These are all themes that Brown picks back up on “Atroc-

ing to be talking about, but don’t sleep on the lyrics—Brown brings bars. Just like the song lengths, they are short, but they are just packed to the brim with clever rhymes and dope lyricism.

The lyrics are also something you’re going to want to look up to get the full experience from the album. Danny Brown tackles some heavy subjects like anxiety, drug use and his ever-present fear of death.

But the genius with the songwriting here is that Brown wraps these subjects behind lyrics that would otherwise be pretty typical for the hip-hop genre.

It’s pretty easy to write off some of the songs on “Atrocity Exhibition” as just Brown bragging about how rampant his drug use is or how crazy his sex life is, but if you really dig into the lyrics on tracks like “Rolling Stone,” “Tell Me What I Don’t Know” and “White Lines,” you’ll realize that Brown is just putting up an exterior to hide his inner demons. Brown says as much on the closer “Hell For It” where he states his immaturity is just a way for him to deflect people from questioning his self-esteem.

I can’t relate with Brown’s lifestyle. I was born in Idaho where there were barely more Mormons than there were tumbleweeds. But I’m a human being, and hearing Brown hide his fears behind his bragging about his eccentric lifestyle paints him as just that: a human, flaws and all.

In some sense, the chaotic noisiness of the album serves parallels Brown’s lifestyle and habits. Brown lives in a life where he abuses drugs to escape his problems, but his means of escape just push him further down into the pit of his fears.

The title of the album describes this perfectly. Brown is putting himself on display with this album. He’s displaying his life for all to see, and for all the romanticizing over his vulgar acts, Brown doesn’t leave out the demons he’s running from. This is his so called “Atrocity Exhibition.”

Risqué stand-up explores taboo subjects Elena Schultz Arts Editor

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li Wong, writer for breakout comedy series “Fresh Off the Boat” and long-time standup comedian, released a Netflix stand-up special that has since galvanized a devout following and won her acclaim from viewers and fellow comics alike. Indeed, there is something about the sight of a tiny, incredibly pregnant woman gleefully cracking raunchy jokes that seems to have appealed to a massive audience. Wong’s special “Baby Cobra,” released on Mother’s Day this year, was filmed when she was seven and a half months pregnant—a feat relatively unheard of, save for Joan River’s “Ed Sullivan Show” performance while expecting in the late ’60s, making Wong’s widely-acclaimed comedy special the first of its kind.

“I don’t know if you guys can tell, but I’m seven and a half months pregnant,” Wong quips sarcastically in her set. “It’s very rare and unusual to see a female comic perform pregnant...because female comics don’t get pregnant.” If they do become pregnant, Wong laments, they fade into anonymity, while male comics experience a rise in popularity after having a child: “They’ve become this relatable family funny man all of a sudden; meanwhile, the mom is at home, chapping her nipples.”

While certainly adding to the spectacle of her routine, Wong’s massive baby bump is neither a crutch nor the sole appeal of her comedy. Instead, she speaks frankly about aging, sex, race, work and marriage in an incredibly refreshing manner. In his Monday Morning Podcast, Bill Burr exclaimed, “Everybody is making a big...deal that she was pregnant...But there should be more questions about how great the material was ... It was one of the best [specials] I’ve seen in awhile.”

Wong begins her set by bemoaning the widespread success of Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg’s book, “Lean In,” which encourages women to assert themselves in the workplace. “I don’t want to lean in,” Wong yells.

“I want to lie down!” While joking when she says that feminism is the worst thing to happen to women—“Our job used to be no job!”—Wong’s show cleverly subverts the narrative that women’s success can only be attained by mimicking their

male peers. Instead, she revels in womanhood’s less-glorified facets, waxing poetic about bowel movements and joyfully describing the havoc wreaked on her body by age.

In fact, Wong successfully works to normalize a good number of things usually considered too taboo to speak about, whether that’s speaking triumphantly about looking forward to the less-pleasant parts of childbirth or eating Plan B “like skittles” throughout her twenties. Efforts by female comics to normalize women’s sexuality aren’t necessarily new, but Wong’s astoundingly vulgar language and theatrical pantomimes are strikingly fresh.

Wong also discusses family and culture throughout her set, ranging from explaining how she got her hoarding habits from her mother—“You never know when a dictator’s going to overtake the country and snatch all of your wealth, so you better hang on to that retainer from the third grade because it might come in handy as a shovel when you’re...running away from the communists”—to

joking about her husband who is also Asian-American—“Usually, Asian-American women who wear these kinds of glasses and have lots of opinions, they like to date white dudes...You feel like you’re in a Wes Anderson movie or something.”

In one of the few moments that a hush falls over the audience, Wong mentions that prior to her pregnancy, she had had a miscarriage. “I wish more women would talk about it so they wouldn’t feel so bad when they go through it,” she says. Immediately following the somber moment, however, Wong returns to cracking jokes: “Don’t feel bad—they were the size of poppy seeds. I’ve picked boogers bigger than the twins I lost.” Wong’s propensity for humorously navigating such difficult topics is not lost on the audience, and they return instantaneously to laughing.

Shortly put, “Baby Cobra”’s acclaim is well-deserved. Wong is an acutely intelligent and clever comic, and it seems highly unlikely she’ll be disappearing from the comedy scene any time soon.

Courtesy of Netflix

n Friday, Sept. 23, artist Devendra Banhart released his ninth album, “Ape in Pink Marble.”

The album is sleepy and charming, interweaving Banhart’s wispy voice with light angelic sounds and soft guitar strums. To put it simply, Banhart is a multi-cultural, androgynous force of nature.

While he is best known for his music, Banhart dabbles in all creative media, showcasing his original drawings on the cover of his albums and producing colorful books full of his experimental photographs, drawings and poems. He is even a style icon, often sporting wild hair and eccentric outfits.

Banhart’s music is often described as freak-folk or New Weird American, but for me, Banhart’s music is in a league of its own. Some songs are delicate, light-hearted tunes with surrealist lyrics.

Others are slower, darker and heartbreakingly poetic, and still others are wild folksy rhythms.

Banhart’s songs combine elements from different cultures. As a Venezuelan-American, he primarily sings in Spanish and English. However, in “Mala” he incorporates Serbian lyrics, while other albums feature Portuguese, French and German.

Out of all his work, “Ape” is the most airy and minimal, and as a whole, the album is very coherent. In an interview with Observer, Banhart commented, “I’m happy that this record, unlike all the records in the past, it isn’t so all over the place.

I feel that everything’s so relative and subjective, and this record compared to the others really does flow in this one, calm ocean” (Observer, “A Freak Refined: How Mourning Shaped Devendra Banhart’s ‘Ape in Pink Marble,’” 09.14.2016).

The album begins with the song, “Middle Names,” a tribute to one of Banhart’s late friends and is a dark but relaxing listen. The record continues to carry this melancholic tone until mid-album where the beat picks up. The songs “Fancy Man” and “Fig in Leather” maintain the airiness of the album, but have a groovy edge with fun lyrics. Discussing these songs, Banhart remarked, “Now those songs aren’t super-aggressive, super-dancey songs, but in relation to the rest of the record, they definitely stand out. They disrupt the harmony of the record.” The album then reverts back to its somber mood with the song “Souvenirs” and ends with the utterly sad and sleepy “Celebration.”

In line with the multiculturalism of his past work, “Ape” incorporates Brazilian influences, particularly elements from samba and bossa nova.

Banhart also uses a Japanese stringed instrument, the koto, which creates these ethereal plucks that are present in almost every tracks on the record.

The album has a distinct narrative, creating a scene in a Tokyo hotel, with songs exploring characters who live at the hotel. For instance “Fancy Man” wittily describes a spoiled youth who “comes from a long line of people who have never waited in line.” “Fig in Leather” is about a sleazy older man who invites a “top-quality lady” to come into his room to “enjoy some fruit.” Banhart even personifies a woman in “Linda”—the mellowest song of the album about a “lonely woman” who “won’t leave a trace” and is “drifting through town.” This characterization of the record helps form the album’s eerie, dream-like aesthetic.

Interestingly, Banhart wrote the album after a lot of his close friends and relatives passed away.

In his interview with Observe.com, Banhart says, “I didn’t sit down and write a song about them, or about that experience, but that process of mourning and that ongoing process certainly informed the record, whether I liked it or not, and definitely merged with the entirety of the album.”

It offers the best of both worlds with its highly hypnotic sadness, and cuter, groovier tracks. he album is great to listen to whether you’re in a pensive state of mind, chilling out on a Sunday afternoon or just want to dance to “Fancy Man” like a fancy man.

I

ity Exhibition,” but the way he tackles these themes over these tracks is nothing short of exceptional.

If you listen to one song off of this album to see if it’s for you, listen to “When it Rain.” This song is the perfect microcosm of everything I love about this album. You have the unique beats supporting Brown’s frantically-fast rapping.

Brown raps about everything from dealing dope, to 2pac’s poem “The Rose That Grew From Concrete,” to Tarantino’s “Reservoir Dogs,” to “Coffee Percolators,” and they are all tied together seamlessly. But the best part about this song is that it sets the bar for this album, and the rest of the tracks meet and excel this bar by leaps and bounds.

The tracks on this album are killer. Each track is like its own section of this “Atrocity Exhibition.” From the hectic noise of “Pneumonia,” featuring adlibs from Schoolboy Q , to the guitar-and-bass-driven “From The Ground,” featuring Kelela, who performed for Vassar’s spring concert last fall, “Atrocity Exhibition” covers a wide range of styles and sounds and excels at all of them.

The beats on this album aren’t stellar because they use production techniques really well. The beats are stellar because they’re like nothing you’ve heard before in hip-hop and because Brown works wonders over them.

I have never heard a rapper spit over a cloud of smoke, but that’s what I got with the track “Downward Spiral” with its sparse percussion and stretched-out guitar strumming. I actually can’t tell what this sound is, but it sounds like the twang you get when you strum a guitar string and then start messing with the tuning-knobs. Or on the track “Ain’t it Funny” that has Brown rapping over what sounds like a game-show opening from hell with this glaring buzzer-sound and a harrowing loop of a saxophone in the background.

Therefore, it goes without saying then that the production is the first thing people are go-

First-year students and seniors mingle on the residential quad after the Sept. 10 Serenading event.

This year, seniors gave the first-years flowers in Vassar colors to thank them for their songs.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

ARTS

October 6 2016

Page 17

Local artists collaborate at the Palmer PALMER continued from page 1 ies of work on display in the Palmer Gallery: a series of collages, a collection of gouache pieces and small-scale paper sculptures. She explained that the gouache and sculptural pieces are closely related both in terms of their quilt-like natures and utilization of patterns.

The collage works, meanwhile, are made in pairs and are unified by an underlying grid structure. English mainly uses paper, paint, gold leaf and hand stitching in the creation of this ongoing series of works.

Kaufman, like English, often focuses on repetition and abstraction.

“I am preoccupied by pattern, and I build and undermine existing systems of shapes, words and numbers that appear to be stable but are not,” Kaufman, who happens to be a Vassar alumna, explained in an emailed statement.

Unlike English, however, Kaufman uses materials such as felt, bronze, graphite and wood to create and deconstruct these systems.

Like English, however, she often incorporates craft traditions such as weaving into her work. By focusing primarily on physical processes, such as marking, arranging and folding, Kaufman maintains the delicate balance of drawing and sculpture that distinctly char-

Courtesy of Donise English

The most recent show at the Palmer Gallery, “Under, Over After Under,” displays rather small and minimalist pieces that explore collage, multimedia work and abstraction.

Campus Canvas

acterizes her work.

Although her pieces often explore and develop an understanding of scale in the natural world, these physical processes ground the artist’s work, allowing it to remain “an immediately humanizing effort,” as Kaufman described it.

Although the actual task of creating sculptures and two-dimensional works takes place in the solitude of Kaufman’s studio, the artist believes that the presentation of her work is a crucial part of the process.

As she wrote in an emailed statement, “Once it leaves the privacy of my studio, and it launches itself into a public form, I learn how it is failing, where it succeeds, what I want to do next.” Subsequently, the artist can begin to examine the message that her work communicates to the public.

Christina Tenaglia, who herself graduated Vassar in 1997, takes a different approach when it comes to constructing pieces. Although she tends toward common materials, such as wood, the resulting works are far from straightforward.

Her pieces often hover on the line between abstraction and reality, seeming to convey fragments of an idea and leaving it up to the viewer to complete the thought. The ambiguity of her work creates an emphasis on what is left out, rather than what Tenaglia explicitly depicts.

Despite the distinct style that permeates Tenaglia’s art, it does not interrupt the continuity of the exhibit as a whole. The geometry and collage-like nature of her work meshes seamlessly with that of English’s and Kaufman’s pieces.

In an emailed statement, Kaufman asserted, “I want my art work [sic] to be in dialogue with a larger community.” By opening up a conversation within the confines of the gallery–with the work of the other two featured artists–as well as with the Vassar community and the Poughkeepsie community as a whole, “Over, Under After Over” succeeds in creating a dialogue about systems of abstraction, human perception and the production of objects.

A weekly space highlighting the creative pursuits of student-artists

Excuse me, Weirdest place you’ve fallen asleep?

“I literally passed out at the gym today.”

— Jaimeson Bukacek Frazier ’19

“During Evelyn Frick’s set at Indecent’s comedy show. No wait, I’m kidding.”

— Dean Spyropoulos ’19

“On the roof of the Deece.” — Laila Volpe ’19

submit to misc@vassar.edu

“On Laila’s bed when she wasn’t there.”

— Christine Lederer ’19

“I can’t fall asleep in public because I can’t let my guard down.”

— Macall McQueen ’17

In my photos I try to capture simplicity as well as familiarity. Friends immersed by what they love. Small moments like the way they position their feet, grip their pen or how they look at another person. I like to capture the little things that make up a human being.

—Dana Chang ’19

“I’m not sure, I can’t remember. Because I was asleep.”

— Lestra Atlas ’19

Evelyn Frick, Humor & Satire Editor

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

SPORTS

Page 18

October 6, 2016

RISE program looks to support VC student-athletes Fiona MacLeod Guest Reporter

T

Courtesy of Carlisle Stockton

he newly implemented RISE program, established for all student-athletes, recently made its debut at Vassar. Founded by women’s soccer coach Corey Holton and women’s basketball coach Candice Brown, the program aims to provide knowledge and support to individuals in varying subjects, such as mental health, nutrition, leadership and life after Vassar.

In order to determine the facets that these individuals wanted to prioritize, Holton and Brown reached out to Vassar. “In the spring of 2016, we did a needs assessment survey with both student-athletes and staff. The results of which were used to guide the development of the RISE programming,” Holton said.

The primary portion of the program incorporated speaker Lynn Kachmarik, who gave a presentation on Sept. 18 highlighting the responsibilities and privileges of leadership to all of the members of each team at Vassar. Kachmarik was chosen out of three potential speakers to be included in Vassar’s new program. “After identifying the three speakers and researching their areas of expertise, a group of student-athletes as well as coaches were asked to weigh in and the majority were in favor of choosing Lynn,” Holton noted.

Throughout the session, students participated in activities that emphasized leadership roles, including those that incorporated manipulating the direction of a partner’s conversation, following small actions performed by a leader and competing in a group.

Many of the student-athletes learned that the definition of a teammate incorporates more than just athletic components. “If you’re someone’s teammate, rather than just a friend, you have a higher responsibility towards them,” freshman lacrosse player Grace Goodwin-Boyd said. “It’s in the best interest of the team and each individual for everyone to be looking out for one another.”

Kachmarik successfully accentuated this sup-

port system between players of a team both on and off the field. “I thought she was engaging and had a lot of useful information regarding leadership,” Holton conveyed about the speaker.

“She helped our student-athletes see the importance of character traits, including resilience, grit and care.”

“The PowerPoint slides and dynamic activities that the student-athletes were asked to participate in helped the students to understand leadership development,” sophomore basketball player Stephen Palecki commented. “The main thing I took away from Lynn’s presentation is the importance of connecting with my teammates everyday in more meaningful ways. These lessons inspired me to try and become a better leader for the younger players on my team and to help my current team leaders to perform their job in the best way possible.”

Freshman attendance was mandatory at a subsequent portion of the RISE program, in which fabricated, but realistic, situations were conceived and students devised possible solutions. It underlined the role of teammates in detecting issues with other players on their team and getting the necessary help for those players.

Individuals were asked to hold up yellow or red cards for each situation; yellow representing an issue that players thought they could personally help a friend with and red signifying a situation that would require seeking help elsewhere on campus. Discussion followed concerning why the chosen card was held up and resources were given for where an individual could receive that help.

Kachmarik described the available counseling services and response centers at Vassar to the student-athletes attending, some of whom may not know about these outlets. “Freshmen are most likely to be unaware of the resources that are on campus, and are also more likely to experience a situation they’ve never had to deal with before,” explained Goodwin-Boyd. “This meeting reinforced that there are several places on campus that are capable of providing support

Head women’s soccer coach Corey Holton, along with head women’s basketball coach Candice Brown, started the RISE program to privide more opportunities for student-athletes. for any number of problems that one may have and it was helpful in distinguishing where one could go for different types of problems.”

While she elucidated the reason behind freshmen attending this portion of the program, her freshman teammate Adele MacEwen explained why this information benefits freshman athletes particularly. “Athletes are frequently under a lot of pressure between academics and sports.

It’s essential to provide proper resources so that athletes have somewhere to go when their stress is no longer manageable. At some point or another, everyone needs help. It’s important to provide the resources early on, as well as make individuals aware of them.”

The RISE program is beneficial to students, not only in terms of leadership and mental health, but also in preparing students for life

after Vassar. In RISE, student-athletes have the opportunity to turn in a draft of their resume to overseers, who will revise and return it with suggestions for improvement. “I think that an important aspect of being a student-athlete at Vassar is using the academic resources that we are so lucky to have here. I was able to get feedback on formatting norms and ways to convey my activities and achievements strongly,” sophomore soccer player Tyler Gilmore expressed.

With proficient help creating, modifying and formatting resumes, student-athletes are able to set themselves up for future success.

Between encouraging leadership and support between team members, identifying campus resources for dilemmas and setting students up for occupational achievement, RISE contributes to the success of student-athletes in all forms.

Squash and baseball coaches leave VC after long tenure COACHES continued from page 1

continue to resound with Vassar’s baseball program. Senior outfielder and pitcher Denis Shanagher shared, “I’ll miss his energy and the positive attitude he brought to the field every day. He certainly was the most fun coach I have ever played for and you could tell he made everyone enjoy playing for him.”

During his lengthy Vassar career, Martin served as assistant coach for two years and later as head coach for 11 years from 2005 to 2016.

Along the way, Coach Martin collected a total of 127 wins to give him the title of most wins amongst all Vassar coaches.

Martin also led the squad to program-first achievements and pushed many players to earn individual accolades. Under his wing, the baseball team had its first Liberty League playoff appearances in 2013 and 2014. The spring season of 2014 also brought along new records, as the team set new program bests for most confer-

ence wins at 14 and most total victories tallied at 19.

In terms of individuals, Martin helped over 30 athletes earn league mentions, including two All-League Honors. Graduate Brett Zaziski was tagged Liberty League Player of the Year while senior Adam Erkis claimed the League Pitcher of the Year in 2014.

Ending on a high note at Vassar, Martin led his squad to 18 total victories, including 12 conference wins during his last season. Both of these finished rank second in program history.

With such a large influence leaving the Burgundy and Gray, the baseball team is sad to see Martin go but looks forward to a fresh start.

For the fall season, assistant coach Blayne Fuke stepped up to the plate and is currently leading the baseball squad. Coach Fuke has served on the Brewer team for four years, starting as a volunteer assistant coach in 2011 and 2012 and moving up to full-time assistant in 2014. While

Courtesy of Carlisle Stockton

Senior captain Carly Scher plays in a squash game during last year’s season. Head squash coach Jane Parker is leaving after 16 years to work for SquashSports in Philadelphia.

the athletic department searches for a new head coach, Coach Fuke will continue at the reins.

“The team has been able to rally around Coach Fuke as the interim coach. He has done an excellent job transitioning the team through this process,” explained Shanagher. “That, coupled with upperclassman who have done well to step up and guide the younger players in the program, has made the off-season go by as smooth as possible without a head coach.”

Nevertheless, the team is excited to be assigned a new coach. All of the men have high hopes for the new coach and what he will bring to their team as well as the athletics program.

Shanagher commented, “The team hopes that the new coach will bring a vision and plan for the Vassar baseball program that will make contending for Liberty League Championships and NCAA Tournament runs a reality.”

The baseball team is not alone, as the men and women’s squash teams are also transitioning into a new season without a head coach.

Jane Parker left her position as the head coach of both the men and women’s squash teams after 16 years. Moving forward, Parker will take on the position of director of SquashSmarts in Philadelphia, PA. Parker illustrated, “SquashSports is dedicated to improving the lives of underserved youth from Philadelphia public schools by providing intensive, long-term academic tutoring and squash instruction, while imparting high standards of personal integrity, health and fitness and service to the community.”

While Parker will move on to help those in need in Philadelphia, she is leaving behind a cherished legacy and two teams that will miss her attitude and positive coaching methods.

“I just started playing on the team last year and she was so helpful and supportive to not only new members like myself, but to everyone,” said sophomore Kelly Rissman. “She made sure everyone felt comfortable on court by integrating the men’s and women’s teams as well as players of different skill levels in practices. Her love of the game was contagious.”

In addition to gaining the love of her players, Parker accumulated numerous wins and

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

reached impressive feats during her career, including a total of 223 for both the men and women’s sides.

On the women’s side, Parker also led the Brewers to three Liberty League Championships as well as three Seven Sister Championships and three Howe Cup Championships. All the while, Parker led the men’s squad to two New York State Championships.

Similar to Martin, Parker pushed her athletes to such a skill level that Liberty League recognition soon followed for many. During her career 34 Brewers earned All-League honors for their athletic prowess. With 16 years under her belt, Parker served for the longest period in Vassar squash history, which started in 1972. Both of her teams will miss her compassion and expertise, but look forward to what the future holds with their new coach.

Rissman shared, “We hope the new coach will continue to develop the welcoming environment that Jane has created, and that the men’s and women’s teams will be able to work together like they have in years past. Overall, we are looking forward to another great season and are excited to see what the new coach will bring to the court.”

With high hopes from the student-athletes, the athletics department has a crucial task ahead of bringing in talented new coaches to the programs. The department has accumulated multiple coaches to form a committee to find potential hires. Among these coaches is head coach of the women’s lacrosse team Judy Finerghty. On Oct. 4 the department announced the hiring of David Ames as interim squash coach for this year’s season.

Finerghty remarked, “In regards to the coach search, the committee has had a terrific pool of applicants, and we have worked hard and have done our due diligence of finding quality people to bring on board. We have a variety of qualified applicants and are excited to start interviews within the next couple weeks.”

Athletes and coaches alike are optimistic to add new coaches to the Brewer program while wishing Coach Martin and Coach Parker the best with their endeavors.

October 6, 2016

SPORTS

Page 19

Miami and MLB mourn Red Sox David Ortiz bids death of young Cuban star farewell to Yankee rivalry Robert Pinataro Guest Reporter

O

n Sept. 25, the world felt the shock of the sudden and unexpected death of Miami Marlins’ ace, Jose Fernandez. At age 24, Fernandez was not only regarded as one of the best young players in the game, but also one of the best players in Major League Baseball. After being picked 14th overall in the 2011 MLB draft, Fernandez quickly rose through the ranks of the minor leagues until he reached the big leagues.

On the day Fernandez passed away, New York Mets manager Terry Collins said, “When the first pitch [that I saw him throw] left his hand, the first thought [was] ‘Oh, wow, this is something special.’” By the time of his death, he had arguably the best career statistics of a 24-yearold pitcher to date. The city of Miami and the entirety of the MLB considered Fernandez a star. His teammates, family, community and baseball fans everywhere loved the young athlete.

His family and friends, of course, had a tremendously difficult time dealing with the tragedy. Fernandez cared deeply for all of his family, particularly his mother and grandmother. To add more devastation to the tragedy, Fernandez will miss the birth of his son. He was extremely excited to begin the next chapter of his life as a father, as he said in an Instagram post just days before his death. His friends remember him as a vivacious, happy and energetic man. Many of his close friends were his teammates, who loved him like a brother. All of the Marlins had difficulty playing again after the accident, as evident by the overwhelming emotion each player displayed while taking the field.

Miami Marlins’ second baseman Dee Gordon honored his fallen teammate and best friend in perhaps the most spectacular way possible that night following his death. He, along with the rest of the Marlins, wore the number 16

and the name Fernandez on their jersies. After an emotional pre-game ceremony, the game began. Gordon, a left-handed batter, stepped into the right-handed batter’s box and watched the first pitch go by while doing a perfect imitation of Fernandez’s batting stance. He then switched back to the left-handed batter’s box.

After watching one more pitch go by, Gordon belted a home run into the right field seats. As he crossed home plate, he looked up with tears in his eyes and pointed to the sky. There was no better way to pay tribute to his friend and the emotions from everyone in the stadium certainly agreed.

Fernandez was more than just a baseball player. He was one of the faces of the next generation of the MLB, exhibiting a passion and love for the game like no other.

The Cuban-American community also idolized Fernandez as a symbol of the American Dream. He was born in Cuba and aspired to playing Major League Baseball at just eight years old. To achieve a better life and reach his MLB goal, Fernandez tried unsuccessfully to defect from Cuba three times and even served time in prison at the age of 14 for one of these attempts. On the fourth attempt at 15 years old, he made it safely to the United States. Fernandez created an amazing life for himself, perfectly embodying the American Dream. He meant so much to the Cuban-American community because of the difficult and dangerous journey he overcame to defect from Cuba, the success he achieved and the genuine person he was.

Fernandez’s loss has come as a horrible shock to all. He touched so many lives in his short time on earth and his legacy both on and off the field will live on. Summed up, as Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred said in a recent statement, “He was one of our game’s great young stars who made a dramatic impact on and off the field since his debut in 2013.”

Hanna McGuire Sports Editor

L

ast Thursday night, I witnessed a piece of history. I watched Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz step up to bat against the Yankees, the last time he would ever participate in baseball’s most coveted rivalry.

The Yankees won 5-1 but the win wasn’t the most important story, Ortiz was. At the age of 40 and after 19 years in the MLB, Big Papi is leaving baseball, and the Yankee rivalry, behind.

Even as a Yankee fan, you have to respect Ortiz. Since his 2003 signing, he has brought the Red Sox countless wins and three World Series championship rings. The 10-time All-Star is 17th on the MLB all-time home run list with 541 and holds the Red Sox single-season record for home runs with 54. He is also the all-time leader in MLB history for hits by a DH with 2,192 and RBIs with 1,569.

Unfortunately for the Yankees, it’s hard to match Ortiz’s skill. While the Yankees have undeniable historical clout, the team started to struggle when Ortiz joined the Sox. The Yankees won three straight rings starting with the 1998 season. But when No. 34 came onto the Boston scene, things changed. The Red Sox are 3-1 in championships since Ortiz’s arrival.

The Yankee-Red Sox rivalry is one of the best, and something Ortiz has surely played a major role in. The relationship is so strong that former Yankee Mariano Rivera presented Ortiz with an oil painting of the slugger tipping his cap at the Bronx stadium after the Thursday night game. The moment signified the huge respect these teams share for each other.

That’s what a rivalry is all about: mutual admiration. The game got me thinking about other great teams with such cutthroat histories.

The NBA doesn’t know much of rivalry now, but it did in the past, particularly with the Celtics and the Lakers. I’ve only seen clips of Magic

Johnson and Larry Bird going head to head but it must have been a thing of beauty.

The two teams have met a record 12 times in the NBA finals, starting in 1959. The Celtics won eight rings starting that year, beating the Lakers every time, often by 4-3 margins. Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett took over Johnson and Bird’s place at the rivalry helm in 2008. Overall the Celtics and Lakers have won the two highest numbers of titles, 17 and 16 respectively.

After the NBA Western Conference Finals, there was hope that the Thunder and the Warriors would reinstate rivalry in basketball. But after Kevin Durant’s shocking free agency move to the Warriors, its highly doubtful.

Despite my love for basketball and baseball, my favorite rivalry is between three individual athletes: Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal. This trio of champions has established a rivalry unlike any other.

The three men hold a total of 43 Grand slam singles titles, with Fed besting Nole and Rafa with 17. Djokovic and Nadal have met 13 times in slams, seven of which were in the finals. Unlike Rafa, Fed has a losing record against Nole, 6-9 in slams and 1-3 in finals.

Federer and Nadal have played eight times in slam finals, with Rafa prevailing six times, one of which is arguably the greatest of all time. The 2008 Wimbledon final is without a doubt the most incredible contest I’ve seen. Rafa took the greatest men’s tennis player to five sets, and after four hours and 48 minutes he capped off the fifth 9-7 to win the match. Sport, competition and rivalry were in the purest form that day.

No matter the game, rivalry makes sports that much more incredible. The mutual respect creates a bond unlike any other, despite the misery and disappointment after a loss. I don’t know if anything gets better than the rivalries above but maybe another generation will rise from the ranks and prove me wrong.

Intense practices, early starts pay off for rowing team Kelly Pushie

Guest Reporter

W

Courtesy of Carlisle Stockton

hile most of the Vassar College student population is setting their alarms in the morning for 9, 10 or 11 o’clock, the members of the men’s and women’s rowing team are setting theirs for five. Monday through Friday, the rowing team starts making their way over to Main at 5:25 a.m. in preparation for a chilly 6 a.m. practice on the Hudson River. The dedication of each member of the team, from novice to varsity, helps the rowing team prepare for what is shaping up to be another successful season.

Senior Jake Brekelbaum is one of three seniors on the Vassar men’s rowing team this year.

He attributes much of the team’s success thus far to how much work everyone put in during the offseason. “Over the summer, the two other senior guys and I kept tabs on our teammates’ workouts and tried to encourage people to stay in shape over the summer. As a result, every member of our team came back faster than they were at the end of last season. This leadership is incredibly important in holding everyone accountable for making sure that everyone comes back to school in the best condition possible and that everyone is ready to go once practices begin,” Brekelbaum noted.

Staying on top of the team over the summer is already proving beneficial, especially after losing some senior spots from last year. However, Brekelbaum is proud of the way newcomers have shown their skills. He mentioned that freshman Travis Walker has already had an immediate impact on the team. Brekelbaum appreciates how Walker has “stayed positive as we put him in the difficult spot of learning how to row on the fly.

He’s improving by the day and we are all certain the boat will be ready for Saturday.”

Another key member to the team is senior captain Lucas Kautz. Kautz was out last spring season with a shoulder injury but “has picked up right where he left off last fall, holding down a 7 seat in the boat. As one of the fastest guys on the team, he is key to our success,” Brekelbaum claimed. Brekelbaum is not the only one on the team that points Kautz out as an important member of the team. Freshman Aidan Gla-

ser-Schoff explains how Kautz “extends a hand to all of the rowers who ask for help as well as helping out the team when no one asks.” Katuz is also constantly checking in on the novice rowers and answering any questions that they may have, as well as making “sure that they are healthy and that they are enduring the morning practice schedule.”

The novice rowing team is also playing a major role in helping the varsity team get ready. Although the novice team does not have a race until the end of October, Glaser-Schoff explained how they are “still working with varsity to prepare for the racing season.” The team members are “expected to physically exert ourselves as much as on race day,” which is crucial in making sure the team is getting as much out of practice as possible.

As far as what the team is focusing on for the season, Brekelbaum pointed out that everyone is “largely focused on the long-term as a team, but as our times continue to drop to competitive levels, we have potential for immediate success.

The effort has been there so far this season, and as a senior, I hope that translates to success on race day.”

Junior Millie Cunningham has been a member of the Vassar women’s rowing team since her freshman year. Cunningham credits the way the team has looked so far to how hard she and other upperclassmen on the team are working “to maintain our team’s sense of community and to continue to promote a culture of hard work and mutual support both on and off the water.”

Cunningham also noted how well all the seniors have filled the roles of those who graduated last year. “All four of our current seniors (Lianne May, Andrew Wang, Lucas Kautz and Jake Brekelbaum) have done a really great job filling those leadership roles, building on their four years of experience with Vassar Rowing and creating what I hope is a really welcoming environment for our freshmen/novice rowers,” Cunningham commented.

Back for his second year, Head Coach Shawn Turner has high hopes for the team. He strives to help the team “get a little bit faster every day.”

He feels that the team has already improved and

Sophomore Daniel Otto, shown above, competes in a rowing event last season. He and his fellow Brewer teammates will start fall competition at the Head of the Housatonic race this weekend. is going to be much more competitive this fall.

He also noted that the team has “improved from last fall, but much remains to be seen.”

In terms of people who have really stood out, Turner mentions that the team is driven by a group of fervent leaders on the men’s and women’s side. Specifically, junior rower Zofia Siwicka for the women and junior coxswains Janet Ortiz and Jonathan Snyder, along with sophomore coxswain Kirk Testa for the men.

According to Turner, Siwicka “has brought huge effort and enthusiasm every day. Her enthusiasm is infectious and has in my mind been a large part of the team’s willingness to work hard every day.” As far as the men’s team goes, Ortiz, Snyder and Testa “have been immensely valuable and willing to change roles every day as needed,” Turner stated.

The team is getting ready for its upcoming races by “rowing as many meters as possible every day focusing on both technique and fit-

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

ness,” said Turner. The team rows close to seven miles per day and Turner ascribes the rowing performance of the members of the team to how physically fit each one of them is. “Nearly every member of the team set a personal best during our recently concluded physical assessments,” Turner reported.

Turner believes that this will be a very successful season. He is looking forward to “both the men and women executing strong races individually while supporting each other as Vassar Rowing competes with some of the top teams in the country.”

A team driven by the leadership of upperclassmen is bound to do great things and it seems that both rowing teams should be prepared for another victorious season.

The Varsity rowing team participates in two races in the fall. The first is Head of the Housatonic, next Saturday, Oct. 8 followed by the Head of the Fish on Oct. 29.

SPORTS

Page 20

October, 2016

As some teams fall back, others tackle league head on Jamie Anderson Guest Reporter

Women’s Volleyball

Women’s Soccer

The women moved to 4-5-1 overall and 3-0 in Liberty League play after beating Clarkson on Sept. 30 3-1 and St. Lawrence 4-0 at home on Saturday In the first contest, Vassar finished victorious thanks to goals from sophomores Rebecca Andrews and Audrey Pillsbury and freshman Gabrielle Deitch.

The second game against the Saints was not only a strong win for the Brewers but also celebrated the tenure of seniors Kelsey Hamm, Emily Krebs, Jordyn Matthews, Rory Chipman, Stephanie Tapolsky, Rachel Marklyn and Phoebe Reuben.

The seniors showed their skills early into the game as Krebs blasted a ball inside the box to connect with Chipman to put Vassar up 1-0.

Soon after Andrews scored another goal 25 yards out to increase the Brewer lead.

In the second half, defender Hamm scored off of a left-sided corner kick to increase the Brewer lead to 3-0 against the Saints. The final goal came from Matthews off of a pass from Deitch in the 74th minute.

Vassar will continue Liberty League play against Mount Saint Mary College at home on Wednesday, followed by a game against Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on Saturday Oct 8.

Men’s Soccer

The Brewers rallied from a one-goal deficit to walk away 2-1 versus Clarkson on Friday.

Vassar outshot Clarkson 7-4 in the first half, but the Golden Knights went into halftime leading 1-0 thanks to a goal with just three minutes gone in the game.

In the 62nd minute freshman Mattie Mrlik headed a shot, which was saved but muffed by the keeper, allowing junior forward Jose Novas to poke in the equalizer. 20 minutes later, junior Tanner Sands found sophomore Tyler Gilmore off a long free kick, who headed in his third goal this season for the win. VC then played No. 11 St. Lawrence University on Saturday.

The Saints managed a goal in the 14th minute, which proved the difference in the matchup, as

Men’s Tennis

The men’s tennis team traveled to Hobart College over the weekend to compete in the ITA Northeast Regional tournament. The Brewers entered four singles players and two doubles teams. Seniors Nick Litsky, the No. 2 seed overall, Juan Felipe Laso, sophomore Jamie Anderson and freshman Allen Sokolov were the singles competitors, while the doubles pairings included Litsky with freshman Dom Demeterfi and Sokolov with fellow freshman Jeremy Auh. Anderson and Sokolov both lost in the first round of singles competition, while Litsky and Laso pushed through without much difficulty against opponents from University of Rochester and Ithaca College respectively. Laso would go down grinding in the next round, 4-6 4-6, to seeded first-year Ithaca player Minos Stavrakas. Litsky got by Travis Leaf of Skidmore by the same scoreline. In doubles, both teams came up short in the opening round, with Auh and Sokolov losing 2-8 to NYU, while Litsky and Demeterfi fell to Hobart.

Litsky moved into the quarterfinals after battling past Misaru Fujimaki from Rochester 6-0 2-6 6-3. Litsky then lost 4-6 2-6 to Setter from NYU. The Brewers are done for the fall and will return to the court in the spring season.

Women’s Tennis

Women’s tennis, putting out a lineup heavily depleted by illness and injury, cruised through two Liberty League dual matches on Saturday, beating Bard College 9-0 in the morning at Walker Field House then Union College 8-1 in Schenectady.

Against Bard Vassar swept doubles, as senior Shayna Becker and freshman Tara Edwards won 8-1 at No. 1, senior Connie Yoo and sophomore Morgane Flournoy picked up another 8-1 at No. 2, as junior Lauren Difazio and freshman Ashley Fair earned an 8-3 win at No. 3.

In singles, Becker, playing at No. 1 in place of junior Kate Christensen, Yoo and Flournoy all eased through their matches, winning 6-0 6-0 in each. Flournoy’s win at No. 4 singles clinched the match for VC. Against Union, VC again swept dubs. Yoo and Flournoy knocked off their opponents at No. 2 8-4, DiFazio and Fair put an 8-5 win in the books at No. 3, while Edwards and Becker secured the sweep, coming through with another 8-5 win at the first doubles position.

In singles, DiFazio got her fourth combined win for the day 6-0 6-3 over Alex Greenberg, as did Flournoy, 6-2 6-3 at the No. 4 singles spot.

Yoo came out on top 6-4 6-0 at third singles, while junior Dasha Ivenitsky earned a win at fifth singles with a 6-4 6-1, putting the Brewers up 7-0. At first singles, Edwards coming back for a 2-6 6-2 14-12 victory. Becker finished just short, losing a tight match 4-6 5-7 at No. 2 singles.

The Brewers will continue play in the spring.

Courtesy of Carlisle Stockton

VC got past Hunter College in four, 22-25 2522 25-13 and 25-18, in action from Kenyon Hall on Thursday. The Brewers hit .289 on offense, with five players registering at least seven kills.

Freshman Jane McLeod stood out with 18 kills and five digs on defensive. Sophomore Devan Gallagher also had 16 kills and five digs On Saturday, the Brewers continued their stretch of success, taking care of John Jay College and Rutgers-Camden at home, both in straights. Vassar has won 14 of out of its last 15 games and within that stretch has gone 7-1 against Liberty League teams. The Brewers are relying on their offense: they averaged a .311 hitting percentage against John Jay and .330 against Rutgers-Camden, as opposed to .164 and .080 respectively for their competition.

The Brewers will next take the court against Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ, Wednesday at 7 p.m.

SLU was just able to scrape by the VC squad.

Junior keeper Matt Marcelino made four saves in the loss.

Vassar returns to Poughkeepsie against Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on Saturday, Oct. 8.

Kickoff is set for 2 p.m.

Senior captain Shayna Becker played in a double-header this weekend against Liberty League opponents. The Brewers bested Bard 9-0 and Union 8-1 to complete the fall season.

Men’s Cross Country

Men’s cross country came in fourth Saturday at the Saratoga Cross Country Invitational, hosted by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute at Saratoga Spring State Park, racking up 104 points, just off Hamilton College with 99. SUNY Dehli finished second with 93, while the hosting Engineers RPI had five runners of the top nine finishers to take first place.

Junior Michael Scarlett finished first for the Brewers, coming in 16th overall with a time of 26:18.3. Sophomore Luke Arsenault, in his second time out this season, ended close behind in 18th overall and second for Vassar with a 26:21.3.

Adin Becker ran the best time for any first-year in the race, coming under the wire in 26:26.6, good for 19th overall and third for VC. Junior Philip Brown finished 20th with a time of 26:31.1, while junior Jesse Schatz was the last scoring runner for the Brewers, finishing 40th with a time of 27:07.1.

Vassar will return to the course Oct. 15, for the Rowan Interregional Invitational at 11 a.m. in Glassboro, NJ. Women’s Cross Country

The women’s cross country squad also made the trip to Saratoga Springs National Park for the Saratoga Cross Country Invitational. Coming off a two-week layoff, the Brewers finished fourth out of 13 total teams, behind SUNY New Paltz, SUNY Plattsburgh and hosting RPI. Senior Lucy Balcezak finished as the top runner for Vassar again, taking 17th overall place with a time of 18:44.4. Four seconds behind her was sophomore Christiana Prater-Lee, who registered a time of 18:48.0 for the course, earning her 19th overall and putting her second amongst Vassar entrants. Senior Laura MacDonald was the third Brewer finisher with an 18:53.5, good for 22nd place. Freshman Meghan Cook ended fourth for VC, registering a time of 19:15.1 and coming in 35th place overall. Sophomore Cameron Daddis was the last runner to score points for Vassar turning in a solid time of 19:25.9 and coming in 41st.

The Brewers will compete in the Seven Sisters Championships on Sunday, Oct. 16 at 10:30 a.m. in Wellesley, MA.

Women’s Rugby

The Brewers hosted their crosstown rivals, Marist College, in a Poughkeepsie derby on Saturday at the Vassar Farm. Junior Sarah Mawhinney opened scoring for Vassar, which was converted by senior Mary Margaret McElduff, her first of four on the day. Senior center Laila Blumenthal-Rothchild went over the try line second for the Brewers, bringing the score to 12-0.

VC went into halftime leading 19-5, quick off the heels of a score by sophomore fullback Rachel Elson.

During the second 40, Vassar scored three additional tries despite forced substitutions due to injury. McElduff scored an individual try to kick off the second half of play while seniors Lauren Workman and Mariah Ghant were both able to get over the line, as VC wore Marist down to the tune of 38-5.

Vassar’s B-side also breezed through the Red Foxes, shutting them out 31-0. Freshmen Eve Coulibaly and Dylan Joyner scored a try each, as did junior wing Rachel Jones. Sophomore Jennie To also added a try, while fellow sophomore Makena Emery ran in a try of her own and converted three other scores.

The Brewers will be back out at the Farm on Saturday to take on Stony Brook University.

Women’s Golf

The Brewers finished the weekend 12th overall at the Williams College Fall Invitational, played at the Taconic Golf Club.

The Vassar contingent carded a 694 over two rounds of play on the par-71 course. Just 10 shots separated Vassar from a top-six finish.

Freshman Andrea Han continued strong play for the Brewers, finishing the tournament with a score of 166, placing her in a tie for 28th place.

Her fellow freshman Qiwen Tan, shot a 175 over both days, carding a 79 on Sunday, the best score for any Vassar golfer. Senior Emily Prince shot a 178 combined for the weekend while junior Annie Hsu finished one stroke behind Prince, shooting a 179. Sophomore Evon Shay had a two-day score of 183.

The Brewers will return to the links next weekend at the Middlebury College Invitational in Middlebury, VT for two rounds of play on the Ralph Myhre Golf Course.

Men’s Rugby

Courtesy of Carlisle Stockton

Freshman Adin Becker ran a 26:21.3 in the Saratogo Cross Country Invitational this past weekend. He ran the fastest time of any first year, finishing 19th overall and third for VC.

The Brewers just scraped by the Privateers of Maritime in a closely contested game played at home at the Vassar Farm. Vassar went into halftime with a 15-5 cushion, thanks in large part to effective running from senior captain Seamus Taylor and junior Joe Simon, who scored three tries in the first 40 minutes of play.

The second half was a physical struggle for VC as the Privateers mounted a comeback attempt, shrinking Vassar’s lead to just three with 10 minutes left to play. However, Vassar pushed the ball upfield and junior flyhalf Nick Olkovsky made a long run at the end of which he scored a try, putting the Brewers up 20-12. Maritime with the clock ticking down, pushed in a try, which they converted, making the scoreline 19-20, where it would stand until time expired.

Vassar takes the field once more at home against Oneonta at the Vassar Farm on Oct. 9 at 12 p.m.

MISCELLANY NEWS | VASSAR COLLEGE

Field Hockey

The Brewers came up just short against No. 12 William Smith College, 3-2, in Liberty League action on Saturday afternoon. The loss to the Herons broke Vassar’s seven-game winning streak. The three goals were the first scores conceded since the Brewers’ only other loss this season against Kean University.

Before the half junior Storm Sideleau managed to get a shot with just nine seconds left to put Vassar on the board 1-2. William Smith countered quickly after the break and again pushed their margin to two goals. With just over two minutes to play, sophomore Alyssa More, with an assist from classmate Megan Caveny, pulled VC to within one, but time ran out on the Brewer comeback attempt.

The Brewers have a week off before hosting the University of Rochester at Weinberg Field for VC’s annual Play 4 The Cure contest.