The Harvard Crimson - Volume CXLV, No. 90

The Harvard Crimson THE UNIVERSITY DAILY, EST. 1873 | VOLUME CXLV, NO. 90 | CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS | WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2018

EDITORIAL PAGE 4

SPORTS PAGE 6

NEWS PAGE 5

This year’s policies and logistics for The Game are creating headaches.

Is it time for the Ivy League to consider playoff football?

A $5 million donation to the Business School will fund studies on AI.

Labor Union Faces Challenges

Health Benefits

Compensation

Job Security, Transparency

International Protections PA SS P OR

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By MOLLY C. MCCAFFERTY CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

A fter months of “intense” contract negotiations with Harvard, leaders of Harvard’s largest labor union say it is unlikely that they will conclude negotiations with the University before members’ current contract expires.

The union — Harvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workers — represents around 5,100 Harvard employees working in libraries, labs, and faculty offices, among other roles. The union’s current contract is set to expire on Sept. 30, and the new agreement, when reached, will be binding for the next three years.

Even though it looks as if the parties will not reach an agreement by Sept. 30, University spokesperson Melodie Jackson said University representatives were pleased with the bargaining process so far. Jackson wrote in an emailed statement that they believe the past several months have yielded “positive and constructive progress.”

“Members of the HUCTW are highly-regarded members of the University workforce and we are putting forward proposals that reflect that,” Jackson ­

wrote. “The University remains committed to negotiations that will ultimately result in a contract that ensures HUCTW members salary and range of benefits remain at the top of market, when compared to other Boston-area higher education institutions.”

The last time the University and HUCTW negotiated a contract was in 2015. During those negotiations, bargaining continued for nearly four months after the expiration of the union’s previous contract.

HUCTW president Carrie Barbash said the University and the union have an existing arrangement to keep members’ benefits in place in the absence of a contract. The lack of a resolution will delay any expected raises that the new contract will bring for members, however.

“There’s no way that people can actually, at this late date, have their wages in their pockets on Oct. 1,” Barbash said. “But it is still possible we could reach agreement by Oct. 1.”

“Even if we agreed today, there’s a lot of processing that has to happen,” she added.

But Jackson said the contract expiring before a new one

SEE UNION PAGE 3

t a t es U n i t e d Seric a of Am

Housing

Transportation

Career Services Healthy Work Environment

Financial Stability

Union Rights

Union Unveils Goals New graduate union outlines hopes for negotiations

ELENA M. RAMOS—CRIMSON DESIGNER

By MOLLY C. MCCAFFERTY and SHERA S. AVI-YONAH CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

Harvard’s recently formed graduate student union inched towards the bargaining table this week when it published a list of bargaining goals for their

inaugural round of negotiations with administrators.

The goals — which come from a survey distributed to members this summer — address a wide-ranging set of issues, from wage increases to visa protections. Harvard Graduate Students Union-United

Automobile Workers’s 13-member bargaining committee generated the 80-point list from 1,600 responses to the survey this fall. The final list has nearly twice as many goals as those listed on the bargaining survey.

Before they begin pushing for a contract that reflects

the goals, HGSU-UAW’s membership at large will vote on the list. Evan C. MacKay ’19, who represents undergraduates on the bargaining committee, wrote in an email that the vote will conclude “soon.” After

SEE GOALS PAGE 3

Kavanaugh Allegations Stir Controversy Fourteen Selected As Class of ’19 Marshals Harvard Democrats Zero In On Kavanaugh

By DELANO R. FRANKLIN CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

sors and Law School Dean John F. Manning lauded him in the days after Trump announced his nomination. In the wake of the assault allegations, though, some of Kavanaugh’s colleagues at the school have joined a growing chorus calling for senators to vote against Kavanaugh if the stories are true.

Law School Professor Michael J. Klarman, a constitutional law scholar, wrote in an email Sunday that while some have argued that Kavanaugh’s actions as a 17-year-old are not relevant to the judge’s ability to serve on the Court, he believes the charges against Kavanaugh are serious. “I certainly agree with the idea that we should be pretty forgiving toward youthful mistakes. But attempted rape is a really serious charge.

There was only one thing on the minds of the roughly 40 people who attended the Harvard College Democrats’ general meeting Tuesday evening.

Four invited speakers — as well as members of the College Democrats — devoted their remarks Tuesday night to Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh and recent allegations that he sexually assaulted at least two women several decades ago.

Kavanaugh, President Donald Trump’s pick to fill the seat left vacant by Justice Anthony Kennedy, seemed a lock for confirmation to the Court until Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez went public in the past few weeks with allegations of sexual misconduct that date back decades. Many at the meeting Tuesday heavily criticized Harvard Law School’s silence regarding the two women’s stories.

Though the Law School’s top brass released a statement praising Kavanaugh shortly after his nomination, no administrators — including Law School Dean John F. Manning ’82 — have commented on the conservative judge since Blasey’s allegations surfaced two weeks ago. Connie Cho, a Law School student and Cabot House tutor who helped organize a campus walkout Monday to support Ford and Ramirez, said she and her peers are disappointed by what she called the Law School’s failure to address the allegations.

“So many of us, as Law Students, saw this news and expected a response from our school,” Cho said. “There was no response.”

Kavanaugh serves as a lecturer at the Law School and is slated to teach a course there

SEE PROFESSORS PAGE 3

SEE DEMS PAGE 5

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Eleanor C. “Nell” Shea ‘20 and Priya P. Kukreja ‘21 speak out against Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s possible confirmation during a Harvard College Democrats meeting Tuesday night. KATHRYN S. KUHAR —CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

Law School Won’t Say If Kavanaugh Will Teach

Law Professors Call for Probe Into Kavanaugh Allegations

By AIDAN F. RYAN CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Several Harvard Law School professors said they were troubled by the sexual assault allegations recently levelled against Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh and called for further investigation into the claims.

When President Donald Trump nominated Kavanaugh in July to fill Anthony M. Kennedy’s seat, many thought the conservative judge would sail through the confirmation process, despite unified opposition from Senate Democrats. Over the past week and a half, at least two women have come forward alleging that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted them decades ago. Kavanaugh has taught as a lecturer at the Law School since 2008, and a number of profes­

By AIDAN F. RYAN CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Harvard Law School is refusing to say whether it will allow conservative judge and Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh to return to Cambridge to teach the course on the Court he is slated to offer Law students in Jan. 2019.

The school’s silence comes as students on campus are increasingly calling for decisive action to address allegations that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted at least two women.

Last week, four Law School students demanded in a Harvard Law Record article that ­

SEE TEACH PAGE 3 INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Harvard Today 2

News 3

Editorial 4

Sports 6

TODAY’S FORECAST

By CINDY H. ZHANG CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Fourteen seniors were announced Monday as Senior Class Marshals for the Class of 2019.

The Marshals, who collectively make up the Senior Class Committee, are responsible for organizing class-wide events up until Commencement in May. They also coordinate the Senior Gift fund and plan post-graduation reunion events.

After a two-round election last week, Catherine L. Zhang ’19 and Anant T. Pai ’19 were named First and Second Marshals, respectively.

Zhang, who is also the UC president, said her goal as First Marshal is to bring the senior class together.

“Harvard is all about the people,” Zhang said. “I want to make sure that this last year here is about the people and about creating community and really living in the moment and living presently with some of ­

the most amazing and inspiring people that we will ever come across.”

Though still “half-asleep” when he found out he had been elected Second Marshal, Pai said he was “over-the-moon excited.”

Pai said he wanted to build community with “personal, one-on-one programming” and plan reflections for the senior class. “I’d be lying if I said Harvard has always been an easy place, so it’s exciting to engage in a series of reflective events that will get people thinking about these last three years and who they want to be when they leave,” he said.

Since senior years tend to fly by, slowing down the pace is a priority for Tyler S. LeComer ’19, one of the six elected Program Marshals. The Program Marshals are those who place third through eighth in the election process.

“It’s hard to kind of stop and

SEE MARSHALS PAGE 3

Anant T. Pai ‘19 was named the Class of 2019’s Second Class Marshal.

KATHRYN S. KUHAR —CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

CLOUDY High: 79 Low: 58

VISIT THECRIMSON.COM. FOLLOW @THECRIMSON ON TWITTER.

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THE HARVARD CRIMSON |

SEPTEMBER 26, 2018

PAGE 2

HARVARD TODAY

For Lunch Chicken Parmesan Sandwich Haddock with Lemon Butter Mushroom Sauce Vegetarian Penne Bolognese

For Dinner Fried Buttermilk Drumsticks Reds Best Fresh Local Fish Grilled Chickpea Cakes with Pineapple Salsa

TODAY’S EVENTS

IN THE REAL WORLD

The Importance of Diversity in Innovation Sanders Theater, 4:30 p.m.

Trump Unleashes on Kavanaugh Accuser as Key Republican Wavers

Come meet Richard Montañez, the inventor of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. He will be leading a discussion on pushing through adversity and battling issues of inclusion in light of his biopic.

As President Trump said that the latest woman to accuse Judge Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct “has nothing,” Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AL) — a critical vote for those seeking to confirm Kavanaugh — cautioned her fellow senators to not prejudge the allegations. Republicans only hold the Senate 51-49, so the hearings and vote on Kavanaugh are sure to be a showdown.

How to Look Corporate AF Women’s Center, 7:00 p.m.

Join the Harvard College Women’s Center and the Office of Career Services for a panel conversation about navigating the nuances of workplace attire, projecting self-confidence in the workplace, and other tips for professional success!

IOP members register people to vote on Tuesday. KATHRYN S. KUHAR—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

DAILY BRIEFING

‘To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before’ Tercenenary Theater, 7:30 p.m.

In search of an outlet for your Peter K. love? Join the Task Force on Asian and Pacific American Studies (TAPAS) at a screening of “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” in Tercentenary Theater at 7:30 p.m., followed by a discussion on representation in film.

Harvard’s new graduate student union released an “ambitious” list of 80 goals this week for its first round of negotiations with the University. Meanwhile, Harvard’s clerical union and University representatives are still locked in negotiations, and they are unlikely to reach an agreement before the current contract expires on Sept. 30. In other news, several Harvard Law professors are calling for further investigation into sexual assault allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, and Law School administrators refuse to say whether Kavanaugh will return to the school in January to teach his annual course.

Bill Cosby Sentenced to 3 to 10 Years in Prison Today, Bill Cosby was sentenced to 3 to 10 years in prison, and was subsequently escorted to prison.

The judge commented, “Nobody is above the law because of where they live, who they are, wealth, fame, celebrity or even philanthropy.”

Deliberate or Not, Trump’s Speech Draws Laughter at the U.N. When President Trump spoke to the United Nations General Assembly today, he certainly didn’t get the response he expected. As he touted his administration’s accomplishments — particularly as they related to the United States — some in the room began to laugh. Whether you laughed at that moment or not, it’s definitely unusual.

AROUND THE IVIES YALE Hundreds of Yale affiliates protested Supreme Court nominee Brett M. Kavanaugh’s confirmation Monday at the Hart Senate Office Building and Yale Law School, according to the Yale Daily News.

Following a second allegation against Kavanaugh reported on Sunday, community members held a sit in at the Law School and participated in a rally on Capitol Hill, where two Law School students were arrested. Protesters said they wanted to make clear that the Yale Law community does not support Kavanaugh. Students at the sit-in also criticized the School administration’s silence on the allegations.

UPENN According to the Daily Pennsylvanian, Fossil Free Penn (“FFP”) submitted a modified proposal for comprehensive divestment from fossil fuels to the Penn administration. The proposal targets divestment from coal tar sand companies, which produce environmentally harmful fossil fuels. FPP leaders said the proposal highlights the financial advantages of divestment rather than social ones in hope of appealing to the University Board of Trustees. An earlier version was rejected in 2015.

The proposal must pass through two committees, the second of which will make a recommendation to the Board of Trustees, before implementation.

COLUMBIA Columbia has adopted a program that aims to avoid mispronunciation of the names of students in class, the Columbia Daily Spectator reported. The tool, known as NameCoach, allows students to record their names so that teachers can learn the correct pronunciations. Over 800 undergraduate and graduate students have used the program. Harvard introduced a similar feature on its my.harvard platform this fall.

THE UNIVERSITY DAILY, EST. 1873

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

Associate Managing Editors Mia C. Karr ’19 Claire E. Parker ’19 Associate Business Managers Dahlia S. Huh ’19 Max W. Sosland ’19 Digital Strategists Jamie D. Halper ’20 Caroline S. Engelmayer ’20 Editorial Chairs Cristian D. Pleters ’19 Emmanuel R. R. D’Agostino ’19

STAFF FOR THIS ISSUE Arts Chairs Mila Gauvini II ’19 Grace Z. Li ’19

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

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

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

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

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

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.

Night Editor Graham W. Bishai ’19

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Assistant Night Editors William S. Flanagan ’20 Ruth Zheng ’21

Photo Editors Kathryn S. Kuhar ’20 Awnit S. Marta ‘20

Story Editors Joshua J. Florence ’19 Mia C. Karr ’19 Hannah Natanson ’19 Sarah Wu ’19 Phelan Yu ’19

Editorial Editor Jenna M. Wong ’20 Sports Editor Leon K. Yang ’21

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.

PAGE 3

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | SEPTEMBER 26, 2018

UNION FROM PAGE 1

GOALS FROM PAGE 1

Union Talks Still Underway

Union Releases 80-Point Goals List

was in place should not cause alarm. “It is not unusual for negotiations to extend beyond the expiration of a contract and we are committed to continuing to work in partnership with HUCTW toward a speedy resolution,” she wrote.

Representatives from the University and the union first met each other at the bargaining table informally in Dec. 2017, and the two sides began concrete, issue-based negotiations in the spring. Since then, the two sides have held bargaining sessions “virtually every week, often multiple times a week,” according to an email sent to union members Monday afternoon. In that email, union leaders characterized the negotiations as “respectful and constructive” but also “intense and frustrating.” About a month ago, both sides agreed to initiate the use of two predetermined third-party mediators, Barbash said.

The mediators — Lawrence F. Katz, a Harvard economics professor, and Robert B. McKersie, professor emeritus at MIT’s Sloan School of Management — have previously played a role in HUCTW bargaining, mediating for negotiations in both 2013 and 2015. Barbash said their primary role in negotiations is to consult with University and union bargaining teams, both separately and together, and come up with creative “win-win” solutions.

HUCTW’s Monday email to union members delineated three “most critical” topics of debate in the bargaining sessions: salary increases, healthcare benefits, and the use of contingent workers. As of now, HUCTW leaders feel the union and the University are “too far apart on” all three of these issues to conclude negotiations before the Sept. 30 deadline.

Barbash declined to comment on the specific salary proposals that have been made. She did say, though, that the union’s bargaining committee is “looking for raises that allow members to keep up with inflation and make a little progress on top of that.”

The union is also at odds with University representatives over healthcare — a divisive issue during the union’s last negotiations in 2015. Specifically, HUCTW leaders wrote in the email that there is a “substan-

tial distance” between the University and the union over how different levels of healthcare premiums should be adjusted to keep pace with rising costs, inflation, and wages. The University and the union are also divided over how to classify contingent workers — temps and workers who are employed less than 17.5 hours per week.

In many cases, Barbash said, these workers are hired in accordance with HUCTW’s current contract policy, which states that temporary employees can only be hired for a maximum of three months. Other times, however, the employees are kept in temporary positions for extended periods of time without being granted the status of full employees. This prevents them from joining the union and receiving benefits, a situation that worries Barbash and the union negotiators.

“We’re concerned that there’s people who should really be in the union with union protections, union benefits, Harvard benefits, and it really feels like they’re not getting a fair deal,” Barbash said. “If you’re in one of these temporary, precarious positions for years and years and years, that doesn’t seem to really be meeting the spirit of the agreement that says… the use of these [temporary positions] is supposed to be strictly limited.”

“The gist of the whole thing is if you’re doing HUCTW work, you should be in a HUCTW job,” she added. The continuation of talks past September means that HUCTW’s negotiations may overlap with the first contract negotiations of Harvard’s newly-formed students union, Harvard Graduate Students Union - United Automobile Workers. HGSU-UAW leaders have said they expect to begin bargaining with the University this semester.

Ultimately, Barbash said negotiations remain productive, and she is hopeful that they will be resolved soon.

“Both parties are making a good faith effort to try and resolve of the contract as soon as possible,” Barbash said. “I think we’re just maybe not seeing eye to eye on certain issues, but I feel like everyone is engaging in a productive way.” molly.mccafferty@thecrimson. com.

PROFESSORS FROM PAGE 1

Law Professors Call for Kavanaugh Probe And serving on the Supreme Court is a privilege, not a right,” Klarman wrote. “So my view, though I think reasonable people can differ on this, is that if he committed the assault, as alleged, his confirmation should be rejected.”

Kavanaugh’s first accuser, Christine Blasey Ford, came forward almost two weeks ago after an anonymous letter she sent to Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) over the summer was leaked to the press. In an interview with the Washington Post, Ford said that Kavanaugh forced her onto a bed, pressed his body to hers, and attempted to remove her clothes while both were at a high school party in 1982. Deborah Ramirez, Kavanaugh’s second accuser, came forward just this week. Ramirez told the New Yorker that Kavanaugh exposed himself and pushed his penis in her face at a party both attended while freshmen at Yale. Ford and Kavanaugh are both set to testify Thursday in a nationally broadcasted hearing; the Senate Judiciary Committee will then vote on Kavanaugh’s confirmation Friday. Ramirez has not been called to testify. Kavanaugh has vehemently denied both women’s allegations, and Trump has said he will stand behind his nominee.

Law Professor Laurence H. Tribe ’62 took his views on the Kavanaugh confirmation process to Twitter Monday. “Closing ranks around Kavanaugh even before Dr.Blasey Ford testifies is proof positive that these Trumpsters either (1) don’t regard an attempted rape and a nominee’s false denials as relevant and/or (2) are ready to disbelieve her without listening,” Tribe wrote. Tribe expanded on his thoughts in an email to The Crimson.

“Either branch of that dilemma reveals an ugly truth about the premises of the pro-Kavanaugh line of defense,” he wrote.

“I began as someone who personally liked and professionally admired Brett Kavanaugh despite our many legal and philosophical disagreements. At this point I’m deeply troubled by the way he has let himself become a battering ram against the women who have had the courage to say what they recall him doing to them.”

Klarman agreed, arguing that the Republicans are not taking the investigation of the women’s claims seriously and that the Senate Judiciary Committee should have gathered more evidence. Ford previously requested an FBI investigation into her allegation, but the Senate committee denied the request. “It is hard to understand how Republicans can justify not conducting a more thorough investigation than it appears they will do,” Klarman wrote. “But I suppose that, given their willingness to ‘steal’ a Supreme Court seat from President Obama (the Garland seat), we shouldn’t be surprised that they would countenance extraordinary departures from procedural regularity to see the solid conservative majority on the Supreme Court that they have dreamed of for generations.”

Law Professor Elizabeth Bartholet ’62 wrote via email that the Thursday hearings should be postponed pending an investigation. “I believe [the allegations] should have the effect of persuading the Committee majority and the Senate as a whole to postpone the hearings pending a full and fair investigation of the allegations,” she wrote. aidan.ryan@thecrimson.com.

rank-and-file sign off on the goals, negotiators say they will likely begin formal contract negotiations with Harvard before the semester is over.

ACADEMICS AND BENEFIT Central to the union’s lengthy list of goals is the issue of compensation for student employees. Bargaining committee members hope to increase minimum pay rates, guarantee annual pay increases “that keep pace with local cost-of-living,” and streamline the payroll process, among other topics.

Wages have served as a rallying point for graduate students arguing for the necessity of a union. In 2017, as the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences faced financial pressure, Harvard announced lower-than-usual increases to Ph.D. students’ stipends coupled with normal increases to housing fees. Though stipend increases have since returned to normal rates, HGSU-UAW organizers argued that the union could secure greater stipend and housing stability from year to year.

The slate of bargaining goals includes several aimed at regulating the University’s financial support for students.

Most notably, the union proposes that the University waive all tuition and fees for teaching and research assistants.

While doctoral degree students at GSAS are all guaranteed tuition deductions through grants from the University, students in masters’ programs and at other Harvard schools may not have the same level of support.

Former NLRB chairman William B. Gould IV said the proposal to waive tuition was “very ambitious.”

“We’re really at the beginning of graduate student negotiations in the private sector, and in the private sector, tuition is going to be more considerable, fees are going to be more considerable, than at state universities,” Gould said. “So it’s a bold proposal, but it’s certainly relevant to their situation.” Regardless of whether they receive University stipends, any graduate student has the option to apply

for University-owned housing.

Union negotiators plan to call for rent reductions overall, as well as changes to the way rent increases are set year-to-year.

Currently, an external contractor analyzes sources such as off-campus rentals provided

by Harvard University Housing and non-Harvard rental websites in order to gauge prices at competing apartment complexes in Cambridge, Boston, and Somerville. The contractor then generates rent levels for the approximately 3,000 University-owned apartments.

In addition to compensation and housing, the union’s bargaining committee also plans to

It’s a bold proposal, but it’s certainly relevant to their situation.

William B. Gould IV Former NLRB Chairman

advocate for the institution of a sizable number of health benefits for teaching and research assistants. These include paid medical, dental, and vision insurance for all student employees and their dependents; an expanded list of covered medications; and a guarantee that University Health Services responds to “health and mental health emergencies, without unnecessarily turning to law enforcement.”

Union membership includes both undergraduate and graduate teaching and research assistants. The goals include several items aimed at regulating students’ workloads, both in the lab and the classroom. HGSU-UAW plans to call for increased regulation of job postings, hours, and payroll.

The Faculty of Arts and Sciences is currently mulling proposals to end “shopping week,” a one-week period at the be-

ginning of the semester when students can walk in and out of classes before officially enrolling.

In past semesters, shopping week has created headaches for graduate students seeking to secure teaching positions, since College classes add and drop teaching fellows based on fluctuating class sizes. Though many of the goals suggest streamlining this process, MacKay wrote that HGSU-UAW has no official position on shopping week.

Bargaining committee members also plan to push for paid leave, lowered childcare costs, retirement benefits, and increased control over professional development trainings.

DIVERSITY AND PROTECTIONS Once they begin negotiations, the bargaining committee will also seek contract measures addressing students’ life outside research and teaching obligations. Much of HGSU-UAW’s work over the past several months has concerned issues of diversity, international student protections, and sexual harassment.

This second set of goals relates to the work of several of HGSU-UAW’s subcommittees, including the “Time’s Up” committee, Civil and Human Rights committee, and International Student Working Group.

Per the bargaining goals, the union will seek to “establish the right to expedited, neutral and procedurally fair, third-party grievance procedure for discrimination, harassment, and other complaints.”

MacKay wrote that the United Automobile Workers will likely be a party in any outside grievance procedures, though he added that the details of those procedures would also be a part of negotiations with administrators.

“Based on the experience at other universities, most grievances get resolved quickly and informally,” he wrote. “If a grievance goes all the way to arbitration, it is likely that a UAW representative would help do the arbitration hearing and arguments.”The bargaining com-

mittee also proposed several protections for international students in the bargaining unit.

In doing so, committee members drew from the work of one of its longest-standing branches, the International Scholars Working Group.

The ISWG began advocating for international grad students even before HGSU-UAW was formally authorized. After a travel ban placed on certain countries prevented several Harvard affiliates from entering the United States in Jan. 2017, the group advocated for the creation of a hotline to advise students affected by the policy.

Among other things, the bargaining committee aims to provide free legal assistance to international student employees with visa and immigration issues; guarantee access to free English language classes; and protect the benefits and pay of student employees who “encounter visa problems or are targeted by discriminatory state or federal policies.”

If they are included in the contract between HGSU-UAW and Harvard, the final set of goals would further establish the union’s presence on campus. For example, HGSU-UAW would gain access to University facilities and union representatives would be compensated for their time doing union-related advocacy. Ultimately, MacKay said the overarching objective of the bargaining goals is to “improve economic and other conditions” for student employees and “make Harvard a more accessible and inclusive community.”

“The purpose is to improve the experiences of all student workers, understanding that each student worker has different working conditions,” MacKay said. “Some goals might not apply to all student workers, but each student worker in our diverse community will see benefits in our final contract.” shera.aviyonah@thecrimson. com. molly.mcafferty@thecrimson. com.

TEACH FROM PAGE 1

Law School Won’t Say if Kavanaugh Will Return the school bar Kavanaugh from teaching until “a full and fair investigation is conducted” into the allegations of sexual misconduct. On Monday, several hundred Harvard affiliates walked out of class to rally in support of the two women who have accused Kavanaugh of misbehavior.

The Crimson contacted Dean John F. Manning ’82, through his spokespeople three times over the past week to ask whether Harvard will permit Kavanaugh, who serves as a Law School lecturer, to teach this winter. In response, school spokespeople once did not respond and twice declined to comment.

“It is our longstanding policy not to comment publicly on personnel matters,” Law School spokesperson Robb London wrote in a statement Tuesday.

As of Tuesday evening, a Harvard website still listed Kavanaugh as the “Samuel Williston Lecturer on Law” and indicated he will be teaching the course “The Supreme Court Since 2005” in Jan. 2019. Kavanaugh has taught at the Law School since 2008.

President Donald Trump in July named Kavanaugh his nominee to fill the Supreme Court seat left vacant by Justice Anthony Kennedy. The judge seemed a surefire bet until two weeks ago, when women began to come forward with allegations that he had sexually assaulted them at parties held decades ago.

First, Palo Alto psychology professor Christine Blasey Ford told the Washington Post that Kavanaugh had forced her onto a bed, pressed his body to hers, and tried to take off her clothes at a party the two attended in the 1980s, when both were enrolled in private D.C.-area high schools.

Just a few days later, another woman — Deborah Ramirez — told the New Yorker that Kavanaugh had exposed himself and pushed his penis in her face at a party both attended while freshmen at Yale College.

Kavanaugh has repeatedly said both accusations are false.

Both Kavanaugh and Ford

are set to testify at a high-stakes and nationally televised hearing before members of the Senate on Thursday at 10 a.m. The Law School has said it will provide space on campus for students to watch the hearing.

At first, Kavanaugh’s nomination seemed to please the Law School’s top brass. Shortly after Trump announced Kavanaugh was his pick, Manning lauded and congratulated the judge in a statement posted to a Law School website.

“I congratulate Judge Kavanaugh on his nomination to the Supreme Court and thank him for his superb teaching at Harvard Law School over the past decade,” Manning said in the post. “Let me take this occasion to thank Judge Kavanaugh for the generosity, dedication, and collegiality he has shown our community.”

More recently, Manning has stayed quiet. He has not commented on Kavanaugh at least

since Ford publicly detailed the nominee’s alleged sexual misconduct for the first time on Sept. 16.His public silence comes as some Law School students have privately contacted the dean seeking answers.

Alexandra “Vail” KohnertYount, one of the authors of the Harvard Law Record article who helped organize Monday’s walkout and rally, said that several students have reached out to Manning regarding Kavanaugh — and at least some of them have asked whether the Law School will allow Kavanaugh to continue teaching. KohnertYount said she has not individually contacted Manning.

Manning has responded to at least a few of the students. In a reply email to one student obtained by The Crimson, Manning wrote that he had received “a similar expression of concern from some of your fellow students.”

He then thanked the writ-

er for engaging with “the important and difficult issues with which our nation and its institutions are grappling.”

“I am very grateful to you for sharing with me your views and your perspective… with respect to the specific question each of you asked: For reasons I’m sure you understand, it is our longstanding policy not to discuss personnel matters,” Manning wrote, ostensibly referencing a question about Kavanaugh’s employment at Harvard. “I know that may be frustrating, but the policy serves important purposes even in challenging times.”

He added: “Please know that we take concerns about our teaching program very seriously. Again, I am grateful to you for reaching out to me.”

Members of the Senate are slated to take a final vote on Kavanaugh on Friday. aidan.ryan@thecrimson.com

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | SEPTEMBER 26, 2018

PAGE 4

EDITORIAL THE CRIMSON EDITORIAL BOARD

Fumbling The Game

T

his is a Game-changer.

In an email to the student body, Dean of Students Katherine G. O’Dair reported that there are new rules in place for obtaining tickets to the anticipated Harvard-Yale football game — known by fans as “The Game.” While undergraduates still get one free ticket, this year The Game will be played at Fenway Park. As a result of Fenway policies, there will now be assigned seating. In addition to this drastic change, students must now go across the river to pick up tickets from the Athletics Box Office until two days before the pick-up period is over, when they will be available at the Smith Campus Center. Most students who spoke to The Crimson have been dissatisfied with the changes, and so are we.

The fundamental reason many students go to the Harvard-Yale is not to watch football. Rather, it is to relax with friends, mingle, and celebrate the coming Thanksgiving Break and end of semester. This universally festive atmosphere makes The Game a great social equalizer and inclusive social space — something that the College is often sorely lacking. We are thus disappointed that the changes implemented by the University will make it challenging for students to sit with their friends, and that so much confusion has been added to what should be a straightforward process.

Harvard students wanting to sit together with friends are now forced to coordinate a time and date to make the trip to the Smith Campus Center or the Murr Center together to pick up the tickets, something highly difficult to coordinate given varying course and extracurricular schedules. Additionally, Harvard-Yale is almost definitionally a time for stu-

dents to mingle with Yalies and students from other universities — a prospect which these new policies have all but done away with.

To add to the logistical confusion, that there are only two locations on the entirety of Harvard’s campus (one of which is only offering tickets for two days) makes picking up tickets far more difficult logistically. Moreover, for the vast majority of the period in which students can pick up tickets, doing so

We urge Harvard to take action to ensure that The Game remains a source of stress relief, rather than additional headaches.

Editorial Board of The Harvard Crimson

will require an unnecessarily long commute. This could easily be fixed by distributing tickets in more centralized locations such as the Smith Campus Center or house dining halls.

In previous years, Harvard has provided a guest ticket program for its students, which allowed students to purchase extra tickets for $55 to $75. With the new change in venue, the guest ticket program has been discarded so that students can only purchase tickets directly through the Athletics Box Office. Yet tickets for the game have been on sale since April and are now sold out. Students interested in bringing guests are forced to look to other online

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ticket exchange sites, where tickets are being resold for up to $300.

On top of all of this, transportation to the game is sure to be a logistical nightmare. With the game all the way at Fenway, students may have to catch the T or use a ride-sharing app to get there, whereas before they could have just as easily walked a couple of blocks to Harvard Stadium. We anticipate that Uber and Lyft will be flooded with ride requests, driving up prices and causing massive delays. The distance not only proves to be an inconvenience, but also a major safety issue as students who consume alcohol before the event will now be forced to make the long journey to Fenway. Even if the University provides buses, organizing such transport is sure to be difficult and costly.

Our safety concerns do not end there. Since The Game is not on campus, students are more likely to be intoxicated in presence of Boston police. The College has not yet clarified how its amnesty policy applies at The Game, and how to avoid risky scenarios where intoxicated students come into contact with Boston Police Department. Harvard should address this risk immediately.

These issues are serious ones, and to resolve them will require extensive prior planning. We urge Harvard to take action to ensure that The Game remains a source of stress relief, rather than additional headaches.

This staff editorial 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.

Gonzalez’s Endowment Tax a Disgusting Proposal

By LORENZO F. MANUALI

I

The Crimson @thecrimson MICHELLE I. GAO­—BETWEEN THE LINES

Not Quite a Home Away from Home

C

an college be a home? We often jump to thinking about ways to make college more of a home for students. But let’s not put the cart before the horse. This question hinges on what the definition of “home” should be, which can and does vary widely.

I first began thinking about this as a high school student, imagining what college would be. In 2015, a year of protests at many universities, one exchange at Yale University stood out to me. Student protesters were confronting Nicholas Christakis, then a master of one of Yale’s residential colleges, mainly in response to a controversial email about toleration of possibly offensive Halloween costumes, sent by his wife and fellow master.

The conflict stemmed from differing points of view on what kind of community should be fostered at Yale’s residential colleges. One student protester argued, “It is not about creating an intellectual space! It’s about creating a home here.” She got more agitated as Christakis refused to accept the same assumption.

In the discourse following the protests, others posited that college could not be a home. Professor Alan Jacobs of Baylor University, for example, wrote that a residential college is “a place where people from all over the world … come to live together temporarily ... It is an essentially public space.” A writer in the Atlantic argued, “Homes are typically places where parents instill their own values in kids whose formative experiences they shape ... Insofar as [college] includes students from diverse homes, it will be unlike an actual home.”

I remember these unconventional opinions because they were quite scary. As a high school student, I didn’t want to imagine college as a place that I wouldn’t be able to call home. But I found these arguments persuasive, in theory at least.

By negating the arguments above, home is a permanent, private, and undiverse place. A safe space, if you will.

I am fortunate that I can describe my home that way. At home, I can do essentially whatever I want, knowing that I have the unconditional love of my parents. They would attest to how

difficult I can be to live with. At home, even though we can disagree, the range of intellectual debate is rather limited. That is because of the lack of diversity. When it comes down to it, my parents look similar to me, lead relatively similar lives to me, and have imparted values to me that I still, for the most part, agree with.

How, then, could college be like home? Indeed, having gained enough experience so that I no longer merely imagine but can reflect, it is not.

College is not this comfortable because, obviously, it does not give its students unconditional leeway. At Convocations, Dean of the College Rakesh Khurana says once you are admitted, you do not have to jump through more hoops; you can do what you want. But that refers to academics and extracurricular activities.

When it comes to social life, you can’t do whatever you want. You have to be a good roommate, a good friend. You have to earn the respect and love of your peers.

College is not about me, you, or the individual. It is hard to let down one’s guard the way one can do at home, mainly because of the lingering awareness that the dorm is only a temporary living situation. So I don’t walk around barefoot, or leave my stuff lying around, or decorate the walls.

I don’t know most people who live here and thus don’t get past the polite pleasantries that I can skip at home.

College is also not as comfortable as home precisely because of the diversity of people — though that is not a bad thing. The point of going to college, and in particular living at one away from home, is to leave the nest and grow up. To see what, and who, lies outside.

That is why, even though I do not really consider college a home, life is far from bleak. In fact, I don’t want college to be more like my home. That place — a sheltered escape from the outside world — is more accurately now my childhood home. And I should not be a child anymore.

— Michelle I. Gao ’21, a Crimson Editorial editor, lives in Adams House. Her column appears on alternate Wednesdays.

t was wrong when the Republican Congress called for it and President Donald Trump signed it into law.

It’s wrong now.

Recently, Democratic nominee for Massachusetts governor Jay Gonzalez, with Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor Quentin A. Palfrey ’96 and Cambridge Mayor Marc C. McGovern beside him, announced a plan to tax the endowments of the state’s private, non-profit colleges and universities whose endowments total over $1 billion at a 1.6 percent rate.

This plan is more severe than the one passed by Republicans in Congress and signed into law by Trump.

That plan taxed the income generated by university endowments, meaning that, according to one estimate, Harvard will have to pay the federal government over $40 million.

Gonzalez’s plan, on the other hand, taxes the assets of the endowments, resulting in the $500 million figure that Harvard would owe the state of Massachusetts under his plan.

This isn’t just another endowment tax. This is a tax on financial aid.

This is a tax on education. But perhaps most disgustingly, this is a tax on human lives and progress.

Simply put, this plan is foolish. All of the institutions of higher education that would be taxed under this plan — including Harvard — are non-profit organizations. In case Gonzalez has forgotten what that means, these institutions don’t make money off of the services they provide the public or the people they educate. At the same time, they provide an enormous benefit to society.

Higher education has been shown to increase social mobility, civic engagement, tax revenues, economic growth, innovation, and has many more positive effects.

Supporters of the plan delineate the difference between this plan and the one passed by Republicans in Washington by pointing to Gonzalez’s intention to use the income generated by the tax to fund public education and transportation.

Besides the fact that Gonzalez avowedly does not yet know how the money “would be allocated,” raiding one form of non-profit education to provide for another is hypocritical at best.

There is no doubt that public education deserves more money than it is currently receiving, but the money should come from elsewhere.

In the same vein, raiding one public benefit (like higher education) to give to another (like transportation) is often a very bad idea.

Of course, governments must sometimes fund initiatives with lessthan-ideal revenue sources.

Budget constraints are real. But

stealing large sums of money (such as $500 million) from a public good can lead to unintended consequences down the road.

As an example, for years, New York governors used money that was originally meant for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority for other projects. Now, the New York City subway system is in shambles.

Still others argue that endowment taxes encourage universities to use their endowments to lower tuition prices and increase financial aid for their students. Many of the universities affected by this tax, however, already have need-blind admissions processes, meaning your socioeconomic status plays no role in the decision of whether to admit you.

However, even if this weren’t true, it’s difficult to lower the price of tuition or provide more financial aid when the state of Massachusetts is stealing away significant amounts of money from your budget. The way to incentivize universities to lower their prices certainly isn’t to tax them. Indeed, it may trigger the opposite of what was intended.

Moreover (and perhaps worst of all), Gonzalez’s plan dangerously plays into the populist attack on higher education, and it reaffirms the idea that higher education is an elitist institution that is bad for the nation, rather than an instigator of social mobility and societal progress.

So, Mr. Gonzalez, tell me this: How many life-saving initiatives will go unfunded? How many policymakers won’t be informed? How many people won’t receive financial aid? How many people won’t be accepted for science-advancing and potentially life-saving clinical trials because you decided to latch onto a dangerous political fad?

Neither you nor I can answer these questions precisely — we don’t know how Harvard will deal with the lost revenue, just like you have no real plan for how to spend it.

But what we both know is that the $500 million in cuts have to come from somewhere.

The University’s surplus on its $5 billion operating budget only amounted to $114 million in the 2017 fiscal year. Taking into account the $40 million that will be lost to the federal endowment tax, that leaves an almost $400 million hole in the University’s budget.

This isn’t just another endowment tax. This is a tax on financial aid. This is a tax on education. This is a tax on research. But perhaps most disgustingly, this is a tax on human lives and progress.

Some argue that the endowment tax is a slippery slope — that it paves the way for the taxation of other non-profits. That both the national endowment tax and this proposal will lead to the taxation of other non-profits is undoubtedly true, but this isn’t a slippery slope.

Because, with Gonzalez’s proposal, we’re already at the bottom.

— Lorenzo F. Manuali ’21, an Associate Editorial Editor, lives in Adams House.

PAGE 5

THE HARVARD CRIMSON | SEPTEMBER 26, 2018

Business School Harvard Dems Oppose Kavanaugh to Focus on AI DEMS FROM PAGE 1

in Jan. 2019. Some students have called on Harvard to bar the nominee from teaching in Cambridge pending a “full and fair investigation” into the allegations of sexual misbehavior — Law School administrators have repeatedly refused to say whether or not they will continue to employ Kavanaugh.

“It is Law School policy not to comment on personnel matters,” Law School spokesperson Robb London wrote in a statement Tuesday. Cho began her presentation to the College Democrats by comparing the allegations against Kavanaugh to similar allegations faced by current Supreme Court Justice Clarence M. Thomas during his confirmation process in 1991.

The two men’s situations evoke parallels. During Thomas’s confirmation, Anita F. Hill, a professor of social policy, law, and women’s studies at Brandeis University, spoke out to accuse

the nominee — her former supervisor at the Department of Education — of sexually harassing her.

Cho said the United States Senate’s response to Hill’s allegations is similar to the way Congress is responding today to Ford’s and Ramirez’s allegations against Kavanaugh.

In an interview with the Washington Post, Ford, a psychologist and professor of statistics at Palo Alto University, said Kavanaugh pinned her to a bed, groped her, and tried to pull off her clothing at a party both attended in high school. In a later interview with the New Yorker, Ramirez said Kavanaugh had thrust his penis in her face at a party both attended while students at Yale. Kavanaugh has repeatedly rejected the charges, calling them “false accusations.”

Cho said the reoccurrence of high-profile cases like these in the federal judiciary represents

“not a bug in the system, but a feature.” In addition to Cho, the College Democrats also invited undergraduates from the Re-

So many of us, as Law Students, saw this news and expected a response from our school.

Connie Cho

proJustice Action and Dialogue Collective and anti-sexual assault advocacy group Our Harvard Can Do Better.

Members of ReproJustice Action and Dialogue Collective spoke of links between Kavanaugh’s political leanings and sexual violence and argued that his appointment to the Court will threaten federal protections for

abortion and healthcare.

Amelia Y. Goldberg ‘19, a member of Our Harvard Can Do Better, said the investigation into the allegations has been “bungled.” She said the lack of Senate response invites comparisons to the Brock Turner case, in which a then-Stanford student served three months in prison after being charged with sexually assaulting a classmate.

The College Democrats closed their meeting with a phone banking effort. They encouraged attendees to call their senators to demand they reject Kavanaugh’s nomination.Ford and Kavanaugh are slated to testify regarding her allegations in front of the Senate Thursday morning. The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to take a final vote on the nominee Friday. delano.franklin@thecrimson. com

MARSHALS FROM PAGE 1

Fourteen Seniors to Organize Class slow down for a second and one, take a second to remember that this is our last year and we’re on our way out and two, everyone that we’ve known and everyone that we talk to has helped us get to this point,” LeComer said.

In addition to the eight elect-

ed marshals, six seniors were appointed gift marshals by the Harvard College Fund after an application and interview process.

The gift marshals are in charge of orchestrating the Senior Gift Fund, which asks

graduating seniors to donate to Harvard.

Hanna M. Glissendorf ’19, one of this year’s gift marshals, said raising money for things like financial aid will be a key focus. “I’m just excited to try and educate the entire senior class

on what senior gift is and how important it is and how great it is to start giving back to the college now,” Glissendorf said.

Commencement for the Class of 2019 will fall on May 30. cindy.zhang@thecrimson.com.

Never miss a moment.

By GRACE E. GREASON CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

A recent multi-million dollar donation from a Harvard Business School alumnus will fund the development of case studies examining the intersections of artificial intelligence and business, the school announced Monday.

Stephen A. Schwarzman, who received his MBA from the Business School in 1972, donated $5 million to support the efforts of HBS faculty members producing case studies in the field, according to a press release.

Schwarzman is the co-founder and CEO of Blackstone, a multinational private equity, asset management, and financial services firm.

Students in the MBA program at the Business School learn using the case method, an innovative approach to learning pioneered by the Business School in the 1920s, through which students analyze, discuss, and brainstorm solutions for real-world issues in business and industry. According to the press release, the Schwarzman Research Fund will support case studies on a wide array of topics related to artificial intelligence, including the development of new markets, worker productivity, and ethical concerns.

Schwarzman said his experience heading Blackstone underscored the importance of the relationship between technology and business.

“The disruptive implications ­

and opportunities surrounding AI are far-reaching,” he said in the press release. “Executives need to understand how to anticipate, act on, and manage these changes. I am hopeful that through these case studies— hallmarks of the HBS experience that have helped train a century of business leaders— we can better prepare the next generation to help shape the application of AI in an ethical and accountable way that benefits the public interest.”

HBS Dean Nitin Nohria said he welcomes the opportunity to expose students to a new and increasingly relevant field.

“AI has profound implications for the future of work and for society more broadly,” said Nohria. “Steve’s generous gift will accelerate faculty research in this area, advancing understanding and exposing business leaders around the world to this increasingly important topic.”

Schwarzman’s donation to the Business School comes as the University completes its capital campaign, which hauled in a total of $9.6 billion dollars — an all-time high in higher education. The Business School was consistently among the top of Harvard’s professional schools in donations throughout the five year campaign.

Aenean commodo ligula eget dolor. Aenean massa. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. Donec quam felis, ultricies nec, pellentesque grace.greason@thecrimson. com.

Lee Named Alum Development VP

By JAMIE D. HALPER CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Brian K. Lee will be Harvard’s next Vice President for Alumni Affairs and Development, the University announced Monday, just days after it released the final total of its record-breaking $9.6 billion capital campaign.

Lee currently works at the California Institute of Technology, where he is overseeing the school’s own $2 billion capital campaign. University President Lawrence S. Bacow, who took office this summer, appointed him to the Harvard post. Lee and Bacow aren’t new acquaintances; prior to his current role at Caltech, Lee spent 26 years in various roles at Tufts University, including many years working under Bacow, who served as president of Tufts until 2011.

Lee will take over from the current vice president, Tamara E. Rogers ’74, in November. Rogers has held the role since 2007, and shannounced her plans last winter to step down by the end of the calendar year. She oversaw the capital campaign from its launch in 2013.

Lee told the Harvard Gazette that he was looking forward to serving the school and its alumni.“I am thrilled at the prospect of working with Harvard’s remarkable community of alumni, donors, and volunteers,” Lee said. “This is an exciting time to build on the strong engagement and momentum of a campaign with far-reaching impact.”

In his new role, Lee will lead the University’s fundraising and alumni outreach initiatives. ­

The Crimson @thecrimson

His appointment comes on the heels of Harvard completing the largest campaign in higher education history, sailing past the University’s original goal of $6.5 billion to raise $3.1 billion more.But Lee will also step into his new job as the school prepares to face an unprecedented tax on its endowment and must continue to fund a number of large ongoing projects like a new Allston campus

This is an exciting time to build on the strong engagement... of a campaign with far-reaching impact.

Brian K. Lee

and undergraduate House renewal.

Bacow told the Gazette he looks forward to working with Lee in his new role.“Brian has demonstrated an extraordinary ability to bring together people in support of higher education, and he brings to his new role an especially strong record of supporting and advancing institutional goals with a combination of creativity, insight, and thoughtfulness,” he said.

A search committee chaired

by Robert W. Iuliano ’83, Harvard’s general counsel, selected Lee, who will begin his new role on Nov. 9. jamie.halper@thecrimson.com.

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SPORTS

WEEKEND EVENT

SCHEDULE

FRIDAY ______________________________________

SATURDAY ______________________________________

SUNDAY ______________________________________

Football vs. No. 20/22 Rhode Island 7:00pm, at Harvard Stadium

Women’s Golf vs. Princeton Invitational 9:00am, at Springdale Golf Club

Men’s Water Polo @ No. 13 Princeton 12:00pm, at DeNunzio Pool

Women’s Volleyball @ Cornell 7:00pm, at Newman Arena

Men’s Soccer vs. Yale 4:00pm, at Jordan Field

Field Hockey vs. Bryant 2:00pm, at Berylson Field

FOOTBALL

Time for the Ivy League to Consider Playoff Football?

Jack STOCKLESS THE STOCK LESS MONSTER Before the Harvard football team strapped on the pads and took the field for its week one game against the University of San Diego, it was already eliminated from playoff contention.

No, it’s not that the Crimson was projected to be so bad that any hope of success was an afterthought. Rather, the team plays in the Ivy League, the only football conference at the Division I level that opts out of advancing any of its teams to the postseason.

For anyone unfamiliar with the yearly crowning of the Ancient Eight champion, the team with the best in-conference record automatically claims the glory and title. But actually not quite — if two teams (or three, or four…) conclude their seasons with identical records, there is no tiebreaker system and the teams simply share the designation of Ivy League champions together.

Just last year, with just two games remaining for each squad, it was a very real possibility that seven(!) teams could have shared the title. Despite the entertainment value that would have come from such a quirky finish and the fact that Yale would not have been the outright champion, I imagine it would not have been satisfying to the average fan or to any team involved.

Now maybe I am overreacting by discussing an obscure possibility that didn’t end up coming to fruition anyway, or ­

by discussing the postseason before September is even over, but plenty of times teams have tied for the top spot in the conference. I would venture to say that a tie at the top leaves both teams wanting more since it is not a clean, clear-cut result.

The season consists of months on end of hard work in the weight room and on the practice fields, regimented eating and sleeping, and 10 games in which players put forth the entirety of their effort, not to mention having to keep up with schoolwork during that span.

Tying for the title is still no doubt better than falling short, but there has to be some way to reward the best of the best in the Ivy League.

The conference’s reluctance to add its own playoff or to allow its teams to compete for an FCS championship seems to stem mostly from tradition.

However, that tradition has not been part and parcel of the league for its entire existence.

For instance, in 1920 Harvard traveled to Pasadena, Calif., to compete in the Rose Bowl (then known as the Tournament EastWest Football Game).

The trip was well-worth it for the Crimson, as it won by a score of 7-6 over Oregon. Yes, college football was a completely different landscape back then, but the competition level of Ancient Eight teams generally aligns very well with other FCS programs, and Ivy League playoff teams would not be fed to the wolves by having to compete against teams that are significantly more skilled.

Not only have Ivy League teams competed in bowl games before, but the league is also making a number of changes to slowly but surely modernize the product on its fields. Games are played on Friday nights under the lights and are broadcast on nationally-available networks

IN THE HUNT? The Ivy League is the only conference that opts to not advance a team to the football playoffs. TIMOTHY R. O’MEARA—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

like ESPN as well as popular local networks like NESN. Just this year, the league instituted a replay policy by which plays can be reviewed and calls can be overturned, bringing the conference up to speed with other top FCS leagues. Revolutionary player safety initiatives are being born within the league, such as Dartmouth’s use of tackling dummies in practices. The Ivy League does not have to cling to

the past.

Seemingly something that would make it easier for football teams to advance to postseason contention is that other major sports in the conference already do. Two seasons ago, the Harvard men’s hockey team competed in the Frozen Four at the United Center in Chicago.

The conference also recently instituted its own playoff to determine which of its basketball

teams, on both the men’s and women’s sides, receive an automatic bid to March Madness.

Some of the apparent drawbacks to postseason football appear to be its conflict with players’ academic commitments near the end of the fall semester and the fact that it adds on additional weeks of playing, which could be construed as conflicting with the player safety angle mentioned above. As for both,

there are really no obvious solutions that come to mind, so if the Ivy League were to ever consider entering the playoff realm, it would have to weigh the good with the bad. However, in an age of increasing visibility and talent level within the league, I believe it must consider breaking with tradition and taking the postseason plunge. jack.stockless@thecrimson.com.

WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

Harvard Loses Tough Nail-Biter in Five Sets at Dartmouth

By BEN STERN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Harvard women’s volleyball dropped its first Ivy League contest of the season to Dartmouth in a back-and-forth battle that ultimately ended the ­

Crimson’s four-game winning streak; this was the first time in the last five meetings between the two squads that the team from Hanover emerged victorious.

The hard-fought match went the distance, with set scores of

26-24, 21-25, 25-21, 17-25, and 15-17. The Big Green (5-6, 1-0 Ivy) got its revenge on Harvard, as the Crimson (5-5, 0-1) defeated the Big Green in both matchups last season for a two-game sweep. Harvard has historically handled the Big Green well; de-

spite its loss Friday, the Crimson is 51-22 all-time against its Ancient Eight rival, winning more than two-thirds of the contests.

The fourth set was hardly a true blowout, but it set the stage for the tie-breaking duel, in

GOING THE DISTANCE Harvard fought to the end against Dartmouth on Friday, but ultimately lost in five sets. TIMOTHY R. O’MEARA—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

which Dartmouth held a slight edge for most of the way. This lead was in jeopardy for most of the set as Harvard clawed back to even the score at 12-12, and a kill by junior middle blocker Maclaine Fields gave the Crimson women a tenuous lead.

However, this advantage was fleeting.

Harvard held on until 15-14 but could not secure the set as the Big Green responded and reeled off a 3-0 run that was capped by an ace by Cox to win the set and the match in a hardfought heartbreaker for the losing side.

Last season, senior middle blocker Christina Cornelius posted a stellar performance against Dartmouth almost exactly a year prior to Friday’s showdown. She was impressive in Hanover once again, notching her second double-double of the season with 14 digs and 14 kills. The Los Angeles, Calif., native earned All-Ivy first team honors last season and is on her way to another impressive campaign.

Fellow Californian Fields also delivered for Harvard, narrowly missing out on a double-double of her own with 14 kills and nine blocks. The junior tied her career high in the latter category. Freshman setter Bella Almanza continued a good start to the season, posting another strong performance by racking up a season-high 43 assists and 10 digs in the effort.

Senior libero Anna Uhr, who paced last year’s squad in both total digs (283) and dig/set average (3.18), led the way against the Big Green with 19 digs. Junior outside hitter Grace Roberts Burbank and sophomore outside hitter Mindie Mabry both turned in solid showings, tallying 10 and nine digs, respectively, and co-captain Brooke Istvan recorded a ca-

reer-high 13 digs.

Harvard got off to a shaky start to the match as Dartmouth came out with all the momentum, firing on all cylinders to claim a quick and steep 13-4 lead. The Crimson recovered quickly, though, and climbed back into the set, cutting the deficit and forcing the Big Green to use a timeout with the score at 21-15. The pause proved ineffective for Dartmouth, as Harvard continued its roll and cut the deficit to a mere point at 2423. A clutch Marbry kill brought the Crimson even, and another two points later, Harvard captured the set.

The second set was as close as the first, and the Ivy League foes dueled to a 20-20 standoff. The Crimson took the lead on a bad set by Dartmouth junior defensive specialist Maddy Schoenberger, but the Big Green immediately called a timeout to regroup, and this one had its intended effect. The break catalyzed a set-sealing 5-0 run for Dartmouth, including a dagger ace from junior right side hitter Corinne Cox. In the third clash of the night, Harvard was in control nearly wire to wire, opening up a 18-12 advantage at one point.

Dartmouth ripped off five unanswered points late in the set, but the Crimson shut the door to stifle the comeback on an ace from Mabry to take a 2-1 lead in sets.

Harvard was within two points at 7-9 in the fourth set, but the Big Green then opened its advantage to 13-7 and never looked back, maintaining at least a four-point lead for the rest of the set on the way to securing a 25-17 win.

Harvard will look to bounce back against its Hanover rivals.

A rematch with Dartmouth is set for Oct. 19, and both teams are certain to come out firing.