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WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS Vol. 42, No. 90
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2014
nyunews.com UNIVERSITY POLITICS
Faculty worried by handbook changes By STEPHANIE GRELLA Staff Writer
STAFF PHOTOS BY TONY CHAU (TOP AND BOTTOM LEFT) AND HANNAH LUU (TOP AND BOTTOM RIGHT)
The first ever New York Festival of Light took place in Dumbo, Brooklyn, from Nov. 6 to Nov. 8. Due to overwhelming popularity, the festival had to shut down two and a half hours early Saturday night. The festival has been held in cities across the world, including Berlin, London, Montreal and Sydney. FEATURES
TAs face challenges over university policy
Syeda ShahBano Ijaz, a GSAS student, is working on her doctorate in politics, teaching two recitations of 25 students each and raising her 1-year-old daughter. Ijaz is also involved in the Graduate Student Organization Committee. Ijaz was initially drawn to GSOC because NYU’s child benefits provide a subsidy of only $200 per semester that could not cover basic necessities — let alone child care — for her daughter. Ijaz said if NYU acknowledged the realities of its graduate parents by providing daycare, more child subsidy for babysitting, maternity leave or an additional year of funding for doctoral students, then both parents and
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the university would benefit. “[NYU] could get so much more out of me and out of other graduate parents if they gave such options,” Ijaz said. In December 2013, 98.4 percent of graduate employees voted to unionize after being without a contract since 2005. GSOC is the first graduate employee union at an American private university to be recognized as a collective bargaining unit and to negotiate a contract. GSOC and NYU released a joint statement commenting on the contract establishing the union in 2013. “We are confident this agreement … will improve the graduate student experience, and
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STAFF FILE PHOTO
By MONICA MILLAY Contributing Writer
STAFF PHOTO BY SAM BEARZI
Syeda ShahBano Ijaz is a new mother and a TA at NYU.
A recent revision of NYU’s Faculty Handbook has raised concerns from many non-tenured and contract professors about their academic freedom and right to negotiate. NYU provost David McLaughlin sent a draft of the handbook — including tracked revisions — to fulltime faculty on Oct. 2. Faculty also received a set of guidelines outlining new clauses pertaining primarily to non-tenured faculty. NYU spokesman John Beckman said these changes were made to the handbook on Sept. 1 with the creation of two faculty senate councils, one designated for tenure-tracked faculty and the new council for nontenured employees. “NYU has taken a major and important step by recognizing fulltime, non-tenure-track, contract faculty within our governance structure,” Beckman said. Ronald Rainey, a master’s professor in Liberal Studies and one of the non-tenured track faculty senators, said these revisions, aimed to tailor policies toward non-tenured faculty, are infringing on contract faculty’s academic freedom. Rainey pointed to one particular clause, which affects only non-tenured faculty in the provost’s new set of guidelines. The handbook reads: “Even in those cases in which a candidate satisfies the appropriate standards of achievement, the decision to reappoint or promote may be impacted by curricular and structural changes and improvements in academic programs.” Rainey said the clause is concerning because it elicits fear in non-tenure track professors whose contracts are under review every five years. “You can meet all the criteria that is required for reappointment and still not be reappointed,” Rainey said. “The lack of job security is rather concerning.” LS professor Michael Shenefelt,
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Class focuses on future of journalism
Violets end season, look to championships
Poly wages unfair for grad students
NYU is offering a spring course analyzing the fate of The New York Times.
WSN recaps how the Violets fared this weekend in sports.
The Editorial Board analyzes the low wages offered to Poly engineers.
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STORY on PG. 5
STORY on PG. 8
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I needed to escape from the streets of New York, but I didn’t have a ticket back home. I wanted to relax somewhere off the beaten path, find a place I have never seen before and smell fresh air. So I dug deep into my pockets, found an old metro card and took a train to 190th Street. It’s a 30-minute subway ride and a five-minute walk to Fort Tryon Park, but it felt like a world away from my world. High above Washington Heights is a landscape filled with trees brimmed with the leaves of autumn. Blue skies with swirling clouds surround the glistening river of the Hudson. I immediately took out my new Canon EOS 5D with a 24-104 mm lens and went on an adventure.
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The Skir-Ball For one night only, the Skirball Center for Performing Arts celebrates 10 years of performance art with a concert featuring dance, theater and music at 7 p.m. This gala will recognize the artists that have made Skirball such a dynamic place. Student tickets are available at the Skirball Box office for $25.
Agata Pyzik on Sublime Socialism: Eastern Europe and the Rise of “Poor But Sexy” Culture Polish writer Agata Pyzik will discuss fashion, cinema and pop culture in Eastern European culture, and will challenge the stereotype that the region is an austere cultural void at 6:30 p.m. in room 471 of 20 Cooper Square.
CAS Scholars Lecture Series: Zvi Ben-Dor Benite Patrick Stickles of the punk indie band Titus Andronicus plays at Baby’s All Right in Williamsburg as a part of the Brooklyn Vegan CMJ showcase on Oct. 25.
STAFF PHOTO BY MATT D. GOLDMAN
Professor Zvi Ben-Dor Benite will speak on “The Mongol Empire and Why it Matters to Us Today,” examining its impact on modern science, culture and technology at 5 p.m. in Jurow Lecture Hall, room 101, of the Silver Center for Arts and Science.
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KRISTINA BOGOS, RACHEL KAPLAN, CLIO MCCONNELL, JORDAN MELENDREZ, KALEEL MUNROE, JONATHAN TAN About WSN: Washington Square News (ISSN 15499389) is the student newspaper of New York University. WSN is published Monday through Thursday during NYU’s academic year, except for university holidays, vacations and exam periods. Corrections: WSN is committed to accurate reporting. When we make errors, we do our best to correct them as quickly as possible. If you believe we have erred, contact the managing editors at managing@nyunews. com or at 212.998.4302.
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By CHRISTINE PARK Staff Writer
PHOTO BY CHRISTINE WANG
Left to right: Michael Shuman, Helena Norberg-Hodge, Laura Flanders and Chris Hedges discuss the new local-first green initiative.
Local Futures announces green initiative By CHRISTINE WANG Contributing Writer
The environmental nonprofit Local Futures announced its new International Alliance for Localization, a global network promoting local-first green efforts, during an event at Cooper Union on Nov. 8. The new initiative will link together diverse groups concerned with protecting community and the local economy, create new localization initiatives and shift policies away from economic globalization toward localization. Helena Norberg-Hodge, the founder of Local Futures, began the keynote at the “Voices of Hope in a Time of Crisis” event by discussing the United States’ inability to understand the workings of the global economy. “Strengthening local economies worldwide is essential for rebuilding the fabric of connection,” Norberg-Hodge said. “We must not stay caught in a theater of politics.”
Norberg-Hodge emphasized that the right to fresh food is a fundamental human right, and he said the United States can preserve this right by putting diversity, natural resources and small communities at the center of its policy agenda. “Mother Earth is diversity; it breathes diversity and can only survive with diversity,” she said. “But global giants in the form of big unaccountable businesses cannot respect diversity.” Norberg-Hodge also examined specific problems caused by a lack of localization, such as local food in Mongolia, Tibet and Kenya that is twice as expensive as foreign, chemically infused food. Another example is the unemployment in small Tibetan communities created by globalization. Chris Hedges, a Pulitzer Prizewinning journalist, said he was worried traditional political institutions were no longer in the business of promoting the common good. Instead, he said, the facade of politics
is taking over. “Choreographed and expensive spectacles, devoid of genuine political content, are more prevalent than true reform,” Hedges said. “Clinton destroyed the last vestiges of the liberal system. The left became so far right it became insane.” Hedges added that individuals can make strides to reverse this trend. “Our change will begin with personal, radical choices, such as eating a plant-based diet, to reclaim power over our own lives and our communities,” he said. “We need a re-education of what it means to be a citizen.” Other speakers, including GRITtv host Laura Flanders, discussed a similar idea, stressing that individuals can make a difference. “Our economy is dependent on bigotry and war,” Flanders said. “When we talk about hope, the temptation is to project outside of ourselves, that someone else will do it.”
Trina Paulus, an author and advocate for organic farming who attended the event, said she came because she wanted to support the International Alliance for Localization’s efforts. “I constantly question myself,” Paulus said. “Where should I be? Today, I knew I had to be with these people because that’s where my heart is.” Stanzin Dawa, a senior at Smith College who attended the event, said she felt that localfirst efforts could make a difference, despite the influence of global institutions. “It’s impossible to completely shut down the corporations,” Dawa said. “But at the local level, it’s possible to bring awareness and to accomplish little things, such as teaching people what can be done to help and how.”
our voices on?” Rainey said. One concern among professors is the grievance procedure, which now gives non-tenured faculty a shorter period of time to issue a grievance than tenured faculty. “There’s also not an explicit allowance for the contract faculty to be represented by an attorney,”
“To be sure, that was an error. It was a totally innocent one made during a large revision of the Faculty Handbook. We regret that it happened, but no one should seek to read anything into it.” — John Beckman table,” Sacks said. Despite this progress, Rainey found it peculiar that several of the handbook’s clauses limit faculty’s protections after the university gave them a prominent spot on the senate. “If the contract faculty are being invited to take part of university governance, wouldn’t the issues that pertain to contract faculty be the things we should be expressing
Rainey said. “There are a number of protections tenured faculty have that contract faculty lost in this new handbook.” Beckman ensured the change to the grievance clause is an appropriate step for non-tenured faculty rather than an arbitrary change. “In this instance, redress should be sought through a grievance procedure,” Beckman said. “This has
At 1:56 a.m. on Nov. 1, public safety confiscated marijuana and drug paraphernalia from a dormitory room at University residence hall. This incident is still under investigation.
Larceny
nothing to do with any ‘changing of the rules.’” Shenefelt said these changes simply limit the academic freedom of non-tenured faculty. “The idea here is that contract faculty should be protected from punishment for their opinions, and what you’re seeing is a change in those protections,” Shenefelt said. Regarding the new guidelines focused solely on non-tenured faculty, Rainey said his senate council should have been part of developing these guidelines before their publication. “If this opportunity to review and comment is meant to be our opportunity to express our voice, we would have liked that opportunity before the guidelines had been issued and posted,” Rainey said. NYU faculty members are currently reviewing the handbook and sending their feedback before the university Board of Trustees’ vote on Dec. 1. Email Stephanie Grella at news@nyunews.com.
Email Christine Park at news@nyunews.com.
Email Christine Wang at news@nyunews.com.
Contract professors upset by proposed policies nance, said the addition of nontenured faculty to the University Senate marked a major step forward for contract faculty. “For that full-time, non-tenure track, not having a voice in governance at the university level has always been troubling, so they are excited to now have a seat at the
Controlled Substance
At 7:35 a.m. on Oct. 30, a student said that, between 5:15 p.m. and 5:20 p.m., her wallet went missing from her knapsack at the Dibner Library. The New York Police Department filed a report. At Goddard residence hall, a student reported at 12:25 a.m. on Oct. 30. that an identity thief made retail purchases using his information. NYPD did not file a report. At 6:35 p.m. on Oct. 31, a report was filed with Public Safety of a bag stolen while it was in a box near the student’s feet at Starbucks at Faye’s that occurred between 6:10 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. A student reported that, between 12:30 p.m. and 4:45 p.m. on Oct. 31., his bicycle was stolen on the Mercer Street side of Meyer Hall. NYPD filed a report. At 2:20 p.m. on Nov. 3, Public Safety received a report of a pickpocketing incident of a wallet from a student’s bag as she was walking down the stairs at 5 Metrotech Center. The NYPD was notified and arrested the thief. At 7:35 p.m. on Nov. 3, a student reported his bike missing, despite securing it with a lock before leaving it at 1:30 p.m. The student did not notify the police. At 5:02 p.m. on Nov. 4, a student reported that he had secured his bicycle to a bike rack near Shimkin Hall at 12:30 p.m. and returned to find his bicycle rim missing at 3:30 p.m. The student did not notify the police. At 12:35 p.m. on Nov. 5, a student attempting to shoplift at the NYU Bookstore was stopped by security guards. All the incidents except those that occurred at 5 Metrotech Center and the Dibner Library are under investigation.
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another LS faculty member, recently brought a complaint against two deans, and after the complaint was filed, changes were made to the handbook’s Title IV section, which outlines the protection of complaint procedures. “I can’t know whether they made these changes to protect deans from investigations,” Shenefelt said. “I can’t know that without knowing the secrets of their heart. But I would say the timing is damn suspicious.” Shenefelt said this change under Title IV was the only revision not visibly tracked in the draft sent by the provost. Beckman said the changes were a mistake. “To be sure, that was an error,” Beckman said. “It was a totally innocent one made during a large revision of the Faculty Handbook. We regret that it happened, but no one should seek to read anything into it.” Ezra Sacks, a Tisch professor and chairman of the Non-Tenure Track Full Time Contract Faculty Council sub-committee on gover-
The NYU Department of Public Safety has received reports of eight incidents of larceny and one incident of controlled substance in the past week.
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FEATURES
EDITED BY HANNAH TREASURE FEATURES@NYUNEWS.COM
Our lives as: Abercrombie, Club Monaco employees By LAUREN CRADDOCK Staff Writer Horror stories from people who work in retail for tireless hours in low-paid conditions have become commonplace. This is not the case, however, for CAS sophomore Michael DeLuca, who currently works at Club Monaco, and CAS senior Raquel Montagne, who worked at Abercrombie & Fitch for eight years. Working in retail has proven to be a fun learning experience for both of them. DeLuca and Montagne chose to work in stores to experience the retail industry. Like the jobs of many NYU students, DeLuca and Montagne’s retail experiences of-
fer reasonable pay and parttime hours that work with their class schedules. DeLuca said another benefit is working at a brand he likes to wear. “The combination of finding a way to afford the clothes I like and make a little money in the meantime led me to Club Monaco,” DeLuca said. One of the downsides to working in retail are tedious duties like folding clothes. Montagne worked at a number of Abercrombie & Fitch locations, including the flagship store on Fifth Avenue. She said the environment was always busy and fast-paced. From tourists to natives and from the trend followers to the fashion-clueless, retail employment in New York
City has put her in contact with a diverse customer base. “I loved the international clientele,” Montagne said. “I got to learn
“Talking about clothes is a nice change of pace from my politics classes.” — Michael DeLuca and speak several languages.” Working around 20 hours per week, both students found the fast-paced environment to be positive — no shift was too slow or uninteresting. Like
any day in New York, every shift brought something new to the job. “It’s fun to deal with the people that come in and talking about clothes is a nice change of pace from my politics classes,” DeLuca said. Overall, their experiences working in retail have been positive, and the relationship between the staff allowed for an encouraging team. At Club Monaco, DeLuca found that working side-by-side with his supervisor disproved the idea of a controlling boss who stays away from the dirty work. “Seeing your boss do the same work you’re doing keeps you from starting to think like a basketball player when they see their coach on the side-
lines like, ‘He has us running 20 laps when he couldn’t run one,’” DeLuca said. Montagne had a similar experience with supportive staff at Abercrombie & Fitch. “I made a best friend from working at Abercrombie, and all of my managers and coworkers were great,” Montagne said. Working in retail provided customer service skills that have created memories for both DeLuca and Montagne, as well as offering them many lessons. “Retail is retail. You make of it what you want,” Montagne said. “I learned a lot about myself as a person during that time.” Email Lauren Craddock at features@nyunews.com.
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TAs balance teaching, homework, family life
will sustain and enhance NYU’s academic competitiveness,” the statement read. Lily Defriend, a GSAS student working to attain her doctorate in anthropology, is one of the eight elected representatives on GSOC’s bargaining committee. The bargaining committee works to develop a contract with NYU and provide better working conditions for graduate student employees, including teaching assistants. In addition to negotiating improved healthcare and family benefits, there has been a push for NYU to address the disparity between its Washington Square campus graduate employees and those at the Polytechnic School of Engineering, who are paid as low as $10 per hour and must cover their own tuition and health care expenses. “TAs and graduate workers do a substantial amount of work that builds reputation as an excellent institution to come get your degree, and we deserve compensation that reflects that work,” Defriend said. Negotiations between GSOC and the university are ongoing. As students themselves, TAs can often be one of students’ most valuable assets as they navigate difficult courses, particu-
larly large ones where professor contact is limited. CAS sophomore Michael DeLuca attested to this, saying TAs can help students stay on track and not be overwhelmed by large lectures. “TAs give a more approachable and relatable alternative to professors,” DeLuca said. “They’re younger, they sometimes come from interesting and niche fields, and can offer a perspective different from or at odds with the main professor’s, and that’s always a good thing.” Though there are financial challenges associated with being a TA, there are also many upsides. Amanda Perry, a graduate student studying for a doctorate in comparative literature, is a TA for a social and cultural analysis class. Perry makes an effort to teach classes in her field of study, though between school and teaching, she estimates that she reads approximately 800 pages each week. “Sometimes it can be a pretty happy synthesis where you’re getting paid to learn things you should know anyway, so I actually quite like TA-ing for that reason,” Perry said. Email Monica Millay at features@nyunews.com.
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Professor Jay Rosen will teach a class about the future of The New York Times.
Unique class on NYT to be offered By EMILY HARRIS Staff Writer
Students will be able to sign up for the spring semester class The Future of The New York Times, taught by CAS professor of journalism Jay Rosen. This course will look into the struggle of The New York Times to find a secure and sustainable future in a radically changing world. At first sight, the scope of the class may seem narrow. The main focus of the weekly, four-hour long class is only one publication. “I don’t see it as narrow at all,” Rosen said. “Because in order to understand the future of The New York Times, you have to understand everything that is happening to the news business and the craft of journalism today, especially the digital transformation of the press and the struggle for a new business model. Those are big subjects. But we’ll be looking at them through the
lens of a single institution.” A unique aspect about this class is that it will allow students who do not enroll in the course to follow along through various, student-created features. “One thing that might be a little different is that I want the class to have a public facing component, which the students will also work on,” Rosen said. “That could be as simple as webcasting parts of it so people around the web who are interested in The New York Times can follow along.” The Times has adapted to keep up with the ever-changing modern world of how readers consume their news. It is using Twitter, Facebook and other platforms that are more easily accessible than print. Similarly, Rosen wants to incorporate Twitter into the course. Enrollment for this class is also somewhat unconventional. Instead of enrolling through the online portal, NYU students will only be admitted into this class by personally
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emailing Rosen and describing who they are as a student and what exactly their relationship is to the Times. CAS senior Lauren Klingensmith said the appeal to the course ranges further than just to students interested in journalism. “I feel like this is a cool class to just take,” Klingensmith said. “I don’t think you necessarily have to be a journalism major to get the benefits of taking a unique course like this one.” Conversation has already started to flow about the topic. “I should make something clear: the class is not science fiction or dreaming about possible futures,” Rosen said. “It’s about what The New York Times is doing right now to secure its future, and invent a workable path for itself in the years ahead.” Disclaimer: Jay Rosen is a member of the Washington Square News board. Email Emily Harris at features@nyunews.com.
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SPORTS
EDITED BY CHRIS MARCOTRIGIANO SPORTS@NYUNEWS.COM
Weekend Wrap Up: Nov. 7-9 By KYLE LUTHER Staff Writer
Wrestling The wrestling team recorded 99.5 points and finished in fifth place over the weekend at the Ithaca College Invitational. Freshman Steven Nogradi won all five of his competitions en route to winning the 133-lb. bracket. Freshman Raymond Jazikoff was able to advance to the finals of the 157-lb. bracket.
Men’s Swimming and Diving The men’s swimming team finished in first at the NYU Invitational over the weekend. The Violets finished the meet with a total of 1,045 points. Senior co-captain Jerry Crowley broke two pool records on the second day of the meet when he won the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 49.66 and the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 44.81. Freshman Austin Palmer also broke the 400 individual medley with a time of 4:08:82.
Women’s Swimming and Diving The women’s swimming team finished in first ahead of the three other competitors at the NYU Invitational over the weekend. The Violets
finished the quad-meet with a total of 1,064 points. Second place was awarded to Stevens Institute, who totaled 836 points. Freshman Elise Gibbs won the 100-yard breaststroke with 1:07.39, breaking a previous pool record she set earlier this year.
Men’s Cross Country The NYU men’s cross country team finished in 13th place among 43 teams that competed in the ECAC Championship over the weekend, also in Westfield. This was the first time NYU had competed in an ECAC Championship race in over a decade. Senior Justin Turlip was the Violets’ top performer with a time of 26:47.6 and a 43rd-place finish.
Women’s Cross Country Several members of the NYU women’s cross country team participated in the ECAC Championship on Saturday in Westfield, Massachusetts. Because NYU did not have a full seven members, they were not scored in the team category. Only three Violets participated in the 6K race. Junior Becky Turlip finished with the best time for the Violets at an impressive time of 24:01.9, which was good for
47th place out of 338 athletes.
Men’s Soccer The men’s soccer team fell 1-0 to Brandeis University in the season finale on Saturday at Gaelic Park. The Violets finished the season with a record of 11-6 and said goodbye to seniors Mickey Ingerman and Justin Suter. Sophomore goalie Lucas Doucette kept the Violets in the game with seven saves, but it was not enough for a win.
Women’s Soccer The women’s soccer team ended the season with a 0-0 tie in double overtime against Brandeis University at Gaelic Park. The Violets finished the season with a record of 11-5-2, which earned them third place in the UAA standings and the best finish for tenured head coach Michele Canning. Sophomore goalie Cassie Steinberg recorded 12 saves, which was four more than her career-best. An announcement later today will decide whether the Violets get a bid to play in the NCAA DIII Tournament for the Eastern College Athletic Conference Championship. Email Kyle Luther at sports@nyunews.com.
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Seniors send women’s volleyball team to final victory By BOBBY WAGNER Staff Writer
The NYU women’s volleyball team closed out the season on a high note on Nov. 7 thanks to a strong performance from a trio of seniors to beat Brandeis University in straight sets with scores of 25-20, 25-15 and 2522, finishing the season 20-18. The match was played at Carnegie Mellon University, which hosted the UAA’s end-of-the-year conference tournament. Senior middle blocker Sonya Bray tied for the lead in kills, racking up
10 in her final match as a Violet, and senior setter Katie Robinson totaled 18 assists and also added eight kills of her own to go along with Bray’s. The third of the senior trio, middle blocker Allie Williams, buried the final kill of the match to take her total to four on the afternoon. The Violets were never in danger of losing a match to Brandeis, which had a record of 7-24. With this win, they finished seventh in the UAA championship, one spot above their opponent. It was a positive end to a season that did not play out as
well as expected. After reaching the NCAA tournament’s second round last season, Violet players and coaches were hoping for a similar success story, only to be disappointed by missing the postseason. However, the season was not a complete loss, as NYU finished two games over .500. Many of the team’s losses came in matches that, even when dropped 3-0 or 3-1, consisted of games decided by five points or fewer. The team saw its highs and lows throughout the season,
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stringing together a streak in September when they won nine out of 10 matches. Just over a month later, they would drop 10 of their next 12 down the stretch of the season, and virtually eliminate any chance of a deep playoff run. Junior Nicole Frias was the leader in kills with 237, while Williams led the team by notching 472 assists. Sophomore libero MaTia Hughes, not surprisingly, led the team in digs with 594 on the campaign. She also was the team’s best statistical server, totaling 48
service aces on the year. Next fall seems promising, as Frias and Hughes will be returning to the Violets. They will also get back freshmen Brooke Tannahill and Zoe Prince and sophomores Josie Luck and Gigi Morally, who were all key contributors this season. With the opportunity to improve their skills and become accustomed to the team as well as college volleyball, these young talents will likely deliver stellar performances next season. Email Bobby Wagner at sports@nyunews.com.
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59 1978 Billy Joel hit that gave its name to a 2002 Broadway musical 61 Yammerer 62 “… lived happily ___ after” 63 “___ changed man!” 64 Where chicks hang out? 65 “Bill & ___ Excellent Adventure” 66 Forerunners of CDs DOWN 1 Heavy door locks 2 Give an informal greeting 3 Chinese or 20-Across 4 Start of almost every ZIP code in New York 5 Farther past 6 Cheri formerly of “S.N.L.” 7 German industrial city 8 Unruly child 9 Ice cream alternative 10 Loud, as a crowd 11 Clapped 12 Element-ary school subject? 16 Guile 18 French-speaking African nation 22 Narrow marine passageway 25 List component 26 Part of a rhinoceros 30 Almost impossible, as a task 31 Easily enthused
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PUZZLE BY ROBYN WEINTRAUB
32 Kutcher of “Two and a Half Men”
43 Bobby of 1950s-’60s pop
51 How much food is fried
33 Letter before omega
45 Lime-flavored cocktail
52 Card that tops all others
35 Defensive embankment
46 Pushed hard
53 Some sorority women
37 Victor’s cry 38 Richard of “American Gigolo”
48 Arduous journeys 49 Citi Field player, for short 50 Treasure cache
58 Class older than jrs. 60 Apr. 15 payment recipient
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NYUNEWS.COM | MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2014 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS
OPINION
EDITED BY CHRISTINA COLEBURN OPINION@NYUNEWS.COM
EDUCATION
Literature and tech enriching when merged By SCARLETT CURTIS Staff Columnist
My Gallatin first-year writing seminar conducted an experimental project last week in which we live-tweeted our in-class reading. The students of my seminar, Thinking and Writing Through New Media, were asked to read the novel “Oryx and Crake” and tweet their thoughts and literary observations as they read, using the hashtags #nyufyws. The project was inspired by prolific tweeter and author of “Oryx and Crake” Margaret Atwood. My fellow students and I were encouraged to tweet @MargaretAtwood if we had a direct question regarding the text. I was challenged by the assignment at first. I am an obsessive reader and have long found myself torn between the two arguments regarding the merging of technology and books. I love the smell, feel and weight of a paper book and believe that, in an overly stimulating world, books can be an escape from the constant barrage of social media and electronic devices. However, when
it comes to merging technology and books in regards to academic reading, I am a definite convert. Assigned class reading can be difficult. Often, the text is not one you would have have chosen to read yourself. The temptation to use SparkNotes and spend your precious time watching Netflix instead can be compelling. The act of tweeting while reading meant that not only did I actually finish my reading, but also I managed to feel engaged and stimulated throughout the entire process. I know I am not alone in saying that Twitter is one of the ways I procrastinate from doing my work. However, by incorporating Twitter into my homework, I finished my work in a faster and more productive manner than I would have had I tried to sit down in Bobst Li-
brary and power through 10 chapters at once. My newly purchased e-reader has also been extremely helpful with assigned reading. As much as I romanticize paperbacks, the reality of lugging three books around in my bag all day is not practical. Having a Kindle means I can cut away at my weekly reading anywhere, including the insanely long line at Starbucks in the morning. Making the leap from paper book to e-book has been hard, but the innovations in reading technology are making electronic literature an increasingly enticing world. Embracing technology in my reading habits has not only meant that I actually finish my homework, but also made the act of academic reading a more enriching experience. As an added bonus, Margaret Atwood tweeted my class back, which was enough to make me more hopeful about the merging of literature and technology, especially in academia. Email Scarlett Curtis at opinion@nyunews.com.
SOCIAL ISSUES
Dismissive responses to catcalling problematic By ANNIE COHEN Staff Columnist
It is a safe bet that by now most people in the NYU community have seen the infamous video of a woman being catcalled as she takes a low-key stroll through different parts of New York City. The video immediately went viral and has since triggered further discussions about street harassment. While catcalling is largely acknowledged as distasteful and intrusive, American society as a whole struggles with how to address it. Proposals to criminalize catcalling have been raised, to which opponents have voiced concerns about potential First Amendment violations. Conversations about street harassment have also honed in on issues of race and class. Minorities are often depicted as the prime perpetrators of this type of behavior, when men of all races catcall. While public debates concerning street harassment may reach different conclusions, they must be substantive. Street harassment does not exist in a vacuum and to effectively address it, discussions cannot have dismissive tones. After the video was released, prominent public figures reacted in an un-
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informed and unsympathetic manner. Comedian Michael Che, who recently became the new co-anchor of “Weekend Update” on “Saturday Night Live,” found himself in hot water after posting a response to the catcalling video on Facebook. In what he has since dismissed as a “joke,” Che compared women being sexually harassed on the street to fans recognizing and approaching him in public. His statement was tactless. Furthermore, the controversy indicated how some males struggle to empathize with and comprehend the plights of harassed women. But the most repugnant commentary arguably came from Steve Santagati, an author and selfproclaimed expert on dating and women. During a CNN segment about the catcalling video, Santagati said, “There is nothing more
that a woman likes to hear than how pretty she is,” before saying, “The bottom line is this, ladies: you wouldn’t care if all these guys were hot.” Santagati went on to suggest that women who were uncomfortable on the street should consider carrying a gun or moving away from places like New York City, where this sort of behavior is most prevalent. While Santagati’s opinions are not necessarily reflective of the general male population, they are nonetheless worrisome. It is damaging to society for even a small portion of people to feel this way, as it counteracts the efforts of men and women working to end street harassment. Despite the controversy surrounding it, the catcalling video has generated awareness about an issue that women in New York City face on a daily basis. Public debates about street harassment cannot remain ignorant or passive. Responses that discount catcalling as a negligible problem are counterproductive to combating the issue. Email Annie Cohen at opinion@nyunews.com.
STAFF EDITORIAL
Program compromises spirit of global network
The New York Post published an article on Nov. 9 revealing that NYU’s tech-work program is currently supplying cheap labor for startup companies, paying graduate students only $10 an hour. Despite the fact that the students’ electrical engineering and computer programming skills enable the startups’ development, the students are compensated meagerly. NYU has been actively bargaining over pay with graduate students since February and has been accused of labor abuses on its campuses globally in the past. Poly’s labor practices compromise the spirit of the global network university that the administration strives to foster. The New York Post piece focuses on the Polytechnic School of Engineering’s treatment of international students. The low wages for these students is particularly reprehensible. Most student visas prohibit students from working off-campus during their first academic year, limiting them to on-campus opportunities. It is on the backs of these vulnerable students that NYU seems to be cashing in. Mayor Bill de Blasio signed an executive order on Sept. 30 to increase the living wage of New York City workers from $11.90 to $13.13. This increase was intended to compensate for the high cost of living and fight growing income inequality. The fact that a worker at a fast food chain would earn over $3 more than a graduate student studying engineering is disconcerting. The mayor has recognized that $11.90 an hour is not enough for a New York City resident to live on. It is troubling that NYU administrators believe otherwise — or worse, are unaffected by this reality. Moreover, many of NYU’s students must take out crippling loans in order to cover their tuition costs, which is around $17,000 per semester for graduate students at Poly. NYU’s pitiful wage is only compounding the financial burden it places on international students. In the Post article, NYU spokesman John Beckman dismissed the severity of the situation. “Our graduate assistants don’t all do the same things, and they aren’t all at the same level of graduate study,” he said. “Their unwillingness to acknowledge these differences is why ... we still have made so little progress.” Beckman’s response sidesteps the issue. NYU aggressively promotes its global network. Celebrating diversity of geography while simultaneously mistreating international graduate students is depressingly hypocritical. These students are conducting cutting-edge research, work that has generated more than $250 million in economic activity through Poly’s Incubator initiative — their pay should reflect this.
Email the WSN Editorial Board at editboard@nyunews.com. EDITORIAL BOARD: Christina Coleburn (Chair), Omar Etman (Co-chair), Adam Fazlibegu (Co-chair), Tess Woosley (Co-chair) ILLUSTRATION BY JOURDAN ENRIQUEZ
Send mail to: 838 Broadway, Fifth Floor New York, N.Y. 10003 or email: opinion@nyunews.com WSN welcomes letters to the editor, opinion pieces and articles relevant to the NYU community, or in response to articles. Letters should be less than 450 words. All submissions must be typed or emailed and must include the author’s name, address and phone number. Members of the NYU community must include a year and school or job title.
WSN does not print unsigned letters or editorials. WSN reserves the right to reject any submission and edit accepted submissions in any and all ways. With the exception of the staff editorial, opinions expressed on the editorial pages are not necessarily those of WSN, and our publication of opinions is not an endorsement of them.
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