VOL. CLXXV NO. 29
RAIN
THURSDAY, MAY 3, 2018
GREY SKIES ARE GONNA CLEAR UP
HIGH 75 LOW 60
HANOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE
Professor Brendan Nyhan to leave the College
By RACHEL PAKIANATHAN The Dartmouth Staff
MICHAEL LIN/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF
As spring weather arrives on campus, students enjoy a warm afternoon on the Green.
OPINION
STANESCUBELLU: A BREAK IN ROUTINE PAGE 6
ALLARD: JUDGMENT DAY FOR JUDGE PERSKY PAGE 6
ADELBERG: THE CALL TO BUSINESS PAGE 7
LI SHEN: A LABOR OF LOVE PAGE 7
ARTS
ART IN GREEK SPACES REFLECTS TRADITIONS AND CULTURE PAGE 8 FOLLOW US ON
TWITTER @thedartmouth COPYRIGHT © 2018 THE DARTMOUTH, INC.
Committee to determine future of the Hovey Murals By ANTHONY ROBLES The Dartmouth Staff
The fate of the Hovey Murals, located in the basement of the Class of 1953 Commons, is still up in the air but may be decided by the end of the spring term. Interim provost David Kotz ’86 has assembled a
study group consisting of College students, faculty and staff to provide a recommendation on the future of the murals, which were painted by Walter Beach Humphrey of the Class of 1914. The content of the murals, depicted through four painted scenes, has attracted criticism due
to its depictions of Native Americans and women, some of whom are shown in a half-nude state. Currently, the murals remain off-limit to the general public, and can only be used for teaching purposes by faculty and the Hood Museum of Art. SEE MURALS PAGE 3
After seven years at the College, government professor Brendan Nyhan will be leaving Dartmouth to take up a public policy professorship at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan. Nyhan will stay in Hanover through the summer and will start his new position in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the fall. At Dartmouth, Nyhan is best known for teaching popular government courses s u c h a s G ove r n m e n t 3 0 , “Political Misinformation and Conspiracy Theories” and the seminar Government 83.21, “ E x p e r i m e n t i n Po l i t i c s. ” His research focuses on misperceptions about politics and health care, and he is a regular contributor to The Upshot at The New York Times. Nyhan was previously a Robert Wood Johnson Scholar
in Health Policy Research at the University of Michigan from 2009 to 2011 and was recently named a Carnegie Fellow. Nyhan and his wife Mary Nyhan, assistant director for health improvement at the Student Wellness Center, decided to move to Ann Arbor based on both academic and personal reasons, according to Nyhan. “This was an unexpected opportunity, and my wife and I ultimately decided that this was the best decision for us personally and professionally and for our family,” he said. “We love Dartmouth and Hanover, and we’ll be very sad to leave all of our friends, colleagues and students.” However, Nyhan said that he has several ongoing research projects with Dartmo u th p o s td o c to ral researchers, undergraduates and former students to which SEE NYHAN PAGE 2
Domino’s Pizza Sabyne Pierre ’20 awarded opens in Hanover Newman Civic Fellowship
By THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF
Yesterday afternoon, shortly after 5 p.m., Domino’s Pizza opened its Hanover location on 73 South Main Street near CVS and the Irving Gas Station. According to Hanover director of planning, zoning and codes Robert Houseman, the location was only waiting to receive the state’s food servicing license prior to opening. The New Hampshire certification is intended to ensure the
merchant’s food is kept in a safe and clean environment, Houseman said. “We are already servicing Dartmouth College from the West Lebanon location, so we know what to expect,” Domino’s co-owner Robert Keene said. He noted that distance was one of the challenges of servicing the College from Domino’s West Lebanon, which is located around four SEE DOMINO’S PAGE 3
By CLAUDIA BERNSTEIN The Dartmouth
“A n e f f e r v e s c e n t , magnetic, amazing human being with a heart of gold” is how associate director of the Center for Social Impact Ashley Doolittle described Sabyne Pierre ’20. These qualities have made her “an obvious choice” to receive the 2018 Newman Civic Fellowship, Doolittle added. The Newman Civic Fe l l ow s h i p i s g i ve n by
Campus Compact, a nationwide program dedicated to advancing the work of college students who demonstrate a commitment to civic engagement and social service. According to Doolittle, the Newman C i v i c Fe l l o w s h i p i s meant to identify “rising star students,” typically sophomores, to both recognize the dedication they have already shown in civic engagement while also providing mentorship
and resources to further their work. The Center for Social Impact nominates o n e s t u d e n t ea ch ye a r to be considered for the fellowship. Pierre said her interest in community service is rooted in her deep sense of giving back to her own community. Her first experiences with social change and service came through her mother. She spent time in high SEE PIERRE PAGE 5
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THURSDAY, MAY 3, 2018
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
Q&A with Rauner oral history Nyhan to leave for archivist Caitlin Birch University of Michigan By BERIT SVENSON
The Dartmouth Staff
Since her arrival in June 2014, Caitlin Birch has become an integral part of the Rauner Special Collections Library. In addition to her role as head of the Oral History Program, Birch is the College’s first digital archivist, enabling researchers to access computer-generated materials in the modern age. She also collaborates with students, faculty and staff to cultivate a deeper understandings of historical events. Through this work, Birch provides students with an opportunity to engage in hands-on learning. WhatbroughtyoutoDartmouth? CB: The job brought me to Dartmouth. I went to graduate school at Simmons College for two different degrees: a master’s of science in library science with a focus on archives management and then a master’s of arts in history. After I got out of graduate school, I worked for the TV show “Frontline” for a little while, which was a lot of fun. I learned a lot, but I was looking for a position in an academic setting where I could work with students and do a little bit more on the teaching and learning side of archives. What is your role at Rauner Library? CB: I have a split role. I’m head of the Oral History Program, which means that I am responsible for any oral history projects that Rauner undertakes. I also make the interviews available for research once they are done. Just like everything else at Rauner, interviews are open for use by students, faculty, staff and members of the public who are interested in it. I’m also the College’s first digital archivist. We have old letters, diaries and records of the College dating all the way back to its founding. Because of the way that we, as humans, have changed our relationship with documentation, we now do most things on computers, though. Instead of writing letters to each other, we write e-mails; instead of keeping diaries, we might keep blogs. College records are increasingly being generated on computers instead of in paper format. If it was created on a computer and has some kind of historic value, I take it in and try and make it usable and accessible for research. What got you interested in oral history?
CB: I got my undergraduate degree in English literature and journalism. I worked in journalism after college for a couple of years before I went back to graduate school. So I already had a commitment to storytelling and an interest in what we can learn from individuals’ experiences of larger events in time. When I did my master’s work in history, I became really interested in how I could connect my background in journalism to the more scholarly work of a historian. It was natural for me to jump to the oral history side of things. Oral history and journalism are not the same thing, but they draw on some of the same skills and ways of looking at the world. I’m constantly learning more about oral history and drawing more comparisons between it and journalism. What inspired you to lead Dartmouth’s oral history program? CB: Our oral history program used to be run by a series of oral historians who did the interviewing themselves, and they were fantastic at doing their work and produced a lot of great content. When I arrived, though, we shifted to a new model where students would do the interviewing. Instead of conducting interviews, I’m doing a lot more teaching and training with students so that they can learn to do interviews and become involved in the process. I think that this model is an exciting one because it gives students an opportunity to engage in hands-on experiential learning. The ability to partner with students in this way has been meaningful for me and is what keeps me excited about my work.
What has surprised you about your work? CB: I’m constantly surprised by how much we don’t know. It wasn’t really until I went to graduate school that I got a chance to do archival research and gain an understanding of how history is made — it really is individuals going into archives, poring over documents, figuring out how they connect and building a narrative from there. When working in oral history, we may think that we know what the Vietnam War meant in this country, but when you start talking to individual people about their experiences — like we do with the Dartmouth Vietnam Project — it really adds all of these layers and ways of looking at the conflict that you might not have encountered before. An upcoming project called “Speak
Out” will focus on LGBTQIA+ history at the College. A lot of that history is not well-documented in the archives because there just aren’t written records from the perspectives of people who identified with that community. Oral history is a priceless opportunity to understand things that we don’t yet understand and complicate what we think we do understand.
What have you learned from your work in the Oral History Program? CB: I’ve learned a lot about the Vietnam War that I didn’t know, and similarly, I’m learning all kinds of things about the LGBTQIA+ community that I didn’t know. I’m also gaining insight about Dartmouth as an institution and where it’s headed in the future. I think that these kinds of collaborations with students, faculty and staff — where you’re really working as partners in some sort of research endeavor — is what oral history really is at the end of the day. That’s really exciting, and I’ve learned a lot about where those opportunities are. I hope that the College continues to support that kind of work. What are some challenges that you have encountered with your work here? CB: Sustaining longer-term projects is sometimes challenging because it can be difficult to locate the resources needed to continue the work. Sometimes, these projects grow and benefit from having more staff working on them, and sometimes they need an infusion of funding. Finding those kinds of resources can be tough at an institution like Dartmouth because there’s so much cool work going on, and so many people need resources. The College has to think carefully about where it allocates them. What is your favorite aspect of working at Dartmouth? CB: Working at a place like Dartmouth — if you were the kind of person who loved school, learning and reading, which I was — is an opportunity to continue to do more of that. I love being surrounded by teaching and learning. I love the fact that no day looks the same as the day that became before it. I get to keep doing new things and keep learning new things. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity and length.
CORRECTIONS We welcome corrections. If you believe there is a factual error in a story, please email editor@thedartmouth. com.
out the most about [Nyhan] is how much he really improves the he will continue to contribute after research he comes into contact with,” Flynn said. “He always gives this term. “I have a lot of things going on really high-quality feedback on with people here [that] I’m going other people’s work, so as a result to continue to work on,” Nyhan I think he’s had an outsized impact on the quality of said. “In political science some cases, “I’m excited to try re s e a rch i n h i s I’m going to area.” be working different things. [The F lynn added with people University of] Michigan that he believes over the Nyhan will be a s u m m e r is famous as the place good addition to remotely to where modern survey the University of finish those Michigan. projects. So research was born ...” “The University I don’t see of Michigan, and my ties to -BRENDAN NYHAN, [the] Ford [School] Dartmouth in particular, is e n d i n g GOVERNMENT really the cream a n y t i m e PROFESSOR of the crop of social soon.” science researchers, J a c k so [Nyhan] will fit Davidson in great,” F lynn ’19, Nyhan’s current presidential scholar, said said. Nyhan said that as a public that working with Nyhan has exposed him to new ideas in the policy professor at the University College’s government department. of Michigan, he will have the “I’ve really enjoyed working o p p o r t u n i t y t o wo rk i n a n with him on the material that he’s environment with people in different worked on,” Davidson said. “We’ve academic disciplines. He added that been in the domestic politics, he will also be working with both undergraduates psycholog y and and students social examination pursuing master’s p a r t s o f t h e “I really value degrees and Ph.D.’s d e p a r t m e n t . all these in political science. Working with him relationships ... I “I’m excited to has broadened try different things,” my understanding really believe in Nyhan said. “[The and given me a this department, University of] really interesting and I think we’ll Michigan is famous perspective on as the place where t h e s e i d e a s i n continue to m o d e r n s u r vey government.” thrive.” research was Andrew Wolff born, and there ’18, who knows is a tremendous N y h a n b o t h a s -BRENDAN NYHAN, number of people a professor and who do work research mentor, GOVERNMENT like mine across said he appreciated PROFESSOR the campus. Nyhan’s dedication Dartmouth is to engaging a g r e a t p l a c e. students in Michigan is a better academic research, particularly in “Experiments in fit for us right now, but we’ve loved it here and will leave with nothing Politics.” “He taught me how to take but positive feelings.” Nyhan said that he will miss the an interest in the academic side of politics,” Wolff said. “He put students with whom he has worked in a ton of work in getting the at the College and is grateful for experiments set up and walking us the opportunities Dartmouth has through the process of academic given him to both teach and pursue research while making it fun research. “ I re a l l y va l u e a l l t h e s e and digestible. Overall, he’s probably my favorite professor at relationships,” Nyhan said. “You can get to know people really Dartmouth.” Postdoctoral fellow D.J. Flynn well when you run into them all said he came to the College in over campus all the time. I see my order to work with Nyhan on a students in town, at the gym and project related to misinformation in class. I’ll miss everybody. I really believe in this department, and I and fact-checking. “The one thing that stands think we’ll continue to thrive.” FROM NYHAN PAGE 1
THURSDAY, MAY 3, 2018
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THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
Committee will decide whether to relocate Hovey Murals FROM MURALS PAGE 1
The group, co-chaired by deputy director of the Hood Museum Juliette Bianco ’94 and Native American studies professor N. Bruce Duthu ’80, will recommend whether to keep the murals where they currently are — a room located in the basement of the Class of 1953 Commons — or to move them to an off-campus storage facility managed by the Hood Museum. Kotz said that he hopes the group’s decision will be finalized by the end of spring term. The decision to form the study group came after Kotz received a letter this spring from Native Americans at Dartmouth. He acknowledged that the murals have been a controversial object for decades and that even the mere presence of the murals — despite being inaccessible to the public — might be offensive for some. “I decided it would be best to have a group of people look at it deeply and make some recommendations as to what we should do with it,” Kotz said. “It’s a complicated question because of [the murals’] impact on the Native American community on campus, and because of their value for teaching and scholarship and because of the sentiments of many other generations
of Dartmouth alumni who have had a connection to those murals, both positively and negatively.” Kotz said that he was looking for a wide array of perspectives when it came to assembling the study group. Other members of the group include interim director of the Native American program Kianna Burke ’12 A&S’19, government professor Michelle Clarke, art history professor Mary Coffey, Native Americans at Dartmouth members Brooke Hadley ’18 and Jennie Harlan ’20, Native American studies and environmental science professor Nicholas Reo and Native American visiting council member Anna Tsouhlarakis ’99. Although Kotz asked the study group to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of the two options, he added that he would be open to any alternative recommendation. Inajointemailstatement,Biancoand Duthu wrote that the group’s meetings have focused on “accomplishing key research and outreach initiatives.” They wrote that it was still too early to discuss the pros and cons of the two options, and that they expected these discussions, as well as “understanding from the research and outreach” to constitute the majority of the study group’s future meetings.
Bianco and Duthu wrote that the group’s research has focused thus far on both the “history of the murals as visual objects,” which includes their commission, location and themes, as well as the usage, response to and care of the murals since their inception. The group’s outreach initiatives have focused on understanding the diverse views from the murals’ array of stakeholders in regards to the ways in which the murals have been used, viewed and understood. “The murals have been the subject of interpretation and dialogue for decades, and therefore learning about the conversations and decisions of the past is best practice for the committee,” they wrote. However, Bianco and Duthu stressed that they are only providing a recommendation — the final decision regarding the Hovey Murals does not rest with them. The study group will consider the murals’ history as well as their presentation of the College’s history and its depiction of women and Native Americans. The murals are based on a drinking song written by Richard Hovey, Class of 1885, entitled “Eleazer Wheelock.” According to “The Hovey Murals at Dartmouth: Culture & Context,” a collection of essays written by College
faculty that was published in 2011, the mural depicts Wheelock, the College’s founder, “entering the North Woods with a five-hundred-gallon barrel of rum” and then meeting with a local Native American chief who proceeds to become one of the College’s first undergraduates. The controversial artwork was painted in the late 1930s by Humphrey as a response to José Clemente Orozco’s murals in the basement of Baker Library entitled “The Epic of American Civilization,” which were painted between 1932 and 1934. Agroupof alumni,ledbyHumphrey, was angered by Orozco’s “strident Expressionist aesthetic” and what they perceived as “socialist” subject manner, according to the “The Hovey Murals at Dartmouth.” Humphrey petitioned then-College President Ernest Martin Hopkins to allow the painting of “a real Dartmouth mural.” Despite Hopkins defending Orozco’s work as “a lecture in paint,” he eventually relented to the pressure. The murals were painted in the former faculty dining room known as Hovey Grill, located in the basement of the Class of 1953 Commons, which was formerly known as Thayer Dining Hall. In the 1970s, following the re-
commitment by former College President John Kemeny to the College’s mission to educating Native Americans, the murals became the focus of increasing scrutiny and student protest. By 1979, the room in which they were located had been closed following student protests, and the murals were then covered up with removable panels in 1983. A decade later, the College considered turning the former Hovey Grill into an art gallery that would display the murals, but those plans never came into fruition. The Hovey Murals have been the subject of previous study groups as well. In 2006, amidst plans to demolish Thayer Dining Hall, former director of the Hood Museum of Art Brian Kennedy said that a committee formed under the direction of the Provost’s Office was in the process of determining how best to remove and preserve the murals. Once the plans to demolish the Thayer Dining Hall were scrapped, a committee of advisors recommended former College President Jim Yong Kim to turn Hovey Grill into a study room for Dartmouth classes led by professors and Hood Museum of Art educators. Since their recommendations in 2008, Hovey Grill and the murals are still only available for teaching endeavors.
New Domino’s Pizza location opens its doors in Hanover FROM DOMINO’S PAGE 1
miles away from campus. “Now we can reach the back side of campus like Webster Ave.,” he said. “It’s like half a mile away. It allows us to be a lot more efficient. We’ll be able to
provide better service with less drivers than we did before.” Keene said that students will also be able to pick up their orders directly from the new location rather than “relying solely on delivery,” adding
that the pizza restaurant’s location is convenient for students. Hanover town manager Julia Griffin said that Domino’s new location in Hanover will probably not result in an increase in the number of pizzas that the fast food chain delivers to Dartmouth’s campus. “The reason they chose to try and find a Hanover location is because so many of the pizzas they were making at their West Lebanon location were being delivered to the campus, and so they were trying to reduce the number of delivery drivers they would need to employ,” Griffin said. However, she noted that she is worried about the impact of “a mass
market pizza company on [Hanover’s] local pizzerias.” “It would be unfortunate if there was negative pressure on local pizzerias,” she said. “College students seem always in search of cheap pizza and so Domino’s fills that need.” Houseman said that Domino’s targeted market in Hanover is likely “related to the College.” Griffin said it will be interesting to see how local Hanover pizzerias respond to Domino’s “coming into town.” A representative for Ramunto’s Brick and Brew declined to comment. Keene said that with the opening of the new restaurant, he is looking
forward to being more a part of the Hanover community. “It’s important for us to give back to communities that gave to us,” he said. “Students are obviously good customers of ours and we like to participate in any events that they have in the area.” Keene emphasized that he and the other franchise partners enjoy “provid[ing] pizzas to campus for large gatherings or events.” According to Keene, Domino’s will soon advertise the new Hanover location on its Facebook page and will be sending mail to local businesses and residents to inform them of the new location’s opening.
ALEXA GREEN/THE DARTMOUTH SENIOR STAFF
The new Domino’s Pizza location in Hanover will allow students to pick up their orders directly.
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DARTMOUTHEVENTS
THE DARTMOUTH EVENTS
THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX
THURSDAY, MAY 3, 2018
UUGANZUL TUMURBATAR ’21
TODAY
8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Painting Exhibit: Jo Tate’s Art, Suite 107, 7 Lebanon Street
4:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Lecture: “Revolution of the Heart: A Genealogy of Love in China 1900-1950,” with Stanford University professor of East Asian languages and cultures and of comparative literature Haiyan Lee, Dartmouth Hall 105
7:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Film: “Wild Strawberries,” directed by Ingmar Bergman, Loew Auditorium, Black Family Visual Arts Center
TOMORROW
11:15 a.m. - 12:45 p.m.
Law Day Panel: “How to Practice Law Today: Innovation, Technology & Collaboration,” with Dartmouth alumni and faculty panelists, Kreindler Conference Hall, Haldeman Center
8:00 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Senior Fellowship Project: “Citrus,” an original choreopoem by Celeste Jennings ’18, Bentley Theater, Hopkins Center for the Arts
9:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Public Astronomical Observing, sponsored by the physics department, Shattuck Observatory
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THURSDAY, MAY 3, 2018
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
PAGE 5
Sabyne Pierre ’20 receives civic engagement fellowship go back.” The fellowship, in addition to school volunteering at the same providing mentorship and training, food pantry that her mother had will allow Pierre the opportunity brought food home from earlier in to meet and engage in discussions Pierre’s childhood. Additionally, with fellows from other colleges Pierre said she affiliated has a deep with Campus connection to “In 2010, after the Compact. The social service earthquake in Haiti, fellowship funds in Haiti, where trips to Boston her mother was my mom took us to and Washintgon, born. D.C. where the Haiti because she “In 2010, f e l l ow s m e e t . wanted [my siblings after the It also allows e a r t h q u a k e and I] to see what current fellows in Haiti, my had happened to to begin to mom took us to n e t w o rk w i t h Haiti because her home and her fellows from she wanted [my community ... Since past years who siblings and I] have used the then, I’ve been to see what had fellowship to happened to her wanting to go back.” pursue further home and her civic leadership. c o m m u n i t y, ” P i e r r e ’ s -SABYNE PIERRE ’20 Pierre said. “In involvement addition to that, with social we brought a lot service at the of clothes and College began canned goods to in the summer the community of 2017 when there. So after she was given that experience funding by I decided that I the Center to wanted to go back and do more. intern at Lava Mae, a nonprofit Since then, I’ve been wanting to organization that operates mobile FROM PIERRE PAGE 1
trucks providing free showers to the homeless population in San Francisco. “Showers are such a simple thing, but at the same time it has such a tremendous impact on the homeless community,” Pierre said. “It was a beautiful thing to be a part of.” She said that after such a fulfilling experience working with Lava Mae, she wanted to do more. Director of Summer Enrichment at Dartmouth Jay Davis ’90, whom Pierre had met during the pre-orientation for the First Year Student Enrichment Program, urged her to apply to intern at the Bronx Center for Science and Mathematics, a partner school of SEAD, according to Pierre. During her internship, she mentored 10 high school students and acted as a college access intern. Pierre said that working with the students was especially meaningful to her because she felt she could identify with them. “It was really cool to be on the other side of things because I come from a [high] school like that, I come from a school in the hood basically, and being able to provide mentorship and opportunities to students who reminded me a lot of myself in high school was really moving and allowed me to get really close to the students,” Pierre said. Davis nominated Pierre for the Newman Civic fellowship and will be her official mentor for the fellowship as well, she said. A major part of the fellowship is that it provides fellows with either COURTESY OF SABYNE PIERRE an alum or faculty member to act as a mentor, according to Doolittle. Sabyne Pierre ’20 plans to use her fellowship and other funding sources The mentors meet with their to travel to Haiti to work to improve the country’s water quality. fellows regularly to provide them better than when she found them According to Pierre, her interest with direction for their plans and and that is laudable,” Davis said. in the importance of water is a projects in social “ I w o u l d n ’ t continuation of her work with engagement. b e s u r p r i s e d providing water for showers when “Nonprofit According to i f s o m e d a y, she worked with Lava Mae. D av i s, P i e r re ’s management is in my s h e e n d s u p “I’ve done research in the past d e e p l ov e f o r directing her with water filters and understanding goals and dreams for working with own n o n - different water filters in the market y o u n g p e o p l e the future, possibly profit working for developing countries. Water is i n e d u c a t i o n , learning nonprofit w i t h u n d e r - such a simple thing but it provides combined with r e s o u r c e d so many opportunities. It affects management in her commitment youth in Haiti.” a community drastically,” Pierre t o r e t u r n i n g business school. D a v i s said. to Haiti and said that part Pierre also expressed that she That’s the dream.” providing service of his work as could envision herself someday there made a mentor for owning a nonprofit. her well-suited -SABYNE PIERRE ’20 Pierre will be to “Nonprofit management is t o r e c e i ve t h e help her identify in my goals and dreams for the fellowship. Davis funding sources future, possibly learning nonprofit said that Pierre’s t o s p o n s o r management in business school. energy, passions i n t e r n s h i p That’s the dream,” Pierre said. and ability were opportunities According to Doolittle, whether evident to him with a nonprofit Pierre decides to do work in Haiti f ro m t h e ve r y in Haiti. Pierre or return to San Francisco, the beginning. said she hopes connections that she makes with “Through our conversations it to find funding through the Center current and former fellows will became clear that she was really in order to travel to Haiti and provide her with a “solid network oriented toward service and toward to get involved in improving the of students who want to make the idea of trying to make things availability of clean water there. systemic change.”
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THE DARTMOUTH OPINION
THURSDAY, MAY 3, 2018
STAFF COLUMNIST SOFIA STANESCU-BELLU ‘20
CONTRIBUTING COLUMNIST SYDNEY ALLARD ‘21
A Break in Routine
Judgment Day for Judge Persky
Students wake up at around the same time, go might be impossible to forgo routines entirely to class, attend meetings, eat several structured — spontaneity can be difficult when juggling meals, go out, go to bed and do it all again the three classes and extracurriculars. There are following day. Then again the following week. beneficial parts of routines, such as eating a Then the following term. Barring exceptions healthy diet, exercising and getting enough and unexpected circumstances, these terms sleep, but perhaps other parts of students’ of routine turn into years. In fact, a survey by routines could undergo a shift. Changing pace OnePoll found that 67 percent of Americans feel every now and then can break students out of like their lives barely stray from their routines. their stupor and reinvigorate them with a new This routine extends far beyond the way people energy. partition the time they have and permeate their It might be time to take that course you’ve mindsets and habits as well — all integral parts been eyeing but were hesitant to take because that represent individual it’s outside of your major. identity. That dance P.E. class that There are plenty of you’ve been meaning to articles that might claim “Humans are take but never got around to know the ideal, fineto because you’re afraid tuned routine for academic genetically engineered that you’ll be horrible and personal success — to shy away from at it could be a good “The Perfect Routine for way to step out of your danger and find A Successful Student,” comfort zone and learn “Ideal Routine,” “Best comfort in what they something new. Invite that Daily Routine for College know, but how can one person you know from Students” — and there your first-year seminar and are numerous studies people break barriers see on the Green every day advertising the health if they remain within out to lunch and expand benefits of maintaining your social circle. These their self-imposed a strict routine. For one, actions may seem small and routines lower stress levels confines?” potentially irrelevant in the and lead to a better sleep grand scheme of things, schedule. Having a strict but they could do wonders routine, it seems, will make for people’s moods, outlook people well-oiled cogs in the machine of on life and creativity. life, who will march along as the epitome of When everyone spends so much time acting disciplined perfection. out the same scenes of their lives over and over Routines are easy, painless and might even again, they become afraid to fix what might not make someone healthier, but they’re mind- be broken. It’s time to face that fear and make numbingly boring. People get so used to same the leap toward the unknown. Your future self motions, the same steps, the same repetitive will thank you for it. process and the same way of thinking that they At the end of the day, routines make each lose their personality and intellectual curiosity of us just another voyager on this planet. But — things they might not even realize they need. breaking out of routines makes us present. Everyone needs challenges, as counterintuitive Sure, after a deviation from our routines, we’ll as it might sound. Humans are genetically most likely end up crafting a new routine or engineered to shy away from danger and find returning to our own habits — humans are comfort in what they know, but how can people creatures of habit, I suppose — but as long break barriers if they remain within their self- as we remain aware of our surroundings and imposed confines? Life on autopilot can only don’t become complacent and comfortable in get one so far before change is needed, and what we know, we will create opportunities to change isn’t always bad. learn and grow. And after all, isn’t that what Routines are an inherent part of life, and it college is all about?
On June 5, 2018, a recall vote will be other crimes have. The way to address this, held in Santa Clara, California to determine though, is to increase mandatory minimums whether Judge Aaron Persky will continue for sexual assaults by changing the law, as a county judge. The recall efforts were not by recalling Judge Persky. The threat led by Michele Dauber, a professor at that recalling Judge Persky poses is greater Stanford Law School, who gathered enough than any one crime, or even any issue of signatures for a petition to force the vote. social justice — it concerns the integrity For the activists who campaigned to remove of this nation’s judicial system. Though Persky, this is a huge success. However, for the campaign to remove Judge Persky aims the criminal justice system, the recall vote to punish him only for his lenient sentence is a travesty. for Brock Turner, it will Judge Persky sentenced likely have the adverse Brock Turner, the infamous “A popular judgment effect of encouraging S t a n f o r d U n i v e r s i t y is not inherently fair more stringent sentencing swimmer who sexually for all criminals, not just assaulted an unconscious or constitutional.” Brock Turner. woman, to only six months Paul Butler, a professor in jail. Many feminists at Georgetown University and activists found this Law Center, wrote in the sentence to be too lenient. New York Times that Turner’s crimes, after all, were heinous; “politically, it’s always safer for a judge he was convicted of three felony counts to throw the book at a convicted criminal of sexual assault. However, before rather than give him a break — even when proclaiming that his sentencing was unfairly giving him a break is the right thing to do.” lenient, it is important to know that Judge There is evidence to back up Butler’s claim: Persky followed the sentence that was A Brennan Center study found that judges recommended to him by the Santa Clara hand out harsher sentences when they Probation Department. Claims that Persky are nearing an election cycle. If Persky is let Turner off easy because of his status recalled for being too soft on crime, judges as a white male at a prestigious university will likely respond by being harsher on are unfounded — Persky has been known crimes across the board. to forgo long sentences for all first-time If judges increase sentences all around as offenders because of his liberal ideas about a response to the outrage that ensued after the possibility of rehabilitation. These Judge Persky issued Turner’s sentence, the beliefs of his appear to transcend race and population that would be most adversely class lines. affected is not rich, white college athletes. On Jan. 13, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand Instead, the people who will suffer the of New York tweeted, “This is incredible: most are those who most often find In California, the activists behind @ themselves in front of sentencing judges in RecallPersky gathered 100,000 signatures to courtrooms around the country — people recall the judge who sentenced Brock Turner of color, and people who cannot afford to just six months in jail….” By lauding the lawyers to talk courts out of handing harsh campaign’s accomplishments, Gillibrand punishments. According to Butler, who illustrates the danger of cites 2010 U.S. Census recalling Judge Persky: data, “Almost 70 percent the vote poses a threat to “The threat that of the people in prison in an independent judiciary. recalling Judge California are Latino and Allowing legislators and African-American. Those public opinion to determine Persky poses is are the groups that would whether a judge is fit to greater than any bear the brunt of zealous serve is in direct conflict punishment.” one crime, or with the separation of In response to Turner’s powers that is fundamental even any issue of l e n i e n t s e n t e n c e, t h e to democracy. According social justice — C a l i fo r n i a l e g i s l at u re to the California Judges passed Assembly Bill 2888 it concerns the A s s o c i at i o n , “ I t d o e s in August 2016, which harm to our constitutional integrity of this increased the mandatory system … to place judges minimum sentence for the nation’s judicial in fear of recall or personal crimes Turner committed h a r m b e f o r e m a k i n g system.” to three years in prison. If unpopular decisions that people were unhappy with comply with the law.” A Judge Persky’s sentencing, popular judgment is not inherently fair or then changing the law was the appropriate constitutional. way to move forward. Society has a system Public opinion does not selectively in place for addressing these concerns, influence judges. If judges see that one of and it was used effectively and fairly. But their colleagues is being recalled for not by forcing a vote to recall Judge Persky, being tough enough on one crime, judges activists may be responsible for recalling a everywhere get tougher on all crimes. judge who values rehabilitation and fairness. Sexual assault is unique in that it has not, More importantly, they are threatening the historically, been taken as seriously as independence of the American judiciary.
Sometimes we need to take our lives off autopilot and embrace change.
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The vote to recall Judge Persky threatens judiciary independence.
THURSDAY, MAY 3, 2018
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THE DARTMOUTH OPINION
STAFF COLUMNIST STEVEN ADELBERG ‘21
CONTRIBUTING COLUMNIST SABRINA LI SHEN ‘21
The Call to Business
A Labor of Love
Will the new West End be an ecosystem or a bubble?
Parental love manifests in different forms.
As Dartmouth’s identity stands at the find tomorrow’s water supply need every bit crossroads between liberal arts college and of business know-how they can get if they research university, College President Phil hope to scale up new technologies to overcome Hanlon’s Call to Lead campaign launches international water scarcity and its potential many ambitious initiatives that promise to national security implications. Artificial improve Dartmouth’s mixed model. The intelligence research is not just a software campaign’s cornerstone proposal to turn problem, it is a hardware problem — computer the West End of campus into a hub for scientists need strong engineering backgrounds engineering, computer science, business and if they hope to design the computational design radically rethinks this mixed model and titans of the future. The list of modern-day pushes Dartmouth into uncharted territory. interdisciplinary problems stretches on and on: While integrating these connected fields into the new West End could produce the wave of one community could foster interdisciplinary innovators this nation so desperately needs to thinking and a liberal arts approach to business- meet these challenges. oriented pursuits, the proposal could also However, with its own culture, social geographically, culturally and academically networks and interdisciplinary ties, the divorce the traditional humanities and social new West End could easily wall out the sciences from their modern counterparts. humanities and social sciences, disincentivize There are tremendous potential academic and exploring these topics and exacerbate existing social benefits associated with this new vision student body divides. In the new West for the West End, but if Dartmouth fails to End collaboration hub, it would be much prevent its new ecosystem from becoming an easier for computer scientists interested in inward-looking bubble, the College will face artificial intelligence to explore engineering an identity crisis and watch its mixed model than to explore philosophy — nonetheless, collapse into division. these innovators would lose intellectual and The West End proposal promises to improve practical opportunities by forgoing the chance educational opportunities in these fields to construct a coherent philosophy of mind. by encouring a culture of interdisciplinary The interdisciplinary social networking learning. Students reap massive benefits when encouraged by the new West End could they ignore the artificial disseminate knowledge and barriers between areas of connect students within knowledge: interdisciplinary “... if Dartmouth the collaboration hub, but learning equips students to fails to prevent its would reduce flows of think critically, synthesize knowledge and students information, perform better new ecosystem in and out of the hub; left research and connect their from becoming separate, the liberal arts education to meaningful, and the business-oriented an inward-looking re a l - wo rl d p ro bl e m s. West End could develop Placing computer science, bubble, the College divergent cultures. Given engineering and business will face an identity how much Dartmouth’s in the same innovation culture suffers when only hub weakens these walls by crisis and watch one discipline forms a making it more accessible its mixed model separate culture — look at for engineers to take that how “snake”-like economics first class in computer collapse into majors are perceived — science and wander outside division.” imagine how ugly a divide of their comfort zones. between the “practical” The increased geographic disciplines and the liberal continuity of these departments would also arts would be. It would be the end of the increase the overlap of their corresponding Dartmouth mixed model. social networks, increasing the likelihood This does not have to be the end to that economics majors learn the engineering Dartmouth’s trademark mix of liberal laws underlying the law of diminishing arts pedagogy and research university marginal returns. The liberal arts principle opportunities: the administration can alleviate of interdisciplinary learning may be old news these strains to Dartmouth’s identity by to the humanities and social sciences, but its keeping the West End open to all. Dartmouth’s application to computer science, engineering, culture is one of exploration — the College business and design would be revolutionary. can preserve this ethos in the face of change In a 21st century era where so many by expanding distributive requirements, real-world problems lie at the intersection building interdisciplinary components into of computer science, engineering, business individual majors, lowering the difficulty of and design, this interdisciplinary liberal arts entry-level classes or increasing the number approach to business could not come at a better of Non-Recording Options. The West End time. Workers that thrived in the industrial expansion is an unparalleled opportunity, but economy of yesterday struggle to get by in also an existential threat to the Dartmouth the information economy of today — business mixed model that alumni cherish — and as leaders that could retool their engineering alumni contributions determine the course of know-how to fuel the digital growth sectors this expansion, this call to business demands a of today would alleviate social pressures and responsible expansion that creates opportunity drive the next wave of economic growth. Civil without destroying the culture shared by this engineers racing against climate change to community.
I can count on one hand the number of had fresh food, and I saw it in the way that times my parents and I have said “I love my non-religious parents got down on their you” to each other. In Chinese culture, love knees to pray for my college acceptances. is something people show through their Just because they never said “I love you” actions; it is weird to express it with words. does not mean that I did not hear it. But The action of love is not shown through still, I doubted it. Everything I read in books hugs and kisses, either, but rather through or saw in movies — the images of a cookiesacrifice and diligence. It is something that cutter, white-picket-fence family— pushed I have never felt comfortable explaining. me to believe that those families were the I remember the controversy that arose only “right” ones. As a result, I grew up when Amy Chua’s book, “Battle Hymn alternately fostering resentment toward of the Tiger Mother,” came out in 2011. my parents and defending them against My white friends asked me — mostly with the people who fed that resentment. I still aghast expressions — if my parents were struggle with that today. In some ways, that also “like that.” I hardly knew what to say struggle stems from a lack of diversity in in response. In 2011, I was 12 years old, media’s representation of families. In other right in the middle of puberty and middle ways, that struggle stems from my genuine school, not to mention a brief crisis in which disagreement with my parents’ beliefs. I experimented with the way I smiled in Most of the time, I do not regret my pictures because I was convinced my smile childhood or resent my parents for it (the looked weird. Needless to say, middle school other times, I am being a brat). They gave was a strange time for everyone — but it up everything for my sister and me, and we was even stranger when I had to defend have led incredibly privileged lives thanks my home life against people who thought to their sacrifice. We have not wanted for I was being raised poorly. Sure, my parents anything, while my parents grew up without started having lengthy conversations with shoes or indoor plumbing. That is probably me about college before I turned 10; those the root of much of my disagreement with conversations were annoying, but the my parents — they grew up with nothing, so same thing happened to my other Asian- they want me to have everything, and they American friends, and have a very specific idea then to the rest of my of how I can get there. friends as they got older. “I saw it in the way In fact, that is probably Sure, my parents made that my mother the root of this whole me take piano lessons and misconception of the enrolled me in outside-of- always ate the domineering, cruel tiger school math classes at an leftovers while parent. They do whatever early age; I hated those it takes to get their kid into making sure I had never-ending hours, but the top college, so that now I have eight years fresh food, and I saw their kid can enter a wellof classical training and it in the way that my respected professional a love for music to show field and earn a high for it (math remains on non-religious parents salary to support their my bad side). Sure, my got down on their own family. Sometimes parents’ expectations “whatever it takes” looks knees to pray for my were high and seemed draconian, demanding unreasonable; I fought college acceptances.” and downright harsh. against them, but the “Whatever it takes” was college application the only way my parents process made it clear to could come to America me that admissions offices’ expectations are and create a better life for themselves. higher, and they do not accept “I’ll work Me, on the other hand? I have access to harder next time” as an answer. In many entire worlds of opportunities. I do not ways, much of what my friends referred to have to follow that specific, limited path as parenting “like that” was just a preview of imagined success — perfect grades, for what they would later experience in life. the best college (Harvard/Princeton/Yale, In retrospect, I cannot fault my parents for sorry, Dartmouth), the best medical school, trying to prepare me for an often unkind etc. — but just try and convince my parents world. And yet, in response to the “like of that. that” question, I just laughed nervously and So yes, my parents and I have big denied that my home life was any different disagreements: on politics, on social justice, from what I saw on TV. on cultural norms and beauty standards, In Western culture, people are taught and definitely on life aspirations. It is that parental love looks like trips to the ice difficult for someone to feel like they can cream parlor, stories read aloud at bedtime never please their parents, like nothing they and “I love you!”s yelled out of the car do will ever be good enough, even when they window. There is certainly nothing wrong know their parents’ expectations come from with that, but I saw parental love in the the belief that their children are capable of way that my father offered to learn piano being perfect. It is an unrealistic belief, no with me when I tried to cry my way out of doubt about it, but that is a parent’s love. a lesson. I saw it in the way that my mother And love is the one thing that my parents always ate the leftovers while making sure I and I have never disagreed on.
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THE DARTMOUTH ARTS
THURSDAY, MAY 3, 2018
Art in Greek spaces reflects house traditions, history and culture
that they wouldn’t be in a hurry to throw it away any time soon. Maybe in a decade or so when I come back A group of freshmen walk into they’ll still be playing on that table, a fraternity basement on a Friday which would be fun,” Newman said. night in search of a game of pong “It’s nice to have a lasting impact on or a dance party. They are successful the house in that way.” in that pursuit, but they also stumble This desire for permanence can upon something surprising: art. be seen in other Greek houses around It’s difficult to miss — though we campus. In Kappa Delta Epsilon may not think of Greek houses as sorority, each sister paints her name spaces for observing art, there are and class year on a wall. According quirky murals on basement walls and to member Dorothy Qu ’19, sisters elaborate paintings on pong tables. In are not supposed to paint over names Zeta Psi fraternity, previously a rendition of written on Michelangelo’s “Probably the most the basement “The Creation important piece of walls, which of Adam” allows sisters direct history is all the graces the table to literally beneath puddles names written all over see everyone o f K e y s t o n e the walls because you before them and plastic cups that has written can look through, and arranged in a treeon it. shape. Though people have written “ I t the significance represents the their years. That’s a of the table is feeling that not immediately very visual part of you are part of clear to visitors, history.” something that the thoughtfulness is greater than is apparent and yourself, and attractive. also that any -JIACHEN JIANG ’20 “Here we contribution have God with that you give t h e Key s t o n e, will be there bestowing pong forever. It makes people feel more tied upon Zeta Psi,” said member Nick to the house in certain ways,” Qu said. Newman ’18 about the table. Epsilon Kappa Theta sorority has This particular table is highly a similar tradition. Every sophomore visible because it is centrally located summer, each sister paints an ivy leaf in the fraternity basement, where on a wall and adds her name to it. that level of humor and reference to “Probably the most important refinement seem out of place. “The piece of direct history is all the names Creation of Adam” pong table was written all over the walls because you painted after the fraternity won the can look through, and people have annual Masters pong tournament the written their years. That’s a very visual summer of 2016. part of history,” Jiachen Jiang ’20 said. “That was our way of saying: we EKT’s basement showcases won, God gave us pong, we’re the striking visual history beyond its ivy best. That was a fun way to do that,” leaves. Its basement walls are painted Newman said. with murals depicting clear messages While the table is a boastful trophy, of female empowerment, including it also holds private meaning for the renditions of Rosie the Riveter and brothers of Zete. Though every little “The Birth of Venus.” detail might not make sense to nonThough these paintings are visible members, there are many hidden representations of EKT’s history, elements that are meaningful to the there is a disconnect between the members in terms of the house’s sorority’s origins and its existence culture, Newman said. today, according to Jiang. EKT’s Art in Zete is also meaningful as an culture rapidly evolved in recent enduring marker of one’s time in the decades, which caused the current house. The fraternity has an artistic sisters to lose touch with the house’s tradition in which every sophomore history and art. They maintain the summer, brothers paint a new table annual tradition of painting a pong to replace the oldest or worst one. table, but no longer paint murals and “I wanted to do a nice enough table are disconnected with the existing
BY SOPHIE HUANG The Dartmouth
ones. “Historically, Theta was a very different sorority in culture. It was only recently that Theta has existed as Theta. People don’t really know where the art came from, or the significance.” According to Jiang, the nature of EKT makes it so that it could have only recently begun functioning the way it does today. The house is currently known for having many queer people and women of color, which would not have been possible given Dartmouth’s demographics just a few decades ago, she said. “It started off as a ‘typical sorority,’ and slowly more and more women of color and gender non-conforming people [joined] the house. Now, Theta has a reputation that a lot of people SOPHIE HUANG/THE DARTMOUTH here are queer, and a lot of people here are women of color, which marks This mural in EKT sorority was inspired by Roy Lichenstein’s painting “In the Car.” a disconnect between earlier classes and now,” Jiang said. Despite perhaps feeling removed from the house’s past, sisters of EKT are still careful to preserve its history. “More than anything, the reason people haven’t really done art on the walls is because of a lack of space,” Jiang said. “It’s pretty much already covered up. People don’t really want to go ahead and paint over something old, even if it’s not necessarily the best kind of art.” Current members of KDE, however, have a more active connection with the art in their house. Every possible nook in the basement seems to be painted with vibrant, inviting colors and up-todate pop culture references, like the Minion characters from the movie SOPHIE HUANG/THE DARTMOUTH “Despicable Me.” Last sophomore Members of KDE painted this mural during their 2017 sophomore summer term. summer, the sisters of KDE painted a mural of a dragon surrounded by flowers. Qu said that it was refreshing to have something colorful and more “wholesome” than the vulgar art that is typically seen in fraternity basements. Less abstractly, the walls also contain specific messages such as “Be nice or leave,” and “Two women on table at all times.” The messages painted on the KDE walls are an empowering play on traditional Greek spaces on campus, said Qu. “If you’re in [a frat], it says some pretty questionable things. The bros love it, but as a woman, you don’t really feel like that is your space. We try to have things in the house that, even if they are a little bit vulgar, will make people feel empowered,” Qu said. Qu is a member of The Dartmouth staff.
SOPHIE HUANG/THE DARTMOUTH
This pong table was painted after Zete won Masters in the summer of 2016.