The Harvard Crimson - Volume CXLV, No. 55

THE UNIVERSITY DAILY, EST. 1873 | VOLUME CXLV NO. 55 | CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS | THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2018

The Harvard Crimson The GSD spreadsheet is a reminder that sexual misconduct and racism are still issues on campus. EDITORIAL PAGE 6

Katie Benzan breaks records and picks up postseason awards.

SPORTS PAGE 8

College Launches New Edu. Minor

GSD Affiiliates Hire Officer, Raise Banners

By LUCY WANG CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

The College will launch a new secondary field in “Educational Studies” for undergraduates beginning in the fall of 2018 after a years-long faculty and student-led push for the program.

Dean of the Graduate School of Education James E. Ryan announced the news to Ed School affiliates in an email Wednesday morning. Ryan wrote in the email that students will declare their interest in the secondary during their junior year and “will be required to take five approved courses related to education in order to fulfill the requirements.”

Students will be able to take up to eight credits at graduate schools like the Ed School, and will take remaining credits through the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, according to Harvard spokesperson Rachael Dane. Dane wrote in an email that the collaboration between the Ed School and FAS is “first-of-its-kind.”

Katherine K. Merseth, a senior lecturer in education, said the Educational Policy Committee—a body composed of faculty, deans, and undergraduates—voted to approve the new secondary at a meeting last week.

Merseth, who teaches the popular general education course, United States in the World 35: “Dilemmas of Equity and Excellence in American K-12 Education,” said a student first approached her about the idea of writing a proposal for a secondary in education in 2014. Merseth said some at first confused the proposal with the Harvard Teaching Fellows program, a postgraduate teacher training and education program run through the Ed School.

“Initially, there was this confusion that we were suggesting this teacher education program for Harvard College, and we weren’t,” Merseth said.

“We strongly enforced [that] the study of education is an intellectual endeavor and not a vocational program.”

The proposal began garnering interest among the FAS soon after its debut, Merseth said, but—given education is not a department—there remained the question of which senior FAS members would serve as advisors to the proposed secondary. In 2017, Ed School professor Julie A. Reuben offered to head the program.

“The education secondary field is always something I felt strongly supportive of, and we had a change of ­

SEE EDUCATION PAGE 5

Design School students hung banners against misconduct after the circulation of a spreadsheet containing ccounts of sexual misconduct allegedly perpetrated by at least 18 GSD affiliates. JACQUELINE S. CHEA—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

GSD to Hire New Diversity and Inclusion Officer After Accusations

GSD Students Hang Banners Denouncing Sexual Assault

By ALEXANDRA A. CHAIDEZ

By ALEXANDRA A. CHAIDEZ

CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

The Graduate School of Design has “made plans” to hire a diversity and inclusion officer following allegations of sexual misconduct against more than a dozen school affiliates, Design School Dean Mohsen Mostafavi wrote in an email to GSD students, faculty, and staff Monday.

Mostafavi and former chair of the school’s Department of Architecture Iñaki Ábalos number among at least 18 GSD affiliates accused of sexual harassment and racist acts in a publicly available online spreadsheet titled “Shitty Architecture Men.” The spreadsheet is now temporarily closed, according to the list’s administrators.

In an email sent to GSD affiliates

SEE DIVERSITY PAGE 4

By AIDAN F. RYAN CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Alan M. Dershowitz, professor of law emeritus at Harvard Law School, dined with President Donald Trump Tuesday and spoke to White House officials about the Middle East this week, he said in an interview Wednesday.

Dershowitz, who has established himself as a loud defender of the president’s legal rights, met with Trump’s staff Tuesday to discuss peace talks in the Middle East. He later ate dinner with Trump and other guests before meeting with officials again the next day. Dershowitz said he received an invitation from the White House over a week ago to visit and share his thoughts on the Middle East.

“More than a week ago I was invited to the White House to discuss with his staff people the Middle East peace process,” Dershowitz said. “This is the third meeting I’ve had with them about the Middle East peace process.”

Dershowitz said he is “very close” to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and that he has also met with Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority. Dershowitz, who

wrote a book entitled “The Case for Israel” in 2003, advocates a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Dershowitz emphasized Wednesday that he has advised several past presidents on Middle East policies and will continue to do so.

“I previously advised President Obama. I previously advised President Clinton. I met with President Bush the second and President Carter about the Middle East. So I’ve discussed the Middle East with almost every president for the last half a century,” Dershowitz said.

On Twitter, Dershowitz wrote, “I have discussed the Mideast with every president since Bill Clinton. I will continue to do so as long as the president will listen.”

Dershowitz said Trump invited him to dinner as a “courtesy.”

The meeting came as Trump is mulling whether to strike Syria in the wake of a chemical attack last weekend that killed 70 and injured hundreds. Trump has blamed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for the attack.

Asked whether he discussed Syria with Trump, Dershowitz replied,

SEE WHITE HOUSE PAGE 4

ELENA M. RAMOS—CRIMSON DESIGNER

Spicer to Speak at Harvard Off-Record

Eng. and Af. Am. Studies Hire New Professor

By ALEXANDRA A. CHAIDEZ

By ANNIE C. DORIS

CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

President Donald Trump’s former press secretary Sean Spicer will visit the Institute of Politics Thursday to participate in an off-the-record study group with fellow Scott Jennings.

Spicer will be discussing the 2018 midterm elections in the Kirkland Junior Common Room, according to an email sent Thursday over an Institute of Politics email list. Jennings, a current IOP fellow and a former special assistant to President George W. Bush, did not immediately respond to request for comment.

This is not the first time Spicer has visited the IOP. Last October, he spent three low-profile days at Harvard as part of his visiting fellowship with the Institute.

The IOP’s decision to grant Spicer the fellowship generated controversy among students and alumni at the time.

The Department of English and the Department of African and African American Studies recently hired Jesse D. McCarthy as an assistant professor in both fields.

McCarthy is currently a doctoral student at Princeton University, busy completing his dissertation. McCarthy’s academic interests include African American literature, postcolonial theory, contemporary fiction and poetry, and film studies. McCarthy will assume his joint professorship at Harvard starting in the fall of this year.

Professor Lawrence D. Bobo, chair of the African and African American Studies department, wrote in an emailed statement that he is “delighted” McCarthy is on his way to Harvard.

“I do not recall ever having seen a more broadly consensual and excited

SEE SPICER PAGE 5

SEE PROFESSOR PAGE 4

KAI R. MCNAMEE —CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

Harvard Today 2

SEE INSTALLATION PAGE 5

Dershowitz, Trump Discuss Middle East

Eight Harvard Ph.D. students presented their research at a Wednesday afternoon symposium in Sanders Theatre.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Graduate School of Design students hung banners denouncing sexual misconduct in the school’s main workspace last week in response to the recent circulation of an anonymous spreadsheet accusing prominent GSD affiliates of inappropriate sexual and racist acts.

The “Shitty Architecture Men” spreadsheet, created last month and still publicly available online, contains a list of anonymous accounts of sexual misconduct and bigoted acts allegedly perpetrated by men in the architecture field. The sheet includes accusations against at least 18 GSD students, faculty, and administrators, including current Design School Dean Mohsen ­

News 3

Editorial 6

Sports 8

TODAY’S FORECAST

RAINY High: 57 Low: 47

VISIT THECRIMSON.COM. FOLLOW @THECRIMSON ON TWITTER.

‘80s music

HARVARD TODAY

FOR Lunch

FOR DINNER

Ma Po Tofu w/ Beef

Bourbon Chicken Multigrain Pizza with Mango Salsa

Roasted Coconut Ginger and Red Curry Chicken Thighs

thursday | April 12, 2018

Buttery Grilled Cheddar Sandwich w/ Apricot Chutney

Harissa Pork Ribs Ratatouille with Chickpeas

around the ivies Cornell Student President Announced Amid Controversy The Cornell Student Assembly Elections Committee announced new president Dale Barbaria Wednesday after voting to disqualify Barbaria’s opponent Varun Devatha, according to the Cornell Daily Sun. The committee disqualified Devatha hours after online voting closed, a decision that was appealed twice and followed by accusations that the election was rigged. Devatha was disqualified after a supporter posted a meme that violated guidelines prohibiting the use of “Cornell insignia or logo,” reported the Daily Sun. This is not the first time that memes have led to larger consequences. In June 2017, Harvard rescinded the acceptances of over ten prospective students for sharing vulgar memes on Facebook.

Penn Elects First Black Female Grad Student Assembly President

Derek Bok Derek C. Bok, who served as University president from 1971 to 1991 and 2006 to 2007, visits Quincy House on Wednesday afternoon.

Grace Z. Li —CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

HAPPY thursday!

Lerer as moderator. How refreshing, another IOP event!

It’s Thirsty Thursday, or rather, an early start to Yardfest pregames!

In the Name of Confucious This award-winning documentary exposé of the Chinese government’s Confucius Institute will be screened for free in the Tsai Auditorium at 7 p.m., followed by a discussion with the director of the film.

Today’s Events Sleep When You’re Dead: Getting Things Done as a Governor Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe will be speaking in the JFK Forum at the IOP at 6 p.m., with journalist Lisa

The Harvard Book Store will be hosting a discussion of Fascism, former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright’s latest book. The event will be in Boston, at the Back Bay Events Center, at 7 p.m. and it includes a book signing.

Carmen S. Enrique Crimson Staff Writer

Madeleine Albright at Back Bay Events Center

For the first time in 70 years, Penn’s Graduate and Professional School Student Assembly will have a black female president, according to the Daily Pennsylvanian.

Haley Pilgrim will lead the student government group starting May 1. Together with the 2016 election of Penn’s first black female undergraduate president, Pilgrim’s win has been seen as part of a larger movement of black women “breaking down ceilings” and making the university more inclusive.

Yale Police Union Accuses Yale of Interfering with Protest The Yale Police Benevolent Association alleged Yale infringed on a union member’s first amendment rights at a protest during Yale’s Bulldog Days, the Yale Daily News reported. The union president claimed a Yale affiliate stood between the officer and admitted students and families, pushing him and preventing him from distributing flyers that read “Yale’s campus may not be as safe as you think.” Contract disputes have persisted for nearly two years and officers currently work without a permanent contract.

in the real world Champions League Semifinalists And then there were four! After Real Madrid scored a penalty kick against Juventus in the 90th minute of their game on Wednesday, we finally have our Champions League semi finalists: Liverpool, Roma, Bayern and Real Madrid.

Hungarian President Promises to Push Controversial Bill Package Following a landslide victory in parliamentary elections, Hungarian president Viktor Orban has stated he will push a piece of legislation that threatens civil society. That, coupled with the fact that one of the last newspapers critical of his government will be closing, has Hungarian activists worried for the future.

Rise in Numbers of Britons Becoming EU Citizens in 2016 According to Eurostat, the EU’s statistics agency, the number of Brits gaining citizenship from another EU country more than doubled in the year of the Brexit referendum, although they could not say how many were granted before or after the vote.

GORDEla WAIting at the dot Gordela, a Georgian folk ensemble from I.J. Tbilisi State University, performed traditional Georgian folk music in CGIS on Wednesday.

Justin F. González —CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

The Harvard Crimson

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Staff for This Issue

The University Daily, Est. 1873

“Can’t tell you.”

Derek G. Xiao, President Hannah Natanson, Managing Editor Nathan Y. Lee, Business Manager

—Alan M. Dershowitz, Professor of Law Emeritus at Harvard Law School

Night Editor Alison W. Steinbach ‘19

Design Editor Elena M. Ramos ’20

Assistant Night Editor Angela N. Fu ’20 Cindy H. Zhang ’21

Editorial Editor Jessenia N. Class ’20

Copyright 2018, The Harvard Crimson (USPS 236-560). No articles, editorials, cartoons or any part thereof appearing in The Crimson may be reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the President. The Associated Press holds the right to reprint any materials published in The Crimson. The Crimson is a non-profit, independent corporation, founded in 1873 and incorporated in 1967. Second-class postage paid in Boston, Massachusetts. Published Monday through Friday except holidays and during vacations, three times weekly during reading and exam periods by The Harvard Crimson Inc., 14 Plympton St., Cambridge, Mass. 02138 Weather icons made by Freepik, Yannick, Situ Herrera, OCHA, SimpleIcon, Catalin Fertu from flaticon.com is licensed by CC BY 3.0.

CORRECTIONS The Harvard Crimson is committed to accuracy in its reporting. Factual errors are corrected promptly on this page.

Readers with information about errors are asked to e-mail the managing editor at managingeditor@thecrimson.com.

Story Editors Graham W. Bishai ’19 Joshua J. Florence ’19 Mia C. Karr ’19 Hannah Natanson ’19 Claire E. Parker ‘19 Sarah Wu ’19

Photo Editors Brenda Lu ’20 Iulianna C. Taritsa ‘19 Sports Editors Leon K. Yang ’21

The Harvard Crimson | APRIL 12, 2018 | page 3

City Preps for Climate Change

By Patricia J. Liu Crimson Staff Writer

The Cambridge City Council discussed proposed measures to mitigate the effects of climate change at a working meeting Monday.

The Climate Change Preparedness and Resilience Plan, drafted in Nov. 2017, outlines steps the City of Cambridge can take to address potential issues created by climate change. The plans lists four major concerns for the city: increased temperatures, precipitation, rising sea levels, and storm surges. The plan states that, by 2070, the city will likely see nearly three months during which temperatures reach over 90 degrees. By comparison, 2017 boasted just two weeks with temperatures over 90. Additionally, flooding in Alewife will most likely increase, potentially bypassing the Amelia Earhart Dam. John Bolduc, Cambridge’s environmental planner, said the city’s climate change plan highlighted many different strategies to protect the city from these environmental threats. The current version of the plan focuses on a prepared community, adapted buildings, resilient infrastructure, and resilient ecosystems, he said.“The plan is based on the assumption is that there are no silver bullets, that we have to

take a multi-pronged approach and do many things in combination to create a resilient Cambridge,” Bolduc said.

Cambridge City Manager Louis A. DePasquale said the city and its citizens have made climate change work a “priority.” DePasquale said he thinks the city is well equipped to study the consequences of climate change and to prepare ahead of time.

“We are ahead of most cities and towns, and we’ve had a long history taking a look at the potential impacts of climate change,” DePasquale said.

The city has practiced climate change preparedness for several years, with efforts stretching back to at least 2015. That year the Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment also reported four main climate change issues identified by the city. Part one of the CCVA, which examines heat and precipitation, was released in Nov. 2015 while part two, which examines sea levels and storm surges, was released in Feb. 2017.

The CCVA describes itself as a “technical foundation” for the CCPR Plan, providing the facts about the impact of climate change on Cambridge.

According to the CCVA, research conducted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change indicates that climate change may be impossible to fully prevent.

New Endowment Tax Could Affect Pensions By william l. wang Crimson Staff Writer

The Republican tax overhaul passed in December may affect the pensions of Harvard employees hired before 2001 and the University is currently “reviewing” the situation, according to a Harvard spokesperson.

Last December, Republican lawmakers passed tax legislation requiring private colleges with endowments greater than $500,000 per student to pay a 1.4 percent tax on annual endowment returns. Harvard numbers among the 35 institutions affected, and would have paid $43 million under the tax if the legislation had existed in fiscal year 2017.

The bill could potentially affect the University’s pension investments, which currently serve many retired Harvard affiliates as well as current employees hired before 2001. University spokesperson Vanessa McMillan wrote in a statement that the impact of the endowment tax on these pensions is still unclear.

“Harvard is aware there is concern that the net investment income tax could potentially apply to pension/retirement investments,” she wrote. “We are examining the issue and awaiting IRS guidance.”

In 2017, Harvard paid a total $64.7 million in pension and post-retirement health benefits and held $836 million in pension assets, according to the financial report for fiscal year 2017.

While the University has not provided defined benefit pension plans— which guarantee a certain amount of retirement income—since 2001, Harvard has since separated the pension plan investments from the University’s endowment investments. Instead, Harvard has established a trust separate from the endowment and worked with external financial organizations to manage pension investments.

University employees hired after 2001 participate in 403(b) retirement plans, a kind of defined contribution plan into which both employees and Harvard contribute financially. These plans do not form part of the University’s pension investments.

The management of pension funds is regulated by the federal government ­

and the Department of Labor. Under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act which passed in 1974, employers like Harvard have a legal obligation to provide information to employees about their retirement plans and to manage those plans in the best interests of employees.

In 2008, Harvard Management Company—which manages the University’s $37.1 billion endowment—decided to invest pension plans separately from the endowment.

Since employees depend on pension funds in retirement, pension plan investments are generally more conservative than the endowment investment.

In 2010, the University created a seven-member Defined Benefit Investment Committee which “is responsible for the evaluation, selection and maintenance of the investment funds held in the retirement plan trust,” according to McMillan.

The current chair of the Committee is Thomas J. Hollister, the University’s chief financial officer.

Michael Beaver, a lawyer specializing in pension benefits, said the formation of a committee to manage pension investments is “not uncommon.”

He added that Harvard’s shift from defined benefit pension plans to defined contributions is consistent with the trend across different companies.

“A certain amount of financial and investment uncertainty exists as well, so that private employers find it difficult to plan adequately for the future,” he said. “By shifting to defined contributions, it lowers some of the burdens and brings quite a bit of certainty to retirement plan costs.”

While Harvard Management Company still plays a “limited operational role” for the pension plan investments, the Investment Committee meets quarterly to make final decisions on investments. State Street—a Boston-based financial services company—serves as the custodian of the investments, according to McMillan.

In 2012, the University hired Willis Towers Watson—a multinational risk management company—to advise and partner with HMC to “support the Investment Committee on areas such as strategic portfolio construction.”

Bolduc said he thinks the scientific consensus on the existence and the future of climate change is clear. But he said predicting how and when the effects will affect Cambridge is more difficult.

“There is a lot of uncertainty about how much change we will experience and the timing of those changes,” Bolduc said. “We’re basically trying to plan for a moving target.”

Cambridge is currently advocating to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to continue assessing threats posed by climate change. Assistant City Manager for Community Development Iram Farooq said the development of a focused mitigation plan through the CCPR Plan is also important work.

“Sometimes it’s hard to think, ‘What might be the silver lining here?’” Farooq said. “But truly the fact that we’re doing this work at the same time that we’re doing our comprehensive plan is a huge silver lining.”

DePasquale said he hopes Cambridge’s CCPR Plan will help other regions, too.

“We are one of the leaders in this area in terms of trying to understand it—to see not only how it’s going to affect Cambridge but also how it’s going to affect every community and how we’re all in this together,” DePasquale said.

The Charles River is a popular site for watching sunsets over the Harvard campus.

Amy Y. Li —Crimson photographer

FAS Council Hears About Committee By angela n. fu Crimson Staff Writer

The Faculty Council heard a proposal to dissolve a Faculty of Arts and Sciences committee overseeing the use of human subjects in research and received updates on unionization and initiatives at the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at its biweekly meeting Wednesday afternoon.

Associate Dean for Research Administration Patrick W. Fitzgerald presented the proposal to dissolve the Standing Committee on the Use of Human Subjects in Research. The Council—FAS’s highest governing body— voted to pass a similar proposal in February, eliminating the Council on Asian Studies, another FAS standing committee. The February proposal claimed the Asia Center already carried out many of the Asian Studies Council’s duties.

Fitzgerald used similar reasoning to advocate for the dissolution of the Use of Human Subjects Committee. He ar­

gued a larger University-wide committee, which reviews research projects involving human subjects across most of the schools including FAS, already performs many of the functions of that FAS standing committee.

Council member David L. Howell said the recent proposals to eliminate outdated FAS standing committees are likely part of an effort by FAS to clear away “bureaucratic clutter.”

“I gather it’s something they’ve been trying to do for the past few years.

They don’t want to eliminate committees that are doing important work that isn’t replicated elsewhere, but the ones that have become obsolete,” Howell said.

Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dean-elect Emma Dench also spoke to the Council about the unionization vote slated to be held April 17 and 18; that vote will determine whether graduates students can form a union in order to collectively bargain with the University.

She reminded Council members

that professors are allowed to express their opinions on the issue but should be careful not to say anything that might pressure graduate students to vote a certain way.

The Council also listened to Dean of SEAS Francis J. Doyle III present about current SEAS efforts to create new programs and collaborate with other schools within the University.

Doyle spoke about a new Masters program in Design Engineering that will graduate its first class this semester, as well as a new joint program with the Business School, among other initiatives.

“I think in general, he wanted to say that SEAS, because it is the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, is very interested in thinking of— of course—new technologies, but also new techniques to serve the greater community through practical problem solving,” Howell said.

The Council will hold its next meeting, slated to be the last one for the semester, on Wednesday, April 25.

Ph.D. Candidates Present Research

By Edward W. Carr and Karina G. Gonzalez-Espinoza Contributing Writers

Eight Ph.D. candidates presented their dissertation research to the public at the the Harvard Horizons Symposium held Wednesday evening in Sanders Theater.

The program, launched in 2013, provides Horizon Scholars in-depth mentoring and training to better their presentation and communication skills.

Eight students are selected each fall, and they spend the spring semester working intensively with staff at the Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning, as well as with faculty and their fellow scholars.

“The purpose of the program is to promote interaction and collaboration across disciplines and to help students build the critical communication skills that enable them to share their work with a broader audience, whether inside the academy or outside,” said Sheila Thomas, the GSAS dean for aca-

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demic programs and diversity.

Each of the eight Ph.D. students had five minutes to introduce their research topic, present their findings, and discuss the implications of their research.

Argyro Nicolaou, a comparative literature student and one of this year’s scholars, said improving her communication skills formed her main reason for applying.

“I wanted to do Harvard Horizons because I love being able to communicate my work to a wider audience. Often times during the Ph.D. we become quite technical,” Nicolaou said. “I just wanted to get the opportunity to train myself and become more exposed to a more accessible mode of communication.”

Physics Ph.D. candidate Christie Chiu, who is studying quantum mechanics and electron movement, said that, while doing research is important in itself, it is also important to be able to communicate that research to others.

“Communication happens on dif-

ferent levels,” Chiu said. “On one level it’s communicating with professors... but it’s also communicating to the broader community, and Harvard Horizons is the most open to the public.”

The organizers of Harvard Horizons said they have worked each year to improve the program based on student feedback.

“The Harvard Horizons program has evolved over time as we learn from each cohort,” Pamela Pollock, director at the Bok Center and lead mentor for Harvard Horizons, wrote in an email.

Pollock wrote the program has specifically improved the faculty mentoring aspect, working to provide one-onone mentorship with faculty members within and without a scholar’s discipline.

Chiu called the event “a celebration of all the different subfields.”

“I want to highlight how great all the talks are,” Chiu said. “Not only from the sciences like myself, but also humanities, social science, philosophy, psychology, urban planning.”

Page 4 | April 12, 2018 | The Harvard Crimson

Dershowitz Talks with Trump White House From Page 1 “Can’t tell you.”

Trump appeared to signal Wednesday morning that he would order air strikes against Syria, tweeting that missiles “will be coming, nice and new and ‘smart!’” On Wednesday evening, though, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the administration has not yet decided what course of action to take.

Dershowitz said the purpose of his meeting with Trump had nothing to do with Monday’s FBI raid on the offices of Trump’s lawyer, Michael D. Cohen.

The FBI seized some of Cohen’s business records, emails, and documents as part of that raid, according to the New York Times.

“It was a complete total coincidence that it happened the day after the raid on the office of his lawyer,” Dershowitz said. “It was scheduled more than a week before.”

During the dinner, Trump and Dershowitz mainly discussed the Middle East, Dershowitz said. Asked if any other topics cropped up, Dershowitz responded that he is “not [Trump’s] lawyer.”

“All I can tell you is I am not his lawyer. I have no legal-client relationship with him and I would never offer legal advice or give legal advice to somebody who was not my client,” Dershowitz said.

Despite frequently making the legal case for Trump’s actions in the press, Dershowitz maintained in the inter-

view that he is not a defender of the president.

“I have never defended Donald Trump. I have only defended his constitutional rights and the constitutional rights laws,” Dershowitz said. “I’ve defended the rights of people who are subjects of investigation not to have their lawyers’ offices raided and their private, confidential communications read. That’s my position.”

“But I’m not an advocate for Trump or a lawyer for Trump,” he added.

Dershowitz also said he has not been offered a position on Trump’s legal team and has no plans to legally advise Trump formally or informally in the future.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Beth Israel Partners with Hospital By edith M. herwitz and luke w. vrotsos Crimson Staff Writers

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences in southwest India to collaborate on research and education initiatives in critical care, pain medicine, and anesthesiology.

The memorandum identifies joint research and an exchange of faculty and students as areas for cooperation between the two institutions.

Beth Israel is one of Harvard Medical School’s main teaching hospitals.

Though the Medical School itself is not involved in the memorandum, the three professors who visited the hospital before signing the memorandum all hold joint Harvard-Beth Israel appointments.

Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences, also known as Amrita Hospital, is located in Kochi, a city in southwest India. The hospital boasts 1,300 beds, more than any of Harvard Medical

School’s teaching hospitals.

Doctors from Beth Israel Deaconess visited Amrita last week before signing the memorandum. The team comprised Daniel S. Talmor, head of the department of anaesthesia and critical care at Beth Israel, Peter J. Panzica, assistant professor of anesthesia, and Satya K. Ramachandran, associate professor of anaesthesia.

Panzica said the three doctors visited Delhi last week, where Amrita is building a new 2,000-bed hospital, and gave recommendations about the new facility before proceeding to the current hospital in Kochi.

He named “working with them on some protocols for randomized control trials” and using data from Amrita’s patient population as priorities for future research endeavors.

Ramachandran said the memorandum of understanding will provide a valuable source of data for future research projects. He pointed to the hospital’s digital database in particular.

“They are one of the hospitals in India which had an electronic health re-

cord for the longest time. That was another opportunity for us,” Ramachandran said. “One of our strengths is in outcomes-database driven research.”

He also mentioned the hospital’s large intensive care unit as a potential resource for research efforts.The memorandum could mean that Beth Israel will provide continuing medical education courses to doctors at Amrita. Beth Israel residents may be able to spend about a month observing patient care at Amrita as well.

“We’ve run workshops and training programs for training and teaching ultrasound technology for physicians at the point of care, different kinds of ultrasound technology, different kinds of bronchoscopy techniques,” Ramachandran said.

He added that Beth Israel has “a wealth of resources” that will enhance the collaboration between the two institutions. Specifically, the department’s junior faculty could “definitely benefit from the experience” of visiting Amrita and observing their operations, he said.

Scientists Revise Life Origin Theory

By Amy L. Jia and sanjana l. narayanan Crimson Staff Writers

Researchers from Harvard, MIT, and the University of Cambridge have found that sulfur-containing compounds present in the early earth’s atmosphere may have given rise to the building blocks of life, according to a research article published Sunday.

Astronomy professor Dimitar D. Sasselov, who directs the Origins of Life Initiative at Harvard, and astronomy graduate student Zoe R. Todd worked alongside Sukrit Ranjan, a postdoctoral fellow at MIT, and John D. Sutherland, a chemist from the University of Cambridge, to devise the refined hypothesis for how life initially arose on Earth.

“We’re interested in the origin of life—how life came about on Earth— and applying that to other planets out there,” Todd said. “So, we’re answering the questions of ‘Are we alone?’ and ‘What other environments might be necessary in order for life to form?’”

Sasselov said scientists previously theorized that sulfur plays a key role in the formation of RNA nucleotides, which are essential for both coding and regulating genetic information.

Todd said the study published Sun-

day examines the effects of certain environmental conditions—in particular, the presence of sulfur-containing molecules like hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide—on driving prebiotic chemical reactions. These gases were likely pro-

We’re interested in the origin of life... and applying that to other planets.

Zoe R. Todd

Astronomy Grad Student duced by erupting volcanoes, he said.

The researchers found that, given the conditions of the early earth, there would be sufficient levels of sulfur dioxide, but insufficient levels of hydrogen sulfide, to give rise to primitive life forms. “You’re going to have much more of these sulfur dioxide derived anions and much less of the hydrogen sulfide [derived anions],” Todd said.

“The sulfur dioxide derived anions might be more valuable for getting this chemistry going.”

“This was not known before,” Sasselov added. “People just assumed that there was enough of this sulfur.”

Todd and Sasselov also emphasized the importance of interdisciplinary interaction between planetary science and chemistry. “Probably the most valuable part of this study that I took away from it was this synergistic effect between the laboratory and the theory,” Todd said. “The laboratory showed that there’s the need for these sulfur ions in solution, and then they asked us in terms of theory, ‘How might you get this?’ So then, we went to the source, did this study and went back and said, ‘Hey, you might not get enough of what you wanted, but check out this other ion—you might get a lot of that.’”

Sasselov said he thinks the team’s multidisciplinary research moved the ball forward on understanding some of the most fundamental questions about early life.

“When I was a student, I remember people were saying, ‘Don’t even bother to work on the origins of life problems because they are not solvable scientifically,’” Sasselov said. “And to some extent, that’s because they are multidisciplinary. They can’t have just the chemists solve it, or just the astronomers solve it.”

Eng. and Afr. Am. Studies Departments Hire Prof.

Professor From Page 1 one,” Bobo wrote.

McCarthy’s dissertation focuses on writing by black authors from the early Cold War period. McCarthy said that literature from 1945 to 1965 has not been periodized in the same way the eras directly before and after have.

Additionally, McCarthy said, secondary sources tend to incorrectly classify black writers from this time under a communist or liberal umbrella.

“What I think is actually really distinctive and interesting about black writing, especially in this moment, is that I think they’re trying to descend from both,” McCarthy said.

“Hopefully, what my dissertation will do is show that, if we think about it as a discrete period, there are some real benefits in terms of the kinds of connections we can make in between writers that are sometimes not usually read together.”

At Princeton, McCarthy also started a digital humanities project, called Mapping Expatriate Paris. The project involves analyzing the records from Shakespeare and Company—a Paris bookstore, founded in 1919, that was frequented by writers like Ernest Hemingway, James Joyce, and Ezra Pound.

GSD to Hire Diversity and Inclusion Administrator Diversity From Page 1 Monday, Mostafavi wrote the Design School did not “condone” the alleged behavior reported in the spreadsheet.

He added the administration has been working with student leaders and Title IX coordinators from both the GSD and the University to develop a plan of action following the allegations.

Mostafavi also wrote the school “has already made plans” to hire a diversity and inclusion officer in order to respond to concerns from various student leaders about the culture of the school and wrote he will “depend on student involvement” to shape this position. According to Mostafavi, student leaders and the GSD Executive Committee met Wednesday to speak about “a set of proposed ideas.”

Mostafavi’s email comes in response to a letter penned by student leaders from nine student organizations at the GSD last week that urged Design School administrators to make “concrete change” regarding sexual misconduct at the school.

“As student leaders, we are dedicated to ensuring that the discussions sparked by the ‘Shitty Architecture Men’ spreadsheet does not end in conversation, but in action,” the students’ letter reads. “While it is important to continue critical dialogue around how to reform the current procedures, we must demand more from each other than just conversation and hold our community accountable to concrete change.”

The letter, emailed to the the school’s student body, was written by representatives from students groups including the Student Forum, the GSD student government, the GSD African American Student Union, and the Harvard Urban Planning Organization.

Natasha H. Hicks, the co-president of the African American Student Union, and Lena M. Ferguson, co-president of the Harvard Urban Planning Organization, wrote in an

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“We can see which books circulated the most and who was reading the same books or not,” McCarthy said.

“Because you have the addresses, you can also map where people were living and how that changed over time.”

McCarthy is originally from New York, but moved to Paris at age eight.

After graduating from Amherst College in 2006, McCarthy taught at South Brooklyn Community High School in New York, an institution that helps students who have had disciplinary difficulties, or have dropped out, seek another shot at a high school diploma.

“In a lot of ways, that’s where I learned the most, certainly about teaching,” McCarthy said.

While McCarthy is not yet sure what he will be teaching this fall at Harvard, he said he may teach an introductory lecture course on black poetry.

“He is going to bring a fresh, youthful perspective to African American literature studies taking up such critical topics as feminism, gender, and sexuality as well cinematic studies and criticism,” Bobo wrote. “The English and African and African American Studies Departments conducted a broad and thorough national search. Jesse McCarthy stood out unequivocally as the hottest new star on the horizon.”

email Wednesday that the letter contains “key recommendations” they would like to see GSD administrators take to heart.

“We are committed to working with the administration from here on out to develop an action plan for changing the culture at the GSD and the greater design community,” Hicks and Ferguson wrote.

In addition to calling for a full-time employee devoted to diversity and inclusion—the exact position the GSD has now created—the students asked the school to supplement its Title IX policies by specifically providing more “reporting mechanisms” for sexual harassment.

The students also requested “regular communications” from the administration regarding inclusivity issues at the school and called for the creation of a student task force to review hiring decisions.

Mostafavi wrote in his email that neither the GSD nor the University’s Title IX Office has received complaints related to accounts from the spreadsheet since the list’s creation.

He encouraged students to come forward with any information they have regarding these allegations.

“I am hopeful that soon, by talking together, maintaining transparency, and moving forward as a diverse but single community, we will be able to find other ways to share ideas and concerns toward a common goal of a vibrant and welcoming community,” Mostafavi wrote.

“I am hopeful that soon, by talking together, maintaining transparency, and moving forward as a diverse but single community, we will be able to find other ways to share ideas and concerns toward a common goal of a vibrant and welcoming community,” Mostafavi wrote.

Staff writer Alexandra A. Chaidez can be reached at alexandra.chaidez@thecrimson. com.

The Harvard Crimson | APRIL 12, 2018 | page 5

College Launches Design Students Hang Banners New Edu. Secondary Installation From Page 1

education From Page 1 academic deans this year,” Reuben said. “I offered at that point to take over as kind of the point person because I didn’t want the momentum to be lost.”

Economics professor Claudia D. Goldin, who co-teaches the course Economics 980b: “Education in the Economy” and said she has been involved with the proposal for years, said she is “delighted” to see the secondary approved.

“I’m a great fan of interdisciplinary studies, and we do too few of them,” Goldin said. “Most universities, and this one in particular, are heavily siloed.”

Goldin said that—in addition to economics—fields like psychology, government, and literature are all interrelated to the study of education.

Sociology lecturer Manja Kelemncic, who specializes in the sociology of higher education, said she also sees this approval as a way to formalize courses on education across the University.

“I see this decision as an important step of building a community of students, researchers, and faculty from various disciplinary backgrounds who share interest in education,” Kelemncic said.

Reuben, Kelemncic, and Merseth all said many undergraduates have approached them in class to ask whether Harvard could offer more courses on education.

Sruthi Palaniappan ’20, who serves as education chair on the Undergraduate Council as well as on the College’s Committee on Undergraduate Education, said the past year of discussions about the proposal focused on which departments in FAS would support the new secondary.

“During these meetings, myself and other students who were on the education committee and served on the Committee on Undergraduate Education all agreed that, especially as a liberal arts institution, it’s extremely important that Harvard offers education as an academic discipline for students to be able to study, and to especially learn about how it intersects with other fields as well,” Palaniappan said.

Undergraduate Council President Catherine L. Zhang ’19, who worked with Palaniappan to garner student support for the proposal, said the new secondary will provide centralized support for students, like herself, who want to study the subject in a structured manner.

The UC created a video in support of the secondary earlier this month.

“What an education secondary means for me and so many other students is the idea and ability to study education theoretically and be able to have resources and a community behind it,” Zhang said. “A lot of what tracks and concentrations give to students is the community behind it.”

Staff writer Lucy Wang can be reached at lucy.wang@thecrimson.com.

Mostafavi and former chair of the school’s Department of Architecture Iñaki Ábalos.

The spreadsheet is now “temporarily closed,” according to a message posted by the list’s administrators in the past few days.

The installation, which debuted last Friday, currently hangs in the Design School’s Gund Hall, a large, airy space that houses studios and offices for approximately 500 students and more than 100 faculty and staff. Lining all five levels of the hall, the banners display messages of support for those who have experienced sexual assault and assert students stand united against sexual misconduct at the school.

“We, student leaders, stand united in response to misconduct,” reads one banner.

“This cannot end in conversation.

This must end in action,” reads another.

Still another: “We will not allow the GSD to stand silent to injustice.”

As of Wednesday, 22 student groups had hung banners in Gund Hall asserting the organizations “will not stand silent.”

Natasha H. Hicks and Lena M. Ferguson, GSD students and leaders of the African American Student Union and the Harvard Urban Planning Organization, respectively, directed these efforts in collaboration with other student organizations like the Student Forum, a student governance body, and Women in Design.

“A core message behind the installation is unity,” Hicks and Ferguson wrote in a joint emailed statement.

“We wanted to make clear that we as student leaders stand together in our dedication to cultural change.”

Hicks and Ferguson wrote they thought it was “important” students installed the banners Friday—the same day the Design School held an admitted students open house.

“We wanted to send a message to incoming students that there is a student community here at the GSD committed to changing the toxic culture,” the two

wrote. “We wanted to extend an invitation to those admitted students to come and help us continue to demand for institutional and cultural change.”

In a statement provided Wednesday by GSD spokesperson Travis Dagenais, Design School Executive Dean Patricia Roberts wrote the installation represents “the type of expression” the school encourages from students.

“At the GSD, we are working hand in hand with students and other offices across the University to maintain an open dialogue and take constructive steps to address these issues collectively,” Roberts wrote.

Phillip R. Denny, a Ph.D. student at the GSD, said he thinks it is “inspiring” to see students take the lead in speaking out against inappropriate behavior.

“It’s tremendously inspiring to see student leaders craft a statement of principle and to declare them so prominently and so publicly,” Denny said. “It really speaks to the belief that positive change is only going to come about if we all hold each other accountable as a community.”

Sean Spicer to Speak at Institute of Politics Spicer From Page 1 More than 600 Harvard alumni signed an open letter calling for the rescinding of Spicer’s fellowship, as well as a visiting fellowship granted to Corey Lewandowski, Trump’s former campaign adviser.

While on campus, Spicer attend-

ed 11 events, all of them off-the-record and closed to the general public.

The announcement of Spicer’s visit did not appear in the IOP Weekly Newsletter. The email was sent over an IOP mailing list at 8:00 p.m. the night before the event is slated to take place.

While in Boston, Spicer will also headline a fundraiser for Geoff Diehl,

a co-chair for Trump’s campaign and Elizabeth Warren’s challenger for Senate on Thursday, according to The Boston Globe. Spicer is expected to draw a crowd of 50 to 60 people at the fundraiser, according to campaign spokeswoman Holly Robichaud.

The IOP email did not specify how long Spicer will stay at Harvard.

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EDITORIAL

The Harvard Crimson | April 12, 2018 | page 6

The Crimson Editorial board

All Quiet on a Variety of Fronts

Spreadsheets and Silence

A

pproximately one month ago, a spreadsheet entitled “Shitty Architecture Men” was publicly released online. The spreadsheet, which has been circulating among Graduate School of Design affiliates, documents anonymous accounts of sexual misconduct and racist acts allegedly perpetrated by over a hundred men connected to institutions of higher education and prominent architecture firms.

Among those accused are more than a dozen GSD students, faculty members, and administrators—including the current dean.

We strongly encourage those who shared their stories anonymously on the spreadsheet to come forward and file formal complaints, either with their institution or with law enforcement as necessary.

Such would be the ideal course of action for addressing instances of sexual misconduct. It would hopefully allow for fair investigations and meaningful consequences that could help prevent such actions in the future.

However, we recognize the institutional failures that might discourage individuals from coming forward. Within the Harvard community alone, the historical reaction to accusations of sexual misconduct has been slow and unsatisfactory. We understand why victims of such behavior

would seek recourse outside of the formal complaint system, especially one in which they have autonomy and may be able to see more immediate results.

Given Harvard’s past shortcomings in addressing sexual misconduct, we hope that the University takes the publication of this spreadsheet as a sign that its work is far from over. Harvard must ensure that this community is as supportive of those who experience sexual harassment as it claims to be. We believe that the claims made in the spreadsheet should be investigated as quickly, diligently, and fairly as possible, regardless of whether or not the accusers come forward. The anonymity of the accusers is troubling from an investigative standpoint, but we must not ignore the opportunity to protect future Harvard students and affiliates from potential harm. These accusations must be taken seriously and ought to be investigated.

Additionally, we recognize that this spreadsheet is a warning from sexual harassment victims, seeking to prevent the accused from committing similar actions against future students and colleagues.

The public nature of the spreadsheet, which is not ideal for accusations of sexual misconduct, is important. Everyone ought to be warned if they are going to be

working alongside potentially dangerous individuals. Everyone should be afforded protection from sexual violence. Victims of sexual misconduct have the right to attempt to protect all those who enter their institutions from experiencing the same harassment that they faced.

At its core, the spreadsheet is a reminder that sexual misconduct and racism still persist within the Harvard community as well as other educational and professional communities. We hope the University steps up and begins to handle accusations respectfully and effectively so that victims of sexual misconduct no longer feel that spreadsheets of this nature are necessary. The formal complaint system should be accessible and efficient enough that victims do not feel compelled to take external action. And the results of such formal complaints should remove those found guilty of committing sexual misconduct from our community.

Derek K. choi What’s Next?

T

he 1945 report of the first committee on General Education is not the product of your usual Harvard task force. The inside cover is outfitted with the regalia of the United States government, replete with the State Department seal. The eagle clasps a banner that reads, “Truth is our strength.” The cover is emblazoned with the high aims of the program: “General Education in a Free Society.”

In those first post-war decades, it must have been easy to see Harvard as an essential American institution. President John F. Kennedy ’40, a former Crimson editor, could hold meetings of the Board of Overseers at the White House and invite the dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences to be National Security Advisor.

These grandiose visions for Harvard’s role in American life have subsided over the last 70 years. It has been some time indeed since any State Department, never mind this one, charged Harvard academics with the mantle of defending democracy in America. Indeed, today Harvard is less a defender of Western forms of government than playing defense against ours.

Today’s Gen Ed guidelines will probably not make the case for electives as a bulwark against the dangers of communism. They will probably not include sentences like, “We are at a turning point indeed in human affairs,” and, “General education is the sole means by which communities can protect themselves from the ill effects of overrapid change.”

But if the authors of the 1945 report thought rather too highly of the import of their work, it’s hard not to think that today there’s been an over-correction in the opposite direction.

Today the General Education program hardly seems like an urgent priority, or at least not since former University President Lawrence H. Summers and former FAS Dean William C. Kirby sought to reimagine it in the mid-2000s. We’re told that the most recent remake—announced in 2015 after a College report said the current program was “failing on a variety of fronts”—will be delayed a year to the fall of 2019.

Intended as a compromise between a non-departmental General Education program and a distribution requirement consisting solely of departmental courses, the new system will include required coursework in four categories: Aesthetics & Culture; Histories, Societies, Individuals; Science & Technology in Society; and Ethics & Civics. (A proposed additional requirement is under review, entitled “Thinking with Data,” and I suppose it is somewhat amusing they thought that additional and separate requirement was necessary.)

I am sure that a great deal of thoughtfulness, scholarship, and genuine effort went into this new proposal, but it’s hard to not be at least a little cynical about its practical effectiveness.

For starters, the categories are remarkably broad; it’s hard to imagine what—besides the most pure of the natural sciences—wouldn’t conThese over-expansive stitute “Histories, Individcategories only reinforce Societies, uals.” It seems to one of the biggest failings encompass all aspects of the human of the present program: experience.

The interim catself-selection. egories for the transition to the new Gen Ed system are vaguer still. Witness the choice to amalgamate two existing requirements—“Science of the Physical Universe” and “Science of Living Systems,” where all qualifying classes now interchangeably count for both.

As part of that change, introductory computer science and statistics have been reclassified as fulfilling “Science of the Physical Universe,” a category traditionally reserved for the likes of physics and chemistry. Indeed, administrators seem to have decided that computer science is, upon second reflection, actually a science. (That’s wonderful news for me. I am weeks from a degree in political science, which, according to the Gen Ed program’s transitive-property-esque logic, might eventually be up there with physics.)

These over-expansive categories only reinforce one of the biggest failings of the present program: self-selection. Each shopping week, intrepid undergrads leave no stone unturned in a ceaseless quest to ferret out the not-quite-endangered species of the course catalog: Science classes sans problem sets and humanities courses devoid of readings. The rush to the (self-advertised!) lowest-common-denominator is one reason the program can’t encourage class-wide learning.

It’s a shame that our expectations for a Harvard education have become so vague and so easily fulfillable. The original 1945 program drafters had impossibly grand aims, but their articulation of the purpose of a college education should at least echo today. Present University administrators tell us frequently about their quest to graduate better citizens and citizen-leaders. Yet even as the new categories are more directly linked with social ends—look no further than the transformation of the science requirement into the study of “Science & Technology in Society”—the Gen Ed program has been dramatically simplified from its original Cold War-era mission.

It may be the case that Gen Eds past had little to do with the defeat of the Evil Empire. (That had, I think, a lot more to do with the presence of the United States in the world than with the presence of “United States in the World.”)

But there is a certain degree of rigor that seems appropriate, a certain sense that a Harvard education should have something to do with being an educated citizen of this country. Even the more modest aim of producing well-rounded graduates relies on it. On that front, at least, I hope very much for the new program’s success.

This staff editorial solely represents the majority view of The Crimson Editorial Board. It is the product of discussions at regular Editorial Board meetings. In order to ensure the impartiality of our journalism, Crimson editors who choose to opine and vote at these meetings are not involved in the reporting of articles on similar topics.

BE A CRIMSON CARTOONIST Submit a sample cartoon or any questions to Associate Editorial Editor Wonik Son

‘19 (wonik.son@thecrimson.com).

Why Harvard Needs Shopping Week

By Robert Miranda Crimson Staff Writer

I

remember when I first realized how Harvard would lead me to discover myself.

You know Cambridge in August, with humidity and heat beating down on you as you brave the scorching sun in its final days before fall comes along and cold sets in until April. You sit with friends in the shade of the coming school year in all its promise, forming desires and dreams and plans, before the weeks warp you into a jaded statue. There’s a buzzing excitement in the hope that this year, this term will be different—a new chance to start over.

The College, up until now, has given us this chance to begin anew with the greatest of our academic institutions: “shopping week.” Now it is threatened.

The Faculty of Arts and Sciences is considering alternatives to it on the basis that the inconvenience and uncertainty to teaching fellows and professors outweigh its benefits. These are certainly valid concerns. I sympathize with the logistical nightmare we undergraduates create in our endless decisions and revisions. But I can’t help feeling the College and the Faculty are trying their hardest to steadily erode many of the things that make Harvard what it is in the name of progress—such as removing our beloved seven-minute passing period known popularly as “Harvard time.”

Yes, I am sentimental. Change is inevitable; Harvard time was a necessary casualty for the Allston campus move.

But something like shopping week isn’t seen for the truly unique purpose it serves. Instead, it’s viewed for the problems it causes.

At the start of this term, Dean of the College Rakesh Khurana and Dean of the Arts and Humanities Robin E. Kelsey launched “The Transcript Project,” a challenge to undergrads to reflect on choices made throughout their time here. For many of us, shopping week is the primary reason why our transcripts look the way they do, as it gives us a freedom seldom found elsewhere. It is the essence of what I view college to be.

College is the consistent rediscovery of ourselves, for we learn who we are with each passing action. I know I am not the same person who first passed through Johnston Gate two years ago.

Shopping week facilitates this rediscovery, allowing us to learn about what we really want and don’t. I write this as an English concentrator who would have declared Government had I not shopped a certain English course last fall—one I hadn’t initially considered.

You know my experience, because you may have had it. You have only three courses finalized. You failed to get into either of the seminars you wanted. You rack the Q Guide in vain, searching for a course that hasn’t yet assigned readings or problem sets, that isn’t math, and that isn’t Ethical Reasoning, because you’ve somehow fulfilled that thrice.

And so you hastily act one Friday afternoon and follow your blockmate into a dusty, musty, Emerson room, to attend English 157: “The Classic Phase of the

This is the beauty of it— each missed or taken opportunity is a chance for that continuous rediscovery of ourselves, in the potential that shopping week allows.

Novel.” And then, polite interest turns into genuine captivation within the first ten minutes. There’s no desperation here—you’re fascinated more than you’ve been all week. Where does this lead you?

For me, it led to the English Department one crisp November day, where I renounced Government for what I realized I really wanted. I was not the same individual who walked into Emerson two months prior—my whole outlook on college and academics had changed based on my experiences in the course.

You may scoff at my story. What are my individual experiences to the multitudes of teaching fellows and professors inconvenienced each term by the follies and whims of undergraduates?

But realize: The College experience changes us, makes us reconsider who we are, what we study, and why. Shopping week has been essential in making us ask these questions—existential and overwhelming in their import, but ultimately guiding us to answer them sincerely. Many of us have countless questions of courses, concentrations, careers—and shopping week is a guide to answering some.

How many of us change during shopping week? How many unexpected choices change the course of our semesters, our years, our time here? This is no pseudo-philosophical interrogation: Seriously, how many courses surprised you, for good or bad, and made you rethink your academic choices? Which do you regret taking or missing out on?

I believe that, for many students, finding a delightful or disappointing course during shopping week helped reshape their academic career for the better. This is the beauty of it—each missed or taken opportunity is a chance for that continuous rediscovery of ourselves, in the potential that shopping week allows.

So please—if you’re a voting faculty member who reads this and is considering voting to end shopping week, I urge you: Do not do so. The unique educational experience offered by Harvard College would be irrevocably ruined. After all, we only go through college once— every chance to learn more of who we are counts. These chances have charted my Harvard journey, with the deeply fulfilling experiences I’ve had, both within and without academia. As my last two years approach, I hope the opportunity to continuously rediscover myself through academics won’t be taken away.

Because this is what Harvard is about.

This is what makes us who we are. This is what keeps us always questioning, always learning, always rediscovering ourselves, in classrooms and dorm rooms.

Robert Miranda ‘20, a Crimon Associate Editorial Editor, is an English concentrator in Pforzheimer House.

Derek K. Choi ’18, a former president of The Crimson, is a Government concentrator in Leverett House. His column appears on alternate Thursdays.

The Harvard Crimson President Derek G. Xiao ’19 Managing Editor Hannah Natanson ’19 Business Manager Nathan Y. Lee ’19

The University Daily, Est. 1873 Associate Managing Editors Mia C. Karr ’19 Claire E. Parker ’19

Blog Chairs Lydia L. Cawley ’20 Stuti Telidevara ’20

FM Chairs Marella A. Gayla ’19 Leah S. Yared ’19

Associate Business Managers Dahlia S. Huh ’19 Max W. Sosland ’19

Design Chairs Morgan J. Spaulding ’19 Simon S. Sun ’19

Multimedia Chairs Amy Y. Li ’20 Ellis J. Yeo ’20

Editorial Chairs Emmanuel R. R. D’Agostino ’19 Cristian D. Pleters ’19

Digital Strategists Caroline S. Engelmayer ’20 Jamie D. Halper ’20 Dianne Lee ’20

Sports Chairs Cade S. Palmer ’20 Jack R. Stockless ’19

Arts Chairs Mila Gauvini II ’19 Grace Z. Li ’19

Technology Chairs Nenya A. Edjah ’20 Theodore T. Liu ’20

The Harvard Crimson | April 12, 2018 | page 7

Proud to cover Harvard for 144 years and counting.

Keep the old sheet flying.

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Sports

The Harvard Crimson | April 12, 2018 | page 8

Harvard’s Benzan Picks Up Records, Postseason Awards Women’s basketball

By AMir Mamdani Crimson Staff Writer

A nybody who goes to watch a Harvard women’s basketball game leaves knowing who Katie Benzan is. Weaving around screens and firing three-pointers with fervor, the sophomore guard moves with the speed and energy of a whirling dervish, bringing the Lavietes Pavilion crowd to its feet every time she makes a play.

On the heels of a stellar rookie season, Benzan made the Ivy League record books this season by knocking down 99 three-pointers, the most by any woman in Ancient Eight history.

The new record just surpassed the previous mark of 97 three-pointers, set by Courtney Banghart in 1998-99.

Banghart, who set the record during her time at Dartmouth, just completed her 11th season at the helm of the Princeton women’s basketball team.

Helping to push Princeton to an NCAA tournament berth this season, Banghart’s perspective on Benzan’s accomplishment, as a former player and current coach, is a unique one.

“Katie is a really special talent,” Banghart said. “She has a very quick trigger, and it’s very accurate. In the game, as a high volume shooter, you have to have a short memory—this fearlessness to you. If you miss one, the next one’s going in, and she certainly has that mentality.”

Benzan has always been clear about putting personal accolades behind the success of the team.

“I don’t really think about stats,” Benzan said. “Someone might tell me, but ten seconds later I’ll forget. I just want to win. That’s why I came here.

But it is nice to hear.”

The selflessness and maturity that the point guard has demonstrated through the first half of her Crimson career has impressed fans and teammates alike. But Benzan’s team-first mentality is appreciated by Harvard coach Kathy Delaney-Smith, above all else.

“She’ll be the first one to tell you, it’s all about winning,” Delaney-Smith said. “Her personal accolades just come second to winning. That is the most important characteristic to help build a winning team.”

Only two seasons in, Benzan has left a sizable imprint on the Harvard women’s basketball program, and will be an integral part of the postseason success that the Crimson hopes to find in the next two years. Listed at 5’6, the Wellesley, Mass., native is often the shortest player on the court, but her record breaking season should hardly surprise—after all, basketball is in her DNA. ­

In the history books After a solid rookie campaign, sophomore Katie Benzan left a lasting impression this season. The Wellesley, Mass., native hit an Ivy League record 99 three-pointers, which bested the previous record of 97 set in 1999 by current Princeton women’s basketball head coach Courtney Banghart. Timothy R. O’Meara—Crimson photographer

Benzan grew up in a basketball family, fewer than 15 miles from Cambridge. The daughter of a college basketball player and a student-coach, the sophomore grew up sparring stiff competition in the form of her older brother Patrick, a rising senior on the Holy Cross basketball team.

“Growing up, basketball was always a part of family life,” Benzan said.

“We’d always go out to the driveway and play two-on-two. Our family dinners would sometimes be sitting on the couch, watching basketball. Ever since I could walk, I have been playing.”

Benzan was a highly decorated high school player at Noble and Greenough, garnering three NEPSAC Class A Tournament MVP awards, two ISL MVP recognitions, and helping her high school team to a 125-8 record over her five years on the varsity team. In her senior season, Benzan was named the Gatorade Player of the Year for Massachusetts, an honor shared in the past by WNBA greats Diana Taurasi, Maya Moore, Candace Parker, and Lisa Leslie.

Outside of school, Benzan played Wellesley Youth League and AAU basketball under the coaching of her mother, Kim. When Katie enrolled at

Noble and Greenough, Kim assisted head coach Alex Gallagher. Between its location, academics, and Benzan’s attachment to her family, Harvard became the perfect choice for the point guard.

“I am such a homebody,” Benzan said. “Honestly, I pretty much only considered schools in New England.

But Harvard stood out because of the atmosphere, the people, the coaching staff. Everyone just cares so much.”

In her first season in Cambridge, Benzan knocked down 85 three-pointers, good enough for fifth all time in a season and most of any active player.

Her six Rookie of the Week selections and a spot on the All-Ivy team were more than enough to force Banghart and other Ancient Eight coaches to hone in on the playmaker entering this season.

“She’s a huge part of what Harvard does, and we know that when we game plan,” Banghart said. “We try to crowd her as best we can, and get longer bodies on her, but if that kid gets an open look, it’s going in.”

Despite Banghart and the rest of the league’s efforts to neutralize Benzan, the rising junior still shot a torrid 50 percent conference percentage from

deep and a 52 percent three-point mark at Lavietes Pavilion. Entering the second half of her career, Benzan is on pace to not only break the all-time Ivy record for career three pointers, but shatter it by a healthy margin. The current record is 273, also set by Banghart, and Benzan has already tallied 184 triples.

Benzan’s impact on the Crimson stretches far beyond her three-point shooting. At almost every whistle, the sophomore can be seen urgently huddling and talking excitedly to teammates, with the maturity and poise often reserved for a senior captain.

Benzan’s play and leadership are inextricably attached to Harvard’s success.

“Katie is so much more than just a shooter, to be honest,” Delaney-Smith said. “She can score on many different levels. She has tremendous IQ and a terrific skill set… She’s a real leader on the floor, with a true passion and love for the game, which is the most important thing.”

The postseason awards logically followed Benzan’s high-flying, historic season. As was announced in March, the league office named Benzan to the first-team All-Ivy team—the only unanimous selection on the team. In

the classroom, the Psychology concentrator was also selected to the 2018 Winter Academic All-Ivy League team.

For the rising junior, the frustration of this season’s heartbreakingly narrow loss to Penn in the Ivy League Tournament a month ago is clearly palpable.

“In the spring and summer, we just have to keep working and getting better,” Benzan said. “Every day, just a little bit better, so that come next March, when we’re hopefully at the Ivy League tournament again, all that work can help us beat whoever we’re playing. It starts right now.”

One thing remains certain. While the rising junior might smile graciously and politely thank all who congratulate her on records broken and who mention ones that Wellesley, Mass., native may break in the future, her focus is concentrated in one place.

As Benzan enters her junior and senior seasons at the helm of the Crimson offense and at the heart of the team, her desires boil down to helping the team win and returning Harvard to its first NCAA Tournament since 2007.

Staff writer Amir Mamdani can be reached at amir.mamdani@thecrimson.com.

Harvard Outlasts Northeastern 8-6, Takes Beanpot Title

Beanpot Victory Senior Matt Rothenberg takes a cut at a pitch from a Penn opponent. Harvard won this year’s Beanpot title after an 8-6 victory over Northeastern in which the team surged ahead with eight unanswered runs. Timothy R. O’Meara—Crimson photographer baseball

By BRYAN HU Crimson Staff Writer

For just the fourth time in program history, the Harvard baseball team has won the sole Beanpot championship.

With an 8-6 victory over Northeastern on Wednesday afternoon, the Crimson (13-14, 3-3 Ivy League) lifted the silver trophy coveted annually by four Boston-area schools—Boston College, UMass, Northeastern, and Harvard.

The Crimson rallied explosively after going down 6-0 early, plating eight unanswered runs and shutting down the Huskies (18-11, 5-1 CAA) late to ride out the triumph. Freshman shortstop Buddy Mrowka’s third-inning bases-clearing triple proved to be the difference-maker.

Leaving Friedman Diamond in Brookline, Mass., the Harvard squad knew that capturing the Beanpot title ­

was a rarity to cherish.

“Especially being a local guy, growing up with the Beanpot, [winning the title] means a lot,” said rookie right fielder Tommy Seidl, who hit second in the order and scored a run. “It’s a big deal around here, not so much for the rest of the country—but definitely for me and the local guys, it means a lot.”

What makes the Beanpot victory especially remarkable was that Northeastern had an remarkably strong team, ranked 14th in the nation, according to the RPI Division I rankings compiled on April 10. The Crimson was 157th on the same list, far below its southward neighbors.

“It’s a big-time win for us,” said junior catcher Devan Peterson, who hit an RBI double in the second to jumpstart Harvard. “I’ve been dreaming about winning the Beanpot ever since I came to college. Now, to have that trophy on the bus with us, it’s an unbelievable feeling.”

The trophy didn’t come easy.

The Crimson had an inauspicious start, as starting pitcher junior Kevin Stone was tagged for six runs and three walks before he even recorded his second out. Huskies sophomore outfielder Kyle Peterson did the most damage, hitting a grand slam with one out. By the time the Harvard defense jogged back to the dugout after the bottom of the first inning, nine Husky batsmen had stepped to the plate and the score was 6-0 in favor of Northeastern.

But to Stone’s credit, he stepped it up, settled down, and prevented any more scoring thereafter. The resilience required to shut down such a strong team after a bad start was a true “Bad Boy” effort.

“The first inning was a little bit shaky, but he bounced back,” said freshman pitcher/designated hitter Buddy Hayward. “None of us ever doubted him. He’s a true Bad Boy— we all knew that he was going to come out and shove. Post first-inning, Kevin Stone was the true Kevin Stone that we

know and love.”

Stone didn’t have his best stuff, walking five, but still finished with a line of 5.0 IP, six hits, five earned runs, and two strikeouts. As head coach Bill Decker believed in him and let him stay in the game, the righty got the gutsy win to move to 3-2 as a pitcher.

The two-man relief effort following Stone’s exit was just as instrumental in preserving the Crimson’s win.

Junior outfielder John MacLean, thus far thriving this season on the mound, excelled in the sixth and seventh innings, giving up one hit and striking out one in 2.1 shutout innings.

According to his teammates, MacLean had an interesting secret to success leading up to the game.

“None of us were surprised when he came in and did the job that needed to get done,” Hayward said. “I don’t know if you’ve seen his hair, but Johnny’s a little wild. He says he’s been eating only beans for the week leading up to this, just to get ready.”

Sophomore righty Kieran Shaw, fresh off a six-out save over the weekend, recorded a clean five-out save thereafter to send the teams home.

The Los Gatos, Calif., native recorded two K’s, one of which was a swinging strikeout to end the game and begin the celebration.

Shaw didn’t need legumes to shut down the Northeastern offense, however.

“Keiran followed up with a great performance, just throwing strikes, getting guys out,” Hayward said. “It was awesome. It was so fun to watch from the dugout.”

While the pitching staff was busy keeping the Harvard squad in the game against a strong team, the offense used an explosive rally in the third inning to overcome the initial hole and never look back.

Down 6-2 in the top of the third, the Crimson got off on the right foot with a Seidl walk to lead off. Junior first baseman Pat McColl followed with a single, and junior slugger Patrick Robinson brought Seidl home with a single to inch Harvard closer.

Northeastern began making pitch-

ing changes.

With momentum on its side and the comeback in progress, the Crimson rattled off a huge inning perfectly exemplary of the crooked innings its offense has come to utilize. With one out, senior second baseman Matt Rothenberg smacked an RBI single to right to make it 6-4 and keep the bases loaded.

Mrowka then made the Huskies pay with a bases-clearing triple to the deepest part of Friedman Diamond, giving Harvard an unlikely 7-6 lead the Crimson pitchers would never relinquish.

“They came out swinging, got the 6-0 lead, but we came back, took the lead right back,” Peterson said. “The pitching staff, being the Bad Boys that they are, they came in and shut it down for the rest of the game. It took a lot of grit, but we were happy with it.”

Peterson’s sac fly to score the freshman tacked on an insurance run, but Mrowka’s three RBIs, his sixth, seventh, and eighth on the year, proved to be the winners.

With an 8-6 lead in hand, the Harvard pitching limited Northeastern to nine scattered hits on the game, though the Huskies got two loud flyball outs in the bottom of the sixth. The Crimson, meanwhile, got 11 hits, led by Rothenberg, McColl, Mrowka, and Peterson, who all had two-hits days.

Peterson got Harvard on the board with a two-RBI double in the second inning, an important hit that gave the Crimson an immediate response to the Huskies’ six-spot a frame prior.

“I was sitting dead-read, saw a pitch that I liked right in my wheelhouse,” said Peterson of his second-inning two-bagger. “Took a good swing on it, and luckily put it in the gap, scored a couple of runs. It felt pretty good to get the boys on the board.”

The loss denied the Northeastern its seventh Beanpot title but added to Harvard’s sole titles in 1991, 2005, and 2014. The Crimson won a joint title in 1998 with UMass when the championship game was rained out.

Staff writer Bryan Hu can be reached at bryan.hu@thecrimson.com.