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Travelling Treasure Trunk still strong after loss of costumes

March 31

A semester after its entire costume collection was mistakenly destroyed, Traveling Treasure Trunk is working with the administration to recover its losses and resolve storage space problems in the Aidekman-Jackson complex . The administration is working with Trunk to make room for the installation of lockable storage units to prevent future mix-ups. These lockers are relatively inexpensive, and would provide secure storage for student activities groups, said Tisch Director of Administration Paul Stanton. Finding storage space for Trunk has been difficult. Fire safety regulations are stringent, and the basement of Aidekman is already cluttered with instrument storage lockers and various other utility areas for the departments of Drama and Dance, Music, and Athletics. "I wish it had been as simple as 'here's a room, here's a key,'" Dance and Drama Department Chairwoman Barbara Grossman said. "But it's a question of weeding out, carving out a space for them." Plans for a new music building would allow the other departments to expand, but the project is on hold due to lack of funding. According to Grossman, lack of space is a campus-wide issue. If the reconfiguration of Aidekman storage space is successful, it may provide a model for other buildings on campus. Grossman and Stanton conducted a walk-through evaluation of the building in early January, and hope to have the units in place within a month. Last October, Grossman made the decision to discard of an unclaimed pile of clothing blocking a fire exit on the upper level of the Aidekman Arts Center. She had checked with representatives from several campus performance groups to determine the source of the costumes, but none had claimed ownership. When Anthony Cornish, the department's artist-in-residence, said that a member of Trunk had said the heap was not theirs, Grossman sent the clothing to the campus incinerator. "It was something that was deeply distressing to me," Grossman said, reflecting on the mix-up. "I certainly appreciated the group being as understanding as they were." Since the incident, Grossman has written the group a letter of apology, spoken at a group meeting, and given a personal check to compensate in part for their losses. The misunderstanding also brought new urgency to the search for a solution to Aidekman's ongoing storage space woes. The building, which was constructed in 1987 to connect Jackson Gym and Cohen Auditorium, houses the Drama and Dance, Music, and Athletic Departments, in addition to numerous student activity groups. Despite the size of the hybrid complex, secure storage areas are few and far between. "The way things are in Aidekman, something like this could definitely happen to another group," Trunk member Sarah Marcus said. The disposal of 14 years of costumes was difficult for Trunk, but its members say they are proud of the way they responded. The theatre troupe, which performs for local schoolchildren, hospitals, and day care facilities, used cheaper materials to quickly recreate outfits for upcoming shows. "We made do with what we had," Marcus said. "It was a huge challenge but Trunk is about more than just costumes." This semester Trunk is back to its usual business, and is creating permanent hand-made costumes for new shows and preparing to tour schools in the area starting next month. The group plans to host an alumni weekend where former Trunkers will return and help with the restoration effort. The group went on a retreat with its two new members this weekend, for which every member had to dress according to the theme of "underwater Olympics." Among the attendees were a hammerhead shark and an octopus complete with bendable pink tentacles. Trunk and the Drama and Dance Department are now working to strengthen their relationship. "Most important is opening the lines of communications between Trunk and the department so they understand how much they are respected and valued," said Grossman. Grossman attended a recent Trunk performance at a local school to get a better feel for the group. "We all thought it was important for me to see them in action," she said. "It was great to see the looks on kids' faces." Traveling Treasure Trunk will perform at Read by the River on March 10 and at Kids' Day on April 13.

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News

The advantages of being a college student

March 31

Being a college student has its perks: living with all of your friends at a safe distance from the "real world," no rent to pay, and no full-time job. But there are other benefits to being a student as well, especially in Boston - Amercia's "college town." But with so many things to go out and do, many students feel strapped for cash. For this reason, many sign up for the "Student Advantage" program. The Student Advantage Membership is a fee-based discount card that offers college students discounts on transportation, hotel accommodations, food, and clothing. Nearly 3,000 Tufts students have the Student Advantage Membership, according to Heidi Van Vliet, a Public Relations and Marketing Specialist for Student Advantage Inc. Students who have the card especially enjoy its discounts on train and air transportation. "I used it a lot last year on Amtrak going to and from home," sophomore Rachel Klein said. "It was definitely worth it." But Klein added that the card might be less useful for upperclassmen with cars on campus. "It's really good for freshmen, it makes traveling from home and back much easier and cheaper," Klein said, adding that she rarely used the card for non-transportation discounts. "I wish I took advantage of the [other] discounts more," she said. Perhaps not as widely known are the discounts students can receive aside from travel. Students can use Student Advantage at area stores such as Champs Sports and shopping online, like at Urban Outfitters (urbn.com) or Barnes and Noble (www.bn.com). The discounts vary, from the meager - $1 off a haircut or tanning session at Ultimate Hairstyling Salon in Medford or a free soda with purchase of an entr?©e at the The Burren, to the more valuable - 50 percent off tickets to the Broadway play, Rent, in New York. However, discounts may be reserved for certain items and my be offered only at specific times. A full list of discounts and restrictions can be found on the Student Advantage web site at studentadvantage.com. Sophomore Lizzie Buchen warns that restrictions apply when using Student Advantage Membership to book travel arrangements. "I tried to use my roommate's [Student Advantage] card to buy train tickets, but it didn't work for the train I wanted, so I paid full fare," Buchen said. Students should double check with Amtrak to find out what trains accept the discount. One local business that participates in the Student Advantage network is Fire and Ice, a restaurant in Harvard Square. Chris Umbelina, a manager at the Fire and Ice in Harvard said, the reason for joining the Student Advantage Membership (network) was simple - to bring in more business. "Basically [there are] a lot of colleges in the area and we wanted to get as many young people into our restaurant as possible," Umbelina said. "We thought the discount would bring in students to our restaurant over another restaurant." He added that he hopes to reach out to local colleges in search of customers. The Student Advantage Membership is part of a larger network of student services, Student Advantage Inc. According to the company web site, Student Advantage Inc. was founded in 1992 with the goal of connecting college students with the businesses that serve them. Other services include U-wire (a newswire for college media that is printed in the Daily), FansOnly.com (a web site focusing on college sports) and a marketing group for companies who wish to target college students. Being a student at Tufts also gets you some other freebies, such as free entrance into the Museum of Fine Arts with Tufts ID. But according to sophomore Lizzie Buchen, Museum discounts are not well publicized. "I didn't find out about that till this semester, my boyfriend and I were planning on going next weekend," Buchen said. Tufts students can also receive other discounts at the info booth at the campus center. There, students can purchase discounted movie tickets for Lowes and Showcase theaters in the area. Students also get can get discount-priced tickets to Red Sox and Celtics games. The tickets are cheaper as they are bought wholesale for the info booth. According to info booth worker sophomore Chinua Thelwell, students take advantage of the discounts for sporting events, but rarely take advantage of discounted movie tickets. Buchen, who is from Irvine, California, says that before coming to college in Boston, she expected a college-town with businesses more eager to entice and please students. "I had this vision of college students everywhere and every business targeting college students, but I don't think [Boston] is any different from Irvine, where I'm from," she said. There are 347 local merchants that accept the Student Advantage Membership card in Boston including the Wrap, Pizzeria Uno, Boston Sports Club, and New England Aquarium. There are 161 businesses in Cambridge and currently 22 in Medford that accept the Student Advantage card according to Van Vliet.

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News

Poor team finish overshadows individual success for fencing

March 31

The women's fencing team competed in the New England Championships this past weekend and entered the competition with high hopes. Though the team returned to campus having placed eighth out of 11 teams, there were many individual highlights to the event. The stiffest competition during the weekend came from MIT, Brown, and Boston College. MIT ran away with first place with 67 total victories. Brown and BC, separated by only three victories, trailed MIT by more than ten and came in second and third, respectively."We competed fairly even with them in almost every individual bout," sophomore Amanda Haley said. "But the depth on these three teams allowed them to appear much stronger as a team than everyone else."After these powerhouses, there was a fall off of ten victories, but the next group of six teams were all within striking distance of one another. Tufts was in this group and team members felt they could have finished higher. "I am a little disappointed because we placed fourth the previous two years," junior captain Frances Harper said. "We did not finish as well as a team as I had hoped, but we did have some good individual results." The New England Championships has both a team and an individual competition, and there is separation of the three weapon types - foil, epee, and sabre. In the team portion, three fencers from each school compete in each of the weapons against fencers from other schools. Then, the total victories of the nine starters are added together for the final team score.In the individual portion, the top nine fencers from each weapon, determined in the team portion, face each other to determine an overall winner. This top nine consists of the best five "A" spot fencers, top three "B" spot fencers, and the best "C" spot fencer. For the Jumbos, the highlight in the team competition came from the sabre weapon squad. Each of three Tufts fencers in this completion, juniors Kassara Williams, Diana DeLuca, and Emily Capatta, finished fifth in their group in the sabre divisions. Thus Tufts placed fifth as a squad. "This is a reassuring result," Williams said about the sabreist's perfmances. "Our squad is the most experienced of the three at Tufts, so it was nice to see a good finish."Both Williams and DeLuca have fenced in previous years, but Capatta is a newcomer. According to Williams, despite Capatta's inexperience, she is "one of the hardest working individuals on the team." Though the foil and epee squads did not finish as high, there were a couple of bright spots in their fights. Freshman Zinger Yang, fencing in the foil "A" spot finished fifth in her division, and sophomore Amanda Haley finished fifth in the epee "B" division.In the individual portion of the tournament, the Jumbos placed two fencers in the top nine of their respective weapons. Williams made the sabre elite and finished sixth overall, while Yang joined the top foilers and placed fifth overall.Though the momentum gained from competitions through the year gave Tufts high hopes for this tournament, this is still a rebuilding year. The team does not have any seniors and five of its starters had no previous experience prior to this year.The team still has a shot at closing the season off with a strong finish. Next weekend the team travels to Temple College to compete in the National Intercollegiate Women's Fencing Association."This competition is usually a little easier than the New Englands," Harper said. The teams come from all over the east coast, though many are concentrated from New York and Virginia, and should provide the Jumbos with valuable experience for next year. There are also five members of the Tufts team that will be headed to Regionals at Columbia in two weeks. They are the entire sabre squad of Williams, DeLuca, and Capetta, along with Yang from the foil, and Haley from the epee. These individuals won at least 25 percent of their bouts throughout the season to earn this chance to fence at the meet.

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News

Stealing water

August 31

I was saddened to read Tsvika Klein's article "Defending Israel," because it shows just how much further we need to go to achieve a lasting peace in the Middle East. One of my undergraduate professors told us that if you read an article where only one side of the story comes out, only one set of facts is presented, and the author's country is defended without pointing out any of its wrongdoings, then that reflects a bias on the part of the author. Klein, in a very one-sided article, has done a great disservice to the Tufts community. I would like to challenge three ridiculous, almost laughable, mistruths: 1) the Palestinians use their children as shields, 2) Palestinians are stealing water from Israel, and 3) Israel has somehow been "generous" to the Palestinians. I do not know if Klein made these statements out of ignorance or out of a deliberate attempt to hide the truth, but either way, it is inexcusable. By claiming that Palestinians use their children as shields, Klein promotes stereotypes similar to the ones used in South Africa during the period of apartheid. Klein sees Palestinians as somehow inferior types of people, not worthy of the same dignity and freedom that is bestowed on everyone in the world. We are somehow expected to believe that Palestinians do not love their children like every parent in the world does. I strongly encourage Klein and other Tufts students who share similar views to visit the Palestinian territories and talk to Palestinian families and see what the reality is like. A second myth that Klein promotes is that Palestinians are stealing water from Israel. According to Le Monde Diplomatique, the opposite is true. Since 1967, water in the occupied territories has been placed under military control and Arab residents have been forbidden to dig new wells, whereas Jewish settlements may drill for water without restriction. World Bank statistics reveal that 90 percent of the water in the West Bank is used for Israel's benefit and the Palestinians have to make do with the remaining ten percent. In 1996, a World Bank report described the water shortage in Gaza as the most serious in the world. Sarah Hershey, a Jewish activist, spent part of the summer in the Palestinian territories and it changed her whole outlook. In a recent article, she wrote, "In a region where water is scarce, settlers use five times more water than Palestinians per capita, and twice as much as residents of Tel Aviv. Images of the large swimming pool, flourishing gardens, and green grass that I saw at the largest settlement, Ma'ale Adumim, against the backdrop of the drought-like conditions that plague neighboring Palestinian villages and refugee camps are still vivid in my mind." Klein should feel ashamed for saying that "every person in Israel is responsible for saving water." It is simply not true. Finally, Klein argues that the Israelis have been "generous" to the Palestinians. If digging trenches in the roads to make travel difficult, demolishing homes, and generally making life miserable for the Palestinians is "generous," then yes, the Israeli government has been very generous. If assassinating people merely on the basis of suspicion rather than putting them on trial is "generous," then yes, the Israeli government has been very accommodating. If ignoring the issue of refugees for fifty years is "generous," then yes, the Israeli government has been unusually gracious. These are dangerous myths that will resonate for people who are angry and want to direct their anger at someone and want to make sense of the senseless killings. But I implore all those who are serious about ending the conflict to dig deeper, to look at the root causes, and to look at the grievances of both sides. There, one will find a people that has suffered tremendously for over 50 years and another people that lives in fear of suicide attacks. On the issue of Israeli security, I absolutely feel that it is a legitimate concern. I empathize very deeply with Israeli families who have lost victims. Every Israeli has the right to live in peace. But what has been absent from the discussion for so many years is the equally legitimate need for Palestinian security. What protects Palestinians from tanks and helicopter gunships? What protects Palestinians from live ammunition and rubber-coated steel bullets? In my mind, Israel's policy of collective punishment has been a lousy failure because it creates the conditions that breed more anger and increases the potential for more suicide attacks. I would like to remind Klein that it is not just the Arab world that criticizes Israel but virtually the entire international community, except for Israel and the US. In the past year, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have both denounced Israel's "excessive" and "illegal" use of force. It is true that many neighboring Arab countries have turned their backs on the Palestinians and it would also be true to say that Arafat is a corrupt politician. The heart of the matter, however, is the Israeli occupation and expanding settlements that will soon enter its 35th year. Anthony Lewis, author of Gideon's Trumpet and a New York Times columnist, wrote poignantly, "That Jews should be indifferent to the mistreatment of another people - that they should invent justifications for inhumanity - seems to me the bitterest of ironies. When all the invention and pettifogging arguments are finished, the inescapable fact is that Israel has been colonizing the occupied territories. And still is." As a direct result of Israel's year-long border closure, 55 percent of Palestinians in the West Bank and 80 percent of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip now live below the poverty line. Nearly one-fifth of Palestinian households have lost their only source of income during the intifada. Israel's collective punishment, its policy of assassinations and heavy-handed tactics only serve to make an already desperate population even more desperate. It is time for moderate Jewish-Americans, moderate Israelis, and people of conscience everywhere, to speak out against these injustices. I will end with a quote from Nigel Parry, a British journalist. "Isn't it time that we, the international community, deal with Israel in the same way that we dealt with Apartheid South Africa? That we ask our governments to cease international aid and arms to Israel? That we impose economic sanctions on Israel?"Faris Khader is a student at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. He is focusing on Conflict Resolution and Development Economics.

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News

Provost steps down, new president announces admin. changes

August 31

After 21 years as the University's second-highest ranking official, Provost Sol Gittleman announced this semester that he would step down from the post at the end of the academic year.Gittleman, who arrived at Tufts 37 years ago, announced his resignation in late October as the University's new president, Larry Bacow, revealed restructuring plans for the administration.Gittleman will continue teaching next year.In a statement, Bacow lauded Gittleman's service to Tufts. "He has always personified all that is great about Tufts: a passion for students, a commitment to the scholarly enterprise, and a deep seeded concern for people. Like students and young faculty before me, I have found him to be a wonderful mentor."Bacow presented his restructuring plans to the trustees during their annual fall meeting. Dean of Engineering Ioannis Miaoulis and Dr. Mary Y. Lee, dean of educational affairs at the medical school, were appointed associate provosts. The dean of natural and social sciences, Susan Ernst, became the dean of arts and sciences. All changes took effect Nov. 1.Bacow eliminated the position of vice president of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering, which was vacated last May when Mel Bernstein left Tufts to become provost at Brandeis University. The president also created a University Council on Graduate Education, headed by chemistry Professor David Walt.The new council and the associate provost appointments were intended to unite Tufts' seven schools while simultaneously streamlining the administration, Bacow said. Gittleman said that reducing the size of the administration's organizational structure would save money that could be used to improve faculty salaries.

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News

Defense holds key to football season

August 31

Once again, it appears that the strength of this year's football team will lie within its defense. Defensive tackle and 2000 All-NESCAC Team member Everett Dickerson, who is back as a graduate to exercise his final year of eligibility, and senior co-captain Scott Mittenthal, a linebacker, will anchor a unit that returns six starters in total. The secondary features junior defensive back Evan Zupancic, who led the team with six interceptions last Fall, and was named a preseason All-American by D3football.com. "If it was up to me, your defense would be your strongest thing every single year," coach Bill Samko said. "I think we have a chance to have a really strong defense again, there's a lot of talent over there. Aside from quarterback and tailback, the defense has the first choice of players. A lot of our best players are going to defense." However, the Jumbo defense will be forced to adjust to a major change this year - a new coordinator in John Walsh, who will employ the "50" defense. "[The 50] is not really new for us," Samko said. "It hasn't necessarily been the featured part, but you can run a 4-3, 3-4, or a 52 and there's still 11 guys out there. Somehow it all adds up to 11 anyway." Walsh comes to Tufts via Georgetown University, where he served as inside linebacker coach and head strength and conditioning coach for the Hoyas. During Walsh's three-year tenure, the program went 23-10 and produced two First Team All-Metro Atlantic Conference players on the defensive side of the ball. He is also not far removed from the game as a player, having previously made a name for himself in the NESCAC as a co-captain and four year starter at linebacker for the Amherst Lord Jeffs until his graduation in 1997. And according to Samko, both the players and Walsh have adjusted well thus far. "We'll find out for sure on Saturday," Samko said. "But so far, it's been good, I think they're moving around pretty well. I'm really glad to him have [Walsh] here. He coordinates well." As a unit, the Jumbo defense recorded 36 sacks last year, to go along with nine interceptions, six forced fumbles and 14 recoveries, as well as 67 tackles behind the line of scrimmage for a net loss of 179 yards. But the true measure of a good defense, Samko says, goes beyond the numbers. "Statistics can be very misleading sometimes," he said. "In the Amherst game, for example, we were down 8-0 and had a chance to win at the end from the five yard line. That was because our defense kept us in the game." Aside from the Amherst game, the Jumbos lost two other games by nine points or less, including a 27-20 decision against Trinity and a 16-7 defeat in the season opener at Wesleyan. Then on homecoming, Tufts carried a 10-7 lead until into the third quarter, only to fall, 21-10 to perennial nemesis Williams. Samko's squad finished the season with a disappointing 2-6 record, which placed it in a tie for seventh place in the NESCAC with Hamilton. "You really win with defense," Samko said. "Even though our season was very frustrating last year, we were legitimately in every game, with the exception of Middlebury." The Jumbos will look to their defense to keep them in the game right off the bat, when they kick-off at Wesleyan this Saturday in Middletown, Ct. The Cardinals feature a high-powered offense, and have beaten Tufts in each of the teams last five meetings, while the Jumbos haven't won at Wesleyan since 1988. "We need to play well defensively against Wesleyan," Samko. "If we can do that, I think we'll be okay. I think their strength is their offense, and they have an excellent quarterback. We need to control the ball. They can't have the ball 25 times per game." With that in mind, Samko's expectations for his defense in the Wesleyan game as well as for the season are quite simple. "I expect them to play hard, I expect them to play physically, and I expect them to play smart," he said. "And I expect them to do what they are asked to do. You can't ask for much more than that."

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News

Custodians, lobbyists satisfied with wage changes

August 31

The groups that lobbied for custodian's rights throughout the semester say the contractual changes that raised wages for the University's custodial staff are a step in the right direction. Wages will increase from an average of $8 per hour to $11.45 in January following the negotiations between Service Employees' International Union (SEIU) Local 254 and OneSource, the private custodial service that provides janitors to Tufts. Members of SEIU Local 254, the Student Labor Action Movement (SLAM), and the custodians themselves say they are pleased with the pay raise. The three-year contract covers about 200 custodians at Tufts, according to SEIU Local 254. Workers will also receive more opportunities for full-time work and family health insurance. While janitors are generally pleased with the outcome of the negotiations, some say the $3 pay increase will not change their lifestyles dramatically. "The extra pay is not going to make a large difference, but it will help," one full-time OneSource worker said. "The majority of the workers are in agreement with the contract," he said. "We were worried about asking for larger wage increases." SLAM organizer Iris Halpern said the group was satisfied with the negotiations, but would have preferred quicker changes. "We're not happy about the timeline," she said. "It wasn't the epitome, but it was a good and decent start." The deadline for contractual discussions with OneSource was pushed back numerous times throughout the negotiations. SLAM formed last summer, when it began to agitate for higher wages and increased benefits for Tufts workers. SEIU Local 254, however, sees this victory as a step toward better working conditions for all custodians in the Boston area. According to union representatives, job security is an important concern for Boston's custodians, and will become an especially relevant issue next year when contracts for an estimated 10,000 university janitors expire. Sylvia Panfil, a spokeswoman for SEIU Local 254, said an agreement has been reached with custodians at other area schools that assures workers at least the same contract conditions as their previous agreement in the event that the school hires a new company. "If a university chooses a new contractor, they will have to live up to this agreement and maintain previous standards," she said. The University's contract with OneSource terminates in 2003. Tufts is likely to "continue the way we are, which is to continue with union labor," Facilities Director Richard Goulet said. "Then, the agreement would still be in place between the contractor and the union." Because of the high cost associated with running a custodial service, the University will likely continue to outsource, according to Goulet. "We're at the mercy of market rates," he said. University officials did not participate heavily in the negotiations. If the custodians had held a strike, Goulet said Tufts would have expected OneSource to provide custodial workers from elsewhere because of its agreement with the company. "We're glad that they were able to come to an agreement with the union," Goulet said. SLAM lobbied for the contractual changes in the months preceding the final agreement, holding several campus rallies and later sending student representatives to the contract negotiation meetings. "The main thing we did was apply pressure on the University," Halpern said. "SLAM participation was critical in making the University take action," Panfil said. But University officials said all along that they would simply oversee the negotiations. According to Panfil, several of the custodians participated in the bargaining process. Serving as liaisons, they communicated with other custodians about the progress of negotiations and provided the workers with a sense of unity.

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News

Field hockey drops last home game, 1-0

August 31

Amherst College rocketed a shot past Tufts sophomore goalie Julie Jackson late in the first half yesterday to post the lone goal of the game and drop Tufts to 1-7 in NESCAC and 3-10 overall. The loss kills any hopes the Jumbos had of post-season play, pushing down them to tenth place in the conference. The match was typical of the squad's losses this season -a Tufts-dominated game in which it sized up to its opponent on every level but was deficient in scoring in the end. "We simply can't score," coach Carol Rappoli said. "If we could score we'd only have one loss. We made one mistake, one lapse in communication, and it cost us. I think we played very well." Tufts started the game moving the ball well, taking strong hits, and communicating well. The Jumbos clearly dominated the Lady Jeffs in the first stanza, with 11 shots on goal compared to Amherst's three. The two teams waged a scoreless battle despite several penalty corners, but with 3:02 remaining in the first half, senior Lady Jeff Robin Ackerman broke through. Ackerman whacked in her fourth tally of the year off a crossing pass from the right by leading scorer junior Abby Ouimet. "It was a 20 second lapse and they got lucky," Chivvis said. "It got past a bunch of people including their forwards until she popped it in." The Jumbos did not let down in the final minutes of the half, and senior co-captains Lindsay Lionetti and Christina Orf led the squad in an effort to put a goal on the scoreboard. In the second half, Amherst tightened its defense and stepped up its offense, managing five shots on goal and earning 11 penalty corners, while the Jumbos only got two shots on net. Most of the action occurred in Tufts defensive end, where senior Liesl Bradford and juniors Ursula Stahl and Karyn Moar played tenaciously to keep the visitors from increasing their lead. Amherst's win was its tenth of the season (5-3 in the NESCAC) and solidified the team's third place standing in the conference. The Lady Jeffs were ranked tenth in the nation in this week's poll. The Jumbos, who have not seen a losing season since 1993, have been on the losing end of nine scoreless contests to date and continue to search for a way out of their scoring rut. "I wish I knew why we aren't scoring," junior Dana Chivvis said. " If I did, I'd be psyched, because I could fix it." Coach Rappoli agreed with Chivvis' assessment. "There's really no reason for it," she said. "If I knew how to correct it, we'd be in another place." Tufts sophomore keepers Jackson and Fara White split time in net for the third consecutive game, playing a half each. They combined for five saves, with Jackson making four in the first half. Their Amherst counterpart, senior goalie Beth Sensing, stood strong between the posts, making five of her six saves in the first half. "It's been frustrating, because you go into a game expecting to work hard and come out on top," Orf said. "We've been working hard, but we just haven't come out on top often." The team will face Williams on Saturday at 11 a.m. for its final conference match of the season. Tufts is also set to play Gordon on Tuesday, a game that will take place only if Gordon does not make its post-season tournament.

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Sexual harassment not a hot topic despite activist efforts

August 31

Despite extensive media coverage and efforts from campus activists to draw attention to the issue, the student body does not appear to be more concerned about sexual harassment after a complaint filed by SLAM activist Iris Halpern was decided in favor of The Primary Source. The Committee on Student Life (CSL) determined that the Source's commentary on SLAM activists - which included comments about leaders in tight tank tops and a cartoon of a well-endowed female - were printed according to the publication's first-amendment rights and did not qualify as sexual harassment. But Halpern's supporters dispute the decision and say that it has left students without recourse for sexual harassment on campus Campus activists have gone to great lengths to try to get the administration and student leaders to address their concerns over the last few weeks. Junior Lou Esparza has appeared before the TCU Senate to appeal for standards for Senate-funded publications when it comes to potentially offensive material. Esparza feels that such efforts have caused students to become aware of the case, but he says the campus has only just begun to address the sexual harassment issue. "The campus has a fragmented feel to it right now," Esparza said. "In order for there to be some reconciliation, students need to feel like their concerns are being valued." Despite efforts by Halpern's supporters to heighten awareness through a postering campaign and other similar tactics, many students do not appear to be well-informed about the case or feel that sexual harassment is a pressing campus issue. Sophomore Andrew Rivnak is not deeply familiar with the Halpern case, but upon learning of the CSL's decision, he did not feel increased concern over sexual harassment on campus. "As a student I am always concerned for the well-being of students involved in [sexual harassment] cases," Rivnak said. "It is a delicate subject, but I feel that increased press on campus will only help the situation." Some students have reacted negatively to the activist campaign to raise awareness of the issue. Junior Jerome Shapiro says that while a strong sexual harassment policy on campus is important to him, the tactics of Halpern's supporters have not helped the cause. "I agree that the issues at hand are important and pressing to many, and I would never discredit anyone's feelings," Shapiro said. "However, I can't help but feel like our friendly liberal activists have cried wolf a few too many times... I'm not sure that what happened with The Primary Source can be referred to as sexual harassment." Freshman Elizabeth Fagenholz isn't personally invested in the case, either. While she has noticed the promotional activities of Halpern's supporters, she doesn't see sexual harassment as a problem of great magnitude. "Since I've been here, I haven't experienced it as a problem," she said. As a freshman, Fagenholz found that staying on top of the developments and the ultimate decision of the case was a bit of a challenge. "I know the case exists... but I didn't see how it was resolved," she said. "I don't know how it all works or who all those people are. I didn't think there was anything I was really going to do either way." Fagenholz and Rivnak are not the only students who have paid little attention to the Halpern case. Senior exchange student Yen Chow is not as concerned with the decision as many campus activists would like her to be. "I know The Primary Source had an article about a woman, but I didn't really go into the details of it," Chow said. But there are some students who have been paying close attention. Fifth-year student Caitlin Howell feels personally involved in the case and disagrees with the final decision of the CSL. "I've been following it," Howell said. "I'm really surprised that it has gone the way it has. I really think she [Halpern] is in the right." Howell thinks sexual harassment needs to be further addressed on campus as a result of the CSL's decision, as she feels that many students do not equate gender discrimination with sexual harassment. Howell also believes that the word "sexual" may need to be deconstructed and have a wider definition when it comes to forms of discrimination or harassment. Like Howell, Esparza is personally concerned that the University's commitment to equal opportunity has been brought into question by the nature of the CSL decision, saying the Committee did not address any violation of the sexual harassment policy but rather focused on the issue of free speech. Liz Monnin, co-chair of the Tufts Feminist Alliance and supporter of Iris Halpern, recently told the Daily of her sense of the campus reaction to the case. "There are a lot of people on this campus pissed off about sexual harassment," she said. Not surprisingly, Source editor-in-chief Sam Dangremond does not see the outcome of his case with Halpern as an appropriate jumpstart for a campus-wide discussion of sexual harassment. "Sexual harassment does not need to be further addressed by anyone," Dangremond said. "Why? Because sexual harassment never occurred." Dangremond has not been pleased with those responsible for claiming the case is relevant to sexual harassment. "I've been somewhat disappointed by the over-emotional responses of some students," he said. "I was called a 'perverted power-hungry rape supporter' in print, but you don't see me crying to the administration. Some people simply need to lighten up and remember that, after all, this is still just college."

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News

Fresh legs jump-starting soccer team

August 31

Women's soccer coach Martha Whiting did not like what she was seeing from her team in the first 25 minutes of Wednesday's non-conference game against Gordon. While the Jumbos got on the board in the first minute on a goal from sophomore Jess Trombly, their level of intensity declined sharply after the score. The team grew sluggish, and seemed destined for yet another lackluster first-half performance. Meanwhile, the Fighting Scots took advantage, controlling play and putting together a number of strong scoring opportunities, including all three of their corner kicks. After the third corner, Whiting decided it was time for a change. In what she described as a "massive substitution", the coach removed nearly half of her starters with just under 20 minutes remaining in the opening period. "If I see someone I think isn't pushing themselves to the limit, I'll take them off the field," she said. "I have expectations of them, and they have expectations of themselves, but sometimes they need a little push." In the starter's places, she sent in senior co-captain Katie Ruddy, who returned to the field for the first time in two weeks, and four freshmen: Becky Greenstein, Lindsay Wolejko Catherine Benedict, and Sarah Gelb. The switch worked instantaneously. Injecting the team with an immediate surge of adrenaline, the Jumbos easily dominated play through the end of the period, amassing a 17-4 advantage on shots by the break. The freshmen continued to contribute through the second half as well, with Wolejko assisting on junior Elizabeth Tooley's goal in the 53rd minute. Fellow freshman forward Michelle Sawyer came close to notching the first goal of her collegiate career, knocking in a ball in the 86th minute that was called back and ruled a no-goal. "I'm so happy with the freshmen. They're not only solid, but they are contributing a lot more than I expected," Whiting said. "And they're fitting in well, too - the team has nice chemistry right now." In fact, this year's freshmen are contributing more than any freshman class in recent memory. Aside from sheer numbers - there are eight freshmen on the roster this season, twice as many as in either of the last two years - the class of 2005 is putting in a lot of quality playing time. There are no standouts of yet, which differs from previous years when players such as Cooper and Trombly exploded out of the gates to post 20 or more points in their preliminary campaigns. Instead the class is performing well as a whole, having tallied five points, and is also playing well away from the net. Whiting has said repeatedly that she feels confident sending any of them out to play, and they have more than backed up her words. The point total equals that of last year's season total for freshmen if Trombly, the NESCAC Rookie of the Year, is discounted. Both Gelb and Wolejko have appeared in every game so far this season, and each has found her way onto the scoresheet, Gelb with two assists and Wolejko with one. Greenstein has appeared in five games, and scored the first goal in Tufts' 2-0 victory at Wesleyan on Sept. 12, while Benedict, Sawyer, and defensive back Alina Schmidt have also contributed valuable minutes to the team. And while she is not expected to see much playing time for the remainder of this season, goalkeeper Meg McCourt played well when called upon to fill in for senior Mara Schanfield, who missed a game and a half after receiving a red card in the season opener. Even with strong performances from the freshmen, however, the Jumbos will have their work cut out for them tomorrow when they travel back up to Maine to take on the 6-1 Bates Bobcats in a crucial conference battle. The Bobcats are on a hot streak this season, having won their last four games. In the last week, they have picked up two conference wins, defeating Trinity 4-0 and Middlebury 3-0. They have not allowed a goal since a 2-0 loss to Amherst on Sept. 15 - the only game this year in which they have been scored against. Bobcats' senior co-captain Kate Dockery leads both her team and the NESCAC with 20 points already this season on nine goals and two assists. Freshman Katie Carroll has also contributed four goals, while senior Amanda Waterhouse leads the NESCAC in assists, with six. Junior goalkeeper Kim Martell leads the conference with a .36 goals against average. Bates was ranked fifth in New England in the Sept. 24 NSCAA poll. At 3-1 the Jumbos are third in the NESCAC, one place ahead of 2-1 Bates, but dropped out of both the national and regional rankings after the opening defeat at Babson and last Saturday's loss to Colby. Tufts and Bates will face off in Lewiston, ME. this Saturday at 12 p.m.

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News

Finally, a movie or two worth a trip to the theater

August 31

Whether you're in the mood for suspense or sentimentality, this week's movie releases just might have what you need. After weeks of slim pickings at area movie theaters, moviegoers finally have a good amount to choose from for weekend entertainment. And while none of the films are sure-fire crowd-pleasers, a few of them have potential. No one instills fear quite like Michael Douglas. If his starring role as hot-shot psychiatrist Dr. Nathan Conrad in Don't Say a Word doesn't scare you, the film's plot will. To save his kidnapped daughter, Dr. Conrad must unlock the tormented mind of a nearly-catatonic patient, played by Britanny Murphy (Girl, Interrupted). The kidnapper's sole demand is a six-digit number locked away in the patient's troubled memory. With a suspenseful story and a stellar cast, Don't Say a Word could be one of the season's scariest movies. On the opposite end of the cinematic spectrum is Ben Stiller's latest big-screen endeavor, Zoolander. Stiller both directs and stars in the comedy about a fashion model nearing the end of his career. In hopes of another big break, Stiller falls victim to top-notch fashion designer Jacobim Mogutu, who brainwashes the mindless supermodel to kill the Prime Minister of Malaysia. What this film lacks in substance it makes up for in laughs. Granted, the humor is strictly inane; but a good laugh never hurt anybody.Kids World can best be described as a film strictly for the young at heart. Do you still dream about making your parents disappear? So does Ryan Mitchell (Blake Foster), your typical 11-year-old boy. He's picked on by bullies, his brother, and his parents. But all of that comes to an end when Ryan discovers the "Wishing Glass." Before you can say "Abracadabra!" anyone over the age of 12 disappears. But something goes wrong when Ryan's friend Holly disappears as well. A cute idea, but the plot promises to disappoint anyone who has graduated elementary school. Christopher Lloyd's presence isn't enough of a saving grace to make this movie worth your hard-earned cash. The most promising of this week's batch of new releases is Hearts in Atlantis. It may be another Stephen King story-turned-movie, but don't let that scare you. Set in the 1960s, a mysterious older man moves into the apartment of a mother and her son, changing their lives forever. Anthony Hopkins, the man who made even cannibalism seem elegant, is the backbone of the film. While it borders dangerously on being overly sentimental, it promises to touch even the most cynical at heart.

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News

Bringing the color back to Tufts

August 31

You may have noticed a surprising wall of color beneath the fixture of Goddard Chapel while climbing uphill this week. A rainbow of photos decorates the gray wall in front of the chapel, advertising the new-and-improved image of the Tufts University Arts Commission and injecting color into Tufts' under-appreciated artistic community.Until recently, the Arts Commission and the Arts Haus were one and the same. This year, however, Arts Haus co-presidents Erika Martin and Craig Wenner have opened the organization to all Tufts students. Created to promote the arts on campus, the Arts Haus has done little to advance that effort in the past. Martin described the former Arts Commission as "inactive." Now, with the inclusion of other students, the group is aiming to sponsor on-campus art endeavors, like the wall mural and other events. According to Martin, the Arts Commission is a "student organization dedicated to bringing the arts to Tufts, as well as the surrounding community. The idea is to promote student artists and outside artists, and to raise awareness of the arts and lack thereof on campus." She added that it is a group "for all artists, art appreciators, and anyone else who cares about art in one way or another.""When you think Tufts, you don't think of art," said Sarah Siegel, a member of the Arts Commission. "On paper it looks like we have a lot of stuff going on about the arts, but there is no interaction." Martin agreed, adding that "Harvard has an entire art weekend. They have an office of the arts. Tufts has nothing." The Arts Commission hopes to change this stale situation, bringing a new awareness to the University.Some students say that the arts are neglected at Tufts, and point out that there has been no organization promoting communication among artistic groups on campus like Spirit of Color and Torn Ticket II. And while the performing arts are well represented in the form of dance and theatre groups, the visual arts are virtually absent from the Tufts community. Events at the University's own gallery are under-publicized, and there is no real forum for the display of student artwork. Many students at Tufts take part in the dual-degree program with the Museum School, but their work goes virtually unnoticed on the Tufts campus. The group currently has a membership of about 30 students. All residents of the Arts Haus are members by default. The group has held a few meetings and this week has begun its activities on campus with the rainbow wall mural. A small project, the mural catches the eye with its curiosity-inspiring brightness, then lures a person in to focus not only on the project as a whole, but on the images in the individual photographs. In this way it reiterates the goal of the commission: to acquire the attention and the focus of the student body, not on photographs but on the arts as a whole.Aside from the mural, the Arts Commission has brainstormed many ideas for upcoming on-campus events. The group wants to promote student artists, art alumni, and the performing arts on campus. It hopes to hold a student art sale towards the end of every semester as a way for student artists to not only show their work, but also make a profit. Plans are already beginning for a spring art festival, which would be held on the academic quad around May Day. At the all-day festival, visual art would be displayed around the quad. Performance groups would also participate, performing on at least one stage - possibly two, one at each end of the quad. There would also be workshop booths where people could sit and experiment with different media. Also on the group's list of intended projects are lectures by prominent artists, choreographers, filmmakers, and art appreciators, adding an artistic voice to the plethora of politically and economically oriented lectures already offered on campus. The Arts Commission is also interested in creating a program with area schools that would enable Tufts students to interact artistically with children in the community.The Arts Commission is a newly revitalized on-campus group with big goals and a difficult task ahead, but its artistic vision may bring a much-needed creative energy to Tufts and foster communication among the already successful and popular arts groups on campus. If the Arts Commission is successful, more students will likely attend campus arts events and the arts community at Tufts might be infused with a newfound creative spirit.

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News

Welcome, you've got mail...from the admissions office

August 31

The pre-Tufts tradition of racing down to the mailbox and tearing open an envelope from the Admissions Office may be soon be a thing of the past. Many of this year's prospective Jumbos will discover their fate sitting down; over the chirp of a modem and the click of a hard drive. In an effort to make the notification process more efficient, Tufts - as well as Harvard, Dartmouth and Yale - will notify applicants online along with a regular letter. Admissions officer Leon Braswell and Dean of Admissions David Cuttino, estimate that close to 95 percent of prospective Tufts students now have e-mail access. "Tufts recognizes that this is a medium in which students are comfortable, as many have completed their applications and even conducted their college searches electronically," Cuttino said. Next year, applicants will have the option to reap the benefits of online notification through Tufts' admissions application management system. "Just as students can check on the status of the credentials supporting their application online, next year they will have the option of getting their decision," Cuttino said. In the past, Tufts' admissions office has relied on e-mail to communicate admissions decisions to international applicants in areas where mail service was unreliable, but "real" letters were also mailed. More recently, e-mail has been used to contact applicants living on the West Coast (especially California) to avoid mail delays and to bypass post office strikes. The Class of 2005 received both the "snail-mail" and the e-mail version of the admissions notification. For some accepted students, this meant that the joyous news could be forwarded to friends and family members. For others, especially those who saw the online decision before their snail-mail acceptance letter, some of the thrill of admittance was somewhat diminished. Overall, the admissions office has received a positive response."Last year, we sent admissions decisions through e-mail to all of the students applying Early Decision", Cuttino said. "The positive response led us to send online decisions to the rest of the applicants. From now on, we will be sending notification electronically in addition to sending letters by mail." "We will continue to send hard copy letters along with the electronic letter", Braswell said. "If an e-mail system is more efficient for the University and for applying students, it should be utilized as much as possible", said freshman Ezra Fishman. "The only drawback to the system would be technical problems, but as long as they can be prevented, e-mail is just as good as a letter."An online acceptance notification system boasts many advantages. First, this method, if it were to eventually replace the traditional sending of letters, would be more ecologically friendly. Eliminating paper waste would demonstrate Tufts' effort to clean the environment and save trees. And some people view sending admissions decisions via e-mail as beneficial to the student applicants. Those who apply early decision will often be saved the effort of completing the applications for back-up schools, and their parents will avoid paying the application fees that have been steadily mounting in amount each year. "I requested a decision by e-mail because I wanted to know as soon as possible," freshman Jon Gold said. "I remember getting a call from one of my friends, who also applied to Tufts early decision, to go online and check my mail. I did so, and I remember it being a tense and exciting moment, and finding out simultaneously with my friend whether both of us were spending four years together or apart." As it turns out, both Gold and his friend were accepted and went out to celebrate that very night. "When I heard that I could have the option of getting an e-mail rather than a letter, I was surprised - a letter is much more personal, plus I don't really trust the Internet," freshman Mari Cohen said. "But by the time I was supposed to get my decision, I just wanted to find out, and I got the e-mail a few days before the letter. At that point, I didn't care, but now I'm glad I have the letter. Your college acceptance is kind of a personal thing, and I still have mine". For those who are not accepted, a faster decision will grant more time for the tedious preparation of applications to other institutions, and perhaps give a bit more grieving time to those for whom Tufts was the first choice. A major issue raised by this proposal is whether or not the admissions decisions will be private - whether family members or even other student hopefuls will have access to e-mailed decisions. Another issue is that an e-mail-only notification system seems too impersonal, especially after students have put hours of effort into their applications. "I think e-mail notification only would be very unpopular and that any university that were to eliminate the written letter would be highly criticized by incoming students," senior Alex Winograd said. Winograd, a tour guide coordinator, finds the traditional admissions letter to have a charm that is missing in e-mail. "I personally would prefer to receive snail-mail. I wouldn't object to receiving an e-mail but I do think that there is something to be said for the personal touch that comes with receiving an actual notification in the mail." "I know that e-mails would save time in getting your reply, but they seem more impersonal," freshman Andrea Daley agreed. "I'd rather get a letter." "I'm not sure how prospective students would react to this but I don't think it would be entirely favorably," freshman class secretary Alexis Smith said. "It is a more impersonal approach and I think Tufts should think of itself as an institution that does not want to become an impersonal factory of students". "It seems that having e-mailed admissions decisions helps to shorten that excruciatingly long process of waiting to hear from the schools that one has applied to," freshman class president Liz Sutton said. "While I think the perspective students may be glad to hear from Tufts earlier and in an e-mail, I think that they might also feel gypped if they didn't receive a real letter. I received both; I'm hoping that they'll continue to do it that way."

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News

Amherst's defense may be too much to handle

August 31

On Wednesday night, the Pat McGee Band opened up the homecoming festivities with a nice blend of folk and classic rock in front of a mellow crowd. On Saturday, an unrelated Pat McGee - a 6'4", 245-pound defensive lineman for the undefeated Amherst football team - will bring his aggressive style of play to Zimman field, hoping to rock the Tufts offense in front of the homecoming crowd.McGee, who has recorded 8.5 sacks and 35 tackles already this year, is only one part of the stingy Amherst defensive line, which has yet to allow a touchdown through five games of play. In fact, the defense has merely allowed two field goals - a 42-yard boot from Middlebury's Mike Frissora and a 40-yard shot from Colby's Keith Jonassen.Having out-scored opponents 103-6, the Jeffs' defense makes it the team to beat in the NESCAC, although tomorrow's battle against Tufts will be its most difficult game of the season so far. While Amherst's opponents have not stood much of a chance so far, they have also been the weaker NESCAC teams; all but Wesleyan (3-2) post a losing record on the year.Examining the impressive numbers that the Amherst defense has posted this year would make any offensive coordinator cringe, especially one who favors a ground-based attack plan. Amherst has given up an average of only 62.4 yards per game on the ground. The unit has also recorded 13 interceptions, 19 sacks, and seven forced fumbles, giving Amherst's run of the mill offense many more opportunities to score."The game of football has a lot to do with field position, so when our defense gives us the ball on the opposing team's 20 yard line it's obviously easier for us to score," Amherst wide receiver Derrell Wright, a senior quad-captain, said. "I think it's sort of a security blanket for our offense to know that we have such a great defense."Trying to understand why the Amherst defense has enjoyed such success this year might be simplified by looking at the roster. Of the starting 11 defenders, eight are seniors, two are juniors, and one is a sophomore. The maturity of the Amherst defense has been inversely proportional to the number of points allowed in each of the past four seasons. In 1998, the defense allowed 141 points, in 1999 it was 88 points, and last year 70 points. And this year, the Lord Jeffs are on pace to give up about nine. Not surprisingly, Amherst's record has improved steadily throughout the past three years as well - from 5-3 in 98 to 7-1 a year ago.Leading the defense is the McGee, whose 8.5 sacks this season give him 28 for his career, closing in on the unofficial Amherst school record of 30. The aspiring Navy Seal was named first team All-NESCAC last year, despite missing the final three games to a torn ACL. In the past two seasons he has received Amherst's "Hammer" award for the hardest hitting player. "He's a real tenacious kid; I have a lot of respect for him," Amherst coach E.J. Mills said." He blew out his knee last year, and then came back 100 percent. He prepares meticulously for every game by watching a ton of film. He's just a good football player."Besides McGee, two senior linebackers have also put up impressive stats this season and should provide the Jumbo offense with some problems. Dan Lalli at 5'10", 210 has cumulated a team-high 38 tackles so far and was a member of last year's first team All-NESCAC. Fellow linebacker Gregg Stankewicz (6', 220) trails only McGee in sacks with seven, and was on the second team ALL-NESCAC last year.If anything, Tufts can find solace in the fact that Amherst does not have a dominating offense, and while the Jeffs have blown out most opponents, Middlebury (2-3) held Amherst to only a single touchdown on Oct. 6. Middlebury's defense has given up 75 points this year, but it was able to stifle the Amherst offense until mid-way through the fourth quarter."[Offensively], our main goal remains the same, though, and that is to keep getting first downs because if we do that then we'll eventually score," Wright said. "I think we just have to keep doing what we have been doing on defense and special teams."The biggest question of the game concerns whether Tufts' running back tandem of junior Keven Kelley and senior Chuck McGraw - whose combined 1041 rushing yards lead any duo in the NESCAC - will be able to break through Amherst's line. Thus far, 79 percent of Tufts' offensive plays have been on the ground, and only Williams has had even had moderate success stopping them. "Tufts has such an explosive offense and has a very solid defense as well," Wright said. "This game is going to be a battle at every position."

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News

Asian-American enrollment on decline, new courses in the works

August 31

Faced with declining Asian-American enrollment over the past two years, Tufts is working to increase the number of classes that teach Asian-American culture to attract those students to the University. The changes are part of a University-wide movement to promote integrated studies, that has already proven successful through programs in international relations, multimedia arts, and film studies. Twelve professors met in a workshop over the summer to develop courses with an Asian- American focus. They intended to revamp the curriculum as well as create larger visibility for Asian Americans on campus. "Basically, we're trying to encourage departments form all over the spectrum to create room for courses that are designed to address Asian-American issues," drama Professor Sudipto Chaterjee said. Chaterjee has been involved in efforts to expand Asian-American course offerings, but a trip to India this summer prevented him from attending the workshop. The 12 professors received a grant from Tufts' Diversity Fund to bring Asian-American speakers to campus and increase Asian-American cultural programming. This spring, the drama department will produce its first play with an Asian-American theme, "The Gate of Heaven." Tufts has accepted the same number of Asian-American students over the last few years, but the number who matriculate is steadily dropping. The trend has Director of the Asian American Center Linell Yugawa sounding alarms. The class of 2000 had 192 Asian Americans, whereas the current freshman class has only 144. "Our expectation was the size of the class' Asian-American [population] would be stronger than it was," said Dean of Admissions David Cuttino in an interview in September. "We're not where we'd like to be in terms of Asian-American enrollment." Sophomore Mary Anne Triest, a resident of the Japanese Culture Unit, took Asian-American Issues as a freshman and said class discussed several issues that traditional high school curricula would have ignored. "It was really important to me because I am Asian-American," she said. Asian-American studies is one of many interdisciplinary programs that have cropped up at Tufts in recent years. A major in Middle Eastern studies was created last year, and a program already exists in Latin American studies. Tufts has considered hiring specialists to promote an integrated curriculum, according to Dean of the Colleges Charles Inouye. "We're also trying to create more room for Asian- American faculty," Chaterjee said. "The University has taken an equal opportunity diversity position. There are efforts being made from various sides." Though Inouye said existing programs are strong, the future of Tufts' offerings will rely on an increase in interdisciplinary studies. The University's objective is to produce "critical thinkers" who can express themselves persuasively, he said. But even though the desire and interest in expanding Asian-American studies and other interdisciplinary programs is high, available resources are limited. Another new program, multimedia arts, has been growing over the past few years. The program is unique because it attracts students with a background in both liberal arts and engineering, but it is also demanding. Courses cover everything from theatrics, dance, music, cartooning, filmmaking, and computer programming. Multimedia arts Co-chair Howard Woolf says that part of the beauty of multimedia arts studies is that it is a minor and not a major. It is important for students to have knowledge in several areas, Woolf said. President Larry Bacow says he wants to revitalize academics by creating interdisciplinary programs that eliminate boundaries between departments. Bacow is also evaluating which areas are most in need of revision and funding. The Asian-American studies program will likely grow as a result of this process. "We're just building bridges between Asian studies and Asian- American studies," Chatterjee said.

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News

A bold winter crop

August 31

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences must be in a state of tumult. With less than two months until nominations for the Academy Awards are due, all that's available for the choosing is a pack of less-than-stellar films. This is why the upcoming holiday season -which seems filled with choice offerings that are both critic and crowd-ready - will be an important time for the industry. Luckily, this also means a crop of long-awaited movies for the rest of us. Starting this weekend with Oceans 11, here are some releases to look for over the next few weeks:Vanilla Sky (Dec. 14)Starring: Tom Cruise, Pen?©lope Cruz, Kurt Russell, Cameron Diaz, Noah Taylor, Jason Lee, Alicia Witt, Johnny Galecki, Timothy Spall, Tilda Swinton The latest from director/screenwriter Cameron Crowe (Jerry McGuire, Almost Famous, Singles) has been at the forefront of pop media lately - real-life and screen-life have imitated one another in a romance between Cruise and Cruz. On screen, Cruise plays a rich womanizer in love with his best friend's girlfriend (Cruz). Cruise's luck see-saws quite a bit: after getting into a car accident that horribly scars his face, the girl of his dreams declares her love for him. Then his doctors say they can fix the physical damage, but lots of strange, terrible things begin to happen, and Cruise's life spirals beyond his, and everyone's, control.Not Another Teen Movie (Dec. 14)Starring: Joy Bisco, Lacey Chabert, Chris Evans, Joanna Garcia, Sam Huntington, Eric Jungmann, Mia Kirshner, Chyler Leigh, Ron Lester, Samm Levine, Cody McMains, Eric Christian Olsen, Paul Gleason, Jaime Pressly, Randy Quaid, Riley Smith Not Another Teen Movie exists to poke fun at the genre of candy-colored flicks aimed at the teenybopper crowd like Ten Things I Hate about You, Road Trip, Clueless, Can't Hardly Wait, and Never Been Kissed. Janey Briggs is an aspiring artist who is outcast by her classmates for wearing glasses, a ponytail, and paint-covered overalls. Jake Wyler is the all-American football star who makes the bet to turn Janey into Prom Queen. Humor ensues.The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Dec. 19)Starring: Elijah Wood, Sir Ian McKellen, Cate Blanchett, Sean Astin, Sean Bean, Billy Boyd, Orlando Bloom, Kevin Conway, Hugo Weaving, Brad Dourif, Martin Csoka, Bernard Hill, Ian Holm, Christopher Lee, Dominic Monaghan, Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn), John Rhys-Davies, John Noble, Andy Serkis, Liv Tyler, Karl Urban This long-awaited film of almost three hours is the first of a trilogy bringing author of J.R.R. Tolkien's legendary fantasy fiction novels to life. The Fellowship of the Ring tells how Gandalf the Grey (McKellan) discovers that the ring possessed by Frodo Baggins (Wood) is, in fact, ruler of the Rings of Power. A short synopsis for a film you'll probably enjoy tons more if you read the books after you're done with finals and before checking out the theaters.How High (Dec. 21)Starring: Method Man, Redman, Hector Elizondo, Fred Willard, Chris Elwood, Dennison Samaroo, Al Shearer, Lark Voorhies A wintertime classic sure to leave you warm and fuzzy inside - directed by Bob Dylan's son, no less. In a case for alleged grade inflation at Harvard, two stoners (Redman, Method Man) smoke pot that increases their IQs to the point that they're able to get into the university. But when they run out of their superweed, they're left to fend for themselves. This one is (surprise, surprise) based on a story idea by Method Man and Redman themselves.Kate & Leopold (Dec. 21)Starring:Meg Ryan, Hugh Jackman, Natasha Lyonne, Breckin Meyer, Liev Schrieber, Charlotte Ayanna, Bradley Whitford In Kate & Leopold, Meg Ryan stars in yet another "cute" romantic comedy. This time, she's a modern-day executive who encounters Leopold (Jackman), who just happens to be the Third Duke of Albany and a charming 19th century bachelor. Leopold has ended up in present-day New York in a time travel experiment gone awry, and as she takes him on a tour of the 21st century, a time-crossed love affair becomes inevitable.The Majestic (Dec. 21)Jim Carrey, Bob Balaban, Gerry Black, Brent Briscoe, Karl Bury, Bruce Campbell, Jeffrey DeMunn, Amanda Detmer, Allen Garfield, Laurie Holden, Martin Landau, Manron RifkinShawshank Redemption/The Green Mile director Frank Darabont works on his first film not based on a Stephen King story, or set in a prison. Self-described as "Capra-esque," The Majestic tells the tale of a blacklisted writer (Carrey) in 1951 who loses his memory in a car accident. He ends up with a fresh life in a fresh town, where he's mistaken as a soldier thought to have died in World War II.Ali (Dec. 25)Starring: Will Smith, Jon Voight, Jamie Foxx, Michael Bentt, Jada Pinkett Smith, Paul Rodriguez, Jeffrey Wright, Mario Van Peebles, Ron Silver, Nona Gaye, Giancarlo Esposito, Michael Michele, Joe Morton, Mykelti Williamson. Michael Mann (The Insider) directs Smith as the Heavyweight Boxing champion once known as Cassius Clay. The man fired up professional sports in the '60s as an undisputed champion, a leader, and a media superstar. He soon dropped this slave name, dodged the draft, and became Muhammad Ali. This film documents the rise and fame of the legend.The Royal Tenenbaums (Dec. 28, wide release)Starring: Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Gwyneth Paltrow, Owen Wilson, Luke Wilson, Ben Stiller, Bill Murray, Danny Glover, Al Thompson In his first project since the wickedly funny Rushmore, director Wes Anderson tackles the topic of wacky geniuses once again - this time a whole family of them. Once upon a time, Royal Tenenbaum (Hackman) and his wife Etheline (Huston) had three children - Chas (Stiller), Richie (Wilson), and Margot (Paltrow). Then they separated. Chas is now an international finance wizard, Margot is an award-winning playwright, and Richie is a junior champion tennis player who won nationals three years in a row - but all of this brilliance has been overshadowed by two decades of petty failure and disaster at the hands of their father. The Royal Tenenbaums brings together the family of geniuses in a sudden, unexpected winter reunion.

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News

Observing Tufts' heritage

August 31

A few weeks ago, I returned to Tufts at the invitation of United Leaders, a group that's doing great work trying to get students engaged in public service. I write about national politics for Newsweek, and this fall I'm a fellow at the Kennedy School of Government, so it was fun for me to meet students who were interested in journalism and talk to them about what's going on in the world. As you might expect, a lot's changed on campus since I spent most of my waking hours at the Observer in the late 1980s. That "Brown and Brew" caf?© in Curtis Hall, for example, used to be our own private, late-night whiffleball court. (Which made more sense, if you ask me: there are a thousand coffee shops in Boston, but there's never a whiffleball court open when you need one.) More noticeable is what's happened to the Observer itself, which recently decided to surrender breaking news to the Daily and relaunch instead as a weekly magazine.A lot of Observer alums have been talking about this latest development, in a flurry of emails, ever since the Daily published an editorial eulogizing its competitor. One of the sad things about college newspapers is that they have no historians. Their minor glories and controversies are enshrined only in a bunch of dust-caked hardbound volumes that no one ever reads, except maybe to flip through occasionally on a slow news night, making fun of the silly names of the editors who came before. The only hint of the Observer's storied life can be found in its own masthead, in the place where it says: "Tufts Newspaper of Record Since 1895." There are a few things Tufts students really should know about The Observer.First, despite the Daily's solemn pronouncements, The Observer probably isn't going anywhere, and this isn't even remotely the first time that Tufts' newspaper of record has reinvented itself. The paper has undergone more or less constant rebirth for at least half a century, long before the Daily existed. Each generation of editors feels the need to adapt the Observer to the needs of the day, and that's the way it ought to be; at various times, "The Big O," as we used to call it, has been a broadsheet and a tabloid, a weekly and a biweekly, an exceptionally good college paper and a remarkably bad one. It has outlasted a century's worth of crusading students and irate administrators, and I expect it will continue to do just that. This doesn't bother me. The Observer has always been a training ground for student journalists, and part of learning is experimenting.The other thing you should know about the Observer is that it's sent a surprising number of top professional journalists out into the world: editors and reporters at The Boston Globe and The New York Times, CNN and NBC, Newsweek and the Atlantic Monthly. One editor with whom I worked writes a column for a chain of weekly papers; another started a successful journal for sports lawyers.As much as I love Tufts, it hasn't done much to acknowledge most of these alums or connect them with current students, and this really does bother me. Most of us would gladly come back to campus regularly to encourage students to join the Observer or Daily, or to help the editors of those papers find their way into the news business. But other than Education for Public Inquiry and International Citizenship (EPIIC) and United Leaders, no one at Tufts shows much interest. I'm told the Communications Department is thriving these days, and several times I've offered my help and volunteered the names of other Observer alums who'd like to keep our tradition alive. I've suggested that the school put together a lecture series or an annual workshop. No one's taken me up on it. This may be one reason why the Observer finds itself short on support, and why Tufts is now struggling to staff two vibrant newspapers. It's easy for students to follow well-trod paths toward law or business; it's much harder to meet people who can serve as role models in the more rarified world of news. Thanks to the Observer, and more recently the Daily, Tufts has these resources, but it doesn't tap them. That's a real shame, because there are a lot of Jumbos who would make great reporters, and they ought to benefit from our experiences. I know there are other Tufts graduates working in politics who feel equally disconnected to life on campus. I hope Tufts' new president will take a more thoughtful approach to alumni relations as a whole, one that make use of our time and expertise. He can start with the Observer alums who owe our careers and our closest friendships to those endless hours spent in Curtis Hall. He doesn't even have to bring back the whiffleball court, although that would be nice. Matt Bai, LA '90, is a national correspondent for Newsweek, based in Washington, DC.

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News

Misdirected 'beef' with Tufts on Title IX

August 31

Mr. Greller, in his Nov. 6 Viewpoint, "On Guard; title IX hurts club sports," is generally correct that Title IX does not favor club sports. However, to blame Tufts, the Department of Athletics, or specific Tufts teams is not the way to help the fencing team earn varsity recognition. Title IX regulations are mandated by the NCAA. Were Tufts not to adhere to this rule, we would lose NCAA recognition. Unfortunately, for less mainstream sports, such as fencing, there is simply not enough money to go around. Theoretically, Tufts could cut the football team, which has by far the most players and funding of any sport on campus. This would create more than enough room for men's fencing. It would also remove America's most watched and Tufts' oldest sport from our campus. This is not a practical solution. For changes in Title IX, Mr. Greller's beef should be with the NCAA, not with the Tufts administration. Regardless of his opinions about the fencing team's lack of recognition, which I honestly sympathize with, I take personal offense to diminishing the accomplishments of other Tufts teams to bemoan the lack of coverage of club teams. The Daily routinely covers the accomplishments of club teams (note the recent articles about the women's rugby team). I am positive that they will print an article about men's fencing if Mr. Geller submitted one, or alerted Daily editors to their tournaments and results. To suggest that a fencing headline was "stolen" by a golf headline is lunacy. There are several club teams on campus who continually succeed at the New England and national levels, such as rugby, ultimate frisbee, and equestrian. These teams do not complain about a lack of press coverage. Just to be sure, the golf team finished 26th out of 48 teams at the New England Championships, the largest golf tournament in the country. Of these 48 teams, less than half were from Division III; the other teams being Division I (where athletic scholarships are permissible) and Division II (which have substantially lower admissions criteria) schools. While we did not dominate, and could well have placed higher, I am proud of our team's performance. Mr. Greller writes, "A criterion must exist, if it isn't performance, what is it? How do varsity teams defend their continued existence if they do at all?" The criteria involved in selecting a varsity sport are widespread, and popularity is definitely among them. Unfortunately for Mr. Greller, golf and football are more popular than fencing. Further, I will not "defend the continued existence" of either team that I play on, or of any other team, varsity, or club at Tufts. Such defense is unnecessary because these are legitimate teams whose athletes work hard for their achievements, which are usually covered, but sometimes not covered, by the Daily. Maybe they take more satisfaction out of training, competition, and success than recognition in the school paper. Perhaps Mr. Greller should spend more time preparing for his next fencing tournament than linking an article about Title IX by a sports editor to the lack of headlines his men's fencing troupe grabs in the Daily.Daniel Kramer is a junior majoring in economics and political science. He is the captain of the golf team and a letterman on the men's lacrosse team.

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News

Icelandic birdsong

August 31

Just what is it about that swan dress, anyway? Bj?¶rk first sported the oh-so-unique dress proudly at the Oscars and is wearing it again on the cover of her latest release, Vespertine. The impact: your first impression of this album is that Bj?¶rk really is a strange creature, that this cover photo must be Bj?¶rk's way of letting us know that she is as bizarre as ever, and that her music is as innovative and interesting as always.Vespertine proves Bjork's point rather well. Her eccentric nature shines throughout the album, her first release since 1997's Homogenic. She uses household sounds - ranging from shuffling cards to clicking cameras to melting icicles - to provide a melodious and enticing atmosphere with each graceful song. The orchestral accompaniment adds a fairy-tale like element to the album, which is likely not a coincidence considering Bj?¶rk believes in fairies and elves (no, really - it seems to be an Icelandic belief that respect should be given to mythical elves that supposedly occupy a good part of the country). The name of her album comes from the word "vespers," or evening prayers. Bj?¶rk was supposedly inspired by chamber music to make this album reminiscent of calm, serene meditation. The effect is varied: Vespertine can sometimes feel like a show-tune soundtrack, with a children's choir sweetly singing in the background and the orchestra occasionally playing an exciting number. There are also times during the album when it feels as though she has transported us back to childhood, allowing us to experience the magic and wonder that created such a fantasy world earlier in life. On "Frosti," she uses samples of wind chimes swaying gently, which sounds like the opening of a little music box.In her most subdued album yet, Bj?¶rk's ubiquitous sounds surround you completely, making you feel almost weightless. She uses ghostly melodies - most of her songs can be summed up as bright, slow, and gentle, with an ethereal quality touching every track. The album was definitely made for smaller, more intimate venues, due to the its deeply personal nature. Bj?¶rk allows a pure expression of emotion to flow throughout the course of this work, adding a euphoric quality to her music.Vespertine dances around a lush ambient genre, doubtlessly due to the influence of and collaboration with electronic duo Matmos, who will open for Bj?¶rk during most of her Vespertine tour. Her album is difficult to compare to most electronic music due to the poetic and magical elements she adds to every song. Moreover, her music remains unique because of the way she approaches the electronic genre; she engages in the use of everyday sounds to incorporate a familiar feel to the songs. This is a different type of album for Bj?¶rk, but anyone who has been a fan of her music in the past will find it a beautiful and brilliant work, showing off her talent as a musician and artist. Her new attitude on Vespertine gives the impression that she has finally found the perfect way to express all of her thoughts, feelings, and personal beliefs in a musically coherent way. Compared to her earlier expressions of discontent - as heard in Homogenic and in Post - Vespertine creates an entirely different atmosphere.Bj?¶rk's departure from her past efforts might surprise fans. Some of her songs may not be "good" in the conventional sense; there are times when she plays up a good musical idea a little too much, dragging out the point. The first part of the album keeps interests high, with rich and vibrant rhythms sprinkled with a bit of Bj?¶rk's personal stash of fairy dust. Towards the end of the disc, however, the songs tend to run longer than necessary, and her strange-yet-intriguing lyrics and musical feats become just plain odd.What happens? Bj?¶rk manages to captivate her audience for a while, but seems to drift farther away from her listeners and deeper into her own perplexing thoughts. There are even times when it seems as though she is just speaking out loud, mostly to herself. Nevertheless, although not all the songs are necessarily good or conventional, there is no question that every single track on the album is utterly and completely beautiful.This is not a CD to put in if you're expecting to hear upbeat, pulse-raising beats - her take on electronica is more an intimate, introspective journey. Vespertine is perfect to listen to if you want to simply tune into her mystical musical perspective and fade out of your everyday reality.

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News

Panelists discuss relationship between terrorism and Islam

August 31

Terrorism was the central theme of two programs sponsored by the Institute for Global Leadership early this week. Professor Roy Mottahedeh, chair of the Committee on Islamic Studies at Harvard's Center for Middle Eastern Studies, spoke on Monday about the relationship between terrorism and the Islamic faith. Fletcher International Law Professor Alfred Rubin addressed many of these themes yesterday in a panel that sought to define terrorism as a movement. The topic of terrorism linked the speakers' discussions, but Mottahedeh's panel was focused on religion, while Rubin emphasized how international laws are perceived in foreign countries. "The notion of terrorism initially being as evil confuses what is good and what is bad," Rubin said, explaining his theory with examples from American history. During the American Revolution, he said, the British saw the Americans as terrorists for seeking independence. Rubin's provocative discussion elicited passionate questions from the audience. At one point, a heated debate erupted between Rubin and a retired US commissioner over whether America should respect the sovereignty of other nations. "Use of force by bad guys is terrorism, but not good guys. But who decides what's good and what's bad?" Rubin asked. "Do we see ourselves as the police of the world?" The next segment of the seminar focused on the legitimacy and implications of military tribunals. Rubin said it was na??ve for the US to seek out terrorists in foreign nations without expecting other countries to react negatively. "President Bush could say whatever he wants under the US constitution, but it's certainly not binding legally, certainly not to Pakistan that faces its own dilemma," he said, adding that this is why the US is currently using the IMF to pressure certain countries into joining the coalition. Panelist Geneive Abdo, a former Tehran correspondent for The Guardian, said oppression is the driving force behind terrorism. Tracing terrorism to conflicts that took place in Egypt at the turn of the 20th century, Abdo said today's terrorist problems are a byproduct of oppressive regimes that evolved after World War II in the Middle East - primarily in Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Many of Egypt's terrorist problems, Mottahedeh said, developed after Egypt signed an accord at Camp David with Israel in 1979. Most Egyptians viewed the agreement as a denial of basic political rights that stood against their moral and ethical loyalties to the rest of the Arab world. According to Mottahedeh, this led to the creation of activist groups that turned to violence, eventually assassinating the Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. Abdo said Islam does not allow Muslims to label other Muslims as non-believers, even if their interpretation of certain religious aspects differs from the norm. But at the same time, Islam calls for protective measures if other Muslims are threatened, she said, a belief which has caused much controversy. According to Abdo, militants formed "Fatwas," or groups with different interpretations of Islam, and used violence to enforce their beliefs. While people often agreed with their goals - from free elections to freedom of speech - their means of implementation were less popular. Their militancy grew in the 1970s and '80s during the Afghani-Russo war, she said. Later, with conflict developing in the Middle East and the Gulf War coming to an end, these groups saw US troops stationed in Saudi Arabia as an enemy force in their Holy Land. They gathered support by appointing some of their supporters as Sheiks and sending them to impoverished nations. These men had no religious knowledge and were ignorant when it came to the study of Islam, panelists said. Egypt was affected most because terrorist attacks dramatically decreased revenue generated by the tourism industry. Additionally, due to US intervention in the Middle East and support for countries such as Israel, Muslim extremists shifted the focus of their attacks from Arab governments to US targets, and terrorism was internationalized.

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