8/14/2019 April 6, 2009 Issue

1/8

www.browndaiyherad.com 195 Ane Street, Proidence, Rhode Isand herad@browndaiyherad.com

News.....1-3Arts... . . . . .4Sports.....5Editorial....6Opinion.....7Today..........8

yale fails

Mens lacrosse comes from

behind late in the game to

oertake Yae

Sports, 5Humanitys sHores

The Other Shore, a

Buddhist play, explores

the human condition

Arts, 4voucHer left beHind

Alyssa Ratledge 11 decries

D.Cs decision to do away

with schoo ouchers

Opinions, 7

inside

DailyHeraldthe Brown

vol. cxliv, no. 45 | Monday, April 6, 2009 | Serving the community daily since 1891

S

by lauren fedor

and ben scHreckinger

SeniorStaffWriterS

No oul play was involved in the disap-

pearance o two students who had been

missing ater ailing to return home rom a

spring break trip to Trinidad, according to

a local law enorcement ocial there.

They were unharmed, the ocial

a representative o the anti-kidnapping

unit o the Trinidad and Tobago police

told The Herald.

They were not abducted. They werenot kidnapped, said the ocial, who

spoke on the condition o anonymity.

They were in act secured and with a

riend, staying at a guest house.

The Federal Bureau o Investigation

and the U.S. State Department, along with

local police in Trinidad, had been investi-gating the whereabouts o Kimberly Hays

11 and Sophia Roy 10 ater they did not

return to campus by March 30, as riends

said they had planned. The girls arrived

in Trinidad on March 22, according to a

riend o the students.

According to the local ocial, Hays

and Roy let Trinidad or the neighbor-

ing island o Tobago and spent some

time with a riend. During that time,they did not communicate with their

parents, he said.

The students returned to Trinidad

around the rst o April, he said, and

were staying at another riends home on

the island when they were located.

The ocial said Friday the students

were sae and doing well in the cus-

tody o U.S. State Department ocials.

Vice President or Campus Lie and

Student Services Margaret Klawunn

conrmed in an e-mail to The Herald

that the students were not the victims

o oul play.

Kimberly Hays ather, Steven Hays,

told The Herald late Thursday that thegirls were sae at a hotel in Trinidad, but

did not elaborate except to say that one

o them may have been dr ugged.

On Friday, he said the inormation

about a possible drugging did not come

directly rom his daughter, Roy or the

FBI, and he reerred urther questions

about the investigation to the FBIs Bos-

ton Field Oce.

Both Steven Hays and a riend o both

students said the duo were returning to

Providence Sunday.

Kimberly Hays, reached Sunday on

her cell phone, declined to comment and

directed questions to the FBI.

Gail Marcinkiewicz, a representative

or public aairs at the FBIs Boston o-

ce, said she could neither conrm nor

deny the local police ocials account,

citing privacy concerns.

A U.S. State Department ocial in

Trinidad declined to comment Friday,

citing the Privacy Act.

A , zz Szby emmy liss

featureSeditor

The room was silent except or the

squeak o markers against white-

boards. Messy letters lled the

boxes, building corners with words

intertwined. As white space disap-

peared, the crowd held its breath

until, suddenly, Aaron Mazel-Gee

09 took a step back and threw up

his hands. He had nished.

On Saturday, the Puzzling Asso-

ciation o Brown sponsored its rst

annual Brown Crossword Puzzle

Competition. Hosted by New YorkTimes crossword puzzle editor Will

Shortz, the contest could barely

be contained in MacMillan 117 as

students and members o the larg-er community fooded in to hear

Shortz speak and try their luck at

the student-created puzzles.

The events organizers Dustin

Foley 09, Joey Weissbrot 11 and

Natan Last 12 all came to Brown

with a passion or puzzles.

Foley, who designs the daily

puzzle comic Enigma Twist or

The Herald, has been making maz-

es since elementary school and be-

gan delving into crossword puzzles

in sixth grade. He constructed the

crossword or his monthly school

paper during junior and senior

years o high school.

Weissbrot denes himsel as

more o a doer than a creator

he tackled the Times crossword

every day in high school. Then,

ater nding out through a riend

that Shortz takes a summer intern,

Weissbrot spent last summer edit-

ing and act checking puzzles at

Shortzs home.

Wills house is sort o the Mec-

ca o puzzle making, Weissbrot

said. Constructors come to his

house, hang out and do puzzles.

Weissbrot met and competed

against some o the Times top

puzzle makers.

Last has also spent time puz-

zling at Shortzs house. Until

recently, Last held the record as

the youngest creator o a Sunday

Times crossword puzzle. To date,

he has published nine puzzles in

Han Nuyen / Herad

The Puzzin Association of Brown hed its first Crossword Puzze Competition, hosted by Wi Shortz.

continued onpage 2

Drums, dancing a annual

Spring Ta Po woby HannaH moser

SeniorStaffWriter

The rumbling o drums and

jingling o bells lled Pizzitola

Sports Center this Saturday and

Sunday as the Native Americans

at Brown hosted their eighth

annual Spring Thaw Pow Wow.

Hundreds gathered to take part

in the celebration that included

ood, booths and dancing and

drumming competitions.

The event, which was planned

to take place on the Main Green

as it was in 2008, was moved in-

side due to overcast weather.

Peter Hatch 11, a member o

NAB and the Siletz tribe o Or-

egon, said the pow wow attracted

80 to 100 dancers, about a dozenvendors and seven drum groups.

Shristi Pandey / Herad

The Natie Americans at Brown hosted the eihth annua SprinThaw Pow Pow in the Pizzitoa Sports Center.

feature

Sk

k bby anne simons

SeniorStaffWriter

Protests and strikes taking place

at universities across France have

disrupted classes or most Brown

students studying abroad there

this semester.

Three schools that are host-ing Brown students have held

almost no classes this semester,

while others have seen some just

a ew classes aected, wrote Annie

Wiart, director o the Brown in

France program, in an e-mail to

The Herald.

The proessor-led strikes op-

pose government reorms related

to ongoing eorts to standardize

higher education policies across

the European Union.

At Universite de Paris III, or ex-

ample, where Brown students have

been the most aected, strikes

have been ongoing or about nine

weeks during which virtually no

classes have been taught, Wiart

wrote.

Among the 24 Brown students

currently studying in Paris, seven

have not been aected at all, while

most have had one or two o their

ve classes partially or completely

cancelled, she wrote.

Even some proessors not on

strike have been unable to teach

because o locked classrooms and

picketing students, Wiart wrote.

A ew students study in Lyon,

where two o the three universi-

ties that host Brown students havebeen aected and one remains on

strike, Wiart wrote.

At least one school, Institut

dEtudes Politiques in Lyon, has

resumed and made plans to pro-

vide a ull semesters worth o

teaching by holding class during

spring break and later into June,

and there is hope that strikes at

two Paris universities, IV and VIII,

will end soon, Wiart wrote. But the

three hardest-hit schools, Lyon

II, Paris I and Paris III, may ace

completely oreiting the semes-

ter, she wrote.

Despite the disruptions, stu-

dents should have no concerns

about receiving ull credit or the

semester upon their return to

Brown, said Director o the Oceo International Programs Kendall

continued onpage 3 continued onpage 3

8/14/2019 April 6, 2009 Issue

2/8

the Times, which he began submit-

ting the summer ater his sophomoreyear in high school.

Because Shortz knew both Last

and Weissbrot would be at Brown

this year, he suggested they meet

up, start a club and organize a com-

petition. Having no idea how to get

it o the ground, the two went to

the Student Activities Oce, where

someone asked i they knew Foley,

Last said. The duo e-mailed him and

they hit it o immediately.

Beore meeting these guys, I had

never met any other puzzle construc-

tors, Foley said.

The competition was a great way

to kick o this association, Foley

said. Though the group has not yet

held regular meetings, they are in-terested in doing puzzlish stu and

hope to expand, Weissbrot added.

The associations ounders cre-

ated three o the our puzzles used

at Saturdays competition. All were

edited by Shortz and will appear in

the Times within the next two weeks,

which will be Foleys and Weissbrots

debuts.

Im not making any allowance

because o the relative youth, Shortz

said. The quality o their puzzles is

the same as any Times puzzles.

For many o the 300 people

crammed into MacMillan on Satur-

day, Shortz was the main attraction.

Students clapped and cheered wildly

as he took the podium and screamso I love you, Will! punctuated

the applause.

Shortz spoke about his all-time

avorite puzzles, many o which could

be recognized rom the hit documen-

tary Wordplay. These included a

marriage proposal Shortz orches-

trated or an avid puzzler and a puzzle

rom Election Day 1996, whose clue,

Tomorrows Headline, could be an-

swered with either Clinton Elected

or Bob Dole Elected.

In my amily, puzzling is a

competitive sport, said Ariel

Hudes 11. And you dont touch a

crossword that doesnt come romthe Times.

Hudes had originally intended

to stay only or Shortzs opening re-

marks, but decided to participate in

the competition or un.

Participants could compete in

one o three categories under-

graduates, non-undergraduates and

pairs. At the start o each round, the

constructor introduced his puzzle

(except or the third puzzle, an as-

yet unpublished creation by Times

puzzlemaker Joon Pahk) beore con-

testants fipped over their papers and

began writing rantically.

Though accuracy was the most

important actor or winning, tim-ing was crucial as well. As contes-

tants nished, they were assigned

numbers to mark their spots and at

the end o 20 minutes, all puzzles

were collected.

During the rounds, competi-

tors were silent those working

as pairs communicated only on thegrid. But as soon as time was called,

contestants broke into a low roar o

conversation centered on the puzzles.

The ve-minute breaks were spent

rehashing the clues and answers.

I knew that, one competitor

groaned to a riend. I just couldnt

gure it out.

Ater three consecutive rounds,

the judges nished scoring all the

puzzles while Shortz entertained

the audience with interactive word

games a special surprise even or

the organizers, Weissbrot said.

Finally, the winners o the three

rounds or each category were an-nounced and the three undergradu-

ate winners were called orward:

Danny Sugar 11, Jack Gill 10 and

Mazel-Gee.

At the ront o the room were

three whiteboards with drawn-on

crossword grids, a sight many rec-

ognized rom the documentation

o the American Crossword Puzzle

Tournament in Wordplay.

The three contestants and each

member o the audience received

the nal puzzle, and the nalists lled

their boards with letters as a hush ell

over the crowd. Sugar lled nearly

the entire top hal o his board beore

either o the other two competitorshad made a dent. But they quickly

caught up and all three were neck-

and-neck until the last possible

moment.

It really was unclear who was

going to win, Shortz said, noting

how exciting it was or the audience

to watch.

I was a little more nervous than

expected, Mazel-Gee admitted.

Though he does the Times cross-

word daily, he had never been in a

tournament beore and had been aim-

ing to be one o the top 10 nalists.All o the winners in each catego-

ry received books o puzzles edited

and signed by Shortz. He happily

personalized the inscription or many

o the winners.

Dan Katz GS, who is in his sixth

and nal year o studying mathemat-

ics at Brown, swept the non-under-

graduate category, winning all three

rounds. Katz is an avid puzzler and

nished 18th this year at the Ameri-

can Crossword Puzzle Tournament,

which Shortz hosts.

Im always in avor o more tour-naments, Katz said. The puzzles

were great.Shortz said he was really pleased

there are so many young people

solving and making puzzles. The

turnout was wonderul Browns

tournament had 200 competitors, ascompared to Harvards 2008 con-

test, which boasted only 100 solvers,

Shortz said.

The Puzzling Association had no

idea what kind o turnout to expect,Weissbrot said, and was really, really

happy that so many people came.

Overall, I thought it was great,

he said.

Ater leaving Providence on Sat-

urday, Shortz headed to Harvard to

conduct a competition there, and willollow that with a contest at Yale. He

has had summer interns rom each

school and was invited to host all the

events. Puzzles rom students at the

other two schools will be published

in the Times as well.

Refecting on the enthusiasm o

college students or puzzling, Shortz

said, Its good or the uture o cross-

words.

sudoku

Stephen DeLucia, President

Michael Bechek, Vice President

Jonathan Spector, Treasurer

Alexander Hughes, Secretary

The Brown Daily Herald (USPS 067.740) is an independent newspaper serv-ing the Brown University community daily since 1891. It is published Mondaythrough Friday during the academic year, excluding vacations, once duringCommencement, once during Orientation and once in July by The Brown DailyHerald, Inc. POSTMASTERplease send corrections to P.O. Box 2538, Provi-dence, RI 02906. Periodicals postage paid at Providence, R.I. Oces are locatedat 195 Angell St., Providence, R.I. E-mail herald@browndailyherald.com.World Wide Web: http://www.browndailyherald.com.Subscription prices: $319 one year daily, $139 one semester daily.Copyright 2009 by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. All rights reserved.

e Ph: 401.351.3372 | b Ph: 401.351.3260

DailyHeraldthe Brown

MONDAY, APRIl 6, 2009THE BROWN DAIlY HERAlDPAgE 2

CAPS wS In my famiy, puzzin is a competitie sport. Arie Hudes 11I Sz : Pzz

continued frompage 1

8/14/2019 April 6, 2009 Issue

3/8

CAPS wSMONDAY, APRIl 6, 2009 THE BROWN DAIlY HERAlD PAgE 3

This semester has been kind of a roer coaster. Meredith Weaer 10

P w Pz

Vendors sold ood such as corn cakes

and Indian tacos, a modern pow

wow staple. Other booths oeredclothing and traditional crats.

Each drum group sat around a

large common drum and provided

the music or the dancers who com-

peted in dierent events over the

weekend, including contemporary

ancy shawl dances and more tradi-

tional dances. A hand drum competi-

tion was also held on Sunday.

Elizabeth Hoover GS served as

the Head Lady Dancer and it was

her responsibility to lead the other

women onto the dance foor. She

participated in the ancy shawl dance

and wore an outt that she said took

her a ew years to make. The hum-mingbird beadwork and neon green

abric refected a more contemporary

Native American style developed in

the 1950s, Hoover said.

Pow wows have become a sea-

sonal tradition or many Native

American amilies. Hoover has been

attending pow wows since she was

a child and Katherine Cachimuel, a

high school student rom Boston,

said she and her amily attend one

almost every seasonal weekend as

vendors.

The NAB Spring Thaw event

is quickly becoming part o many

peoples traditions. People know us

because weve been here or eightyears, Hatch said.

The cultural event attracted a di-

verse crowd, rom people who had

attended pow wows throughout

their lives to people who had never

seen one beore. Though the dancecompetition required registration to

participate, Intertribal dances were

held throughout the weekend andwere open to all in attendance.

Probably the predominant num-

ber o people would be rom the real

local tribes and then a lot o other

people have moved to this area or

have driven down just or this oc-

casion, said Hoover, who helped

NAB organize the rst pow wow in

2002. This is a way to bring the lo-

cal people here on campus and have

an event or them ... and then at the

same time its a way o educating the

Brown students who are here about

contemporary native culture.

Paasheshau Papoose Driver, a

cultural teacher who has been at-tending pow wows her entire lie,

said pow wows are celebrations o

unity, sovereignty and those things

that were attempted to be taken away

rom our people 500 years ago. A

Narragansett Piquat tribe member,

Driver said she was raised to pass

on her tribes oral culture. I like

(to answer) questions ... there are

stereotypical things. I like to cor-

rect them.

Many members o the 500-strong

crowd that passed through Pizzitola

this weekend were simply curious.

Rachel Hunter 12 and her riends

saw an announcement about the pow

wow and went by just to see what itwas all about and ended up staying

longer than they had planned. It was

good people-watching, said Hannah

Rose-Mann 12.

continued frompage 1

Sudens abroad o ge credi, despie srikes

Brostuen.

Students have been consulting

individually with the leaders oBrown in France to ensure they

have enough class hours and as-

sessments to receive ull credit, he

said. Measures such as ollowing

an accelerated schedule in the lat-

ter part o the semester and taking

courses oered by Brown directly

should make up or students can-

celled classes when necessary,

he said.

In Paris, Brown in France has

hired instructors to teach two cred-

it-bearing courses students can take

to help make up credits lost to the

strikes, Wiart wrote, while students

in Lyon have the option o takingtwo special eight-week classes or-

ganized by proessors at Institut

dEtudes Politiques or students o

some American universities.

Brown is making sure that

students get good quality cours-

es, worth ull Brown credit, Wiart

wrote.

But students whose host univer-

sities have been aected said the

strikes have caused uncertainty.

Tanya Bogaty 10, who is taking

classes at Paris III and IV, wrote in

an e-mail to The Herald that some

o the classes she had planned to

take did not meet or weeks in a

row.Sometimes proessors would

post that inormation ahead o time,

she wrote, but oten students had to

attend class to nd out i the proes-

sor would show up.

Meredith Weaver 10, studying

at Lyon II and IEP, wrote in an e-

mail to The Herald that she had

one class that did not meet betweenJan. 22 and March 3 and another

that met ve out o the rst eight

weeks.

All together, there have been

seven weeks where at least some

classes didnt meet, she wrote. Be-

cause o the strikes, she has had

to take dierent courses than she

originally planned, she added.

As a result, students have had

to take special steps to ensure they

can receive credit.

Because the situation varies so

much rom student to student it has

been really important to communi-

cate with the oce about what ishappening, Bogaty wrote.

We have to keep logs o which

o our classes are meeting and or

how many hours per week, wrote

Dustin Sposato 10 in an e-mail to

The Herald.

Despite the complications, Wi-

art and Brostuen both expressed

hope that students are taking in the

experience o the protests.

Theyre living French history,

Brostuen said, adding this is a very

interesting time to be in France.

Were encouraging everyone to

get a real taste and appreciation o

what is happening in France right

now, Wiart wrote.Students reported mixed eel-

ings about the strikes.

Its hard to complain about

spending spring in Paris without

much in the way o class or home-

work, Sposato 10 wrote. But

even though it means we may have

more ree aternoons, everyone

Ive talked to here is anxious orthe strikes to end.

The situation means weve had

very limited French university ex-

perience, he wrote.

Its been dicult to deal with

the uncertainty about whether

I will get enough credit and the

lack o routine rom week to

week, Bogaty wrote. Its dis-

appointing that instead o being

ully immersed in the French

university system I am having

classes with other Brown students,

she added.

This semester has been kind

o a roller coaster, Weaver wrote,saying that the uncertainty causedby the strikes is rustrating. I have

seen a side o France that I did

not expect.

I have been told that the roots

o this movement were growing

last semester. I this is truly the

case, I think Brown should have

warned students o the possibility,

Weaver added.

Brostuen said Brown ocials

saw no reason to expect strikes

apart rom a general history in

France o strikes and protests.

But overall, Weavers experi-

ence in France so ar has made

her appreciate Brown more,she wrote.

Suddenly Banner and the occa-

sional class during reading period

dont seem so bad, she wrote.

continued frompage 1

8/14/2019 April 6, 2009 Issue

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8/14/2019 April 6, 2009 Issue

5/8

by elisabetH avallone

SportS StaffWriter

With ten minutes remaining in

the third quarter, the No. 9 mens

lacrosse team trailed Yale, 9-6.

But with seven unanswered goals

and strong ourth quarter play,the Bears came rom behind or

a 13-9 victory this Saturday, their

eighth consecutive win. With the

win, Brown improved its record

to 9-1 overall and 2-0 in the Ivy

League.

Yesterday was a great team

eort, said quad-captain Kyle

Hollingsworth 09. It was the rst

game this season that we have re-

ally been down, and it was greatto see our team overcome that

adversity.

Leading the Bears attack was

Thomas Muldoon 10, who led theteam with our goals, advancing

his point streak to 29 games, the

sixth-best active streak in the coun-

try. Andrew Feinberg 11, Browns

leading scorer o the season, con-

tributed three goals and an assist,

while Hollingsworth and Brady

Williams 09 each added an addi-

tional goal and two assists.

In the net, All-American quad-

captain Jordan Burke 09 anchored

Browns deense with 15 saves, in-

cluding three saves in the ourthquarter, when he held Yale (4-5,

1-3 Ivy) scoreless.

Yale played a really tough

game yesterday, and it took us a

while to get it together, Muldoon

said. But when we play as a team

and play our game, I truly believe

that we cant be stopped.

Midway through the rst hal,

Brown was seemingly controlling

the game as two goals by Muldoon

and a goal each by Feinberg and

Rob Schlesinger 12 pushed the

Bears to a 4-3 lead. A goal by Hol-

lingsworth with 7:47 let in the hal

widened the lead to 5-3, but Yalecountered with our unanswered

goals in the closing minutes o

the hal to take a 7-5 lead over

Brown.

The Bulldogs scoring streak

continued, as they secured an 8-5

lead early into the third quarter.

Muldoon cut the lead to 8-6 with

his third goal o the day, but that

was countered with another Yale

goal.

But Williams goal with 5:55on the clock would be the rst o

seven consecutive goals or the

Bears, and Brown entered the

ourth quarter trailing 9-7.

An unassisted goal by Collins

Carey 10 midway through the

ourth made it a one-goal game

and with 9:20 let to play, Feinbergtied the game at 9-9. Minutes later,

quad-captain Jack Walsh 09 gave

Brown the lead o a eed rom

Williams, ollowed by an unas-

sisted goal by Reade Seligman 09.

Feinbergs third goal o the game

and Muldoons ourth cushioned

Browns lead, or the 13-9 win.

I am really proud and im-

pressed with the mental toughness

o our team, said Head Coach Lars

Tiany 90. We aced a determined

and excited opponent, who gaveus everything they had, and we

not only withstood them, but also,despite being down three goals

in the third quarter, continued to

believe in who we are. We contin-

ued to play Brown lacrosse and

our style o game, to keep ghting

the battle.

The Bears will ace o next

Saturday against Penn at 1 p.m.

on Stevenson Field.

Every game means the world

to us, and we will do everything we

can to beat UPenn next weekend,

Muldoon said.

Facing mounting political pressureto jump-start the nation amid a his-

toric recession, President Obama

announced yesterday his decision

to bet the entire

U.S. economy on

the University o

North Carolina mens basketball team

winning the NCAA tournament.

The Tar Heel Plan, as it is known,

originated rom the presidents ob-

session with March Madness com-

bined with the realization that he had

assembled the best basketball-play-

ing cabinet in American histor y.

Among its hallowed ranks are

Secretary o Education Arne Dun-can, a ormer co-captain at Harvardwho played proessionally in Aus-

tralia, National Security Advisor

James Jones, a 64 ormer orward

or Georgetown University and the

president himsel, who struggled

to make his high school team de-

spite a sel-proessed devastating

jump-shot.

The idea or the plan dawned onthe president while he was lling out

his inaugural bracket during a cabi-

net meeting three weeks ago. Some

perceive the presidents Tar Heel

plan as a hasty departure rom his

previous strategy o a congressional

stimulus package and investment inlong-term inrastructure.

Amid allegations that the plan

is a risky gamble, especially given

UNCs early exit rom the AtlanticCoast Conerence Tournament at

the hands o middling Florida State

University, Federal Reser ve Chair-

man Ben Bernanke held a coner-

ence explaining his support or the

Presidents proposal.

In the question-and-answer por-

tion o the conerence, Bernanke

was asked specically why the Fed

gave up on pursuing a multi-aceted

strategy o using more o the tools

at its disposal, such as the discount

rate.

But Obama has continued imple-

menting his plan. Just last Monday,

the president delivered an ultimatumto Detroit automaker giants General

Motors, Ford and Chrysler to clean

up their acts in preparation or the

Final Four and national title game,

which the Motor City hosts tonight.

In the wake o Obamas recent ul-

timatum, some have come out in

greater support o the Presidents

economic agenda.

Chie economic bracketol-

ogy expert Dick Vitale said o the

Obama plan, Its reaking awesome,

baby! UNCs gonna put Barr y O.B.

on the map! beore returning to

lm an endorsement or Hooters

barbecue wings.

Ben Siner 09 thinks the Spar-

tans wi bankrupt the nation.

Justin Coeman / Herad

Mens acrosse came from behind in the fourth quarter to beat Yae.

B S 0:T P

SportsondayMONDAY, APRIl 6, 2009 | Page 5

The Brown Daiy Herad

b sHih Notes

. f b f Y

th H: a , h.

www.browndaiyherad.com

8/14/2019 April 6, 2009 Issue

6/8

ditorial & LettersPage 6 | MONDAY, APRIl 6, 2009

The Brown Daily Herald

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The campus was in or a shock last Wednesday evening. Vice President orCampus Lie and Student Services Margaret Klawunn and Dean Katherine

Bergeron sent out an e-mail announcing that two Brown students were miss-

ing they had not returned rom spring break, and the University was work-

ing with riends, amily and law enorcement to locate them. No names were

provided, nor any identiying inormation. The announcement did, however,

include detailed contact inormation or psychological counseling services to

deal with potential grie.

This was a dire suggestion. Arriving only our days ater the break, it

prompted students to worry about riends and acquaintances were they

all okay? And i so, then who was missing? It also set o a furry o local and

national coverage: The message claimed to be preparing students or distress-

ing media reports, but the coverage that ollowed invariably traced back to the

message itsel. It was a bad miscalculation; even media vultures wont swoop

down on a co-eds in peril stor y unless it has some meat on it, and thats what

the e-mail provided.

Soon enough, the tension was deused. On Thursday evening, another e-mail assured us all that the students had been ound. The next day, The Herald

reported that the two had been vacationing on the Caribbean island o Trinidad,

a country noted by the State Department as a dangerous vacation destination.

A missed fight seems to have been the extent o their tribulations.

Naturally, were relieved that the students are sae and thankul or the e-

orts o the government ocials and Brown sta who helped to locate them.

But were also conscious o one thing that hasnt come to light a single piece

o hard evidence justiying Wednesdays e-mail. Beore uncovering anything

other than circumstantially troubling evidence, the University made a choice

that broadcast the students situation to the student body and subjected their

personal aairs to unnecessary scrutiny rom their peers and the media. When

an announcement o this kind can be expected to advance legitimate saety

interests, the risk o alarm or embarrassment should not be a deterrent. But

in this case, there could not have been a reasonable expectation that such an

interest would be advanced. Even i the students situation had been desperate,

no harm could have come rom waiting or actual inormation beore breaking

the news to the community at large.We hope there wont be a next time. But i there is, University ocials

need to think hard beore they speak.

Editorials are written by The Heralds editorial page board. Send comments to

editorials@browndailyherald.com.

8/14/2019 April 6, 2009 Issue

7/8

MONDAY, APRIl 6, 2009 | PAgE 7

pinionsThe Brown Daiy Herad

A lot has changed since I applied to Brown

as a biochemistry concentrator. Back then

I planned to take our years o Mandarin so

that I could have a competitive advantage as

a scientic researcher. Back then I thought I

would be a neurosurgeon when I grew up.

And not one o those things is true today.

Ive never taken a single class in biochemis-

try or Chinese and I cant think o something

I want to do less than study or the MCAT.

But there is one thing I specically in-

tended to do, back when I was working myway toward senioritis, that I have completed:

an independent concentration. Im happy

and honestly a little surprised to be able

to say that I will be the rst Modern Critical

Philosophy concentrator. The College Cur-

riculum Committee subcommittee on inde-

pendent concentrations tentatively approved

my concentration the week beore spring

break, and ater I make a couple o minor

changes to my proposal I will be in the clear.

Generally, the independent concentration

proposal process was a good experience,

even i it elt like I had a th class or the

rst hal o this semester. Beore proposing,

my idea or a concentration elt pretty con-

trived, and I wasnt sure i the only justica-

tion or its independence was my own gim-micky enthusiasm.

But ater spending weeks writing and re-

vising my proposal, I elt like Modern Criti-

cal Philosophy was at least as justiable a

concentration as Commerce, Organizations

and Entrepreneurship. I then ran the gaunt-

let o advisers, Curricular Resource Center

coordinators and Associate Dean o the Col-

lege or Upperclass Studies Karen Krahulik.Then, nally, I submitted my proposal to the

independent concentration subcommittee.

And that was it. Ater e-mailing my pro-

posal to Dean Krahulik, who was quite help-

ul through this whole multi-year process,

I had nothing else to do. It was a shock to

nd out that I would have no opportunity

to speak to any o the members o the com-

mittee that would be evaluating whether my

academic plans were worthy o the Univer-

sitys sanction.

While the membership o the indepen-

dent concentration subcommittee changes

annually, it is always composed o a group o

aculty members, a student program coordi-

nator rom the CRC and the dean currently

in charge o the program. While these ac-

ulty members are surely great researchers

and (hopeully) dedicated educators, there

is no way o knowing whether their areas oexpertise overlap with any o the concentra-

tions in question.

By their very nature, independent concen-

trations are specic and requently technical.

Indeed, the most important requirement or

a potential concentration is that it must re-

fect an existing eld o study. Though it will

include courses rom multiple departments,

the concentration must articulate a coher-ent eld o study, with a disciplinary ocus

and cohesive connection between its various

components, according to the CRCs inde-

pendent concentration guide. Articulating

the subtleties o this coherence is the most

dicult part o the application.

And through no ault o their own, pro-

essors rom starkly dierent disciplines

may not always be able to appreciate these

nuances. My concentration, or example,

careully stakes out a position between tra-

ditional Anglo-American analytic philosophy

and modern continental critique. I wonder

how a committee member who is unamil-

iar with both schools o thought could either

independently evaluate my claims about the

materials or understand the exact relation o

the proposed concentration to existing ones.

Because students prepare their proposals

with help rom aculty advisors in their ownelds, it may not be immediately apparent i

something in the proposal is unclear.

My biggest concern when submitting my

proposal was that there would be a simple

misinterpretation o my concentration. And

since the committee meets in secret, there is

no opportunity or students to deend their

own work in ront o the committee and cor-

rect any misperceptions about their propos-als. As a result, some unintentional misread-

ing o a technical disciplinary argument

might metastasize and cause the committee

to reject a concentration proposal or demand

unnecessarily radical revisions.

Neither o these things happened in my

case I just need to get a letter o support

rom a proessor in the philosophy depart-

ment but it was a big concern. From my

conversations with other students in the in-

dependent concentration program, I gather

that this is a common worr y.

I think the whole process would be well

served by opening at least some o the com-

mittees deliberations to the students whose

work is being evaluated. Just as other largeacademic projects theses and disserta-

tions, or example benet rom an in-per-

son deense, the independent concentration

program could work much more smoothly

and produce much less anxiety or students

i there were an opportunity or students to

answer questions. This could also save the

committee members some time, since they

would no longer have to reconsider propos-

als rejected due to conusion.

Obviously, applicants shouldnt be present

or the whole meeting since the committee

should be able to speak candidly about any

proposal it is considering. But it couldnt be

that much o an imposition to allow students

an opportunity to answer questions that

might otherwise lead the committee to pro-long an already lengthy and dicult process.

Nick Were 10 is (officiay) a modern

critica phiosophy and physics concen-

trator from Port Washinton, New York.

f q

For 1,700 poor elementary school students in

Washington, D.C., the best chance or a quality

education ended last week. Despite entreat-

ies rom Education Secretary Arne Duncan

and even President Barack Obama himsel,

the Senate used the omnibus spending bill to

eliminate the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship

Program by the 2009-10 school year.

Implemented by a Democratic D.C. mayor

in 2004, this program allows public school

students in D.C.s most troubled schools to

apply or scholarships to attend charter and

private schools o their choosing. Why would

Senate Democrats and teachers unions so

vehemently oppose a plan that aims to improve

education access and outcomes or the pooreststudents? Because or them, this is a rst step

towards the mortal sin o school choice.

There is no substantial data on the ecacy

o this particular program, but the anecdotal

evidence o success, ound everywhere rom

the Cato Institute to the New York Times,

indicates that something remarkable has taken

place. Students who would otherwise ace

great barriers to educational success are ex-

celling ar beyond expectations. Because they

are no longer trapped by their geography and

socioeconomic status, they nally have the

opportunity to access the type o education

that many people in the United States take

or granted.

Consider this: The average annual income

or amilies o enrolled children is $22,736.

Such amilies dont have the option to vote

with their eet and improve their childrens

prospects by moving to an area with better

schools. They dont have the disposable in-come to hire private tutors or enroll their

children in expensive ater-school activities.

What they do have is the opportunity to apply

or a scholarship yes, a school voucher

that gives the poorest children in some o

the poorest neighborhoods in the country

an educational lieline. Eliminating this pro-

gram preserves private schools as a privilege

available only or the afuent. That seems

directly at odds with Democrats claims or

more universal access to education.

I understand why many liberals are op-

posed to school vouchers. Their philosophy

dictates that rather than allow children to

opt out o ailing schools and enroll in schools

that oer a comprehensive, worthwhile edu-

cation the government ought to x the

schools in question. According to them, sound

public schools are the most equitable solution

to education inequality.

But xing public education, especially in

economically depressed areas, isnt easy; i it

were, Jimmy Carter or Bill Clinton would have

done it. Since Carter created the Department

o Education, average per-pupil spending inAmerican public schools has gone rom $2,307

to $8,701. We havent seen a 377 percent in-

crease in education quality. Throwing money

at the problem hasnt solved it.

School choice is no panacea. It doesnt help

attract better teachers to low-income areas. It

doesnt orce parents who are disinterested

in their childrens education to take an active

role. Teachers will still struggle to nd ways

to instill a love o reading in children whose

amilies own no books and will still ail at dis-

ciplining children who have no rules at home.

Schools will still ace the specter o violence

on one hand and lawsuits on the other.

Allowing some students to escape the inevi-

tability o an inerior or nonexistent education

doesnt x the overarching problems with

todays public education system. All it does isgive those children who need it most a chance

to do better. But isnt that a laudable goal?

Senate Democrats have laid their cards

on the table: Ideology is more important than

the uture o D.C.s poorest children. D.C.

School Chancellor Michelle Rhee and Duncan,

people on opposite sides o the education-reorm spectrum, have both expressed their

dismay at the idea that low-income children

fourishing under the scholarship program

will soon be orced back into ailing public

schools, a dicult transition with detrimental

consequences.

It is hard to switch schools anyway, but to

be orced by the ederal government to accept

a lesser education because o your economic

station? What message does that send to these

children you know rst-hand what a good

education eels like, but because you cant

aord it, you dont deserve it anymore?

People at Brown spend a lot o time dis-

cussing how to convince more minority and

low-income students to apply, but education

starts earlier than that. I children cant get a

passable education rom their neighborhood

public school, they shouldnt be condemned

to stay there, languishing, or 12 years. Whenchildren have been given equal access to

schools where they can thrive, regardless

o their parents income level, they shouldnt

have that taken away rom them to protect the

sanctity o a public school ideal.

Obama has said that he plans to ght Con-

gress to prevent the program rom expiring

next year. Lets hope he does.

Alyssa Ratledge 11 went to public school,

but she can ouch for ouchers.

, S! L k !

What messae does endin the schoo oucher

proram send to these chidren

you know first-hand what a ood education

fees ike, but because you cant afford it,

you dont desere it anymore?

Since the committee meets in secret, there is

no opportunity for students to defend their own

work in front of the committee and correct anymisperceptions about their proposa.

NICK WERlEopinions coluMnist

BY AlYSSA RATlEDgE

opinions coluMnist

8/14/2019 April 6, 2009 Issue

8/8

monday, aPril 6, 2009 Page 8

Today4

5

Brown, Tufts choruses team up

M. ax roars past Budos

The Brown Daily Herald

56 / 43

today, aPril 6

6 PmBeyond Sexy: A Pole Dancing

Workshop, Instruction by the Poler

Bears, Harkness loune

9 Pm Dont Ask, Dont Te pane

discussion, Barus and Hoey 168

tomorroW, aPril 7

7 Pm The Obama Effect: global

Reactions to the New American Presi-

dent, MacMian 117

8 PmHoly Sh*t, an open mic about

spirituaity, Petteruti loune

ACROSS1 Narrow-necked

pear5 James who

robbed trains10 Wine glass part14 Pasty-faced15 Laud, as virtues16 Drive-__ window17 Pow! relative18 Immune system

agent19 Litters littlest20 *Shari Lewis

puppet22 50s first lady23 50-and-over org.24 Open-bodied

truck26 Moon mission

name29 Photo

enlargement30 No-goodnik31 Really punch32 Hosp. scanners35 Extinguish, with

out36 Shh! (and a hint

to the featureshared by theanswers tostarred clues)

39 Legal Lance40 __ away: hide on

a ship42 Hit, in billiards43 Paquin and

Nicole Smith45 Jeff Gordon was

its 1993 Rookieof the Year

47 Cavern48 Sold for a big

profit, as tickets50 Gucci of fashion51 Brits boob tube52 *Act all innocent56 Miscellany57 Soft-tipped pen

brand59 Civil War color60 Doles 1996

running mate61 Give up62 This, in

Tegucigalpa63 Draws away from

shore64 Force units65 Swedish auto

DOWN1 Cry loudly2 On-the-job

protection org.3 Pillow covering4 Drummers

crashers5 Rockers __

Tull6 Many a security

guard7 One of AAs

twelve8 Sun, in Spain9 Building

addition10 Layer11 *Dusters find at a

crime scene12 Tennessee-born

country singerFord

13 Like a subduedtrumpet

21 Biblical spy22 Paws mate?24 Transmission

stuff25 Opera box26 Mont Blancs

range27 Protruded-lip

expression

28 *Precariouslysituated

29 More azure31 Cheerleading unit33 Lets leave __

that34 Mediocre37 Pilates Behold!38 Late41 Trounces44 Annoying people46 James Bond, e.g.

47 Piercing looks

48 Stir the fire49 Paparazzi target50 __ and kicking52 It can be chronic

or shooting53 Bear among the

stars54 __ Hari55 Were not

serving liquor,briefly

57 Bk. introduction

58 Make, as a wager

By Elizabeth A. Long

(c)2009 Tribune Media Services, Inc.04/06/09

04/06/09

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dinner Beef Pot Pie, Chicken Mila-

nese, Tomato Rice Pilaf, Peas with Pearl

Onions, Carrots in Parsey Sauce

verney-Woolley dining Hall

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