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Uncommon' play deals with common themes

April 28

As the class of 2004 prepares to don their caps and gowns, Pen, Paint & Pretzel's presentation of "Uncommon Women" couldn't be timelier. "It is a show about senior year, and what women thought their place in the world should be in 1972," junior director Christi Hanson said. "With graduation coming up, I believe that a lot of people will find comfort that even back then, no one knew quite what to do after college." "Uncommon Women" defines the awkward post-graduation transition period, something all college students are aware of and identify with, even though most have yet to experience it. Wendy Wassertein's play, which redefines life after graduation, begins and ends with five Mount Holyoke graduates catching up on their lives ten years after college. The majority of the play is told in flashback, as the women "return" to their senior year and compare their former dreams and fears to their current reality. Each of the women refers to the group of friends as "uncommon" because, as crazy and outspoken Rita repeatedly declares, "We're going to be pretty f**king amazing by the time we're 30!" The friends blend gossip and nostalgia with comfortable teasing so that by the end of the show, the audience has become familiar with the play's world. Though the show's actresses identify each of their characters' struggles with challenges presented to women in the 1970's, many of the characters' fears are timeless. The play's fresh characters bring the characterized "elite" college woman to a level that is both familiar and nuanced. From senior Amanda Haley's bitingly sarcastic portrayal of Carter to sophomore Chloe Green and freshman Jess Baumann's joyful singing to their beloved doll Piglet, the actresses convey different forms of humor that can be appreciated by a diverse audience. The show is both sharply witty and sincerely touching, sometimes simultaneously. Especially entertaining are the interactions between the women and their house mother Mrs. Plumm -- hysterically played by freshman Katie Clark -- as well as Bauman's dead-on portrayal of the bubbly, outgoing and oblivious Susie. Freshman Kasey Collin nails the role of dramatic "Muffy" Muffet when she casts her theatrical fa?§ade to the side and confides to Carter about the day when she will finally find her "prince." "I wouldn't have to give up being a person," she says. "I could still know all of the art history dates." Another highlight of the play involves a group sing-a-long led by Mrs. Plumm which compares the era's Ivy League boys, complete with an enthusiastic chorus of "We're saving ourselves for Yale!" The most crazy and uninhibited of the women is Rita, played by senior Katie Tabone, who takes some of the best lines as she gleefully shocks her friends with announcements like, "I have tasted my own menstrual blood!" But before Rita can become too much of a caricature, she shares a touching scene with Samantha (Green) in what is one of the finest moments of the show. Rounding out the cast are Laura Espy, Molly O'Neill and Erica Finkel, each of whose characters add another layer of humor and drama to the story to create a diverse and hilarious group of women. All of the actresses move through the full range of drama, sarcasm, and comedic ability, and their enthusiasm makes this free trip to the theater something not to be missed.

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News

Driven to distraction: Concern among students over shuttle drivers' cell phone use

April 28

Usually, multitasking is seen as a good thing. But where driving and cell phones are concerned, it's potentially dangerous: Harvard University's Center for Risk Analysis estimates that the use of cell phones while driving causes 2,600 deaths and 570,000 injuries annually. Tufts students have observed drivers for Joseph's Limousine and Transportation -- the company that the University uses for its shuttle into Davis Square and the New England Conservatory (NEC) -- talking frequently on their cell phones. While Massachusetts does not have a law preventing this, Joseph's Limousine does. "Sometimes, if I can't get in touch with them by radio and I need to contact then, I will call them on their cell phones," said Joseph's Limousines Manager Gerry DiBari. "But [drivers] are not supposed to be using the cell phone for personal calls while they're driving," Nonetheless, some drivers do. "You've seen it, I've seen it," senior and TCU Senate Treasurer Josh Belkin said. "There have been plenty of times when we've been sitting there and the driver's on their phone and not paying full attention, and tries to pull out into heavy traffic." Sophomore Alison Isaacs, who rides the Davis Square shuttle on a daily basis, said that drivers talking on cell phones are "very" common. "It happens at least semi-daily," she said. "And it's personal calls -- they're not calling the shuttle dispatcher." Though neither Joseph's nor the Tufts Department of Public Safety, through which Joseph's is contracted, has received many official complaints regarding drivers' cell phone use, students do call in to convey general conerns. "We do receive complaints for various reasons, including some concerns over drivers' cell phones," TUPD Captain Mark Keith said. "This year, since September, we've received a few -- two or three -- from students or staffers." Though Public Safety fields official shuttle-related complaints, Belkin said that "[the Senate] gets a lot of anecdotal stuff and hearsay." He said that drivers' use of cell phones is a concern. "We [the Senate] are students, too -- we see it as an issue," he said. A possible reason for the lack of formal complaints is that students may just assume that talking on the cell phone while driving the shuttle, though not recommended, is allowed. Belkin was unaware of Joseph's policy on drivers' cell phone use: "If Joseph's allows it and knows about it, that's one issue," he said. "If they're not aware that their drivers are doing it, that's another issue." Despite seeing drivers talking on their cell phones while driving on a "semi-daily" basis, Isaacs has also never formally complained -- she was unaware, she said, of Joseph's policy. According to DiBari, it's difficult to keep tabs on drivers' inappropriate cell phone use unless students register an official complaint. "It's a lot easier for me if students tell me the time the driver was on the cell phone," DiBari said. "They don't need to give me names -- I can pinpoint who it was, and whether they were talking to me." If it was determined that the driver was making personal calls while driving, DiBari said that he'd sit down and talk with the driver and, if necessary, remove him or her from the Tufts route. "In most instances, complaints come in about past practices -- students don't call while they're on the shuttle and say, 'Hey, I'm on the shuttle and I'm worried because the driver's on the cell phone and distracted,'" Keith said, adding that students can formally complain either to Public Safety or directly to Joseph's. "Usually, they'll [call or e-mail] the next day and say, 'The driver was using a cell phone and I was worried.'" Like DiBari, Keith emphasized that such delayed, anecdotal complaints are less helpful than more specific ones. "I would encourage students, if they observe drivers talking on their cells while driving, to either call or e-mail us, and to indicate the time and day it happened," he said, adding that "timely notification is really important" in identifying the offending drivers. While some students are worried about shuttle drivers' use of cell phones, others are less concerned. "I've ridden on the Joey many times while the driver was talking on a cell phone, but they never seemed overly distracted," senior Julie Medway said. Freshman Chase Webber agreed, saying that, though he's "ridden on the Joey a few times while the driver talked on a cell phone, it didn't seem to affect their driving." There has been only one accident this year involving a shuttle run by Joseph's. It took place off-campus on the NEC shuttle, and "to our knowledge, it was not related to cell phone usage," Keith said.

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News

Tufts finishes second at NESCAC championships

April 28

D?©j?  vu. That's what veterans of the Tufts men's track team must have been thinking as they returned from Saturday's NESCAC championships at Trinity College. In 2003, the Jumbos edged out Bates by one half of a point in order to secure a second place finish behind Williams. This year, nothing changed, as Williams finished in first with 158 points, followed by Tufts with 130 and Bates with 129.5. The team was hampered in its effort to surpass Williams by the loss of junior jumper and hurdler Nate Thompson, who had been diagnosed with mono earlier that week. Thompson has been a top scorer for the Jumbos in multiple events this season, and his absence severely diminished the team's chances of wresting the NESCAC title away from Williams, which has won the NESCAC in each of the last four years, and eleven of the last twelve. In Thompson's absence, the rest of the Jumbo squad performed well, coming from behind to secure second place from Bates. "Thompson not being there really hurt us in terms of points," coach Connie Putnam said. "Given that circumstance, I'm pretty pleased. Everyone went flat-out. The rest of the team had to work doubly hard, and while I'm never thrilled to be second, we had some great performances." One such performance was delivered by freshman long and triple jumper Fred Jones. Jones led all Jumbos in scoring, winning both of his events with jumps of 21-1.50 feet in the long jump and 46-7.25 feet in the triple jump. Jones faced stiff competition from Colby standout Xavier Garcia, the reigning NESCAC champion in both jumps, who also won the 100 and 200 meter dashes this year and was the leading scorer in the meet. "[Garcia] was definitely favored in both," Jones said. "Going against him, it really excites me and drives me to win even more. He's an incredible athlete and I always wish him the best. This time I was fortunate enough to edge him out." Jones won each event in dramatic comeback fashion; he had been trailing Garcia heading into the last jump of each event. "There was more pressure, but I knew that they were the last opportunities I had," Jones continued. "I tried to leave everything out on the track and get the victory, and I was able to do that." Another key victory for the team came in the pole vault, which was won by Tufts sophomore Seth LaPierre. LaPierre captured the event with a mark of 15-00.50 feet. LaPierre's coach described his victory as uplifting for the entire squad. "LaPierre's win got the team amped up at a point in the meet when we needed some reassurance." Putnam said. Tufts' third first place finish came in the 10,000, an event which was dominated by Jumbos. Freshman Josh Kennedy won the event and was quickly followed by senior Peter Bromka in second. The team has put up strong showings in the distance runs all season, and Saturday was no exception. In addition to Kennedy and Bromka's domination of the 10,000, senior tri-captain Peter Jurczynski finished second in the 3000 steeplechase and junior Nate Brigham finished second in the 5000, followed by sophomore Matt Lacey in third. Brigham's performance was all the more impressive considering that he had run the 10,000 at the Penn Relays on Thursday, just two days before the NESCAC championships. In an even grittier performance, Brigham went on to run the mile leg of the distance medley relay later in the meet. "Going into the race, my legs were sore and I was really tired, but I was glad to do it for the team," Brigham said. "I just kept telling myself that it was ok and that one more mile wouldn't kill me." Brigham overtook several runners on the final straightaway to propel the relay team into fifth place. "He really bailed us out," Putnam added. "Without Nate's final leg, we wouldn't have beaten Bates." Tufts throwers also had a successful day, contributing several middle-ground points that would prove to be important. They were led by sophomore Brandon Udelhofen's third place finish in the discus and Dan March's fifth place finish in the hammer throw. The next tier of the Jumbos' championship season comes this weekend at the New England Division III championships. In what is anticipated to be a very close meet, several teams will be in the hunt for a victory. MIT and Springfield, two of Tufts' fiercest non-conference rivals, will be competing in addition to Williams and Bates. Tufts will remain without Thompson. "It's tough losing Thompson, but guys competing this weekend and beyond have to worry about what they can control," Brigham said. "The remaining members of the team are going to compete as hard as they can this weekend."

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News

The Goodbye Game

April 28

My recollection of my childhood consists of lots of people coming over to our house. There were holidays, birthdays, graduations, all events that marked the need for my parents to invite all the usual suspects over to our house. The aunt and uncle, the cousins, the standard arrangement of various friends from the Jewish community, the neighbors we don't actually talk to, and possibly -- if I was lucky -- people my own age. That was always a bonus. But what really haunted me during these times when people flooded my house -- my former fortress of solitude -- were the mandatory greetings and goodbyes. I just detested the whole routine. I don't think that this is particular to Central Jersey middle-class Jewish culture, but each female guest -- save for my one cousin that was my age -- demanded a kiss on the cheek. That was just the way it was. The male guests (except for my grandpa and uncle) required simply a handshake, which I could deal with. But all of the women, whether they were my closest aunt or my most never-heard-of neighbor, were required to be kissed. Let me just say simply: I hated this. Ever since I was a kid, the kiss-hello just tormented me. I didn't like it. It made me uncomfortable. So I devised a plan. An ingenious plan. I would hide out in my room until everyone arrived. Then I would come downstairs. And if it was a sit-down event like a holiday, I would just slide my way into my own seat and tell people very maturely, "Oh, no, don't get up. It's alright." This was incredibly smooth. And if it was a stand-around-and-shmooze event, I would just circulate the rooms, and give a big cheek-protecting wave to everyone in each location. Done. There wasn't much different about the kiss-goodbye. Whether people had been over at our house for fifteen minutes or four hours, each demanded a similar kiss-goodbye. This bothered me the most on Rosh Hashana, a holiday which is celebrated on two consecutive nights. On the first night, I had to kiss everyone goodbye. But then, in less than 24 hours, I had to kiss them hello again?! We're going to see each other tomorrow! Needless to say, like all childhood issues, this is one that I have not completely resolved. Things have changed in the kissing area, as now, of course, kissing is a good thing. But I haven't quite mastered doing hellos and goodbyes. When I walk into a party, I feel as though I insert an awkward pause into the whole room, so I quickly search for a conversation partner in the corner. And when it comes to goodbyes, well, I always seem to be leaving too early or too late for someone's liking. The other night, at the end of a concert on campus, I had done the meet-and-greets, the congratulating, and even some kissing-on-cheeks. And then I went to leave. But I still got grief for it! I got looks! Apparently, I hadn't done enough. And later that night, when I was tired of dancing at what was actually a fun '80s party, I decided to go. In this case, I was a complete social idiot, and just walked out. I said "bye" to the nearest person and just left. Luckily, I have good enough friends who informed me of what a complete jackass I was: A nice phone message reminded me that I didn't say "goodbye," and people made fun of me the next day because I just disappeared. I guess I've still got learning to do. Of course this all leads us to a "goodbye" that's coming up very soon: the end of the semester. If you haven't already considered how awkward this is going to be, let me get the ball rolling for you. There will be girls crying. That'll be weird. You'll hug people whose names you don't know. This is to be expected. And you'll ask for the fiftieth time in one day, "What're you up to this summer?" The above occurrences are unavoidable and seemingly cumbersome. But let me impart something that my dad has tried to teach me for a long time: It's better to say goodbye. It's better to acknowledge how much you've enjoyed something than to just walk away like it never happened. So as the days roll by, and when you think that you're just going to take off right after your last exam, take a second to meet up with people. You'll be much happier. And should you be in the boat that is the Class of 2004: we've got plenty of time to party and have a great time. See you at Senior Week.

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News

The Traveling Lush: No regrets at Mantra

April 28

"No regrets" has been the senior year mantra for me and my friends. And so, appropriately, I had no regrets about our night at the multifaceted Mantra, a restaurant/bar/club/lounge in Boston. By day, Mantra is a chic French-Indian restaurant that has garnered rave reviews from The Boston Globe, InStyle, and Bon Appetit magazines. By night, the dancing lights and pounding music transform it into a small club, and its lavish couches, complete with wait service, make it a lounge. After missing the Boston-Tufts shuttle, we arrived late -- but in style. My Daily co-worker and friend, Denise, had a connection to Saturday's promoter: his girlfriend. So, after pulling up to the club in the friend's Mercedes, the velvet rope was pulled aside and we were whisked inside. We entered the bank-building-turned-restaurant and noted its tall ceilings, marble floors, and swirling lights. The chairs were plush, the crowd was posh, and no advertised drink specials were in sight -- Toto, I don't think we're in Somerville anymore. (Side note: check out the women's bathrooms; special mirrors on the stalls let you see out, while others just see their reflection. It's kinda weird, but at least five people told me I had to see it.) Scantily clad dancers writhed and grinded at the front of the room above the lively, dancing crowd, made up of area college students (a birthday group from Tufts, BU students), young professionals, and stylish others. One might say that the people in attendance were very "Euro," or at least dressed liked it, and whether that's true or not, I was the only one with a U.S. driver's license in the group I came with. We sipped deliciously potent appletinis, served in classy-but-guaranteed-to-spill cocktail glasses, and took shots that seemed elegant because of the location we drank them in (but let's face it, it's still a shot of Sex on the Beach). Sadly, my drink got killed when a friend (VAL!) graciously knocked over that delicate cocktail glass. The music, while very danceable, was extremely eclectic. It spanned the decades. Literally. They played every popular song ever produced -- "Must Be the Money" (a blast from the freshman year past), "We Will Rock You" (a Jock Jams hit), "The Twist" (I haven't heard this since I attended Bat Mitzvahs), and for sure, some middle school dance favorites. They played more current music too, but no one seemed to mind the random selection of songs -- as long as one could dance to it. Altogether, it was nice to change it up and have a fancy night out, as well as see people outside of the office. But, at the end of the night I was ready to go home. I missed Tufts. And I know I will even more come May 23. I will miss running into familiar faces by the keg, taking inebriated pictures with Jumbo, and recapping the night with friends over brunch. As this is the last time (well, except for the commencement issue) that I can "get drunk and write about it" for the Daily (as an arts editor once put it), I'd like to thank my nearest and dearest for making four years of memorable weekends (and weekdays too), and to the people who actually read this. And for underclassmen, you may not be 21 yet, but still, enjoy every moment -- as my friend Mike said to me this week: "I'll be spending money at bars for the rest of my life. I might as well enjoy free beer at the keg while I can." I've done some pretty silly things in college, but I have no regrets -- even in sharing my weekend exploits on this page.

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News

Williams strikes again

April 28

Unfortunately for Tufts, it was not meant to be, again. The women's outdoor track and field team finished runner-up to the Williams College Ephs once again in this year's NESCAC Championships, held at Trinity College on Saturday. Williams dominated the competition with 247 points, while Tufts was in a distant second with 141.5. "We had them scrambling during the indoor season at New Englands, so it is heartbreaking that things ended up for us this way," coach Kristen Morwick said. Call it bad luck, fate, or as some would like to believe, a "Williams hex," but whatever conspired to have three Jumbos wipe out in three different events put a serious cap on the team's uphill climb toward the top of the NESCAC. Like senior quad-captain Jess Trombly, who was disqualified in the 100 meter hurdles after getting caught up in a tumble by Ester Schlegel of Wesleyan. To make matters worse, the fall strained an old hamstring injury. Despite the circumstances, Trombly immediately had to run in her next event, the 400m dash. She took second place in the event (59.06), as well as second place in the long jump (5.21m). Or sophomore Jillian Warner, who, after taking third place in the 100m dash (12.78) and fourth place in the 200m (26.08), fell in the last leg of the 4X400 relay, sustaining season-ending injuries. Then there was junior Katie Sheedy, who was tripped and wiped off the track in the 800m dash, knocking her down to 18th place and adding ten seconds to her time in the event. "If the falls hadn't happened, we would have added at least forty points to our score, and taken away from Williams's total, closing the gap between us," Morwick said. "Things just went from bad to worse for us. Considering everything that happened, it is pretty unbelievable that we still ended up in second place." Key performances contributed to the second place finish, including the Jumbos' only two individual winners at the meet: senior tri-captain Lauren Caputo and freshman Sarah Crispin. Crispin was the first to cross the line in the 800m run, racing to a personal record of 2:17.56. This is her second consecutive first place finish in the event. "[Crispin] has a great attitude," Morwick said. "She really steps it up in big meets. She is going to have a great four years here." Adding to her already-distinguished four years here was Caputo, who dominated in the 3000m steeplechase, earning a victory in 11:21.96. The Jumbos crowded the finish line, with sophomore Becca Ades coming in second, nine seconds off her teammate's mark (11:29.76). Ades also took sixth place in the 1500m in 4:50.78, making both events being personal records. Sophomore Rachel Bloom also contributed significant points to the team's score, with second place finishes in both the 100m (12.62) and 200m dashes (25.65). Her time in the 200m was also a personal record. She also ran in the second place 4X100 relay squad (49.52). The field unit once again exceeded expectations, topped by a third place javelin throw of 106 ft. by junior Melissa Graveley. Many team members had both personal and season bests, and senior Gwen Campell set a school record in the hammer throw, taking sixth place in the event with a 41.58m toss. Despite the effort, it would be one more notch on evil empire Williams' belt. "It was a tough day to have all of this stuff happen to us," Morwick said. "It is unfortunate that it had to be the biggest meet of the season." Morwick, however, was still encouraged by the performances of many of the team members, particularly in how the younger competitors rose to the challenge. "For what was for us a sub-par meet, we still came in second place in a really strong conference," Morwick said. "One of the positives was the way the younger classes really stepped it up. They will only get better over their careers so I was pleased with that." Next up for the team is the New England Div. III Championships held in Springfield. While Morwick's strategy will be to boost individual performances to get as many people qualified for All New England's and Nationals, she still expects the team to place in the top three.

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News

Interest in Talloires up

April 28

The Tufts in Talloires program is seeing a dramatic spike in interest from students who want to spend their summer in France. "The available spaces were filled before the application deadline," Talloires Chair Emese Soos said. In the six-week Tufts in Talloires program, 93 undergraduates from Tufts or other universities take two courses for credit while staying with French families. According to Soos, greater publicity accompanied the program this year. "The new administrative director of the program, Gabriella Goldstein, stepped up events to publicize the program to students," Soos said. "Through her efforts, many people became aware of a great educational opportunity." Soos credited higher enrollments in the French language courses as another reason for the increase in Talliores' popularity. "The increased enrollment suggests that students are aware of the continued importance of French used all over the world," Soos said. Talloires' location in the heart of France and Europe near the headquarters of the United Nations and many non-governmental organizations is also a draw for students interested in international issues. "Students, increasingly aware of the importance of international diplomacy, may be drawn to Talliores," Soos said. A wide offering of diverse courses from many departments makes up the essence of this years' program. Procedures for selecting which courses to be taught also were clarified, working against ambiguity in its selection process. According to Soos, faculty this year who had proposed courses were not allowed either to discuss or vote on courses in competition with their own, as they could in previous years. Talloires courses draw from many different disciplines, including alpine botany, economics, international relations, and French. In addition to their classwork in Talloires, students also develop a greater understanding of and appreciation for the surrounding area. "Courses are selected in part to promote on-site learning, whether studying alpine flowers, the education of French schoolchildren, fine arts in visits to museums in Paris or the Riviera, or simply French proficiency through daily contact with host families, local merchants, and disco partners," Soos said. "I'm really excited about staying with a host family and to learn more about the French culture," said student Kara Davidson, who will participate in the program this summer. "I want to learn about the people who live there, and not just visit the sites." Sophomore Katherine Zouein said she was attracted by "The fact that I would be in the Alps and taking classes at the same time." Tufts in Talloires is one of five programs that takes place at the Tufts European Center, which also offers programs for high school students, alumni, and adults.

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News

Red Cross policy not discriminatory

April 28

The complaint by Matt Pohl that the American Red Cross Blood Drive violates the University's anti-discrimination policy raises a much larger question. What constitutes discrimination? Does a behavior define a group, and as a result are rules that limit the actions of people who engage in that behavior discriminatory against that group? Matt Pohl claims that people define their sexual orientation by the sexual partners they choose. The existence of groups such as Men who have sex with Men (MSM), however, presents an antithesis to Pohl's view. According the University of California San Francisco AIDS Research Institute, "MSM refers to any man who has sex with a man, whether he identifies as gay, bisexual or heterosexual." The American Red Cross does not discriminate by sexual orientation, but creates restrictions by behavior. It decides who can and who cannot donate blood by following an extensive list of eligibility guidelines, which, assuming the donor answers every question truthfully, will ensure that the blood supply is completely and entirely safe. A guideline added in 1996 states "persons who were born in or who lived in certain countries in Western Africa, or who have had close contact with persons who were born in or who lived in certain West African countries are not eligible to donate." It is unreasonable for anyone to claim that the Red Cross is discriminatory against West Africans and even people who are friends of West Africans; rather the ban exists because that part of the world is stricken with the HIV virus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 1997 HIV/AIDS Surveillance Report found that same sex sexual behavior accounts for 63 percent of AIDS cases for males ages 20 to 24. This statistic does not imply that gay men are likely to have AIDS, but that men with AIDS were likely to have gotten it because of their sexual behavior. Gay men who do not have sex with other men are allowed to donate blood. Straight men who have had sex with other men, even if only once since 1977, are not allowed to donate blood. It is not about one's sexual orientation, in or out of the closet, but about one's behavior. The Red Cross must reject a donor who has been exposed to any virus transmittable through blood for the safety of every blood transfusion recipient. The Red Cross does not say that people who identify themselves with certain groups are more likely to be exposed to a virus, but that certain behaviors increase likelihood, whether that behavior is living in West Africa, using a needle for any drug that was not prescribed by a doctor, having received a corneal (eye) transplant, or simply being a man who has had sex with another man. Unfortunately for the emergency blood supply, these strict stipulations eliminate are large pool of completely healthy and willing would-be donors. Ultimately, it is better to have a smaller, 100 percent safe blood supply than a larger but potentially infected blood supply. The American Red Cross states on its website that these restrictions may be removed if scientists can develop a test that screens donated blood for type O HIV. Until then, check the long list of eligibility guidelines available at www.americanredcrossblood.org to see if you can donate blood. If you are ineligible because of one of these requirements, realize that the Red Cross is not targeting your identity, but ensuring the safety of everyone involved.

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News

Cinema the way it should be

April 28

Two common hopes among cinephiles are A) to discover an amazing movie that nobody else has seen yet and B) to attend a glamorous film festival at some point in their lives. Luckily for Tufts film fans, the second annual Independent Film Festival of Boston (IFFB) makes both these dreams a reality this weekend. In its sophomore year, the IFFB is serving up a full schedule of film premieres and sneak previews this weekend at the Somerville and Jimmy Tingle Theaters in Davis Square, the Brattle Theater in Harvard Square, and at Coolidge Corner in Brookline. The festival opens tonight at the Somerville Theater at 7 p.m. with the East Coast premiere of "Rick," a moody drama based on Verdi's opera "Rigoletto," which is directed by Curtis Clayton ("Drugstore Cowboy," "My Own Private Idaho," "Made"). The film stars Bill Pullman ("Zero Effect," "While You Were Sleeping"), who will be at the screening along with the director for a question and answer session. The IFFB makes the art of cinema more accessible to even the casual moviegoer. The film festival offers the unique opportunity for audience members to discuss each film with its director and members of its cast and crew after every screening. Attendees can also cast their vote for the Audience Awards for Best Narrative Feature, Documentary Feature, and Short Film. Another film to watch for is "Goodnight, Joseph Parker," directed by Tufts alum Dennis Brooks (LA '90). The film, which will show at 4:30 p.m. on Friday and 6 p.m. on Sunday at the Brattle Theater in Harvard Square, tells the story of Joey Parker (Nick Chinlund, "Training Day"), an up-and-coming singer who returns home to his local bar to try and reconnect with his old friends and long lost love after seven years. The film -- Brooks' first feature -- boasts an impressive cast, including Debbie Mazar ("Bullets over Broadway"), Paul Sorvino ("Goodfellas"), Richard Edson ("Stranger Than Paradise"), Kim Dickens ("House of Sand and Fog"), and Steven Tyler of Aerosmith in his acting debut. Since "Goodnight, Joseph Parker" has yet to be purchased by a distributor, this special sneak preview will be the best place to catch a glimpse of the film before its theatrical release. If the material holds up to the caliber of the cast, this may be one of the hottest movies of the film festival season, and these early showings provide a great chance for cinema lovers to get bragging rights after seeing the film first. In addition to screening traditional feature films, the IFFB also showcases a number of documentaries and shorts. "Double Dare" is a not-to-be-missed documentary about the lives of two Hollywood stunt women, Jeannie Eppers and Zo? Bell, who are stunt doubles for Wonder Women and Xena: Warrior Princess, respectively. The film explores the two women's experiences and difficulties of working in their industry. "Double Dare" also includes several interviews featuring Lynda Carter, Lucy Lawless, Steven Spielberg, and Quentin Tarantino, and will screen with director Amanda Micheli, Eppers and Bell in attendance. For all the metal head fans out there, the IFFB will also present the East Coast premiere of "Metallica: Some Kind of Monster." This short documentary, which was directed by Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky, relates the trials and tribulations of one of the most successful heavy metal bands in history and features the title band in an otherwise unpublicized setting: group therapy. The camera accompanies the band as they work through conflicts that have sprouted up during their more than 20-year long relationship and work on developing their new album. For head-banging and psychotherapy, "Metallica: Some Kind of Monster" plays at 9 p.m. on Saturday, May 1 at the Somerville Theater. Film watchers rarely get the chance to see short films unless they are attached to a Disney/Pixar production. The IFFB offers attendees a selection of shorts at a number of the screenings throughout the weekend. One eight-minute endeavor, entitled "The Frank International Film Festival," is a mockumentary about film festivals. It was directed by Bob Odenkirk, writer for the television series "Mr. Show" and "Saturday Night Live" and director of the indie hit screened at last year's IFFB "Melvin Goes to Dinner." "The Frank International Film Festival" screens at 8 p.m. on Friday and 7 p.m. on Sunday, showing alongside the feature film "Luck" at the Somerville Theater. As a special treat, comedian Fred Armisen of "Saturday Night Live" will also be in attendance. With over 47 films playing at theaters within two miles of campus, the International Film Festival of Boston is the perfect cinematic escape from the final exam blues.A full schedule of screenings and events can be found at the festivals website www.Iffboston.com. Tickets can be purchased in advance at the Alpha Omega watchXpress in Harvard Square or the day of at the movie at theater box offices.

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News

Just how livable is the living wage?

April 28

A fair wage. A proper wage. A living wage. As OneSource and its employees are locked in negotiations, these synonymous-sounding terms in the complicated arena of salary negotiation, one word can make all the difference. All custodians at Tufts make $11.45 an hour. This is above the Master Contract, an agreement reached for custodians who work in office buildings, malls and other locations in the Greater Boston Area, which pays a starting wage of $10.95 an hour for full-time work. Tufts also pays above the Somerville living wage of $10.54. Though the figure applies only to city employees, it has served as an estimate for other industries. Administration officials believe the University is meeting wages demanded by the current economy. "We think that the market defines need, including people at the universities," Director of Facilities John Roberto said. "SLAM [Student Labor Action Movement] and the Union [SEIU 615] would prefer that we compare at the university level. But we're comfortable comparing ourselves to the broader market." But activists and workers question whether the current living wage standard is adequate. "No, of course not," one janitor said. "There are an infinite number of things to pay for." All quotations by janitors have been kept anonymous to protect their job security, and have been translated from Spanish by the writer. According to Dick Baeur, member of the Somerville Living Wage Commission, it is "impossible in the greater Boston area for people to live on that amount of money." The federal poverty line is used to compute this living wage, and is the same throughout the nation, and does not take into account the wide variations in costs of living throughout different regions. There is no firm consensus on exactly how much money it really takes to get by in Boston. The Massachusetts Family Economic Self-Sufficiency Project creates a regionally specialized estimate of living in Massachusetts, estimating a level that is adequate but "not luxurious or even comfortable." For a family with two adults and one school-age child, the society's rate of $11.09 per hour is not far off from Tufts janitors' current wage of $11.45. For other different family situations, this cost spikes far above the local living wage. With a single adult and a child in pre-school, the report estimates that $23.32 per hour is necessary. For two adults with three school age children, the situation of one of the janitors interviewed, $16.20 per hour per parent was necessary. The self-sufficiency standard only includes day-to-day expenses, and does not include longer-term costs necessary for monetary or educational advancement. "We don't want to stay in this job that is so bad -- we don't want it," one janitor said. "But there is no other kind of work [if you don't speak English]" Many want to take English classes or night classes to advance beyond their present job and wages. Janitors spend so much time working that scheduling and financing such endeavors is difficult. "I studied at the University in my own country in the work of socioeconomic situations," one janitor said. "We had to change countries to the United States and I couldn't continue studying because there wasn't enough time to work two jobs and study." Many janitors at Tufts work multiple jobs in order to support their families. One janitor, after working 10:30 p.m. to 7 a.m. overnight on the Boston Campus, has another part-time job until 12 a.m. the following day. The children of some custodians begin working as early as 14 to help pay bills. "The fact is, if janitors are working two to three jobs at $11.45 an hour, if that itself can barely make ends meet, there is no way that this rate can be a living wage," SLAM coordinator Ariana Flores said. The federal poverty line, from which the minimum wage stems, also does not include the cost of heath insurance. Some families or individuals may qualify for federally sponsored health programs such as Medicaid, but many working families do not. OneSource supplies each full time employee $300 monthly to put toward the individual union health plan for insurance, which is provided by the Taft-Hartley Fund. The family health insurance plan, however, costs $19 per week. As of Jan. 1, 2004, custodians began receiving $40 per month toward family healthcare, but this does not cover the entire cost of a family healthcare plan. Janitors said it is difficult to find locations where they can get care. "The healthcare [plan] is the most horrible thing," one janitor said. "We prefer the central public clinics [federally sponsored]. Because we have jobs, we don't qualify. When we go to private doctors, we take out our [insurance] card, and they don't accept it." "When I need healthcare, I have to pay [for it] myself," another janitor said. Few Tufts OneSource employees receive full healthcare coverage. This situation is within the norm of skyrocketing healthcare costs in the United States, less and less of which are being covered by employers. "Clearly the cost of healthcare has risen compared to inflation," Tufts economics professor Jeffrey Zabel said. "Employees are paying more and more out of pocket themselves. More employees get no healthcare, those that do are expected to pay more of the up-front cost." Currently, part-time workers receive no health insurance, and many part-time workers have been waiting "three to four years" for a full time position so they can receive benefits, according to Irlanda Castillo, a janitor who works in Hill Hall. Castillo is a representative for SEIU 615, so she agreed to speak on the record. While wages and benefits at Tufts are comparable to the general market, labor rights groups have challenged Tufts to rise above national trends. "There is no reason why a humane institution with an emphasis on public service and equality should not be paying the janitors a better wage," physics professor Gary Goldstein said. Goldstein has been involved with previous campaigns for janitor's rights. He added that "it's the university's job to demonstrate the humane values that it espouses."

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News

E-Wo place second at Sectionals

April 27

The women's Ultimate Frisbee team, the "E-Wo," began its run at the Ultimate Players Association (UPA) national tournament two weeks ago when it competed in the Boston Sectional Tournament in South Boston against seven other local area teams, including MIT, Boston University, Boston College, Northeastern, Wellesley, Brandeis, and Harvard. The Jumbos finished the tournament with a 6-1 record, earning second place in the section behind MIT (7-0) and a bid to the regional tournament on May 8 and 9 in Newport, Rhode Island. MIT and Tufts will be joined by four other teams, BU, Northeastern, Wellesley, and Harvard, in representing the Boston section in two weeks. The top three teams from the Northeast Region will advance to nationals at the end of the month. "I think we played really well, it was our first time really playing all together in a long time because we had been missing various people for whatever reason," junior Lauren Fein said. "But we came together real well, and I'm really hopeful for what we can get done at regionals." The squad started out strong on the first day of play, winning all four games in its pool play against BC, Northeastern, Wellesley, and Brandeis. The E-Wo, who were seeded second in the section, held their seed and qualified for regionals by going undefeated on day one. The other top four seeds, number one MIT (4-0), and seeds three and four BU (3-1) and Northeastern (3-1), also qualified for regionals after play on Saturday. "We played really well together, we came together as a team and showed what we could do," sophomore handler Julia Hallman said. "Our biggest problem this season has been losing close games, so our goal for the next few weeks is to work out winning close games." The weather came much more into play on Sunday, as the swirling winds increased turnovers and made the games a lot longer. The two semifinal matchups featured MIT and Northeastern, and Tufts and BU. MIT handily defeated Northeastern in the first game, while BU pulled off a tough upset over the E-Wo, 11-9, in a long, hard-contested game. Fein observed that the difference in playing style between the two teams is what allowed BU to pull away with the win. In the next round, Tufts was pitted against Northeastern for third place while MIT and BU battled for the top spot in the region. The E-Wo easily defeated Northeastern 13-5, while MIT held off BU 13-8 for the top seed. With the win, MIT expectedly earned the top seed in the section, while Northeastern's two consecutive losses relegated it to fourth. In the day's final game, Tufts was given a second shot at BU for second and third place heading into regionals. BU's young squad, clearly showing signs of fatigue from the tough game against MIT, was no match for the vengeful E-Wo, as Tufts pulled away with a 13-2 win to take second place. "[Beating BU in the final game] was great," Fein added. "I'm not really sure what happened to them between the two games, but we came out with a really fierce desire to reseed ourselves. I wish we had beaten them the first time we played, but it was definitely good to see that we could come back and put our heads together and play really strong against a team that had previously beaten us." Coming off the second place finish at sectionals, the E-Wo team is confident that it will be able to turn some heads at the Northeast Regional Tournament. Of the top three teams that go to regionals, national runner up MIT is almost a shoe-in to qualify as the number one seed, while Brown will likely earn the second of three bids. However as Fein notes, any of five teams could find its way to the third bid to nationals. "Yale, Tufts, UMass, Williams, and Dartmouth are all similar teams, and even though we've been losing to some of them, they have all been close games," Fein explained. "All of the teams have very similar skill levels, so it's going to be interesting to see who comes out in that third spot at regionals. And obviously, we'd like it to be us." One of the highlights of the E-Wo this year has been the presence of the B-Wo, Tufts' B-Team. This is the first year that the squad has had a B team, which will undoubtedly improve the E-Wo in future seasons. While the B team did not win any games at sectionals, it faced some of the Boston areas top teams and gained valuable playing time. "Its amazing that we have a B team, just the fact that everyone can get that much more playing time," Hallman said. "We have a great bond as E-Wo, and each team has its own bond. We probably would have lost a lot of girls if we didn't have two separate teams." Regionals are set for May 8th and 9th in Rhode Island.

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News

Group is Mum on actual songs

April 27

The first sounds on Mum's "Summer Make Good" are the dull roar of a slow, creaking wind, followed by a low wailing sound. It's a mysterious and alluring beginning for an album that seems to promise more of the same. The first proper song -- "Weeping Rock, Rock," -- takes these random noises and introduces actual instrumentation. Out of this mist rises first a slowly droning organ, then clanking drums, and finally an accordion. Finally, Singer Krist?­n Anna Valt??sd??ttir's soft voice enters a song that takes nearly seven minutes to build to its glistening climax. With an opening gambit like that, it's hard not to approach this record with high expectations. However, these expectations are ones that, unfortunately, this record cannot deliver. With "Summer Make Good" -- the Icelandic-based band's third album -- Mum has dispensed with the cascading electronic tones of previous works and unwisely attempted to move into more atmospheric territory. If only Mum could balance "Weeping Rock, Rock's" balance of song-craft and intrigue for an entire album. As it turns out, the songs slowly melt into a haze of organ tones and long, repetitious drum passages. With "Summer," the group seems to be moving in the opposite direction of what made them originally so promising. Their 2001 debut "Yesterday is Dramatic, Today is Okay," used occasional organic flourishes to highlight blissful electronic compositions. The 15-minutes that compromised "Awake/Asleep on the Train" is still the best song to arise from the recent crop of down-tempo electronic music. Mum's second album "Finally We Are No One" deemphasized the band's electronic nature by grounding songs to a real drum or percussion instrument. Tracks like "Green Grass of Tunnel" and "The Land Between Solar Systems" were brilliant pop songs and showed a real knack for suspense -- one that the group reintroduces on "Summer Make Good." But "Finally We Are No One" also stands as the source of many of the dull passages that compromise the vast majority of Mum's current album. When listening to the record I couldn't help but ask myself -- where are the songs? Each track seems to introduce some ambient background noise (obtained from the remote lighthouse where this record was recorded) and then adds to glacial drums and digital clicks for several minutes. Then they end. That's it: no attempt at melody or development in these songs, they simply ooze in and out of the stereo. The music won't even work effectively as an atmospheric condition along the lines of ambient composers of Tim Hecker or Loscil. Every time the music locks itself into a cathartic groove, the listener is confronted with the voice. Valt??sd??ttir's voice can be a useful tool -- adding a pretty layer to icy compositions. But it also can be really annoying. Her limited range, and high thin vocals make the end of "The Ghosts You Draw on My Back" practically unbearable to listen to. Previous Mum album's used the group's large palette of instruments like glockenspiels, trumpets and cellos to great effect. Here the group seems so intent with invoking some kind of primal ambience they are afraid to actually play them. The dangling harpsichords on "Sing me Out the Window" are probably meant to invoke mystery, but the random scales and jarring notes sound as if they were recorded by stray toddlers. There are just enough interesting moments on the disc to prove the group has not lost touch completely with their original talents. Several instrumental interludes, including the opener and "Stir" invoke genuine suspense. But what Mum need to do is channel this feeling into actual compositions to make an effective record. The title of one these songs asks, "Will the summer make good for all our sins?" With the inability shown on this disc, I'd say probably not...

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News

We don't need no education

April 27

Local historians have bemoaned the lack of knowledge Tufts students have about the surrounding communities, but given the poor connection between the two entities this is hardly surprising. Though plans to encourage students to learn more are nice, Tufts' insular nature means little will change. On the whole, students do not consider themselves part of the larger Somerville community, and even less so for Medford. And for their part, local residents have traditionally been reticent to embrace the institution. For many, the University is one giant headache. A large part of the problem lies in simple class conflict. Students are often perceived as wealthy, arrogant, and inconsiderate. Even with Tufts' efforts to change these views through community outreach, the view is engrained in many locals. In some ways, however, the perception is accurate. Though students hail from all walks of life, on the whole we come from higher income brackets than our immediate neighbors. We drive nicer cars. We have bigger prospects. Oftentimes the only contact residents have with students is late night, and it is rarely positive. Outside of the myriad of community service activities students perform, few really care about the area. The lack of goodwill from the communities is at times understandable. Yet students cannot be faulted for taking little interest in the communities around them. The local governments frequently view cash-strapped Tufts as a juicy source of revenue. Some previous administrators -- such as former Somerville Mayor Dorothy Kelly Gay -- have been excessively uncooperative with the 152 year-old university. Though there are encouraging signs coming from both Somerville and Medford, the Somerville Historic Preservation Commission's halting of dorm construction demonstrates that some things have not changed. And for many students, the only locals they interact with are unscrupulous landlords and hostile neighbors. This does little to foster good feelings towards Medford and Somerville on the part of students. It certainly does not lead to an active interest in the history, demographics, or workings of the surrounding communities. Though historians, perhaps rightly, extol the virtues of knowing local history, students whose interests lie elsewhere could be excused for not sharing their zeal. That said, both Tufts and the surrounding communities would be better off if the relationship was warmer. If students took more ownership of the communities in which they lived, chances are many of the problems would be ameliorated. There is no question that the cities are rich with opportunities for study and scholarship and have much to offer Tufts. The best that can be done is to strengthen the ties that bind interested students to the area and its historical offerings. Realistically, however, expecting the student body at large to take a genuine interest is at best wishful thinking.

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News

The Paris Journal: Love the sinner, hate the sin

April 27

Now that the furor over Iraq has died down, anti-war sentiment in France has subsided to leave a residue of disappointment with the shortcomings of the American occupation and a certain I-told-you-so schadenfreude. Resentment of the American president they call le cowboy remains at a permanent high tide, however. Has this attitude poisoned French opinion of Americans in general? It's no state secret that Bush is not the most popular world leader in France -- he's viewed as coarse and unrefined, and his unilateralist policies are reviled. In a country where politicians are expected to be elegant, eloquent, and diplomatic, Bush's twang and strut are insupportables. The French are also surprisingly familiar (and displeased) with Bush's advisers and intellectual bedfellows, including Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and Condoleeza Rice. One dinner party joke about the Bush administration plays off the French word con, which means "idiot," and begins with the question, What do you call neo-conservatives for short? The answer: Des n?©o-cons. Still, all the recent Franco-American rancor has been more vocal -- or at least more demonstrative -- on the American side of the pond. They never poured our Coca Cola into the streets, for example. There was, of course, a moment when the French infuriation with the Americans was at very high levels - the U.S.'s repudiation of the Kyoto protocol, battles over steel and agricultural tariffs, and conflicting views over the Middle East increased diplomatic temperatures. The boiling point was, of course, Iraq. While Americans became increasingly irritated by French President Jacques Chirac's endless stonewalling, and while France's refusal to admit that the removal of a genocidal despot might be a worthy war objective, the French, in the meantime, resented the fact that Bush seemed dead-set on embarking on the war, over any and all objections. (This view has, in the end, been mostly vindicated.) They managed to laugh about the freedom fries, but the pouring of French wine into the gutters was just a bit too much. When the anti-French sentiment in America got out of hand (e.g. when the host of CNN's "Crossfire" suggested we "beat up the French"), people here got a bit tired of what the newspaper "Lib?©ration" called "le frog-bashing." They cannot have been too pleased by the bandying around of that now-famous phrase of Groundskeeper Willie from the "Simpsons," which brands the French "cheese-eating surrender monkeys." The conservative French newspaper "Le Figaro" translated this line as primates capitulards et toujours en qu??te de fromages -- "capitulating primates always in search of cheeses," which just doesn't have the same ring to it. But in this war of words, Bush's wild west rhetoric was the straw that broke the frog's back. When Bush warned Iraq that the "game is over" in February 2003, French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin testily responded, "It's not a game, and it's not over." Bush's foreign policy rankles France from top to bottom: a recent survey asking Frenchmen about their opinion of the role Bush plays in world affairs resulted in 82 percent of respondents answering "somewhat negative" or "very negative." The good news is that even though le cowboy is the American president -- and in some ways archetypically American -- the French don't seem to take this out on the American people. Another survey in March 2003 asked French respondents whether U.S. foreign policy "is directly linked to the personality of George W. Bush" or whether "the U.S. would have more or less the same policy with another president." More than three-quarters of the respondents agreed with the former statement, which must be good news for Franco-American relations. If the French are disgusted by U.S. foreign policy, at least they recognize it as an aberration linked to one powerful man and not necessarily to the other 280 million of us. I've found that the French are generally quite responsible about making the distinction between their dislike for the current administration and the United States as a whole. They're as nostalgic for Clinton as are America's die-hard liberals. They thought the Monica Lewinsky affair was amusing rather than outrageous - and invoking the scandal still stirs up hearty Gallic chuckles. (Presidential dalliances are acknowledged with a wink and nod in this country - the last president, Fran?§ois Mitterand, was even suspected of having an affair with his own prime minister.) And though Clinton won't be coming back, anticipation is high for the presidential elections in November -- and the existence of John Kerry's French relations has not been overlooked. Perhaps his election will usher in another great age of Franco-American cooperation and hearken back to the days of Franklin and Jefferson and La Fayette and de Tocqueville. Perhaps. For the moment, I think both sides would be content with settling back into the old equilibrium, where they make fun of our food and we make fun of their body odor. Frogs and cowboys, contentedly stalemated.

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News

Rocca speaks to filled room

April 27

Mo Rocca, a comedian and contributor to Comedy Central's satirical news show, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, led an entertaining discussion of news, the media, and his own job at the Daily Show as part of the Spring Fling Lecture Series in a packed Barnum 008 last Thursday. "You're just applauding my pants," Rocca told the audience who greeted him with a large round of applause as he took the stage. Rocca began by discussing current events, presenting his first "What's Hot and What's Not" list since the fall of Baghdad, including a "thumbs down on human shielding." The comedian also showed his journalistic side, addressing reality television, a topic he covers for NBC's Today Show. He shared with the audience his thoughts about a reality show entitled "Man vs. Beast," which pits human contestants against animals in accomplishing the same tasks. "If a man can eat more hotdogs than a grizzly bear, then what's the point of grizzly bears?" On a more serious note, Rocca reminded the audience that more people voted in the American Idol finals than voted in the midterm election. In Rocca's opinion, the decline in the use of traditional news sources such as print and television media is "immeasurable," since many people have begun to use the Internet as their primary news source. He also feels that it is impossible for a media outlet to be completely unbiased. Displaying some homemade arts and crafts made from duct tape and sheeting that the United States government had advised Americans to purchase, Rocca requested a volunteer to answer some questions about the history of the University. Blaine Lay, a freshman costumed in Rocca's trademark suspenders and bow tie, was "volunteered" to join Rocca on the stage. After correctly (with some help of the audience) spelling the first name of an original Tufts trustee, Phineas T. Barnum, and being quizzed on the last name of the founder of the University, Charles Tufts, Lay was given a handmade potholder with the letter "T" on it. The audience also got a chance to see clips of Rocca's work on the Daily Show. Videos showed Rocca's trademark style: rooting out terrorism on a college campus (the subversive Al-Umni association), discovering the hidden dangers of cheerleading, and allowing his microphone to come too close to an interviewee. During the question and answer period, freshman Mike Carolan asked Rocca which Daily Show staff member would win in a bare-knuckled boxing tournament. Rocca's answer was, of course, himself, explaining that he had taken a boxing course before. Rocca also told the audience that he would like to appear on Sabado Gigante, the flagship variety show of the Spanish-language television network Univision. During the presentation, Rocca offered the audience anecdotes about his life, augmented with slides that depicted his life story. At age 11, he visited Alcatraz with his parents, decided that "prisoners are different," and that he wanted to be different as well. Rocca graduated from Harvard, where he participated in the world-famous Hasty Pudding Theatricals. After graduating, he acted in kabuki theater in Japan, was a roller-skating waiter in Washington DC, and produced the PBS children's show Wishbone while simultaneously editing Perfect 10, an adult magazine. He then decided to fuel his passion for visiting the birthplaces and gravesites of the lesser known Presidents of the United States, like Grover Cleveland and William McKinley. The event, sponsored by Lecture Series, drew an audience that filled Barnum 008 over its capacity, forcing some to sit in the aisles. Despite the uncomfortable accommodations, most of the audience stayed and enjoyed the event. "It's awesome that Lecture Series can bring such high caliber people to speak or do standup comedy for us," freshman attendee Aaron Held said.

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News

The dreaded final exam, with a furry twist

April 27

It's one hour before the final exam. You are nervous, sweating, and terrified. Meanwhile, your professor can't stop playing with a cat kidney. The bizarre is mundane for students in professor Sam Telford's class on "Infectious Disease Epidemiology" as part of the Masters in Public Health Program (MPH). Students in the class are from either the medical or veterinary school and are receiving a Masters on top of their doctorate education. Although classes are held at the medical school, activities like today's final exam are methods the school uses to incorporate animals into the curriculum. The exam is also an opportunity for Telford -- an infectious disease specialist who also does research at Harvard -- to give students some final thoughts on zoonotic disease. Students will soon have to respond to a hypothetical scenario of disease exposure which uses the vet school's campus as a staging area. One group will have to discover a "proximal determinant" of risks around the livestock barns. Other sections will look at the animal hospitals and the surrounding woods. Before the exam, the students take a tour of the veterinary school campus to learn and take notes about how the experts respond to cases. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Tufts School of Veterinary Medicine, which started as a converted mental hospital. It is still the only veterinary school in the Northeast, and the only private vet school in the country. The school is also as popular as ever: there were 707 applications for 80 slots in the 2004 entering class. The Vet School was divided in the Boston press earlier this year when four masters of public policy students protested the killing of five research animals. But the students here only wanted to talk about how much they wanted to help animals. According to Tufts public relations official Barbara Donato, the school sees over 25,000 patients a year. More than 20,000 of these pass through the Wagner Hospital for Small Animals. The school receives referrals from over 400 clinics from across New England, which send their most complicated cases to the facility. Telford said while "vet students and med students get the same intensity and depth of training in clinical sciences" they bring different skills to the table. Vet students are more familiar with a variety of species, and therefore have "broader perspective," he said. "Even so, when it comes to zoonoses it is usually the human [doctors] who are more involved, from research to teaching to informing the public," he said. Telford said that there is an increased need after Sept. 11, 2001 for veterinarians with public health training, as most of the "bioterrorism agents" are classified as "zoonotic." The vet school has recently refurbished and enlarged its waiting areas, allowing for separate sections for dogs and cats. "The dogs didn't seem to mind [waiting with cats]," Donato said. "But cats can get a little nervous." A quick scan of the wards reveals a diverse clientele. There are dogs being treated for anything ranging from epileptic seizures to anemia to marijuana exposure. The latter, however, "is not a typical client," Donato said. In front of the radiology department are three bulletin boards filled with Polaroid snapshots of the ward's four-legged patients. After months or even years of treating the same animals, the staff "becomes very attached to the patients," Donato said. These close relationships are formed despite a very high volume of animals coming in each day. A technician at the facility said that within five hours she had seen thirteen patients, and more are waiting. One of the school's dedicated members is Dr. Richard Jachowski, a long-time pathologist at the school who invites the MPH students to join an in-process feline autopsy. The owner has requested an autopsy to see if the death was related to a history of renal failure. The students crowd around as Jachowski holds up a long, crimson chain of tissue. "You must have seen a lot of kidneys like this before," Jachowski said. "Not in cats," Telford said. From there, Telford tried to describe potential risk factors for zoonotic diseases, including birds that carry the West Nile Virus. The school examines suspicious cases to help state environmental and health agencies trying to study the virus -- which can be spread to humans. The school is also host to the Wildlife Clinic, which provides care for local animals and endangered species. Today the patients include several squirrels, a falcon, and a teenage owl. Director of Wildlife Management Mark Pokras said early spring often sees a full case load. "It's baby season -- we are seeing a lot orphans this time of year," he said. The owl was brought to the school by two local hunters who found the bird lying on the ground. Pokras said the owl, who was injured, was just enduring what might be called teenage years. The foot high bird, covered in brown feathers, will soon grow up to be "the fiercest creature in the forest." For now, he will be examined by a doctor before being released later in the evening, near where he was originally found. "What your mom told you about if you touch it -- [that] the mother won't take it back -- is a lie," Pokras said. Unlike the University's other animal hospitals, the wildlife clinic does not charge for treatment of wildlife animals.Treatment at the clinic is run completely on public and private grants, although the Vet School as a whole relies heavily on state funding for much of its work. The Vet School has had to fight cuts in state aid over the past few years. Last year Governor Mitt Romney proposed eliminating all money, but $3 million was later restored by the Massachusetts State Senate. Telford believes the operation is well worth the money. "Tufts is doing great work here, by providing this service to the community," he said.

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News

Engineering dean hopes to increase research at Tufts

April 27

With a new dean, the School of Engineering is working to redefine itself as a research powerhouse, while trying to maintain its focus on its undergraduate education. Abriola arrived at Tufts this September after leaving the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, where she'd been for 19 years. As the director of the Environmental and Water Resources Engineering Program at Michigan, Abriola garnered several awards, and was the first woman at Michigan to hold a chair in engineering. Since arriving in the Boston area last August, Abriola has continued to balance her commitments to both Tufts and Michigan, which she flies between every three weeks to work with her former students. "But now, some of my students out there are starting to move here," she said. Abriola has plenty of praise for the University after her first year. "I love how Tufts' Arts and Sciences and Engineering schools are so close-knit," she said. "It creates such a balance in the environment." Over the last few months, Abriola has also been to New Orleans for a national deans' meeting, and to the Duke University School of Engineering for a former Michigan student's Ph.D. defense. "You do get to travel a lot with this job," she said. Students, however, expressed that Abriola's extensive travel responsibilities have had an impact on their ability to really connect with the dean. "We always had so much contact with [former School of Engineering Dean Ioannis Miaoulis]. People came to Tufts just because of him -- he was so active within the student body. Now we have this new person who we don't know at all," senior engineering student Kathryn Wepfer said. "Plus, the whole woodshop thing hasn't helped at all." Engineering students felt they were not well-informed of Abriola's decision to replace the woodshop with her new water lab this spring. The Associate Dean of Engineering, Vincent Manno, who served as the interim dean between Miaoulis' departure for the Museum of Science and Abriola's arrival at Tufts, acknowledged Abriola's busy schedule, but said that her first year has gone over well with the faculty. "She's a really terrific addition to the school, and I think the vast majority of the faculty believes that she is taking things in the right direction," he said. The direction that Abriola is aiming for is to take the School of Engineering toward a more research-focused environment -- something that was a large part of her time at Michigan, and a direction that the School of Engineering has been heading toward for a long time, according to Manno. "Research is reflective of the quality of an engineering school, and if you look at the profiles of the various other engineering schools that our students are interested in -- the Cornells and the Browns, and even schools like Duke and Columbia -- you see that research is a large part of the undergraduate program," Manno said. Abriola's Integrated Multi-Phase Environmental Systems Lab (IMPES) lab, known as the water lab, will be used for evaluating water samples for hazardous chemical, organic and metal contamination. She agreed to come to Tufts with the condition that the School of Engineering created a space for her to continue her research that she started at Michigan. Abriola would also like to increase the size of the engineering faculty by 25 percent, and she hopes that the money needed for the growth can be raised during the University's next capital campaign. "I just think it's important to get the faculty to do more research, and when you have more faculty, you can get more done," she said. "The engineering school has terrific faculty and students and like most of our schools, needs significant advancements in its research infrastructure," Bharucha said. Abriola would also like to see the School of Engineering's classroom and research space increase. "I'd like to see that space doubled, but that will certainly have to be a long-term project," she said. "The problem is that, if we want to keep upgrading our technology and labs, we need space for those. That's the reason why I had to use the [woodshop's] space for the water lab -- there was absolutely no other space for it," she said. Other plans include forming inter-disciplinary programs between the School of Engineering and Tufts' other graduate schools, incorporating more leadership opportunities into the undergraduate engineering curriculum, and growth in the biotechnology department. Abriola was not entirely happy at Michigan and when she was notified of the search for an engineering dean at Tufts, she decided to investigate. "I wasn't looking to be a dean, but rather to just be a professor of engineering at a different school, and I really didn't know much about Tufts at all," Abriola said. Her first visit to Tufts, in 2003, ended up having a positive impact on her. "I really like the size, the professors' dedication to teaching, and how all the professional schools have special programs that work together with the undergraduate curriculum," she said. "The president [Larry Bacow] and provost [Jamshed Bharucha] were absolutely amazing. I thought, 'I'd really love to have those guys as my bosses.'"

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News

Residential Life is on track

April 27

I am writing in response to Jon Schubin's recent article about the Office of Residential Life and Learning (ORLL) ("RAs speak out against ResLife," April 21). The article was accurate in describing the Residential Life operation as going through a period of change and that the changes have not been received well by some. That's one side of the story. Those who provided the information for the story blame Yolanda King, the director, for what they don't like about the changes, and that's not fair. For an extended period of time prior to Ms. King's arrival at Tufts, the ORLL did not have a permanent director running the operation. Don't get me wrong, we are all in the debt of Lorraine Toppi and Dean Gendron, whose love of Tufts and its students, and particularly the RAs, kept the halls running and the staff feeling supported. But after a series of failed searches and false starts, Tufts was looking for a strong leader to come in and take charge of the system. We found that person in Yolanda King. Change is difficult in any organization, but is especially so when the model moves from one of management by consensus to one of top-down management. Consensus usually feels good, but frequently it fails to bring about changes and directions by which organizations are measured. I am disappointed that some members of the residential staff who don't like the changes have chosen to attack Ms. King personally rather than trying to help make things work. But I am far more disappointed that they would think that it is appropriate to assassinate her character in a newspaper article. Residential Assistants (RA) are students in their primary relationship to Tufts, but they also accept considerable compensation to carry out the mission of the ORLL. They do not have the ability to take a public stand against departmental policy or their employer without anticipating consequences. Employees won't always like a manager's style or the direction of their department or their company. There is nothing wrong with being vocal and trying to influence policy -- but it has to be done constructively. This has been a challenging time for the ORLL. The demand for on-campus housing continues to be an issue, and waitlists are long. Sophia Gordon Hall, which was originally supposed to open in September, still needs building permits from the City of Somerville before construction can begin. The ORLL staff who knew most about the RA selection process and about the annual room lottery left the university just before those processes began their annual cycle. It is a tribute to Ms. King and all of the RAs and other university staff who volunteered their time that these major undertakings were completed successfully with no greater number of issues than those which have arisen in other years. I support Yolanda King and the change that she is bringing about in Residential Life. She holds one of the most thankless positions in the university. So let me take this opportunity to publicly thank her for the difference she has made for all the staff and residents who don't use the Daily as their sounding board. It is on their behalf that I will be participating in a forum which Ms. King is organizing with the RAs to listen to and discuss their suggestions for improving communications and processes within the ORLL. I encourage RAs to participate in these discussions and look forward to their fruitful results.Bruce Reitman is the Dean of Students.

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News

Senior RAs call for King's resignation

April 27

It has been no secret this year that the Office of Residential Life and Learning (ORLL) at Tufts University has experienced severe difficulties. A group of articles in the Daily, Primary Source, and Observer, culminating last week in a direct and scathing critique of the ORLL's inadequacies brings to light many of these fundamentally disturbing issues. Having to deal with gaps in communication and a lack of professionalism for the last eight months as RAs in Miller Hall and Houston Hall, we find the source and blame of the ORLL's problems in the hands of one individual: Director Yolanda King. Therefore, we call for the immediate resignation of Director King for the health and well-being of not only the seventeen staffed dormitories on campus and their respective residents, but also for the entire Tufts University community. A critical flaw of the ORLL is its lack of organization. Beginning with Resident Assistant (RA) training in August 2003, Director King has been at fault for improperly communicating RA responsibilities and university policies to both new and returning RAs. Perhaps no other example is more indicative than the now-famed alcohol policy debate, in which Director King presented a brand new alcohol policy to the ORLL community. Director King was unable to produce a single written piece of documentation stating the new alcohol policy in regards to RA discretion (RAs on this campus will remember Director King's pathetic plea that, despite students physically moving into the dorms, the policy was "still being printed."). Other key university policies, such as disciplinary action resulting from a TEMS call, were still in question at the start of the academic year -- the fault of not only the ORLL but the Dean of Students office as well. Unfortunately, this atrocious behavior continued throughout the year, with flip-flops on the alcohol policy continuing well into the fall semester and a dismal attempt to gauge student input with an Alcohol Policy Forum this past February. When RAs were asked by campus media to provide input at student-led policy forums, the ORLL sent an email reminding us that we were not to speak about policies in a negative manner -- effectively censoring RAs from speaking freely. Director King has made no attempt to admit her weakness in formulating an effective orientation program and has made no attempt to incorporate or even acquire RA feedback in how to improve the ORLL policies and procedures. These failures call for none other than her resignation from the post of Director. Almost two full academic years have passed since the hiring of Director King and yet basic administrative procedures have been neglected. At the very core of an RA's responsibilities lies the procedure for reporting incidents ranging from noise violations to alleged hate incidents. The ORLL's almost humorous reliance on carbon-copy incident reporting forms -- when only two years ago incident reporting, event proposals, and other critical RA functions were managed through an online website -- has minimized communication between members of the ORLL staff and RAs. Issues such as depression, suicide, hate, sexual assault, and others require timely responses. The current infrastructure is not effective in providing quick responses to these crucial student issues. From our perspective, we feel it is incumbent upon the ORLL office to follow-up on incidents that occur in our halls. Instead, we find ourselves being informed of disciplinary action through the students directly involved instead of from appropriate campus officials, most specifically Director King. This lack of communication directly hinders our ability to provide answers and guidance to our residents. We do not find it unreasonable to request to be informed of disciplinary proceedings within the confines of student's privacy; and yet the ORLL has consistently neglected RA feedback and input. When dealing with basic and fundamental matters concerning student heath, academic performance and well-being, no excuse -- despite the plethora that Director King has provided in the last eight months -- can substitute a basic phone call to a genuinely concerned RA. Another crucial administrative shortcoming this year has been the ORLL's laughable attempt to conduct a fair and respectful RA hiring process. Some applicants were made to inquire about the status of their application up to one week after RA decisions were mailed out. The ORLL's inability to conduct even this, the most basic of functions in the Residential Life community, does not bode well for its claim to be the creators of a living and learning community. The proper handling of other elementary functions this year has also eluded the grips of Director King. Virtually any current freshman at this University will attest to the mockery and chaos that unfortunately took place at this years housing lottery. While the annual housing lottery has always been a moment of beloved madness, undergraduates were always informed of their responsibilities and tasks, thereby preparing them to act accordingly in a slightly chaotic setting. Unfortunately, this was not the case this year. It should be noted that the mastermind behind the housing lottery, Lorraine Toppi, left the University but one week before the scheduled lottery. Our final point concentrates on the lack of professionalism exhibited by Director King time and time again throughout the year. In one-on-one meetings that each of us have had with Director King, we have been subjected to her continued apathy and ambivalence towards our opinions and sentiments. As concurrent with our job descriptions and the selectivity of the RA position itself, we are made to believe that we are central actors in the creation and sustainability of living and learning communities. However, Director King continues to marginalize and de-legitimize any RA that wavers even slightly from her submissive and subordinate ideal of what constitutes the perfect RA. Starting meetings called to discuss crucial resident concerns by saying bluntly "I don't know why we are meeting" not only shows Director King's lack of compassion for both student and RA concerns, but also demonstrates her sheer ignorance of the gravity and magnitude of the effect of both her and her office's incompetence. Indeed, a culture of intimidation and apathy has managed to shackle any positive effect that the ORLL can have on student life on this campus. Students' perception of the ORLL has reached the nadir of its existence, a far cry from its respected position under the leadership of Lorraine Toppi and Dean Gendron. It is no surprise that current RAs remain jaded about the ability of the ORLL to provide an effective infrastructure for RAs to build a healthy dormitory community. Most importantly, it is no surprise that many students on this campus no longer rely on the ORLL community as a reliable and effective resource for student concerns. As second-year RAs and seniors on this campus, it is personally offensive and heartbreaking to witness this decimation and degradation of what used to be a highly respected institution. Our candidness here comes not out of spite, but rather as a heartfelt plea to every student, parent and campus official to reform the ORLL into a genuine conduit for a living and learning community. We do not believe that such a transformation can occur under the leadership of Director Yolanda King.Pritesh Gandhi is a senior majoring in International Relations and Economics. Shaunik Panse is a senior majoring in International Relations. Both have served as RAs since fall 2001.

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News

Social change ten minutes at a time

April 27

Watch out Stone Phillips. A new generation of television producers is on the brink of college graduation, and all are sufficiently prepared to take on the national news scene. Students in the course "Producing TV Programs for Social Change" premiered their final projects in Cabot Hall on Monday night. The four ten-minute long news pieces were entirely filmed, edited, and produced by students, each with their own agenda for promoting one aspect of "social change." According to their instructor, former "Dateline NBC" producer Roberta Oster-Sachs, the class assignment was to "go out and follow your passion." The four documentaries covered a wide range of topics, from gay marriage to homelessness to the "lost girls" of Sudan to MOST, the Multiracial Organization of Students at Tufts. "Jennifer & Jennifer: the Gay Marriage Debate," took an in depth look at the "personal implications of gay marriage," according to sophomore producer Alicia Neubig. The news piece focused on a lesbian couple, their son Emit, and their dedication toward pushing the gay marriage cause. Senior producer Yael Friedkin explained that the group chose to focus on the gay marriage debate because "[there is] a lot of passion behind the issue." The controversial matter turned into an equally contentious documentary, as a question and answer session following the screening proved. Audience members grilled the producers on the film's objectivity. The four producers countered that they made a concerted effort to show opinions different from those of the film's subjects, Jennifer & Jennifer. "We wanted to put forth a documentary for social change," said sophomore producer Lisa Miller in response to an audience question," and I think we did." Seniors Maritsa Christoudias and Hana Yoo and junior Emily Meyer collaborated to produce the moving documentary, "Homelessness: Somebody Else's Life." The piece looked at the depressing lifestyles of four homeless people, and the efforts made by the Somerville Homeless Coalition and Tufts senior Muzammil Mustufa to help those who live on the streets. In a segment that depicted the struggles of a life of poverty, a homeless man named Ken glumly stated, "I look at the world in a different way than you do." In what literally was a different world, "Finding the Lost Girls of Sudan" explored the somber situation facing female refugees from the civil wars of Sudan. The story of the "lost boys" of Sudan has been well documented, and senior producer Ashley Umbro said the group chose to look at "why [it is] so different for girls to settle." Centering on the experience of Aduei Riak, a Sudanese refugee currently attending Brandeis University, the film brought a local slant to an international issue. Conversely, "These Colors...Race and Color Consciousness at Tufts" examined a very campus-specific matter, the issues facing multiracial students. Takhani Kromah described their documentary in the post-screening discussion as "Less a journalistic piece than a statement." The documentary concentrated on the personal struggles of four Tufts students in a society that is intent on classifying people by race. "Producing TV Programs for Social Change" is co-sponsored by the University College, the Ex-College, and the Communication and Media Studies department. Dean of the University College Rob Hollister commended the creation of the course, stating, "The process of telling a story in film is a different process than writing a term paper. Our role in University College is to generate active citizenship in the class. This isn't directly about active citizenship, but it's another way of teaching it." Oster-Sachs brought her professional newsroom experience to the class in addition to bringing in speakers from the media. Her goal was to instruct the students on "journalistic ethics, values, fairness, and balance." In her introduction before the screenings, Oster-Sachs lovingly called the course "intense," a feeling that was echoed by her students. "We had no idea what we were getting into," Christoudias said. "The classroom was literally like a newsroom and Roberta was our executive producer." The intensity was evident from the beginning of the course when students went to New Hampshire for the Democratic Primary and filmed a collaborative eight minute story. The producers of "Jennifer & Jennifer" and "Finding the Lost Girls of Sudan" are submitting their documentaries to student film festivals.

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