VOL. CLXXI NO. 152
PARTLY CLOUDY HIGH 54 LOW 33
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2014
HANOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE
In meeting,trustees Perry talks midterms success chat with students, Some students asked the governor sexually explicit questions. talk academic goals By ERICA BUONANNO The Dartmouth Staff
SPORTS WEEKLY
MEN’S SOCCER BEATS CORNELL PAGE SW2
FOOTBALL DOMINATES BIG RED PAGE SW2
OPINION
PARAJULI: TAX THEM TO THE POLLS
The Board of Trustees discussed academic goals, changes to Geisel Medical School and Thayer Engineering School and “Moving Dartmouth Forward” presidential steering committee progress this weekend. Reflecting on the weekend, College President Phil Hanlon said the meeting focused on academic excellence and productivity. Adding a new component to the weekend, board members met with small groups of faculty for dinner on Thursday night and students on Friday night, Board of Trustees chair Bill Helman ’80 said. Attendees at both dinners included students and faculty from both the College and the graduate schools. Student assembly chief of staff Thomas Wang ’16 said about 50 students met with trustees over dinner in groups of around eight to 10, with three to five trustees at each. Wang and student body vice president Frank Cunningham ’16 proposed the idea to Helman in August to improve transparency, Wang said. “As students, our reach is limited, but he heard our side of things, took the time to meet with us and he followed up,” Wang said. Helman said that while trustees have met with students in more formal settings before, Friday night was the first time students met with trustees with “no theme or agenda.” Helman said that trustee and student conversations ranged from discussing “layups,” or easy classes, to grade inflation and time management, and noted that “students have a lot on their minds.” “Moving Dartmouth Forward” presidential steering SEE TRUSTEES PAGE 5
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Perry said “a majority is a terrible thing to waste,” noted that political debates are critical to young people.
B y tim connor The Dartmouth Staff
Arriving to the tune of “Deep in the Heart of Texas,” Gov. Rick Perry, R-Texas, spoke under the Texas flag about U.S. border security, energy initiatives and foreign policy to an audience of more than 100 people in Wilder Hall Sunday night. Several students raised explicit questions concer ning Perry’s stance on homosexuality
during the event. Perry began by describing the results of Tuesday’s midter m elections as an opportune moment for the Republican Party to reestablish itself and confront President Barack Obama’s policies. He connected the current political climate to the aftermath of the 1980s oil glut in Texas, stating that the widespread Republican victories in Congress presented an opportunity for the party
to regain Americans’ trust. “From time to time you’d see a bumper sticker on a car out there that said, ‘Lord, if you’ll just give us one more oil boom, we promise not to fritter it away this time,’” Perry said. “I think that may have been what the message was Tuesday to the Republican Party — ‘Lord, if you’ll just give us one more opportunity to govern, we won’t fritter it away this time.’” SEE PERRY PAGE 3
Greek leaders release proposals IvyQ explores range of LGBTQ identities
B y PARKER RICHARDS The Dartmouth Staff
Greek leaders recommended policy changes related to high-risk drinking, sexual misconduct, freshman safety, house renovations, faculty advisors and inclusivity, calling on students and alumni invested in the Greek system to show their support. As of about 1 p.m. Sunday, the website had received roughly 650 signatures.
The proposal, signed by the Gender-Inclusive Greek Council, InterFraternity Council and Panhellenic Council with the endorsement of their member organizations’ presidents, was published on a website titled “Moving Dartmouth Forward — The Greek Perspective” Friday afternoon. “The ‘silent majority’ of community members who support the Greek system have not done
enough to highlight the positive aspects of the system or have a voice in the policy conversation,” the website states. “Without the engagement of Greek-affiliated alumni and undergrads, we risk seeing the steering committee process dominated by a vocal anti-Greek minority, possibly leading to the recommendation of severe and unjustiSEE GREEK PAGE 5
B y KELSEY FLOWER
A slam poetry workshop, discussion of Palestinian queer movements and Goldman Sachs information session, among other events, marked this weekend’s IvyQ conference. More than 300 students from across the Ivy League attended the symposium, which explored different aspects of LGBTQ identities. In the final banquet, Rev. Dr. Jamie Washington asked audience
members to appreciate those who helped the LGBTQ community gain rights and the personal mentors, friends and family who helped them get to an Ivy League school, urging them to become leaders in their respective fields. Other events looked at reflection and wellness, sex toys, homosexuality in the Bible, gender roles in professional settings, queer athletics, SEE IVYQ PAGE 2
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
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2015 dIRECTORATE The Dartmouth held its annual changeover event on Saturday to announce the new directorate. The following team will begin in January.
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Frohman, 2013 Women of the World Poetry Slam Champion, performed Friday.
Corrections We welcome corrections. If you believe there is a factual error in a story, please email editor@thedartmouth.com.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2014
Police chat with locals over coffee B y katie rafter
Blue balloons reading “coffee with a cop” adorned Umpleby’s Bakery and Cafe, as four police officers spent two hours Saturday morning chatting with local residents over coffee. Around 50 community members attended the event, meant to be a positive and relaxed space for police to communicate with the public, Hanover Police Chief Charlie Dennis said. Dennis said most interactions between the public and police occur under high stress, so Saturday was meant to offer an alternative. The event also aimed to inform community members about police department initiatives. Dennis spoke of the importance of strong relationships between the police and community, especially following recent events in Ferguson, Missouri. Darren Wilson, a white police officer,
shot and killed Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, on Aug. 9, leading to riots and questions about the role of law enforcement. “If you look at other communities throughout the United States where there are issues, in many of them there is not a trust factor,” he said. “I think many times when you have that relationship and you have that trust, there’s certainly more understanding.” Patrol officer Shannon Kuehlwein, who also attended, echoed Dennis. “Any communication we have with the public, especially informally, is good,” Kuehlwein said. Dennis said he hopes to make Coffee With A Cop a monthly event and hopes to organize a similar event at Dartmouth. When Hanover police takes an 18to 20-year-old into protective custody for unlawful possession of alcohol or unlawful possession and intoxication, the responding officer can offer the
individual the option of participating in the Hanover Alcohol Diversion Program, which offers first-time underage drinking offenders an educational alternative to court. Bobbie Hitchcock said she attended due to her interest in the relationship between law enforcement and the public. The public benefits from speaking to those tasked with protecting the community, she said. Hitchcock said she had a “good experience” and that the officer she spoke with answered her questions to the best of his ability, but declined to specify the topic of their conversation. The Coffee with a Cop initiative began in California in March 2011. Since then, it has spread to more than 175 cities and towns in 36 states, according to the project’s website. Those who attended the Hanover event can provide anonymous feedback to the Hanover Police Department through the national website.
More than 300 students attend conference FROM IVYQ PAGE 1
and more. In addition to workshops and discussions, the conference included a drag show, bingo and dance party. Organizers tailored the program to represent many different identities and perspectives, aware of past criticism about IvyQ’s lack of diversity, finance chair Tyler Stoff ’15 said. Workshop topics included “Beyond the Binary: Lives of Trans People Today,” “Polyamory 101” and “The Implications of Gender Identity, Sexuality and Desire for Asian and Pacific Islander American Identities.” Kelsey Weimer ’16, who organized the conference, said campus organizations “opened their communities” to visiting students. Phi Tau coed fraternity hosted students for a Disney-themed milk and cookies event and the Hopkins Center box office reserved 40 tickets to “In the Next Room, (or the Vibrator Play),” a performance that explores the vibrator’s history and use to treat “hysteria.” Stoff said attendees told him they felt welcome on Dartmouth’s campus, despite initial concerns that students would be “mean or unwelcoming.” There is a stigma that Dartmouth is homophobic, Stoff siad, stemming from past incidents like a protest during the 2013 Dimensions weekend, when demonstrators interrupted an accepted students program chanting “Dartmouth has a problem!” Hosting the conference benefited Dartmouth by lessening stigma and allowing students to meet a diverse group of people, Stoff said. “I think this is one of the best things to happen all term,” Amara Ihionu
KATELYN JONES/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
Poet Denice Frohman delivered the keynote address on Friday.
’17 said. Nathen Huang, a Columbia University senior and president of Columbia’s IvyQ team, said that Dartmouth has a negative reputation among students at his university. Students from any campus, Huang said, are often ignorant of problems at their own school, but stepping into the context of a different campus is “helpful and important” for gaining a broader perspective on institutional issues. “People definitely have their apprehensions,” Huang said. “I think that people have this mythical idea that Dartmouth is so different and that it’s this very unique place where all these bad things happened.” Ethan Falleur ’16 said the conference shows that administrators support the LGBTQ community
and “speaks volumes to how inclusive Dartmouth can be.” Organizers maintained a 24-hour staff “safe space” for participants who were not comfortable with their hosts, in keeping with past IvyQ practice. Fewer than 10 students requested a change in host, Stoff said. “I think that the team really took people’s concerns to heart,” Huang said. “There were a lot of measures in place to make sure that people felt safe at the conference.” Ihionu said that the presence of IvyQ attendees improved the campus climate for LGBTQ students at Dartmouth in general. “There are a lot of us out there,” Ihionu said, “And when we get together, good things happen.” IvyQ was first hosted by the University of Pennsylvania in spring 2010.
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2014
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Perry talks foreign policy, calls Texas a model economy PERRY PAGE 1
Texas exemplifies productive fiscal policy, Perry said, describing the economy as one of the most successful in the world. He criticized the Obama administration’s foreign policy and emphasized heightening security at the southern border and approving the Keystone XL pipeline. Perry said “a majority is a terrible thing to waste,” noting that these issues are particularly important to young people. “We’ve seen six years of this administration’s work, and we’ve seen a lot of people out of work. We’ve seen foreign policy that is feckless to say the least, we’ve seen our country really struggle, and we’re really concerned about the future,” he said. “The reason I’m engaged in this process isn’t for me. I’m 64 years old. This battle that we’re talking about, these discussions, this discourse that we’re having is about you and it’s about your future.” When Perry opened up discussion to the audience, several students posed questions, deriding Perry’s views on same-sex marriage. Emily Sellers ’15 asked if Perry would have anal sex in exchange for campaign contributions of $102 million, while Timothy Messen ’18 accused the governor of comparing homosexuality to alcoholism. Ben Packer ’17, who wrote and distributed these and other questions, said Perry’s views were more insulting than the questions. Several members of the audience said they were excited to hear Perry speak but offended by the questions. “I was really excited to see him come out to Dartmouth and speak with the students and I think he was able to cater towards the entire audience, not only the College Republi-
cans,” Abraham Herrera ’18 said, noting that some students’ remarks were offensive. “They were phrased in incredibly insulting ways, and I’m horrified,” College Republicans president Michelle Knesbach ’17 said. “We allow people to ask policy-driven questions, but when they’re phrased in an insulting manner, we try to avoid that, because it just detracts from the overall political discourse we can have on campus.” College Democrats president Spencer Blair ’17 agreed, stating that he understood concerns about Perry’s stance on gay marriage but was disappointed by the tone of the questions. “I think it’s really disappointing that anyone would undermine a serious political event with sexually explicit questions, and neither I nor anyone from College Democrats would ever condone such behavior,” Blair said. “We appreciate Governor Perry visiting campus, as we encourage any sort of political engagement and discourse here at Dartmouth.” Zachary Myslinski ’15 said that he thought the questions posed legitimate concerns about Perry’s social policies. Sellers said her comments sought to bring attention to the “sexually explicit” and “disrespectful” nature of Perry’s political views. Packer, who identified as neither a Republican nor a Democrat, said that while his efforts were unpopular with the audience, his intent was justified. “People that are opposed to this act are opposed to it because they think that it hurts their political discussion,” he said. “I think the desired effect was to point out that their political discussion is not meaningful.” Event organizers discovered Packer’s questions as they were being distributed, and Knesbach asked
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Perry said Sunday that current political debates in the U.S. are particularly important to young people.
the audience to remain polite at the beginning of the event. Packer said that he did not think his desired effect was achieved as a result. “Since the event organizers knew
what we were doing before it happened, they sort of controlled the lens through which the questions were viewed,” Packer said. “The questions – they’re funny, right? I think they’re funny. I think a lot of
people think that they’re funny, but since the event had control over the framing of the questions, nobody in the audience laughed. They booed.” Blair and Sellers are members of The Dartmouth opinion staff.
THE DARTMOUTH OPINION
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STAFF Columnist Abhishek Parajuli ’15
Contributing Columnist ZIqin Yuan ’18
Tax Them to the Polls
Pointless Prerequisites
A universal poll tax may increase turnout.
Four out of five young people did not vote in Tuesday’s election. In fact, the U.S. Election Project estimates that this year’s midterm saw the lowest overall turnout since 1942, as reported by the New York Times. Should this worry you? It should if you care about democracy. A torrent of recent studies show America’s democracy in crisis: In his 2012 book “Affluence and Influence,” Princeton University’s Martin Gilens found that lawmakers only respond to the policy preferences of the rich, while the middle and lower classes are basically ignored. Larry Bartels, Benjamin Page and Jason Seawright later added that real policy influence might in fact rest with “the one percent.” Increasing electoral turnout via a universal poll tax will reinvigorate democracy. Competitive elections get lawmakers listening. This seems pretty self-evident, but what Gilens found is astounding: Competitive elections are the only time that policy makers care about what the middle and lower classes want. At all other points, spanning 1964-2006, lawmakers responded to the rich and ignored the poor. If competition is so crucial, how can we foster it? Increasing turnout is one solution. A proportional universal poll tax, with a receipt-reminder mailed out a week before an election, would dramatically increase turnout. All eligible voters would pay the tax. The idea is to make them feel that they have “purchased” the right to vote. While the 24th Amendment bans poll taxes, since previous taxes acted as barriers to minority participation, this tax would be akin to Social Security contributions: deducted at the source from everyone, with the funds used for a public good like a public campaign finance option. A psychological theory called the endowment effect supports its implementation. In a 1990 study, researchers gave students money and made them bid on some mugs. Once the students had bought the mugs, they were asked to sell them back. Surprisingly, the price students demanded for the same mugs once they owned them was twice as high as the amount they were originally willing to pay. Other researchers
have found that people may value a commodity they own up to 14 times more than an identical item they do not own. In sum, what is ours is more valuable than what is not. This insight has important implications for increasing government accountability. Development economists have long wondered if people in countries reliant on foreign aid hold their leaders to a lower standard because the money is not “theirs.” An experiment by Yale’s Lucy Martin supports this hunch: She formed two groups of participants and gave the “leaders” money to share with “followers.” Group A was told that the money came from taxes, while Group B was told it came from a “grant.” Followers could punish the leaders if they felt the amount they received was unfair. Group B participants, who believed the money was from taxes, were 30 percent more likely to punish the leader. A 2011 field experiment in Indonesia also found that provinces that relied more on tax income versus central government funds had citizens who were more politically aware, a prerequisite to demanding accountability. It seems then, that taxes do increase citizen demands for accountability. To see if this is true in the U.S., I checked if corruption in different states varies based on effective tax rates. Controlling for differences in per capita income, I found that states with higher state and local taxes have lower levels of corruption. One possible explanation for this is that these states’ citizens care about, demand and receive a more accountable government simply because they pay more for it. Too many political scientists focus on the wrong question. Why, they ask, are representatives less responsive to the poor and middle classes? My prescription of a universal poll tax deals with demand; the tax will increase citizen demands for accountability, especially within the middle and lower classes. If citizens are more engaged, lawmakers will face the hard choice of supplying attention or facing eviction. Demand creates its own supply; political responsiveness will increase when citizens are more aware and demanding.
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Liberal arts prerequisites would detract from a Dartmouth education. I am registered to take Art History 51, “Realism, Impressionism and Post-Impressionism,” next term. I have studied art history in the past, but I have never taken any college introductory courses in the subject. I also do not expect to major in it. Most colleges would require prerequisites for higher-level art history courses, but Dartmouth does not. It is important that Dartmouth retains this lack of prerequisites, especially in its liberal arts and humanities classes, to encourage intellectual exploration and impart necessary social skills. Certain departments should have prerequisites for all higher-level classes. In most math and science fields, students would not be able to appreciate or succeed in higher-level classes without a basic knowledge of general concepts. Dartmouth understands this, as many of these classes have prerequisites. However, some classes do not depend much on prior knowledge. Most classes that do not require prerequisites are in the humanities and arts, allowing students who may not be majoring in those subjects to dabble without sacrificing major requirements. This is crucial, because students may struggle with finishing courses for their majors. The most popular major in the Class of 2013 was economics, with 210 majors; the next most popular subject, government, had 125 graduating majors. These majors require a fair number of courses on top of distributive requirements. If many Dartmouth courses required prerequisites, most students would not want to risk overwhelming themselves with extra classes just to take one course that they may enjoy. However, because many courses do not require prerequisites, students can freely take one or two that they are interested in. Why is taking courses outside of one’s major so important? Many Dartmouth students will end up in technical fields such as finance and medicine. A recent Forbes article highlighted the importance of liberal arts skills in business. The liberal arts develop
critical thinking and communication skills that help build relationships with colleagues. Roughly a third of Fortune 500 CEOs possess liberal arts degrees, like the founder of CNN and TBS and the CEO of American Express. Not requiring prerequisites for many courses mixes students who have prior experience in the subject with those who do not. Some may view this as a detriment; students with no experience may be disadvantaged and negatively affect the quality of discussion. While they may not add to the discussion the way that majors can, they bring new perspectives. Allowing people with no prior experience to take classes with majors in the subject helps limit groupthink that could occur when like-minded people are together. This adds dimension to classes and allows students from different disciplines to bring their unique ways of thinking together. Similarly, allowing first-year students to take the same classes as seniors and majors helps first-year students build connections with upperclassmen. The smaller sizes of higher-level classes also encourage studentfaculty relationships, which many first-year students do not receive in introductory courses and can help them find advisors. By not requiring prerequisites for many courses, especially liberal arts and social science courses, Dartmouth allows students working toward various majors to gain the “people skills” liberal arts colleges provide even while working toward degrees in other fields. It allows students to improve skills that are necessary in almost every field and lets them encounter various viewpoints, creating more well-rounded graduates. One of Dartmouth’s most valuable attributes is that it offers a liberal arts education to students not majoring in the liberal arts, and not requiring prerequisites for liberal arts and social science courses maintains this quality. To ensure that students can continue to get this education, higher-level liberal arts courses should stay free of prerequisites.
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2014
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Greek leaders and alumni create website detailing reforms FROM GREEK PAGE 1
Greek leaders recommended policy changes related to high-risk drinking, sexual misconduct, freshman safety, house renovations, faculty advisors and inclusivity, calling on students and alumni invested in the Greek system to show their support. As of about 1 p.m. Sunday, the website had received roughly 650 signatures. The proposal, signed by the Gender-Inclusive Greek Council, InterFraternity Council and Panhellenic Council with the endorsement of their member organizations’ presidents, was published on a website titled “Moving Dartmouth Forward — The Greek Perspective” Friday afternoon. “The ‘silent majority’ of community members who support the Greek system have not done enough to highlight the positive aspects of the system or have a voice in the policy conversation,” the website states, noting that the faculty and The Dartmouth editorial board recently called for abolishing the Greek system. “Without the engagement of Greek-affiliated alumni and undergrads, we risk seeing the steering committee process dominated by a vocal anti-Greek minority, possibly leading to the recommendation of severe and unjustified measures against the Greek system.” Gamma Delta Chi fraternity alumni corporation president John Turner ’04 Th’07 spearheaded the website, which went live Friday, said Herb Philpott ’85, Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity alumni and volunteer corporation president. Advisors to all GIGC, Panhell and IFC member organizations signed a letter indicating support for the proposal, which was published alongside the document online. The proposal was released following an initial leak of the document Wednesday on Dartblog. Panhell president Rachel Funk ’15 said it will be updated over the course of
next week. Additions will likely include more details relating to a symposium the proposal recommends that Greek organizations host in the winter and one affirming the benefits of all-female spaces. While the leaked draft of the document included a section on singlegender spaces, the addendum will be longer than the earlier statement, Funk said. “We needed to do something to show that we have the ability to selfreflect and address the problems that are present in our community,” she said. The proposal recommends that Greek organizations hire third-party bartenders to serve hard alcohol at registered tails events, strengthen punishments for members found serving hard alcohol to underage drinkers, encourage the use of kegs instead of bottles and cans, require College-paid, third-party bouncers to monitor large parties, work with state officials to track who buys hard alcohol and stop serving alcohol at 1 a.m. on weekdays and 2 a.m. on weekends if any Dartmouth student non-members are present in the house. The proposal also suggests that Greek houses only be allowed to serve beer, wine and cider at parties and that each Greek organization throw at least one non-alcoholic party per term. The proposal requests an exemption to the bartender policy and the hard alcohol limitation generally for coed Greek houses that have not been found responsible for an alcohol violation in more than three years to incentivize membership. “We want to remove hard alcohol from the repertoire of things people can use to exert power over other people,” GICG president Noah Cramer ’16 said. “When hard alcohol is banned across the board, that becomes more likely.” The mandate for expulsion of a Greek member after a sexual assault-related suspension from the College for two or more terms should be lowered to
one term, Greek organizations should be required to expel any member found guilty of sexual misconduct and any individual found guilty of sexual misconduct should be unable to rejoin the Greek system, the proposal recommends. Greek chapters should place signs with contact information for their officers and risk-managers around their houses and host training events for members with a WISE coordinator, it suggests. The proposal also calls for a summit in the winter where student and College leaders can set guidelines for affiliated students and sexual assault policy recommendations for Greek houses. Additionally, the proposal calls for each Greek house to have a designated sober monitor at all events with more than 50 guests, and two sober monitors at all events with 150 guests or more. Greek councils would be required to purchase shirts or other clothing for sober monitors to wear while on duty to make them more easily identifiable to guests. Sober monitors would be trained and wear identifying clothing. This would clarify who the sober monitor is, increasing the efficacy of bystander intervention, Cramer said. The proposal also recommends a termly discussion between Greek organizations and non-Greek student groups to educate members on race, gender, class and sexual orientation, as a way of promoting inclusivity. Several Greek financial aid policies are described in the proposal, which calls for their expansion. Panhell is working to establish a scholarship fund and provide 100 percent of members’ demonstrated financial need, up from 80 percent. The IFC plans to provide 70 grants of $100 per year to students who apply anonymously, according to the proposal. According to the proposal, the IFC will eliminate the practice of “working off dues,” suggesting that fraternities devote at least 15 percent of their social and programming budgets
to financial aid. The GIGC will continue to waive any amount of dues at a member’s anonymous request. Greek houses should communicate more with undergraduate advisors to protect freshmen, the proposal states, suggesting that Greek representatives speak at freshman floor meetings. The proposal also indicates that Greek organizations should give UGAs contact information for presidents and risk managers and recommends that first-year students receive a special hand stamp at events with more than 150 attendees so risk managers can identify them. The proposal asks the College to help Greek organizations renovate their houses and promises a reduction in the number of pong tables. Seating in Greek houses could lead to “more diverse social interaction” and slower alcohol consumption, the proposal suggests. Greek houses should adopt male and female faculty advisors by the end of the academic year, the proposal suggests. Advisors could host office hours, attend academic events, review their chapter’s performance, speak termly to the chapter’s members and provide academic support. Female faculty advisors would diversify fraternity leadership, adding an important perspective, Cramer said. As faculty usually remain at the College longer than students, faculty advisors could also lend greater institutional memory, Funk said. IFC president Wil Chockley ’15 sent a draft of the proposal to College President Phil Hanlon, interim Dean of the College Inge-Lise Ameer, special assistant to the President Laura Hercod and Board of Trustees Chair Bill Helman on Monday, copying Cramer and Panhell president Rachel Funk ’15 on the email. Chockley could not be reached for comment by press time. Hercod met with Chockley, Cramer and Funk last week, Cramer said.
College spokesperson Diana Lawrence wrote in an email before the final recommendations went live that the proposed changes mark “an important contribution” to the “Moving Dartmouth Forward” presidential steering committee’s process of soliciting ideas, calling them “a welcome approach to student accountability.” The committee, tasked by Hanlon in May to address sexual assault, high-risk drinking and inclusivity, is expected to present proposals to the Board of Trustees in January. The proposal follows a September meeting of Greek leaders with senior administrators in which Hanlon, Helman and “Moving Dartmouth Forward” committee chair Barbara Will urged students to initiate change in their organizations and address freshman safety, hard alcohol, adult oversight of social spaces and new member probationary periods. In the following weeks, sorority and fraternity presidents voted to eliminate pledge terms. The proposal’s drafters structured the document to specifically respond to Hanlon’s concerns, Philpott said. Greek organization alumni advisors and Greek corporation presidents released a letter in conjunction with the proposal, stating their support. The proposal originated in the IFC, Funk said, whose members then showed it to other Greek leaders at an Oct. 26 meeting, Funk said. Panhell and the GIGC worked with IFC to rework the proppsal, and Cramer and Panhell co-vice president of operations Natalie Shell ’15 appended the final edits, Funk said. Funk said Greek leaders do not need to wait for administrators to begin making changes. She said that the sober monitor policy is likely to move forward winter term and that Greek organizations are already purchasing sober monitor jerseys. Erin Lee and Madison Pauly contributed reporting.
Board discusses neighborhood system, new Geisel departments FROM TRUSTEES PAGE 1
committee chair and English professor Barbara Will updated the Board on the committee’s work in developing recommendations in the initiative’s three main areas: promoting inclusivity on campus and combating high-risk drinking and sexual assault. Hanlon said he did not have further information on the committee’s proposals, adding that “we want to let them do their work.” Will wrote in an email that it is not too late for people to contribute ideas. She said that the committee’s report and Hanlon’s response will be made public early next year. The committee was expected to open its proposals to public discussion this fall and present Hanlon with its
recommendations by the end of the year, but the timeline was extended. Hanlon was originally scheduled to present to the Board in November, but he is expected to do so in January 2015. Much of the Board’s work focuses on factors like academic excellence, the undergraduate experience, higher education and Hanlon’s goals for initiatives like experiential learning. Board members approved an energy plan that supported the replacement of No. 6 heating oil, which is cheap but environmentally unfriendly , as the College’s primary fuel source. Environmental concerns, future availability, cost and operational efficiency drove the change, Hanlon said. The Board also approved the establishment of two new departments at the Geisel Medical School — biomedical
data science and epidemiology. Geisel professor Christopher Amos, who will direct the biomedical data science department, said it will be the first by this name in the country. Faculty in the department will work on analysis, data organization, statistical design and implementation, he said. The department will be located in the Lebanon Williamson Translational Research Center, which is under construction and slated to open this summer. The institute of quantitative biomedical sciences will also offer a new Master of Science degree, in conjunction with its existing arts and sciences Ph.D. program, Amos said. The program will allow Ph.D. candidates to receive a master’s degree without having to pay extra tuition, he
said, and it will be open to current Ph.D candidates. The Board also discussed the proposed neighborhood system, announced last spring, which was originally slated to begin with the Class of 2019. Helman said the discussion was “vibrant” and “robust,” and added that the Board is devoting energy and resources to the topic. He said the new model is still in the planning and development phase. The Board is discussing how to organize the system in a way that allows a greater sense of community among students and more “intellectual exchange and vibrancy,” Hanlon said. Thayer dean Joseph Helble presented his academic goals for Thayer. Thayer is expanding its size and
scope by increasing course offerings for non-engineering majors, significantly expanding the faculty in key interdisciplinary areas and beginning the planning for a new engineering building. Thayer is also building its research activities in two major areas of global importance — engineering in medicine and energy, Helble said. Provost Carolyn Dever presented on plans related to academic excellence, including growing the faculty, increasing diversity and investing in more teaching resources, Hanlon said. Helman said the September and November meetings typically focus on strategy and planning and involve less decision making, while the March and June meetings tend to revolve around business and budget. The Board will next convene in early March.
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THE DARTMOUTH EVENTS
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2014
DARTMOUTH EVENTS TODAY 9:00 a.m. EEB Grad. Program Thesis Defense with Nina K. Lany, Oopik Auditorium
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2:00 p.m. Ecology faculty candidate seminar with Michelle Afkhami, Class of 1978 Life Sciences Center 201
7:30 p.m. Argentine Tango Course & Practica, Collis Common Ground
TOMORROW 8:30 a.m. How Emerging Economies Grow Entrepreneurs: The Case of Israel, Raether Hall Georgiopoulos Classroom
12:30 p.m. Lunchtime gallery talk, Hood Museum of Art
4:30 p.m. “Jingle Dress Dancers in the Modern World: The Influenza of 19181919” with Prof. Brenda Child (Ojibwe), Filene Auditorium
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THE DARTMOUTH ARTS
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2014
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‘In the Next Room’ explores issues of gender, intimacy
B y Jessica Zischke
The Dartmouth Senior Staff
One door separated the stage into two rooms and two worlds. Dr. Givings’s operating room, where he treats women for hysteria using an electrical vibrator, took up one side of the stage, while the living room, most often depicting Mrs. Givings and her relationships, existed on the other. Set in the 1880s at the dawn of electricity, Sarah Ruhl’s “In the Next Room (or the vibrator play),” first performed in 2009 and this fall’s mainstage production, is a comedy that explores topics including the role of sexual intimacy in love, gender roles and sexuality. Although the setting may make the play feel antiquated, the issues that it raises remain relevant. “It’s an interesting time to explore these things because the gender norms were much more extreme than they are today, although they certainly still do exist today,” Max Samuels ’15, who plays Dr. Givings in the play, said. “It’s a really cool lens through which to examine things that we still grapple with today, particularly love versus intimacy, gender dynamics and also work versus play and work versus family.” The main storyline involves Dr. Givings and his wife, Mrs. Givings,
played by Emma Orme ’15. While Dr. Givings is treating a number of patients and, on a medical level, getting rather intimate with them, his relationship with his wife lacks sexual intimacy. Relationships between characters explore important themes like race, sexuality and loneliness or lack of connection. Director and theater professor Jamie Horton put forth the idea to perform “In the Next Room” because of its abundant and developed female roles, and also because it would serve as a nice complement to the upcoming winter production of “Romeo and Juliet,” he said. About six months ago, Horton began talking with various designers working on the production to conceptualize the play and discuss how they would bring it to life. Auditions took place during the first week of classes, with rehearsals kicking off the following week and lasting until last Friday’s opening night. The first week of rehearsals consisted of doing table work, where the actors read through the play and asked questions about it. The week was crucial for laying the groundwork for the actors, Orme said. “I really felt intellectually involved in the themes of the play,” she said. “Sometimes at Dartmouth that intel-
lectual involvement lasts too long, to the detriment of the practical, of the acting, of the craft. And I feel like that wasn’t the case with this [production].” This process of exploration, which continued during the following weeks of rehearsals, is one of the best parts of pulling a production together, Horton said. “The most rewarding thing for me is to work with a group of student actors on a wonderful play and help them to arrive at a greater understanding of the craft, of their own acting and of acting in this particular play,” Horton said. “That process of discovery is really what’s most exciting to me about theater period.” And for Samuels, the discovery never ends. He found that there was always more to learn through each round of rehearsals, he said. “I believe the hope is that you never totally figure [the characters] out, because when you do, the performance sort of stagnates and there’s no longer any play involved,” Samuels said. “I think it’s nice to always be looking for the next thing.” However, this complexity in characters can also bring up challenges when the experiences of the character diverge from one’s life experiences. For Orme, this came up in the relation-
ship between Mrs. Givings and her newborn child, whom she cannot feed because her breast milk is unhealthy. “That is an emotional vocabulary that I don’t have yet,” Orme said. “I think there are a lot of ways of transferring that sort of deep love you have in relationships, like to your brother or something that I know to this. But it’s been pretty hard to understand what that must be like to not be able to feed your child, and really be afraid that your child’s going to die because of you.” Because of the play’s divided nature and the separation visible on the stage itself, another issue, Horton said, has been working to focus the audience’s attention on the storyline that is most important at that point, Horton said. The audience’s presence helps bring out the piece’s comedic nature, Samuels said. During the last rehearsal before opening night, the actors played into the comedy more, said Cristy Altamirano ’15, assistant stage manager and dramaturg. “The cast really picked up on all of the comedy in the second act specifically,” she said. “It had been there, but they hadn’t really felt it and [that] was the first night that they were really going for it.” Having an audience gave the actors
the chance to feed off of the audience’s energy and reactions. At this time, it becomes the actors’ show, Altamirano said. The performances will vary as the audience-actor dynamic changes each night. “I’m excited to see how [the play] grows and develops as the actors get to perform it for an audience,” stage manager Margot Yecies ’15 said. “It’s nice for performances to get set free. You stop nitpicking at the little things, and you just kind of let it go.” Samuels said that he hoped audience members would be moved in some way by the play and by the topics it explores. “In the Next Room” allows for reflection of one’s beliefs regarding these themes. “I hope [some of the provocative issues] surface with people, even if it’s sort of a back-of-the-mind thing,” Samuels said. “Maybe they’re just slightly more aware of the role gender plays in our society today or the role work versus play plays into society, et cetera. I think if it turns on a little switch, that’s all we can really ask for.” Performances will take place in Moore Theater on Nov. 13-15 at 8 p.m. and Nov. 16 at 2 p.m. An informal discussion with Horton and cast members will take place after the Nov. 14 production.
‘Ivory Tower’ gives ‘panoramic coverage’ of flawed education system
B y Andrew Kingsley The Dartmouth Staff
The Space Race pitted the Soviet Union and United States against each other in a battle for space supremacy, spanning 17 years and leading to innovations in satellite technology, computers and space transport. The race also helped to bankrupt the Soviet economy. Director Andrew Rossi’s latest documentary “Ivory Tower” (2014) presents an eerily similar battle among American universities, which race to out-build, -spend and -research their foes for Princeton Review ranking supremacy. The film was screened at Loew Auditorium on Friday evening, followed by a post-show discussion with Rossi and producer Kate Novack ’94, Rossi’s spouse. When I sat down with Rossi for an interview after the film screening, I expected to meet a vengeful, agenda-driven filmmaker. I was surprised to hear that he loved his experiences as a Yale University undergraduate and a Harvard Law School student. An admirer of the liberal arts, Rossi felt compelled to direct a film that provoked “light bulb moments” among college administrators and U.S. citizens about the status of the country’s
college system, especially rising tuition costs and student debt. Rossi’s film gives a wide-ranging look at the fears surrounding the future of higher education. He interviews administrators who hold prestigious offices, notably presidents at Harvard University, Wesleyan College and Stanford University, as well as parents writing enormous tuition checks and students struggling to afford their education. That said, viewers are indoctrinated to Rossi’s partisan, though insightful, viewpoint that the college system is at a critical tipping point. The film begins with Columbia American studies professor Andrew Delbanco warning of an apocalyptic tidal wave, then rattles off several facts to support this view: student loan debt is now more than $1 trillion, and since 1980, the price of college has risen 1,120 percent, more than price increases for any other good in the U.S. economy. Like other David vs. Goliath documentaries such as “Super Size Me” (2004) and “Fahrenheit 9/11” (2004), “Ivory Tower” assaults an institution so isolated from attack and assured of its invincibility that it has become out of touch with the general public. The first U.S. institution of higher education,
Harvard, was founded in 1636 with the goal of preparing students for the Protestant clergy. This is a far cry from Rossi’s presentation of today’s colleges: prestige-driven institutions willing to install plasma TVs and tanning beds in student centers in order to lure in new candidates, as opposed to focusing on smaller class sizes. One theorist in the film half-jokingly projects that this extravagance will soon spiral into absurdity — “Soon there’ll have to be a pool in every room.” The film, however, does not find many promising alternatives. Rossi profiles avant-garde higher education institutions such as Deep Springs College, a twoyear college, where the 26-person student body spends half its day ranching or farming and the other half studying. Though students do not pay tuition, many later pursue studies at Ivy League colleges or Stanford, and two-thirds pursue graduate studies, making Deep Springs hardly a bargain purchase or viable competitor to mainstream universities. At the complete opposite end of the spectrum, Rossi profiles the UnCollege movement as well. This movement, which includes glamorous college alternatives like the Thiel Fellowship, a two-year
program that provides students $100,000 to take time off from college and pursue an innovative idea, seemingly embodies Rossi’s thesis — that college education is too expensive and rigid and not the only path to a successful career. Rossi notes, however, how quixotic UnCollege becomes when statistically, college graduates’ lifetime earnings are double those of high school graduates — even anomalies like Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg can’t slide the median earnings any closer together. Rossi also profiles The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, a radical New York engineering and arts college that had historically provided free tuition to all undergraduates. The film captures the school charging tuition for the first time in its 150year history due to budget deficits, encapsulating the mismanagement and competitive expansion Rossi argues is plaguing colleges. A centerpiece to the film, Cooper Union’s story provides a frightening foreshadowing of what U.S. higher education’s future could hold. Overall, Rossi dwells too long on student backlash to rising tuition costs and student debt and could have spent more time covering how massive open online courses
are shaping the future of higher education. Though MOOCs failed their trial run at San Jose State University, Rossi seem to have preemptively concluded that they pose no threat to the brick-and-mortar model. This cursory presentation left me feeling fairly hopeless — if technology can’t help higher learning, what will? The film doesn’t provide an answer. But that’s not what the film sets out to produce. The strength of “Ivory Tower” lies in its panoramic coverage of the U.S. higher education system’s degradation, not in being our Superman saving the day. In the post-film discussion, a few audience members complained about the film’s lack of resolution, to which Rossi sardonically apologized for not including “a nice Hollywood ending,” admitting that there is no panacea for this “multiheaded Hydra” of an issue. Though it arguably spreads itself too thin trying to cover each angle of the problem, the film provides fodder for thoughtful debate and reflection on the topic. It is a must-see for students preparing to embark on a journey through colleges and universities, where their dreams, and bank loans, presumably take off. Rating: 8.8/10
THE DARTMOUTH ARTS
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MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2014
ARTS
Displaced Theater Company will stage three productions of ‘Art’
B y Haley Gordon The Dartmouth Staff
How much would you spend on a white painting? $10? $100? What if your best friend spent $200,000 on a monochromatic painting — would you tell him what you thought? This question is the premise of “Art,” a one-act Tony Award-winning play by Yasmina Reza, which the Displaced Theater Company is producing. Elise Wien ’17 selected and directed the play. “I think it’s hilarious, and I think it relates some on-campus themes about feeling validated and the underlying foundation of friendship,” Wien said. The performances will be in three site-specific locations: One Wheelock, Baker Library’s current periodicals room and the Black Visual Arts Center lobby. Viewers have to seek these spaces out, Wien said. “They’re not these ‘facetimey,’ visible places,” she said. The play has three central characters: Marc, Serge and Yvan. The small cast brings the audience close to the dynamics of their longstanding friendships, which are put under increasing pressure. Mike McDavid ’15, Joshua Elwood ’16 and Sam Hefler ’16 needed to create credible
relationships among the characters that demonstrated the culmination of building resentments, insecurities and misperceptions. The actors exchanged dialogue quickly, often referencing the preceding lines of other characters, so that no character was ever at rest on stage. Elwood said that even when his character was off stage, he felt it was important to remain engaged to maintain the play’s energy. “Within each scene we’re very much relying on each other,” Elwood said. “There’s not a whole lot of time to rest. You’re very much engaged in the acting all the way through. Even if you’re not quite on stage, you’re listening to the characters and you’re, like, staying absorbed, staying in character.” The play’s comedy depends upon the fast-paced delivery of the quips, and the quick-talking cast in this production worked on pacing to achieve the right effect, Wien said. “I really appreciated the subtle jabs that each character took at each other,” audience member Speight Carr ’16 said. “I thought it was a really funny show, and I very much enjoyed it.” Friday’s performance took place in One Wheelock. The comfortable, casual atmosphere gave the impression
KATELYN JONES/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
The Displaced Theater Company performed “Art” in Baker Library’s current periodicals room.
that one was in a friend’s basement, watching the events unfold between new acquaintances. This impression, furthered by the frequent asides that Serge, Yvan and Marc made to the audience, felt more like intimate confidences than plot devices.
KATELYN JONES/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
Mike McDavid ’15, Joshua Elwood ’16 and Sam Hefler ’16 star in a production of “Art.”
The audience was small, fewer than 20 people, but the actors kept their performances earnest and spirited. The audience paid rapt attention, despite occasional interruptions from outside forces that come in hand with a public performance. The most comedic moments arose when characters reached their breaking points and exploded. Moments of intense emotion came from insignificant or inconsequential words from the other characters. Each character served as a protagonist and a foil. The conflict between Serge and Marc, played by Elwood and McDavid, is the play’s most constant struggle. While Serge has found professional success and has become interested in all things contemporary and fashionable, Marc has a general disdain for modernism, preferring the classics. When Marc finds out his best friend Serge bought a white painting for such a large sum without consulting him, he is outraged and disgusted. Marc sees the painting as a meaningless waste of money, while Serge sees the piece as an evocative example of modern art. Yvan tries to play the middle ground, but is quickly forced by the other two to take a side. The painting catalyzes revelations about their changed relationships, and forces them to reexamine why they spend time together at all. The actors’ contrasting char-
acteristics helped distinguish their mannerisms and more clearly define their differences. Elwood said that he felt that their differences in size — McDavid is larger than Elwood, who is more slight in frame — as well as tones of voice contributed to their arguments’ comedic moments. The most striking part of the play was the ending, in which Serge and Marc tested the bounds of their friendship while Yvan looked on in a combination of horror and anticipation. After its climax, the show ended abruptly, with a few asides meant to wrap up the story that were devoid of earlier scenes’ comedy. The play’s humor, which does not depend on the viewer’s knowledge of modern art, relies heavily on the norms of male friendships, Wein said. It has no female characters, though women are referenced. Wien said that Reza firmly believed that the play’s plot could only work in the context of male friendships. Wien said that the play forces audience members to “take a perspective” on their own relationships and see if they exist merely for convenience. The Displaced Theater Company will perform its final showing of “Art” in the lobby of the Black Visual Arts Center on Nov. 14 at 9 p.m. Carr is a member of The Dartmouth business staff. McDavid is a member of The Dartmouth opinion staff.