Comments Off on The Yalie Ep 23: Inside Yale’s presidential search
In this episode, Andre Fa’aoso ’27 is joined by Yale College Council (YCC) President Julian Suh-Toma ’25 to discuss the role of students in the search for Yale’s next University President, as incumbent Peter Salovey intends to step down at the end of the 2023-24 academic year. Also, Diego Alderete ’25 joins Fa’aoso for an exclusive on-the-street interview segment where Yale students share their perspectives on the presidential search and how it affects campus life.
Guests: Julian Suh-Toma ‘25
Producers: Andre Fa’aoso ‘27, Diego Alderete ‘25, Alyssa Michel ‘24
Music: Blue Dot Sessions
Earlier this month, mayoral candidate Marcus Paca said he planned to run as an independent in the Nov. 7 general election if he lost the Democratic primary. But since Paca’s overwhelming defeatat the hands of incumbent Mayor Toni Harp in last Tuesday’s primary, his comments concerning his plans for November have been less clear and, at times, contradictory.
Regarding whether or not he planned to run in the general election, Paca said in an email to the News on Sunday that he was meeting with his staff and supporters to determine their next steps. The next day, he said he would likely release a statement concerning his plans no later than Tuesday. But as of press time Tuesday evening, Paca had not made such an announcement.
Paca wrote in an email Tuesday evening that he would soon make a public announcement about his plans for November. Eight minutes later, in response to a question asking specifically whether he would run again, he wrote that he would make an announcement “when the time is right” and that it would likely be posted online.
“Change of strategy,” he wrote. “I’m not spending time interviewing. I’m connecting with voters.” Paca added that he hoped Yale students would visit his website and get involved in his campaign.
Despite the lack of clarity from the candidate, some of his supporters are optimistic about his campaign prospects. According to Eric Mastroianni, Paca’s personal friend, Paca said he was set on running as an independent when the two met last Tuesday at the post-election celebratory rally. After losing to Harp by a nearly three-to-one margin, Paca’s efforts should be centered around encouraging voter turnout and increasing his visibility in the Elm City neighborhoods, Mastroianni added.
“He came a long way, and people didn’t expect him to do as well,” he said. “He needs to take the data and figure out why no one came out to the polls. So whoever gets elected, they have to restore the faith in their office, no matter what office is in questions.”
Mastroianni also denied that Paca’s campaign was motivated by revenge — Paca and his wife Mendi Blue Paca are currently suing the mayor’s office for wrongful discharge from their city government positions — and said his advice to Paca is to stay positive and focused on his platform.
Jesse Phillips, Harp’s campaign manager, said the Harp campaign knows no more about Paca’s intentions than anyone else.
“Besides continuing to govern the city, right now the mayor and the campaign team are trying to assess whether Marcus is even going to follow through and run in November,” Phillips said.
Phillips said the Harp campaign has not been as active since the mayor’s victory last Tuesday. But he said activity will pick up again once Paca announces his plans.
Harp’s supporters tout her longtime experience with lawmaking and public service, which is considerably more comprehensive than that of Paca, who served one term as an alder and served as the city’s labor relations director before he was fired by Harp in 2016. Haci Catalbasoglu ’19, who is running for Ward 1 alder, also praised the mayor for her commitment to New Haven’s sanctuary city status, a major point of contention in the mayoral debate between Paca and Harp on Sept. 6.
“I am proud to support her in her re-election campaign so she can keep the city moving forward,” said Catalbasoglu, who officially endorsed Harp last week. “I’m proud to stand with someone who shares my commitment to improving our community and ensuring that Yale and New Haven thrive because of each other, with a deeper, more meaningful relationship between our city and our school.”
A total of 7,407 votes were cast in last Tuesday’s primary elections.
Hurricane Sandy may have left Connecticut, but the updates haven’t stopped.
A fake “University Update” from newest campus celebrity University Vice President Linda Lorimer hit inboxes Wednesday afternoon, giving students advice about clothing, note-taking skills and flashlight applications.
The email — convincingly sent by “lindyloo@yale.edu” and “lindakochlorimer@yahoo.com” — uses capital letters and borrows the same urgent tone that Lorimer adopted when urging students to stay indoors during Hurricane Sandy.
“For those of you returning to lecture classes, I encourage you all to take rigorous notes,” the e-mail read, under the subcategory “CLASSES.” “Anyone who finds themselves checking their email or Facebook more than is productive, I recommend that you switch to taking notes BY HAND to minimize distractions.”
Solid advice that we all could use, but was it from Lorimer? The email further encouraged students to find the perfect outfit for today’s 56-degree weather. The supposed Lorimer even went so far as to tell students that if they were unsure about what they should wear, they could email her a description of their outfit for further feedback.
Read Lindyloo’s full email below:
CLASSES AND EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES RESUME TODAY.
FOR THOSE NEEDING HELP: I am grateful to know that many of you will now be able to return to writing papers and reports. For those suffering particular difficulties with structuring elegant prose, PLEASE know that the Writing Center AND your College Writing Tutors offer peer and professional guidance, both under-utilized resources.
CHILLY TEMPERATURES have returned as we get closer to winter. It is expected to be around 56 degrees today, so I advise you to wear a LIGHT sweater throughout the day. If you are wondering whether something you have picked out is right for today: please give me a description of your options and I will respond as soon as I can!
CLASSES. For those of you returning to lecture classes, I encourage you all to take rigorous notes. Anyone who finds themselves checking their email or Facebook more than is productive, I recommend that you switch to taking notes BY HAND to minimize distractions.
To those who added a flashlight app at my suggestion, it is now acceptable though not necessary to remove it. You may find it helpful when searching under your desk for a pen cap or when looking through your purse to find your keys.
MY HEARTFELT THANKS FOR YOUR COOPERATION as we enjoy a normal Wednesday. Please continue to monitor http://emergency.yale.edu for more tips and advice.
No word yet on whether this is Pundits.
P.S. According to Lorimer, it is now acceptable to remove the flashlight app from your phone, but not necessary.
Have you been dismayed by the lack of media coverage on the Yale presidential search? Do you fervently wish that somebody, anybody, would just take this job?
If so, fear not, because a Yale School of Management graduate has published a new column on Insider Higher Education in which he openly — and somewhat satirically — declares his candidacy for the University’s top job.
Wick Sloane SOM ’84, the author and self-appointed presidential nominee, has a number of points detailed on his “Eli-genda.” He starts off by suggesting that since so many Yalies were involved in the Iraq War — including former U.S. President George W. Bush ’68, U.N. Ambassador John Bolton ’70 LAW ’74 and former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney — the first thing he would do as president would be to apologize for the war.
Sloane also advocates closing the “long-inert” School of Management, where he graduated, arguing that the school has strayed away from its roots over the years.
“The school fails to land at the top of the plain-vanilla business-school rankings,” Sloane writes. “Why would a nontraditional, innovative program expect to be on the same list as Harvard, Stanford or Wharton? I thought the Yale brand was about leading, not following.”
In addition, Sloane makes a case for non-traditional students and argues that nearly 20 percent of each entering class should be devoted to Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans.
Sloane does note, however, that when Hillary Clinton “picks Yale as her Ike/Columbia staging area for the U.S. Presidency,” he will drop out of the Yale presidential race.
After 20 years as Yale’s leader, University President Richard Levin will step down from his post at the end of the 2012-’13 school year, he announced in a Thursday morning email to the Yale community.
In his email, Levin said he recognized that it is a “natural time for transition” after being at the University for more than 40 years, first as a graduate student and later as an economics professor.
“These years have been more rewarding and fulfilling than I ever could have imagined,” he wrote in his email.
Levin said he planned to take a sabbatical after leaving his post and complete a book reflecting on higher education and economic policy. He did not name a successor. Read the full text of the email below:
I write to inform you that I will step down from my position as President of the University at the end of the current academic year, my twentieth year of service.
From the day Jane and I entered graduate school in 1970, Yale has been our life. Since I joined the faculty in 1974, my efforts – as teacher, scholar, and President – have been rewarded in superabundance. As President, I have had the strong and enabling support of devoted faculty, staff, students, alumni, trustees, and friends, but as my twentieth anniversary approaches, I recognize that this is a natural time for a transition. We stand between the realization of many important institutional goals and another round of major initiatives. We have successfully completed the Yale Tomorrow campaign, renovated all twelve residential colleges, reduced our budget in the wake of the financial crisis, secured the funding to construct the new School of Management facility, achieved critical mass on the West Campus, and ensured the successful launch of Yale-NUS College by recruiting outstanding leadership and the first cohort of faculty, and breaking ground on a new campus. Before us lie decisions about when to proceed with such projects as constructing the Yale Biology Building, facilities for science teaching, a new home for the School of Drama, and two new residential colleges, as well as renovating the Hall of Graduate Studies and Hendrie Hall.
It is a source of great satisfaction to leave Yale in much stronger condition – academically, physically, and financially – than it was when I began in 1993. Our faculty is stronger than ever, and our deans and directors all have clear and ambitious agendas that will keep the University moving forward. Our partnership with the city of New Haven has led to great improvement in the condition of our downtown and surrounding neighborhoods. We have transformed relations with our labor unions. And we have become a truly global university – providing international experiences to the great majority of our students, supporting hundreds of faculty collaborations throughout the world, and, influencing the development of law, the effectiveness of health care delivery, and the course of global higher education.
To the faculty and staff who contribute daily to the work of the University, to the students who give it meaning, and to the alumni and friends who provide generous support, I offer my profound thanks. These years have been more rewarding and fulfilling than I ever could have imagined. My words on accepting my appointment as President are as true today as they were on April 15, 1993: “The greatness of this institution humbles me.” I am deeply grateful for having had the opportunity to serve Yale.
I look forward to a sabbatical next year, when at last I will have the time to complete a book of reflections on higher education and economic policy.
Yale Trustee Fareed Zakaria ’86 was suspended by Time Magazine and CNN today after plagiarizing parts of his Aug. 20 Time column on gun control.
Zakaria, editor-at-large of Time Magazine and host of CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS, admitted in a statement that portions of the column closely resemble paragraphs in an April New Yorker article by Jill Lepore GRD ’95, according to the Atlantic Wire. In a short statement to the News, University President Richard Levin said that he is “in the process of convening a meeting of the Yale Corporation Committee on Trusteeship to discuss the process for reviewing this matter, which we take very seriously.”
A statement from a Time spokeswoman to the Atlantic Wire said Zakaria’s actions “violate our own standards for our columnists” and announced that his column would be suspended for a month, “pending further review.” CNN, which published a shorter blog post by Zakaria also containing sections similar to Lepore’s article, said his show has been suspended while the issue is “under review.”
“It is a serious lapse and one that is entirely my fault. I apologize unreservedly to [Lepore], to my editors at Time, and to my readers,” said Zakaria, who was named a successor trustee of the Yale Corporation in 2006.
Below are the paragraphs in question from Zakaria’s column and from the New Yorker:
From Zakaria’s column in Time’s Aug. 20 issue:
Adam Winkler, a professor of constitutional law at UCLA, documents the actual history in Gunfight: The Battle over the Right to Bear Arms in America. Guns were regulated in the U.S. from the earliest years of the Republic. Laws that banned the carrying of concealed weapons were passed in Kentucky and Louisiana in 1813. Other states soon followed: Indiana in 1820, Tennessee and Virginia in 1838, Alabama in 1839 and Ohio in 1859. Similar laws were passed in Texas, Florida and Oklahoma. As the governor of Texas (Texas!) explained in 1893, the “mission of the concealed deadly weapon is murder. To check it is the duty of every self-respecting, law-abiding man.”
From Lepore’s article in the New Yorker’s April 23 issue:
As Adam Winkler, a constitutional-law scholar at U.C.L.A., demonstrates in a remarkably nuanced new book, “Gunfight: The Battle Over the Right to Bear Arms in America,” firearms have been regulated in the United States from the start. Laws banning the carrying of concealed weapons were passed in Kentucky and Louisiana in 1813, and other states soon followed: Indiana (1820), Tennessee and Virginia (1838), Alabama (1839), and Ohio (1859). Similar laws were passed in Texas, Florida, and Oklahoma. As the governor of Texas explained in 1893, the “mission of the concealed deadly weapon is murder. To check it is the duty of every self-respecting, law-abiding man.”
Patrick Witt’s ’12 decision to play at the Nov. 19 Yale-Harvard Game — scheduled to take place the same day as his Rhodes Scholarship interview — was not connected to the informal sexual assault complaint filed against him last fall, Witt’s representative Mark Magazu said in a Friday interview.
Magazu, president and chief executive officer at Atlas Strategies — which provides consulting services for professional athletes and entertainers — said Witt learned of the complaint Oct. 31, which was the same day he was notified of his status as a Rhodes finalist.
Witt received an email from Michael Della Rocca, chair of the University-Wide Committee on Sexual Misconduct, Magazu said. Witt was asked to meet with Della Rocca and Dean of Student Affairs Marichal Gentry, who was copied on the email, to discuss an informal complaint lodged against him by a fellow student, Magazu said. He added that administrators said in the email that they were seeking a “nondisciplinary resolution.” Informal complaints themselves do not result in disciplinary action, according to Yale policy.
Della Rocca could not be reached for comment Friday afternoon.
According to a statement released on Witt’s behalf by Magazu, Witt’s Rhodes nomination was never “suspended” — contrary to a New York Times article published Thursday. Witt withdrew his Rhodes application on Nov. 13 after repeated requests to reschedule his interview, according to Magazu.
Though the Rhodes Trust asked Yale for an additional letter of reference after learning of the informal complaint, Witt said he had already told the Athletics Department he planned to withdraw his application, according to the statement.
Magazu added that Witt will graduate this spring after completing his senior essay.
Read Magazu’s full statement below:
Statement on behalf of Patrick Witt in response to New York Times article
On January 27, 2012, The New York Times published a story regarding Patrick Witt, senior quarterback for Yale University, referencing Patrick’s decision to forego his pursuit of the Rhodes Scholarship in order to compete against Harvard in his final college football game.
This was a difficult decision for Patrick, as his candidacy for the Rhodes Scholarship represented a high honor and an opportunity to explore his personal academic interests in international affairs at Oxford. Patrick respects the academic traditions of both Yale and the Rhodes Trust, and he remains grateful for the opportunities each has afforded him.
The New York Times story incorrectly connects Patrick’s decision to forego the Rhodes Scholarship with an informal complaint process that had concluded on campus weeks prior to his withdrawal – a process that yielded no disciplinary measures, formal reports, or referrals to higher authorities.
To be clear, Patrick’s Rhodes candidacy was never “suspended”, as the article suggests, and his official record at Yale contains no disciplinary issues.
Patrick formally withdrew his candidacy for the Rhodes Scholarship on Sunday, November 13, in an email to both the Regional Secretary and the American Secretary of the Rhodes Trust. He withdrew after being informed in an email from the Regional Secretary on November 8 that the Rhodes Committee would not reschedule Patrick’s final interview, which would overlap Yale’s football game versus Harvard on November 19. Though disappointed, Patrick understood the fairness of this decision and accepted it as conclusive.
As this decision process unfolded, Patrick became aware that an anonymous source had contacted the Rhodes Trust with false information purporting to reference an informal – and confidential – complaint within the University. In light of this, and given the short period of time between this occurrence and the potential final interview, the Rhodes Trust asked for an additional letter of reference for Patrick from Yale. By that time, however, Patrick had already informed Athletic Department officials that he intended to withdraw his candidacy due to the inability to reschedule his final interview, and that he would issue a statement to this effect following the Princeton game on November 12.
Patrick’s inclination to forego the Rhodes Scholarship in the event of an irreparable scheduling conflict is a longstanding matter of public record. For example, The New Haven Register article entitled “Patrick Witt Places ‘The Game’ Over Rhodes Interview” was published before Patrick was notified of the initiation of any informal complaint process. That article quotes Patrick as follows: “The commitment I made to this team I believe would come first and I would want to honor that. It wouldn’t feel right letting them down for not being there for the Harvard/Yale game.”
Regarding the informal complaint referenced in the New York Times article, Yale offers students both informal and formal avenues to address certain issues. An “informal” complaint is heard by a committee of university community members, but no fact-finding process occurs and there is no burden of proof required for filing a complaint. In Patrick’s case, no formal complaint was filed, no written statement was taken from anyone involved, and his request to the Chairman of the committee for a formal inquiry was denied because, he was told, there was nothing to defend against since no formal complaint was ever filed. Further, while the committee can refer an informal complaint into a formal process if more substantial disciplinary action may be warranted, it did not do so in Patrick’s case. At that time, all parties, including the University and Patrick, considered the matter ended.
Regarding the information contained in the informal complaint, neither Patrick nor the other parties are permitted by confidentiality rules to discuss details of the matter, though it is important to note that the committee took no further action after hearing the informal complaint. Patrick is aware that the informal complaint was filed by a person he had known for many months prior and with whom he had engaged in an on-again, off-again relationship beginning in the Spring of 2011 and ending about two months before the informal complaint was filed.
Finally, as to Patrick’s academic standing at Yale, he has completed all necessary coursework and will graduate upon submission of his senior essay this spring, as is standard for all students in his major.
Plane tickets to Singapore are expensive, but with the right course load, you too can get a Yale-NUS education — right here in New Haven!
Yale-NUS students will be taking a 10-course core curriculum, including four courses studying the “Great Works” of the Eastern and Western literary traditions, according to the college’s proposed curriculum. It’s really not so different from what most humanities majors at Yale do every single day. So if these students were at Yale, what would they be taking? Let’s check it out.
To get a full Yale-NUS experience, start with Directed Studies. This is ridiculous work, but on the bright side, it covers almost the entire Western half of the Yale-NUS reading list. Even better, the program is run by Jane Levin, easily the nicest first lady of any Ivy League university (hi Mrs. Levin!).
Next up is the Eastern tradition. Since Yale doesn’t have Eastern DS, you’ll have to mix and match a bit. Here’s your best bets:
SKRT 130a/LING 138a: Intermediate Sanskrit I
The first half of a two-term sequence aimed at helping students develop the skills necessary to read texts written in Sanskrit. Readings include selections from the Hitopadesa, Kathasaritsagara, Mahabharata and Bhagavadgita. After SKRT 120b or equivalent.
HUMS 418a/RLST 130a/SAST 367a, Traditional Literature of India, China, and Japan
Introduction to literary works that shaped the great civilizations of Asia. Focus on traditional literature from India, China and Japan. Readings range from religious and philosophical texts to literature of the court, poetry, drama and epics.
Now you have to take philosophy and poli sci classes. A little Steven Smith and Jay Elliot, and you should be fine:
HUMS 319b/PHIL 324b, Prudence and Ethics
Prudence as a central concept for understanding action, practical reason, and ethics. Focus on the tradition that flows from Aristotle to Thomas Aquinas and their twentieth-century inheritors and critics.
PLSC 114a, Introduction to Political Philosophy
A study of the first and most fundamental of all political concepts, the regime or constitution. Definition of a regime; evaluation of various kinds of regimes; the kinds of citizens that different regimes produce; differences between ancient and modern conceptions of constitutional government. Readings from Plato, Aristotle, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau and Tocqueville.
And then bam! You got a solid Yale-NUS education, folks! Just take all the D.S., four semesters of humanities, Sanskrit and political science, and you’re golden like the Singaporean sun.
As Yale-NUS College prepares to open in fall 2013, Harvard has created an administrative position that will examine the university’s “global engagement.”
Harvard Business School Professor Krishna Palepu was named President Drew Gilpin Faust’s senior adviser for global strategy on Wednesday, the Crimson reported. Palepu will work to implement the recommendations of Harvard’s International Strategy Working Group, which in October 2011 delivered its findings to the Harvard Board of Governors, the school’s highest governing body. The findings have not yet been released to the public.
“I am delighted that Harvard has, with this appointment, underscored its commitment to global engagement,” Jorge Domínguez, Harvard’s vice provost for international affairs, told the Harvard Gazette.
Palepu will also work on international fundraising and alumni outreach, in coordination with Domínguez.
After 11 years of service, Morse Master Frank Keil announced his retirement today in an email to the Morse community. He will leave his post at the end of the school year.
“As every new class of Morsels arrives and we get to know all the new freshmen in small dinners in our house, we start to eagerly anticipate their glorious futures at Yale; and so it is hard to not stay on and watch that all unfold with each new class,” he wrote in the email. “But, we had to step down sometime and, painful as it is, this year seems right.”
Keil said that this decision had been in the works for a while — he said he wanted to leave after the Morse renovations were complete. He thanked his colleagues in Morse, including Dean Joel Silverman and his wife, and did not mention whether a successor had been appointed yet.
In a Tuesday email to the Yale community, University President Richard Levin announced that Kimberly Goff-Crews ’83 LAW ’86 will be Yale’s first vice president for student life.
In the newly created position, Goff-Crews will coordinate the student life efforts of administrators across Yale College and the graduate and professional schools, Levin said. She will also convene a council of the chief student affairs officers in each of the schools, he added.
[ydn-legacy-photo-inline id=”982″ ]
“At this moment in our history, it seems useful to ask an Officer to take leadership of efforts to support our students,” Levin said. “There are numerous administrative offices — ranging from housing to transportation to health services — that have expanded their services for students, but no single person is charged with assessing our success in meeting — or anticipating — student needs.”
Goff-Crews is not new to the Yale administration. Most recently, she served as one of four members of the Advisory Committee on Campus Climate, which was tasked with proposing a set of recommendations on how the University could more effectively target issues of sexual harassment, violence and misconduct. Levin released the committee’s 42-page report to the Yale community on Nov. 10.
Previously, she served as assistant dean of Yale College and director of the Afro-American Cultural Center from 1992 to 1998, when she worked on student programs such as Freshmen Orientation and Science, Technology and Research Scholars (STARS), which provides support for female and minority students in the sciences.
Goff-Crews currently serves as vice president for campus and student life at the University of Chicago, where Levin said she is “responsible for the oversight and strategic direction of student services and student life across the university.” At Chicago, Goff-Crews’ efforts ranged from student housing to health programs, Levin said.
When Goff-Crews steps into the role this summer, she will also assume the duties of University secretary — the position currently held by Linda Lorimer. Goff-Crews will take over from Lorimer in coordinating the University’s major ceremonial events, including Commencement, and supporting the Yale Corporation and the University Council, Levin said.
The change, Levin said, will allow Lorimer to focus on her responsibilities as vice president, such as overseeing international programs, alumni affairs, and communications and serving as senior advisor to Levin.
