« February 10, 2008 - February 16, 2008 | Main | February 24, 2008 - March 01, 2008 »
February 21, 2008
SAU, union leader to protest Aramark
Elysia Glover
With Vassar’s contract with current food service provider Aramark coming up for re-bid on June 30, 2008, the North American labor union UNITE HERE and Vassar activist groups have begun organizing a campaign to remove the corporation that has serviced campus dining since 1989.
Harvard will publish faculty research in database
Christine Vines
The Faculty of Arts and Science at Harvard University voted for a change in publication policy on Tuesday, Feb. 12 that will allow the university to post finished academic papers for free online.
Freshmen forced to drop English course
Hayley Tsukayama
On Tuesday, Feb. 12, several freshmen students enrolled in English 298, an independent study, received an e-mail from the Dean of Studies Chris Roellke, informing them that they did not meet the prerequisites for independent study in the English department.
Admissions office releases new publications and Web site
Brian Farkas
Vassar College’s Office of Admissions launched a redesigned line of brochures and view books, along with a new Web site, on Tuesday, Feb. 19. This is the first major overhaul of recruiting material in about seven years.
Food Committee to pick vendor finalist this week
Hayley Tsukayama
In early March, the final bidders will give presentations for Food Committee members, rather than the open forum the committee had planned for in the fall.
Conference encourages leadership development
Brian Farkas
The Leadership for Change series, which began two weeks ago on Feb. 5, has garnered a strong reception from students. The series will feature some 17 different discussions led by members of the administration and Vassar Student Association (VSA) Council.
Staff Editorial | Education key to curtailing dangerous drinking culture
What’s the maximum amount of alcohol that a person of your build can handle before alcohol poisoning (a potentially life-threatening condition) occurs? It appears that many Vassar students do not know the answer, according to a group of deans who recently presented statistics that indicate an increase in high-risk drinking at the College.
Abortion incident reveals fragility of women’s rights
Claudia Martinuzzi
While Naples has dealing with a crisis of mounting garbage, an even more disturbing incident has occured: the confiscation of an aborted fetus by local authorities. This incident, along with others in both Italy and the United States, shows that women’s rights are still a crucial issue.
The Green Glance | Healthy options sorely lacking in dining system
Nathan Zucker
As I entered the All Campus Dining Center (ACDC) on Valentine’s Day, I noticed that something important was missing: healthy food. Walking from station to station, it was obvious that Aramark’s menu emphasized fried foods and dairy products, and not vegetables or whole grains.
The Voting Booth | Candidates' spouses bring new dynamic to race
Allison Good
The men’s and women’s fencing teams had their debut in the New England Fencing Championships on Feb. 17 at Dartmouth College, marking the team’s official induction into the New England Intercollegiate Fencing Conference
Letters to the Editor | Declining intramural program requires serious boost
Green Party hosts State Conference
Mike Alberti
On Saturday, Feb. 23, Vassar will host the New York State Campus Greens Conference, where representatives from Green Party chapters of colleges and universities across the state will meet to hold a day-long series of workshops and events concerning Green politics.
Fencer wins New England championship title
Amelia Maxfield
The men’s and women’s fencing teams had their debut in the New England Fencing Championships on Feb. 17 at Dartmouth College, marking the team’s official induction into the New England Intercollegiate Fencing Conference
Women’s swimming pumped for State tourney
Kelly Capehart
After long months of training and competing, the Vassar women’s swim team is nearing the pinnacle of their season. The NY State Women’s Collegiate Athletic Association Swimming and Diving Championship will take place this weekend. Vassar will be among the 17 schools competing.
Are Vassar students drinking dangerously?
Alexandra Matthews
Sarah Siegel
In 2007 Vassar Emergency Medical Services (EMS) received 130 calls, a nearly 50 percent increase from 2006, and a 130 percent increase from 2002. Forty-five students had to be hospitalized, and 50 went to Baldwin, the majority for alcohol-related problems.
Overtime | New year, same steroid story
Kyle Nelson
You’d think baseball players would learn at least one thing: Don’t use steroids. Or, if you are going to use steroids, don’t get caught. That being said, I think baseball players should learn another thing, something that most are taught at an extremely young age: Don’t lie.
Study abroad inspires students to live simply
Rukshana Jalil
When students return from being abroad in developing countries, they may come back with more than language mastery or a renewed cultural awareness; some come back with a desire to simplify their lives and use only necessities.
Adam Langer '88 to read from novel
Sarah Goetz
Adam Langer ’88 began his writing career on the rooftops of Cushing House.n Monday, Feb. 25, Langer, now a published author, will read from his latest novel, Ellington Boulevard, in Taylor Hall Room 203 at 5:30 p.m.
Habitat for Humanity plans alternative spring break
Rukshana Jalil
While many Vassar students will be spending their spring breaks with family or having fun in the sun with friends, part of the Vassar chapter of Habitat for Humanity will travel for 20 hours by car to spend one week helping to construct a house in Sebring, Fla.
Men's tennis confident after openers
Elizabeth Anderson
Caroline Dunn-Rankin
This past weekend, the men’s tennis team began their spring season with two definitive wins over Manhattanville College and Stevens Institute of Technology, victories that portend good things to come.
Penetrating Questions | Looking beyond latex as a condom choice
Jina Ashline
Is a non-latex condom safe to use? Penetrating Questions tackles another campus query.
Seven floors of deadly sin seduce students
Chelsea Mitamura
On Saturday, Feb. 16, Vassar students unleashed their sinful, sexy selves in Jewett House’s hallways to celebrate the annual Seven Deadly Sins party, originally conceived to utilize the newly renovated tower floors of Jewett. It has since turned into one of the most lavish all-campus events of the year.
Vassar Technology Today | YouTube not the only way to get attention online
Matthew Leung
The ideas that get attention online are very different from those that receive media attention on TV, radio and in newspapers. So different, in fact, that many people do not realize that there exist other online paths to notoriety besides blogs and YouTube .
Town House Co-Op construction reassigned to Habitat for Humanity
A change in plan resulting from the unreliability of construction companies takes future THs in a new direction. Fill out your application today!
Feminist historian lectures
Sarah Siegel
On Tuesday Feb. 19, acclaimed medievalist and feminist historian Judith Bennett delivered a lecture entitled “Feminism and the Future of History.”
Kitsch mixed-media comes to Palmer Gallery
Jackson Reeves
Aaron Miller’s one-man exhibit ART, LOVE, FEAR, LIFE, DEATH, TRASH, currently being diplayed in the James W. Palmer III Gallery, showcases titular words individually spelled out in bright, distinctive silk flowers mounted on the wall.
AirCappella whistles their tunes cross-country
Gülfem Demiray
AirCappella, Vassar’s whistling-only a cappella group, was certified by the Vassar Student Association in 2005 and currently has nine members. There are many people on campus who love to whistle, and it is difficult to earn a spot in the group with the tough auditions.
Dynamo Theater Lab a morphing drama project
Sarah Rebell
Innovative, dynamic and experimental theater, the type Vassar was originally known for, is being reintroduced through the senior project Dynamo Theater Lab.
Music Box | Overlooked Albums | Converter
Mike Newmark
I went to an Autechre show a few years ago that got me thinking about the incredible endorphin-releasing power of beats, and I have to believe that this is what makes Converter’s utterly destructive Shock Front such a pleasurable experience.
Love, racism and stereotypes mark choreo-poem
Laura McCoy
Ntozake Shange’s 1974 play “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf”, is an award-winning play and choreo-poem—a compilation of 20 poems choreographed to music—that lyrically explores the search for black female identity.
Music Box | Beach House
Mike Newmark
Beach House is finding itself in a scenario in which the limitations of their seemingly faultless first record only become apparent after the quietly stunning Devotion eclipses it in nearly every way.
