Sophie Stuber – The Stanford Daily https://stanforddaily.com Breaking news from the Farm since 1892 Mon, 04 Jun 2018 18:30:39 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://stanforddaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/cropped-DailyIcon-CardinalRed.png?w=32 Sophie Stuber – The Stanford Daily https://stanforddaily.com 32 32 204779320 Reading Dante as a feminist https://stanforddaily.com/2018/06/04/reading-dante-as-a-feminist/ https://stanforddaily.com/2018/06/04/reading-dante-as-a-feminist/#respond Mon, 04 Jun 2018 12:00:19 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1142016 Classical literature has numerous inherent values and should still be extensively read by today’s readers. Still, despite my love for Dante, I would argue that it also essential to read classical literature with a critical eye, especially as our concepts of human rights and equality have greatly transformed since these works were written. In February, […]

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Classical literature has numerous inherent values and should still be extensively read by today’s readers. Still, despite my love for Dante, I would argue that it also essential to read classical literature with a critical eye, especially as our concepts of human rights and equality have greatly transformed since these works were written.

In February, Katy Waldman wrote an excellent piece in the New Yorker about reading Ovid’s works in the #MeToo era. Waldman discusses the poem by Ovid in which Daphne, a wood nymph is courted by Apollo. However, Daphne rejects Apollo’s advances because she wishes to remain a virgin. Still, Apollo refuses to stop pursuing Daphne, so she begs her father, a river god, to save her. Her father transforms Daphne into a laurel tree.

Ovid writes (translated by R. Mongan), “A heavy numbness seizes her limbs, / her soft breasts are girded by thin bark, / her hair grows into foliage, her arms into branches, / her foot, just now so swift, clings by sluggish roots.”

Still, Apollo refuses to relinquish Daphne. Ovid writes, “He gives the wood kisses … and the wood shrinks from the kisses. / The god said to her, ‘Since you can’t be my bride, at least / you will certainly be my tree!’”

Essentially, Ovid’s myth is a story of rape. Even as a tree, Daphne recoils from Apollo’s greedy and unwanted touch. Ovid’s myth is not a story of consent. After Daphne takes desperate measures to escape his pursuits, he still violates her body. This poem is just one tale involving rape and sexual transgression in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Hades kidnaps Persephone and imprisons her in Hades for half of every year; Zeus rapes Europa and Leda.

Ovid’s poems do not simply conclude with these tragic sexual transgressions either. Instead, Ovid — the mastermind of metamorphosis — transforms many of his female victims into new forms. Daphne turns into a laurel tree, and Leda gives birth to two eggs after Zeus rapes her. Through these transformations, Ovid dehumanizes these women and grossly abuses the victims of rape of sexual assault. The men of these tales escape entirely punishment-free.

Metamorphosis is traditionally typically about erotic, passionate love. Eros, this type of sinful love, is a subject that Dante explores extensively in the Divine Comedy. Dante studied Ovid extensively and engages with Ovid’s works in La Commedia. In his epic poem, Dante challenges Ovid and transfigures this process of transformation — often shaping metamorphoses into a perverted punishment of sin. Dante explicitly uses metamorphosis as a cruel, twisted form of punishment. Thieves transform into snakes and those who committed suicide are perversely turned into bushes and trees. Further parallels to Ovid can be drawn in Dante’s hell. Daphne was rendered a tree for all eternity — just as those in the circle of suicide were cruelly revoked from their human form.

In the Inferno, the circle of Lust is predominantly full of women, including Cleopatra, Dido, Helen of Troy and Francesca. Though Dante engages with a few famous male literary characters — such as Paris and Achilles — in this circle, Francesca gives the longest soliloquy. Francesca is one of the few women in La Commedia to be given so many lines, and yet her identity and actions are tied to two male figures. Francesca was killed by her husband when he caught her having an affair with her brother. Dante portrays Francesca as a beautiful, gentle seductress–even the poet temporarily succumbs to her enchanting words. Although Francesca’s story provides interesting commentary on the constraints of love and society, it is unfortunate that Francesca is one of the only dominant female voices in the Inferno. Dante’s work would be more nuanced if he developed other female characters whose roles were not tied to lust and sexual temptation.  

In Purgatorio, Pia is the principle female voice with whom Dante engages. Pia is one of the first and only shades in Purgatorio to address Dante in a kind and respectful fashion. Unlike most shades, instead of an immediate demand for Dante to relay news of her place in Purgatorio to those on Earth, Pia requests that Dante remember her only after the pilgrim has “rested from the long journey.” Her time is brief, but Pia speaks some of the most beautiful and famous lines of Purgatorio:

“remember me: I am Pia; Siena made me, Maremma unmade me: he knows it within himself/who earlier, wedding me/had given me his ring and gem.”  

Pia is one of the most beloved characters in the Divine Comedy despite her brief time because her tale is a beautiful tragedy that resounds with many readers.

The few female characters in La Commedia with significant character development are given beautiful stanzas. Similar to Francesca’s words in Canto Five of the Inferno, Pia’s words become immortalized outside of Dante’s world as representations of the tragedy of immortal love. As both Francesca and Pia were killed by their husbands, two of the most influential female figures in Dante’s poem have backstories tied to lust and domestic violence. Though Francesca and Pia’s words are entrancing, Dante suggests that the outcome of lives was dependent on the whims and wills of men.

This implied female dependence on male power appears frequently. In Canto Nineteen of Purgatorio, Dante has a dream of a siren who initially appears as a monstrous figure who becomes beautifully transfigured under Dante’s male gaze. Here, the siren’s image is tied to Dante’s attention, which illustrates the poet’s belief that beauty is dependent on male attention. Dante is momentarily entranced by the siren’s song. However, Virgil comes to Dante’s rescue by tearing open the siren’s clothing to reveal a stench emanating from her belly. Through this violation, Virgil claims to divulge the siren’s “true nature.”

Dante’s dream acts as an allegory of the false promise of the fulfillment of human desires. According to Dante, this false promise is at the root of modern capitalism and the thirst to gain material goods as means to achieve our desires. Through this allegory, Dante comments on humankind’s attempts to maintain beautiful illusions at whatever cost. In Paradiso, Dante uses this dream to reveal the futility of this quest; he shows that base human desires are rotten at their core despite possessing a shiny, or appealing exterior. However, though I agree with Dante’s intent, this dream is deeply problematic. Once again, Dante genders vice and uses a woman figure to represent the dangers of false promises and the fulfillment of sinful desires through earthly lust.

As Dante reaches Eden at the end of Purgatorio, his trusty guide Virgil is forced to return to his place in limbo. Dante suggests that Virgil can go no farther because the pagan cannot be part of the divine eternity of Eden or Paradiso. Beatrice takes over from Virgil to guide Dante through Paradiso. Prior to her untimely death, Beatrice was the object of Dante’s earthly affection and the inspiration for his love poetry La Vita Nuova. However, the version of Beatrice who Dante describes in La Commedia has been entirely desexualized. In Columbia University’s Dante Women & Gender Encylopedia, scholar Teodolinda Barolini describes Beatrice’s transformed role and personality.

Barolini writes of “the courtly ideology that exalts the lady as a Platonic ideal, rather than viewing her as a human agent with her own inner life and subjectivity. She is supreme, but within a context in which the frame of reference is entirely determined by the needs of the lover-poet.”

Essentially, Dante has removed all of Beatrice’s earthly qualities and human appeal. She is instead rendered as a divine figure — a flawless symbol akin to the Virgin Mary. Through Paradiso, Beatrice serves as Dante’s divine guide, but the personality, beauty, and characteristics that caused Dante to fall madly in love with her on Earth no longer exist. Instead, Beatrice preaches to Dante and reprimands him when his faith appears lacking in some way.

The third canticle of La Commedia, Paradiso, displays an interesting conundrum because it contains both hierarchy and equality at same time. Though everyone in Paradiso has been saved by God and lives in bliss, Dante creates different spheres of heaven and assigns characters to each. Those in spheres closer to the center and to God are considered to have greater amounts of love. Aside from Beatrice, the two women primarily featured in Paradiso are in the lowest sphere. Dante meets Paradiso’s version of Francesca and Pia, Piccarda Donati. Piccarda was a Black Guelf. One of her brothers is in the Inferno and the other in Purgatorio. In Paradiso, Piccarda rests in a lower sphere because of her violent death. Early in Piccarda’s life, she was a nun, but was forced into marriage. However, despite the fact that she did not choose to marry, she exists in a low sphere Paradiso because by marriage, she broke her vows to God. In the same domain Dante places another woman, Constance, who also broke the vows she took as a nun.

Through the placement of these women in a lower sphere of Paradiso, Dante asserts that even actions that are produced through fear or coercion are still independent choices. The poet ascribed to the theory that people voluntarily surrender free will when they make vows with God. Thus, Dante assumed that if Piccarda had been fully faithful to God, she would have refused marriage at whatever the cost — even if this would lead to her death. However, this depiction is incredibly harmful. Ultimately, what choice did Piccarda really have? She was forced into marriage, which was a direct violation of herself and her personhood. Essentially, Dante blames the female victims of these violent abuses and assaults for their actions. His attitude is close-minded and dangerous. However, though Dante faults Piccarda for breaking her vow under duress, I would note Dante is referring to her absolute will, not her relative will. Fortunately, Dante believed that men and women were equal in their freedom of will and their agency in choice.   

In the Divine Comedy, Dante’s depictions of women primarily consist of either pure virgins, or duplicitous seductresses. This is much too binary and condescending. The Divine Comedy is an incredible work of literature that has contributed so much to the understanding of human nature, love, and intellect, but the poem should not exist in a vacuum. Thus, when reading Dante’s work, we should apply lessons of our modern times. Though La Commedia is well-deserving of praise, I find Dante’s portrayals of women critically lacking. In his time, Dante refined and advanced literary devices such as metamorphosis and symbolism, but his depictions of women are not much more progressive than those of Ovid. Dante and Ovid are two of the greatest poets in history, but they could use a good lecture on feminism.

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

 

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What they should tell you at NSO https://stanforddaily.com/2018/05/21/what-they-should-tell-you-at-nso/ https://stanforddaily.com/2018/05/21/what-they-should-tell-you-at-nso/#respond Mon, 21 May 2018 12:00:21 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1142481 Sophie Stuber shares some advice and anecdotes from friends about things they wish they knew when they were starting out at Stanford.

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Week 7. I’ve been trying not to count the weeks because graduation is rapidly approaching. As we get closer to this date, I’ve started to reflect upon my time at Stanford. I’ve grown a lot and am fairly happy with the person that I’ve become since New Student Orientation some three and a half years ago. There was definitely a great deal to learn — in both classrooms and in social settings. NSO was an emotionally tumultuous and overstimulating experience. I remember trying to absorb as much information as possible and trying to figure out which presentations were the most important, or what I really needed to do in order to “experience Stanford the right way.” As if there were just one right way to live at Stanford. I wish NSO had told me that.

As senior year approaches its end, I thought to ask some of my friends and classmates what they wish they had known at the start of fall quarter of freshman year. Of course, every individual’s experience is unique and this is by no means an exhaustive list, but I wanted to share. This place has taught me so much and I could stay for forty more years and still not feel as if I had fully absorbed all of the knowledge and lessons of this campus and the people here.

Jaye Boissiere ‘18: I wish I had been told that taking a quarter or more off is very doable and also that you have to explore different majors either by talking to people or reading to find what you actually might be interested in doing, as opposed to just listening to the masses and the buzz

Jamieson O’Marr ‘18: I learned how easy it was to get over committed, and I wish someone would have told me to take stock of my commitments and make sure that the things I am doing are because I want to do them.

Alec Villagomez ‘18:  I think that I have come up with two things that I wish Stanford had told me during NSO, or that I wish I had known in a deeper part of myself sooner.  

  1. I wish I knew that you can change who you are after freshman year. I think a lot of people come into freshman year with an idea of who they are, but then that kind of gets blown out by the people you find yourself around. I think there’s a mad panic that ensues trying to find out who you are here, which might be different than who you are away from here (just by virtue of this place, and these people, being different than elsewhere). But then people come to form an image of who they are here — which is fly. But then they feel they can never break that. But over the course of four years in an ordinary life everybody changes. So I suppose I wish that they had told me that who you become freshman year — when you’ve had to cut ties to everything you’ve known growing up for this new place that is maybe far from your other world — is not who you will always be. And it almost shouldn’t be.  
  2. I wish I knew that this place isn’t great for everyone. This hype and excitement we carry around Admit Weekend and NSO is unhealthy. There are problems here and shortcomings of the University and people, you, will have qualms. But you never feel like you can voice those things, because it feels like tapping too hard on the glass that’s playing the same loop of rally and cheers. And no one wants to be the kid at a party who breaks something. But then it builds and you just kind of drown in it, until all you got is pessimism to the place. So maybe an admission, or an honesty, around these times that not everything is going to make you want to run around and jump in fountains. At least not always with excitement.  

Peter Montgomery ‘18: On a light note, the one thing I learned at Stanford is the importance of breakfast and coffee. More seriously, I wish they had told me at NSO that “Stanford is not the most important thing that will happen in your life.”

I have some pretty smart friends. To add, I guess I would say that I wish that I knew more about hook-up culture and relationships at Stanford, especially in terms of consent. Even before I started at Stanford, I had heard about this hook-up culture. As a new freshman, I assumed that everyone was hooking up with people randomly at parties and that I should do the same. The first time I went to a boy’s dorm room was after an all-campus party. I barely knew him. I don’t even think I could say that I liked him, but I still went home with him. When we kissed on his bed, I knew I didn’t want to do anything else, and so I panicked and pretended that my roommate had called and was locked out and I had to go home. I ran back. The whole experience did not make me feel good.

In the past three years, I have learned that not everyone is engaging in this culture and no one should pressure you to do anything you do not want. And if you do choose to go home with someone, there should not be a presumed expectation that you would have to do anything sexual with them. Now, I am confident enough in myself to be able to say no and not feel the need to fabricate an excuse to get out of a situation. You never should have to provide a reason. Consent is a yes or a no. That is all that should be needed.

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu

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The endless uphill of social media https://stanforddaily.com/2018/05/04/the-endless-uphill-of-social-media/ https://stanforddaily.com/2018/05/04/the-endless-uphill-of-social-media/#respond Fri, 04 May 2018 12:00:18 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1140483 Sophie Stuber discusses how social media fuels a culture of excess and risk taking in sports and outdoor activities.

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Stanford’s beautiful campus and close access to open spaces were a huge draw for me. Growing up in the mountains of Colorado caused me to appreciate the value of nature. I knew that I needed places to escape campus, to hike and to run. Open space brings vitality to my soul and helps me mentally reset and process my thoughts. I am not the only one to feel this way; there is scientific evidence that simply walking in nature, surrounded by trees, dirt and natural light, improves mood and mental health.

 

Fortunately at Stanford it has been easy to find people to partake in these activities with me. Especially my junior year, when I returned from abroad and lived in Outdoor House, I was overwhelmed and ecstatic to meet so many great humans who were so willing to go on planned or spontaneous outdoor excursions any day of the week.  At any given time, someone was always headed out for a run, hike, bike, climb or swim. Spending time outside and sharing activities that you love is a great way to meet people. I had never felt so fully myself or easily welcomed into a community. I was so happy to find people who love to do what I love.

 

However, this constant frenzy of outside activity can also swing into negative territory. Stanford students often operate in extremes, and athletic activity sometimes shifts into overdrive. I found myself filled with guilt if I saw someone return from a bike or run when I had been sitting in class or studying, even if I had already exercised that day. This was illogical, but I felt like I should always be outside or else I was not embracing my identity and the culture of the community. Somehow, people always seemed to be able to do more than I was doing.

 

I am a strong advocate for exercise and maximizing time outside, but being constantly surrounded by incredibly fit, beautiful humans can take its toll. Sometimes, especially at Stanford, it can be hard to find a balance between doing what is healthy and pushing your body past its limits. Every person has different needs, schedules and capabilities, but it can be difficult not to compare yourself to others.

 

And then came Strava. For those who do not know, Strava is an app that allows users to track athletic activity — predominantly biking and running. It records distances, routes and times. Users can upload their activities, and users can see people’s routes and activities. Similar to many other social media apps, users can follow each other and give likes in the form of “kudos” to different activities.

 

For the most part, I love Strava. It is the main way I track mileage on long runs, and it is a helpful tool to track progress and compare different times on the same routes. I can see which times of day I perform the best, and it alerts you every time you break a personal or course record. It can be a great marker of personal growth and success. However, the followers feed can be problematic.

 

I am lucky to have some incredibly athletic friends. Some of my favorite memories this year have been group outdoor adventures: summiting Mount Whitney, kayaking in Tomales Bay, hiking the Dish for sunrise and running a 30k trail race in Tahoe. However, following many of my athletically gifted friends on Strava is not always a great confidence boost. One such friend this fall went to the gym in the morning, ran 18 miles in the afternoon and did a five-mile full moon run with me at night. His “rest day” the next day consisted of an eight-mile run. Thanks Strava.

 

I do not want this article to be a call-out, though. Aside from a devoted training plan, his running abilities are also a bit of a genetic anomaly, I think. I do like to tease him, though. This friend is a very wonderful and modest person who would never brag about any of these athletic endeavors to anyone. He truly runs for the sake of running, simply because he loves it. The only reason I know so much about his exercise activities is really because of Strava.

 

In today’s world of technology, it becomes increasingly difficult not to compare oneself to others, especially on social media. Earlier this year, Marc Peruzzi published an article in Outside Magazine about the dangers of normalizing extreme athletic activities and constantly pushing limits. In his article, Peruzzi suggests that social media has detracted from people’s inherent enjoyment of outdoor activities.

 

He writes, “Increasingly, what we do outside is less about enjoying the activity itself as an intrinsic good and more about planning ways to go bigger, faster and farther, often for our selfie-stick mounted cameras. And so it went that once healthy outdoor pursuits devolved into suicide clubs.”

 

Between the years of 2007 and 2013, there has been a 47 percent rise in emergency room visits. Peruzzi reports that many brain surgeons and ER personnel in mountain towns with whom he spoke think that this growth can be largely attributed to action sports. Colorado’s air medical transport service, Flight for Life, has recorded a 12 percent increase in rescues annually.

 

My mountain hometown is an example. There’s an endurance ski race from Crested Butte to Aspen at night and another where racers summit and ski all four mountains as quickly as possible. In April, a veteran skier was killed in an avalanche in my hometown. This skier had volunteered with Mountain Rescue Aspen for 30 years and was very experienced in avalanche conditions. The avalanche occurred in the backcountry just off the side of Aspen Highlands ski resort. Ski patrol had closed the nearby section of the mountain due to avalanche conditions, but two skiers decided to go up and ski off the resort. They were familiar with the slope and confident in their skills. Unfortunately, it ended in tragedy.

 

Peruzzi writes, “In nearly all these tragedies, some element of the progression mindset played a role. Elite athletes and adventurers charging, pushing the limits of their skills, the snowpack or the mountains, and suddenly running out of room for error.”

 

Social media can perpetuate this dangerous quest to test one’s athletic capabilities, mental toughness and endurance. However, running, skiing, biking or hiking for the sake of a social media update is incredibly unhealthy. No Instagram photo or Strava record should come at the cost of one’s mental or physical health. Especially when sometimes a moment of bad luck can cost someone’s life. Social media creates unrealistic expectations, and outdoor activities are no exception.

 

Today, I ran Russian Ridge with some friends. Skyline was encased in fog and, staring off the grassy hill on either side, looked like dropping into an endless gray abyss. From the fog in front of us, we saw a pack of four coyotes emerge and bound off into the hills. One paused and watched us. It was eerie and surreal and inexplicable. The emotion of this experience, the raw beauty of the hills, and the cool dew that coated my hair and dripped down my shirt can never be captured by social media. Neither can the pure elation and rejuvenation that I feel finishing a run with my best friends. In today’s hyper-connected reality, it is important to take a step back and remember why we choose to exercise and spend time outdoors.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu

 

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[copy] Displaced: a dearth of policy as millions relocate due to climate change https://stanforddaily.com/2018/04/24/copy-displaced-a-dearth-of-policy-as-millions-relocate-due-to-climate-change/ Tue, 24 Apr 2018 07:42:28 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?post_type=tsd_magazine_post&p=1138458 Between the years 2008 and 2015, approximately 22.5 million people have been forced to relocate — temporarily or permanently — due to climate and other “weather-related” disasters. There are estimates that by 2050, the number of persons displaced due to climate may eclipse the number of “traditional” refugees as defined by the 1951 Refugee Convention and […]

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Between the years 2008 and 2015, approximately 22.5 million people have been forced to relocate — temporarily or permanently — due to climate and other “weather-related” disasters. There are estimates that by 2050, the number of persons displaced due to climate may eclipse the number of “traditional” refugees as defined by the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol.

Despite this, there currently is no international consensus on how to aid persons displaced due to climate change. Though the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) are aware of the increasing severity of climate change and migration challenges, these organizations have not issued clear recommendations or policies to address these issues.

Abnormally hot and cold weather in agricultural nations is already contributing to a rise in asylum requests in the European Union (EU) from citizens of the affected nations. A recent study by Wolfram Schlenker and Anouch Missirian concluded that the growth in asylum applications could be fully attributed to “temperatures in maize-growing countries that hit during the growing season, in the area where crops are grown.”

Schlenker and Missirian also created models for predictions of future effects of climate change in agricultural regions. If the average temperature rises by 2 degrees Celsius, the EU will likely see approximately a 28 percent increase in asylum applications. However, if carbon pollution rises at its current projected rates, annual application rates could grow by 188 percent by 2070. In gross numbers, this would translate to over 650,000 asylum applications in the EU per year.

Forced displacement due to climate change is a nuanced threat, as the effects of climate change manifest themselves through a multitude of environmental alterations. It is likely that climate change will contribute to environmental challenges, such as increased drought, rising sea levels and more severe natural disasters. Each of these may require a different international response.

Water scarcity: the Sahel

The Sahel comprises the semiarid area in Africa between the southern rainforest and the arid north. And though rainfall patterns and temperature are often capricious, the region is experiencing drought and rainfall patterns out of the ordinary.

Historically, Lake Chad has been essential for the survival of people in the Sahel. As Ben Taub writes in his article for The New Yorker, “Lake Chad is the principal life source of the Sahel.” Taub also adds, “The lake used to give the islanders everything: they ate from it, drank from it, and built houses from its reeds.”

However, Lake Chad began receding in the 1970s, a phenomenon that scholars and scientists have recently begun to label as a phenomenon of climate change.  In the past 30 years, average temperatures in the Sahel have risen between 0.2 and 2.0 degrees Celsius, and rainfall levels have decreased across the north and south. The Sahel desert is growing in size as Lake Chad gradually disappears, and water sources are becoming more difficult to find.

The effects of the drought on Lake Chad are severe and potentially permanent. Though the giant lake used to fill roughly the same area as the state of New Jersey, today, it is less than 5 percent of its original size — a little over twice the size of Lake Tahoe. Desertification has claimed most of the northern basin.

Furthermore, according to the U.N., the Sahel’s population has doubled over the last several decades and is predicted to double again in the next 20 years. The growing population places stress on essential environmental resources such as food and water. Repeated drought, severe chronic food insecurity and shrinking average precipitation levels contribute to these scarcities. The impacts of drought and lower rainfall cause a decrease in tree species diversity and density, as well as more common water shortages and higher cases of malaria and diarrhea.

Climate change is predicted to cause higher levels of food scarcity. This could lead to severe food stress for approximately 50 percent of the total population of 60 million people in the Sahel. Research projections show that climate change and continued water scarcity will cause the Sahel to accumulate approximately 250 million tons of food deficits by 2020.

Historically, famine has been a principal driver of mass migration in the Sahel region, but now, as John Grolle writes, “Food insecurity had evolved into a chronic state, as evinced by the incorporation into everyday livelihood systems of village-level strategies that had been used only during famines (for example, sale of wild food plants, fodder, firewood).”

Historically, family migration to the savanna has been a vital survival tactic for the agrarian Sahelian people, and the savanna has been a haven for families who need to resettle due to drought or famine. However, today, there is evidence that these movements are less successful than they have been in the past because the savanna is close to its resource capacity.

Indeed, in Niger, famine can no longer be classified as a distinct crisis, and in nearby Ghana, there are higher levels of progressive rural-rural migration within the country. Chronic food insecurity is one of the driving factors behind this movement of people.

In response to increased threats of climate change and lower feasibility of migration, scholars are studying adaptation techniques in the Sahel. However, though populations in the Sahel have recently put more energy into adaptation efforts, there has not been an official governmental overhaul in any country. Many of the countries in the region lack strong central governments, so adaptation implementations face even greater challenges. There are few disaster plans or streamlined processes. In the immediate future, governmental bodies and international organizations should focus on raising awareness about climate change and water scarcity. Awareness will educate people about both the origins and effects of desertification.

Solomon Islands: surging seas and relocation

In the past two decades, the rates of rising sea levels in the Solomon Islands rank as some of the most rapid in the world, with an average increase of between 7–10 millimeters annually. Throughout the northern Solomon Islands, over 11 islands have either disappeared entirely or are undergoing rapid erosion.

On Taro Island, the capital province became the first town in the Pacific forced to plan relocation due to climate change. This effort to move the approximately 1,000 residents has been taking shape over the past 20 years.

There are challenges to the planned relocation of an entire town. For example, the government can only build on small pieces of state-owned or official registered land. The only land that fits this formally registered qualification near Taro is next to a mangrove swamp. Thus, the relocation requires complex planning so that the new capital will be able to survive future challenges of climate change.

Though the government of the Solomon Islands acknowledges that planned climate relocation efforts are a vital interest because of rising sea levels and the threat of tsunamis, there is no existing policy or legislative action in place to oversee relocations. There is also the threat that government-ordered relocation efforts can disrupt traditional community structures.

This was enumerated by Simon Albert and others in a recent article in the journal Regional Environmental Change. The authors write: “Investigation of previous resettlement schemes within the Solomon Islands suggests that relocation must be considerate and cohesive with local communities’ traditional needs.”

Jakarta: sinking city

Jakarta is a showcase of what can happen when metropolises are threatened by climate change. Through a combination of factors including rising sea levels and sinking land, Jakarta could be submerged in 10 years.

However, because there is not yet much accessible data in Jakarta on the shifts in factors such as air temperature, higher sea levels and the societal effects of climate change, it is hard to evaluate the impacts. Furthermore, though private organizations and government bodies are both developing strategies to respond to climate change, there is no collaboration between the two.

One thing is certain, though: Jakarta is sinking. This phenomenon is known as land subsidence. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) defines land subsidence as “a gradual settling or sudden sinking of the Earth’s surface owing to subsurface movement of earth materials.”

In recent years, the severity and prevalence of flooding events in Jakarta have increased due to land subsidence. Rising sea levels have exacerbated the problem. Residents are illegally digging wells that are slowly draining the aquifers below the city, making the sinking issue worse.

In an article for The New York Times, Michael Kimmelman explains the destruction in Jakarta.

“Jakartan developers and others illegally dig untold numbers of wells because water is piped to less than half the population at what published reports say are extortionate costs by private companies awarded government concessions,” he writes.

From 2011 to 2014, groundwater extraction in Jakarta rose by 24 percent and is projected to keep increasing. Additionally, land subsidence created greater vulnerability to both inland and coastal flooding. Rivers and canals near the city have sunk so much that they no longer flow to the ocean by gravity alone. Instead, pumps are necessary to drain the river.

Kimmelman writes: “In fact, Jakarta is sinking faster than any other big city on the planet, faster, even, than climate change is causing the sea to rise — so surreally fast that rivers sometimes flow upstream, ordinary rains regularly swamp neighborhoods and buildings slowly disappear underground, swallowed by the earth.”

According to hydrologists, northern Jakarta will be underwater in a decade if it does not take action to stop the sinking, which would damage a large portion of Indonesia’s economy. Unless there is serious reversal and a technological transformation in infrastructure, Jakarta will not be able to hold back rising river and sea levels.

Extreme flooding is expected to increase in frequency as a result of climate change and land use practices. The U.N.’s  Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicts that coastal flooding will occur even more often because of rising sea levels and greater intensity cyclones as a result of climate change combined with population growth and land subsidence.

However, there are governmental plans to attenuate the risks of flooding. Three years ago, the Indonesian government partnered with Dutch officials to undertake the National Capital Integrated Coastal Development (NCICD) program to design dikes to barricade Jakarta from rising sea levels. The collaborative project is projected to cost about $40 billion. The proposed seawall would be 32 kilometers in length and is designed in the shape of the Garuda bird, Indonesia’s national emblem. With this wall, Jakarta Bay would transform into two “fresh-water retention lakes.” The seawall would also be a toll road that could improve traffic circulation to alleviate Jakarta’s terrible congestion. Behind the seawall, private developers plan to create 17 artificial islands that could house around 1.5 million people.

However, the future of the project is unclear due to concerns about environmental damage and destruction of the fishing industry, as well as accusations of corruption. Jakartan officials are no longer convinced that the megadistrict is feasible. Though the construction of the dike is moving forward, many experts are critical of the project.

Kimmelman writes: “As environmentalists have pointed out, if the city doesn’t first clean up its rivers and canals, a dike will turn an enclosed Jakarta Bay into the world’s largest cesspool.”

The success of the NCICD plan is heavily dependent on the success of other projects, such as cleaning up the city’s septic drainage systems. Currently, aside from the megacity, there is no government plan to address these challenges that would preclude the district. For now, citizens and government officials remain paralyzed while the city sinks and sea levels rise.   

         

Though predicting the effects of climate change is inherently complicated, climate change already poses a challenge to international norms and security. In an interview, Major General Munir Muniruzzaman, the chair of the Global Military Advisory Council on climate change, stated, “Climate change is the greatest security threat of the 21st century.”

Rising sea levels, drought and shifting weather patterns are slow-building crises, but they have serious implications for the affected populations. Already, the Solomon Islands plans to entirely relocate a major village, and this is just the first. The Maldives is projected to disappear entirely due to rising sea levels. Jakarta, a major city center, could be submerged in 10 years. On the other end of the spectrum, drought and continued water scarcity have disrupted traditional migration patterns for villagers in the Sahel. Across the world, populations are already experiencing the effects of climate change. Where will these people go?

The international community must develop strategies that both address the root causes of climate change and offer response solutions, including local adaptation strategies and an asylum framework for persons displaced due to climate change. Poorer, developing countries will likely experience the effects of climate change earlier and at a greater magnitude. The irony is that it is powerful, developed nations that have chiefly contributed to manmade climate change. Should larger, wealthier countries accept responsibility for climate change and offer support to the nations most affected? It is a difficult concept to sell internationally, and it would be challenging to implement and enforce such an international and comprehensive reparations system. Yet, as climate change worsens and displaced populations grow, the moral dilemma is increasingly important to consider.

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8@stanford.edu.

 

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Dangers of dissociation https://stanforddaily.com/2018/04/20/dangers-of-dissociation/ https://stanforddaily.com/2018/04/20/dangers-of-dissociation/#respond Fri, 20 Apr 2018 12:00:03 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1139684 Sophie Stuber discusses how dissociating our food from its environmental consequences lets us ignore them.

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The average American is predicted to consume 222.2 pounds of red meat and poultry in 2018. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, this is the highest yearly average ever. And to accommodate this, meat production is expected to surpass 100 billion pounds in the United States.

 

Meat consumption and production is a natural part of current society. Classic American meals include cheeseburgers, steak, fried chicken and barbecue; all of these contain meat. And much of the fast food industry relies on the availability of cheap, easy meals such as chicken nuggets, hamburgers and breakfast sandwiches with eggs, cheese and sausage patties.

 

In the US, meat can be cheap and easily accessible. Because of this, people often fail to stop and consider how much energy, time and space is required to produce, package and deliver meat. How many people have actually butchered a cow or killed a chicken themselves? How many consumers have even visited a feedlot or calculated how much energy is expended to bring that sizzling steak to their home grill?

 

In fact, the production of one serving of meat is an energy-intensive and extensive process. The creation of a single quarter pound hamburger requires 6.7 pounds of grain, 52.8 gallons of water, 74.5 square feet of land and 1,036 BTUs of energy from fossil fuels. In total, the livestock industry produces 15 percent of total global greenhouse gas emissions. This is about the same amount as the entire transportation industry.

 

In addition to taking up so much energy, the production of meat takes up a great deal of agricultural land. By the numbers, about 36 percent of the calories made globally on agricultural land is never available for human consumption. Instead, these calories are expended to feed animals and produce biofuels. In the U.S., this spikes to 67 percent. If all U.S. cropland was repurposed to only grow crops fit for human consumption, the industry could feed over 1.5 billion people. If U.S. citizens switched entirely from eating beef to eating beans, the U.S. would almost reach the 2020 greenhouse gas emission pledge enacted by former-President Obama. Nothing else would have to change in the country’s livestock or transportation industries. People could still even eat poultry, pork, eggs and cheese.

 

On paper, these numbers are shocking and suggest a need for people to change the ways they consume meat. However, it is hard to remember to apply these numbers in daily diet considerations. The ways in which the meat industry is now run remove the consumer from the actual production of the final good and mean we don’t have to confront the ways that meat affects the environment.

 

Before feedlots, people had local butchers. You could go into a butcher shop and select the portion of the animal you wanted to bring home for dinner. The butcher could tell you what farm the meat came from and how long ago it was killed. Meat was considered a luxury good rather than a daily commodity or cheap fast food meal. Prior to the establishment of local butchers, people were responsible for hunting for their own meat or raising their own livestock. This acquisition of meat was a much more intimate experience.

 

A friend recently told me that if he thought about where his meat came from — the process where cattle are sent from fields or feedlots into slaughterhouses and then in some cases combined with varying parts of different cows — he would probably consume a lot less meat. The experience today of picking a vacuum-sealed package off a grocery shelf is drastically different than being the person responsible for taking that animal’s life, of knowing where exactly your meat originated because you were responsible for its production.

 

Aside from the desire to dissociate with the details and processes of the meat industry because they are simply unsavory, there is also a general unawareness of the aforementioned impacts of livestock industry on the environment. People always express shock when I tell them that the simple switch from beef to beans would have such a large impact.

 

Despite the detrimental impact of the meat industry on the environment, I am not arguing here for the total end of the livestock industry. Honestly, that is not realistic. However, meat consumption does not have to be quite so extreme either. If people consumed meat, especially beef, only two or three times a week, that would make a huge difference. There are other changes, such as trying to buy local meat to reduce the carbon emissions from transportation or buying natural or free-range products that are healthier for the environment and the human body, that could lessen the impacts of meat. 

 

However, we should have increased awareness of the processes behind meat. Know where your meat comes from (this goes for all types of food), how the animals were treated and your food’s impact on the environment. If these details disgust you, maybe you should reconsider what you are putting into your body. It can be easy to dissociate from the ways that food reaches our refrigerators, but consumer education and awareness is essential for improved health and environmental regulation.  It is the duty of people to re-associate with what they are consuming.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu

 

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On taking up space https://stanforddaily.com/2018/04/06/on-taking-up-space/ https://stanforddaily.com/2018/04/06/on-taking-up-space/#respond Fri, 06 Apr 2018 12:00:52 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1138788 There is a difference between passing through a place, passively appreciating it, and actually spending time somewhere and learning the stories of that place.

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Last Monday, my friend and I arrived to class an hour early (or rather, the class actually started an hour later than the time that was posted online).  With an hour of unexpected free time, I followed her outside to the Oval where we passed the time lying in the grass, simply reading for pleasure. There was a perfect light spring breeze, and my mind was so at peace. I was happy to settle into the rhythm of the place for once, instead of simply diving into class. My friend said that it’s one of her favorite places on campus, and though I always aesthetically admire Stanford’s lush, beautifully manicured lawns and benches sheltered by groves of flowering trees, I don’t often stop and actually spend time in these places. To just be.

Maybe it is because this is my final quarter at Stanford, but every time that I go anywhere, I am overcome with the warmth and beauty of this place. I am reminded of this when I run the Dish and look down to the bay below, when I walk across the quad in the morning mist or when I watch the sky around Lake Lag fill with streaks of pink and orange at sunset, but I do not always stop to fully admire what we have here.

There is a difference between passing through a place, passively appreciating it, and actually spending time somewhere and learning the stories of that place. A difference between looking up at the palm trees while biking through the quad and pausing to sit on one of the round stone planters. Stopping, you can feel the rough, cool stone on your fingers as you let the sun warm your face. You can watch people pass by, laughing, talking, crying.  Maybe someone will sit next to you and you will be able to start a conversation and maybe learn some of this person’s stories.

I often think about all of the people who I pass on a daily basis. Even just within the microcosm of Stanford, there are so many humans with so many lives I will never meet. I will never know more than just their passing faces on the way to my next class. These people occupy the same physical spaces as I do, but their stories of Stanford and of these places are unique.

Stanford means many different things for everyone. I am lucky to have loved my four years here and to have grown, changed and been challenged as much as I have. Stanford is not always an easy place to live, and it is not always easy to admit that there are many flaws in this seemingly idyllic community.  

The first time I cried in public was by the fountain outside of Memorial Church. It was halfway through fall quarter of freshman year, and I had just found out that I might fail my first math class at Stanford. I remember sitting on the fountain, crying on the phone to my mom and being scared to go back to my freshman dorm. This was in the heyday of YikYak. For some reason, I opened this dubious app and saw this anonymous post:

“To the girl crying outside of MemChu: it’s going to be okay.”

Yep, that was me. My fifteen seconds of fame at Stanford were as the girl crying in public outside of a church. Thankfully, YikYak is gone, but I like to remember this story. I think about it every time I walk by that fountain and it makes me laugh now.

Physical spaces have a special way of triggering memories or feelings. Even though I have had plenty of wonderful, stimulating conversations in the fountain’s general vicinity since then, of course I always think about the one time that I cried there. It’s the one time that I actually stopped and fully occupied that space for more than a few passing moments. It’s the only time where I allowed my emotions to come into that physical space with me.

When we are are simply passing through places it is much harder to engage with the others in the space. Sometimes, when people ask me in passing how I am, I don’t know how to respond. At Stanford, it seems that the only socially acceptable answers are either some variation of “I’m doing well,” or “It’s Week [insert number here] and I’m drowning in work” or “Senior Spring baby!” Either you’re great and everyone wishes they were as lucky as you, or you are taking too many units because you are a motivated, dedicated Stanford student, and everyone should know how busy you are. You’re sorry, but you just simply do not have time to stop and chat on this really beautiful bench in the quad because you are late to a meeting, or phone call or study group, but yes let’s get that meal soon.

I’m as guilty of this as anyone else, but I am trying to be better.  In the next ten weeks, I want to remember to stop, to listen, to feel and to breathe. I want to get out of my house fifteen minutes early every few days so that I can sit outside and journal in the sun before going to class.  To physically occupy the spaces that I have passed the past four years. To center my mind amidst the rush of the next ten weeks before I leave this place for good.

A few moments of unexpected peace can change the entire outlook of a day. They are a way to remember to be grateful for being alive. If all else fails, remember that you can take classes credit/no credit. That’s what I did. And it was certainly okay.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu

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The Inferno today https://stanforddaily.com/2018/03/09/the-inferno-today/ https://stanforddaily.com/2018/03/09/the-inferno-today/#respond Fri, 09 Mar 2018 12:00:52 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1138064 Sophie Stuber discusses how and why we should view the contemporary world through the lens of Dante's Inferno.

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Few works of literature have had the lasting and extensive influence of Dante’s “Inferno.” Just take a walk by Cantor to see  how Auguste Rodin was inspired by the Inferno: The Thinker, the Gates of Hell and the kiss between Francesca and Paolo. Great writers as diverse as Chaucer, Balzac, T.S. Eliot and Primo Levi were influenced by Dante and borrow heavily from his work in the “Inferno.”

Often, people try to render Dante’s “Inferno” more comprehensible by creating adaptations that fit Dante’s classic to a modern context. Though modernization of classical literature can further understanding, perhaps it is even more essential to defamiliarize our reality by placing it in the mirror of the Inferno.

Let’s descend, shall we?

Excess. A concept that is visible in several sins in Dante’s circles of Hell. One such set of sinners are the gluttonous. Gluttony is, of course, the compulsion or inability to stop eating. However, it extends much beyond the literal excessive consumption of food. Gluttony can be seen in the insatiability of modern capitalism. It represents the desire to constantly consume, to always have the best and the newest products. Without gluttony, capitalism and consumerism would cease to exist. Furthermore, the foundations of modern capitalism originate in the sin of usury, or the practice of lending money with high rates of interest. Usury is commonplace in our banking system.

In Dante’s Inferno, the punishments that sinners receive are a direct response of the sins that they committed. This is known in Italian as contrapasso, or counter-suffering. The lustful are eternally battered by capricious winds, and the heretics are locked in tombs. Essentially, contrapasso is retributive justice.

Though contrapasso punishments are in the spirit of the law, we must ask: does that make them right? It is a pertinent question, as retributive justice exists today, both in legal systems and unofficially. Capital punishment is legal in 31 states in the United States. In 2017, 23 individuals on death row were executed in the US. Between 1985 and 2003, 22 people were killed for crimes that they had committed as juveniles. Though Roper v. Simmons in 2005 outlawed this practice and declared it unconstitutional, for nearly 20 years, our criminal justice used retributive justice to punish individuals who had committed crimes before they even had the right to vote.

Furthermore, it is not proven that retributive justice actually deters crimes. In 2012, the National Research Council released a report that stated that previous studies that showed the death penalty provided an incentive against murder were “fundamentally flawed.” Additionally, the 2016 FBI Uniform Crime Report found that though the South is responsible for more than 80 percent of executions from death row, the South also has the highest murder rate in the country.

Thus, we must ask ourselves, what kind of justice relies on such extreme punishments? Especially as we descend further into Hell, the punishments become even more deliberately enormous. “Enorme” in Italian, in fact means beyond norm. The Hell in Dante’s Inferno is visible all over our world whenever a higher power believes in the right to distribute justice.

Outside of official legal systems, the desire for retributive justice can launch us into the infernal cycle of reciprocal violence that has plagued humanity for most of our history. Inherently, the thirst for retaliation comes from hatred. Thus, people always seem to retaliate in excess, leading to perpetual escalation.

This quest for excessive retaliation splits people into an “us vs. them” mentality and today, many societies in our world are splitting into factions. There is discord about accommodating refugees and fulfilling international commitments such as the Paris Climate Agreements. Italy’s most recent election illustrates the anti-European Union and anti-immigration sentiments in the country. The rise of populism in Italy, especially stronger right-wing influence in some circles, deepens the schism between people of differing political beliefs. Italy’s politics show that though French voters managed to defeat Marine Le Pen and turn away from the right, Europe’s populist days are far from over.

In the United States too, we are living in an extremely polarized, fragmented society. Democrats fight Republicans. Pro-choice against pro-life. Everything has turned into an “us vs. them” mentality, and there is no space for dialogue with the other side. We forget our neighbors. Sometimes, we appear to let hate and anger triumph over what is good and what is just. However, retaliation against others only serves to create greater factions between opposing sides and more fear, violence and anger. Through mimetic violence, we can become indistinguishable from our enemies.

In this polarized time, it is important to remember Dante and the dangers of division and retaliation. When Dante crosses the bridge into the tenth and final subcircle, or bolgia, of Malebolge, he sees Geri del Bello, who was father’s first cousin, shake his fist at him. In his life, Geri del Bello was infamous for sowing discord. Geri del Bello was killed by a warring faction in Florence and is angry that Dante has not avenged his death. While Dante feels momentary guilt that he has not avenged his kinsman, he does not act. Dante’s choice illustrates that though anger and anguish can lead to a thirst for retaliation, it’s possible to recognize that this is not the best course of action.

Excess and power follows Dante further into Hell. Infamous giants from mythology and Christianity connect the eighth and ninth circles of Hell. These giants are enormous figures with tremendous physical power. However, the strength of the giants comes without intelligence. The belief in entitlement to power lies in the psychology of megalomania. We can see this destructive psychology in the corruption, abuse, scandal and crimes that President Trump and his advisors have committed, illustrating the dangers of power without intelligence. An egocentric thirst for power is a dangerous and frightening characteristic in one of the leaders of the free world.

In light of our current world climate, Dante’s final lesson is that even neutrality and passivity are incredibly dangerous. In the first circle of Hell, Dante passes sinners who never chose a side in life. He does not even choose to engage with them. Those who remained neutral even when morality was at stake do not get their own speeches in the Inferno. As my professor, Robert Harrison, said, “Beware of neutrality when the situation demands an existential decision.” Thus, even though choosing sides can be divisive, it is also essential. People need to act; to mobilize to defend the issues and values that they care about: basic human rights, equality, the environment, the climate. The world, now more than ever, needs good advocates. And while fighting for what you believe in, do not forget to speak to your neighbors and your adversaries. Dante engages with people in each circle. He never pretends to be morally superior to anyone and his experiences show that we can all be susceptible to immoral action.

Dante probes his sinners’ psyches deeply. Many of the sinners’ speeches appear as a stream of consciousness, which can be a mind trick to avoid self-confrontation. This form of speaking using a self-reflective self-consciousness is widely used in modern literature. As Professor Harrison said, “In literary history, history does not matter.” All literature and all stories can be contemporaries of one another. Thus, some of the seemingly incomprehensible anger, violence and egoism in our world can be contextualized through Dante’s “Inferno.”

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Actions not thoughts and prayers https://stanforddaily.com/2018/02/23/actions-not-thoughts-and-prayers/ https://stanforddaily.com/2018/02/23/actions-not-thoughts-and-prayers/#respond Fri, 23 Feb 2018 13:00:48 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1137221 Sophie Stuber argues that the best way to prevent gun violence is legislative action, and that we need it now, as much as we have for the past two decades.

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On April 20, 1999, two teenage students, Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris, shot and killed 12 students and one teacher at Columbine High School. 23 others were wounded before Harris and Klebold committed suicide. The Columbine High School mass shooting shook the nation and sparked a new wave of public outcry for better gun control laws and school safety measures.  

19 years later, we are still having the same circular debates about gun control. When Klebold and Harris opened fire on Columbine High School, people everywhere were shocked and horrified. Today some of that shock has given away to numb acceptance. Yet this should not be the case.  

The most recent school shooting at Marjory Stoneman High School in Parkland, Florida, left 17 people dead. Nikolas Cruz entered the school, pulled the fire alarm to draw students out of classrooms, and opened with a semi-automatic AR-15 rifle that he had purchased legally.

In an article for The New York Times, Richard A. Oppel writes, “[There is a factor in common in] five of the six deadliest mass shootings of the past six years in the United States. In each of them, the gunman had an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle.” In Florida, it is easier to buy an AR-15 than a handgun.

Though I hate to put a monetary value on the irreplaceable loss of life, or the trauma of living through a shooting, one article calculated that it cost Cruz a little over $700 to kill 17 people. A typical AR-15 is available for $700 and 40 rounds of the bullets used would cost under $12.  

This purchase cost Cruz little, but every gun sale goes towards funding the arms economy in our country. The National Rifle Association (NRA) has vast resources, wealth, and political power. The NRA’s influence is one reason so many politicians have been unwilling to improve gun control laws. For example, the NRA gave $11,438,118 to Donald Trump’s campaign and $1,008,030 to Marco Rubio’s most recent senate campaign in Florida.

You cannot assign a value to the pain experienced by survivors and families. A legal settlement will not bring back the dead. However, we can put money into actionable change to minimize future gun violence. The accumulated years of lives lost to gun violence are already far too great.

When news broke of the Parkland shooting, I watched in the gym. I was horrified and deeply saddened, but I was not surprised. It is sickening that mass shootings have become a norm in our country’s culture. Cruz left parents without children, kids without friends, and students without teachers. These deaths were preventable. These are children who will never grow up, never graduate, never get married, never have their own kids. They will never have the chance to fight for their values, or to do work to change the world. These newest victims’ opportunities were tragically cut short by gun violence that could have been prevented. Their lives were stolen.

The effects of mass shootings extend far beyond those killed, or wounded. In a Stanford Law School interview, Law Professor John J. Donohue said, “Seeing your best friend blown away as she stands three feet away from you is scarring even if you have not been physically harmed. A teenager running from the scene of a mass shooting is victimized even if untouched by bullets — as are students and parents around the country who visualize this nightmare.”

Between 1994 and 2004 there was a ban in the US on the sale of assault rifles. Throughout this decade, there were twelve mass shootings, which resulted in 89 deaths.  After the ban was lifted, in the decade from 2004 to 2014, there were 34 mass shootings and 302 deaths. That translates to a  183% increase in mass shootings in the decade after the ban was lifted compared to when the ban was in place.  Some states, such as California, New York, Connecticut, and Maryland do have state bans on the sales of certains types of semi-automatic assault rifles and limit gun magazine bullet capacity to ten, but continued mass shootings require forceful national action.

Gun violence in the nation goes beyond school shootings. It infiltrates all aspects of our society. In 2016, 1,637 American children died from gunshots. Approximately two dozen children are shot per day in the US.  A new World Health Organization report in the American Journal of Medicine discovered that in “high-income nations,” 91 percent of gun-related deaths of youths aged 15 and under occurred in the United States. Among comparable countries, the US has about equal proportions of severe mental illness, yet deaths due to gun violence are exponentially greater.

Columbine. Virginia Tech. Newtown. Las Vegas. Orlando. Parkland. And these are just a few of the deadly mass shootings in recent US history. Each reignites the gun control debate, and the lack of change has become depressingly predictable. Gun control advocates demand legislative action. In counter-argument, second amendment advocates, NRA members and many Republicans declare that we need guns to protect ourselves and protect our rights, or argue that we should focus on mental health.

The only possible legislation that has received any significant Republican backing is bettering background checks. This would not even extend to universal background checks, despite the fact that 93 percent of Americans who live in houses that have guns support this measure.

Some argue that it is too early to talk about gun control after the Parkland shooting. We should respect those mourning. Well, I think it’s about 20 years too late.  Your thoughts, prayers, and condolences will never prevent future shootings, or save lives. Action and legislation are the avenues to change. It is time to fight.

I have grown up in two decades rife with gun violence. My generation is ready for change. A vague commitment by Donald Trump to ban bump stocks and reevaluate gun regulation is not enough. I stand with the Parkland students and students across the country who are speaking out against violence and demanding action. I stand with the families and friends of victims and survivors. I do believe that my generation will fight to change laws and to elect ethical congressional representatives who will advocate for gun control. I just only hope that these actions come before many more lives are lost.  

We are strong and it is time to fight for better gun regulations. Call your representatives, learn which legislators receive funding from the NRA, and vote. I want my children to grow up in a nation where frequent mass shootings are a bizarre, incomprehensible phenomenon of the past. It is time for change.    

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu

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The fallacy of hyper-connection https://stanforddaily.com/2018/02/09/the-fallacy-of-hyper-connection/ https://stanforddaily.com/2018/02/09/the-fallacy-of-hyper-connection/#respond Fri, 09 Feb 2018 13:00:12 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1136455 Last Thursday was beautiful. As I walked across the quad in the unusually warm weather for February, I felt sick. I was listening to the NPR “Up First” podcast. This segment detailed the recent discovery of the sites of mass graves in Myanmar. Evidence for these graves came from over three dozen witness accounts, as […]

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Last Thursday was beautiful. As I walked across the quad in the unusually warm weather for February, I felt sick. I was listening to the NPR “Up First” podcast. This segment detailed the recent discovery of the sites of mass graves in Myanmar. Evidence for these graves came from over three dozen witness accounts, as well as the video footage that one survivor managed to smuggle out of Myanmar and give to an Associated Press reporter in Bangladesh. The video footage depicts mass graves containing half-buried bodies. It appears as if acid was used disfigure the victims’ faces and obscure their identities. This discovery was evidence of the atrocities that the Myanmar Army is committing against the Rohingya people. So why are people not talking about this more? Today, a genocide is occurring, and no major world powers are doing anything.

To give a brief recap, the Rohingya are faction of Muslims who have been persecuted for decades. In August, a group of Rohingya rebels attacked several police and army positions, which resulted in the deaths of 12 officers. In response, the Myanmar Army launched a vicious offensive against first the rebels, but then against Rohingya civilians. Approximately 700,000 Rohingya have been forced to flee to refugee camps in nations bordering Myanmar. A Human Rights Watch analysis found that over 345 villages have been torched by the Myanmar Army. The nation’s leader, State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, claims that she does not have authority over the Myanmar Army, or their attacks on the Rohingya. Suu Kyi, who won a Nobel Peace Prize, has been sharply criticized in the humanitarian sphere for refusing to oppose military leaders, and barring human rights groups, U.N. officials and reporters access to regions where the Rohingya used to live. When local Reuters journalists attempted to examine a reported mass grave, they were jailed.

Although former United Nations general Romeo Dallaire declared that the mass atrocities in Myanmar qualify as a “very deliberate genocide,”  the international community has done little to stop it. In a recent article for The New York Times, Nicholas Kristof wrote, “The global and American responses have been feeble, so Myanmar is getting away with murder and rape intended to change the country’s demography. The lesson that the world’s complacency sends to other countries is that this is an ideal time to eradicate a vexing ethnic group.”

Kristof highlights a dangerous point. Many experts have stated that the Myanmar’s mass abuses and executions of the Rohingya qualifies as genocide, but the United Nations has not intervened, as they would be compelled to do if the UN determined genocide was occurring. Myanmar is not the first of its kind. The Kigali Genocide Memorial in Rwanda has a permanent exhibition called “Wasted Lives.” It pays tribute to mass atrocities – such as those in Namibia, Armenia, Cambodia and the Balkans – that were not classified as genocide under international law. We do not want this to happen in Myanmar. The international community’s refusal to intervene could signal to other regimes that world powers are so caught up in other issues that mass atrocities may be ignored for the time being.

In the United States, for example, politicians are currently largely focused on passing a government spending bill. Though immigration is a controversial issue, the current debate mainly concerns modifying U.S. policies and developing protections for Dreamers. Immigration as it concerns the Rohingya people’s forced displacement was not a subject of Nancy Pelosi’s eight-hour floor speech. It seems as if in the age of Trump, domestic politics have almost entirely consumed our newsfeeds and our thoughts. Though permanent protections for Dreamers are essential, there should more more space for international news, especially on topics of human rights violations.

If you ask most members of the Stanford community, they will likely have strong opinions and firm general knowledge about a slew of domestic issues such as the recent government shutdown, DACA, President Trump and the Nunes Memo. Especially with technology, our society is inundated with constant breaking news updates. Twitter can be a great resource to stay up to date on developing crises and whatever absurd statements President Trump has recently released, but it also can provide a very narrow scope.  Even Trending Topics are now specifically tailored based on who you follow and your location. Slower developing crises, especially those without clear U.S. foreign interests, as in Myanmar, don’t always receive the same traction on Twitter. Today, there was more coverage of the Olympics and Elon Musk’s space flight than the genocide in Myanmar.  

On Twitter, it’s easy to read about Trump’s recent “assaults on democracy,” how Congressmen are voting, updates from athletes at the Olympics in Pyeongchang and news about the recent stock market downturn. With greater numbers of people leaning on Twitter as the primary source of news, it is quite problematic.

It’s wonderful that people do care so much about domestic issues. Especially in light of our current political climate, it is essential to continue to fight for issues of civil rights and to never become complacent. Yet, domestic politics are only one facet of the news. It is exhausting to keep up with the constant flood of news, especially through social media, but let us not forget that there are other global crises that escape breaking news filters. The genocide in Myanmar is just one example. There are other slow-building crises such as rising sea levels and drought due to climate change that don’t garner breaking news updates right now. In several years it will be too late to create the international frameworks needed to combat these issues. Instead, we will be stuck with a slew of breaking news alerts as cities flood and run out of water.

Across the world, mass atrocities occur too frequently. The voices of people such as the Rohingya are being silenced. World leaders must be held accountable for their inaction. As citizens, we should advocate against human rights abuses, whether they are occurring here, or 7,800 miles away.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Committees search for new H&S Dean, Dean of Research https://stanforddaily.com/2018/01/24/committees-search-for-new-hs-dean-dean-of-research/ https://stanforddaily.com/2018/01/24/committees-search-for-new-hs-dean-dean-of-research/#respond Thu, 25 Jan 2018 07:40:42 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1135580 Stanford has recently initiated several search committees to fill high-profile positions such as the Dean of the School of Humanities and Sciences (H&S) and Vice Provost and Dean of Research at Stanford.

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Stanford has recently initiated several search committees to fill high-profile positions such as the Dean of the School of Humanities and Sciences (H&S) and Vice Provost and Dean of Research at Stanford.

Ann Arvin, the current Dean of Research, will step down and return to research and teaching in fall of 2018. Separately, Richard Saller, the current H&S Dean, informed the University that he will step down on Sept. 1, 2018. Saller, who has served as H&S Dean since 2007, will go back to being a full-time professor at Stanford.

Committees search for new H&S Dean, Dean of Research
H&S Dean Richard Saller (LINDA A. CICERO/Stanford News)

“It has been an honor and privilege to serve Stanford University and the faculty, students and staff of the School of Humanities and Sciences,” Saller told Stanford News. “My goal as dean for the last 10 years has been to make the resources and facilities available for our faculty and students to excel in their research, teaching and learning – in general, for them to thrive and share their knowledge with the larger world. Knowing that I was able to play this role and be a part of Stanford’s history gives me great satisfaction.”

According to a statement by University spokesperson EJ Miranda, the provost is responsible for selecting the committees that search for new deans. Faculty members and students – both graduate and undergraduate – typically serve on the committees. The faculty are often nominated by the Faculty Senate. To select students, Miranda explained, committee chairs request nominations from student groups.

Though search committees are not required have any student members, there are two on the H&S Dean Search Committee: one undergraduate student from the psychology department, Angela Smith ’18, and one Ph.D. student from modern thought and literature, Jonathan Leal.

“We make an effort to form a committee with a diverse membership that includes relevant expertise depending on the role,” Miranda said.

At the beginning of the search process, committee members talk with Stanford community members to determine what criteria are important to faculty, students and staff. The committee conducts individual interviews and requests dean nominations and general comments via email as well.

“Based on their input, the committee forms an opinion about the needs of the School within the University to help define the profile they are looking for in a candidate,” Miranda said.

The search committee for the H&S Dean began last fall. Provost Persis Drell and Aron Rodrigue, the Daniel E. Koshland Professor of Jewish Culture and History, co-chair the committee. Other committee members are Professor James Fearon from the political science department, Eleny Ionel from mathematics, Professor Beth Levin from linguistics, Todd Martinez from chemistry and Matthew Snipp from sociology, as well as professor and Dean of the Law School Elizabeth Magill. Trustee Emeritus Wendy Munger is also serving on the committee, as is Vice Provost for Academic Affairs Stephanie Kalfayan.

“We are doing outreach to constituent groups (including both a town hall for both undergrad and grad students held in December, and an online survey distributed to the same groups), collecting feedback, and working hard in the search,” undergraduate Smith wrote in an email to The Daily.

The job of the search committee is to evaluate both internal and external candidates and offer suggestions about who should be the dean. However, the committee will not make the final decision on who will be offered the position. That is up to President Marc Tessier-Lavigne and Provost Drell.

Since the Dean of Research is a University-wide position, the process to fill that role differs somewhat from the process used to find the H&S Dean, Miranda told The Daily.

“The search is slightly different because the role does not oversee educational programs, but rather compliance and oversight of research policies as well as oversight of the work of the independent labs, centers and institutes,” he wrote.

The process of search committees is not always clear to the rest of the Stanford community. In an email to Stanford students and postdoctorates, co-chairs Drell and Rodrigue explained that the committee does not frequently share its findings until the process is complete.

“We will not communicate broadly about the progress of the search,” Drell and Rodrigue wrote. “In fact, to protect confidentiality, we may not be in touch again until later in the process.”

Still, Drell and Rodrigue expressed hope that the Stanford community would provide input.

“We welcome suggestions, not only about individual candidates, but about your concerns and hopes for the school going forward and about the sorts of traits you think are generally important for the next Dean,” they continued.

The deadline for submitting feedback was Dec. 4.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Mechanical engineering may offer breakthrough in breast cancer research https://stanforddaily.com/2018/01/16/mechanical-engineering-may-offer-breakthrough-in-breast-cancer-research/ https://stanforddaily.com/2018/01/16/mechanical-engineering-may-offer-breakthrough-in-breast-cancer-research/#respond Tue, 16 Jan 2018 11:25:40 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1135052 Researchers studying breast cancer have long wondered why certain tumor cells spread dangerously while others do not grow. An unlikely field of study for cancer research, mechanical engineering, may have found an answer.

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Researchers studying breast cancer have long wondered why certain tumor cells spread dangerously while others do not grow. An unlikely field of study for cancer research, mechanical engineering, may yield an answer.

Mechanical engineering may offer breakthrough in breast cancer research
Ovijit Chaudhuri, assistant professor and leader of the cancer research team (Courtesy of the Department of Mechanical Engineering).

The research team of Ovijit Chaudhuri, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, is investigating the relationship between cancer spread and different mechanical properties of breast tissue in the hopes of designing improved treatments for women.

“Over the last 20 years or so there’s been increasing evidence that mechanical properties of breast tissue play a key role in promoting breast cancer progression,” Chaudhuri told Stanford News.

Though mechanical engineering may seem like a surprising direction for breast cancer research, findings from over a decade ago suggest its applicability to the field. This prior research indicates that stem cells respond differently depending on the surface on which they are grown. Firmer surfaces tend to cause stem cells to develop into bone, while softer ones can result in neurons, or brain tissue. This discovery and similar research helped found the field of mechanobiology, which investigates how molecular forces and mechanical properties determine the way a gene is expressed.

New research indicates that stiffer breast tissue leads to greater tumor advancement, but researchers are not yet sure why. Chaudhuri and his team are using a few different methods to learn more.

In Chaudhuri’s lab, researchers are growing mammary cells, which are most prone to becoming cancerous, in a material called hydrogel. Hydrogel is intended to mimic the biochemical signals mammary cells would receive in tissue; by changing the material’s stiffness, researchers can see what factors cause tumor growth in mammary cells.

Other researchers are analyzing how tumors spread beyond the membrane that surrounds breast tissue. Though the average cancer cell is hundreds of times greater in size than the membrane’s pores, tumor cells still manage to escape and spread to other parts of the body.

Chaudhuri suggests that this phenomenon could occur in part due to physical force exerted by cancer cells.

“What we think is happening is that part of it is force, so cancer cells are physically pushing and pulling and prying open a hole to crawl through,” Chaudhuri told Stanford News. “What we’re trying to study is, ‘What does this process look like?’”

Though Chaudhuri’s focus is on cancer cells and the mechanical properties of breast tissue, his research is part of a much larger effort by professionals in disciplines such as biology, bioengineering and chemical engineering to better understand breast cancer. Within five to 10 years, he hopes his research will help lead to improved treatments for the disease, with the long-term goal of preventing breast cancer from developing in the first place.

“This is pretty far off, but I think that should be the ultimate goal,” he said.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Thursday town hall to address concerns over GOP tax bill https://stanforddaily.com/2017/12/06/thursday-town-hall-to-address-concerns-over-gop-tax-bill/ https://stanforddaily.com/2017/12/06/thursday-town-hall-to-address-concerns-over-gop-tax-bill/#respond Wed, 06 Dec 2017 08:57:12 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1134525 Administrators will speak at a town hall Thursday in response to continued concerns about the negative implications of the GOP’s tax bill -- now passed by both houses of Congress -- for Stanford and its students.

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Administrators will speak at a town hall Thursday in response to continued concerns about the negative implications of the GOP’s tax bill — now passed by both houses of Congress — for Stanford and its students.

The Senate’s version of the bill, approved this past weekend, does not include a House provision that cuts tax credits for graduate students. But the final version of the tax bill has not been established, and the House proposal could become law. In its current form, the House bill changes tuition into taxable income and removes student loan interest deductions in a move that could significantly increase graduate students’ financial burdens. Both the Senate and House versions of the bill would also tax university endowments.

At Thursday’s town hall event, hosted by an activism coalition called the Stanford Solidarity Network, Vice Provost for Graduate Education Patti Gumport and Provost Persis Drell will discuss the tax bill and its potential ramifications.

Gumport joined several members of the Graduate Student Council (GSC) and the Stanford Solidarity Network in writing a Nov. 28 community email that addressed the tax plan in the days leading up to the Senate bill’s passage.

“We recognize that the pending legislation is highly consequential for its potential to negatively impact individual finances, the university’s ability to continue to provide affordable education and research training of the highest quality to our students, and tuition assistance benefits for university employees, as well as what is at stake for graduate education and for higher education nationally,” the email reads.

The email explains that the University has been collaborating with students, faculty, staff, alumni and trustees at Stanford in efforts to fight the tax bills.  Additionally, Stanford is working with others across the country to oppose the measures.

“Communications range from direct engagement with members of Congress and the Executive Branch, to partnering with peer universities, and working with higher education associations to explain exactly what’s at stake if these provisions were to pass,” the email’s authors wrote.

The note promised efforts to “actively advocate against specific provisions and to analyze possible impacts if they end up in the final legislation.”

Nina Horstmann, a Ph.D. student in the department of anthropology and an organizer for the Stanford Solidarity Network, wrote to The Daily that she hopes community members will continue opposing the tax bill before Congress votes on its final version.

“[We want] to get the word out that the fight is not yet over,” Horstmann said. “The final bill hasn’t been resolved.”

The Nov. 28 email thanked students, and in particular members of the GSC and Stanford Solidarity Network, for their attention to the tax legislation. The message encouraged students not yet involved to call their elected representatives and urge their friends and family to do the same.

“We especially applaud the ongoing, active engagement of Stanford graduate students,” the letter states.

Students have engaged in efforts across many platforms to oppose the bill, phone-banking to express their thoughts to members of Congress and participating in national movements spearheaded by groups such as the National Graduate and Professional Student Association.

Despite the University’s statements, Horstmann argued there is more Stanford can do as graduate students face uncertain financial futures, noting that she hasn’t heard details from the University about how it will “ensure that current students can continue and future students can expect the same degree of support.”

Horstmann emphasized the vital role that graduate students play in University life as instructors, researchers and mentors and stressed the potentially serious consequences of the tax bill if it passes.

“Many of us, including myself, would have to drop out if Stanford cannot guarantee to financially protect us against up to 400 percent increase in taxes,” she said.

The town hall with Drell and Gumport will take place on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. in the Havana Room of the Graduate Community Center. All students, faculty, staff and other Stanford community members are welcome.

More information about the tax bill can be found on Stanford’s website.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

 

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Amid national change, administrators reaffirm Title IX policies at panel https://stanforddaily.com/2017/11/22/amid-national-change-administrators-reaffirm-title-ix-policies-at-panel/ https://stanforddaily.com/2017/11/22/amid-national-change-administrators-reaffirm-title-ix-policies-at-panel/#respond Thu, 23 Nov 2017 06:30:13 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1133842 In a panel held last week by the Stanford Law Students against Gendered Violence (SLS GiVe), administrators at Stanford discussed the effects of the Department of Education’s new Title IX Interim Guidelines, both for Stanford’s policies and the nation at large.

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In a panel held by the Stanford Law Students against Gendered Violence (SLS GiVe), administrators at Stanford discussed the effects of the Department of Education’s new Title IX interim guidelines, both for Stanford’s policies and the nation at large.

Cathy Glaze, Stanford’s Title IX director, Senior Associate Vice Provost for Institutional Equity and Access Lauren Schoenthaler and Carley Flanery, director of the Office of Sexual Assault & Relationship Abuse Education & Response, explained the impact of the new policies on campus sexual assault adjudication procedures and received audience questions.

The forum opened with an explanation of post-Obama-era changes in the Title IX guidelines. In 2011, the Obama administration released its “Dear Colleague Letter,” which provided detailed guidelines on the procedures a university must follow in investigations of sexual assault. These guidelines included the use of the “preponderance of evidence” standard to find responsibility, the option for students to consult advisors and the right of both parties to appeal if one is given the option. The letter also disfavored direct cross-examination of the accused by the complainant and allowed universities a 60-day window to complete investigations. In 2014, the Obama administration released 50 pages of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) to supplement these guidelines.

“I think [this] was quite instrumental in getting universities across the country to have sexual assault and sexual violence top-line,” said Schoenthaler. “I think this document has done a lot of good for victims.”

Amid national change, administrators reaffirm Title IX policies at panel
Administrators discuss the state of Title IX at Stanford amid national changes (SOPHIE STUBER/The Stanford Daily).

However, in September, the new Trump administration withdrew both documents, removed existing FAQs to leave only 11 and released a new question-and-answer document on universities’ responsibility to address sexual misconduct. This document moves away from Obama-era preponderance of evidence standards, allowing schools to choose between that and a higher “clear and convincing” standard of guilt. It also stipulates that the standard of proof used in cases of sexual misconduct should equal that which is used in other student conduct cases, and allows schools to provide an appeals process to either both parties or to only the respondent in a case.

Despite these revisions, Schoenthaler explained that the changes made by the Trump administration do not affect Stanford’s own policies.

“That is guidance; it is not law,” she said.

When asked how Stanford will respond to the changes, Schoenthaler said that no action will be taken immediately and that the policies currently in place are only temporary measures.

“Stanford isn’t doing anything while we watch the dust to settle, and absolutely we have great protection in the state of California.”

She added that the administration and campus leaders have been “appropriately aggressive” and that the University hopes to have a “fair and equitable [process] for both parties.”

“[We are] wanting a process where victims feel comfortable coming forward,” Schoenthaler said.

Earlier this year, the Trump administration also withdrew Obama-era protections for transgender students’ right to use public school restrooms corresponding to their gender identity.

Schoenthaler stated that transgender students at Stanford were protected from these changes by the University’s own policy.

“In California, your gender expression and gender identity are protected [by law],” she said. “This is also the case in Stanford’s anti-discrimination laws. I think that California is one of the three most progressive states for protecting victims.”

Schoenthaler added that California offers “specific, prescriptive guidance” for sexual assault cases, emphasizing the state law requiring that an affirmative consent standard be used in adjudicating these cases.

Flanery also outlined new on-campus education programs that aim to teach students skills related to consent and communication such as practicing healthy behaviors, reflecting on personal values, being an “upstander,” accepting rejection gracefully and fostering dialogue with partners, among others.

According to Flanery, “all [these approaches] are grounded from a lens of intersectionality.”

Other programs Stanford has implemented include the SAVE: Stanford Anti-Violence Educators initiative, which trains undergraduates as peer educators, as well as the Violence & Intervention Program aimed at the Greek community.

In response to an audience question about what the biggest flaw in Stanford’s current adjudication process may be, Glaze stated that she was satisfied with the current procedures in place.

“I’m a pretty much a fan of the current system,” she said. “I don’t think any system can be perfect but we try to be very attentive and very respectful so that we get the full story from each side.”

However, she added, “The flaw is that it has to occur in the first place.”

Both Glaze and Flanery concurred that the criminal procedure and Title IX guidelines are limited in the forms of justice they can fulfill for victims.

After sexual violence, said Glaze, “You can never make anybody whole [again].”

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8@stanford.edu.

This post has been updated. A previous version attributed a quote to Cathy Glaze; it was actually from Carley Flanery. The Daily regrets this error.

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Administrators, grad students oppose GOP tax plan https://stanforddaily.com/2017/11/17/administrators-grad-students-oppose-gop-tax-plan/ https://stanforddaily.com/2017/11/17/administrators-grad-students-oppose-gop-tax-plan/#respond Fri, 17 Nov 2017 09:10:12 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1133729 Graduate students and University administrators are fighting against the proposed Republican tax bill, which could have several serious negative impacts on the Stanford community.

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Graduate students and University administrators are fighting against a proposed Republican tax bill that they say would have several serious negative impacts on the Stanford community.

On Thursday, the House of Representatives passed its version of the tax plan, and the Senate Finance Committee sent its version to the floor. There are several provisions in the bill that would directly affect Stanford and other institutions of higher education, including a 1.4 percent excise tax on yearly net investment earnings for University endowments. Stanford’s endowment provides resources to areas such as financial aid, fellowships and housing.

In addition, graduate students are especially concerned because the version of the bill that just passed the House proposes to cut a tax exemption for them. Currently, universities are able to grant students tuition waivers when they serve as research assistants or teaching assistants. However, the Senate bill preserves the education relief provision for graduate students and would not require them to pay income tax on tuition waivers.

Students in academic fellowships would also be affected, as the bill would make grants and funding students receive from universities taxed as compensation.

According to a report by Vetri Velan, a Ph.D student in Physics at UC Berkeley, both public and private universities would be affected, but private schools would possibly see greater impacts because tuition costs are often higher.

“We see strong evidence that a Ph.D. student at a public university would see their taxes go up by 30 to 60 percent,” Berkeley wrote, “and a student at a private university would see their taxes increase by a factor of two to four.”

But according to Alejandro Schuler, a Graduate Student Council (GSC) representative for the School of Medicine, it is difficult to predict the full-scale impacts of the tax plan.

“It’s really hard to say because the tax policy for graduate students is already fairly opaque,” Schuler said. “It’s hard to say who would be affected and who wouldn’t be affected,” he added later.

When President Marc Tessier-Lavigne addressed the Faculty Senate last week, he criticized policies included in the bill and acknowledged that that many members of the Stanford community, including faculty, staff and students had expressed concerns regarding the tax plan’s impact on the University.

“We’re aware and concerned about several provisions in the House bill that would adversely affect Stanford students, employees, mission and the higher education sector in general,” Tessier-Lavigne said. “These provisions are almost fully designed to raise revenue to offset tax reduction in other areas, rather than being grounded in sound policy rationales.”

Tessier-Lavigne also criticized the Republican bill for having having “no clear rationale” behind its repeal of the student loan interest tax break, which is currently available to undergraduate and graduate students, and for erecting barriers to improved higher education practices and growth of institutions.

“It’s very unfortunate that such provisions are in contrary to what should be our shared national goals of increasing accessibility and affordability for students, advancing important research to develop cures and solutions to our nation’s and the world’s problems and furthering our education mission,” he said.

At the meeting, Tessier-Lavigne also spoke out against the provisions in the bill that would eliminate deductibles for state and local income taxes and limit the deductibles for property taxes.

“In states like California, where as we all know, citizens are already facing very high housing costs, this will exacerbate an already challenging circumstance,” Tessier-Lavigne said. “I don’t think I have to tell any of us that such a problem is extremely acute here.”

On Nov. 8, Vice Provost for Graduate Education Patricia Gumport sent a letter to all graduate students informing them that Stanford was working against the bill and encouraging students to call their congressional representatives.

In response to the threats posed by the tax bill, graduate students at Stanford have hosted a phone bank, launched a door-knocking campaign around campus, published a petition and sent a resolution to Provost Persis Drell and Vice Provost Gumport.

According to Schuler, the opposition to the tax plan has sparked a collaborative movement among graduate students.

“One of the great things about this is that graduate students are becoming activated because they see how this impacts them directly and in such an obvious way,” Schuler said.

Schuler added that efforts by graduate students are extending beyond helping people at Stanford.

“They’re being motivated to go out and support people in other communities who are also going to be impacted by this,” Schuler said.

The resolution the GSC submitted to Drell and Gumport asks the University to conduct a study to learn which students would actually be impacted by the bill.

At the Faculty Senate meeting, Tessier-Lavigne highlighted actions that Stanford is already taking to combat the current tax bill, including contacting Congressional leadership and coordinating with other universities across the country.

“I want to ensure our campus community that we’re taking this extremely seriously. We are working extremely hard, both directly and in concert with our peer institutions,” Tessier-Lavigne said. “But these are very perilous times.”

In a statement to The Daily, Gumport echoed Tessier-Lavigne’s statements.

“The key messages for our students are that our University leaders consider this highest priority,” Gumport wrote. “We are actively engaged in direct contact with members of Congress as well as collaborating with other universities and with higher education associations, such as the AAU [American Association of Universities] and ACE [American Council on Education].”

Tessier-Lavigne expressed hope that continued collaborative efforts could see instrumental changes to the bill.

“There are many other organizations who have come out in opposition to the bill as well. I think everyone needs to understand that the House’s proposed tax reform bill is just the beginning of the legislative process,” Tessier-Lavigne said. “Even as we speak, provisions are changing. It’s a very fluid legislative environment.”

Schuler expressed the wish that University administration would include students in their action plan and hopes the administration will be more transparent about what specific policies are being discussed to help graduate students.

“[The administration can] communicate how best, if at all, graduate students can integrate their advocacy,” Schuler said, giving the example of the University “targeting particular members of Congress.”

Still, Tessier-Lavigne said that these are only the first meetings and statements. Action will continue.

“We will be working hard to try to avert what could really be very deleterious impacts on our institution,” Tessier-Lavigne said.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Statistics show changes in frosh drinking culture, one year after hard alcohol ban https://stanforddaily.com/2017/10/13/statistics-show-changes-in-frosh-drinking-culture-one-year-after-hard-alcohol-ban/ https://stanforddaily.com/2017/10/13/statistics-show-changes-in-frosh-drinking-culture-one-year-after-hard-alcohol-ban/#respond Fri, 13 Oct 2017 07:01:59 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1131045 New data on undergraduate alcohol consumption suggests that freshman drinking rates have dropped a year after the controversial restriction on hard alcohol was first introduced.

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New data on undergraduate alcohol consumption suggests that freshman drinking rates have dropped a year after the controversial restriction on hard alcohol was first introduced.

Since fall 2016, the latest iteration of Stanford’s alcohol policy has seen a year of mixed reactions and uneven implementation, but administrators and resident assistants (RAs) say it may have contributed to a shift in the culture of alcohol consumption among undergraduates on campus. There were fewer alcohol-related arrests and transports in 2016, and freshmen who arrived that fall reported less pregaming and consumption of hard alcohol than previous freshman classes.

But administrators and students agreed that long-term changes in campus drinking culture and the extent to which the alcohol policy was responsible for these changes remain to be seen.

 

Alcohol policy development

Stanford’s current alcohol policy bans alcohol containers larger than 750 milliliters (mL) in undergraduate housing, including rooms and common spaces, as well as in any public areas on campus. In addition, all undergraduate on-campus parties are banned from serving hard alcohol and may only offer beer and wine.

According to Ralph Castro, the Associate Dean of Students & Director for Stanford’s Office of Alcohol Policy and Education (OAPE), the process began as a study by the Alcohol Advisory Board in 2012. The first efforts to alter campus drinking culture involved alcohol-free social events such as Cardinal Nights. Though these programs were popular, they did nothing to decrease hard alcohol consumption on campus, said Castro.

In response, Castro and OAPE developed the alcohol policy that went into effect fall 2016 as an alternative solution. University statistics for 2011-2016 showed that 95 percent of alcohol transports on campus to were related to hard alcohol consumption, leading OAPE to turn their attention to hard alcohol in particular.

The new policy was based on a combination of two studies showing that increasing costs and restricting availability could decrease alcohol consumption, said Castro. Since Stanford could not prevent hard alcohol sales, OAPE decided to target the size of the alcohol container.

“By limiting container size we were able to influence the availability,” Castro said, explaining that many nearby stores do not sell alcohol in containers smaller than 750 mL in high quantities. Castro also said that the slightly higher costs for these smaller containers could disincentivize drinking hard alcohol in large amounts.

Though other universities have banned hard alcohol, Castro said that was never a serious consideration at Stanford.

“I’m not a fan of prohibition. I know prohibition doesn’t work,” Castro says. “I’m a fan of sensible policy that is informed by research and specific to our culture [on campus].”

 

Reactions and enforcement

Since its introduction, the policy has met with resistance from many students. Elisa Hofmeister ’18, who was a RA in all-freshman residence Cedro last year, said that the initial roll out was unpopular among  student staff members, many of whom were hired before the new alcohol policy was implemented.

“I think the largest impact the alcohol ban had on our staff experience was during staff training,” Hofmeister said. “It was [combative] in a lot of the sessions, and we felt fairly mistrustful of the administration and its intentions.”

Hofmeister added that residence staff often did not enforce the new alcohol policy in a uniform way for the rest of the academic year.

“Once training was over, things were a lot less dramatic,” Hofmeister said. “Most houses chose their own way to interpret the ban, and it didn’t really change anything about how we went about creating a freshman dorm community.”  

While the policy technically applies to all undergraduates, OAPE intended it to focus specifically on freshman, who tend to be more novice drinkers.

“They need some time to mature into the social scene on campus,” Castro explained.

Freshmen tend to exhibit markedly different drinking habits than older undergraduate students, differences which are reflected in the alcohol policy’s focus on hard alcohol. According to an University survey in 2015, freshman choose to take shots more often than upperclassmen, with 43 percent of freshmen who drank listing shots of liquor as their drink of choice. By contrast, upperclassmen favored beer and wine, with only 6 percent of juniors and seniors preferring shots.

Jamieson O’Marr ’18, a freshman RA in Twain last year, said that drinking habits in the dorm appeared to have changed from his freshman year.

“I did see just a different style of drinking in the dorm,” O’Marr said “I would say the level or amount of people participating did not decrease, but even though the rule was not strictly enforced, the amount of handles that I saw compared to our freshman year was reduced.”

According to O’Marr, the container policy did not reduce transparency or affect the staff’s relationships with their residents in Twain.

“I did not feel like the residents were trying to hide anything from me even if hard alcohol was involved,” O’Marr said. “We made it very clear at the beginning of the year that we valued safety above all else.”

Castro stressed the importance of the dorm staff’s role in maintaining conversations around drinking and dorm culture.

“We expect student staff to be educators in the moment when they see something that may be causing harm,” Castro said.

Sarah Radzihovsky ’18, who staffed in four-class residence Florence Moore Hall (FloMo) last year, said that practices like the long-standing open door policy — which encourages residents to keep their doors open while drinking in their rooms — allowed allowed staff members to have more effective conversations about safety and keep their residents out of harm.

“With trust and open doors, we always had the ability to collect all the information about a situation just by walking by a room,” Radzihovsky said. “[Staff members] could more easily assess if something had to be done or someone had to be monitored, than if [our residents] viewed us as RAs who were there to get them in trouble rather than to keep them safe.”

Hofmeister said that each dorm approached the revised policy from different perspectives, but that in her experience, changes did lead to more dialogue amongst staff.

“It forced us to have conversations around decreasing dangerous drinking as a result of that extra pressure [from the administration],” Hofmeister said. “I think that was positive.”

According to a current freshman who wishes to remain anonymous, drinking remains a part of freshman dorm culture, especially on weekends.

“There is usually hard alcohol and beer in some of the dorm rooms on the weekends,” the freshman said. “There are also pregames every weekend so far, and some Thursdays.”

Changes in Behavior

Despite the fact that several dorms did not enforce the alcohol policy to the letter, a majority of students do appear to follow its regulations. 54 percent of students reported that they always follow the policy, but only 13 percent believed that others did.

Castro explains that these beliefs are crucial to the success of the alcohol policy.

“People’s behavioral intentions can be brought in alignment with their values and the norms within a culture, that can produce positive outcomes,” he said.

According to Stanford’s newly released 2017 Safety, Security and Fire Report, there has been a decline in alcohol-related arrests. In 2015, there were 70 reported instances, while 2016 had 62. The number of emergency transports also decreased to 39 cases — a 33 percent drop from the average of the past five years of 58.6 incidents annually.

While 78 percent of the class of 2019 disclosed in the University’s 2015 survey that they pregamed freshman year, only 63 percent of the class of 2020 reported pregaming. Specifically, 79 percent of the class of 2019 stated that they took shots of hard alcohol, but this percentage declined to 64 percent for the class of 2020, which marks a drop of 20 percent since the new alcohol policy went into effect. However, according to the report, upperclassmen behavior has not altered greatly.

Though these numbers are promising, they may not be a direct cause of the revised policy. In fact, Castro said that the alcohol policy only constitutes a part of OAPE’s overarching strategy to make campus drinking culture healthier.

“Some of these changes that we may be seeing, or not seeing, could be influenced by other factors,” Castro explains. “The policy is just one piece of larger initiative.”

O’Marr agreed with Castro’s assessment and was reluctant to credit the shifts in drinking culture that he witnessed in Twain purely to the new alcohol policy.

“There were a lot of positive changes that I witnessed [as an RA] that could be attributed to the policy, but also could be attributed to other changes and education and things of that nature,” said O’Marr.

Two other major areas that OAPE focuses on are programs and education. One such program is 5-SURE, which offers free rides, walks home, snacks and water to students on campus. 800 students used the 5-SURE on Foot Resources, including walks home, food and snacks, the first weekend of fall 2017  alone. There was also a 32 percent increase in total calls to the 5-SURE Safe Rides Program between the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 school years.

Cardinal Nights, another program run by OAPE, has also become more popular — there was a 25 percent increase in attendance at Cardinal Nights programming between the the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 academic years.

Thus far, over 11,000 undergraduate and graduate students have received online alcohol- and drug-related education.

According to Castro, Stanford will not be able to fully determine the efficacy of the new policy until they have collected another two years of data.

“Anytime you’re making a large-scale population level change, it’s going to take time in order to see change,” Castro explained. “It’s an ongoing assessment.”

He added that the university will be looking “not only statistically in the data, but also culturally in the drinking around campus.”

For the foreseeable future, the current policy will remain in place as it is.

“There is nothing on the horizon for future changes on this,” Castro said. “For our campus, this [new policy] was a huge change in how we do things, and we want time to assess this to see how it shifts our campus culture.”

Castro also made clear that despite the best efforts of the administration and its policies, it is ultimately the responsibility of students on campus to shape how drinking and alcohol are used and perceived.

“The drinking culture belongs to the students,” he explained. “It isn’t really the administration’s role to regulate what happens. It’s really about students making good choices and keeping each other accountable.”

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Q&A: Three Stanford Youtubers chat about their channels https://stanforddaily.com/2017/06/05/qa-three-stanford-youtubers-chat-about-their-channels/ https://stanforddaily.com/2017/06/05/qa-three-stanford-youtubers-chat-about-their-channels/#respond Mon, 05 Jun 2017 07:05:02 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1127422 The Daily sat down with three Stanford YouTubers to discuss their video channels.

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A violinist who covers pop songs; a comedian who parodies music videos; a blogger who turns her camera lens on her own life at Stanford. The Daily talked with three Youtube-famous Stanford students about the origins of their channels, the evolution of their videos and their plans for the future.

Q&A: Three Stanford Youtubers chat about their channels
Akshay Dinakar ’19 (CHRIS DELGADO/The Stanford Daily)

Akshay Dinakar

Akshay Dinakar ’19 makes violin covers of pop songs for his YouTube channel, “Akshay Dinakar Music,” which has nearly 1,400 subscribers.

The Stanford Daily (TSD): What made you decide to create violin song covers for YouTube?

Akshay Dinakar ’19 (AD): I started playing violin when I was three. I was originally trained classically, but then in middle school, I really got into jazz and improv, and then in high school, I had a lot of fun taking my violin to school in the mornings and bringing my electric violin and amp. I would play Disney songs in the hallways, and students really enjoyed it. I had a lot of fun doing it for my high school, but I thought it would be even more fun to share with a wider audience, and since most of my relatives are in India, I think that YouTube is a great way to send stuff to them. … YouTubing is a self-paced, fun way to stay in touch with your creative side and make people smile at the same time. … I think it’s nice that YouTube can bring together strangers from all around the world to appreciate good quality art and content.

TSD: Has it been difficult to maintain your YouTube channel since coming to Stanford?

AD: Definitely a little bit. I get pretty busy and I try and keep YouTube involved in different ways. Last year I founded Stanford Flash Mob Orchestra, which is my ensemble here. That group basically creates spontaneous arrangements of flash mob pieces that we perform around campus for YouTube. … Doing something like that, as well as school, takes away time from my own personal YouTubing, but it’s always the sort of thing where if I get tired of school or want a one-hour break just to have fun, I’ll churn out a YouTube video. It’s something that, over the past two years, I always did as a creative outlet or a break, but over time I’ve also gotten more serious about it.

TSD: Has your video style changed since coming to Stanford?

AD: Now it’s becoming more and more planned, which also means that the quantity of my videos is going down, but the quality is increasing a lot and I’m definitely trying out new things. I originally used to just set up a microphone and get out my violin and just record whatever video was right there when I was doing it, and I could make the whole thing in under an hour. Recently I started getting more into music videos. I record it and then I go to some aesthetic-looking place to play.

TSD: Do you think YouTube has changed the music industry?

AD: It’s interesting as a YouTuber to find this balance, since it’s such a public form of art, between creating content for others and creating content for yourself. … I’m in an art class right now, and one of the biggest discussions we’ve been having is the effect that reproductions have had rather than original pieces of art. It’s very similar [with violin]. Now when someone creates a piece of music, when you think of an artist releasing a piece of music, it’s not just the piece of music itself. There [are] so many other things [that] make money alongside that. You have the music video, Spotify, iTunes. You’re creating something that is not just a live performance but something that is meant to be watched over and over again. In fact, you kind of keep that in the back of your mind when you YouTube. You want something that is catchy, something that goes viral. … Totally changes the way you approach things.

TSD: Do you have any future plans for your channel?

AD: While I’m very happy with the stuff that I’ve put up so far, I always think that there are ways to grow, and I’m chasing that dream of creating something that will hopefully go viral and that tons of people will enjoy, but hopefully will also be something that I am proud of. … So far in my channel, I’ve been playing other people’s songs and making covers, but my dream has always been to make my own music. So, I’m really excited to be releasing my first original pop violin single pretty soon. I’m teaming up with Punya Chatterjee. He’s going to be filming the music video for my original song that we’re doing with Common Origins, the dance group.

TSD: Do you have any fun YouTube anecdotes?

AD: I think the coolest thing that’s ever happened to me on YouTube was I made a cover of the song “Heroes” by Alesso. … And the day after I put this video up, I just got a ton of comments that [were] like “Yo check his Snapchat.” And so I went on Snapchat and I found out that Alesso has one of those celebrity Snapchats, so I followed it, and Alesso’s SnapChat was of him watching my cover of his song with the caption “This is fire.”

 

Q&A: Three Stanford Youtubers chat about their channels
Catherine Goetze ’18 (CHRIS DELGADO/The Stanford Daily)

Catherine Goetze

Catherine Goetze ’18 has a YouTube channel, “Cath in College,” where she posts videos of her life at Stanford. The channel has about 17,500 subscribers. Goetze also has a blog, cathincollege.com.

TSD: So “Cath in College” originally started as a blog, but how did you expand to videos and other media?

Catherine Goetze ’18 (CG): I’ve actually been making videos since high school. Basically what I did in high school was videojournalism, but when I got to Stanford, I stopped for a bit just to adjust to school and to Stanford life. … Then I started specifically making videos for “Cath in College” not really with intention until the summer after freshman year.

TSD: Has your style changed since the channel gained popularity?

CG: At the beginning, it was still totally creating videos just for fun. … I started taking a little more time and care and became much more precise with audio and storylines and storytelling in general. I think that made a world of a difference.

TSD: Especially with a larger audience now, how do you choose your content?

CG: There are always certain types of videos that will get more views and increase your sub-count, for example. So it can be tempting for some people to just always make those types of videos. The problem arises that… in my case, those videos are not the kind of videos that I like to make and videos that don’t represent me as a person. Videos like how to get into Stanford and how to write a college essay … and to claim that you’re a knowledgeable source that everyone should be referencing for these kinds of decisions and these kinds of life decisions I just think is completely absurd. … So I have done as good of a job that I think I could have done at targeting high school students who are applying to schools like Stanford and [saying], “Give it your best shot, but know that you can have as good of an experience as I am having at Stanford at any other college, depending on your mindset.” If you go into a college thinking this is going to be the best four years of your life, you would be surprised at what you can make of it.

I think that this message has gotten across pretty well in the content of my videos and I will always hold this as a core tenant of my “Cath in College” videos.

TSD: What are your favorite types of videos to produce?

CG: The ones that are totally effortless in terms of filming. So for example, when my friends and I go out and I turn on my camera and just hold it in my hand and let my wrist follow the action. So those are my favorite types of videos: the ones that you watch and think are scripted and that they’re actors, but they’re totally free.

TSD: Do you ever worry about how much content you publish online?

CG: The limit, or where you draw that line, is something that I think about really often just for my own personal privacy and personal sake, but also for the sake of my friends and family and other people [who are in the videos]. I guess that the best answer that I have to that is just that I always try to stay mindful of that and to exercise caution … when I include any personal information.

TSD: How do you see the future of “Cath in College” when you’re not, you know, in college anymore?

CG: Yeah, I’m really glad you asked that. … My [content] is very much tied to a larger institution and a place and I’m mindful of that. My goal has never been to sell the University in any way, shape or form, but rather to celebrate how happy I feel here and the things that I have enjoyed here and to show people that they can have that joy no matter where they live. In terms of after-college plans, I don’t know yet. I know my interests are somewhere in the media and communications space.

 

Q&A: Three Stanford Youtubers chat about their channels
Punya Chatterjee ’19 (CHRIS DELGADO/The Stanford Daily)

Punya Chatterjee

Punya Chatterjee ’19 makes sketch comedy videos and music video parodies on his YouTube channel, “GeekSlayer,” which has over 77,400 subscribers.

TSD: How did you get into making comedy videos and parody videos?

Punya Chatterjee ’19 (PC): Well, I started making videos for my channel back in seventh grade. I just wanted to make my friends laugh, and so I would film videos with a crappy camera my parents had and just make little skits of what I found funny, put them up online.

TSD: How has YouTube changed since you were in seventh grade?

PC: YouTube has become a very commercial-based platform. … I honestly view them now as caring more about their advertisers than about their creators, which is why recently there’s been this massive exodus of YouTubers quitting, actually.

TSD: Are you going to be part of that exodus or are you going to stick around?

PC: I think I’m going to stick around. But… it is something interesting that I’m keeping in mind. It’s what I’m writing my RBA [Research-Based Argument] about actually, in PWR [Program in Writing and Rhetoric].

TSD: How did you distinguish yourself from other comedy videos and parody videos on YouTube?

PC: I think a big thing that set me apart was I made a lot of videos for an Indian audience, and being Indian myself there aren’t a whole lot of us on YouTube. … We’re not that represented in media anyway, so it was kind of appealing to other Indian people, seeing people making fun of they way they grew up, or of things that they say in their own lives. Other than that, my music video parodies would always be pretty prominent because people would search for them.

TSD: Has your channel changed at all since you came to Stanford?

PC: I definitely don’t have as much time to make videos anymore. I’ve wanted to shift my channel to slightly more mature content that would appeal more to people of my own age group, like to college students. But because I started my channel so long ago, I do have kind of a younger following, so there’s kind of a struggle there about what should I make versus what I want to make.

TSD: Could you just give an example of the kind of videos you want to explore more?

PC: Well, I’m in a sketch comedy group on campus, the Robber Barons, and I make sketches with them. We do a show every quarter. And I feel like I have freedom there. I have [the] comedic freedom to make more adult jokes, to swear, to do things… that wouldn’t fall under the category of parodies or Indian sketch comedy. So I kind of want to branch into doing that more on my channel.

TSD: What’s your favorite video that you’ve made?

PC: I really liked my “Black Beatles” parody that I made in December or my “Work” parody that I made in March – last March… I had a great time filming them because I enjoyed making the song and the parody itself. I had fun getting a lot of friends involved being background dancers, characters. I went to a bunch of different locations and shot. So filming was fun, and then those are two of my most successful videos… from the past year, so that’s nice, too.

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Junot Diaz encourages students to “transform this world” https://stanforddaily.com/2017/05/25/junot-diaz-encourages-students-to-transform-this-world/ https://stanforddaily.com/2017/05/25/junot-diaz-encourages-students-to-transform-this-world/#respond Thu, 25 May 2017 07:43:23 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1128045 Junot Díaz’s address on Wednesday focused on problems with university institutions, the marginalization of certain communities and the current national political climate.

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On Wednesday evening, Junot Díaz delivered the 2017 Stanford Presidential Lecture in the Humanities and Arts. Díaz is a Pulitzer Prize winner and the recipient of a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship, as well as the author of a variety of critically acclaimed books such as “Drown,” “The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao” and “This Is How You Lose Her.”

Díaz’s address focused on problems with university institutions, the marginalization of certain communities and the current national political climate.

I was drawn and motivated and passionate about intervening in this new political climate which seems to distract from the corrupt practices of our elite,” Díaz said. “We really need to fight in ways that we have never fought before. These are not easy times and it requires tremendous courage. Fortunately, most of the young people involved in these fights are the greatest things that I have ever seen.”

Díaz also offered advice for marginalized students at universities, speaking to the unique obstacles that students may face. He noted that “it’s not all of us who are reenacting the cover photograph of a college recruitment brochure.”

The first piece of advice Díaz offered to students is to seek understanding of the how the university functions as an institution and overall system.

“Get yourself a definition of neoliberalism,” Díaz said. “Get yourself a definition of patriarchy. Get yourself a definition of Orientalism. Get yourself a definition of white supremacy. And you certainly need a definition of feminism.”

Next, Díaz told attendees that it is important to build collectives and maintain connections with others. The author stressed the importance of solidarity, noting that students should “get in the business of fighting for each other’s freedoms.”

To maintain self-care in the midst of education and activism, Díaz emphasized the importance of mental health, which may involve using campus resources, getting a therapist or reaching out to one’s own communities, among other practices.

Another important piece of self-care, Díaz said, involves learning about healthy systems of “reconstitution,” or rebuilding oneself.

Students can also struggle with practicing compassion for themselves, Díaz said, warning that “the whip only works for a short period of time. You cannot force yourself beyond the limits of human endurance.”

He reminded attendees that there are ways to change problems and accomplish tasks that do not involve fear and pain, and noted the need to help others in times of distress. Helping people, Díaz said, will give more perspective than anything else.

Díaz ended by reminding the students in the audience of their unique opportunities as young people with “incredible agency” during college.

“You are here to steal fire,” Díaz said. “That is your goal. That is your mission. And that is what will hold you to this difficult task. We must steal fire because we must transform this world.”

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Researchers propose new paleontological theory https://stanforddaily.com/2017/05/17/researchers-propose-new-paleontological-theory/ https://stanforddaily.com/2017/05/17/researchers-propose-new-paleontological-theory/#respond Thu, 18 May 2017 06:36:39 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1127718 Approximately 50,000 years ago--between the Middle and Upper Paleolithic eras--humanity underwent an early technological revolution. Art, tools and various cultural relics developed at a rapid rate. Scholars and scientists have long debated what caused this transformation. Recently, several Stanford researchers proposed in Royal Society Interface, a journal of physical and life science, that the increase and diffusion of migration may have been key factors.

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Researchers propose new paleontological theory
According to new research, early technological revolution that created tools such as the flint spear can be attributed to migration (Courtesy of Stanford News).

Stanford researchers have proposed that the increase and diffusion of migration contributed to the early technological revolution that took place approximately 50,000 years ago between the Middle and Upper Paleolithic eras. The transformation caused art, tools and cultural relics to develop rapidly, but its origins have long been debated by scholars.

The study, published in the journal of physical and life sciences Royal Society Interface, challenges traditional assumptions about how and why the ancient revolution occurred. Current and former postdoctoral fellows Oren Kolodny and Nicole Creanza led the study under Marcus Feldman, the Burnet C. and Lidred Finley Wohlford professor in the School of Humanities and Sciences and the co-director of Stanford’s Center for Computational, Evolutionary and Human Genomics.

The researchers proposed that population growth, even in small increments, could have led to spikes of innovation during the Paleolithic era, which they describe as characterized by alternating cycles of slow transformation and rapid cultural development.

The traditional view in paleontology ascribes the pattern of cultural development during the Paleolithic era to external factors like climate change or genetics, but the Stanford researchers are proposing a new interpretation involving migration and population growth.

“Those cultural bursts have been taken as evidence of an external change,” Creanza told Stanford News. “But to some extent, Oren, Marc and I felt that the simplest explanation could be that culture itself is capable of behaving in a punctuated fashion.”

Movement between different societies can introduce new ideas to new populations, creating a more interconnected world. Furthermore, increases in technology usually precipitate even more population growth, which in turn leads to more innovation, travel and contact with other societies, fostering the development cycle.

The new findings published earlier this month add to a previous paper the research team published in 2015 in which they described three ways for cultures to change. The first is what Kolodny calls “lucky leaps,” or bursts of inspiration. The second type of innovation is an extension of those leaps or a connection with other innovations. The third way for cultures to change is through losing or forgetting an innovation — for instance, Kolodny explained that prehistoric Tasmanians collectively forgot how to fish.

These findings could also help scientists understand the decline of the Neanderthal population. According to the model proposed by the Stanford scientists, because “modern humans” had a population about three times as large as the Neanderthals, they likely brought new ideas and innovations that the Neanderthals did not know of when migrating out of Africa.

“We don’t think that whenever we get a qualitative pattern that looks like the archaeological record, this is what necessarily happened,” Kolodny said. “But it is a proof of concept that it could have happened this way.”

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Q&A with activist writer Rebecca Solnit https://stanforddaily.com/2017/05/17/qa-with-activist-writer-rebecca-solnit/ https://stanforddaily.com/2017/05/17/qa-with-activist-writer-rebecca-solnit/#respond Wed, 17 May 2017 07:03:43 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1127606 Solnit is the author of 20 books on topics ranging from the environment to politics to feminism. This quarter, she is serving as the Stein Visiting Writer with the Creative Writing department.

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Rebecca Solnit is an activist and the author of 20 books on topics ranging from the environment to politics to feminism. This quarter, she is serving as the Stein Visiting Writer with the Creative Writing department and is teaching English 191V: “Reading for Creative Non-Fiction Writers.” The Daily sat down with Solnit to discuss her career, her passions and activism through writing.

Q&A with activist writer Rebecca Solnit
The Daily sat down with activist writer Rebecca Solnit (Courtesy of Adrian Mendoza).

The Stanford Daily (TSD): Did you always know you wanted to be a writer?

Rebecca Solnit (RS): Only after I learned how to read. I was enamored with stories. I told stories and sort of drank them up. I was really excited by storytelling, but books suddenly opened up to me. My mom says I learned to read in the first week of first grade and then I fell in love with libraries and wanted to be a librarian because they are with books all day …  And then I decided I wanted to be a writer because that was even a better relationship to books than being a librarian. Then, all I had to do was learn to write – which took a long time. I’m not done yet. I’ve made my life kind of simple. I used to think that having a demanding vocation was hard, but I think it’s much harder not being sure what you’re going to do, or what you want to do. So in a way it’s made my life easy in that I knew what to do. I didn’t know how to get there or if I’d get there, but I knew where I wanted to go, and that’s really helpful.

TSD: How do you choose your book subjects?

RS: It always feels like they choose me. It has to be something you’re passionate about, because you’re going to spend a few years with it, and it also feels like there’s a gap there … In ‘97, when I decided to do a book about walking, there was a lot to think about and say that I didn’t feel like anyone had gone into, and it [has to be] a combination between what feels like a service to the larger world and what’s exciting to me personally as a literary challenge or a subject that I want to explore, or a kind of writing that I want to do.

TSD: What have you found to be the best avenues to tie your writing to activism?

RS: I was actually at Stanford once with Julia Butterfly Hill, the young woman … who sat in a redwood tree for several months to prevent it from being cut down, and she had a wonderful way about talking about how everything is political. We all recognize that being vegan is a political choice, but eating at McDonald’s is a political choice … Writing about things that are specifically political, it’s always complicated because I can be an advocate, but you have to have an independence, because if you just toe the party line, propaganda doesn’t always make good writing.

TSD: How do you do this in your writing?

RS: You have to be able to see the flaws and weaknesses on your side, and maybe imagine why other people think otherwise and have a sense of humor about it. I always think of humor as perspective, as the ability to see the gap between how things are supposed to be and how they actually are, and there’s a kind of true believer ideologue, whether it’s a right-wing fundamentalist or a die-hard left-wing ideologue. They tend to be humorless, and they tend to think that this is the right way, or this should work, and all of the heretics should be burned tomorrow. So it’s complex … It feels like part of being a good citizen, to care [about] and represent these things, but without ever giving up being a good writer, which means never reducing the complexity for the sake of a party line. God knows it’s not my job to know if it’s persuasive or not. I do it; if other people are persuaded or encouraged, then that’s fantastic.

TSD: How did you decide to teach at Stanford this quarter as the Stein Visiting Writer?

RS: They made me an offer that I couldn’t refuse. It’s such an interesting place right now. We’re talking about Silicon Valley in the class [English 191V], looking at, among other things, what is writing in the age of blogs and listicles and comment sections and Amazon reviews as a minor art form… [There’s] a move into this amorphous, slushy information ocean that we all contribute to in some way. So [Stanford] felt like such an interesting place to think about this kind of writing and … as everything changes around us, what its role is.

TSD: How do you see journalism developing in the age of technology?

RS: It’s a really interesting moment. There are a lot of great journalists at work and many of them at alternative places like ProPublica … and smaller newspapers, magazines [and] online places like Dahlia Lithwick reporting on the Supreme Court for Slate. So I don’t feel like we’re in a crisis of journalism. We’re in a crisis of whether people are reading it and whether people are reading highly biased and distorted and altogether fake news, because now it’s like toxic waste is being served out of the ice cream bar, or the taco truck, or whatever you want to call where we get our news. I think there’s a problem with people being ready to engage … But journalism as a whole, there’s a lot that’s rotten; there’s a lot that’s healthy. It’s interesting seeing these new forms arise. It all feels so new. I don’t know what it will settle into, or what’s the funding basis.

TSD: What was your interpretation of the media’s coverage of the election?

RS: The mainstream media has a complacency and arrogance that’s always hard. It’s been interesting seeing some of the major outlets feel like they’re starting to accommodate to Trump, and they’re normalizing more than I think a lot of citizens are … I felt like one of the crises with the election was that so many people wanted stories that were simpler than reality. They could tell stories where somebody was all good and somebody else was all bad, where elections are like losing your virginity and it should be a beautiful experience. There’s a consumer language around the election of, “Here’s what I deserve. They need to target market me. This doesn’t appeal to me,” rather than, “What do I owe to my country and the world?”

TSD: As the political climate but also the actual climate is changing so much, do you have advice for students as writers, activists or just human beings?

RS: I write a lot about feminism, which is often so easy. It’s something that has outraged me or annoyed me or amused me, and it’s so personal. It’s about our bodies and our gender identities, and who doesn’t get volatile about that? Climate is such a hard thing to write about because it’s science and technology and global scale changes and energy policies. I write about it, and it’s not necessarily easy to get people engaged, but I think it’s the most important thing in the world. If you understand it, if you care passionately about it, you understand that … things like food and habitable places and diversity of species and oceans that aren’t dead all have everything to do with the climate. I take a deep interest in it.

It’s been interesting seeing, since the election of Trump, states like California revert to where we were under Bush, formulating independent energy policies and climate responses, and the way that the rest of the world has not fallen apart without us. There’s a funny way where the U.S. is always like, “you’re nothing without me, Earth,” and Earth has kind of been like, “we’re okay.” China has taken some leadership. No other countries that I know of have dropped out of the Paris Climate Treaty because of Trump. Of course, it’s made the U.S. kind of an international pariah, [a] laughingstock to have this obscene refusal to acknowledge almost universally acknowledged truths come to power. It raises the stakes for us all to keep working on these things. It’s interesting to see the things that are inevitable – like as renewables become cheaper than fossil fuel-generated power … But it needs to happen fast and clean to go for the minimum rather than the maximum amount of temperature rise and resulting instability.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Stanford among many schools fighting sexual assault with new initiatives https://stanforddaily.com/2017/05/05/amid-push-across-campuses-stanford-introduces-new-initiatives-to-fight-sexual-assault/ https://stanforddaily.com/2017/05/05/amid-push-across-campuses-stanford-introduces-new-initiatives-to-fight-sexual-assault/#respond Fri, 05 May 2017 08:18:02 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1127045 A new report by the Association of American Universities' detailing members school's efforts to combat sexual violence comes as Stanford continues to adopt new programs related to sexual assault, including two just added this quarter.

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On April 26, the Association of American Universities (AAU) released a new report detailing the initiatives that its member universities have taken to combat sexual assault on college campuses. The report highlights the results of the AAU’s recent institutional survey, which was completed by 55 of the AAU’s 62 member schools, including Stanford.

The report comes as Stanford continues to adopt new programs related to sexual violence, including two just added this quarter.

Push across colleges

The goal of the AAU report is to help universities develop strategies and programs to reduce sexual violence on college campuses by synthesizing the actions other universities have implemented. The report allows the AAU’s findings to be distributed publicly.

Each of the institutions that partook in the AAU’s survey have administered campus climate surveys regarding incidents of sexual violence and students’ perceptions of them. Nine of the universities surveyed participated in the AAU’s campus climate survey and 16 others combined the AAU survey with separate surveys. 30 universities, Stanford included, conducted a different survey altogether. Stanford’s decision not to participate in the AAU’s survey met with criticism from some students, faculty and alumni last year who unsuccessfully called on the University to redo its study.

According to the AAU report, in the last three academic years, 46 out of the 55 universities surveyed — 84 percent — have implemented new education and intervention programs for different student populations. Additionally, 100 percent of surveyed institutions “have changed or are in the process of changing their education and training for students and faculty,” the report states.

Over the past several years, Stanford has increased its general funds budget by over $3 million in order to grow its programs against sexual violence, which include support, education and adjudication systems.

The report provides Stanford with information about how peer universities are working to fight sexual assault, said Provost Persis Drell in a Stanford News article.

“Every university, Stanford included, is deeply involved in improving its approach to preventing and responding to sexual violence,” Drell said. “The AAU report provides an important opportunity for us to learn from the experiences of other universities and to continue developing new approaches here at Stanford.”

Drell added that Stanford will continue to assess its initiatives. The University will also start discussing a new campus climate survey next fall, she said.

“Sexual and relationship violence continues to occur far too frequently in our community,” Drell said. “I want to look at every possible solution, I want us to work in partnership with students on those solutions and I want us to communicate openly about both our progress and our challenges.”

Latest Stanford initiatives

On Wednesday, Stanford students, faculty and staff received a joint email from various Title IX-related administrators announcing the University’s new online platform for victims to report instances of sexual violence. The platform, Callisto, will initially be available for a three-year pilot series.

Student involvement has helped shape many of Stanford’s new initiatives against sexual assault and relationship violence over the past few years, something Callisto’s adoption reflects: The program, developed by a nonprofit and used at a number of other universities, launched at Stanford at the recommendation of the ASSU.

“Callisto allows you, privately and confidentially, to document what happened to you if you have been a victim of sexual or relationship violence,” Wednesday’s email states.  “If you’re not ready to submit a report officially to the university, the system preserves the information securely.”

Victims still have the option to submit a report directly to the University, but can now also do so online through Callisto. Additionally, the online site has a tool that allows victims to report an alleged perpetrator to the University for investigation only if someone else has named the person as an offender.

“There were a lot of things I wanted to accomplish on Senate, but that was my main goal: Let’s bring Callisto to Stanford,” said former Senate chair Shanta Katipamula ’19, who authored the the Senate’s resolution in support of the program. “It’s developed by someone who is a survivor, and they’ve done a lot of research on their end to make it truly empowering for survivors.”

In addition to Callisto, the University has introduced another initiative this year. This quarter, Stanford’s Confidential Support Team started a Skills Support Group that meets each week for students affected by sexual assault, relationship abuse, sexual harassment or stalking. This group is designed to provide a safe space for students to discuss their experiences and offer tools to better address symptoms of trauma.

Older initiatives

Stanford has several initiatives combating sexual assault that predate Callisto. One such event, a performance titled Beyond Sex Ed: Consent & Sexuality at Stanford, was first launched in fall of 2016. In the performance, current students shared experiences and stories with new freshmen and transfer students. Audience members then participated in paired group discussions and an activity to increase students’ mindfulness.

Brianna Booth, director of positive sexuality, design and development at the Stanford Office of Sexual Assault & Relationship Abuse (SARA), created the event.

According to Beyond Sex Ed’s web page, “the program’s underlying philosophy is to engage the culture from the inside out: cultivating empathy, agency and growth in community.”

Stanford among many schools fighting sexual assault with new initiatives
SAVE workshops are just one of a host of programs Stanford has pursued to combat sexual assault on campus (ANGELA LUO/The Stanford Daily).

In addition to Beyond Sex Ed, SARA introduced SAVE: Stanford Anti-Violence Educators program. SAVE began in spring of 2016 through a partnership with Tanvi Jayaraman ‘16 and Hannah Long ‘16, co-chairs of the ASSU’s Sexual Assault Prevention Committee.

Over the course of spring quarter, the SAVE program trained 20 undergraduate students to hold workshops and facilitate discussions for freshmen about subjects including healthy sexual and intimate relationships and fostering a culture of consent across campus. The students then visited freshman dorms in pairs throughout last fall.

“Upperclassmen are much more relatable and have a better idea of what the social scene looks like and more practical questions of consent that can be workshopped and thought about,” said Michael Kim ’17, a SAVE peer educator for this past year. “The main thing is pushing for cultural change … for the younger students to see that older students really care about this issue.”

In spring of 2015, Stanford implemented its Violence & Intervention Program (VIP) in collaboration with Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL). VIP trains one or two members in each Inter-Fraternity Council and Inter-Sorority Council chapter to serve as resources, providing education, support and referrals if necessary for problems of sexual assault and relationship abuse.

“It’s really important to tackle sexual assault and sexual violence in a way that stems from peers,” said Danica Bunnett ‘18, one of the VIP chairs.

Once a month, the VIP chairs for each fraternity and sorority host a workshop, discussion, movie screening or some other form of educational programming. Bunnett explained that it can be difficult for survivors of sexual assault to know where to seek out help. VIP provides students with more resources, she said.

“If we can educate [students’] friends about it, then hopefully that word-of-mouth contact between the survivor and the friend will encourage [the survivor] to get help in the place that’s best for them,” Bunnett said.

In addition to peer-to-peer programming, the SARA office also hired two new members last spring: Booth and Grace Poon, the office’s coordinator of prevention education & training.

According to Kim, these two hiring decisions have been instrumental in developing the University’s new programming and education about sexuality and consent.

“From my perspective as a student, I think the hiring of those two individuals is probably the most intentional and hopefully effective … move that the University has made,” Kim said.

Poon and Booth were unavailable for interviews.

Many students believe that while the University’s progress is encouraging, there is always more to be done to address sexual violence.

“We can just be better about reaching as many people as possible and rallying support around survivors,” Bunnett said.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

 

An earlier version of this article stated Michael Kim’s name incorrectly. The Daily regrets this error and has updated the post. 

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Stanford increases solar panels on campus https://stanforddaily.com/2017/04/28/stanford-increases-solar-panels-on-campus/ https://stanforddaily.com/2017/04/28/stanford-increases-solar-panels-on-campus/#respond Fri, 28 Apr 2017 09:50:43 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1126698 Over the past nine months, 15 Stanford buildings have added new solar photovoltaic panels. Thanks to the new solar panels on these buildings, Stanford’s electric distribution system will receive about 4.5 added megawatts of power.

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Over the past nine months, 15 Stanford buildings have added new solar photovoltaic panels.  These new installations include Bing Concert Hall, Maples Pavilion and Hansen Experimental Physics Lab. Thanks to the new solar panels on these buildings, Stanford’s electric distribution system will receive about 4.5 added megawatts of power.

In 2012, Stanford began a project directed by the Department of Sustainability and Energy Management to increase the prevalence of renewable energy resources on campus. In total, the University now has 32 buildings that provide solar energy.

“It has been an evolution over time,” said Scott Gould, a senior energy engineer at Stanford. “This is not a one-off program. It is part of a larger design to reduce Stanford’s greenhouse gas [emissions].”

Gould also emphasized that the construction is only one part of Stanford’s commitment to sustainability.

“It’s an important point to make that conservation, or energy efficiency, is … the step before adding new production,” Gould said. “Efficiency may not get quite as much interest, but it is still a critical part, and it is something that Stanford is doing a lot.”

Approximately 70 buildings were surveyed as new locations for solar panels, but they had to meet certain criteria in order to be approved. First, the buildings had to have flat roofs and long sunlight hours to maximize the efficiency of the photovoltaic panels. Additionally, the solar panels had to be integrated into the design of the buildings and aesthetic of the campus.

“There is a very architectural solution to installing the [photovoltaic panels (PV)] that does not make it look like an afterthought,” Gould said.“We’ve been working with the campus architect Dave Lenox, who has been a great ally because he and his team have a really great aesthetic eye. The PV that we install, we want to make fit with Stanford.”

Solar history

Stanford’s photovoltaic initiative began in 2002 with separate projects at the Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve and at Synergy house, a student residence on campus. In 2008, the Jerry Yang and Akiko Yamazaki Environment and Energy Building (Y2E2) became the first building on Stanford’s main campus to receive photovoltaic panels. Today, the Knight Management Center is the largest source of solar power on campus.

Synergy’s incorporation of photovoltaic panels is one part of the house’s strong commitment to the environment, according to Skye Mooney ‘17, the residence’s community manager. In addition to using solar panels, the house also has its own garden and composting system and sources as much food as possible from local producers such as the O’Donohue Family Stanford Educational Farm.

David Dinter ‘76, who lived in Synergy while at Stanford, described the house’s “long history with solar” in an email to Mooney that she shared with The Daily.

“The first panels on the old house were built and installed by an engineering student, Charles “Chuck” MacLennan (Chuck) Pike, with enthusiastic assistance of many other residents,” Dinter wrote. “They originally provided hot water only for the third-floor bathroom, so it all began with Stanford’s first solar-heated co-ed shower.

The Future of Solar

To install its solar panels, Stanford worked with SunPower Corps, the solar energy company that originally executed the project to create the Stanford Solar Generating System. The rest of Stanford’s energy comes from California’s power grid.

California as a whole is increasingly exploring renewable energy options. Stanford now receives 53 percent of its energy from off-campus photovoltaic panels. Combined with the existing main campus solar panels and the new panels on 15 buildings, a total of 65 percent of Stanford’s energy is produced from photovoltaic projects.

When asked how Stanford can promote renewable energy initiatives nationally, Gould highlighted the importance of innovation —  not just in terms of technology and construction, but also in areas such as financing.

Gould explained that it can be difficult for nonprofits to find funding for photovoltaic projects, as they do not receive the tax credits that other businesses and homeowners do.

According to Gould, Stanford was able to partner with SunPower so that the solar project could receive tax credits. The University has a power purchase agreement and does not actually own the photovoltaic modules, while SunPower produces the photovoltaic modules and secures financing. Thus, Stanford just pays for the energy that the modules produce.

“[Nonprofits] like Stanford and junior colleges and other colleges need creative ways to implement projects,” Gould said.

Gould also stressed the importance of constructing new buildings to be PV-ready. The Bing Concert Hall was designed in this way, and Gould said that installing solar panels without the building’s particular composition would have been nearly impossible.

Though Stanford’s photovoltaic system continues to grow and improve, the University is already exploring other options to reduce its carbon footprint.  One option under consideration is a high-voltage transmission line that would connect Stanford, the City of Palo Alto and the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory.  The line would lower electricity costs, reduce water use and increase system reliability. In combination with photovoltaic projects, these efforts are expected to reduce Stanford’s greenhouse gas emissions by 68 percent.

Stanford also plans to add new electric charging stations for vehicles on campus and to add more building-integrated photovoltaic systems.

“The expectation is always that we do more,” Gould said. “I think the students want more. I think the faculty wants more. The staff and the Board of Trustees, they want more.”

Additionally, Gould added that students, faculty and staff can help drive new renewable energy initiatives, a sentiment that Mooney echoed.

“It’s pretty crazy what you can do and what the University is willing to support with a good idea and good planning,” Mooney said.

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Provost search committee requests community input on Etchemendy’s successor https://stanforddaily.com/2016/05/17/provost-search-committee-requests-community-input-on-etchemendys-successor/ https://stanforddaily.com/2016/05/17/provost-search-committee-requests-community-input-on-etchemendys-successor/#respond Tue, 17 May 2016 07:43:30 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1115180 Stanford students, faculty and staff received an email Monday afternoon from the newly announced Provost search committee soliciting input on the search from the Stanford community. All tenured members of Stanford faculty are qualified for consideration for the position of the next Provost.

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Stanford students, faculty and staff received an email Monday afternoon from the newly announced Provost search committee soliciting input on the search from the Stanford community. All tenured members of Stanford faculty are qualified for consideration for the position of the next Provost.

The 12-person search committee is comprised of nine faculty members from a variety of departments and one staff member from Stanford Law School, as well as a graduate student in microbiology and immunology, Alicja Cygan Ph.D. ’20, and an undergraduate student, Reynis Vazquez-Guzman ’17, who is majoring in computer science. The committee is seeking community input on a successor to Stanford University Provost John Etchemendy Ph.D. ’82, who has served alongside outgoing President John Hennessy for 16 years.

Provost Etchemendy has agreed to remain at Stanford for the upcoming year to oversee the transition with incoming President Marc Tessier-Lavigne. After next year, though, Provost Etchemendy will step down.

The search will be chaired by Richard Saller, the Vernon R. and Lysbeth Warren Anderson Dean of the School of Humanities and Sciences and Kleinheinz Family Professor of European Studies. Saller emphasized that the committee’s job is not to choose a new Provost but to provide a list of candidates that Tessier-Lavigne will personally choose from. There is no set number of candidates that the committee will recommend.   

Saller called the Provost’s office a “very, very important job” with “huge influence on decision-making at the University.”

In its email, the search committee outlines the role of the Provost.

“As the chief academic and chief budgetary officer of the University, the Provost is responsible for administering the academic program, including both instruction and research, and for the coordination of the administrative and support functions of the University with its academic purposes,” the email states.

According to Saller, the search for a Provost is in some ways easier than the search for a President because the majority of candidates for Provost will be people within the University – professors with whom Saller and other community members are already familiar. While the Provost need not be a current faculty member, a candidate should at the least have prior experience at Stanford, Saller noted.

“The Provost really needs to know how Stanford works,” he said.

While Saller was not in charge of selecting committee members and could not speak extensively about how they were assembled, he said that there was “a real effort” to ensure a committee diversity in terms of gender, ethnicity, discipline and position at the University.  

The letter from the search committee prompts the Stanford community to especially consider nominating faculty members from varied backgrounds and experiences.

“Please give special thought to identifying potential candidates who would bring diversity to Stanford’s leadership, especially women or those who are members of ethnic minority groups,” the email reads.

The search committee requests written responses to be sent via email to provostsearch@stanford.edu before May 30. Nominations can also be faxed to (650) 723-3235 or sent by mail to Building 1, Mail Code 2070.

Asked whether some students’ criticism of Stanford’s selection of another white male as its next President has put pressure on the Provost search committee to seek out diverse candidates for Etchemendy’s successor, Saller said that diversity has always been a priority for him in his work at Stanford.

“I don’t want to suggest that we’re just caving to pressure, because we believe that [diversity] is an important feature, and I think that the new president does, too,” he said.

The committee hopes to finish most of their selection work before Commencement, just under two weeks after the May 30 submission deadline, although Saller said he does not know exactly how long the winnowing process will take. The committee has meetings planned for every week from now until the end of the school year.

“The new president has asked me to do this in a pretty expeditious way, so that he can think about the nominees and interview them in the coming months,” Saller said.

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Stanford Women in Business host Tyra Banks in speaker event https://stanforddaily.com/2016/05/12/stanford-women-in-business-host-tyra-banks-in-speaker-event/ https://stanforddaily.com/2016/05/12/stanford-women-in-business-host-tyra-banks-in-speaker-event/#comments Thu, 12 May 2016 07:22:58 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1114972 On Wednesday, Stanford Women in Business (SWIB) hosted Tyra Banks as part of their Spring Executive Leadership Series. Banks has been a long-term advocate for expanding traditional conceptions of beauty and promoting entrepreneurship for women, and touched upon these themes during the event.

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On Wednesday, Stanford Women in Business (SWIB) hosted Tyra Banks as part of their Spring Executive Leadership Series. Banks has been a long-term advocate for expanding traditional conceptions of beauty and promoting entrepreneurship for women, and touched upon these themes during the event.

Banks is well known for hosting the reality TV show America’s Next Top Model. She is also a former international fashion model and was the first African American woman to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit edition. Since then, Banks has launched a cosmetics line, Tyra Beauty.

SWIB co-presidents Priyanka Jain, Katherine Evers, and Cyerra Holmes opened the event. The discussion was moderated by Kara Hollis. Kara Hollis is a third year JD/MBA candidate at Stanford University, where she serves as a View From The Top Student Leader, Co-President of the JD/MBA Club and an Arbuckle Fellow.

Banks began by focusing on the importance to have a network of people for support and mentorship, especially for women in the business world.

“I’m obsessed with mentorship,” Banks said, laughing.

“A lot of people say, ‘I love doing mentorship because I love giving back,’” she elaborated. “But I have to say that I do it for some selfish reasons as well because it feels so good to have lived and had experienced the bumps and the bruises of being the first [in the industry] and to see someone now succeed. It’s full circle.”

Banks also talked about the influence that powerful women can have, especially towards younger girls. She recounted one event where a young girl with a black eye approached her. The girl asked if Banks could teach her how to apply makeup to cover up instances where her boyfriend beat her.

Banks realized how important it is for women to have strong female mentors to look up to.

“I felt like I had responsibility to not just tell the truth about hair and makeup and all that, but to get even deeper with girls when it comes to self-esteem,” she said.

In terms of advocating for a cause, Banks told the audience that the most important part is choosing something that you genuinely care about.

“If you can find something that you’re passionate about that is somehow aligned with your profit-side, it makes your message so much easier,” she stated.

Banks and Hollis also discussed the role of gender and ethnicity in the fashion and business industries. According to Banks, diversity can pose a duality. One on hand, diversity can provide broader perspectives and experience to the industry, but on the other, there is a cost of looking different.

Especially early in her career in the primarily white female modeling industry, Banks faced adversity.

“Every single day I heard that I couldn’t do something,” she said.

Banks continued, explaining that her diversity was both a blessing and a curse.

“A curse because I couldn’t get as many covers and campaigns as some of my counterparts, but the blessing was that I was different.”

Hollis also asked Banks to comment on the role of the modeling industry in setting conventional standards of beauty.

Banks responded by arguing that skewed perceptions of beauty have now transcended the modeling industry, especially given the increase in technology.

“We can’t blame the modeling industry anymore. They do not have the power that tabloids have and that social media has.”

At the conclusion, Hollis asked Banks to give advice to women in the audience, especially in business. She first asked Banks to elaborate on what she wished she had known when she was the age of students in the audience.

“I had such tunnel vision,” Banks said. “I missed out on so much. Like Christmas and family and birthdays and friends’ graduations.”

Banks added that when she was her most successful, she was not necessarily the happiest or healthiest, though this was difficult to realize at the time. Banks recalled an instance at Harvard Business School, when her leadership professor told her to write down the points when she had been the most successful. He then asked Banks to describe how she felt at this time.

“Miserable. Lonely. Exhausted. Tired. If I would have just stopped and celebrated a little I think I would have been healthier,” Banks said. “I would have been happier.”

Still, she added that there’s no way to know if she would have experienced as much success if she had changed her mentality.

Finally, Hollis asked Banks to give advice to women who want to pursue business careers.

Banks explained that women still face many challenges and often have to work harder than their male counterparts to succeed.

“We have to be better,” she said. “We have to be better than that guy that’s right next to us.”

She emphasized that women have to be advocates for themselves and stand up for their beliefs.

“When you get yourself heard and seen and are that squeaky door, people pay attention.”

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu

 

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Six Stanford professors elected to 2016 class of American Academy of Arts and Sciences https://stanforddaily.com/2016/04/27/six-stanford-professors-elected-to-2016-class-of-american-academy-of-arts-and-sciences/ https://stanforddaily.com/2016/04/27/six-stanford-professors-elected-to-2016-class-of-american-academy-of-arts-and-sciences/#respond Wed, 27 Apr 2016 09:09:57 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1114258 The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS) tapped six Stanford faculty members to join the 2016 class.

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The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS) tapped six Stanford faculty members to join the 2016 class. The new members include the following: Eavan Boland, director of Stanford’s creative writing department and the Bella Mabury Professor in Humanities; Jennifer Eberhart, associate professor of psychology and co-director of Stanford’s Social Psychological Answers to Real-World Questions; Gerald Fuller, Fletcher Jones II Professor in the School of Engineering; Helen Longino, Clarence Irving Lewis Professor of Philosophy; M. Elizabeth Magill, Richard E. Lang Professor of Law and dean of Stanford Law School; and Anne Villeneuve, professor of developmental biology and of genetics.

AAAS is one of the nation’s oldest and most renowned honorary learned societies. There are more than 250 Nobel laureates and 60 Pulitzer Prize winners as members. The society is now comprised of over 4,600 fellows, as well as 600 foreign honorary members in the fields of medicine, mathematics, business, government, the arts, public affairs, the physical and biological sciences, and the social sciences and humanities. AAAS will hold a ceremony to induct the 236th class on Oct. 8 in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

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Robert Huff, Stanford’s first financial aid director, dies https://stanforddaily.com/2016/03/15/robert-huff-stanfords-first-financial-aid-director-dies/ https://stanforddaily.com/2016/03/15/robert-huff-stanfords-first-financial-aid-director-dies/#respond Wed, 16 Mar 2016 06:55:20 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1112425 Robert Huff, Stanford’s first financial aid director, died of cancer on Mar. 7. Huff was 89.

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Robert Huff, Stanford’s first financial aid director, died of cancer on March 7. Huff was 89.

Huff served as financial aid director from 1958 to 1994 and worked under five Stanford presidents. In his early years on the job, Huff mainly met with students individually, but his work transformed to focus more on budgets and ensuring financial aid for the growing student population.

Huff was dedicated to improving college financial aid beyond Stanford and was widely recognized for his contributions on a national scale. After serving as president of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) from 1979 to 1980, Huff received NASFAA’s inaugural Robert P. Huff Golden Quill Award — an annual accolade created in his honor for contributions to literature on student financial aid.

Huff was also a chair of the College Scholarship Service Assembly and Council, as well as the first president of the California Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.

In 1994, Huff became a research fellow at the Hoover Institution, which four years later would publish Huff’s essay on “how college student financial aid might be made more logical and effective.”

Huff was a 50-year member of the Stanford Faculty Club and remained involved with the University until his death. Huff is survived by his son, Robert Huff III, and daughter, Margaret Huff, as well as his brothers, David and Edward Huff, and six grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held this Saturday, March 19 in Palo Alto.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Lucy Kalanithi discusses When Breath Becomes Air https://stanforddaily.com/2016/02/02/lucy-kalinithi-discusses-when-breath-becomes-air/ https://stanforddaily.com/2016/02/02/lucy-kalinithi-discusses-when-breath-becomes-air/#comments Tue, 02 Feb 2016 19:35:33 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1110147 Paul Kalanithi '99 M.A. '00 was an instructor in Stanford's department of neurosurgery and a fellow at the Stanford Neurosciences Institute, as well as a writer. Kalanithi lost his battle with cancer last March, after being diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer during his neurosurgical residency at Stanford. His book, “When Breath Becomes Air,” was published posthumously last week. In the book, Kalanithi discusses his medical career, his family and learning to face mortality.

The Daily recently interviewed his wife, Lucy Kalanithi, to discuss Paul, his book, his life and his legacy.

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(Courtesy of Lucy Kalanithi)
(Courtesy of Lucy Kalanithi)

Paul Kalanithi ’99 M.A. ’00 was an instructor in Stanford’s department of neurosurgery and a fellow at the Stanford Neurosciences Institute, as well as a writer. Kalanithi lost his battle with cancer last March, after being diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer during his neurosurgical residency at Stanford.

His book, “When Breath Becomes Air, was published posthumously last week. In the book, Kalanithi discusses his medical career, his family and learning to face mortality.

While a student at Stanford, Kalanithi wrote for The Daily, played in the band and worked at Stanford Sierra Camp.  

The Daily recently interviewed his wife, Lucy Kalanithi, to discuss Paul, his book, his life and his legacy.

The Stanford Daily (TSD): Describe Paul to us.

Lucy Kalanithi (LK): There’s a Dan Gilbert quote that says, “Humor is the place where intelligence and joy meet.” That was Paul. He was reverent and irreverent at the same time. He knew which rules were okay to break and he broke them.

The book is much less funny than Paul was. He was dying when he wrote it. The book is thoughtful and it’s beautiful, but in real life, there was this whole other dimension to him. He was totally funny and that was part of why I was drawn to him.

Paul loved the Stanford football team. The football team signed a football for him in 2014 when he was sick, and he went through the team roster with a highlighter to highlight who had signed his football.

He just really saw excellence throughout Stanford, including that team, and he was really proud to be a part of Stanford. That was why he wanted to come back for his residency. It certainly was a huge part of his life.

TSD: He writes in the beginning of “When Breath Becomes Air” that he had never intended to be a doctor.

LK: So Paul had gone to Stanford undergrad and graduated in ’99, and then he did a co-term in English literature after doing HumBio and literature… and then after that, he went to Cambridge in history and philosophy of science and medicine. He thought he’d be maybe in the literature department or the philosophy department, but as he mentioned in the book, he decided that medicine was the perfect place to grapple with big moral questions and matters of life and death, so to speak, in a very practical way.

TSD: In his book, your husband mentions that you met during medical school at Yale, but how exactly?

LK: We met in 2003 when we were both first-year students. It was fun because I at first didn’t notice him… I figured out a few months into med school that instead of being only an intellectual guy, he was really hilarious. He was wearing a fake mustache in his med school ID.

TSD: Could you elaborate on the process of turning Paul’s manuscript into a published work?

LK: Essentially, the book is exactly what he left when he died, so the title, the epigraphs, the section headings, “In Perfect Health I Begin” and “Cease Not till Death,” which are from Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself.” And then after he died, we slightly supplemented a few sections with his intentional writing from other periods in his life — even his master’s thesis from Stanford — just little snippets to make sure it was a full book. But yeah, it’s all his.

TSD: Did he choose the title before his death?

LK: Yeah, he chose the title. The title, as you can see from the epigraph at the beginning of the book, comes from this little poem by Greville saying:

You that seek what life is in death,
Now find it air that once was breath

We were lying in bed during a time in which he was pretty sick and he was writing and reading the poetry book, and he said, “I think I came up with the title for my book. How about ‘When Breath Becomes Air?’”

TSD: “When Breath Becomes Air” addresses questions of mortality and some of the taboos surrounding death. How did your outlook on life change with your husband’s diagnosis?

LK: Both being doctors, we didn’t have any illusions about this prognosis. So the question for us was how to respond to that fact that we couldn’t really change. For us, it meant facing it, talking about it, and then continuing to create meaning and purpose… The book is about being alive. It’s not just about dying.

TSD: “When Breath Becomes Air” has been very well-received, even just in the week since its publication. In the long run, is there anything you hope readers take away from the book?

LK: First of all, Paul wrote it to our daughter, so I’m very interested in saving it for her. He also wrote it kind of as a journal about really grappling with what was happening to his body, unexpectedly in his thirties when he got cancer, but he really did write it for the reader. He wanted to bring people into the experience of grappling with big questions about how to build meaning and face mortality. People seem to be responding exactly as what Paul set out to do. The reason the book is being so well-received is because people are hungry to talk about this and that says something about society.

TSD: In a piece you wrote for the New York Times, you talk about how you have tried to make Paul’s gravesite a place of your own. How have you done that?

LK: [The night before his memorial] maybe 20 people or so went to Paul’s gravesite, which is really beautiful, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. We just poured a ton of whiskey out on the ground and everyone was drinking beers and whiskey and sitting on blankets on the ground and talking. Some people were crying and some people were laughing and there was that idea of grief being solitary and communal at the same time. You wouldn’t think of drinking beer at a gravesite but when it’s your friend, it just feels right to be there together in that way and to be together in a place that now holds Paul but in the way that we would have with Paul.

TSD: And in your life in general?

LK: It took me a while to even clean up Paul’s stuff from our house… but it’s not the place where Paul lives anymore. It’s the place where Cady and I live. For several months, it was really comforting [to have all his stuff around] but then, suddenly, instead of feeling cozy, it just felt kind of dark. I literally painted the walls white and changed some things in our house, and that’s all about coming to terms with [his death] and creating a new setting.

TSD: Your daughter was very young when your husband died. How will she remember him?

LK: I’ve thought about this a lot recently. She has no idea about any of this. She loved Paul, but Paul died and she wasn’t totally aware that Paul was there and then disappeared; she was really young when he died. And now she doesn’t know that Paul wrote a book and is a well-known writer. He wasn’t when he was alive. He was a dad.

TSD: As your daughter grows up, what will you tell her about her father?

LK: I certainly want to be able to help her understand who Paul was and where she came from, and I think the main things for me are that he really loved her and he really felt that striving was a very important part of being human and something he really valued. And that means trying hard and being a good person.

He writes in his book, “Darwin and Nietzsche agreed on one thing: the defining characteristic of the organism is striving.”

The other idea that he thought was important was that some of the central tenants of being human are love and suffering and the idea that life isn’t about avoiding suffering. Part of happiness is about building a meaningful life, and that’s not always choosing the easiest path.

Paul Kalanithi is survived by his wife Lucy and daughter Cady.

This transcription has been condensed and edited.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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University reports record number of donors last fiscal year https://stanforddaily.com/2016/01/27/university-reports-record-number-of-donors-last-fiscal-year/ https://stanforddaily.com/2016/01/27/university-reports-record-number-of-donors-last-fiscal-year/#respond Wed, 27 Jan 2016 08:42:53 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1109850 The University has published the results of fundraising efforts for the 2014-2015 fiscal year, reporting a record number of donors.

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The University has published the results of fundraising efforts for the 2014-15 fiscal year, reporting a record number of donors.  

The University reported $801.6 million in cash gifts from almost 83,000 different donors, including students, alumni and parents. Over half of all donations were $100 or less. Additional donations included $622.3 million in art donations as well as $201.1 million in contributions toward Stanford’s two new hospitals. $321.9 million will be devoted to research and academic programs.

Many of Stanford’s art donations were contributions to the Anderson Collection. Harry W. and Mary Margaret Anderson and their daughter Mary Patricia Anderson Pence gifted 121 paintings and sculptures from the post-World War II era.

The Stanford Fund for Undergraduate Education raised $26.6 million. These funds go toward financial aid, academic programs and student-led organizations such as club sports and performance groups.

Stanford also added $152.3 million to its endowment, which is intended to support the University continuously. Annually, Stanford’s endowment payment accounts for approximately 23 percent of Stanford’s operating budget.

The report accounts for fundraising gifts between Sept. 1. 2014 and Aug. 31, 2015.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Congresswoman Jackie Speier speaks at Student Congressional Summit on sexual assault https://stanforddaily.com/2015/11/11/congresswoman-jackie-speier-speaks-at-student-congressional-summit-on-sexual-assault/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/11/11/congresswoman-jackie-speier-speaks-at-student-congressional-summit-on-sexual-assault/#respond Wed, 11 Nov 2015 09:48:38 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1106743 One in Five, a new, unofficial Stanford student group aimed at promoting awareness on sexual assault, hosted a Student Congressional Summit with Representative Jackie Speier (D-CA) on Monday at the Black Community Services Center.

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(McKENZIE LYNCH/The Stanford Daily)
(McKENZIE LYNCH/The Stanford Daily)

One in Five, a new, unofficial Stanford student group aimed at promoting awareness of sexual assault, hosted a Student Congressional Summit with Representative Jackie Speier (D-CA) on Monday at the Black Community Services Center.

The event featured perspectives from the eyes of sexual assault survivors and also from a policy standpoint. Speier spoke on the Hold Accountable and Lend Transparency (HALT) Campus Sexual Violence Act, the bipartisan legislation she authored and recently introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives.

Speier emphasized students’ responsibility and ability to bring about change on college campuses, including at Stanford.

“[Students] have to demand specific changes,” she said in an interview with The Daily after the event. “Not just demand change in general, but specific demands that you want the University to undertake to transform the culture so that everyone feels safe going to school here and everyone feels that if in fact they are violated, the institution is going to make sure that there’s an environment where there’s going to be justice and equality.”

Speier address and HALT legislation

Congresswoman Speier’s address focused on combating sexual assault across college campuses and highlighted the importance of student advocacy. She also discussed the changes the HALT Act would make to the way universities respond to reports of sexual assault.

“The HALT Act requires a climate survey every two years that would have to be made public,” Speier said after the event. “It would be uniform across the country for any school that receives federal funds. It creates a private right of action for someone who is victimized. It provides for greater tools within the Department of Education to fine and penalize institutions when they do not provide the level of educational opportunity for all students.”

According to Speier, the bill also aims to aid victims of sexual assault by requiring the Department of Education to penalize universities that violate civil rights requirements, including Title IX, and to increase penalties for violations of the Clery Act.

“Campus sexual assault is not a new phenomenon,” Speier said. “The only thing that is new is that young people, like you in this room, have decided to step up and change the culture that must be changed.”

Congresswoman Speier reported that 20 percent of women and 6 percent of men will be victims of attempted or actual sexual assault during their college years. According to Speier, education at the start of each academic year, especially during the first four months, is important to decreasing sexual violence.

Her address concluded by focusing on the importance of promoting awareness and decreasing instances of sexual assault.

“Each and every one of you deserve to be safe at this institution,” she said. “It’s one of the greatest institutes of higher learning on the planet and you should demand and expect that it will be safe.”

Students advocate for change

In addition to Speier’s address, the summit provided the opportunity for numerous students, including members of One in Five and sexual assault survivors, to speak.

One in Five grew out of a Sophomore College class taught by law professor Michele Dauber. Students were inspired by their experiences speaking with survivors, activists and politicians during the class and decided to form a group on campus to continue the conversation about campus sexual assault with the entire Stanford community.

Stephanie Pham ’18, co-founder of One in Five, emphasized the importance of student-led initiatives, activism and communication.

“[The goal] is to truly create a climate on campus that shows that students are here to listen to you, believe and support survivors,” she said. “We want to work with the administration and as many organizations as possible to foster a campus-wide effort, but in order to do so we need a mutual sustained cooperation through all groups.”

“We are beginning that conversation today, right here,” she added.

Pham’s introduction was followed by an address by ASSU President John-Lancaster Finley ’16. Finley emphasized the importance of events like this one in fostering discussion of this issue among members of the Stanford community.

“[Sexual violence] is something that we cannot afford to not pay attention to,” he said. “I really, truly believe that the narrative of survivors must always be at the center of any conversation we have around eradicating sexual violence.”

Matthew Baiza ’18, another co-founder of One in Five, applauded the survivors speaking on the panel.

“It is never easy to speak about sexual assault,” Baiza said. “Sexual assault is an issue that affects each one of us, whether directly or indirectly, and it is up to us, the generation of tomorrow, to stop sexual violence.”

Student survivor panel

In the panel discussion following Speier’s speech, student survivors shared their stories and discussed what they feel needs to be changed about how Stanford and other universities handle cases of sexual assault. They criticized the University’s response to their reports of sexual assault. The audience was asked not to disclose the identity of the panelists outside the event. 

“The process that I underwent was almost as traumatic as the rape itself,” one panelist said.

Another panelist was told she had a three-week wait time for counseling at Counseling & Psychological Services. Her perpetrator was later found responsible, but he wasn’t expelled. He instead received a one-quarter suspension as punishment.

To improve the handling of sexual assault cases, one panelist advocated for establishing a standard Title IX investigation process and hearing procedure across universities nationwide, explicitly defining categories of sexual violence and mandating that federal and state governments appoint and hire Title IX investigators.

“Attempts of non-consensual activity should be taken seriously, particularly when they’re repetitive,” one panelist said. “We need to push for administrators to handle such an issue as sexual assault to reflect the gender, race, sexuality and diversity among students.”

During her speech, Speier also supported educational efforts for staff and called for increased national accountability. She noted that the National Institute of Justice estimates 63 percent of universities in the country shirk responsibilities under Title IX, and a recent Senate Committee report found that 21 percent of universities surveyed provided no sexual response training for members of faculty or staff.

Speier believes the Department of Education and the Department of Justice should make publicly available a list of institutions under Title IX investigation.

“There is nothing like transparency to sanitize the environment,” she said.

Speier also discussed the consequences of universities’ current systems of dealing with sexual assault accusations. For example, many victims of sexual violence suffer academically as a result of lengthy processes.

Her view was echoed by multiple panelists. One panelist talked about how she can only pass one of her classes this quarter and will not receive a refund on her tuition because her alleged assaulter was found not guilty.

Speier also discussed how faculty members often do not know how to support students who are suffering academically after experiencing sexual assault.

“I don’t know to what extent the faculty on any campus has been properly educated on the very clear experience that we’ve seen over and over again of student grades just being impacted in such a big way,” she said.

Education is important not only for staff members, but also for the entire population, Speier said.

“We still have a lot of work ahead of us in terms of properly educating men and women about what rape is, what sexual assault is, what unwanted sexual assault is,” Speier said. “And really what it all comes down to is what your student body presence says. And it’s all about respect.”

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu and Sarah Ortlip-Sommers at sortlip ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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1 in 50 vs. 1 in 5 — Campus Climate Teach-in held explores survey https://stanforddaily.com/2015/10/28/1-in-50-vs-1-in-5-campus-climate/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/10/28/1-in-50-vs-1-in-5-campus-climate/#respond Wed, 28 Oct 2015 07:41:55 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1105810 Last Wednesday, Oct. 21, a teach-in was held at El Centro Chicano y Latino to discuss the climate survey report on campus sexual violence released by Stanford earlier this month.

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Last Wednesday, Oct. 21, a teach-in was held at El Centro Chicano y Latino to discuss the climate survey report on campus sexual violence released by Stanford earlier this month.

The session was facilitated by Michele Dauber, Stanford professor of law and sociology, Shelley Correll, professor of sociology, and Tessa Ormenyi ’14, Stanford alumna. Dauber and Correll analyzed the results of the survey. This information session was followed by a Q&A session led by Ormenyi.

Correll began the teach-in by asking the audience to think about why the University initiated the survey study.

“If the reason we undertook the survey is to figure out how to make Stanford a better place, then we needed to have kept that purpose in mind at every stage of the study,” Correll said. “That purpose should affect what definition of sexual assault we use, how we analyze our data and what of the many facts in the report we decide to emphasize in our communications to our community.”

The statistic that kept arising throughout the lecture was a reported 1.9 percent rate of sexual assault on campus. This number has been met with a lot of controversy, with many worrying that it underrepresents a large problem on campus that other statistics would better express.

“If our goal is to make Stanford a safer place, a place more conducive to learning, we need to be pouring through these data looking for problems and helping communicate those problems,” Correll said.

Additionally, some students raised concerns about the different survey methodology which made it difficult to compare results to other universities’. The Association of American Universities (AAU) created a survey for Campus Climate that 27 universities have participated in, and Stanford was not one of them.

University spokeswoman Lisa Lapin explained that when Stanford made its decision, the AAU survey mechanism was not yet available for review which prompted Stanford to choose another survey, which Lapin emphasized was equally valid, as well as peer-reviewed and tested in advance by Stanford students. Additionally, she said that Stanford initiated its own survey because the University wanted to add supplemental questions about campus climate beyond sexual assault experiences.

Potential for undercounting assault

Event organizers alleged that other issues may have led to the undercount of assault, specifically possibly confusing wording in survey questions about intoxication and incapacitation.

In the AAU survey, the question was phrased as follows: “Did this conduct occur as a result of your being unable to consent or stop what was happening because you were passed out, asleep, or incapacitated due to drugs or alcohol?”

Stanford had a series of yes or no questions to determine if a case should be classified as “sexual assault.” Respondents were asked “Did the person(s) do that by…” and then shown a series of eight statements that included information about whether or not the respondent was conscious and what, if any, coercive tactics were used by the other person.

Dauber expressed concern that there could be confusion in the instructions leading students to believe they needed to choose the one best answer, but Lapin said that for each question, a student responded by clicking “yes” or “no,” indicating that a response should be provided for each statement.

Lapin explained that this instrument was tested using cognitive interviews as a part of the design process, before being administered to the student body in the survey. None of the testers showed confusion with this question, and they understood that they were supposed to provide an answer for each line, Lapin reported.

“We used the best available instrument and method from academic research to guide us,” Lapin said via email to The Daily. “One of the reasons we did not ask respondents to itemize the exact number of incidents is out of a concern that it would increase the length and difficulty of the questionnaire for survivors.”

If a respondent reported sexual assault, other instances of sexual misconduct reported by that same student were not included in the initial press release, even if it was an unrelated incident that happened in a different year.

Dauber noted that being a survivor is a high-risk factor for being assaulted again, but Stanford’s report did not collect data for multiple assaults or misconducts for one individual. The survey design did not allow Stanford to determine whether multiple acts were part of the same incident or were different incidents.

“I’m not here to bash Stanford,” Correll said. “Some good things came out of the study. We did some things very well. For example, the response rate to our survey was the highest among our peers. We had some very talented people in charge of the design and implementation of the survey.”

Illustrating the numbers

During the talk, Correll showed a different way to illustrate the issue of sexual violence on Stanford’s campus.

“The survey found that 6.5 percent of senior undergraduate women have experienced sexual assault while at Stanford, even using Stanford’s very narrow definition of sexual assault,” Correll said.

Accounting for the current student population, she suggests that this means about 215 undergraduate women will experience sexual assault during their four years on campus. That translates into 1.8 sexual assaults per weekend, on average, for undergraduate women.

“This value feels a lot more personal, a lot bigger,” Correll said. “This is the type of number that will get people’s attention. If we want to solve the problem of sexual assault, we have to first get our community to believe there is a problem.”

Future steps

In conclusion, Correll emphasized that this problem is not Stanford-specific, but she encouraged the University to conduct more analysis and publish another press release highlighting problems that we, as a community, need to address.

“There is a lot more we can learn from the data we collected,” Correll said.

Lapin explained that she believes that the University has been transparent and thorough in all of its reporting of the climate survey results.

“[This transparency] is very clear when you read the letter to the campus community from the President and Provost, the press release, and see all of the statistics posted to the website with the complete climate survey report,” Lapin wrote. “It is unfortunate that some activists are focusing their energy on highlighting one number, rather than on the totality of the issue. All of the findings, for every subset of students, are of great concern to the University.”

In light of Stanford’s report, Ormenyi emphasized student-led involvement and collaboration at Stanford.

“A lot of people are talking about sexual assault and sexual misconduct and what should be done,” Ormenyi said. “But we need to be talking to each other in the same room.”

Ormenyi expressed hope that Stanford would release the complete collection of data, including all data tables.

“There’s a huge space for a response when students become involved,” she said. “I personally think that more teach-ins like this are a great idea.”

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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McMurtry building hosts opening reception https://stanforddaily.com/2015/10/07/mcmurtry-building-hosts-opening-reception/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/10/07/mcmurtry-building-hosts-opening-reception/#respond Wed, 07 Oct 2015 08:10:02 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1104448 The McMurtry Building for the Department of Art and Art History hosted its formal opening reception Tuesday, Oct. 6, though the building’s galleries and classrooms have been accessible since Sept. 21. Named after its generous donors, Deedee and Burt McMurtry, M.S. ’59, Ph.D. ’62, the McMurtry building is designed to encourage collaboration and coexistence between the disciplines of art and art history, as well as other areas of study.

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(UDIT GOYAL/The Stanford Daily)
(UDIT GOYAL/The Stanford Daily)

The McMurtry Building for the Department of Art and Art History hosted its formal opening reception Tuesday, Oct. 6, though the building’s galleries and classrooms have been accessible since Sept. 21. Named after its generous donors, Deedee and Burt McMurtry M.S. ’59, Ph.D. ’62, the McMurtry building is designed to encourage collaboration and coexistence between the disciplines of art and art history, as well as other areas of study.

The building was designed by Charles Renfro of Diller Scofidio + Renfro and includes 100,000 square feet of studio space, digital media labs, a sound recording studio, a library, a café, galleries and classrooms. The project took five years to complete.

In the opening remarks, Alexander Nemerov, department chair and Carl and Marilynn Thoma Provostial Professor in the Arts and Humanities, explained the purpose of the McMurtry building.

“The goal of the building is to vitalize the arts on campus,” he said.

The building is shared by two separate disciplines, art and art history, and the architecture embodies the diversity among and collaboration between the two. The portion hosting the art discipline is covered zinc, while the exterior of the art history section is clad in the traditional stucco of many of Stanford’s earlier structures. However, even the two materials are designed to interact and weave together, encouraging partnership.

“The two [sections] wrap around each other like DNA strands,” Renfro said. “The building fosters discourse between the two sides by pitting them against each other.”

Renfro highlighted several common spaces that serve to link the two departments, including the middle outdoor space, library and rooftop “sky court” balcony. The outdoor courtyard stairs also hosts a small balcony, which Renfro dubbed the “Pope Balcony or DJ Booth.” There are plans to host events, like Party on the Edge and speaker series, in this space for the whole Stanford community.

The McMurtry building was designed as a tribute to Stanford as a whole. The center courtyard was modeled after the open spaces and arched walkways of Stanford’s main quad.

“The building is already becoming a destination for avid students, as you can tell from the undergraduate bicycles overflowing the facility,” Nemerov said.

Renfro explained that the opening event served to hand the McMurtry building over to the Stanford community after five years of design and construction, on which he reflected.

“[The building] was intentionally designed to be porous,” Renfro said. “We want students to feel like this building is theirs.”

According to Renfro, 90 percent of Stanford students participate in art in some way at Stanford, through art history, music, photography or spoken and written word – to name a few. The McMurtry building creates a central space for students of all disciplines to explore and learn about arts of all kinds.

 

An earlier version of this story implied that the art and art history department was two separate departments instead of one. The Daily regrets this error.

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Campus Climate Survey released; sexual misconduct numbers reported https://stanforddaily.com/2015/10/02/campus-climate-survey-released-sexual-misconduct-numbers-reported/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/10/02/campus-climate-survey-released-sexual-misconduct-numbers-reported/#respond Fri, 02 Oct 2015 10:59:09 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1104206 On Thursday, Stanford released the results of its Campus Climate Survey, administered confidentially online in spring 2015. According to the survey, 1.9 percent of respondents have experienced sexual assault, as defined in the University policy, since starting their degree programs at Stanford, and 14.2 percent have experienced another form of misconduct.

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On Thursday, Stanford released the results of its Campus Climate Survey, administered confidentially online in spring 2015. According to the survey, 1.9 percent of respondents have experienced sexual assault, as defined in the University policy, since starting their degree programs at Stanford, and 14.2 percent have experienced another form of sexual misconduct.

The survey was sent to all 15,368 degree-seeking University students over the age of 18 and received responses from 66 percent and 53 percent of the undergraduate and graduate communities, respectively – a total response rate of 59 percent.

In the questionnaire, students were asked to evaluate the campus, culture and safety at Stanford, as well as University policies and procedures. A major aspect of the survey was a section where students could report instances of sexual misconduct and harassment.

According to information on Stanford’s Office of the Provost webpage, Stanford administered the survey to gain student insight, specifically on the “frequency and nature of sexual harassment, sexual assault, stalking, relationship violence and other sexual misconduct involving our students.” This is the first time that the administration has chosen to publicly share the survey results.

In an email announcing the results to students, faculty and staff, President John Hennessy and Provost John Etchemendy Ph.D. ’82 highlighted the significance of the survey.

“Understanding student experiences and perspectives is critical to our ability to make progress on this subject as a community,” they wrote. “Despite the progress that has been made, the survey findings underscore the further work yet to do.”

Addressing concerns

The results of the survey will be used to evaluate Stanford’s policies around sexual harassment and sexual assault, including education on prevention and awareness and improving the resources available to students.  A summary of these results with also be shared with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, the federal institution that enforces Title IX.

Information from the survey will also determine how the University implements the recommendations from the Task Force on Sexual Assault Policies and Practices that Etchemendy convened last year.

Several of the suggested implementations include a revised adjudication process for sexual assault that moves to combine the Title IX investigation process and the Office of Community Standards’ Alternative Review Process (ARP) into one streamlined review. The new process will use panels to evaluate alleged instances of sexual assault. Stanford is also looking to hire more counselors on the confidential support team, increasing the number of full-time staff for victims of sexual assault from two to five.

Survey results on personal experiences

Though 87 percent of surveyed students reported feeling “extremely safe or very safe” on campus, there are still aspects of campus climate that need to be addressed.

During their time on campus, 77 percent of surveyed undergraduate students and 51 percent of surveyed graduate students reported having witnessed sexist jokes and remarks directed towards women. Fifty-six percent of undergraduate respondents and 23 percent of graduate students have witnessed similar behavior directed towards LGBTQ people while at Stanford.

When broken down by gender, 4.7 percent of undergraduate women and 6.6 percent of gender-diverse undergraduates have experienced sexual assault, while 32.9 percent of female undergraduate respondents and 30.8 percent of gender-diverse undergraduate respondents reported experiencing a different type of sexual misconduct.

Furthermore, 85 percent of survey participants who had experienced nonconsensual sexual contact stated that the responsible parties in the most recent incident were Stanford students, and 71 percent said that the incident took place in an on-campus residential building. Forty-one percent had no relationship with the responsible person or people prior to the incident.

Hennessy’s and Etchmendy’s email expressed their concern over these numbers.

“To us, any number above zero is unacceptable,” the email said.

The survey also addressed instances of stalking behavior – the most common being relentless text messages and phone calls that continued even after the person was asked to stop. Eleven percent of students surveyed reported being stalked in some form while at Stanford.

Among survey respondents, 5.3 percent who have been intimately involved with another while at Stanford said they have experienced some instance of relationship violence since starting their degree program at Stanford.

Survey results on University policies

Eighty-seven percent of respondents were confident that Stanford would take reports of sexual assault seriously.

Stanford’s definition of sexual assault is based on California criminal rape and sexual offense statutes. This includes any nonconsensual sexual act, including intercourse, digital penetration, oral sex or penetration with a foreign object through the use of force, violence, duress, menace, inducement of incapacitation or knowingly taking advantage of an incapacitated person.

Sexual misconduct includes non-consensual penetration or oral sex without the condition of force, violence, duress, menace or incapacitation that is involved in a sexual assault under state law and Stanford policy. Sexual misconduct also encompasses acts of sexual touching without consent and some acts of clothing removal without consent.

The survey reported mixed results in terms of University policies for sexual assault education and prevention. Over two-thirds of undergraduate respondents believed that Stanford has provided them with at least adequate education about sexual assault prevention, and three-quarters reported understanding the concept of consent. For graduate student participants, only 43 percent reported adequate education and 55 percent understood consent.

Fifty-seven percent of undergraduate students and 50 percent of graduate students said they would know where to seek confidential help for themselves or a friend in the case of sexual assault or harassment.

Undergraduate students were especially critical of the University support system for all forms of personal crises, not just sexual assault. Fifty-six percent and 48 percent of surveyed undergraduate women and men, respectively, who expressed an opinion on the question said current resources are insufficient. Of those respondents, those identifying as gender-diverse tended to give the system lower ratings – 85 percent felt the services were inadequate.

Hennessy and Etchemendy urged students, faculty and staff to read the full report themselves and become involved in changing the campus climate at Stanford.

“These are concerning issues for us, but they also are vital issues that require the attention and engagement of all members of our campus community,” the email said. “We must all play a role in developing solutions and modeling behavior that makes clear that sexual violence and sexual misconduct are unacceptable at Stanford.”

A full report of the findings can be found on the Provost’s website.

 

An earlier version of this article incorrectly generalized three of the statistics. The Daily regrets these errors.

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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OpenXChange launches, aims to promote community dialogue https://stanforddaily.com/2015/10/02/openxchange-launches-aims-to-promote-community-dialogue/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/10/02/openxchange-launches-aims-to-promote-community-dialogue/#comments Fri, 02 Oct 2015 10:56:34 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1104209 In response to last year’s dramatic shift in campus climate, Stanford has introduced OpenXChange, a new year-long program designed to promote dialogue and address ongoing issues across the campus and throughout the nation and the world.

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In response to last year’s dramatic shift in campus climate, Stanford has introduced OpenXChange, a new year-long program designed to promote dialogue and address ongoing issues across the campus and throughout the nation and the world.

The start of the program

In early September, before the start of fall quarter, students, faculty and other staff members received an email from President John Hennessy and Provost John Etchemendy Ph.D. ’82 introducing OpenXChange.

Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education Harry Elam, Jr. explained that OpenXChange was initiated to acknowledge the social issues prevalent on campus.  

“The idea behind it, or the first idea behind it, was to acknowledge that, for many students, last year was a difficult year in terms of dealing with other students and dealing with important social issues that are facing our world and issues we’re deeply concerned about,” Elam said.

Several events have already taken place this quarter under the current theme, “Stanford and the World,” including a talk with political satirist Baseem Youssef.

The Listening Tour, a series of dinners with Stanford faculty and administrators, has made stops at locations including Arrillaga Family Dining Commons and the Graduate Community Center. Each event allowed community members to hear more about the program, become involved and ask questions, and the final dinner was held at Xanadu house yesterday.

“One of the most important things I think we understand from last year and that we understand going forward is that communication is key,” Elam said. “The best way to communicate is through students.”

ASSU Executives John-Lancaster Finley ’16 and Brandon Hill ’16 agreed with Elam and spoke about how the ASSU can encourage the success of OpenXChange.

The focus of the ASSU on this topic will be “maintaining and increasing student involvement as we represent the student body,” both Finley and Hill said.

“We want to make sure that the student voice is heard,” they said.

With regards to long-term effects, they expressed hopes that some aspects could continue beyond the launch of OpenXChange.

As the quarter continues, the program will launch its Open Office Hours, where selected Stanford faculty members will lead conversations about current social and political issues, including topics like climate change, immigration and human rights. Each session will begin with a short presentation by the faculty member, follow with a question-and-answer session, and will end with a reception with refreshments to promote more personal and one-on-one dialogue.

These events will be open to all members of the Stanford community, and participants are encouraged to come with their own questions and topics they would like to see discussed.

In the winter, as part of the “Stanford and the Nation” theme, the University will host a discussion panel called “Presumed Guilty” about the criminal justice system in America. The panel will feature New Jersey Senator Cory Booker ’91 M.A. ’92 and several prominent faculty members.

In terms of continuous, year-long opportunities, the University is hoping to form a student advisory council as another way to allow for the expression of diverse opinions and to create more communication between different student groups.

Elam also mentioned that there would be opportunities throughout the year for students to communicate about the campus climate through art.

“Arts is a way to think about social issues and social engagement,” Elam said. “One of the ways students may want to approach these issues is to perform whether through spoken word, or dance or visual art.”

Addressing the shift in campus climate

The OpenXChange program comes after a 2014-15 academic year filled with increasing activism, including the Black Lives Matter and divestment movements.

Stanford Out of Occupied Palestine (SOOP) demanded that the University divest “from companies that enable and benefit from collective punishment, mass incarceration and the militarization of the police in Palestine and elsewhere.” Both of these movements met during the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge protest, shutting down traffic and leading to 68 arrests, with 11 people jailed.

Issues around mental health and sexual assault also led to an increase in activism last year. Community members expressed concern that there were not sufficient resources or support for mental health, and Stanford’s new Title IX office also launched sexual assault and harassment investigations into Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) and the Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band (LSJUMB).

After growing concern, Etchemendy convened the Task Force on Sexual Assault Policies and Practices, which released a report last April detailing recommendations on how to combat sexual assault.

Several of these suggestions will be implemented this year, and though many details have not yet been made public, Lisa Lapin, University spokeswoman, reported that the revised adjudication process for sexual assault will be released this fall.

The process will move toward combining the Title IX investigation process and the Office of Community Standards Alternative Review Process (ARP) and will use panels to evaluate alleged instances of sexual assault. According to Lapin, Stanford is also looking to hire more counselors to the confidential support team.

The results of the campus climate survey released yesterday will influence the way the task force implements the other recommendations from the report.

Measuring effectiveness

In response to the concern that OpenXChange’s goals are not specific enough, Elam expressed that much of the program’s vagueness is intentional and that the University does not want to simply mandate discussion topics or avenues.

“With creating the program, much is evolutionary,” Elam said. “We want it to be something that students feel is theirs – that they can take ownership; that they can develop it; that they can speak back to us about issues.”

Elam also emphasized that he does not want OpenXChange to be viewed simply as another administrative attempt to regulate the Stanford environment.

“Because it is community-wide, this is a response that must include students and faculty, so it won’t be something that’s top-down,” Elam said. “We hope to learn much from this engagement and to respond.”

This is why much of the programming has not been released, as the nature of the program requires students, faculty and other community members to take initiative and be involved in the direction of OpenXChange, Elam explained.

Other students do have hope that OpenXChange could be a positive addition to campus. After attending one of OpenXChange’s first Listening Tour events, a dinner at Branner Hall, Jamieson O’Marr ’18 said that, while ambitious, the program could be a success if students get involved.

“The program’s emphasis on open exchange is really important,” O’Marr said. “We need to have mutual respect and understanding in the way we approach our disagreements, or we will never get past the argument to the development of new knowledge and solutions.”

Though most of the OpenXChange programming will end at the conclusion of this academic year, several proposed classes introduced this year have the potential to continue into the future.

These classes include one beginning winter quarter called the “Ethics of Anonymity and the Internet,” as well a class during spring quarter on differing perceptions on the Middle East.

According to Elam, several other classes are also undergoing review and will be announced soon. By developing new courses, students and faculty will be able to continue the discussions that OpenXChange hopes to encourage this year.

Elam said that through OpenXChange, he hopes Stanford can be an environment “where people do disagree but where there is an informed and respectful conversation.”

“We’re in a time in our country and our world where incredible change is happening that students care about passionately, and that’s good,” Elam said. “How their feelings about such issues are shaped by their experience at Stanford, OpenXChange can be and hopefully [will be], a helpful and productive part of that.”

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Stanford’s endowment shows upward growth https://stanforddaily.com/2015/09/25/stanfords-endowment-shows-upward-growth/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/09/25/stanfords-endowment-shows-upward-growth/#respond Fri, 25 Sep 2015 07:59:03 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1103816 Due to generous donors, increased property values and positive returns, Stanford University’s endowment has increased by 3.6 percent over the past year. According to results released by the Stanford Management Company (SMC), the final sum for 2015 amounts to $22.2 billion, as of August 31, 2015 when the fiscal year concluded.

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Due to generous donors, increased property values and positive returns, Stanford University’s endowment has increased by 3.6 percent over the past year. According to results released by the Stanford Management Company (SMC), the final sum for 2015 amounts to $22.2 billion, as of Aug. 31, 2015 when the fiscal year concluded.

The SMC reported that the 2015 endowment payout was equal to $1.06 billion, while the upcoming year’s is budgeted at $1.15 billion. In addition, the University’s Merged Pool (MP), Stanford’s principal investment pool, had a return of seven percent net of fees for the past year.

Over the last 10 years, the MP accounts for $3 billion of added value. The MP accounts for a majority of Stanford’s endowment, as well as providing funds for University-run programs like the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital and Stanford Health Care.

Increases in endowment allow Stanford to invest more into programs and education for both undergraduate and graduate students, said vice president for business affairs and chief financial officer Randy Livingston in a Stanford News article. This growth also allows the University to provide more funding and opportunities for research, as well as greater resources for financial aid.

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Stanford community shares tips on dealing with stress https://stanforddaily.com/2015/06/03/stanford-community-shares-tips-on-dealing-with-stress/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/06/03/stanford-community-shares-tips-on-dealing-with-stress/#comments Wed, 03 Jun 2015 20:18:56 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1101788 Week Ten. Dead Week. Dead Day. Duck syndrome. Twenty units. RBA. Primal scream. All-nighter. P-sets. Coupa. Lathrop 24-hour room. All of these phrases are regularly exchanged among Stanford students, especially as the quarter draws to a close. This vocabulary may seem like a strange dialect to those outside of Stanford, but students and faculty have adopted these expressions, most of which serve to accurately represent stressful situations that go along with the unique environment of Stanford.

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Dead week can be stressful -- especially during Spring Quarter when Dead Week lasts three days. The Daily compiled a list of 10 ways to fight stress. [VICTOR XU/The Stanford Daily]
Dead week can be stressful — especially during Spring Quarter when finals start the Friday of Week 10. The Daily compiled a list of 10 ways to fight stress. [VICTOR XU/The Stanford Daily]
Week 10. Dead Week. Dead Day. Duck syndrome. Twenty units. RBA. Primal scream. All-nighter. P-sets. Coupa. Lathrop 24-hour room.

All of these phrases are regularly exchanged among Stanford students, especially as the quarter draws to a close. This vocabulary may seem like a strange dialect to those outside of Stanford, but students and faculty have adopted these expressions, most of which serve to accurately represent stressful situations that go along with Stanford’s unique environment.

In Stanford’s competitive and academically rigorous environment, students are thrown into many stressful situations, both academic and social. As spring quarter ends, finals approach and paper and project deadlines loom, levels of stress only seem to build.

There are plenty of suggested strategies for managing stressful situations. In honor of Dead Week, or Dead Day in this case, The Daily has gathered information from students, professors and psychologists about coping with stress, especially in Stanford-specific instances.

The Daily spoke to several current undergraduate students, asking for their best strategies for coping with stress and times during which they have felt the most overwhelmed at Stanford.

Sarah Radzihovsky ’18 says that she gets burned out working nonstop and that even short breaks can lead to increased productivity later on.

“My best strategy is to take breaks and go for runs or hang out with friends, briefly,” she said.

Balance is important, Radzihovsky added.

“I think I balance things by using social outings as a reward or break for working really hard and staying focused,” she said. “It’s difficult to stay focused if I don’t have a fun break in mind for the near future.”

Other students expressed similar sentiments, and exercise is a common way to relieve stress at Stanford. Finding a group of friends with whom to run, walk or even swim can be great for many students, releasing endorphins from exercising and relieving stress through talking out problems and bonding over similar difficulties.

Time management and balance are especially important for dealing with stress. Natalie Whittig ’18 recommends creating a schedule and a timetable detailing everything to accomplish, but she adds an interesting twist.

“Take everything you have to do, see how long it will take you, add two hours and then write it into your schedule,” Whittig said.

Adding the extra time actually sets realistic expectations for how long tasks can take and allows buffer time for unexpected changes. Allotting yourself more time also reduces stress, because it is more likely you will actually complete work on or before deadlines.

Athletes at Stanford not only deal with academic stress but also the stress that comes with competing in a Division I sport. Varsity soccer player Jaye Boissiere ’18 explained that to manage everything, it’s important to understand her body’s limits, including how much sleep she needs and when to study. This includes approaching each stressful aspect of her life differently.

“I’ve found that [stress is] easiest to deal with if you compartmentalize it,” Boissiere said. “Stress from a bad practice is different than stress from an upcoming midterm, so for me, it’s usually best if I deal with each section of my life individually. This is also easier said than done, because a lot of times I’ll go to practice freaking out about schoolwork, or I’ll be studying but thinking about what I could have done better at practice, but I’m most efficient when I can separate the two.”

To combat stress, time management is even more crucial for athletes than the rest of the student body. With less flexible schedules due to practice and game times, pulling an all-nighter before a deadline is not a viable option.

“You can’t really afford to procrastinate homework or an essay, or [study] until 11 p.m. the night before something is due, because you are responsible for your performance on the field the next day and won’t be at your best on two hours of sleep,” Boissiere said.

Law professor Joe Bankman, who is also currently training to become a clinical psychologist, has applied cognitive behavioral therapy techniques in his law classes to help students reduce stress. The tactics serve to combat anxiety through group discussions, providing a platform for students to share concerns. Bankman asks students to anonymously write down their worries, and then he posts them on the board. By reading everyone’s concerns, students realize everyone is going through similar struggles.

Bankman highlighted the importance of framing your thoughts to give yourself a more realistic perspective in managing stress.

“Since we’re in law school, we call it thinking like a lawyer, but it’s really just using logic,” he said. “One technique is to imagine that a friend [is] in this situation. What would you tell your friend? Now tell that to yourself.”

Bankman said that it is much better to reframe stressful situations rather ignoring issues. According to Bankman, procrastination will only lead to “a cycle of stress,” which can negatively impact one’s well-being.

“Anxiety causes us to avoid the things that cause us stress, but in the long run, this only increases our problems,” he said.

Bankman also offered some finals-specific advice as the year comes to a close. To reduce stress, he recommends several different strategies. Exercise can be an immediate stress reliever, as well as talking to someone who listens well, whether it be a close friend or family member. Another technique is known as “mindfulness.”

“This is really an umbrella term which includes relaxation, meditation, yoga and breathing,” Bankman explained.

To learn more about mindfulness, as well as other techniques to reduce stress and manage time, Bankman says that Google is actually an incredibly helpful resource, as well as the brochures and additional material that can be found at the Center for Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS).

Lastly, Bankman emphasizes the importance of self-care, especially during times of high stress.

“Something works for everybody, but when you’re stressed out, people don’t usually do enough of that, whether it’s talking to a friend, talking to your mother, or taking a walk — make sure you’re doing enough of that,” he said.

However, if stress is chronic, or interfering with functionality, Bankman does recommend talking to a professional or seeking other resources.

In a recent piece in the Stanford Report, Stanford psychologist Kelly McGonigal proposes that stress is not necessarily always a bad thing and that embracing stress can actually have beneficial results, depending on the how someone chooses to approach a problem.

In order to reframe a stressful situation, McGonigal proposes three steps. First, though this is difficult, attempt to accept your body’s response to stress and try to view it as a natural and helpful process. Second, create a positive mindset, reminding yourself that you are capable of handling stressful situations, and view stress as an opportunity to learn and grow. Lastly, remember that everyone deals with stress, albeit differently, but that experiencing stress does not mean that you are weak or failing.

McGonigal emphasized that this strategy does not ignore the potential harm that stress can cause.

Embracing stress by changing one’s mindset is similar to the ideas that Dan Gilbert, a professor of psychology at Harvard, has studied regarding cognitive and impact biases. Following the publication of his recent book “Stumbling on Happiness” in 2004, Gilbert gave a TED talk, “The Surprising Science of Happiness.” In this talk, Gilbert explains that happiness is incredibly relative.

“Our brains systematically misjudge what will make us happy,” he says in the talk.

He cited a study that found out that, on average, paraplegics and winners of the lottery are found to be equally happy one year after the event. Happiness can be entirely based on mindset, and people’s standards for happiness are actually what determine how satisfied they feel with their lives. Gilbert’s main conclusion is that happiness can be “synthesized” through positive thinking. This synthetic happiness has a much more positive impact than that which any form of material welfare can provide.

Synthesizing happiness is a strategy that can be used to cope with stress. By approaching a challenge positively and analyzing the potential benefits created from this situation, students can use stress to improve productivity. Sources of stress can often seem to be entirely life-encompassing, but it is helpful to step back and look at a problem holistically.

As graduation approaches for Michael Schwartz ’15, he has some advice for the rest of the student body. First, he recommends making weekly to-do lists to avoid forgetting anything and breaking tasks into smaller time segments with space for non-academic activities.

“Don’t try to jam out work for 10 straight hours,” Schwartz said. “Go to the gym to get your blood flowing. It makes you happier.”

Being social and seeing friends also decreases stress for Schwartz.

“Have fun with your friends when you can,” he said. “It’s really important to blow off some steam every now and then. And Skype your family — they’re always really positive.”

Finally, Schwartz reiterated the importance of seeking support.

“Don’t be afraid to ask your friends for help with p-sets, papers and studying, ” he said.

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

 

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Kathleen Eisenhardt discusses her new book ‘Simple Rules’ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/05/13/kathleen-eisenhardt-discusses-her-new-book-simple-rules/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/05/13/kathleen-eisenhardt-discusses-her-new-book-simple-rules/#comments Thu, 14 May 2015 04:27:14 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1100937 Kathleen M. Eisenhardt is a Management Science & Engineering Professor and co-director of the Stanford Technology Ventures Program. She recently published "Simple Rules: How to Survive in a Complex World." The book examines how clear, simple, specific rules can help manage complex life situations. Bloomberg TV called "Simple Rules" “the nerd book of the summer."

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Kathleen M. Eisenhardt is a Management Science & Engineering Professor and co-director of the Stanford Technology Ventures Program. She recently published “Simple Rules: How to Survive in a Complex World.” The book examines how clear, simple, specific rules can help manage complex life situations. Bloomberg TV called “Simple Rules” “the nerd book of the summer.” The Daily recently sat down with Eisenhardt to discuss her new book and the concept of simple rules.

 

The Stanford Daily (TSD): What is the main premise of ‘Simple Rules’?

Kathleen Eisenhardt (KME): The main premise is that in a complex world it’s often better to be simple. When you’re faced with a world with too many devices, too many meetings, too many things to do, or too many school demands, the best response to that is often to be simple rather than complicated.

TSD: What was the inspiration behind your book?

KE: I decided to break out of the ‘just writing an academic book thing’ and write a book that my friends might actually read. The premise was originally a study we did of technology firms. We noticed that firms on the East Coast tended to have too much bureaucracy and that firms on the West Coast tended to be too chaotic and not have enough rules and neither one was really effective. It seemed companies that had a small number of rules and were flexible within those rules tended to do the best. So we had that first insight and then we started noticing that people who were good at what they do tend to talk in simple rules. They tend to crystalize their insights. A classic example is the investor Warren Buffet who has the simple rule of “never invest in something that you don’t understand.” So we started looking at that phenomenon.

TSD: How does one develop simple rules?

KE: The process for formulating simple rules is three-steps. Think about what you’re trying to achieve: better health, better grades or company growth, and then think about what the roadblocks are. These steps are to pick an objective, identify the bottleneck keeping you from your objective and develop rules to navigate this bottleneck using expert sources, advice from friends and experiences in your own world.

TSD: Are there any situations where simple rules cannot be used?

KE: Situations that are fairly complex, but not changing-like taking off in an airplane. Pilots have a list of about 40 things that they go through. Simple rules are more about situations changing where you want flexibility. The other time you wouldn’t use simple rules is for a completely new situation that’s not very repeatable.  You wouldn’t have a simple rule for getting married because that is a one-time event. You presumably wouldn’t have enough experience to use simple rules. The choice to come to Stanford over another school would also use simple rules.

TSD: Do you have any simple rules that can apply to most Stanford students?

KE: Yes. Figure out what you’re trying to get out of your Stanford experience. That’s different for different people. Some people want a broad-ranging experience with different kinds of classes. Some are here for the social life, or focused on a career. Figure out what your objectives are. Then, figure out what’s keeping you from reaching your objectives—that would be the second simple rule. Am I not keeping my calendar well? Am I hanging out with the wrong people? Am I not enjoying my classes? Finally, create some simple rules to navigate around that bottleneck. If the bottleneck is about choosing classes, think about what classes you have enjoyed and what classes you have not. Start to think about what you liked about those classes. Develop rules that work for you. If you feel like your social life is too constrained, maybe realize you’re studying all the time.  One possible simple rule would be to choose certain nights to just kick back and enjoy yourself.

TSD: Did your research change your teaching style at Stanford?

KE: It’s made me more aware of what I do. I was always a reasonably good teacher. I get generally high ratings, but it made me more self-reflective of what I do, of what’s working and trying to do that more often. I usually tell the class what we’re going to do before the class and then I tell them after. This may sound kind of trivial, but not everybody does that. Then I try to mix it up about every 10 or 15 minutes. I might lecture and then do a discussion or a movie or a case and then switch topics. I try not to do anything for too long.


Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Graduate student develops aid packages for Syrian refugees using drones https://stanforddaily.com/2015/05/06/graduate-student-develops-aid-packages-for-syrian-refugees-using-drones/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/05/06/graduate-student-develops-aid-packages-for-syrian-refugees-using-drones/#comments Thu, 07 May 2015 05:08:38 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1100574 Mark Jacobsen, a 33 year-old political science Ph.D. candidate and former Air Force C-17 transport pilot, is currently undertaking a project to send relief supplies to victims in Syria using small drones. The effort, called the Syrian Airlift Project, was developed by Jacobsen after a visit to eastern Turkey in March of last year. There, […]

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Mark Jacobsen, a 33 year-old political science Ph.D. candidate and former Air Force C-17 transport pilot, is currently undertaking a project to send relief supplies to victims in Syria using small drones.

The effort, called the Syrian Airlift Project, was developed by Jacobsen after a visit to eastern Turkey in March of last year. There, he met with Syrian refugees and realized how vital aid was to the region.

Refugees often asked Jacobsen why the United States has not taken more action.

“The reason is you can’t get stuff in, or the big planes will get shot down, unless you go in guns blazing to destroy the air defense system,” Jacobsen explained. “So this really got me thinking about what are other ways you can get something in.”

Through this project, Jacobsen hopes to improve current conditions without requiring large shipments, or direct conflict. Drones could deliver food and other aid to designated GPS locations using small boxes attached to parachutes. Each box can carry up to two pounds. Though this cannot provide sufficient food for a whole neighborhood, it is enough to deliver medical supplies, as well as water filtration tools.

Eventually, Jacobsen hopes that the project team will be able to launch up to 30 drones per hour, tracking the movement of each drone on a laptop computer. The sheer quantity of packages would make up for the small size of each.

Jacobsen also emphasized the symbolic value of these drone deliveries, which would include candy airdrops for children.

“If you go do this, the message that it sends as it hits the ground is as important as the cargo,” he said.

The small size of the drones also makes them unlikely to be an enemy target. Even if they are shot down, they are fairly inexpensive to replace, making the system quite efficient, according to Jacobsen. Currently, the project has only run tests in the United States, but a pilot project will soon begin in Turkey. This past Sunday, Jacobsen’s team successfully flew drones over 130 kilometers, far enough to reach some of the most war-torn areas in Syria.

Jacobsen has expressed concern about the dangers presented by this program, including fallout from rebel groups who want to prevent aid from coming in. Many supplies delivered now are hoarded and stolen by hostile members. There is also still a lot of distrust regarding drone technology and associations with violence.

Because of this, Jacobsen plans to coordinate with humanitarian groups and provide transportation for the supplies these groups deem necessary.

“We will be talking to experienced groups who have connections on the ground,” he said.

When asked about potential dangers, including civilians being targeted because of aid packages, Jacobsen said he would continue to rely on the discretion of contacts in the area.

“If there is elevated risk, my view is that this is a decision that people on the ground need to make,” he says.

If humanitarian groups and aid workers in the area believe the benefits of delivering supplies outweigh the costs, Jacobsen said he trusts their judgment.

Though the Syrian Airlift Project presents one potential solution to Syria’s ongoing humanitarian crisis, several legal issues arise, including violating the airspace of sovereign nations. The United Nations does have exemptions to this rule because of humanitarian violations in Syria, but Jacobsen’s drones must get approval.

The Turkish government must agree to allow Jacobsen’s team to base the drones out of their country, flying the drones across international borders. Also, there are strict laws regarding exporting technology like drones to war zones, as well as US sanctions against Syria. The project team is working with the Syrian National Coalition, the resistance government, to provide relief.

Since coming to Stanford, Jacobsen’s implementation of the project has transformed.

“[Stanford] has given me the right network to do this,” Jacobsen said. “Mostly when I started this it was just me. I had a few friends, but no one had any technical experience.”

Now, eight Stanford students, as well as faculty advisors, are part of the team. Jacobsen found many willing members through Stanford’s Unmanned Aerial Vehicle club, SUAVE.

Though the Syrian Airlift Project’s current focus is providing aid in Syria, Jacobsen hopes that the technology can be implemented globally. Before the Nepal earthquake, Jacobsen had met with several Stanford students to discuss potentially using drones in Nepal because of the country’s low infrastructure and high probability of natural disasters. After the earthquake, these efforts became even more important to Jacobsen.

“This technology isn’t just for war zones, but for anywhere needing humanitarian relief,” he said.

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Stanford Hospital employee arrested for molestation charges https://stanforddaily.com/2015/04/28/stanford-hospital-employee-arrested-for-molestation-charges/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/04/28/stanford-hospital-employee-arrested-for-molestation-charges/#respond Wed, 29 Apr 2015 05:39:43 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1100045 Former Stanford Hospital employee Robert Lastinger was arrested yesterday after accusations of molesting sedated patients. Lastinger, 55, was an operating technician at Stanford’s Hospital’s Outpatient Surgery Center in Redwood City. He has been at the facility for five years and has worked in the medical field for over 20 years.

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Former Stanford Hospital employee Robert Lastinger was arrested yesterday after he was accused of molesting sedated patients.  Lastinger, 55, was an operating technician at Stanford Hospital’s Outpatient Surgery Center in Redwood City.  He has been at the facility for five years and has worked in the medical field for over 20 years.

Allegations surfaced after several employees reported witnessing Lastinger inappropriately touching multiple male patients who were recuperating under anesthesia.

These instances occurred both on March 15 and April 2.  Since then, Lastinger has been on administrative leave.

Lastinger is facing four felony counts of sexual battery.  The investigation is ongoing.

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Sexual assault task force recommends expulsion as expected sanction https://stanforddaily.com/2015/04/08/task-force-recommends-expulsion-as-expected-sanction-for-sexual-assault/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/04/08/task-force-recommends-expulsion-as-expected-sanction-for-sexual-assault/#comments Wed, 08 Apr 2015 14:00:37 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1098504 On Wednesday, the Task Force on Sexual Assault Policies and Practices recommended making expulsion the expected sanction for students who have violated University policy on sexual assault and removing undergraduates from the panels that will adjudicate those cases.

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On Wednesday, the Task Force on Sexual Assault Policies and Practices recommended making expulsion the expected sanction for students who have violated University policy on sexual assault and removing undergraduates from the panels that will adjudicate those cases.

The findings were included in a report released by the task force, which also recommended consolidating the resources available for victims of sexual assault.

Provost John Etchemendy Ph.D. ’82 convened the task force last June, and change to the University’s current process of handling sexual assault cases has been demanded by demonstrators on campus in the last year.

The 18-member task force — which included faculty, students, staff and one alumna — conducted over 80 meetings, town halls and interviews over the last nine months, according to University spokeswoman Lisa Lapin. The group also surveyed other university campuses.

“I take this report very, very seriously because they went to so much trouble, they did so much work, they gathered so much input,” Etchemendy said. “They were so diverse themselves as a group, and they came to a consensus view on some very hard issues.”

The report features recommendations in three areas: community education, student support and resources and the investigation and adjudication of sexual violence cases.

 

Consolidating campus resources

The biggest potential changes involve the consolidation of University resources and procedures regarding both the support and adjudication process.

The task force calls for a “confidential support and response team” comprised of multiple full-time counselors who will provide not only help in the aftermath of an assault, but also guidance about the University processes for dealing with sexual assault.

Currently, students can seek help from the Office of Sexual Assault and Relationship Abuse Education & Response (SARA), confidential sexual assault University counselors, Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) or the Young Women’s Christian Association rape crisis hotline, among other options. A common theme, according to the report, was confusion among students, faculty and staff regarding how to help individuals impacted by sexual assault.

Elizabeth Woodson ’15, president of the ASSU and co-chair of the task force, detailed some of these issues.

“Previously a lot of resources have existed, but the decentralization has made them very confusing to navigate and made it hard to get all the help that you need, especially in that moment of confusion and trauma for any person involved,” Woodson said.

Etchemendy explained that after adding several resources over many years, the system for seeking help has become “confusing.”

“People who felt that they had been sexually assaulted found it very confusing about where to go and who to get advice [from],” Etchemendy said. “They felt that they were sent from office to office.”

“It’s a terrible way to treat someone who has just gone through probably a very traumatic experience,” he added.

The task force’s proposal consolidates resources into one office. This system will provide confidential advice and follow-through 24/7 to both the impacted and responding parties involved in instances of alleged sexual assault.

 

Addressing the adjudication process

The task force also calls for a unified investigation and adjudication process. The current system has two separate entities: the Title IX investigation, which is mandated by federal law when the University becomes aware of a possible sexual assault, and the Office of Community Standards’ Alternative Review Process (ARP), which is the University’s internal disciplinary process.

After receiving a report of prohibited conduct, the Title IX office will decide whether or not the complaint warrants an investigation. If the investigation reveals that a charge is warranted, the office will notify the involved parties, and the case will most likely proceed to a hearing before a panel.

The task force proposes continuing to use panels to evaluate cases of alleged sexual assault. Currently, five people serve on the ARP panels, but the new report recommends reducing this number to three. Additinally, under the implementation of the new panel, a unanimous decision is required to give a sanction of expulsion.

Etchemendy vocalized his support for the continued use of panels, an approach still not common among other universities.

“There is wisdom in collaborative decision making,” Etchemendy said. “I strongly believe that the panel approach is a better way to go that the single decision-maker approach.”

While the current system allows undergraduate students on ARP panels, the report recommends that undergraduates not be allowed to serve on the new panels. The report cites multiple reasons for this suggestion, including the creation of an experienced and trained reviewer pool.

“Undergraduate students are at Stanford for a relatively short time,” the report said. “They may be called away from campus for study abroad or competitions or performances; and they have packed schedules when they are here.”

In addition, the report warned of “the many points of overlap between and among groups of students” that may result in the reviewer knowing a suspect or having common friends.

However, some members of the Stanford community have argued against removing undergraduate students from the panels in the past.

In a Stanford Magazine article published earlier this year, Vice Provost for Student Affairs Greg Boardman said that removing students from review panels would “take away from our Fundamental Standard.”

“It’s part of the culture here,” Boardman told Stanford Magazine. “It would be a huge shift.”

The task force did not make a recommendation on whether graduate students can serve on the panels, “leaving it up to the provost to resolve.”

 

Moving forward

If the president and provost decide to permanently adopt the program proposed by the task force, they must seek approval from the ASSU and the Faculty Senate before changes are officially made. The pilot program, which will centralize authority in the Title IX office, is expected to be implemented next fall and would run for the next three academic years.

Additionally, the task force recommends expanded community education and outreach in an attempt to prevent sexual violence in the first place. Etchemendy said that while people tend to focus on the University’s adjudication responsibilities, the increased awareness and information training the task force calls for is perhaps the most important step for the University.

One of wonderful things about a university is also one of the hardest things about a university, and that is that there are constantly new people coming in: new students, new freshmen, new transfers, new graduate students,” Etchemendy said. “Inevitably all of them will need to be educated. They may be coming from societies and countries that have very different standards where this does not come naturally to them, so the education has to be a constant function.”

“If we can educate and prevent any sexual assault on campus, that would be the ideal situation,” he added.

Etchemendy also stated that the ultimate goal is to improve campus culture, particularly by encouraging bystander intervention in situations that might raise a red flag.

“What we want to achieve is a change in culture of the University – and of society for that matter,” he said. “Everybody in the community should feel responsible for other people in the community.”

Etchemendy explained that he will form two implementation teams within the next month that will focus on attempting to implement as many of the recommendations as possible by the start of the next academic year.

Woodson emphasized the importance of the task force’s report.

“It’s a critical turning point for the nation, and specifically for Stanford,” she said. “It’s a way to enhance our education…It’s really important that people know the number to call, know the office to go to, but also understand the roots of sexual violence in a historical and cultural context and that we bring that education into our academic space as well.”

https://stanforddaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/provost_task_force_report.pdf

Correction: This article originally stated that a unanimous decision was required to find a student responsible of violating University policy. In fact, a unanimous decision is required for findings of responsibility and giving a student a sanction of expulsion. Only two out of three panelists are required to give a student a santion other than expulsion. The Daily sincerely regrets this error. 

 

Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu and Andrew Vogeley at avogeley ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Students suffering from eating disorders find lack of campus resources https://stanforddaily.com/2015/04/03/students-suffering-from-eating-disorders-find-lack-of-campus-resources/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/04/03/students-suffering-from-eating-disorders-find-lack-of-campus-resources/#comments Fri, 03 Apr 2015 08:12:38 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1098227 A Stanford student suffering from an eating disorder went to CAPS at the beginning of fall quarter, seeking treatment. After waiting several weeks, she received confirmation to begin attending weekly therapy sessions. At the start of each appointment, she was weighed in wearing a hospital gown and told to urinate in a cup for tests. After passing these checkpoints, she spent the rest of the appointment talking to a therapist assigned to her through CAPS.

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A Stanford student suffering from an eating disorder sought treatment at Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) at the beginning of fall quarter. After waiting several weeks, she received confirmation to begin attending weekly therapy sessions. At the start of each appointment, she was weighed in wearing a hospital gown and told to urinate in a cup for tests. After passing these checkpoints, she spent the rest of the appointment talking to a therapist CAPS had assigned to her.

However, the student said she did not find these sessions supportive. The therapist asked her vague questions like, “How are you doing?” and “What are you eating?” After answering these questions, the student said most of the counseling consisted of general advice.

“My therapist would tell me to allow myself to eat certain foods or suggest that maybe I don’t need to exercise all the time,” she explained. “I knew those things, but that doesn’t mean that I could act on them.”

The student said she did not know what other resources were available to treat eating disorders on Stanford’s campus.

The CAPS website provides a link to information about eating disorders, but most of this information is relatively general, with claims that “proven approaches can effectively prevent, reduce, or stop troublesome behaviors while helping people develop new and positive ways of coping with underlying feelings.”

Director Ron Albucher said CAPS approaches eating disorders from a broad scope.

Ron Albucher, director of CAPS, said that CAPS approaches eating disorders from a broad perspective (VERONICA CRUZ/The Stanford Daily).
Ron Albucher, director of CAPS, said that CAPS approaches eating disorders from a broad perspective (VERONICA CRUZ/The Stanford Daily).

“Due to the complexities and potential medical consequences of eating disorders, CAPS uses a multidisciplinary approach to treat these illnesses,” he said in an email to The Daily. “A special care team composed of medical doctors, dieticians and psychotherapists meets weekly to discuss and manage cases.”

The CAPS website also provides a link to take a self-assessment about risk of disordered eating, but this leads to a psychological study conducted by Stanford Medicine and requires the user to agree to participate in “a research study of an Internet-based program for eating disorders” in order to proceed with the assessment.

According to the study’s claims, this program could last up to two years and potentially involves an eight- to 10- week intervention. A disclaimer lists multiple organizations that are authorized to publish patients’ health information, including the Office for Human Research Protections in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Stanford University Administrative Panel on Human Subjects in Medical Research and ThriveOn, a company offering the technical services for the study.

Though this study could provide helpful information about combatting eating disorders, some students expressed concern that it was a large commitment for those who were simply hoping to determine whether they should seek professional help regarding eating habits.

One Stanford freshman who was worried about her relationship with food wanted more information but did not want to agree to be part of a psychological study.

“I was scared some of my obsessive tendencies could evolve into an eating disorder, so I looked for help at Stanford online,” she said. “When I found out what CAPS’ risk test involved though, I actually became more stressed. I didn’t even know if I actually had a problem, and they’re asking me for a large chunk of my time at Stanford to some study I know nothing about.”

The website also states that patients can be outsourced to professionals from the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital’s Comprehensive Eating Disorders Program. This involves additional referrals, especially if the student has private health insurance and not Stanford’s Cardinal Care.

Albucher explained why Stanford works so closely with the hospital’s program.

“They have regular clinic hours at Vaden weekly and join us in our eating disorder care team meetings,” he said. “They also provide hospitalization for students who are medically unstable and need a higher level of care than can be provided in a clinic setting. This type of specialized comprehensive inpatient care program for eating disorders is not available at Stanford Hospital.”

Though this addresses emergency instances, students with eating disorders that do not currently demand hospitalization have experienced difficulties when trying to schedule appointments.  After an initial intake call, CAPS schedules appointments and assigns therapists to students, but in some cases, patients with eating disorders have not been able to meet with therapists who specialize in eating disorders.

One student struggling with severe anorexia during her sophomore year highlighted her frustrations through The Stanford Review’s “CAPS Confessions” forum.

“When I went in [to CAPS], I nervously explained my eating disorder to the counselor,” the student wrote. “He told me that [he] was not the eating disorder specialist (he specialized in working with LGBT students) and that I would have to make another appointment with a different doctor.”

The entire section of CAPS devoted to treating eating disorders only offers appointments to students on Wednesday mornings, when many students have class and other commitments.

A freshman interviewed by The Daily who hoped to continue treatment for her eating disorder when she started at Stanford also described several setbacks. Since this student was currently in recovery and not underweight, she said that the therapists were unable to successfully counsel her when she was not an immediate danger to herself.

“They know what to do when you’re physically unwell, but not how to get past the mental block [of having an eating disorder],” she said.

She also reported feeling uncomfortable expressing any problems she might still have because CAPS seemed so ill-equipped to deal with the mental aspect of eating disorders. Eventually, because of this and the difficulty of scheduling appointments, she said she stopped meeting with CAPS altogether.

Another student shared similar sentiments about CAPS’ apparent inexperience in dealing with eating disorders. She was horrified when her therapist expressed shock that she had only purged twice in the past three months. She said the therapist’s offhand comment caused a strong reaction.

“In my warped, disordered mind, I assumed that meant I was not ‘sick enough’ to be worthy of treatment,” she said.

After that session, the student’s symptoms escalated, “triggered by the therapist’s statements.” The patient said the therapist’s callousness and failure to tackle the mental dimensions of eating disorders actually increased the severity of the patient’s issue.

Several students interviewed also conveyed fear over the possibility of being forced to take time off from Stanford because of an inability to recover from an eating disorder or to reach a healthy weight. CAPS does qualify that this is only in extreme cases when the student’s life or health are at risk. At Stanford, students can undergo intense academic strain, and it can be difficult to receive proper treatment.

“In these cases, it is advantageous for a student to take time off to focus on their illness, rather than struggling at school and risk having physical complications,” Albucher said. “Students are able to come back when they are healthy and successfully resume their studies and/or take reduced course loads to support their recovery.”

However, though Stanford is supportive of students who need to time to recover before resuming as students, better programs and counseling could allow students to get the help needed before cases become this extreme.

The ASSU Executive Team on Mental Health has not developed programs designed specifically for eating disorders, but one of the heads of the task, Nikita Desai ’15, expressed hope that the group’s efforts will lead to better overall treatment at Stanford, including for eating disorders.

“Several of our initiatives are meant to improve availability, access to and awareness of resources and services for treating eating disorders, among other mental health conditions,” Desai explained in an email.

Lark Trumbly, a member of the ASSU Task Force on Mental Health and a Daily staffer, said there is a general lack of resources to address eating disorders on Stanford’s campus.

“Eating disorders are a pretty big thing on this campus,” Trumbly said. “I know several people who have had them, and none got help on campus.”

In order to improve all programs at CAPS, Trumbly said funding would need to increase dramatically.

“The space at Vaden isn’t big enough to cater to the people who may need to seek treatment,” Trumbly said.

Trumbly said she hopes funding and additional resources could start to reform programs like CAPS and help address eating disorders on Stanford’s campus.

After a town hall meeting centered on CAPS on Feb. 25, Albucher confirmed to The Daily that CAPS was indeed understaffed and underfunded. He acknowledged that this contributed to some of the delays and problems voiced by attendants of the meeting.

The recently finalized budget plan for 2015-2016 has allocated more funding for CAPS, according to Albucher.


Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8@stanford.edu.

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President Hennessy, Vice Provost Elam speak at Sigma Nu gender issues panel https://stanforddaily.com/2015/03/12/president-hennessy-vice-provost-elam-speak-at-sigma-nu-gender-issues-panel/ https://stanforddaily.com/2015/03/12/president-hennessy-vice-provost-elam-speak-at-sigma-nu-gender-issues-panel/#comments Thu, 12 Mar 2015 10:16:14 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1097596 In an event titled “Defining Manhood: What Can Men at Stanford Do?” Stanford President John Hennessy and Vice Provost Harry Elam spoke at the Sigma Nu house on March 10, along with Hoover Fellow Joseph Felter Ph.D. ’05 and associate professor of sociology, Robb Willer.

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SigNu man talk
On Tuesday night, Stanford President John Hennessy and Vice Provost Harry Elam spoke at the Sigma Nu house about the role of men on campus. (RAGHAV MEHROTRA/The Stanford Daily)

In an event titled “Defining Manhood: What Can Men at Stanford Do?” Stanford President John Hennessy and Vice Provost Harry Elam spoke at the Sigma Nu house on March 10, along with Hoover Fellow Joseph Felter Ph.D. ’05 and associate professor of sociology, Robb Willer.

The panel concluded the “Fraternity engagement with gender issues: to know, to understand, to act” speaker series held by Sigma Nu in collaboration with the Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies program. The four-part series was designed to engage the fraternity and Stanford community members with gender issues. Sigma Nu decided to create the series following discussions in the fall about the role of fraternity members in sexual assault issues across campuses nationally.

Former Sigma Nu president and self-proclaimed feminist Patrick Cirenza ’15 moderated the event. Cirenza prompted the discussion with three questions, followed by questions from the audience.

Cirenza first asked the four speakers how they defined masculinity and whether this definition has ever restricted them. Willer provided a scholarly definition of masculinity. 

“Roughly speaking, it is the set of social norms that are generally expected among men,” Willer said. “Homophobia is one of the traditional ways that men can define their manhood by insulting other men’s masculinity.” 

Willer explained that men can be held to stricter gender behavior expectations than women. For example, a young girl transgressing gender stereotypes is often just called a tomboy, while boys who don’t always display masculinity are negatively described as weak, or “sissies.” This can unfortunately lead to boys overcompensating with their male traits.

“I wish I could say I’ve always stood up for my values, but I’d be lying to you if I said this,” Willer said.

Hennessy encouraged students to maintain values of integrity, fairness, equity, empathy and respect for individuals, regardless of gender distinctions even in difficult situations.

“I think of myself not just as a man but as a member of the human race,” he said.

Felter, a retired U.S. Army Colonel who pursued a career as Special Forces and foreign area officer, explained that military stereotypes and the male-driven culture can be restricting, especially when hiding weakness and pain are core determinants of strength.

When Felter attended West Point Academy, they would regularly hold “cattle calls,” bussing groups of college and high school women to the academy for the men’s entertainment. He discussed the attitude among soldiers.

“I was raised in a cauldron of male masculinity…If you want to be studly, show determination; don’t stop until you get what you want,” Felter said.

Cirenza told the audience about Sigma Nu’s actions against gender biases, specifically policing gender language, such as casual use of the word “bitch.” He then asked the speakers to describe times where they have intervened to prevent a potential conflict between a man and woman. 

Both Hennessy and Elam spoke about instances in their careers where they have seen women treated as inferior. When evaluating women for faculty and board positions, Hennessy has noticed a strong gender bias, where successful women are often portrayed as too aggressive or “too out there.” Traits that are admired in men are seen as a disadvantage to women.

Elam emphasized that the most important thing to do to prevent discrimination and potential instances of sexual harassment is to foster self-respect.

“I’m not talking about the easy definition, but a rigorous sense of knowing yourself in the situation – recognizing and knowing how you feel about the situation and how to act,” he said. 

Cirenza also asked the panelists what tangible actions Stanford students can take to change gender relations, along with discrimination against class and race, in Greek life and on campus more broadly.

All four speakers emphasized that Hennessy and other Stanford officials cannot change the campus culture – this can only come from the students and other community members. 

For Greek life specifically, Hennessy said that just because Greek organizations are single-gender does not mean their behavior should be any different than the rest of campus. He explained that freshmen look up to fraternities and sororities, as well as the 700 other student groups on campus, so older members can have a strong influence on the image younger students interpret. 

According to Hennessy, all students, whether Greek or not, should be held to the same standards by their peers.

Elam encouraged fostering healthy relationships and creating an ongoing dialogue that does not end with New Student Orientation events. In order to prevent sexual assault and gender biases nationally, Elam encouraged all Stanford students to actively participate in positive behavior and hold other students accountable for their language and actions.

“Why can’t we be the first school to say that this is it, and it’s not going to happen anymore?” Elam asked.

Kate Wendell ’15, who attended the event, shared similar beliefs.

“[The event] was a good reminder of how we as a student body should be policing our own behavior to create a culture on campus where all people feel safe and celebrated,” Wendell said. “I feel empowered to intervene in situations where I think someone might be discriminating against another person. I particularly liked the idea of creating gender norms that are flexible and that allow everyone to be their true selves.”

Next year, Stanford will offer a for-credit speaker series class at Sigma Nu’s house.


Contact Sophie Stuber at sstuber8 ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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