VANDERBILTMAGAZINE

fall 2007

One toddler. Big City, Two goats. Cut Me Loose No electricity, running water, phone or car. Can this marriage survive? also: The High Price of No-Cost Health Care Goodbye, Mr. Gee The Residential Campus V ITAL

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1:09:55 PM Contents

FEATURES 30 Big Shoulders, Deep Pockets, Tightened Belts Forty-five million Americans have no medical insurance —and the fallout for academic medical centers is jeopardizing the entire health-care system. 38 ’Dore No More Gordon Gee wasn’t like any chancellor Vanderbilt had before. Neither was his exit strategy. 42 American Rustic When the world wearies and ceases to satisfy, nothing spells refreshment like a lukewarm glass of DEPARTMENTS goat’s milk. 5 DoreWays 8 1,000 Words 52 10 The Campus Common Ground 16 Sports Starting next year, 20 Collective Memory Vanderbilt’s move to a 22 Bright Ideas residential college system 26 In Class will profoundly alter the lives and learning 60 The Mind’s Eye of students. 66 S.P.O.V. 68 A.P.O.V. COVER Photo of Heather Higginbotham 70 The Classes Ward, BA’91, and Logan Ward, Southern Journal BA’88, by Daniel Dubois. 88 Story on page 42. 2 All Together Now

Is the Millennial Generation ready for residential life in The Commons? Vanderbilt is betting $150 million on the answer. Story on page 52. Photo by Tom Gatlin. Contributors

Editor Whitney Weeks GayNelle Doll Whitney Weeks, BA’94, served as director of strategic communications for Art Director and Designer Vanderbilt University’s Division of Public Affairs until earlier this year, when

Donna DeVore Pritchett For the Fall 2007 issue she left in order to master the domestic arts and launch her freelance writing career. Both before and after earning a master’s degree from Smith College, she Editorial has worked in various capacities for Vanderbilt—including but not limited to Associate Editor and Advertising Manager administrative assistant for the Department of Otolaryngology, undergraduate admissions Phillip B. Tucker counselor and speech writer. She lives in Nashville with her husband and their two children. Arts & Culture Editor Bonnie Arant Ertelt, BS’81 Mary Tom Bass Class Notes and Sports Editor Mary Tom Bass, MEd’85, is the former editor of Vanderbilt Magazine, Vanderbilt VNelson Bryan, BA’73 Medicine and the Owen Manager alumni publications. During her 16-year tenure at Vanderbilt, she also served as director of campaign communications Contributing Writer Cindy Thomsen and director of medical advancement communications. In 2001 she returned to her hometown of Red Oak, N.C., where she lives in the home that has been in Production and Design her family for more than 100 years. Since 2002 she has been director of public information Chief Photographers at Edgecombe Community College. Daniel Dubois, Steve Green Logan Ward Assistant Designers Susan Striepe, Keith Wood Logan Ward, BA’88, has written travel stories for National Geographic Adventure, The New York Times, Men’s Journal, Popular Science, House Beautiful and other Color Correction and Retouching Julie Luckett Turner publications. He also writes regularly about science and architecture and is a contributing editor for Popular Mechanics, Cottage Living, Coastal Living, New Vanderbilt Magazine Advisory Board Old House and Southern Accents. He lives with his wife, Heather Higginbotham Roy Blount Jr., BA’63 Ward, BA’91, and their two children in Staunton, Va. Caneel Cotton, BA’88 Terry Eastland, BA’71 Ashley Rogers Robert Early, BA’71, MDiv’76 Ashley Rogers graduated from Vanderbilt in May 2006 with a bachelor’s degree Sam Feist, BA’91 in international political communication. She grew up in West Monroe, La. Frye Gaillard Jr., BA’68 During her studies at Vanderbilt, she interned in Thailand and India and spent Janice Miller Greenberg, BS’80 a semester in France. She established Vanderbilt FREE, a student organization G. Marc Hamburger, BA’64 that seeks to raise awareness of human trafficking and modern-day slavery. Wendell Rawls Jr., BA’70 After graduation she returned to India to volunteer in Calcutta with victims of trafficking. Edward Schumacher Matos, BA’68 Michael Schoenfeld She is now a first-year student at the University of Washington School of Law in Seattle.

Potential advertisers interested in purchasing space in Katherine Miller Vanderbilt Magazine should contact Phillip Tucker, advertising manager, at [email protected] or Katherine Miller is a sophomore in the College of Arts and Science from 615/322-3989. McLean, Va. A double major in English and economics, she serves as an Vanderbilt Magazine is published three times per year by Vanderbilt University from editorial and business offices assistant editor of the Life section of The Vanderbilt Hustler and as an associate at the Loews Vanderbilt Office Complex, 2100 West End Ave., Suite 820, Nashville, TN 37203. Phone: 615/322- editor of the Vanderbilt Torch, for which she writes political satire and draws 1003. E-mail: [email protected]. Please the occasional comic. send address corrections to Gift Records Office, Vander- bilt University, VU Station B 357727, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, Nashville, TN 37235-7703. Vanderbilt Magazine is Additional Contributors: William Akers, Carole Bartoo, Joanne Beckham, Craig printed by Lane Press in Burlington, Vt. Boerner, Neil Brake, Vivian F. Cooper, Lisa DuBois, Kara Furlong, John Howser, Bridgette Opinions expressed in Vanderbilt Magazine are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect the Kohnhorst, Princine Lewis, Jonathan Marx, Joseph Mella, Melanie Moran, Ann Marie Deer views of the magazine or the university administration. Owens, Jim Patterson, Anne Rayner, Kathy Rivers, David F. Salisbury, Bill Snyder, Cindy Vanderbilt University is committed to the principles of equal opportunity and affirmative action. Steine, Dagny Stuart, Amy Wolf, Byron Walden, Wayne Wood Copyright 2007 Vanderbilt University

4 F a l l 2 0 0 7 DoreWays

From the Editor From the Reader Hogwarts, Vanderbilt Style Spring Accolades

n every issue of Vanderbilt Magazine, we include an essay written by a stu- In the most recent issue of Vanderbilt dent. The most frequent challenge I face as editor of these essays is convincing Magazine was an article about the under- young writers to share their stories, blemishes and all. One of the first rules of graduate admissions process [Spring 2007

writing is that without conflict, there is no story. Yet I find among high-achieving A forum for exchangingissue, ideas “Getting In,” p. 28]. I read it with inter- I est—as I have a rising high school senior Vanderbilt students a tendency to want to put their best foot forward and present life as near-perfect. Perfection, I tell them, is greatly overrated. It bores the reader and and took a “college road trip” with her earli- lacks credibility. That’s why I found Katherine Miller’s essay about her generation’s er in the summer—and have a friend who fears (page 66) so compelling. would like to read the article. I can’t locate At some point in their lives, Vanderbilt alum- my copy. Can I get another copy of the ni grow more willing to present their college years magazine? Thanks for your help. as less than perfect. In 20 years of interviewing Dr. Steven O’Sheal, BA’77, MD’81 Vanderbilt alumni, I have been struck by the num- Birmingham, Ala. ber of times seemingly well-adjusted, gregarious, Your Spring 2007 edition of Vanderbilt successful people have told me, “You know, I never Magazine may be the best overall edition I really felt I fit in when I was at Vanderbilt.” I sus- have ever read. Articles covering multiple pect that’s a common sentiment at campuses nation- subjects for the diverse, still scholarly, inter- wide, especially for first-year students. It’s one of ests of VU students and graduates were the reasons I find Vanderbilt’s attempt to rethink superb. I even benefited with increased campus life knowledge from the article “Wired for Sound” by investing in The Commons (page 52) such an

JIM HSIEH [p. 56] and enjoyed nearly all the other intriguing story. articles. Imagine the audacity it took, in this day Thank you! and age, to envision a residential model of col- Dr. E. William Ewers, BA’46, MD’48 legiate life closer to the Aristotelian ideal than Nashville to Animal House. I was thinking about it a few days ago as I rode an elevator full of students absorbed I would like to request that copies of in their cell phones and BlackBerries, wrapped up in their individual lives. What will it the Spring 2007 issue be sent to two students be like for 18-year-olds who’ve had their own rooms, their own cars, their own music, who are planning to apply to Vanderbilt. The their own way for their whole lives, to suddenly dive into a life focused on community? article on navigating college admissions is Will they climb out of their comfort zones and embrace friendship with students who wonderful, and I know these two young ladies think, look and act differently? Can professors truly play a larger role in student lives will receive important information from it as and fulfill the ideal of mentor? Can the focus turn to the joy of learning for learning’s they plan and prepare their college admis- sake, even with 21st-century distractions assaulting today’s students at every turn? sions applications. It will be fascinating to see how nerds and jocks and grade-grubbers and Goths all Sylvia Medina find their place at The Commons and benefit from this cross-pollenization of ideals Salinas, Calif. and ideas. Speaking of the student experience: In a future issue of Vanderbilt Magazine, we Enough with the plan to include a story about Vanderbilt roommates. If you have an interesting story White Guy Foodies to share, we want to hear it. Did you and your roommate keep a ferret in your room The story about Vanderbilt grads in and dress it in black and gold? Go an entire semester without speaking? Become the restaurant biz [Spring 2007 issue, “Playing improbable lifelong friends? Drop me an e-mail at [email protected]. with Food,” p. 38] was a good idea, but could Remember—perfection is boring. you not find a single woman or minority to —GayNelle Doll

Vanderbilt Magazine 5 profile? They’re all white men—not very chefs are males, but she should just hang dents for Life President Laura Folse [ME’05], representative of the university’s alumni or in there because President Hillary is just now a medical student at Tulane, for work- student body, or the industry. Why were around the corner, thanks to President ing with pro-abortion advocates to save most of the restaurants profiled in Bush’s inept performance. She should take the lives of unborn children in Nashville Nashville? Vandy is not a regional school, consolation from the issue’s note on page during Laura’s years at Vanderbilt. and its alumni live everywhere. 33 that 58 percent of today’s college stu- It is sad to think how many future Van- Jennifer Tindall Adams, BS’91 dents are women, thanks to the undeclared derbilt students have been eliminated since Alexandria, Va. war people like she and Mr. Euchner have Roe, and how many more will be elimi- waged against boys for several decades. nated, but Ms. Stephens is certainly giv- Mr. Euchner, a big supporter of the Roe ing us hope in that regard. God bless her. Not a Member of the v. Wade Supreme Court decision, which Daniel M. Gray, Esq., BA’78 Euchner Fan Club even my fellow attorney liberals have admit- Falls Church, Va. I just completed Charles Euchner’s ted was dreadfully reasoned, must not be Spring 2007 Vanderbilt Magazine paean too happy with the stories [in the section to Marie Collins Wilson [“The Unsink- “The Classes”] about the Multnomah Coun- Ford Fizzle able Marie Collins Wilson,” p. 50], and I ty midwives on page 71 and Jane Stephens’ I would suggest that the reason now agree with Giadi De Laurentiis’s recent heroic efforts to save Kenyan children for Harold Ford Jr. did not win the Senate comments in Washington Flyer magazine adoption on page 74. As [I am] the uncle election [Spring 2007 issue, The Campus, that “food really has a way of bringing of four adopted nieces and nephews, Ms. “Gone in 30 Minutes,” p. 13] is that most people together.” So thank heavens for Stephens’ sacrifice is the sort of unselfish- Tennesseans prefer to have a successful Cindy Thomsen’s preceding article about ness that puts Ms. Collins Wilson’s bitter- businessman instead of a career politician outstanding VU alumni chefs [“Playing ness to shame. Finally, Euchner must not representing their interests in Washing- with Food,” p. 38]. Ms. Collins Wilson is have been thrilled with [former] Chan- ton. undoubtedly unhappy all the featured cellor Gee’s 2005 commencement remarks, Joseph W. Sloan, MS’58 when he complimented Vanderbilt Stu- Nashville

6 F a l l 2 0 0 7 Women’s Lacrosse Players p. 20]. I don’t know what made me smile ketball skills were mediocre, even for the Y Overlooked more … the story of Willie’s great works or league. But when I did manage to “make a I enjoy reading your magazine, but the old 1981–82 media guide photo of him play,” my teammates would voice their approval smiling broadly. by calling me “Hutch.” I liked that very much. wanted to tell you that Vanderbilt also has a I have attended many Vandy basketball It is great to be a Vandy fan because we women’s lacrosse team who happened to games over the years, including all of those know that the student athletes we cheer on be ranked in the top 20 and made it to the he played at Memorial Gym. One of the the field and court will one day make us NCAA’s. This is the second time this team most memorable was his home finale. Vandy equally proud as contributing members of has been left out of a Vanderbilt publica- thrashed Alabama soundly in C.M. New- the community. tion. They are an amazing group of coach- ton’s first season at Vanderbilt. I have vivid Thanks, Willie, for the memories, thanks es and hard-working women, and you omitted memories of Willie taking a curtain call to for being a credit to the university, and thanks them in your Sports Roundup. Women’s thunderous applause and cheering as he for being a wonderful person. lacrosse is one of the fastest-growing sports closed out his career at Memorial Gym. I J. Michael (Mickey) Sullivan in the country, and three Southern schools can still see him at the corner of the court BE’71, ME’79 are adding women’s varsity sports to their with his long arms raised and bright smile Nashville programs. Cathy Mundy beaming. We were all screaming, “Hutch!” “Hutch!” “Hutch!” Letters are always welcome Ellicott City, Md. I had always admired Willie’s play, feel- in response to contents of the magazine. ing that he was somewhat overlooked. That We reserve the right to edit for length, Salute to Willie year he finally received the recognition he style and clarity. Send signed letters to the In your Spring 2007 issue, you recog- deserved by being named first-team All Editor, Vanderbilt Magazine, VU Station nized a former student athlete, Willie “Hutch” SEC. That was especially gratifying to me B #357703, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, Jones, BS’82, who starred in basketball at because I wore his number, 22, on my YMCA- Nashville, TN 37235-7703, or e-mail Vanderbilt [Sports, “Where Are They Now?,” league basketball jersey for years. My bas- [email protected].

Vanderbilt Magazine 7 8 Last One In Is a Rotten Ovum

Just before plunging into their studies, medical students of the Class of 2011 cool off at an orientation party. The 104 incoming first-year medical students come from 30 U.S. states, Canada, Ethiopia, India, Republic of Korea, Poland, Taiwan and Thailand. Photo by Anne Rayner.

1,000Wor000Words One image frozen in time The Campus “ The climate crisis is not a political issue. It is a moral and

Gore Wins Nobel Partnership to Peace Prize Increase Number of Former U.S. Vice President Black Scientists Al Gore was named a winner of Faculty from Vanderbilt the Nobel Peace Prize on Oct. and South Africa’s University of 12 for his work to combat Cape Town (UCT) are working global warming. The 2007 together to recruit and train Nobel was awarded to Gore more black scientists in South jointly with the Intergovern- Africa. Vanderbilt and UCT will mental Panel on Climate be core partners in collaborative Change (IPCC). research and study across sever- The announcement marks al academic disciplines. The the second time in little over a universities have agreed to joint-

year that someone with Van- photo by jeff vespa/wireimage ly build an automated telescope derbilt ties has won the Nobel facility near Cape Town at the Peace Prize. Last year Muham- South African Astronomical mad Yunus, PhD’71, was cho- Observatory. sen jointly with Grameen Bank U.S. Congress. His wife, Tipper, have worked tirelessly and self- Like African Americans in for his work helping the poor earned a master’s degree in psy- lessly for many years.” the United States, black Africans through small loans. chology from Peabody College Gore said he will donate are underrepresented in the “Al Gore has for a long time in 1976. Gore’s late mother, the Nobel prize money (about physical sciences, particularly in been one of the world’s leading Pauline, was one of the first $750,000) to the Alliance for astronomy and space science. environmentalist politicians,” women to graduate from Van- Climate Protection, a nonprofit Vanderbilt has a program with the Nobel committee said in a derbilt Law School. Gore’s late environmental group. statement. “He became aware sister, Nancy Gore Hunger, Nobel Laureates with Van- at an early stage of the climatic earned a Vanderbilt B.A. in derbilt ties include Stanley challenges the world is facing. 1960. Cohen, distinguished professor His strong commitment, Gore has been a friend and of biochemistry, emeritus, who reflected in political activity, frequent visitor to Vanderbilt. shared the 1986 Nobel Prize with lectures, films and books, has From 1992 to 2002, he and Rita Levi-Montalcini for their strengthened the struggle Tipper were moderators of discoveries of growth factors; against climate change. the annual Family Re-Union Stanford Moore, BA’35, winner “He is probably the single conference. of the 1972 Nobel Prize in individual who has done the “I am deeply honored to Chemistry; Earl Sutherland, most to create greater worldwide receive the Nobel Prize,” Gore professor of physiology, winner understanding of the measures said in a statement. “This award of the 1971 Nobel Prize in Physi- that need to be adopted.” is even more meaningful ology or Medicine for discover- Gore has longstanding ties to because I have the honor of ies involving mechanisms that

Vanderbilt. He attended Van- sharing it with the IPCC—the trigger hormone action; and daniel dubois derbilt University Graduate world’s preeminent scientific Max Delbrück, 1969 winner of James Dickerson (with a graduate student) says the University of School in 1971–72 and Vander- body devoted to improving our the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Cape Town’s interests in material bilt Law School from 1974 to understanding of the climate Medicine for his part in discov- physics and nanoscience make for 1976, when he left to run for crisis—a group whose members ering the replication mechanism a good match.

10 F a l l 2 0 0 7 Fall 2007“

spiritual challenge to all of humanity. — Al Gore, 2007 Nobel Peace Prize winner

historically black Fisk University QuoteUnquote to help increase the number of minority students pursuing doctoral degrees in the physical sciences. UCT has a similar pro- gram with historically black University of the Western Cape.

Keivan Stassun, assistant Much of what passes

professor of physics and astron- “as news and information omy, is co-director of the Fisk- is in fact fiction, and Vanderbilt Master’s-to-Ph.D. Bridge Program and the Fisk it falls to novelists,“ Astronomy and Space Science paradoxically, to tell Training Program. He is leading the truth. Vanderbilt’s participation in the astronomy research collabora- tions with UCT. —Salman Rushdie, author of The Satanic James Dickerson, Vanderbilt Verses and winner of numerous literary assistant professor of physics, prizes, opening the Chancellor’s Lecture Series on Sept. 28. and UCT physicists David Brit- ton and Margit Harting are in talks to collaborate on research daniel dubois to produce novel nanocompos- gle-optical telescope in the want these to be deep, significant delivering babies at Nashville ite metals. Other research part- Southern Hemisphere. Funding partnerships as opposed to the General Hospital. The arrange- nerships in the areas of nano- from South Africa’s government scattershot approach that often ment, begun last summer, is science and materials physics and grants awarded through the results from having hundreds of aimed at easing capacity issues also are in the works. Vanderbilt Initiative in Data- university partnerships without in Vanderbilt’s labor and deliv- “What makes this partner- Intensive Astrophysics will help much depth,” Harrington says. ery service as well as providing ship so attractive is not only the build the universities’ joint For more information about assistance to the underserved. astronomy and physics research, automated telescope facility the grant program and the uni- Vanderbilt midwives offer but the fact that we are develop- near Cape Town. versity’s international efforts, prenatal and women’s care at ing the next generation of scien- Joel Harrington, Vanderbilt visit www.vanderbilt.edu/ both the West End Women’s tists—particularly those from assistant provost for internation- international. Health Center and the Vine underrepresented racial and al affairs, heads the Vanderbilt Hill Community Clinic, both ethnic groups,” Stassun says. International Office, which Nurse Midwives nurse-managed facilities affili- The South African govern- coordinated the partnership Deliver at ated with the Vanderbilt Uni- ment has made astronomy its with the University of Cape versity School of Nursing. The primary area of science invest- Town. He says Vanderbilt’s goal Nashville General VUSN nurse-midwifery team ment and has constructed the is to establish partnerships with Vanderbilt University of 13 is divided between the South African Astronomical six peer institutions around the School of Nursing nurse mid- two clinics and two hospitals in Observatory, which houses the world by the end of 2007 and an wives, who typically help birth order to offer continuity of care Southern African Large Tele- additional three or four during more than 700 babies each year, for patients. West End clients scope (SALT)—the largest sin- the subsequent two years. “We have expanded their reach to deliver at Vanderbilt Hospital >>

Vanderbilt Magazine 11 while Vine Hill clients deliver at and astronomy, psychology, Inquiring Minds Nashville General Hospital. biomedical engineering, and The nurse-midwifery prac- human and organizational Pregnancy May Help Cut Risks for HIV-Infected Women tice expects to deliver nearly development, as well as at the Women with HIV infection who become pregnant have a lower risk 300 babies at Nashville General medical and nursing schools. of progression to AIDS and death, Vanderbilt researchers report in the online edition of the Journal Hospital within the next year. “Historically, much of the of Infectious Diseases. They sug- Offering prenatal care at Vine interest in clickers came from gest that “the complex set of immuno- Hill and deliveries at NGH may instructors teaching science logic changes” during pregnancy produce healthier babies courses and large lecture class- may be interacting in a beneficial because economically disad- es,” says Derek Bruff, assistant way with combination drug thera- vantaged women may not seek director of the Vanderbilt Cen- py. care until the third trimester ter for Teaching and a senior Some previous studies in the due to financial reasons or lecturer in mathematics, who developing world reporting higher language barriers. has done extensive research on levels of complications and deaths Adding Nashville General the subject. “As you lead a class from AIDS among pregnant women Hospital to Vanderbilt’s mid- discussion with 15 students, were conducted before drug “cock- wifery service also helps with you get a sense of what they tails” dramatically reduced death and complication rates. More study nursing student placements and preceptorships. The School of Clickers give is needed, cautions Dr. Timothy Sterling, the study’s senior author an instructor and associate professor of medicine. The study was begun four Nursing is able to double the real-time years ago by first-year medical student Mercy Udoji. Jennifer Tai number of students per clinical feedback. also made major contributions to the study. rotation and give them a more hands-on labor experience in a Multiple Sclerosis Gene Uncovered After 30-Year Search low-intervention birth model. Researchers have uncovered a gene linked to multiple sclerosis that could pave the way for future treatment options. Nature Genetics and The New England Journal of Medicine have published studies Classroom Response that report the most significant MS genetic breakthrough since the System Clicks 1970s. Researchers from Vanderbilt, the University of Miami, the Gone are the days of University of California-San Francisco, Duke University, and the straight lecturing by instructors University of Cambridge participated in the studies. The research “provides solid genetic and functional evidence and note taking by students. steve green that the interleukin 7 receptor (IL7R) alpha chain gene is associat- Instead, clickers, which look are struggling with and can ed with MS,” says Jonathan Haines, director of the Center for like small remote controls, are respond appropriately. Once Human Genetics Research at Vanderbilt. This genetic variation can allowing students to become you hit a hundred or 200 increase an individual’s risk of developing MS by about 20 percent. active participants and instruc- students, there are very few tors to gauge how well concepts options for having that kind Mobile Pollution Sensors Could Offer Greater Accuracy are sinking in. of meaningful interaction. Engineers in the Vanderbilt An instructor using a class- “Clickers scale up very Institute for Software Inte- room response system poses well—the bigger the class, the grated Systems have won a multiple-choice questions to more payoff, because clickers research award from Microsoft students via an overhead or can be used to organize a lecture Corp. to develop a real-time, computer projector during a online, detailed picture of air in ways that really get students quality in large metropolitan lecture. Students respond using talking to each other, generating areas. The mobile air-quality the handheld clickers, which ideas, thinking hard about the monitoring system will make transmit infrared or radio-fre- content,” Bruff adds. it possible to monitor air quality more accurately than the current quency signals to a receiver Instructors may pose fact- fixed-station system by using car-mounted sensors that measure, attached to the instructor’s based questions that serve to process and report emission levels. computer. Software reads the keep students on pace with Principal investigator is Akos Ledeczi, research assistant pro- responses, compiling data that classroom discussion. Students’ fessor of electrical engineering at Vanderbilt. Xenofon Koutsoukos, is seen on an overhead screen. responses are shown in real assistant professor of computer science and computer engineering, The technology has taken time, allowing the instructor to and Peter Volgyesi, research scientist in electrical engineering and off in such departments as gauge their understanding and computer science, serve as co-principal investigators. chemistry, economics, physics tailor the lecture accordingly.

12 F a l l 2 0 0 7 The Revolution Starts Here www.coolpeoplecare.org Sam Davidson, MDiv’09, created this Web site to give users easy, prac- tical resources for making a positive impact on their local communities. The “5 Minutes of Caring” section offers daily 99-word articles featur- ing practical tips and motivation. The “Act Locally” calendar lists meaningful events, from 5K runs to lectures, in many American cities, and a “Partners” page matches your interests with community organi- zations. If five minutes a day is too much of a commitment, there are t- shirts (cool, of course) and Fair Trade coffee you can order. Virtual Vanderbilt

Or, instructors may ask ques- years after graduating from law and politics, he is a well- of Negativity: Attack Ads in tions that generate discussion. law school and at age 30 was known character actor who has Presidential Campaigns, says One of the best advantages of appointed minority counsel of appeared in more than 20 films “Thompson has a folksy way such a system, Bruff says, is the the Senate Watergate Commit- and nearly 30 television pro- and ability to connect with the immediacy of the technology. “I tee. He next served as special grams, most notably as District voters, including the GOP base. don’t have to wait until the end counsel to both the Senate Attorney Arthur Branch on He will also attract some of the semester to determine Select Committee on Intelli- Law & Order. Democrats and independents.” whether the students are under- gence and the Senate Commit- Vanderbilt political scientist Thompson is not the only standing things the way I want tee on Foreign Relations. John Geer says Fred Thompson Vanderbilt Law School graduate them to. Instead, I leave every In his first campaign for will be a formidable presiden- making headlines recently. In class with a pile of data that tells office in 1994, Thompson was tial contender. “Thompson has September, Nashville voters me what the students do and do elected U.S. senator from Ten- never been so ambitious that elected Karl Dean, JD’81, to not understand.” nessee, filling the unexpired he is willing to do anything to succeed Bill Purcell, JD’79, as For more information about term of Al Gore, who attended be president, which could cer- the city’s mayor. classroom response systems and graduate school and law school tainly be a plus in the cam- Dean served as Metropolitan resources on campus, visit at Vanderbilt in the 1970s. paign,” Geer says. “Of course, Nashville’s law director before www.vanderbilt.edu/cft/crs.htm. Thompson was returned to the one of his greatest strengths is entering the mayoral campaign. Senate for a full term in 1996. his rapport with the camera.” He was elected Metro Nashville Law Graduates In addition to his success in Geer, author of In Defense public defender three times dur- ing the 1990s before joining Pur- Get Political cell’s staff as the city’s law Fred Thompson’s acting One of Vanderbilt’s own credits include portraying director in 1999. He is also an jumped into the presidential Ulysses S. Grant and adjunct professor at Vanderbilt candidate ring in September, providing the voice of Law School, where he teaches ending months of speculation. Andrew Jackson. Now he’s trial advocacy. Dean’s wife, Anne Even before he declared his can- going for the real deal. Davis, JD’81, teaches legal writ- didacy, Fred Thompson, JD’67, ing at Vanderbilt. polled third nationally among Purcell, who was director GOP presidential contenders. of the Vanderbilt Institute for The preferred candidate among Public Policy Studies’ Child many conservatives, Thompson and Family Policy Center has drawn comparisons to before serving two terms as Ronald Reagan for his easy man- Nashville mayor, is now spend- ner and his acting background. ing four months teaching as a Thompson was named an resident fellow at Harvard’s assistant U.S. attorney only two ChuCK Kennedy/mCt Institute of Politics. >>

Vanderbilt Magazine 13 T HE C AMPUS

The Doctor “One Hundred Oaks will be Is in the Mall our largest clinic away from Top Picks our 21st Avenue location— It’s hard not to notice large enough that it will be Chemistry Whiz Awarded NSF Fellowship something as big as a dead considered a second major Kristin Glab, BS’07, is one of only 22 chemistry majors in the mall. Changes in consumer campus for the Medical country this year awarded a National Science Foundation fel- buying habits have led to the Center.” lowship, which will pay for three years decline of shopping centers in The 100 Oaks project will of graduate school. Following gradu- many cities, leaving space up ation from Vanderbilt last May, Glab include not only offices and for lease. is studying at the Massachusetts Insti- outpatient facilities but also a Those empty stores can pro- tute of Technology. Last spring the fitness center and a child-care vide a creative solution for a chemistry whiz won the Vanderbilt center for staff and faculty. A burgeoning medical center like Department of Chemistry’s top awards shuttle service will run between Vanderbilt’s, where finding for graduating seniors, the Outstand- 100 Oaks and VUMC’s 21st enough space is an ongoing ing Senior in Chemistry Award and Avenue location. the Donald E. Pearson Award for the steve green challenge. Vanderbilt Univer- One Hundred Oaks Mall senior with the most impressive research record. Glab ripped sity recently leased more than opened in 1967 and has experi- through the chemistry curriculum at Vanderbilt in just three half of Nashville’s oldest in- enced several cycles of rebirth. years, racking up a 3.9 grade point average. “She’s the best door mall, 100 Oaks Mall off Its current owners are Dallas- student we’ve had in at least 10 years,” says Associate Pro- Interstate 65. Officials expect based developers Frank Mi- fessor of Chemistry Piotr Kaszynski. some VUMC staff and faculty halopoulos and Tony Ruggeri. to be working at the 100 Oaks Engineering Dean Radiates Leadership location by next summer. Kenneth F. Galloway, dean of the Vanderbilt School of Engi- Grease Is the Word neering, has won the Richard F. Shea Distinguished Member The deal expands Vanderbilt Award from the IEEE (Institute of Medical Center’s size by almost A Vanderbilt student Electrical and Electronic Engineers) 440,000 square feet. Some out- group’s love of nature has led Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Socie- patient clinics and offices will to a project that will produce ty (NPSS). The annual award recog- move to the second and third cleaner-burning fuel on cam- nizes outstanding contributions through floors of the mall, as well as to pus. The Vanderbilt Biodiesel leadership and service to the NPSS an adjacent office tower. The Initiative, started by partici- and to the fields of nuclear and plas- first floor will continue to pants of Vanderbilt’s Wilskills ma sciences. Galloway helped found house a retail strip. program, will take used veg- the School of Engineering’s Radia- Dr. C. Wright Pinson, asso- etable oil—stuff that cooks daniel dubois tion Effects and Reliability Group ciate vice chancellor for clinical fried foods in campus cafete- and the Institute for Space and Defense Electronics. He is an affairs and chief medical offi- expert on radiation effects in power devices and mobility rias—and recycle it into envi- degradation in metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) transis- cer, says the move will relieve ronmentally friendly biodiesel. tors. congestion and take Vanderbilt Wilskills, an outdoor educa- services to the community in tion program that uses rock Volunteerism Recognized an easily accessible location. climbing, caving, hiking and with Red Cross Internship Arts and Science senior Kather- A 1960s shopping mall will house ine Woods was one of 30 college Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s students chosen nationwide for second major campus. the Presidential Internship Pro- gram this year at the American Red Cross’ national headquarters in Washington, D.C. Woods spent her summer working in the Office of General Counsel. As a middle school and high school student, Woods volunteered at the American Red Cross chap- ter in Martin County, Fla., and has continued her volun- teerism with the Vanderbilt Red Cross. The internship program runs a total of 10 weeks, from the beginning of June to the beginning of August. neil braKe

14 F a l l 2 0 0 7 you convert the vegetable oil equipment and possibly in med- first, you can use it in any ical center shuttle buses. The diesel vehicle.” Wilskills program has purchased Enlisting the help of other a diesel-engine van that will run campus groups, proponents of on 100 percent biodiesel. a campus biodiesel initiative set “The project is going to out to acquire processing reduce the amount of fuel con- Recycled oil from equipment. “We have a couple sumed on campus in significant Vanderbilt’s cafeterias could fuel campus of chemical engineers ways,” Riley says. “It’s going to vehicles such as involved, lots of engi- increase awareness about medical center neering students, just biodiesel and biofuels, and it’s shuttle buses. lots of creative people going to reduce emissions.” in general,” says Riley, Biodiesel produces about 60 who cites Professor of percent less net carbon-dioxide white-water canoeing to teach tally responsible group, the Practice of Civil and emissions than petroleum-based wilderness skills, coordinates a we like to think, so we thought Environmental Engineering diesel. six-day orientation experience we’d look into using biodiesel.” James Clarke as chief adviser. “I think there’s enough oil for first-year students, as well as Biodiesel is a processed fuel “We talked about ideas and supply on campus that we additional excursions through- derived from biological sources came up with a design, which eventually could be converting out the year. “We have a van that can be used in unmodified we continued to work on and 500 to 600 gallons a week into that we take out every weekend, diesel-engine vehicles. Veg- refine.” From the design, the biodiesel,” says Riley. “Down and we were using a lot of gas,” etable oil can be used in any group built a working pilot sys- the road we’re looking at says Derek Riley, MS’06, a diesel engine that has been tem that can produce 50 gal- potentially making 2,000 gal- Wilskills instructor and current converted to burn it, “but you lons of biodiesel in a batch. lons of biodiesel a month, graduate student in computer have to pay for the conversion,” Campus-produced biodiesel which is pretty significant for science. “We’re an environmen- Riley says. “With biodiesel, if will be used in plant operations a student-run project.”

Vanderbilt Magazine 15 Sports

Steady as a Rock

A look at Vanderbilt athletics Jonathan Goff anchors the Vanderbilt defense and leads by example. By NELSON BRYAN, BA’73

he Vanderbilt defense “He’s as steady as a rock,” Coach Bobby ing. I spent a lot of extra time in the weight takes the field and gathers Johnson says of Goff. “He doesn’t talk much room to develop myself physically and learn around player number 47. and tries to lead by example. If you walked the defensive scheme. It took me some time The 6-foot-4, 235-pound up to anyone in our locker room and asked to settle down and feel comfortable and middle linebacker sets the who works the hardest or who our leader understand it completely. My redshirt fresh- T defensive formation, and is, they’ll say Jonathan Goff.” Goff has been man year, I had the opportunity to start my waits for the offensive play to begin and his named to watch lists for the Bronko Nagur- first game against LSU down in Death Val- opportunity to crush it. And when the ball ski Award and the Chuck Bednarik Award, ley. I think it was their homecoming, too,” is whistled dead and the bodies are sorted honors given annually to the best defensive he recalls with a smile. out, number 47, Jonathan Goff, is in the players in the nation. “The place was packed, and it was more mix and ready to go again. Born in Atlanta, Goff moved to the Boston humid down there than any place I ever Goff, a redshirt senior, has anchored the area with his mother and older brother at remember being. It was a real eye-opening Vanderbilt defense after winning a starting the age of 2. He started playing football in experience. There’s no other feeling like role three years ago. He the eighth grade and that. I sort of felt like I was being thrown entered the 2007 season played high school foot- into the lion’s den, if you know what I mean. having started 28 con- ball at St. John’s Prep, It was a great experience for me.” secutive games, the most where his team posted Through the next two years, Goff was of any current Com- undefeated regular sea- getting more comfortable and his numbers modore. He returns as sons in 2001 and 2002, reflected his progress. “It felt like the game Vanderbilt’s leading tack- and he was named All- was slowing down a lot. Just understanding ler and one of the South- Conference and a Prep- offensive schemes a bit better and under- eastern Conference’s top Star All-East pick. “Before standing where I fit and where my team- active tacklers. He was that I was a soccer kid,” mates fit into the defensive scheme have named second-team All- Goff recalls. “In high helped me a great deal and allowed me to SEC by the coaches last school I also enjoyed play- make some plays.” year and was a presea- ing basketball and run- “It seems we have a lot more talent than son All-SEC pick this year. ning track.” we’ve ever had,” he says of the current crop He has been named a Goff was recruited by of Commodores. “We have a lot of players team co-captain for the a number of colleges and who’ve come a long way. I think this is the second consecutive year and passed up a offered scholarships at Wisconsin, Indiana best team and the best opportunity for us chance at the NFL draft to return for his and Northeastern. He chose Vanderbilt. to go to a bowl game since I’ve been here, at final season of eligibility. “Coach Johnson and his support staff seemed least as far as talent.” “It’s a great honor to be elected again by like they wanted to get the best out of me as Goff graduates in December with a degree my teammates,” Goff says. “I’m really appre- a player, an athlete and a person,” he says of in mechanical engineering. “After gradua- ciative of the support from my teammates his decision. “I thought Vanderbilt would tion I’m going to prepare for the next level,” and coaches and hope to be an outstanding be the best place for me to grow and mature. he says, “working out and getting in shape leader for this football team.” “My freshman year I did a lot of learn- for the scouts and NFL combines.” V

F a l l 2 0 0 7 16 PHOTOS BY DANIEL DUBOIS PHOTOS BY DANIEL DUBOIS year he made the SEC Academic Honor Roll. been a mechanical engineering major. Last One of Jonathan Goff’s toughest tackles has S PORTS

2007 Boasts Best-Ever Baseball Player of the Year and Coach of the Year hon- ors, Southeastern Conference Tournament and regular-season championships, and a fist- ful of All-American selections showcased 2007 as the best year for Vanderbilt baseball in the history of the program. The Commodores spent most of the sea- son ranked No. 1 in the nation. During their run the team logged a 20-8 conference record and claimed Vanderbilt’s first-ever SEC regu- lar-season championship with a 4-1 victory over Louisiana State University at Hawkins Field before a crowd of 2,685 fans. The Com- modores’ next challenge was the SEC Tourna- NEIL BrAkE ment, where they became the first team in “There’s not one selfish kid in the bunch,” said Coach Tim Corbin of his 2007 team. conference history to come back from a first- round loss (4-6 to Tennessee) and win five imately 2,000 fans in its most recent incarna- Corbin said of this year’s Commodores. “They’re straight to claim the crown. It was the first tion, expanded seating capacity by adding low maintenance. There’s not one selfish kid time an SEC team won both the regular sea- 1,500 bleacher seats and offering 200 stand- in the bunch. They’re unbelievable, and trust son and tournament titles since Alabama in ing-room-only tickets in the patio area in left me when I say this: I’ve never seen a team like 1996. field. All seats were sold within 36 hours. this, and I think that’s why we’ve been success- “It takes a special team makeup to do what Fans witnessed a remarkable series of games ful.” we did, to be the first team in SEC history to that also featured Austin Peay State University, The postseason brought accolades and oppor- come back like that,” Coach Tim Corbin said the University of Memphis, and the Universi- tunities to a number of Commodores. David of their tournament trek. ty of Michigan. The Michigan Wolverines sur- Price, a junior left-handed pitcher, garnered The NCAA rewarded Vanderbilt’s season- vived the remainder of the field and won the the lion’s share of honors. He was drafted No. long performance by naming the Commodores regional in a 4-3, 10-inning nail-biter over the 1 overall in the Major League Baseball draft by the No. 1 national seed in the 64-team NCAA Commodores. the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and signed for a baseball tournament and host of a regional “From a coaching standpoint, I don’t think reported $11.25 million, six-year contract. first round. Hawkins Field, which seated approx- I’ve ever had as much fun in my whole life,” Price was named Player of the Year by the Amer- ican Baseball Coaches Association, Baseball America, CSTV and Collegiate Baseball. He Where are they now? also was named SEC Male Athlete of the Year and SEC Pitcher of the Year, and won the Dick Tate Rich, BA’76, JD’79, still chuckles when reminded of the inter- Howser Trophy, Golden Spikes Award, Brooks ception he returned 35 yards for a touchdown against UT-Chattanooga Wallace Award and Roger Clemens Award. on Sept. 13, 1975. That play ranks in the Vanderbilt record Joining Price on various All-American lists books as one of the top-15 interception returns in school were sophomore Pedro Alvarez, junior Dominic history. “I tell people I was a prototype for Lawrence Taylor,” he laughs. “I played when Bill de la Osa, sophomore Ryan Flaherty, senior Parcells was an assistant coach pitcher Casey Weathers, and freshman pitcher here.” These days he works in the Mike Minor. family business as president of Major League Baseball also drafted the Delta Coals, a Nashville-based following Commodores: Casey Weathers, Col- coal sales agent for coal mines orado; Dominic de la Osa, Detroit; Cody Crow- located in Virginia and West- ell, BS’07, Toronto; Ty Davis, BS’07, Arizona; ern Kentucky. “I’ve been fortunate to work for the past 25 years with Doug Humphreys Tyler Rhoden, BS’07, Cincinnati; Jonathan [BS’78], another member of the Vander- White, Milwaukee; Stephen Shao, Colorado; bilt football team,” he says. “He’s the Kellen St. Luce, Florida; Sean Bierman, Cincin- owner of a family-operated coal mine in nati; and Joey Manning, Philadelphia. Wise County, Va.” Rich and Humphreys also are Coach Corbin was named SEC Coach of involved in oil and gas production with fellow Vandy the Year, College Baseball Insider Co-Coach of football player David Harber, BE’76, through Delta Oil the Year, and Vanderbilt Coach of the Year. and Gas, based in Tulsa, Okla. Rich and his wife, Nora Well- man Rich, BE’78, live in Nashville and have four children. The Commodores finished the season with a school-record 54 wins and 13 losses.

18 F a l l 2 0 0 7 DANIEL DUBOIS Sports Roundup

Vanderbilt hosted a Special Olympics Team USA training camp in July, which included a bocce ball competition.

Women’s Golf:Allen pound Nigerian. Ezeli also was recruited by head coach of a Vanderbilt sports program. Named Head Coach Florida, Ohio State and Georgetown. “I’ve always “We were fortunate to attract our top candidate Greg Allen has joined the Vanderbilt told our staff not to worry about who else is to Vanderbilt,” says Vice Chancellor David Williams sports community as the new recruiting a kid; he’s got to be a player in our II, “and believe D’Andre is the right person to devel- women’s golf coach. He comes to eyes,” Stallings says. “But it obviously validates the op the track and field program into a Southeastern Vanderbilt from the University of Allen young man’s potential that other people viewed Conference and national contender.” Hill competed Arizona, where he had coached the women’s team him the same way we do.” At his request, Ezeli for Louisiana State University during her collegiate since 2000. During his tenure his teams won two will be redshirted his freshman year. This year’s years, helping lead the Tigers to three straight Pac-10 conference championships and finished as signees include point guard Keegan Bell, forward national championships while running the 60, 100 an NCAA runner-up in 2002. Andre Walker, post player A.J. Ogilvy, forward and 200 meters as well as relays. She was a two- “We conducted an intensive national search, and Darshawn McClellan and wing Charles Hinkle. time NCAA individual outdoor champion in the 100 everyone has good things to say about Greg Allen,” meters. While she directs the women’s track and says David Williams II, vice chancellor for university Track and Field: Former Olympian field program, Steve Keith, BA’81, will serve as head affairs, general counsel, and secretary of the univer- Named Head Coach coach of Vanderbilt’s women’s and men’s cross coun- sity. “His vast experience running a top-10 program, D’Andre Hill, a former Olympic sprinter, has been try teams and distance runners. his record as one of the nation’s top recruiters, and named head coach of the women’s track and field program. She comes to Women’s Basketball:Vandy 3, his down-to-earth personality make him an ideal fit Hill for us at this time.” Allen has named former Vanderbilt after serving Spain 0 in Summer Competition Commodore golfer Nicki Cutler, BS’03, a two-time three years as an assistant Coach Melanie Balcomb saw her Commodores All-SEC performer, as assistant coach. Allen suc- coach for sprinters and log a three-win, no-loss campaign in Spain during ceeds former Coach Martha Richards, who accepted relays at Texas Christian the summer. The team concluded its Spanish tour the same position at the University of Texas. University in Fort Worth. with a 101-59 victory over the Madrid All-Stars. Before joining TCU she Senior Liz Sherwood led Vanderbilt with 24 points Men’s Basketball: Nigerian Post was head coach at Dayton and 17 rebounds. Five Commodores scored in Player Joins Commodores University in Ohio. She double figures, including junior Christina Wirth Coach Kevin Stallings has added a sixth player to represented the United States in the 1996 Olympic and sophomores Lauren Lueders, Jessica Mooney this year’s class, Festus Ezeli, a 6-foot-11, 245- Games in Atlanta and is the first African American and Amber Norton.

DANIEL DUBOIS Vanderbilt Magazine 19 CollectiveMemory

Vanderbilt’s roots revealed Showdown at Kirkland Hall They’re respectable middle-aged citizens now. But 30 years ago they were one Wild Bunch. By CINDY THOMSEN

n the surface, the group Alexander Heard all the more remarkable. college comes from the classroom, and he of freshmen who showed up “On the very first night of school, the said that his door was always open.” at Vanderbilt in the fall of chancellor invited the freshman class to his The new friends took that open-door 1973 didn’t seem that dif- house for dinner,” explains David Blum, policy seriously, and that is how a group of Oferent from any other. They now a real-estate broker and developer in cocky freshmen became fast friends with were bright, to be sure. Eager Wilmette, Ill., north of Chicago. “He gave a the most authoritative person around. At and excited about starting this new adven- little speech and told us two things: He said their first meeting the chancellor even named ture called college. And as they unpacked, that only 50 percent of what you learn in the group. Thirty years later they are still settled in, and started finding their known as the Wild Bunch. way around, they also started finding “We were really non-subdued around each other. For seven freshmen, those him,” remembers Cathy Madigan. “We first days in Nashville would come to were all pretty entertaining, and I think affect the rest of their lives. the chancellor was just a little taken They came to Vanderbilt as strangers aback that we weren’t this quiet fresh- for the most part—David Blum, Mike man group sitting there not saying Bagot, Phil Walker, Margaret Lynch anything. In fact, I’m not sure he had Callihan and Robert Courtney, all BA’77; a chance to get a word in edgewise.” and Cathy Madigan and Julie Caldwell Even in those early years at Van- Huffman, both BSN’77. (Walker and derbilt, the group was assuming lead- Madigan had been high school bud- ership roles in student government, dies back in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) various clubs, and in their respective They left as lifelong friends. And fraternities and sororities. they left a legacy that is still remem- “We clicked as people first, but we bered 30 years later. were the kind of people who wanted “We just literally became fast friends,” to contribute and give back and reach says Phil Walker, now a San Francisco outside the normal college existence,” attorney. “The universe does things says Blum. “We liked having fun, and that are very interesting. All of us had we liked to embarrass each other.” a personality that was a little chal- Madigan, now clinical director of lenging to authority.” the UNC Heart Center at the Uni- Remember, these are the days when versity of North Carolina, remem- Richard Nixon was president. The early bers two examples of the embarrassing years of the ’70s—before the atroci- behavior. One involved Walker’s pay-

ties of disco and Saturday Night Fever— RUSTY RUSSELL back for a perceived slight. “He hung The Wild Bunch rides again at a Reunion Weekend brunch in still had a ’60s-era vibe. Being leery a huge sign from the top of Lupton October hosted by Marty Baither Conrad, BSN’78, and Jim of the people in suits just came natu- Conrad. Phil Walker, BA’77, is at the right end of the front row Hall that read ‘Cathy and Julie—for rally. And that’s what makes this group’s (in blue shirt); David Blum, BA’77, is at the left end of the fat girls, you don’t sweat much.’” relationship with then-Chancellor second row (in black and gold striped shirt). But another time, Walker was on

20 F a l l 2 0 0 7 have chosen the University of Texas as his law school because “after four years at Van- derbilt, I had to go to a football school.” Regardless of where they landed, the group faithfully journeys back to Nashville every five years for their Vanderbilt Reunion and a “Wild Bunch Brunch.” Their 30-year reunion took place in October. In 1997, Blum chaired his 20-year Van- derbilt reunion. “I wanted the Wild Bunch to do something special, and someone came up with the idea of creating an endowment at the Jean and Alexander Heard Library to buy books,” he says. “I proposed it to the Wild Bunch pranksters brandish squirt guns as they kidnap Chancellor Alexander Heard on April group as a way of honoring Chancellor Heard, Fool’s Day in 1977. and they all agreed it was a great idea. We the receiving end. He gave tours to high school sion of new ideas,” says Mike Bagot. “He was announced the endowment at Reunion and students curious about Vanderbilt. During very open to the students and to the idea of invited Chancellor and Mrs. Heard to come one such tour, Huffman snuck into his dorm self-governance.” to the event. They were really surprised and room, stripped bare, and got in his bed— As the years passed, the Wild Bunch grew very touched.” knowing full well that he always ended his to include several dozen members, but the Alexander Heard, whose own children tours by throwing open the door to his dorm original seven—the founders—were always were college age during the Wild Bunch’s room, telling the prospective student that at the core. The group wanted to go out with time at Vanderbilt, turned 90 in March and this was a typical student room. Little did a bang and hit upon the now-famous idea of lives quietly with his wife, Jean, in their long- Huffman know that on this particular tour kidnapping Heard and other university offi- time Nashville home on Golf Club Lane. the student’s father—a Nashville judge, no cials, including Senior Vice Chancellor Rob “My father had interaction with many stu- less—was also along. Roy Purdy, Dean James Sandlin, Dean Sid- dent groups, but he absolutely loved the No one remembers whether the student ney Boutwell and Betty King, manager of Wild Bunch,” remembers his daughter, Cor- became a Commodore or not. schedules and reservations. On April Fool’s nelia Heard, professor of violin at Vander- The group wasn’t all about good times. Day, with the cooperation of various staff bilt’s Blair School of Music. “He stayed in Mike Bagot became president of the Student members, the Wild Bunch pulled off the kid- touch with several of them for many years Government Association, and Bob Court- napping and whisked Heard and the oth- and thoroughly enjoyed it.” ney became finance secretary of the SGA. ers—in a limo owned by Dorothy Mize, friendly In 2005 the group rallied when disas- Margaret Lynch Callihan was business man- proprietress of a Church Street liquor store— ter —in the form of Hurricane Katrina — ager of The Vanderbilt Hustler. Cathy Madi- to the farm of Battle (BA’24) and Sara (BA’22) struck one of their own. Mike Bagot and his gan was president of Kappa Delta, and Julie Rodes. There they all feasted on champagne family fled New Orleans and ended up in Caldwell Huffman was president of Chi Omega. and hot dogs and initiated Chancellor Heard Nashville where Wild Bunch friends opened Phil Walker, after serving as freshman class into the Wild Bunch. their homes, businesses and schools. president, went on to found the Original “We wouldn’t pull that off today, for sure,” “I feel like if I’m ever in a catastrophe Cast music group and organized the Cam- says Blum. “Walking into Kirkland Hall now again, I have friends throughout the U.S. pus Capers at Homecoming. David Blum in commando clothes and squirt guns defi- who I can call on at any time and say, ‘I need became president of the Young Democrats. nitely wouldn’t cut it.” sanctuary. Can you put me up?’” says Bagot, “Vanderbilt gave us the latitude to have It wasn’t the group’s last act before grad- who is now back in New Orleans practicing fun,” says Blum. “It told us exactly where the uation. On the day of the ceremony itself, law. “It’s a good thing to know.” line was that you couldn’t cross. You could each member of the Wild Bunch handed the It’s clear that many factors helped create put your toes on the line, but heaven forbid chancellor a flower. Madigan remembers it the Wild Bunch. If the seven had attended that you put your toes over the line.” was a white carnation. Walker recalls a red Stanford or Northwestern or Emory, would Not crossing that line was just another carnation. Blum says it was a red rose. In any they have found each other? sign of the respect that the Wild Bunch felt event, it was the group’s farewell to a man— “I’d like to say we would have,” says Bagot, for Chancellor Heard. and a place—they loved. “but it was a singular experience, from the “He was really a tremendous influence, Graduation sent most of the Wild Bunch chancellor on down. We felt safe and secure V especially the way he encouraged using the in different directions. Graduate school and on one hand, yet adventurous on the other.” university as an open forum for the expres- careers became priorities. Bagot claims to

Vanderbilt Magazine 21 22 Research and scholarship roundup Br mechanical arm also functions so three to four times faster. The commercial arms—and can do four times more than current about 20 to 25 pounds—three to leading the effort. mechanical engineering who is Goldfarb, the professor of a natural arm,” says Michael and it weighs about the same as self-powered prosthetic device, human arm than any previous of function and power to a lion federal program. a prototype as of $30 part mil- developed a radically designed mechanical engineers have to a bionic arm. Vanderbilt 1. Prosthetic Limbs Steam Could Power more naturally than previous prosthetic arms under develop- most unconventional three of and close independently. and its fingers and thumb open type’s wrist twists and bends, elbow and the claw. The proto- arms have only two joints, the models. Conventional prosthetic researchers at Johns Hopkins two are being designed by (DARPA) program. The other Research Project Agency ment by a Defense Advanced 7 0 0 2 l l a F The prototype can lift (curl) “Our design is closer in terms The The Vanderbilt arm is the is the closest thing yet motor, and the result a miniature rocket mechanical arm with a Combine ight Ideas

DANIEL DUBOIS quate for the current generation the users’ bodies or brains. connecting them to nerves in ods for controlling the arms by are developing advanced meth- tion Institute Chicago of who Technology, and the Rehabilita- Utah, California Institute of roscientists at the University of also supporting teams neu- of motors.electric The program is are powered by batteries and head the program. Those arms University in Baltimore who prosthetic arms. than conventional more naturally prototype functions Michael Goldfarb’s “Battery power has been ade- “ h hoyi,myetoeeryMCy a dea adrenal had McCoys early those maybe is, theory The weight ratio of batteriesweight of ratio that batteries becomes prohibitive. at some point the weight of ventionally powered arms, and vide additional energy for con- batteries is the only way to pro- more energy it will consume.” the person will use it and the tional the prosthesis, the more Goldfarb says. “The more func- people don’t use them much,” functionality is so limited that of prosthetic arms because their It was the poor power-to- Increasing the size the of duced is about the same as a amount water“The of pro- es and turns into water droplets. porous cover, where it condens- exhaust is vented through a temperature. Hot steam plastic that reduces the surface special with insulating part Researchers covered the hottest ers nearby from the heat. to protect the wearer and oth- about the device was the need peroxide reaction, so a concern Fahrenheit by the hydrogen device is heated to 450 degrees 18 hours of normal activity. energy to power the device for the upper arm can provide of hydrogen peroxide that fits in monofilament. A small canister thesis by belts made of a special spring-loaded joints of the pros- valves are connected to the close a series of valves. The The steam is used to open and burn and produce pure steam. causes hydrogen peroxide to contains a special catalyst that about the size of a pencil and to a prosthetic arm. funding to apply this approach offered him $2.7 million in Hopkins researchers, so they adaptation impressed Johns is used by the space shuttle. His lant rocket-motor system that miniaturized the monopropel- ton project for DARPA. He working on another exoskele- alternatives in 2000 while drove Goldfarb to look for The The steam generated by the Goldfarb’s power source is tumors and that’s what helped set them off. “ —Frank Hankins, McCoy descendant

person would normally sweat connection between Shown with her great- from their arm on a warm day,” these tumors, which run aunt, Rita, Winnter Reynolds is a descen- Goldfarb says. in their family, and the dant of “Old Randall” “DARPA has set a goal of famous feud carried on McCoy. Winnter has developing a commercially by their forebears. undergone surgery at available arm in two years,” “These tumors can Vanderbilt for a genetic Goldfarb adds. “Because of our send your moods up and disorder called von Hippel-Lindau disease. novel power source, the process down,” Rita Reynolds of proving that our design is says. “They diagnosed safe and getting regulatory Winnter with attention treaty was signed approval for its use will proba- deficit disorder, but I by Hatfield and bly take longer than that.” If think it’s the adrenal McCoy descendants. DARPA decides it cannot con- tumor that’s been mak- Members of Winn- tinue supporting the arm’s ing her hyperactive at ter Reynolds’ family development for this reason, times.” have attended Goldfarb says he is confident Winnter’s doctors say Hatfield-McCoy he can get alternative funding. the theory that a genetic reunions for years predisposition for adre- and have been swap- Tumors May Have nal tumors—caused by ping stories about Fueled Hatfield- a genetic disorder called their distant cousins McCoy Feud von Hippel-Lindau dis- all their lives. ease, which Winnter’s “The theory is, Winnter Reynolds family carries—is a possible who had served in the Union maybe those early McCoys had EARL NEIKIRK/AP may have within her explanation for why the feud- Army. these adrenal tumors as well body a clue to the ing McCoy family members That led to the first of many and that’s what helped to set legendary Hatfield- were so violent retaliations. In 1878 “Old Ran- them off,” says Winnter’s uncle, 2. dall” McCoy thought he spot- McCoy feud. The and angry. Frank Hankins. 11-year-old is a descendant of “Adrenal tumors cause the ted one of his pigs being stolen “From the scientific point of McCoys who harken from West release of massive amounts of by Hatfields. An ensuing string view, the genetic condition the Virginia and are, according to catecholamines—chemicals of accusations, botched trials McCoy family has, von Hippel- her grandmother, Goldie, kin like adrenalin,” says Dr. Wallace and killings took place until the Lindau disease, is associated to the family known for its “Skip” Neblett, MD’71, chair of climactic burning of Old Ran- with too much adrenaline and long-running clash with the the Department of Pediatric dall’s home and the murder of related compounds because Hatfield family. Surgery at Children’s Hospital his son and daughter in 1888. of a condition called pheochro- Winnter came to the Mon- and Winnter’s surgeon. Before it was all over, 13 mocytoma, a type of tumor of roe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospi- The Hatfield and McCoy members of the families died the adrenal gland,” says Dr. tal at Vanderbilt because of a feud took place in the moun- violent deaths. There was no Revi Mathew, associate profes- tumor on her adrenal gland. tain terrain of Eastern Ken- further violence after the deaths sor of pediatrics and Winnter’s Her grand-aunt and guardian, tucky and West Virginia. While of the two clan leaders, Old Ran- endocrinologist. Rita Reynolds, had similar some say it started over a pig, dall McCoy and Devil Anse Hat- “It does produce hyperten- tumors removed at Vanderbilt historians maintain it began field, in 1914 and 1921, sion, headache and sweating a couple of years ago. Winnter’s when Southern-sympathizing respectively. intermittently depending on family has a theory about a Hatfields murdered a McCoy In 2002 a symbolic peace when the surge of these com- >>

Vanderbilt Magazine 23 drug dependence suggest that a “nontrivial proportion of women undergoing breast augmentation may bring with them—or develop later— serious long-term psychiatric morbidity and eventually mortality,” Lipworth and col- leagues write. Because the study includes only deaths, the true rates of psychological and substance- abuse problems among women with cosmetic implants are likely much higher. The PROPERty Of wESt vIRgINIA StAtE ARchIvES researchers conclude, “Such The Hatfield clan, with patriarch William Anderson “Devil Anse” Hatfield seated second from left. findings warrant increased pounds occurs in the blood- derbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, deaths from alcohol and drug screening, counseling, and per- stream. I suppose these com- documented the increased sui- dependence. Several additional haps post-implant monitoring pounds could possibly make cide risk. This risk suggests deaths, classified as accidents or of women seeking cosmetic somebody very angry and plastic surgeons should con- injuries, might have been sui- breast implants.” upset for no good reason.” sider mental health screening cides or involved psychiatric Last spring Winnter under- and follow-up for women who disorders or drug and alcohol Illegal Immigration went surgery to remove a seek breast implants. abuse as a contributing cause. Hurts African tumorous adrenal gland. Lipworth and colleagues “Thus, at least 38 deaths (22 Americans Because von Hippel-Lindau performed an extended follow- percent of all deaths) in this can cause tumors in several up study of 3,527 Swedish implant cohort were associated Illegal immigra- organs during the span of a women who underwent cos- with suicide, psychological dis- tion is hurting person’s life, it could be the metic breast-implant surgery orders, and/or drug and alco- African Americans, first of many surgeries. between 1965 and 1993. hol abuse or dependence,” 4. according to At an average follow-up according to the researchers. research by a Van- Breast Implants of nearly 19 years, the suicide There was no increase in derbilt professor of law and Linked to Higher rate was three times higher for the risk of death from cancer, political science. In Debating Suicide Rate women with breast implants as including breast cancer, among Immigration, a book of essays compared to the general popu- women with breast implants, that Carol Swain edited and Women who lation (based on 24 deaths). reports Lipworth. Increases in contributed to, she says African undergo breast The risk was greatest—nearly deaths from lung cancer and Americans are losing more augmentation seven times higher—for respiratory diseases, such as jobs to illegal immigrants than 3. surgery are nearly women who received their emphysema, likely reflected other racial or ethnic groups; three times as likely breast implants at age 45 or higher smoking rates among to commit suicide, according older. The average age at the women with breast implants. to a study published in the time of surgery was 32 years. Several epidemiological stud- August issue of Annals of Plas- Suicide risk did not increase ies have also found an increased tic Surgery. This research con- significantly for the first 10 years suicide rate among women with firms previously seen links after implant surgery. However, cosmetic breast implants. The between breast implants and a the risk increased with time: current study provides extended high risk of suicide, as well as 4.5 times higher from 10 to 19 follow-up data on a previous deaths from alcohol or drug years’ follow-up and six times nationwide study of Swedish dependence. higher after 20 years. women with breast implants, The study, led by senior Women with breast implants more than doubling the number author Joseph McLaughlin and also had higher rates of death of deaths analyzed. Loren Lipworth, both cancer from mental disorders, includ- The increases in suicide and Swain

epidemiologists with the Van- ing a threefold increase in in deaths related to alcohol and StEvE gREEN

24 F a l l 2 0 0 7 yet, low-income black workers Couch-Potato Tots was not interactive, children found the toy. don’t have political input in Need Interaction were much more likely to dis- In the second experiment, the debate. miss the information being researchers used a closed- “African Americans have The toddler conveyed.” circuit video system to make been left devoid of a strong entertainment Troseth, Saylor, and research the experience interactive. The black voice in Congress on a market has explod- assistant Allison Archer con- woman on the screen could topic that affects them deeply, 5. ed in recent years: ducted two experiments to bet- see, hear and respond to the given their high unemploy- Infants, toddlers ter understand which type of children through conversation ment rates and historic strug- and preschoolers in the United video best engaged toddlers. In and games. After five minutes gle to get quality housing, States watch an average of one the first, they tested differences of interacting with the woman health care, education, and to three hours of video media in learning from video and on the TV, children used the other goods and services,” says and television programming from face-to-face interactions information she provided to Swain, citing a study conduct- per day. But new research among 24 2-year-olds. A find the hidden object. ed by the Pew Hispanic Center, suggests parents Troseth and her which found high unemploy- should choose colleagues believe ment rates among African videos with high the results indicate Americans and Hispanics were interactive con- that because tod- partly attributed to the large tent if they want dlers understand number of low-skilled immi- their children to the difference grants in America. be educated as between their “The greatest competition well “real” environment occurs among people at the as entertained by and what they see margins of society, a multira- their time in on videos, they are cial group that includes poorly front of the tube. likely to dismiss educated blacks, whites and The findings information Hispanics who compete were published in offered by someone against each other and against the May 17 issue on television unless new immigrants for low-wage, of Child Develop- that person is low-skill jobs.” Swain found ment by Vander- clearly interacting that cuts in governmental pro- bilt University with them. This grams like student loans make psychologists interaction can it harder for low-income Georgene Troseth include tactics such African American students to and Megan Say- as asking children train lor. questions, using for higher-paying jobs. “By age 2, their names, or The Congressional Black children have fig- referring to some- Caucus, Swain writes, does not ured out that thing they can see list immigration reform as a other people are and touch in their EARL f. LAM III/Mct legislative priority. Some law- a primary source real environment. makers in the CBC have large of information about the woman on a TV screen told Troseth served numbers of Hispanic con- world, and they use social cues the children where to find a as a consultant for Sesame stituents in their districts, such as facial expression and stuffed animal hidden in Workshop on its new DVD which may lead to a conflict of where a person looks or points another room. She then gave a series, which uses Muppet interest, she says. Unless big to gather that information. As second group of children the babies and caregivers to changes take place within the a result, they are more likely to same information in person. encourage and model good CBC, there will be no official learn from a person on video The first group of toddlers social interaction. She is a black representation on the whom they perceive as a con- rarely found the stuffed animal, member of the Vanderbilt immigration issue, which she versational partner,” says suggesting they didn’t believe Learning Sciences Institute and believes is hurting the African Troseth, an assistant professor or listen to the woman on the an investigator in the Vanderbilt American community. of psychology in Peabody Col- screen. The children given the Kennedy Center for Research lege. “In our study, if a video instructions in person usually on Human Development.V For more research stories, visit Vanderbilt’s online research journal, Exploration, at http://exploration.vanderbilt.edu.

Vanderbilt Magazine 25 InClass

To Dance, Perchance to Dream From Katrina to the killing fields of Cambodia, Carol Etherington A spotlight on faculty and their work andtheir faculty on spotlight A helps victims find courage to heal. By LISA A. DUBOIS

A young man in Sierra Leone had both arms ver since she graduated event that took away their strengths,” Ether- chopped off at the elbows by a guerrilla group from Vanderbilt School of ington explains. The key, she says, is to help of child soldiers. He couldn’t imagine a future. Nursing in 1975 with a mas- them see beyond a traumatic experience so Carol Etherington encouraged him to reframe ter’s degree in psych-mental they won’t be “labeled” by it or allow it to his self-image. “How do you define what’s health nursing, Carol Ether- define them as a person. valuable about a human being?” she asked ington has been providing care Etherington began her humanitarian him. With her help, over time, he became to people grasping at life in the midst of activism shortly after receiving her nursing unfathomable license. Early in her reconciled to the idea that while nothing E tragedy. She has career she realized could replace his arms, he still had value as responded to vic- that once victims a man and could go forward on strong legs. tims of the killing of rape, assault and fields of Cambodia, child abuse were A woman in rural Kentucky was brutally floods in Poland, civil treated in a health- assaulted and raped. After she recovered conflict in Tajikistan, care setting, they from her wounds, she refused to go to church and famines and faced additional because in her congregation, rape victims, massacres in African traumas as they as well as perpetrators, were thought to have nations. She worked were processed sinned. She didn’t want to stand up before on-site in the wake through the crim- her neighbors and apologize for what had of the 1994 earth- inal justice mill. happened to her. quakes in Califor- Appalled by the Etherington said, “Have you considered nia, Hurricane insensitivity of that you have every right to go to your church, Katrina, and the col- existing systems, sit quietly if you want, and find solace in the lapse of the World JIM HSIEH she founded the ceremony? You survived this because of your Trade Center tow- Victim Interven- strengths. If anybody questions that, then they ers. She has counseled homeless families, tion Program within the Metro Nashville need to ask your forgiveness.” orphaned children and refugees. Police Department, an innovative project To honor such actions of compassion that meshes crisis counseling with law A year ago former Chancellor Gordon Gee and caring, and in recognition of her work enforcement. was visiting the Mercury Courts program establishing mental health programs and A tall, statuesque redhead with a hearty delivering humanitarian aid in the United laugh, Etherington exudes an aura of warmth that supports those in Nashville without States and abroad, Etherington, an assistant and determination. “When she walks into a housing. One formerly homeless man professor of nursing, has been named the room, you can feel her force field,” says Rusty desperately wanted to talk to him. “Go ahead,” 2007 Vanderbilt University Distinguished Lawrence, executive director of Nashville’s Etherington urged him. “Your opinion matters.” Alumna. Urban Housing Solutions, an organization The man mustered his courage and told Gee “Whether I’m in a war zone or respond- that provides affordable housing for low- to ignore his critics, because he had made the ing to a natural disaster, my goal is to help income individuals and families. Lawrence right decision in dismantling Vanderbilt’s people move past the incident or incidents has worked with Etherington on address- athletic department. so they don’t feel permanently stuck in an ing public health needs of the homeless

26 Fall 2007 DANIEL DUBOIS Etherington: “This new era of globalization ups the ante for a university like Vanderbilt. How will students affect the lives of those they come in contact with?” and devising ways to “fix holes in the med- war, personal loss, and physical illness and tactic of war in Bosnia, she actually spent ical system” of this vulnerable population. injury. You can take care of the immediate much of her time helping to establish a men- “Carol is a very good leader,” Lawrence medical needs, but unless you also address tal health program for war-traumatized chil- says. “You feel her confidence, but she is also their core emotional needs, they will still be dren. very clear about her limits—what she is and suffering.” Because many children were too shell- isn’t able to do.” Etherington pushed the MSF paradigm shocked to discuss what they’d undergone, Etherington, who joined the faculty of during her tenure, helping the organization relief workers had them draw pictures instead. the Vanderbilt School of Nursing in 1995 as see that mental health should not be addressed Elementary-aged youngsters colored images a community health instructor, exposes nurs- as an afterthought, but rather could be incor- of relatives being shot at point-blank range, ing and medical students to the health-care porated into an acute approach to humani- of houses exploding, of soldiers firing ran- dilemmas faced by immigrants, refugees, tarian aid. domly into villages—horrifying acts of sav- victims of crime, the impoverished and the Nothing is more acute than a bomb launched agery rendered in crayon. homeless. Aware that many of these students from a rooftop or a missile attack or a drugged- After 1996, Etherington revisited Bosnia will one day become leaders in community out teenager wielding an Uzi submachine once more, briefly in 2001. International

“Carol was a constant reminder to focus on the mental health issues of those we were assisting. People are deeply affected by displacement, war, personal loss, and physical illness and injury. Unless you address their core emotional needs, they will still be suffering.” —Dr. Darin Portnoy, president of Doctors Without Borders in the U.S.A.

and international outreach, she is deter- gun. Several times through the years, Ether- relief, however, works best if undertaken as a mined to get it right. ington has served in some of the world’s long-term commitment. For that reason, “This new era of globalization ups the hottest war zones—Cambodia, Tajikistan, and because a unique opportunity presented ante for a university like Vanderbilt,” Ether- Bosnia, Kosovo, Angola, Sierra Leone. itself, Etherington returned to Bosnia in July ington says. “Vanderbilt cannot simply be Bosnia holds a special place in her heart. 2007 to explore how a nation absorbs the responsible for providing a learning oppor- Once a part of Yugoslavia, Bosnia-Herze- pain of unspeakable cruelty and devasta- tunity. It must critically question not only govina is a country of breathtaking beauty, tion. how this experience will shape the lives of with cloud-tipped mountains, quaint vil- Her latest journey began through the Insti- students, but also what students will leave lages and cascading waterfalls. Tragically, tute of Global Health and the Emphasis Pro- behind. How will they affect the lives of those this same scenic landscape served as a scorched- gram, which allows Vanderbilt medical students they come in contact with? These people, earth battleground between ethnic Serbs, to focus on an area of interest for eight weeks the recipients of our outreach, have much to Croats and Muslims, many of whom partic- during the summer after their first year of teach us if we’re willing to learn. Helping my ipated—some reluctantly, others enthusias- training. Medical student Demetrius Tavoular- students understand this has become inte- tically—in a brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing. eas expressed an interest in working in Bosnia, gral to my humanitarian work.” Four times during the 1990s, Etherington so Etherington dusted off some of her old Her global vision is a natural extension chose to join others in the trenches to deliver contacts and agreed to act as his mentor for of her skills as a nurse. Etherington served nursing and psychological aid during the a project examining mental health programs six terms—two of them as president—on Bosnian War and its aftermath. in a post-war society. She requested that she the board of directors of Médecins Sans Fron- She first went there in 1993 to offer med- also travel to Bosnia to oversee his work and tières (MSF), an international relief organi- ical and psychological support as a humani- that she bring nursing student Jessica Van zation known in America as Doctors Without tarian aid worker with the International Medical Meter along as well. Borders. Corps. She returned for six months in 1994, In nearly every village, Etherington was “Carol was a constant reminder that we followed by several visits in 1996 with MSF greeted like a returning hero. Van Meter says needed to focus not just on the medical issues, to help emotionally damaged survivors sort that one man told her, “Carol made very beau- but on the mental health issues of those we through the carnage they had witnessed and tiful things happen during the war.” were assisting,” says Dr. Darin Portnoy, cur- the atrocities they had endured. Although In fact, the child-centered program she rent president of the U.S. branch of MSF. she was an expert in crisis counseling for and her team originated, which works towards “People are deeply affected by displacement, rape victims, and rape was being used as a peace and social reconstruction, is still going

28 Fall 2007

Big By JOHN HOWSER shoulders,Deep pockets, Tightened belts In just one year, Vanderbilt provided $240 million in uncompensated medical care. And there’s no end in sight.

ILLUSTRATION BY JEFF SZUC Vanderbilt Magazine 31 L ast winter Shane Thurman, a 42-year-old construction worker from Crossville, Tenn., became one among an estimated 45 million Americans without health insurance when he was dropped from the rolls of TennCare, Tennessee’s state-run Medicaid insurance program. Thurman’s employer didn’t provide health insurance, and his income wasn’t sufficient to meet his other basic needs and pay for medical insurance. On Jan. 10, 2007, a few weeks after he lost his insurance coverage, Thurman was working on the roof of an old building in Crossville, helping to demolish it, when his body came into contact with an electrical transformer attached to a power pole. In a millisecond, the high-voltage electrical current grabbed his body and held him in its deadly grip for what felt like forever. When Thurman finally broke free from the current, he was thrown from the roof to the ground 30 feet below.

Thurman sustained critical electrical burns to 40 percent of his A construction accident left body. The fall broke most of his ribs and several vertebrae in his Shane Thurman a paraplegic— back. He was flown by Vanderbilt’s air ambulance, LifeFlight, 110 with no insurance to pay nearly miles to the Vanderbilt Regional Burn Center where he spent the $1 million in medical bills. next 52 days. “I wasn’t even aware I was alive for 48 days,” Thurman says. “I had eight or 10 skin grafts and four or five back surgeries.” The accident left Thurman a paraplegic, paralyzed from the torso down. “I’m lucky to even wake up each morning,” he says. “The doctors told my family on several occasions that I was going to die. But I fooled them.” Total charges for Thurman’s lifesaving care during the 52 inpa- tient days he spent in Vanderbilt University Hospital: $919,587.76. Thurman’s will to survive certainly helped, but the real reason he’s still alive is the comprehensive and highly specialized medical care he received, without consideration of cost. Vanderbilt opted to write off Thurman’s nearly $1 million in medical bills. “That tickled me to death,” he says, “because I have enough else to deal with.” During fiscal year 2007, Vanderbilt University Medical Center provided $240 million worth of uncompensated medical care to patients. Across the country, treating patients like Shane Thurman is becoming an ever-greater challenge for academic medical centers that are struggling with unprecedented growth in the numbers of uninsured patients. “The increase in uninsured patients is placing the entire health-care system in jeopardy, and academic medical centers are especially vulnerable,” says Dr. John Sergent, BA’63, MD’66, pro- fessor of medicine and vice chair for education in the Vanderbilt NEIL BRAKE

32 F a l l 2 0 0 7 University School of Medicine. “Our emergency departments are usually the major sources of emergency care for our communities. And we often are the sole providers of critical services.” “The increase in uninsured In addition to caring for patients like Shane Thurman who face immensely complicated courses of treatment, Vanderbilt patients is placing the entire University Medical Center each year provides uncompensated care to thousands of other medically uninsured or underinsured health-care system in jeopardy, patients, young and old, whose health problems span the spec- trum of illness and injury. and academic medical centers To put $240 million worth of free medical care into context, this dollar amount represents approximately 7.4 percent of the medical center’s $3.2 billion in gross patient revenue for the cur- are especially vulnerable. rent fiscal year. “Teaching hospitals end up bearing a disproportionate share We are often the sole providers of the cost of treating the uninsured because they are typically the only providers in a marketplace for trauma services, burn servic- of critical services.” es, organ transplantation, and limb amputation due to misman- agement of diabetes,” says Paul Keckley, executive director for the —John Sergent, professor of medicine Deloitte Center for Health Solutions in Washington and one of and vice chair for education the nation’s leading experts on health-care economics and policy. Keckley helped establish, and is currently a professor in, the Owen

State-Provided Health Insurance THE DREAM AND THE REALITY COLLIDE

ow did Vanderbilt’s uncompensated care more than double over And because anyone in Tennessee who was denied health insurance by H a two-year period? To a large extent the answer lies with Tenn- an employer, or denied for medical reasons by commercial insurance carri- Care, Tennessee’s state-run Medicaid program. ers, could get TennCare, patient rolls grew tremendously. TennCare was no Launched in 1994, TennCare’s concept and mission were noble— longer sustainable without drastic changes. to allow more Tennesseans access to health care through affordable health In 2005, Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen went on a mission to rein in the insurance. TennCare’s plan was to use state-approved Managed Care state’s TennCare spending. His initial proposal called for a sensible alloca- Organizations (MCOs), whose responsibility was to provide access to care tion of resources including limits on prescription drugs, an insistence on but also carefully manage costs. generic drugs and, in some cases, limits on the number of hospital visits in The first two or three years were brutal for the state’s health-care a given period. providers. Payments from MCOs to the providers were low and frequently Bredesen’s plan was vehemently opposed by advocates for the poor slow to arrive. Many physicians in private practice, and also some clinics who insisted on a standard of coverage for Medicaid recipients that and hospitals, did their best to minimize their participation. Some opted exceeded the norms for business health-insurance coverage. In the end the out of the program altogether. Across the state the number of health-care Bredesen administration agreed to their demands to cover their needs providers who would accept TennCare patients shriveled, leaving fewer with a more generous program of health benefits—at the expense of the participating clinics and hospitals to cope with a growing TennCare popu- working uninsured like Shane Thurman. lation. Several of the TennCare MCOs wound up bankrupt, leaving The result was program reform that removed (“disenrolled”) more providers such as Vanderbilt to settle for cents on the dollar. than 200,000 citizens from TennCare’s rolls, drastically curtailed the pro- After the state and the remaining doctors and hospitals participating gram’s pharmacy benefits, and closed enrollment to new patients for most in TennCare struggled through the initial turbulence, problems began to adult Tennesseans. That left the state’s essential-access hospitals—a group even out for health-care providers—but not necessarily for the state. of six or so key hospitals, including Vanderbilt, that provide the bulk of The plan developed into a program that was overly generous in some care to TennCare patients—to shoulder the financial burden. aspects. Thanks to concessions made by the state as a result There aren’t fewer patients since TennCare’s disenrollment—only of lawsuits, patients had unlimited access to prescription drugs. fewer patients who now have any health insurance. Pharmacy costs skyrocketed. — JOHN HOWSER

Vanderbilt Magazine 33 Graduate School of Management’s Healthcare MBA Program. “This type of care happens largely in the world of academic medicine,” Keckley says. “And the care of these patients represents one-half the impact of the nation’s total uncompensated care pool.” “About 6 percent of VUMC’s patients have no form of health insurance,” says Warren Beck, VUMC’s vice president of finance for the clinical enterprise. “Another 1.5 percent may have insur- ance but cannot pay their portion of the balance after insurance.” A Growth Industry Middle Tennessee’s health-care industry is enormous—by most measures Nashville has evolved into the nation’s third-largest aggregation of health-care companies. For the health-care market in which VUMC operates—com- peting with other nonprofit and for-profit hospitals for its patients—Vanderbilt provides more free care than all other Metro Nashville hospitals combined, including Baptist, St. Thomas, Cen- tennial, Metro General, Summit, Skyline, Tennessee Christian and NEIL BRAKE Southern Hills. High-Ticket Health Care Vanderbilt University Hospital and the Monroe Carell Jr. Chil- dren’s Hospital at Vanderbilt operate at nearly 90 percent patient A sample of 2006 data from Vanderbilt’s Department of occupancy year-round. “One of our primary missions is to provide Patient Accounting and Department of Finance offers plenty those unique and essential medical services that no other health- of illustrations of highly specialized, highly expensive care care facility in Middle Tennessee is willing to provide,” says Dr. provided to uninsured patients: Harry R. Jacobson, vice chancellor for health affairs. “Affording patients access to these services based strictly on someone’s ability Feb. 4 to May 23: to pay would be contrary to our philosophy and our mission.” A 44-year-old man critically injured in a car wreck Over the last 12 years, the significant role VUMC plays sup- TOTAL CHARGES: $935,504.50 porting TennCare, and its commitment to providing care for the uninsured, has positioned Vanderbilt as Nashville’s charity hospi- April 4 to May 3: tal and Tennessee’s largest provider of Medicaid services. A 57-year-old man critically injured in a car wreck The Decline of Employer-Sponsored TOTAL CHARGES: $830,183.69 Health Insurance While TennCare has presented a significant challenge for Vander- April 30 to June 16: bilt as it copes with a growing population of uninsured patients, A 24-year-old man critically injured by gunshot wounds it’s not the only factor. Compounding the problem are three sig- TOTAL CHARGES: $566,886.68 nificant trends that are producing huge numbers of patients unable to pay their medical bills: a decline in the number of May 14 to July 10: employers who provide health benefits; more workers who carry A 23-year-old man critically injured by gunshot wounds modest health insurance on themselves but not for family mem- bers; and an influx of millions of uninsurable immigrants. TOTAL CHARGES: $639,948.69 As more Americans struggle to find a way to access affordable health insurance, changes in the insurance industry and in employ- July 17 to Nov. 11: er-based insurance programs are causing more of the cost for A 36-year-old man critically injured in a car wreck health care to be shifted to enrollees. The percentage of Americans TOTAL CHARGES: $560,548.82 who are uninsured keeps rising largely because the percentage of people with employer-sponsored coverage continues to decline. Because they incurred catastrophic charges, VUMC And therein lies the fundamental systemic flaw in our nation’s chose to write off the charges in each of these instances. health insurance delivery, says Keckley—our dependence on The uninsured patients met financial criteria based on employers to provide health insurance. “Only the U.S. and a few federal poverty guidelines. other nations such as New Zealand have similar systems of employer-sponsored health insurance. But there is no law in our

34 F a l l 2 0 0 7 country that says employers must provide health insurance.” Reimbursement providers that may not match the cost of care Approximately 60 percent of U.S. employers now provide include Medicare, Medicaid, Worker’s Comp and SCHIP (State health insurance. The 40 percent that do not offer insurance tend Children’s Health Insurance Program). to employ large numbers of hourly workers and have substantial employee turnover. Charging Peter to Treat Paul As health-insurance costs keep rising, so does the number of “That shortfall in reimbursements, in combination with the employers that offer health insurance only for the employee but growing number of uninsured individuals, is forcing doctors and not for the employee’s family. The average health-insurance pre- hospitals to try to make up the difference on the backs of employ- mium for a family without employer-provided coverage is about ers who do provide a benefit,” Keckley says. “What we are facing is $1,000 per month. a perfect storm, a meltdown. No wonder half of all the nation’s involuntary bankruptcies are “We are asking a third of the people who use the system and the result of medical bills, says Keckley. who have insurance to pay for the other two-thirds, either in full “Horrible traumatic accidents most often happen to the work- or in part.” ing class,” says Dr. Jeff Guy, director of Vanderbilt’s Regional Burn Shifting costs to paying patients is undeniably a part of the Center and a member of the team of physicians and nurses who budgeting strategy for medical centers like Vanderbilt. But, fortu- saved the life of Shane Thurman. “Unfortunately, it’s people like Mr. nately for all Vanderbilt patients, recent unparalleled growth has Thurman who are in that abyss and ineligible for health insurance allowed it—so far—to combat major changes in Tennessee’s through their employer, or through any other form of assistance.” health-care policy. In fiscal 2007, VUMC’s hospitals recorded 50,716 inpatient discharges, its emergency departments treated 98,107 patients, Vanderbilt provides more and 1,095,559 outpatients were seen in its clinics. Demand for services remains so high that in January, VUMC embarked on a free care than all other Metro $235 million construction project to erect a third inpatient tower on Vanderbilt University Hospital. The new tower will add 141 Nashville hospitals combined, inpatient beds, new operating rooms, procedure rooms and inten- sive care units. “For the last two years, we have been dealing with near double- including Baptist, St. Thomas, digit volume growth across all major indicators,” says Warren Beck. “Whether it is inpatient admissions, outpatient visits, sur- Centennial, Metro General, gery or emergency-department visits, this growth has allowed us to meet our obligations and improve our ability to conquer dis- Summit, Skyline, Tennessee eases like cancer, diabetes and heart failure. If we hadn’t had this growth, we would be in a horrible situation.” Christian and Southern Hills. Managerial oversight during the past five or six years also has helped Vanderbilt to cope with a huge increase in uninsured patients. Efforts to add inpatient and outpatient capacity— As access to various normal avenues to health insurance has through new clinic space and the recruitment of new faculty, for dwindled over the last several years, Guy’s burn program has been example—have allowed new growth. More patients overall means left to cope with more highly resource-intensive patients with no more paying patients to help offset those who cannot. insurance. Operations-improvement initiatives that began in the early Guy oversees the only dedicated burn-care facility in Ten- 1990s and ongoing efforts to provide the best care in the most effi- nessee, and the largest burn center in several adjoining states. cient manner (called “best evidence medicine” within the indus- Burn care is so expensive that many hospitals—including every try) have so far allowed the medical center to provide services and health-care facility in the state of Mississippi—have backed away still finish each fiscal year in the black. Every year, though, the from providing this service. Even one patient can make a huge financial picture becomes more challenging. Changes with Tenn- impact on the bottom line, and Guy is forced to deal with the eco- Care in August 2005 increased uncompensated care by $87 million nomic challenges of treating several Shane Thurmans each year. in fiscal 2006 and by an additional $45 million during fiscal 2007. At the same time more employers are opting out of offering That sort of growth in uncompensated care isn’t sustainable. health insurance, some states, like Tennessee, are aggressively work- Virtually all of VUMC’s clinical programs, says Beck, have seen ing to control their Medicaid spending through measures such as growth in the number of uninsured patients they treat due to denying insurance coverage or capping reimbursement fees. changes TennCare made in 2005. Trauma and burn-care services, “We’re at a point where Medicare and Medicaid are now pay- cardiology, orthopaedics and general medicine have all felt the ing less than the cost of care for the lives they cover,” says Keckley. impact, with the division of trauma and surgical critical care hit

Vanderbilt Magazine 35 the hardest. But the medical center has made an effort to ensure doctors that are bridging the gap for so many of the working folks that clinical programs shouldering a greater percentage of unin- who are uninsured. sured patients are not penalized for financial performance based “The clinical programs we want to provide are very expensive, on their predicament. high-acuity programs you don’t see in community hospitals. If we “In order to recoup a portion of lost revenue, we are placing an are the only provider in the region who offers them, then everyone emphasis on growing higher-margin services and offering a broad- needs to have access,” Beck says. er menu of services that brings insured patients into the hospital,” Jeff Guy likens his role and responsibility to that of a park Beck says. “We’ve learned that we’re far better off to have our mar- ranger in a national forest. “We have to be good stewards of our gin spread across all our services rather than rely on just a few.” resources so those resources will be around for all of us,” he says. “We have never denied anyone access to burn care based on their The Road Ahead ability to pay, and we won’t.” “Clearly, one of our ongoing challenges is figuring out how to bet- Until academic medical centers like Vanderbilt and their patients ter manage the population of uninsured patients,” says Beck. “We get some form of relief, says John Sergent, “virtually every doctor I need the state to develop a broader network of doctors and hospi- know will continue to be an amateur social worker trying to help tals participating in TennCare so patients don’t have to travel long uninsured and underinsured patients get the care they need. distances to come to Vanderbilt. Another initiative we have pur- “Tax credits, medical savings accounts, purchasing pools for sued is working with Nashville’s Emergency Medical System to small businesses and other ideas have been floated,” he adds, “but it is unlikely that any of them would have a significant impact on the uninsured.” Keckley says flatly, “There are no solutions that do not require Approximately 40 percent of us to think about funding some level of benefit for those 45 mil- lion people who are uninsured.” U.S. employers don’t provide Americans already spend more money per capita on health care than any other country, says Vice Chancellor Jacobson. But he health insurance. The average doesn’t believe the entire responsibility should fall on the state or federal government. Better cooperation between health-care health-insurance premium for providers who are focused on patient care and insurance compa- nies who are focused on the bottom line could help. “Eighteen a family is $1,000 per month. percent of health-care costs goes to insurance companies getting their money, and 2 percent goes to the provider battling the insur- Half the nation’s involuntary ance company.” And more health-care providers need to step up to the plate, Jacobson adds. “Hospitals and doctors need to share more evenly bankruptcies result from the burden of caring for uninsured patients, rather than leaving it to the academic medical centers. If doctors were true to the Hip- medical bills. pocratic Oath they took, they would take care of their fair share of Medicaid and TennCare patients and the load would be distrib- uted more evenly.” make sure patient transports by Metro EMS are rotated from hos- Small employers also should be asked to contribute to the solu- pital to hospital—not just brought to Vanderbilt. But implemen- tion somehow, says Jacobson. And patients themselves need to tation can be slow and difficult to monitor.” consider how their own behavior is driving up costs. “We overuse At the same time Vanderbilt is taking on an ever-growing num- the health-care system. We run too many tests and give out too ber of uninsured patients, Tennessee’s state treasury is sitting on a many prescriptions.” huge budget surplus. A large pot of money in reserve probably “I don’t think anyone at Vanderbilt would want to say we have means drastic changes to TennCare are unforeseen for the time to start discriminating on trauma patients or premature babies being, Beck says. based on their ability to pay,” says Beck. “Taking care of these “And, optimistically, this might indicate a possibility of some patients is our mission, it’s our job, and the thing that keeps us form of relief in the TennCare program—perhaps an expansion of coming to work every day.” benefits offered through TennCare’s new program for employees “It is our mission and our responsibility to heal people regard- of small businesses called Cover Tennessee,” he adds. “Something less of their ability to pay,” adds Jacobson. “For the moment, that like that might push excess reserve funds back to the hospitals and means we have to work hard and be as efficient as we can be.” V

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:fekXZkljkf]`e[flkdfi\-(,&*))$)0)0nnn%mXe[\iY`ck%\[l&Xclde`&Xcldkflij Gordon Gee returns to Ohio, and Vanderbilt begins writing its next chapter.

By GAYNELLE DOLL

ordon Gee never was one to follow the playbook. Past Vanderbilt chancellors have always pursued a more or less predictable exit strategy: After a couple of decades lead- ing the university to ever-greater heights, they quietly retire to spend their days serving on foundations and advisory boards, growing more silver-haired and distin- guished as chancellors emeriti.

Yet there, on a Thursday last July, was derbilt in August, the 63-year-old Gee had Gordon Gee, only Vanderbilt’s seventh chan- packed his bags. Vanderbilt had a new interim cellor in its 134-year history, speaking before chancellor, and a chancellor search com- a board of trustees meeting at Ohio State mittee was in place. University, explaining his abrupt decision Gee has headed more universities than to leave Vanderbilt and return to Colum- any other American—Vanderbilt, Brown bus, where he previously served as presi- University, Ohio State, the University of dent from 1990 to 1997. He belonged at a Colorado and West Virginia University, public university, Gee said. where he was elected president at age 37. “I am following my heart and returning He has always looked like a college presi- to a place that I consider my home,” he had dent straight from Central Casting, with told the Vanderbilt community the day before. his earth-tone tweeds, horn-rimmed glasses, “My decision is that simple and that com- and vast collection of bowties. Never one plex.” to shun the limelight, he was beloved by The announcement came less than three Vanderbilt students. For his first six months weeks after he had pronounced his “unwa- at Vanderbilt, he maintained an office in vering and unshakeable” loyalty to Vander- the Sarratt Student Center. He was known bilt when Ohio State—the nation’s largest for his impromptu visits to Greek Row par- university—had come courting. ties, Vanderbilt’s rank-and-file employee By the time students returned to Van- workplaces, and Roads Scholars bus trips

38 F a l l 2 0 0 7 NEIL BRAKE ’DOREno MORE to outlying areas. He has a remarkable facil- ity for remembering names and faces, exists Provost Named Interim Chancellor on little sleep, thrives on grueling travel itineraries, embraces parades and cere- wenty years to the day after he first mony, and is a gifted speaker and a prolific arrived in Nashville, Nicholas Zeppos writer of personal notes. Tstepped into the role of interim chan- He also didn’t mind ruffling feathers. cellor of Vanderbilt University on Aug. 1. He “If you don’t like change, you’re going to also serves as provost and vice chancellor like irrelevance even less,” he was fond of for academic affairs and professor of law. saying. A distinguished legal scholar, teacher and He has been an outspoken critic of abuses executive, Zeppos has served since 2002 as in college athletics nationwide. His deci- Vanderbilt’s chief academic officer, oversee- sion to eliminate the athletics department ing the university’s undergraduate, graduate at Vanderbilt and make athletes more fully and professional education programs and part of the rest of the university drew heated research in liberal arts and sciences, engi- debate but ultimately has been judged suc- neering, music, education, business, law and cessful. He recruited star faculty from other divinity. As provost and vice chancellor, he institutions and helped Vanderbilt diver- chairs Vanderbilt’s budgeting and capital sify its student body significantly. planning council and leads all fundraising Gee’s time at Vanderbilt is noteworthy and alumni relations efforts across the insti- for its accomplishments, despite the fact tution, as well as overseeing the dean of stu- that personal issues cast a shadow over his dents and dean of admissions. final year here. In September 2006, Gee Zeppos is only Vanderbilt’s second inter- DANIEL DUBOIS was the subject of an extensive Page One im chancellor in its 134-year history. The “Provost Zeppos is an extraordinarily Wall Street Journal piece that carried the first was Madison Sarratt, who served in the talented educator and executive who will head “Lavish Spending by Star Chancellor” same role briefly in 1946 between the chan- continue the great momentum and excite- and reported on Vanderbilt trustees’ efforts cellorships of Oliver Carmichael and Harvie ment that can be felt in every part of the to more closely monitor his expenditures. Branscomb. Vanderbilt campus,” said Martha Ingram, It also revealed a 2003–04 total compensa- tion package that was reportedly second- highest in the nation. A few months later, in February 2007, Gee and his wife, Constance Bumgarner THE SEARCH FOR VANDERBILT’S 8th CHANCELLOR Gee, announced they would seek a divorce. She remains on the Peabody College fac- In late July the Vanderbilt Board of Trust appointed a chancellor search committee to be ulty as an associate professor of public pol- chaired by Dennis Bottorff, Board of Trust vice chairman and chairman of Council Ventures icy and education. in Nashville. Bottorff, BE’66, also chaired Vanderbilt’s last chancellor search, which resulted A native of Vernal, Utah, Gee was grad- in the selection of Gee in 2000. uated from the University of Utah with a Board of Trust members named to the search committee include Darryl Berger, BA’69; Mark bachelor’s degree in history and had J.D. Dalton, JD’75; John Ingram, MBA’86; Orrin Ingram, BA’82; Nancy Perot Mulford, BA’82; and Ed.D. degrees from Columbia Univer- Richard Sinkfield, JD’71; Heather Souder, BA’04; and J. Lawrence Wilson, BE’58. Serving sity. as ex officio members of the search committee are John Hall, BE’55, chairman of the Board His seven-year tenure at Vanderbilt, Affairs Committee; Monroe J. Carell, BE’59, chairman of the Shape the Future campaign; however brief in comparison to that of his and Martha Ingram, chairman of the Vanderbilt Board of Trust. predecessors, is fairly typical of the cur- rent state of higher education. The 2007 James Hudnut-Beumler, dean of Vanderbilt Divinity School, heads a chancellor’s search advi- report of the American College President sory committee comprising Vanderbilt faculty, students and staff. Study series, conducted by the American Vanderbilt’s last chancellor search, after Chancellor Joe B. Wyatt announced his intention to Council on Education, found that the aver- retire in July 2000, lasted nine months and involved a review of more than 150 candidates. age tenure for presidents in 2006 was 8.5 Read more about the chancellor search: years, and that the average age of presi- www.vanderbilt.edu/chancellorsearch dents has increased from 52 years in a 1986 study to 60 years in 2006. V

40 F a l l 2 0 0 7 “I take great pride in the accom- THEgeeYEARS plishments of the university, and I have great confidence that chairman of the Vanderbilt University Board Vanderbilt has vaulted into the of Trust, in announcing the appointment. front ranks of American universi- Zeppos, who is an energetic 53, has led a ties,” Gee told the Vanderbilt number of important initiatives at Vander- community on his final day here. bilt, including the planning process for The “That was not my accomplish- Commons (for more about The Commons, ment. Any success we have had see page 52), a landmark transformation of over the past seven years is due the first-year experience, the Strategic Aca- to the spirit and commitment of

demic Planning Group, innovative efforts in DANIEL DUBOIS all members of our community.” undergraduate admissions and financial aid, Nevertheless, Gee oversaw a remarkable number of major initiatives. During his time at and the development of new programs in Vanderbilt, the university: Jewish studies, law and economics, and •Completed a $1.25 billion capital campaign two years ahead of schedule and raised the goal genetics. With Gee, he has led the universi- to $1.75 billion—with an emphasis on endowed scholarships and faculty chairs. ty’s Shape the Future fundraising campaign, which exceeded its $1.25 billion goal two •Grew its endowment by almost 50 percent, to more than $3 billion. years ahead of schedule and set a new tar- •Led the country in the rate of growth for academic research, with external funding increasing get of $1.75 billion by 2010. from $232 million in 2000 to more than $450 million today. Zeppos joined the Vanderbilt community •Renewed its commitment to being one of a small number of in 1987 as an assistant professor in the private universities that admits applicants regardless of ability Law School, where he has won five teaching to pay and meets the full demonstrated financial need so that awards. He subsequently served as an asso- a Vanderbilt education can be affordable to all. ciate dean and then associate provost before being named provost and vice chancellor for •Doubled its annual budget for financial aid from $30 million academic affairs in 2002. to $60 million, reducing significantly the debt burden for graduating students. “When you work on the campus for 20 NEIL BRAKE years, you experience an interesting phe- •Launched a $100 million Academic Venture Capital Fund to seed new research centers in nomenon of constantly noticing how Vander- life sciences, social sciences, humanities and culture, an initiative that has led to important bilt changes and how it’s still the same discoveries and insights and new educational opportunities for undergraduates. institution. We’re building a new freshman •Experienced a surge in the number of applications for admission, which jumped from campus, the students are diverse, and they 8,000 in 2000 to more than 13,000 in 2007, making Vanderbilt one of the most selective dress differently and think differently,” says institutions in the country; average SAT scores rose nearly 100 points, and more than 90 Zeppos. “But at the same time, it’s still percent of incoming students came from the top 10 percent of their high school classes. Vanderbilt. Alumni from the Class of 1948 can visit, and even though two-thirds of the •Increased the number of its minority students by 50 percent. buildings have changed, all the professors •Completed or began construction of more than $700 million in new facilities for medical have changed, and we’ve built two new hos- research, student services, studio arts, engineering, law, children’s health, diabetes care, pitals, to them it’s still Vanderbilt. We may performing arts, interdisciplinary work in arts and sciences, tennis, baseball, Jewish life be following new areas of inquiries, but still and African-American culture. there’s a mixture of traditions that takes us forward.” •Became the most-preferred provider of health-care services in Middle Tennessee, with the opening of the most advanced children’s hospital in the country and new clinical services in a Read more about Vanderbilt’s interim number of areas. chancellor: •Began construction of The Commons, a $150 million investment in the www.vanderbilt.edu/interimchancellor undergraduate experience that will transform student life by creating a “campus within a campus” for first-year students beginning with the entering class of 2008. •Restructured its athletics program, resulting in unprecedented success, with a national championship title and seven teams ranked in the top 25 during the Spring 2007 season. In June, Sports Illustrated named Gee one of its “25 Best Brains in Sports” for his pioneering efforts. NEIL BRAKE American RUSTIC

By LOGAN WARD, BA’88

42 F a l l 2 0 0 7 DANIEL DUBOIS Logan Ward, BA’88, and his wife, Heather Higginbotham Ward, BA’91, have traveled the world: Logan has taught school in Kenya; Heather has lived in Spain and Guatemala. But nothing compared to their yearlong adventure living the life of Virginia dirt farmers circa 1900. Logan chronicled their experience in his book, See You in a Hundred Years, published earlier this year. BenBella Books has allowed Vanderbilt Magazine to share these abridged excerpts. n the City, you don’t stargaze. You don’t dig through wildflower field guides for the name Iof that brilliant trumpet burst of blue you saw on your morning walk. You don’t hunt for animal tracks in the snow or pause in that same frozen forest, eyes closed, listening for the chirp of a foraging nuthatch. You forget such a creature as a snake even exists. It’s as if New York is encased in a big plastic bubble, where humans sit atop the food chain armed with credit cards and Zagat guides. Native wildlife? Cockroaches, pigeons, rats. Disease transmitters. Boat payments for exterminators. Our story begins in the bubble. The year is 2000, the dawn of a new millennium. The Y2K scare is barely behind us. Economic good times lie ahead, with unemployment at an all-time low, the U.S. government boasting record surpluses, and the NASDAQ, which raised a lusty cheer by topping 5,000, making everyone rich. At least on paper. Living in the wealthiest city in the wealthiest nation at the wealthiest moment in history, Heather and I should be happy. We aren’t.

BURNED OUT Like everyone we know in New York, we work too much. Job stress follows us home at night, stalks us on weekends. Heather’s work at a justice-reform think tank and mine hustling freelance magazine assignments keep each Burned-out urbanites of us either chained to PCs or traveling. Within Logan Ward and Luther the past two years, Heather has flown to every continent but Australia and Antarctica to interview cops and meet with government officials. When she was seven months preg- nant, she gave a talk in Ireland, flew back to New York, and left the same day for Argentina and an entirely different hemisphere. We figured that if she happened to give birth prematurely, it was a coin toss whether we’d have a summer or winter baby. As it turned out, Luther was born more or less on time in Manhattan, in a hospital towering over the East River. By the tender dinner from a revolving drawerful of ethnic exhausted for any bed-squeaking ourselves. age of 4 months, he was already in the care takeout menus and rent disappointing movies It isn’t a physical exhaustion. The benefi- of a nanny, leaving us feeling guilty for hav- from a corner shop where the owner hides ciaries of a multigenerational pursuit of the ing to hire her and also guilty about how behind bulletproof glass. There’s some- American dream, we have traded the farm little we could afford to pay her. (We felt thing missing from our lives—from our and factory work of our small Southern home- guiltier still upon learning from another relationship—and yet we’re too busy to con- towns for education and urban living. Instead mother that our nanny was locking Luther front the problem. At least that’s our excuse. of a limb lost in some mercilessly churning in his stroller so she could gab at the park. So the two of us plod through our days hardly assembly-line machine, we suffer the stress- We fired her and put Luther in day care.) talking. And at night we collapse into bed, related ills of our times: anxiety, depression, We spend too much money on housing kept awake by the sound of squeaking bed- e-mail addiction, debt. and not enough time outdoors. We order springs in the apartment above but too My tipping point came the day my beige

44 F a l l 2 0 0 7 plastic Dell tower—the tool of my trade— at all to do with producing the food you eat? whined to a halt. The screen went black. Maybe our disconnect with the natural 2,000-pound draft With mounting panic, I punched the keys world causes a sort of vertigo, and if so, horse Belle replaces and poked the on/off button on the front. maybe that explained my recent unhappi- the family Taurus. Nothing. Fingers followed the dusty power ness. Or maybe I was just pissed off things cord from wall socket to box. Plugged tight. weren’t going my way. Whatever the rea- My mind reeled at the thought of all that son, on that day I dreamed of escape. accumulated data trapped inside the wiry And yet I dutifully called a Dell techni- guts of a machine that I so little understood: cian. With a wife and child, and a career to pages of research, interview transcripts, an pursue, what choice did I have? almost-finished article due three days ear- A few weeks later I had a moment of lier, book ideas, addresses, e-mail corre- clarity that in a flash changed everything. I spondence with friends and editors, family was reading a newspaper story about an photos, business records, tax records. That upcoming PBS show that pitted an English computer was everything to me. And like a family against the rigors of 1900-era Lon- fool, I had not bothered to back it up. don life. Thinking back to my computer Once I recovered from my initial panic, I crisis and the question still ringing in my thought back to my grandfather, a country mind—What choice did I have?—I realized doctor and cattle farmer. He was born in I had found my answer! Not the reality show 1886, before all this so-called time-saving itself, but rather its core concept—adopt- technology—cell phones that tie people to ing the technology of the past. If I were so their jobs 24/7 and computers that keep desperate for a change, why not travel back- OLD YEAR’S EVE them answering e-mails past midnight. Could wards in time as a way of starting over? After selling our apartment and cutting ties someone whose tools were hand-shaped The year 1900 immediately felt right. I with New York, we begin laying out the prac- from iron, steel and wood ever grasp the wanted to ditch certain technologies, but I tical steps necessary to recreate 1900 and ethereal nature of lithium-ion-powered dig- did not want to be a pioneer, having to build live there for a year. We find a 40-acre farm ital devices? This was my dad’s dad—a mere a log cabin or dig a well by hand. The year in the Shenandoah Valley community of generation stands between us—and yet he 1900—almost within memory’s reach— Swoope, Va., with an 1885 brick farmhouse came of age in a world completely different would serve well. A bit of research bore out fronted by a sweet little porch with scroll- saw pickets. We have traded the farm and factory work of We begin chipping away at our to-do lists: make house livable and period appro- our small Southern hometowns for urban living. priate, dig privy hole, install manual well pump, stock up on old tools, hammer up Instead of a limb lost in some assembly-line animal stalls, convert waist-high tangle of machine, we suffer the ills of our times: weeds into vegetable garden. By spring 2001, a pair of milk goats nib- anxiety, depression, e-mail addiction, debt. ble grass in the barnyard. Half a dozen chick- ens scratch around the henhouse with southern from the one I know. my intuition. In 1900 rural dwellers still exposure. Looming over it is our 100-year- It dawned on me that no one yet under- outnumbered urban dwellers. In 1900 agri- old barn. The outhouse stands atop a freshly stands the long-term side effects of Mod- culture was still the predominant occupa- dug hole. ern Life. Can we really adapt to all this tion, thanks to millions of small-plot American In between the sledgehammer and the brain-scorching change—the technologi- farmers who raised most of what they ate crowbar work, the wallpaper scraping, the cal advances, the teeming cities, the break- for breakfast, lunch and dinner. In 1900 digging, the hacking and hoeing, we begin neck pace of daily life, the disappearance of the motorized car was still a novelty. In hitting the books, digesting generations’ the human hand from the things we buy rural America there were no televisions, worth of farming lessons in the equivalent and the food we eat? Maybe my ambiva- telephones or, of course, personal comput- of a college semester: Do store carrots in lence about technology (and dread over ers. People still wrote letters by hand. And layers of damp sand and apples in a box. my failed computer) was not something to this was crucial: In 1900 you could buy toi- Don’t store them side by side or the carrots be ashamed of. It was as if something in let paper. will taste bitter. Don’t cellar pumpkins because me shouted, Hold on a minute! You’ve been I nervously told Heather my idea one they’ll rot. Do put pumpkins in the attic, staring at the computer screen too long. When Saturday as we juggled our fussy baby in a but don’t let them freeze. The best laying was the last time you dug in the dirt or tromped cramped Brooklyn pub. She smiled, and I hens, we now know, have moist rectums, around a field, not to mention had anything remembered why I fell in love with her. though how to use such advice remains a

Vanderbilt Magazine 45 shorts and T-shirt, I whisper curses, hoping something off the shelf above the stove. It I don’t rouse Heather or, in the adjacent crashes to the floor with a tinny sound that room, Luther, who has been waking up at I instantly recognize as made by one of our night screaming for a nightlight. I feel my oil lamps. I stoop and carefully feel for bro- way out of the room—easy now, slow and ken glass. It is whole. easy—hands caressing cool plaster along the When I find a box in the washroom cab- wall to the stair landing’s low walnut railing inet, I return to the stove where I righted (it hits me just above the knees). I follow my the lamp and strike a match. The darkness feet slowly down, down, praying Luther did melts. not leave a wooden train car or stuffed bear That night, before bed, I walk through on the steps. I continue, around the newel the house like a pyromaniac Easter Bunny, post and into the creaking hallway, around hiding matchboxes on shelves and in dressers the corner and—oof!—I bump the ceiling in as many rooms as possible, hoping Luther The outhouse, dug by Logan and where it slants to meet the stairs. Easing will not find them. headquarters for Luther’s potty through the doorway into the sparsely fur- In more than one way, we feel our way training. Fortunately, toilet paper nished living room, I can feel the age of the along during these early days. Everything is was invented before 1900. house, my fingers rippling over the wide, trial and error, from pinning cloth diapers hand-planed jamb. on Luther to battling the green worms devour- mystery. In the kitchen I smell onions and curry, ing our cabbage plants. I learn to feed a new Since we have no trees, I pay a guy with a hear the cranch, cranch of scraping mice log into the firebox every 15 or 20 minutes “Don’t Make Me Open This [Can of Whoop teeth. Our rodent problem started as soon to keep it heating consistently. Heather learns Ass]!” bumper sticker on his pickup truck as I began chasing away the black snakes. to cook all meals in the morning, letting the to supply enough unsplit rounds of fire- We find nibbled corners on our cheese, lit- fire die before the sun beats down with full wood for about 13 cords. tle turds on the kitchen table, hear scuffling intensity. We’ve stocked up on the dry goods In place of our Taurus wagon, with its claws above us in the ceilings. Where are the the typical 1900 family would have been able missing hubcap and 174,000 miles, we have matches? I want to reach for a light switch. to buy at a general store—coffee, tea, sugar, Belle, a 2,000-pound Percheron draft horse. Or feel the reassuring click of a flashlight oatmeal, rice, soap, baking powder, among We stash the telephone in a drawer after button beneath my thumb. Instead, I shuf- other things. And we’ve bought extra, since canceling credit cards, car insurance, Inter- fle my feet, letting the vermin know I’m there is no longer a general store where we net account. here, while feeling around for the box of can replenish our supply. Using a collection A guy from the power company knocks kitchen matches. I stick my hands into bas- of misfit cookware—cast-iron pots and skil- on the door. “Says here you put in an order kets and cobwebby crannies, feeling for a lets, chipped enamelware saucepans—Heather to cut power,” he says, sounding confused. rectangular box with an emery strip. My makes oatmeal, skillet toast or fried eggs for “That’s right,” I say cheerfully. blind arms tip cups and bottles. I brush breakfast. She boils rice, simmers dried lentils “You want me to cut the power off?” he repeats, looking past me at a kitchen filled Heather’s vegetarianism required creativity in with food, furniture, and other signs of habi- the kitchen, but 1900 Americans consumed far tation. less meat than their 21st-century counterparts. “Yep. Cut it off.” We are almost there. Soon the darkness will fall.

IN THE DARK It only takes a couple of days of morning headaches and unintended brunches to real- ize that if we want breakfast at a decent hour, one of us—me—will have to get up early to start the cooking fire. That means waking before sunrise. Unless the moon lights my way, I am blind for as long as it takes me to strike a match—if I remembered the night before to stash the matches on the night- stand. On Day Four, I rise in a room as dark as death. No matches. Feeling around for my

46 F a l l 2 0 0 7 or kidney beans, steams collard greens or the goat, kicking at her while hugging Luther REM, Mahler, Miles Davis. But now, with broccoli from the garden, and bakes corn- to my chest. Coming to my senses, I stop our supply of music cut off, I am a pris- bread, covering everything and leaving it on and run to Heather, who now stands at the oner to every stray tune that pops into my the warming shelf until lunch. Dinner is cold garden gate. head. Some are personal favorites. Most leftovers. We drink well water, ladling it from “Star butted him!” I say, handing Luther seem to have been sent only to torment a crock that stands on a table in the kitchen. to her over the gate. No blood, no broken me. bones. The first tune that sticks is “Red, Red “Why did you put him down in there if Wine” by UB40. It pops into my head one she butted him before?” says Heather, scowl- day while I am cultivating beans, and it I sprint after Star, trying to kick her again. Sweet Pea and Star. She’s bleating her head off, tongue wagging in Goats require milking twice a day, or the cartoon desperation. Afterwards I feel horrible milk dries up. for losing my temper. It must be my exhaustion. I can hardly face Heather.

ing at me. Then she changes her tone, sooth- stays there for days. I’ve never liked the ing Luther with soft words while rocking song, but something about its simple melody side to side. He keeps screaming. and reggae beat keeps it glued there, the “I don’t know!” I say, breathless. “I can’t rap-like chorus looping: “Red, red wine, believe she really did it.” you make me feel so fine/You keep me rock- I sprint after Star, trying to kick her again, ing all of the time.” I can’t remember any swinging my leg so hard I throw my body other lyrics, so I invent words to go along: out from under myself. I hit the gravel with “Red, red wine I want to hold on to you/Hold HEADBUTT a lung-crushing thud and roll. She runs to on to you until my face turns blue.” And so “They’re nice goats,” I say, putting down the the back side of the barn. I follow in a fast- on. “The line broke, the monkey got buckets. “They won’t hurt you. See?” I crouch moving linebacker’s crouch. She’s bleating choked/Bah bah ba-ba-ba bah ba-ba ba- and put my arm around Luther’s shoulder her head off, tongue wagging in cartoon ba. Yeeaah.” while petting Sweet Pea’s smooth tan coat. desperation. I move like an animal. She tries I hum “Red, Red Wine” while hoeing, They are nice goats, less menacing than most to race past me, but I grab her stubby tail mouth “Red, Red Wine” under my breath dogs, even though Star, the big black one, and catch hold of her collar, shoving her as I kneel to pull weeds, clamp my lips together did playfully lunge at Luther the day after into her stall. to keep “Red, Red Wine” from spewing out, we brought her home. I didn’t think much Sucking air into my lungs, I go to find and then hear it sloshing around my skull. of it—didn’t have the time, really—and since Heather and Luther. “Red, red wine make me feel so … .” Shut then have been trying to abate Luther’s fears. They are sitting at the picnic table in the UP! I’m worse than the mumbling crazies He’ll just have to grow comfortable with shade of the silver maple, Luther calm now we left behind in New York. I try to stop the the animals. It will be good for him. but still in Heather’s arms. torture by pretending to end the song, play- “Up, up,” he whines. I ignore him, turn- “Star butt Luther,” Luther says in a pouty ing it out with an overly dramatic “bum- ing to unlatch the barn door. Suddenly, out voice. “Daddy give Star timeout.” BAH.” But it comes back like the flame on of the corner of my eye, I see Star rear up “I sure did,” I say, making the words sound one of those trick birthday candles. The on her hind legs. In half a breath, she cocks upbeat, “a loooong timeout.” But inside I only solution is to swap it for a better song. her head to one side and thrusts her body feel horrible—for letting it happen and for “Blackbird singing in the dead of night,” I forward. Her bony skull meets Luther’s squarely losing my temper afterwards. It must be my sing through gritted teeth, holding the tune in the forehead with a blow powerful enough exhaustion, I tell myself. I can hardly face up like a crucifix. I work my way through as to launch him through the air. He lands Heather. I turn and walk back towards the much of the Beatles’ White Album as I can with a bounce on the rocky ground. barn. The goats need water, and so does remember, using “Blackbird” and “Mother “STAR!” I yell, kicking her hard and run- Belle. I need lunch, but that will have to Nature’s Son” to part the sea of “Red, Red ning to Luther. His face is scrunched up wait. Wine.” and red. A scream swells in his lungs and But freedom is short lived. Other ran- finally bursts from his lips. I scoop him up BAD POP SONGS dom tunes creep in to fill the void: Aero- into my arms and, crazy with rage, chase In New York we had music on all the time. smith’s “Walk This Way”—the rap version. Latin dance music, Brazilian Bossa Nova, The Go-Go’s’ “We Got the Beat.” It’s mad-

Vanderbilt Magazine 47 dening. Here we are trying to faithfully How can New York be reeling from death and fiery recreate the year 1900, and while splitting wood or pumping water I wah-wah the theme destruction when here all is innocence and calm? music to Sanford and Son or thump out the Any time we see a New York postmark on a letter, bass line from Barney Miller. Curiously, most of what sticks is from we open it slowly. We read about the smell of my childhood—sitcom themes, commer- cial jingles, songs by the Bee Gees, the Com- burned flesh and the greasy ash that fell like snow. modores, and KC and the Sunshine Band. of the country is going through. We can something in me has changed. Over the past It’s not period-appropriate in the least. If only live our lives. Which we do, with the few months, I have been calmed by the lack our story had a soundtrack, it wouldn’t be same regularity as before, going through of 21st-century distractions and humbled by some Ken Burns-style collection of haunt- the motions feeling empty and strange. The the power of nature. Like the weather, the ing mandolin melodies. It would groove, peacefulness of the farm seems pregnant terrorist attacks were beyond my control. All baby. Do a little dance, make a little love, get with irony. How can New York be reeling I can do is cling to the simple assurance of down tonight! from death and fiery destruction, when here daily chores. all is innocence and calm—chickens cluck- We are relieved to learn from letters that NEWS FROM THE FUTURE ing in their nests, cats trailing me for milk my brother and his wife and David and Meryl as I clink down the path with a frothy pail, are fine. Other mail from New York trickles I am sitting on the screen porch shucking Luther jabbing a spade in the dirt? in. Any time we see a New York postmark corn, with Luther at my feet tugging at the At night we try to write letters but the on a letter, we open it slowly, not sure of husks, tossing hairy, half-shucked ears in words fall flat, and we give up. Instead, we what we’ll find inside. We read harrowing with my clean ones. sit opposite one another on the chilly side details from friends about the smell of burned An engine growls up the driveway, and a porch, sipping bourbon and taking turns flesh and the greasy ash that fell like snow. Jeep Cherokee skids to a stop. It belongs to reading Pride and Prejudice aloud to one Wesley and Crystal Truxell, who live nearby. another. FRUITS OF LABOR “Have y’all heard?” Wesley says. I’m not sure whether it is resignation or Winter marches at us. A few cold nights in “It’s all over the TV,” Crystal says. “Ter- faith, but something helps me abide. I get by September stunned the summer garden. A rorists are flying planes into the World Trade without the crutch of technology, the false hard frost in early October knocked it out Center.” sense that minute-by-minute news coverage for good, sending a rich smell rising from “Man, they’re everywhere,” Wesley inter- or phone contact puts us in control. I have the blackened plants like a final breath. We rupts, words tumbling out. “They blew up never been a very patient person. And yet surpassed our goal by preserving more than the Pentagon. There’s a plane down in Pitts- burgh. This is big time.” Within 20 minutes, three cars line the driveway and we’re huddling with our neighbors, trying to fathom events possible only in a nightmare. I think of my brother and his wife, and of our friends David and Meryl, who both work within a few blocks of the World Trade Center. “I bet this will make you want to watch television,” says Wesley. Yes. No. Hell, I don’t know what I think. This is all so strange. “Come on down and use our phone,” he says. “You don’t really care about your little project enough to not call, do you?” Luther, named for All day long I wonder if maybe Wesley’s Heather’s bootlegging right. In the shadow of such enormity, the great-grandfather whole project suddenly feels little. Don’t we have a responsibility to our families and friends? Are we turning our backs on our own era during a time of need? Here, we can only imagine what the rest

48 F a l l 2 0 0 7 the middle of her sentence, she shifts her and spunky, despite her age and her lack of Logan battles procreating weight slightly and farts, clearly but not sight, with a bright, smiling face. Japanese beetles. loudly, with no blushing or begging of my I guide her around a bunch of ankle- pardon or comments about frogs, as if pass- twisting walnuts scattered on the ground. ing gas during a neighborly chat is the most “I was so fond of walnut trees when I natural thing in the world, which, arguably, was a girl,” she says. “I asked my mother it is. “Dot’s blind,” she says. “Well, mostly once, I said, ‘Mother, will there be walnut blind.” trees in heaven?’ She said, ‘No.’ I told her, I visit Dot Makely’s during the day, ped- ‘Then I aling over one afternoon with a pair of can- don’t want to go.’” vas gloves in the basket and a nervous stomach. A fowl flutters past with a startled cluck. A big, boyish man, probably 40, wearing a “Is that a rooster?” Dot asks. grimy mechanic’s uniform, answers the door, “I have to admit my ignorance,” I say. “I scowling. I realize I’m dirty, too, and wild of can’t tell the difference.” hair. “Is Mrs. Makely here?” I ask. “I’m your I’m only here because of what I call our neighbor. I came about the roosters.” “country cred,” which is like street cred, “Mommm!” he calls, turning and shuf- only different. Because we are living off the fling into the cramped house. I follow. He land, people assume we know more than points at a woman sitting at the kitchen we do about country life. Not even Liz Cross table and then plods into an adjoining room. cooks on a woodstove or drives a horse and I hear television voices and laughter and buggy, and Liz can do anything—including see blue flashes, like dull, boomless fire- strip down a car engine to a pile of nuts and 350 jars of food, including corn, squash, works, lighting up the dark room. bolts and parts and piece it back together okra, pickled cucumbers, dill-seasoned “Liz Cross said you needed some help,” (which I know because Jack Cross told me pickled green beans, and more than 100 I say, introducing myself. Unlike her son, so while wearing a look of pure husbandly quarts each of tomatoes and green beans. Dot Makely is perfectly charming, launch- pride on his face). But even though I’ve learned We made three dozen jars of blackberry ing into conversation as if we were old friends some 1900 skills, I still have a hole a mile jelly, put up 14 gallons of apple cider, dumped and had been sitting over lunch since noon. wide in my country-living résumé. No mat- a bushel and a half of potatoes in the bins, We talk. Actually, she talks, and I listen. ter. Liz still comes to me to kill the roosters stored pumpkins and winter squash and She talks about her chickens and the coy- for the blind woman. onions. We put up a half gallon each of otes that come down from the mountains “Oh, the roosters have bigger combs on dried lima beans and field peas. to stalk them; about her land, which she their heads,” Dot says, matter-of-factly. As the neighbors bring news of war in Afghanistan and anthrax scares, I realize The rooster panics, flapping and flopping in how lucky we are to be together on these a silent scream. It somersaults, regains its feet, peaceful 40 acres. Not only do we now cook, clean, split wood and tend the animals with tries to fly. It hops. It spins. Will it never end? brisk efficiency, but the pressures of sum- mer have eased. We return from the cellar It does, and we go after more roosters. lugging a basket brimming with food and a kept after she and her husband divorced; “And they’re a lot more aggressive.” half gallon of apple cider, all of it put up by about her spring, which is still flowing despite We enter the henhouse, where 20 birds us, feeling proud and secure. the drought. It’s as if her mouth, rather of all sizes, shapes and colors explode in a For the first time since my boyhood, I than her ears or nose, has compensated for panicked cackling, beating up a toxic, lung- offer silent prayers of thanks without get- her blindness. Which is fine with me, since choking dust. ting hung up on the theological details. the talking postpones the killing. All I can “Be careful,” she says. “They can be mean.” think of are the neck-wringing stories I’ve Gloves on, I chase what looks like a roos- OLD-FASHIONED heard. Now that I have chickens—and know ter into a corner, yanking its legs out from ROOSTER-KILLING how big they get—I can’t imagine ripping under it before it can peck my eyeballs out. “Would you help my friend Dot Makely the head off one. I carry it upside down, holding it well out slaughter some roosters?” asks Liz Cross. “Listen to me, gabbing on and on,” she of range of anything it might target below “She’ll give you one for every three you kill.” says. “You’ve probably got things to do. Let’s my waist. We walk back up the hill, where Liz, who lives with her husband, Jack, go find those roosters!” an axe leans against a stump. on a few acres nearby, stands like a farmer, Like a debutante, she takes my arm, and “Just chop the neck,” she says, holding leaning back, hands stuffed in pockets. In I lead her slowly outside. She’s a tiny woman the bird’s head. “And try not to cut off my

Vanderbilt Magazine 49 hand.” Gripping the legs in my left hand and the axe with my right, I try to concen- trate, but Dot won’t stop talking. “Roosters flop around so much after you cut their heads off,” she says. “Drop it quick. Otherwise, you’ll get blood all over you.” I raise the axe, arm wavering under its weight. In 1900, only 8,000 American households “I hope people don’t do that,” she says. had automobiles. “Do what?” I say, lowering the axe. “Flop around when you kill them. It would be horrible—in a war or something. You’d see bodies flopping around.” “I’m pretty sure they don’t,” I say, raising the axe. I lower it again when I realize she’s not finished. “I hate war. The one we’re in has me so angry,” she says, referring to the U.S. inva- sion of Afghanistan, now about a month old, which we know because the neighbors have kept us informed. “I can’t really say With my folks coming for Thanksgiving juices and Heather’s seasoning. anything, though, since I don’t vote.” and Heather’s for Christmas, this holiday “I had no idea the food would be this “Why not?” season will be our chance to give them a good,” my mother admits, as we rock on the “I’m a Jehovah’s Witness. We don’t believe glimpse of our life in 1900. front porch (there being no televised foot- in it.” Determined to finish the job, I stop The typical farm wife 100 years ago ball game to keep us inside). But it’s not just asking questions. Soon the conversation couldn’t choose convenience over made- the food. It’s the lack of hurry and distrac- peters out. from-scratch. Neither can Heather. At times tion. We have lingered over meals, pressed “Here goes,” I say, raising the axe again. she’ll stand outside the henhouse tapping apple cider, and visited with the neighbors. The bird, still stretched across the stump, her fingers, waiting for an egg to round out My mother has taken walks along the gravel wriggles pitifully. I let the heavy iron head a recipe. (Once, while making brownies, she road, pulling Luther in his wagon. An artist, fall. It bounces, as though I’ve just hit a rub- impatiently reached under a hen and was she has been sketching the cows, barn and ber hose. The rooster’s eyes bulge. I raise sharply pecked.) Using our limited ingredi- mountains. the axe again. Thud. The head tumbles. ents, Heather has adapted to the challenge A couple of days later, we say our good- Stepping back, I drop the rooster and of cooking three meals a day, seven days a byes in the driveway. After hugging Luther, the axe, the blade barely missing my foot. week, with energy and creativity. We have my mother turns to me. “You and Heather The rooster hops away, shaking out its wings never eaten better in our lives. have created a wonderful life for yourselves in a gesture of freedom as blood spurts from On Thanksgiving the sight is enough to here.” its neck. But then, as if suddenly realizing make everyone—my parents, my brother I no longer fear silence. The bad pop that something is terribly, irrevocably wrong, and his wife, who have joined us from Brook- songs in my head are gone. That, along the bird panics, flapping and flopping in a lyn, and our neighbors Peggy and Bill Rober- with the lack of technological distractions, silent scream. Spraying blood, it somer- son—gasp. Food rests on every kitchen leaves me available both physically and saults down the hill, regains its feet, tries to sur- mentally to witness nature’s wonders: the fly. Blind—worse than blind—the bird smacks face: steaming bowls of corn pudding, roasted nightly march of the stars, muskrats glid- into a tree and pinballs off in another direc- potatoes flecked with rosemary, green beans, ing for great stretches beneath the river’s tion. It hops. It spins. My god! I think. Will and rice and gravy; pans of moist corn- frozen surface, the misty-morning revela- it never end? bread dressing seasoned with sage that Heather tion of spiderwebs by the hundreds, glis- But it does, and we go after more roost- planted, harvested, and strung up to dry; tening like spiral galaxies in the meadow ers. The second one flops, just like the first. pickles, deviled eggs, the Robersons’ cran- grass. I don’t drop the third bird quickly enough, berry salad and candied yams; Heather’s I am amazed at my sturdy, competent and blood spatters my cheek and pants and yeast rolls, including a couple of misshapen hands and marvel at my patience and drive, boots. Dot is effusive in her thanks, and it’s ones kneaded by Luther; her two pumpkin a reversal from the run-down edginess that all I can do to convince her that I don’t need pies; and a platter of sliced turkey, which dominated my moods in New York. a dead rooster for my services. cooked to perfection in the intensely hot, Mornings have become my reading time. HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS slightly smoky box, the heat searing in the Once I’ve built fires in both the heating

50 F a l l 2 0 0 7 stove and the cookstove, I’ll huddle close to the kitchen stove listening to the crackle, We have proven that a clump of seed-filled soaking up the heat and reading a book. My envelopes can feed a family for a year. new powers of concentration astound me: I’ve raced through Dickens, Hardy, Wilde, And that an idea—no matter how quixotic— Hawthorne, Irving, William Dean Howells, when tucked into the fertile folds of imagination, the collected letters of Thomas Jefferson, and several novels published in 1900. can grow into a miraculous thing. They come to light one evening at din- We only share a few forkfuls between us, a PREPARING FOR RE-ENTRY ner, when I offer Heather the last slice of an meager harvest, I know. But at least we’ve Even though our project is not driven by olive-oil–drizzled chevre that I have pretty done it! We planted, cultivated and picked nostalgia, we find ourselves growing nostal- much devoured. these peas—the first yield in this year’s gic for our 1900 experience even before it “You can have the cheese,” she says, an long growing season—so that they may comes to an end. One day, after we put Luther odd smile on her face. now nurture us. If I take away anything down for his nap and finish our chores, we “What’s that supposed to mean?” I say. from our 1900 experience, it is a newfound tiptoe up to the guest room and sneak under “I can’t eat it.” appreciation for the miracle of the seed. the covers. Afterwards, we are silent, and I “You can’t eat it? It’s delicious.” Heather and I have proven that a rubber- sense an unspoken understanding between “I can’t stand it any more. I stopped eat- band-bound clump of seed-filled envelopes us that soon this, too, will change. I’ll get ing goat cheese a couple of months ago. I can feed a family of three for a year. And busy again with work, the phone will ring, stopped drinking the milk, too.” also that an idea—no matter how quixotic— we’ll spend too much time in the car driv- I’m dumbfounded. “I never noticed.” when tucked into the fertile folds of imag- ing to and from town. “I kept making it for your sake,” she con- ination, can grow into a complex and And then there’s the nagging reality of fesses. “I didn’t want you to find out. I thought miraculous thing. how we’ll support ourselves. Simmering on you’d be disappointed.” Later, both of us are on hand to kiss Luther the back burner all this time was our idea “About our farm idea?” goodnight. We smile down at him and hint of starting an artisanal goat-cheese farm. “Yeah.” at the excitement that awaits us the next We have the land and the barn. With some I burst out laughing. morning. Though he doesn’t understand train-ing—perhaps a few sabbaticals to France “What’s so funny?” she says. the significance, to us this night feels magi- —we could build on Heather’s already con- “I’ve got a confession, too,” I say. “You cal, like Christmas Eve. siderable cheese-making skills. It would be don’t like the cheese. I can’t stand the goats!” “I had the craziest dream last night,” perfect: We’d use what we learned in 1900 Heather says, as we brush our teeth out back, to build a new life once we returned to the BACK TO THE FUTURE beneath the maple tree. “I dreamed it was 21st century. What do we do on our last day? Sleep late, our last day. I decided to plug in the phone But there are two problems. take the day off, celebrate? No. We milk, early. What’s a day? I thought. I’ll just make pump, cook, clean, whack weeds, shovel sure it works. But then it rang, and I pan- manure, and mulch the garden paths. icked.” We also prepare for re-entry. John Fos- “Did you answer it?” I ask. ter drops by and helps me remove the ani- “Yeah. The voice on the other end said, mal nests from the Taurus and splice the ‘Gotcha!’” chewed wires. We pull enough straw out of “Creepy.” the engine to stuff a mattress. He takes the We climb into bed, dreaming of all we’ll battery and brings it back fully charged. do. Basking in our accomplishment, feel- Even though we’re not going anywhere— ing secure at having found a home, we’re until tomorrow—I can’t resist sitting in the not worried right now about the future. driver’s seat and giving the key a try. She We have money in the bank for renova- sputters and starts up. I let the engine run tions, though less than we had hoped. More A moment’s repose for a while, and then I shut it off and pocket important, we have each other. The future between chores the key. will fall into place. At the end of the afternoon, Heather Heather turns to me. “See you in a hun- throws up her arms in a gesture of triumph. dred years,” she says, and blows out the lamp. “Wooohoo!” she yells. “I did everything on V my to-do list today. I think that’s a first.” That evening at dinner, in addition to Since re-entering the 21st century in 2002, rice and beans, we fulfill my vow to eat the Wards have lived in Staunton, Va. fresh English peas before the project’s end.

Vanderbilt Magazine 51 GRO UND common From the moment they step onto campus next August, the 1,550 students in the Class of 2012 will be pioneers in one UND of the most comprehensive changes in Vanderbilt history.

Each incoming student will live in one of

10 residential “houses” led by a faculty head

who lives with students and residential life

staff. Collectively known as The Commons,

this residential community is the first step

in Vanderbilt’s College Halls program.

The Commons promises significant new

forms of faculty involvement and student

learning for undergraduates. Students in

each house will dine together, socialize

together, and call upon faculty mentors for

a range of needs, academic and otherwise.

Each house will create its own identity,

plan its own activities, and manage its own

programming budget.

“As a colleague of mine says, we’re about

to open Pandora’s box,” says Associate Pro-

fessor of History Frank Wcislo, Vanderbilt’s

first dean of The Commons and a passionate

advocate for the program. “But in this

instance, the box is filled only with good.”

DANIEL DUBOIS Vanderbilt Magazine 53 After nearly a decade of planning, Van- Stambaugh House, one of five new derbilt is investing $150 million in the first residential houses designed to complement the architecture of phase of College Halls. Much more than the original Peabody buildings bricks and mortar, these projects mark Van- derbilt’s leadership in an educational move- ment that in recent years has been taking root at leading universities not only in the United States — such as at Princeton, MIT and North- western—but around the world. While The Commons focuses on first- year students, the university’s current plan aims eventually to build a series of College Halls for all interested upperclassmen. Early planning for the next two such College Halls, each of which would house about 300 soph- omores, juniors and seniors together with resident faculty and graduate students, is already under way. The residential college movement is “a real generational transformation, and there are at least two motivations behind it,” notes

Robert J. O’Hara, an evolutionary biologist tOm gAtLIN phOtOgrAphy who is one of the world’s leading advocates This model that is gaining new advo- Where Everybody Knows Your Name of the residential college movement. “One cates in the 21st century is patterned after ith the building of The Com- is a rejection of the mid-20th century’s obses- the 700-year-old residential college sys- mons, notes Dean of Students sion with bureaucratic centralization, an W tems of Oxford and Cambridge universi- Mark Bandas, Vanderbilt is finally outlook that treated education almost like ties. Whether referred to as residential colleges, achieving a long-stated goal that all stu- an industrial process. Another is a desire to a house system or college halls, the intent is dents, with few exceptions, live on campus. repair the damage done by the self-cen- the same at such places as Harvard, Yale, “Vanderbilt has never had enough hous- teredness of the 1960s. Residential colleges the University of Pennsylvania and Rice: ing available, so our insufficient space issues are being established at universities in the intimate residential-based communities of have allowed some students to live off cam- United States, Canada, Mexico, Germany faculty and underclassmen living together pus,” says Bandas. “Especially as enrollment and China, and they are joining established and engaging in social and educational pro- grew, housing couldn’t keep up with demand.” systems in Britain, Australia, New Zealand gramming. Hogwarts, the school of magic That’s about to change. Beginning next and elsewhere.”

“When I’ve explained to older Vanderbilt alumni what we’re trying to achieve with College Halls, their response has been that we’re returning Vanderbilt to the way it was years ago.”

—Susan Barge, associate provost for College Halls

attended by Harry Potter, provides a liter- fall nearly 100 percent of undergraduates ary example of College Halls, minus the will live on campus. Only students request- moving staircases and talking portraits. ing to live with an immediate family mem- “A residential college experience is absolutely ber whose primary residence is in Davidson at the heart of what Vanderbilt has always County may live off campus. That is a fairly been about,” says Susan Aston Barge, BA’81, substantial change from recent years, when associate provost for College Halls. “Even as much as 15 percent of the undergraduate though Vanderbilt’s growth in recent years population lived elsewhere. has meant more students living off campus, The move back toward a residential empha- Susan Barge it was never in keeping with our mission.” sis began nearly a decade ago when, at the DANIEL DUBOIS

54 F a l l 2 0 0 7 One troubling finding of their research young people go through in their college at the time was data showing that during years. Vanderbilt stands for collegiality, vital- the previous five years, approximately 8 per- ity, balance and community, respect and cent of Vanderbilt first-year students did caring, and College Halls builds upon all of not return for their sophomore year—a poor that.” retention rate compared to other top uni- Ingram’s own residential college experi- versities. It is during the transitional year ence during her days as a Vassar student from high school to college that students helped her envision such a model at Van- face the greatest risk of isolation and benefit derbilt. “It concerned me that we had stu- most from increased interaction and faculty dents who were bright enough to get into mentoring. Vanderbilt, who had all the credentials, but “Students who are able to find their ‘niche’ at Vanderbilt tend to remain and graduate,” the com- mittee reported. “Conversely, stu- dents who do not socially integrate and develop no strong ties to a com- munity, student organization or academic program have a signifi- cantly lower rate of retention.” Soon after the committee released its report, the residential college idea gained momentum from the convergence of three per- request of College of Arts and Science fac- sonalities at Vanderbilt: Gordon ulty members, former Provost Thomas Bur- DANIEL DUBOIS Gee was installed as the univer- rish charged a committee of faculty, students Old oak chairs from the university’s libraries find new life sity’s seventh chancellor, Nicholas at The Commons Center. and administrators with exploring the pos- Zeppos became provost and vice sibility of a residential college system at chancellor for academic affairs, and the who weren’t staying here because they did- Vanderbilt. Chaired by then-Associate Provost Board of Trust was chaired by tireless stu- n’t know how to fit in,” she says. “Helping Nicholas Zeppos (now interim chancellor, dent advocate Martha Ingram. every student maximize his or her potential provost, and vice chancellor for academic Zeppos explains how that which is spe- is what Vanderbilt is all about, and that means affairs), the committee examined the edu- cial about Vanderbilt has continuously served making the experience welcoming and chal- cational outcomes of learning communi- as the project’s Polaris. “We asked what Van- lenging intellectually for everyone who comes ties, met with representatives from institutions derbilt is about,” says Zeppos, “and the answer here.” with residential colleges, and conducted always was the unique connection between The immediate price the university pays internal research on the thoughts and needs faculty and students and the transformation when a student fails to become engaged is of Vanderbilt students. loss of that student to another institution. But there are also ramifications if the stu- dent stays. Disengaged students make less of A Brief Glossary of Vanderbilt’s an academic contribution to Vanderbilt and Residential College Community become unenthusiastic, disconnected alumni. “The solution is to make complex insti- College Halls: The overarching term for Vanderbilt’s long-term plan to provide a system tutions into smaller units where students of residential community life for all undergraduates. don’t get lost in the shuffle,” says Lucius The Commons: The new living and learning community for first-year students and Outlaw Jr., associate provost of academic residential faculty, located on Vanderbilt’s eastern edge across 21st Avenue. The first affairs and professor of philosophy. phase of College Halls, it includes 10 houses grouped around four quads, apartments for At present, Vanderbilt students have faculty heads of house, a dean’s residence and the Commons Center, a recreational, three very different versions of a first year educational, dining and community center. at Vanderbilt depending on which of the three freshman areas of campus they live Vanderbilt Visions: A core program for all first-year students that brings them together in—Kissam Quadrangle, Branscomb Quad- in small groups with faculty, student peer mentors and educational staff to discuss their rangle or Vanderbilt/Barnard Halls. Hav- intellectual and social transition from high school to university life. ing all first-year students together will help

Vanderbilt Magazine 55 standardize the freshman experience. By building The Commons, says Outlaw, Functioning as a community square, The Commons “we are creating small residential institu- Center includes a food gallery, fitness facility, and tions within the institution that decrease resources for academic assistance. It sits where our scale and increase our intimacy with Peabody’s Hill Center once stood. students at this critical time in their lives.” Vanderbilt already has a model of sorts in its existing Living and Learning Cen- ters—Mayfield, McGill and McTyeire. The committee headed by Zeppos found in 1999 that students of these residences had, on average, SAT scores 30 points higher than other entering Vanderbilt students; had high school GPAs higher than other enter- ing Vanderbilt students; and were more likely to receive an honors scholarship. The 10 houses of The Commons are all StEVE grEEN located on Vanderbilt’s east side, adjacent to ular green spaces of Magnolia Lawn and the The Professor Next Door and architecturally harmonious with the Peabody Esplanade. he 10 senior faculty who will serve historic Peabody College buildings, but within Every space was designed with acciden- as heads of house are a diverse mix a short walk of the center of campus thanks T tal interaction as a goal. Planners found of empty-nesters and young pro- to two bridges over 21st Avenue. They include that students don’t like congregating in huge fessors. Faculty heads will interact with meeting spaces for students, seminar rooms, lobbies students through such formal means as laundry facilities, wireless Internet services, — but one place where they do hang out is sponsoring lectures and conversations with and specially designed apartments for fac- the laundry room. So laundry rooms were visiting faculty, as well as informal means— ulty heads of house. Five of the houses were placed right off the house lobbies. Small hosting study breaks and afternoon teas built from the ground up, and five were trans- coffeehouse-type spaces also encourage and eating meals in the Commons Center formed from residence halls built at Peabody social exchanges. dining hall. College, most in the 1920s. Also new is The Certain amenities were omitted in order Commons Center, a multipurpose recre- to foster integration of first-year students ational, educational, dining and community into campus life among upperclassmen. Stu- center. dent mailboxes continue to be located in the That section of campus provided the per- Station B Post Office, and the Student Recre- fect location for such an enterprise, notes ational Center is still the best place on cam- Judson Newbern, associate vice chancellor pus for a good workout and for intramural for campus planning and construction, because sports. A five-minute walk gets one to Library it was “a contiguous area that had been under- Lawn and the Stevenson Center, and in approx- realized and underinvested in over the years.” imately five minutes more, one arrives at the The Commons continues the feeling of the Rec Center, Sarratt Student Center or Greek original surrounding Peabody structures by Row. using similar architecture. It features four “It’s creating a whole new front door to Ten senior faculty will serve as heads of house, living quadrangles and takes advantage of the pop- Vanderbilt,” says Wcislo. three-year term.

The 10 Houses of The Commons Five existing buildings and five new Crawford House, named for Murray House, named for Walter Murray ones comprise the 10 houses where Frank Armstrong Crawford, Jr., BA’70, MMgmt’74, who founded the first-year Vanderbilt students will live who is credited with moving Association of Vanderbilt Black Alumni. beginning next fall. Original buildings her husband, Commodore The first African American to serve on dating mostly from the 1920s that Cornelius Vanderbilt, toward Vanderbilt’s Board of Trust, Murray served have been gutted and refurbished his only major philanthropy as managing director of INROADs, taught are North House, East House, West —giving a million dollars in at Andover Newton Theological School, House, Memorial House and Gillette 1873 to build and endow and later became minister of Zion Baptist House. New buildings are: Vanderbilt University. Church in Lynn, Mass.

56 F a l l 2 0 0 7 Faculty will live with their families in a Visions and Revisions students approved of it. Based on that early university-furnished apartment. These two- nderpinning the bricks and mortar feedback from student focus groups, dis- and three-bedroom residences each have a of College Halls is Vanderbilt Visions, cussion topics have since been geared more separate exterior entrance and interior space U specifically to the Vanderbilt experience. a first-year core program in which specifically for the purpose of entertaining small groups of students, facilitated by a fac- VUceptors have been given flexibility to other members of the house and of The Com- ulty member and a student VUceptor, come think proactively about how their groups mons. together outside the classroom in new ways. adapt the curriculum. And the size of each “I suspect that living and learning in The Groups will complete at least one commu- Vanderbilt Visions group was scaled down Commons will redefine life at Vanderbilt, nity service project, get together for social from 20 to 15. and not only for its students,” says faculty outings, and discuss dozens of topics in the “It is the development of relationships head Greg Barz, associate professor of eth- social and political realms as well as the val- we’re really going after,” says Ann Neely, nomusicology. Barz, his wife, Mona, and ues and expectations of the Vanderbilt com- associate professor of the practice of educa- their two children, ages 12 and 7, will move munity. tion, who is participating in her second year into North House next fall. “Faculty and While first-year students won’t move with Vanderbilt Visions. “This is part of the staff will be significantly affected by our into The Commons until fall 2008, Van- deep involvement in the everyday lives of derbilt Visions began in fall 2006. our students.” Stuart Hill, a senior in the Blair School Mona Barz, a pastoral counselor, adds, of Music and president of VUcept, the “While we expect we may feel a certain loss student-led organization that administers of privacy, we are looking forward to expe- the Vanderbilt Visions program, recalls riencing everyday life at Vanderbilt. Our his first year at Vanderbilt. “I knew my children think it will be a lot of fun to eat in professors, and I was getting a great edu- the dining center, use the green as their front cation,” he says. “But I wondered if my yard, and get to know the students.” friends were more just company rather What faculty will not be is some kind of

than the type of fulfilling friends I had NEIL BrAKE über-RA. “I have no intention of patrolling envisioned spending time with at college. the hallways,” says Wcislo. “I view this as an Becoming involved in summer academic Vanderbilt Visions aims to “blow apart the opportunity to do more of what I love best— orientation—a precursor to the Vander- boundaries between students and faculty.” teaching.” bilt Visions program—helped me realize there were other people here and gave me a purpose—to create opportunities for stu- broader perspective.” dents and professors to have intellectual With The Commons and Vanderbilt Visions, conversations outside the classroom.” that broader perspective could be possible While some students have always man- for all students early on. “This isn’t just about aged to make connections with a particular making friends,” Hill continues. “Partici- faculty member—an adviser, the instructor pants of Vanderbilt Visions are getting men- of a favorite course, a lab director—many torship about how to become better learners, undergraduates find it intimidating to approach how to become more active participants in faculty beyond the confines of a classroom. the Vanderbilt community.” In addition to faculty heads of house, Not every student shared Hill’s enthusi- Vanderbilt Visions involves more than 100 asm for Vanderbilt Visions in its first year. faculty section leaders who meet weekly An evaluation a few months into the pro- with small groups of first-year students. in university-furnished apartments for a two- or gram revealed that only a third of first-year This program alone has greatly increased interaction between students and faculty.

Stambaugh House, named for Hank Ingram House, named for Orrin Henry Sutherland House, named for Earl W. John H. Stambaugh. After a Ingram, a civic leader, philanthropist and former Sutherland Jr., a Nobel Prize winner and pro- career in business and govern- vice president of the Vanderbilt Board of Trust. fessor of physiology at Vanderbilt from 1963 ment that included service in Hank Ingram’s son, Bronson, served on the board until his death in 1974. Sutherland received the Eisenhower administration, from 1967 until his death in 1995, and he chaired the Nobel Prize in 1971 for his discoveries Stambaugh was appointed vice the board the last four years of his life. In 1995, concerning the mechanisms of the actions of chancellor for business affairs Martha Ingram, Bronson’s wife, was elected to hormones. His work has helped researchers at Vanderbilt and served in that the Board of Trust, then elected its chairman in today understand how various hormones exert role from 1956 to 1962. 1999—a position she currently holds. important functions within organisms.

Vanderbilt Magazine 57 “Students sit down with an engaged, involved upperclassman and a prominent faculty mem- “I’ve worked with Vanderbilt students who made me marvel at the ber for an hour a week for the entire year,” deliberateness with which they engaged me. This happens far less says Cara Bilotta, a senior in the College of Arts and Science and current president of frequently with freshmen and sophomores. Let’s increase the Vanderbilt Student Government. “They can opportunities for learning in these first two years.” pick each other’s brains about Vanderbilt and about the world in a way that isn’t pos- —Frank Wcislo, associate professor of history and dean of The Commons sible inside a classroom. This is where we start to blow apart the boundaries between book group Students Against the College and president of the Interfraternity Coun- students and faculty.” Halls Initiative. “Everyone is focused on cil. “Any concerns the Greek community Even with the fine tuning of Vanderbilt College Halls, which is great, but this should- may have about The Commons or College Visions, though, some students have yet to n’t mean that no one focuses on current Halls stem from fear of the unknown.” embrace the whole notion of their univer- students.” As to charges that College Halls is Van- sity’s becoming a residential community. The rise of The Commons also has fueled derbilt’s attempt to copy its Ivy League com- “Basically, we are frustrated because we feel rumors that the project will sound the death petitors, says Bilotta, “I think a lot of these like students will suffer in [not having resi- knell for the university’s Greek system. concerns stem from a misunderstanding of dence options for] price and quality now “I think Greek life at Vanderbilt will con- what College Halls will be. They’ve been that the university will not have to be com- tinue to be a major part of the Vanderbilt designed to adapt to student needs and stu- petitive when it comes to housing,” says community, no matter where the freshman dent wants, and the planning process has Taylor Gould, a junior in the College of Arts class is housed,” counters Erik Johnson, a involved students from the very beginning. and Science and co-founder of the Face- senior in the College of Arts and Science We take a lot of pride in being a great uni- Student Interest Drives Green Certification irst-year students won’t move into The Commons until fall and students. The Vanderbilt student organization SPEAR (Students 2008, but already the buildings have a whole lot of history Promoting Environmental Awareness and Recycling) was the impetus Finside them. behind the university’s applying for LEED certification. “We’ve really tried to think of creative ways to use and re-use “SPEAR was passionate about enhancing the university’s sustain- building materials,” says Tony Fort, project manager for The Commons ability efforts, and at their urging, we agreed to pursue the certification and architect for the Office of Campus Planning and Construction. as an example of the student-faculty-staff partnerships The Commons For its creative approach in building The Commons, Vanderbilt is was designed to foster,” says Judson Newbern, associate vice chancel- the first university in Tennessee to be recognized for environmentally lor for campus planning and construction. “While we regularly incor- friendly construction by the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leader- porate environmentally friendly elements into our construction ship in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building projects, we had not sought certification for any of our buildings.” Rating System. “Not only does the silver certification spotlight benefits to the envi- Old oak chairs from the university’s libraries were reused for seat- ronment achieved through energy efficiency and material conserva- ing in the dining center. When the Hill Center, the old dining facility of tion,” says SPEAR President Brent Fitzgerald, “but it also raises Peabody College, was torn down in order to build the new dining cen- awareness at Vanderbilt that being green goes beyond just recycling ter, nearly 75 percent of the materials were salvaged, recycled or sold. and saving rain forests.” Sandstone from the Hill Center was used in the patios of the new din- Among the environmentally friendly features of Crawford and ing center, and 150 tons of limestone excavated from The Commons Sutherland houses are low-flow or waterless fixtures, state-of-the-art construction site was used to create a landscape sculpture at the uni- HVAC systems, flooring made of bamboo (a resource that renews versity’s Dyer Observatory. quickly), high-efficiency kitchen exhaust systems, natural lighting in “We used recycled glass in the new terrazzo flooring, and the car- atriums and stairwells, motorized window shades to reduce heat and peting also contains a high percentage of recycled content,” adds Fort. glare, and pervious concrete pavement that absorbs water rather than LEED is the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, con- creating runoff. Most new materials being used in Commons structures struction and operation of high-performance green buildings. The have come from vendors located within a 500-mile radius of Nashville council awarded the university silver-level certification for Crawford in order to conserve energy. and Sutherland houses, two new residence halls built as part of The Five other buildings in The Commons also have been submitted for Commons. LEED certification. For details about Vanderbilt’s sustainability Vanderbilt’s application for, and achievement of, LEED certification efforts, visit www.vanderbilt.edu/sustainvu. resulted from a partnership between the university’s administration —Princine Lewis

58 F a l l 2 0 0 7 of this place, but I will also always ask what can make us better. College Halls and The Frank Wcislo Commons are another chance for us to take our unique values forward.” As Wcislo explains what the university hopes to create with The Commons, he is adamant that the undertaking not be viewed as an attempt to fix something that is bro- ken, but rather that it be seen as a tool that can be used to make that which is good about Vanderbilt even better. With first-year stu- dents more engaged with each other and with faculty, the expected byproduct is a general increase in the intellectual atmos- DANIEL DUBOIS phere on campus. versity in the South, in our unique Vander- “I’ve worked with Vanderbilt students bilt-ness.” who made me marvel at their confidence, “Some schools claim to have residential at their intention, and at the deliberateness colleges and many have faculty who live on with which they engaged me,” says Wcislo. campus, but they have little interaction with “This type of encounter, though, happens students,” adds Susan Barge. “We are already far less frequently with freshmen and soph- unique among other top schools in our com- omores. Let’s increase the opportunities for mitment to the undergraduate experience.” learning in these first two years.” So far the effort is bringing Vanderbilt Vanderbilt students, faculty and staff positive press, including mention in a July have already begun to make the space of 2007 New York Times profile of residential The Commons their own. For the last two colleges and a U.S. News and World Report years, upperclassmen have been breaking in citation of Vanderbilt’s College Halls as a new houses and living in newly renovated “Program to Look For.” halls. The Commons Center opened for “Vanderbilt has definitely enjoyed increased business in August and has already hosted a exposure and interest in the university of number of campus events. It regularly draws late, which can be tied, in part, to The Com- a large lunchtime crowd and coffee lovers mons,” says Doug Christiansen, associate from across campus, as well as from busi- provost for enrollment management. “Par- nesses on nearby Music Row and Hillsboro ents and prospective students really get it Village. when we talk about The Commons as a com- In the more ethereal arena of campus munity of belonging, steeped in academic culture, there is an attitude of great antici- as well as social traditions and an increased pation—tinged with a bit of trepidation. ability for students to explore.” “We must have tolerance for ambiguity as Christiansen points out that while much this project evolves,” says Barge. “Our goal of the spotlight is on College Halls, Vander- is to get all the building blocks in place and bilt is being noticed for “its very public and then step away.” very deliberate focus on the undergraduate “What really matters is this complicated, experience.” nebulous thing called university culture,” Ultimately, says Nicholas Zeppos, almost says Lucius Outlaw. “It’s going to take a while all concerns about The Commons stem from to build a Commons culture, and it’s only a reaction to change. By their very nature, one aspect of our university’s culture. Chang- institutions of higher education are con- ing the housing experience of our under- stantly evolving. graduates isn’t going to blow open the doors “People don’t want things to change, but of intellectual life by itself. It remains to be what they have and love is the product of seen what we can pull off and how many change,” says Zeppos. “I’ve been at Vander- years it will take.” V bilt for 20 years and am fiercely protective

Vanderbilt Magazine 59 TheMind’s “ People don’t go to cities because they have great sewer systems. Books and Writers: that it became such race relationships depressing. Just because Hip-hop Study Paints a a cultural force glob- aspects of hip-hop may be misogynistic Complex Portrait ally. and sexist does not mean that misogyny “We have to revel began with hip-hop. Hip-hop just happens In hip-hop music and videos, in that kind of cre- to be the youth culture of the moment and young black women are consis- ativity coming from therefore takes the wrath on a lot of issues.” tently portrayed as sexually insa- such a marginal- Any solutions will involve changing tiable vixens willing to debase ized group.” society rather than stifling hip-hop’s blunt themselves for the privilege of The book paints articulation of what’s going on, she says, even the shortest ride on the music a complex portrait adding, “I do urge young women to be more industry party train. Despite the with one constant: politically conscious about the choices lack of respect, young black women Black women are they make and the opportunities they take.” play an enthusiastic part in hip- always at the bot- Sharpley-Whiting is director of Vander- hop culture, as do youth of all tom of any peck- bilt’s African American and Diaspora Stud- races who continue to make hip- ing order. ies Program and director of the William T. hop a worldwide phenomenon. “That doesn’t Bandy Center for Baudelaire and Modern Tracy Denean Sharpley-Whit- mean I find hip-hop depressing,” says Sharp- French Studies. ing — ley-Whiting. “I find the state of gender and —Jim Patterson Vanderbilt University professor, young black woman, former model, feminist and hip-hop fan—researched this paradox and responded with Recent Books by Faculty and Alumni Pimps Up, Ho’s Their Own Receive Them Not: African American Lesbians and Gays Down: Hip Hop’s in Black Churches (Pilgrim Press) by Horace L. Griffin, MA’93, Hold on Young Black PhD’95. “Their Own Receive Them Not cuts through the Gordian Women. The book, knot of homophobia in the Black Church with compelling, sub- published by New stantive arguments,” comments Sylvia Rhue, director of religious York University affairs and constituency development for the National Black Justice Press, offers an Coalition in Washington, D.C. “This groundbreaking work has the

STEVE GREEN insightful look into potential to move hearts and minds toward the more loving and Sharpley-Whiting the strip clubs, inclusive community for which we have been praying.” groupie culture, and other aspects of hip hop that have given a voice to the disen- Speechless: The Erosion of Free Expression in the American franchised while raising troubling ques- Workplace (Berrett-Koehler), by Bruce Barry, professor of tions about what those voices are saying management and sociology. While Americans are protected and doing. from censorship by the government, no laws exist to protect “As disturbing as I find some of what’s free speech in the workplace. In Speechless, Bruce Barry guides going on around gender in hip-hop, there readers through the crucial roles of law, convention and cul- are also things we need to celebrate,” says ture in limiting free speech in the workplace. He argues that Sharpley-Whiting, who is a professor of freedom of speech in the workplace is excessively and need- African American and diaspora studies and lessly limited, and advocates changes to law and management professor of French. “It’s a cultural art form. practices that would expand and protect employee rights It’s the soundtrack of black life in the Unit- without jeopardizing employer interests. ed States, and it’s absolutely astonishing

60 F a l l 2 0 0 7

“Believer” by sculptor Eye “ Kevin Kennedy, on exhibit in November at Sarratt Gallery

They go to cities because there is great culture. —Mel Ziegler, new chair of Vanderbilt’s studio art department etc. During a three-hour session on the changing relationships between audiences and the arts, approximately 700 attendees of the American Symphony Orchestra League’s conference in Nashville in June COURTESY OF CUMBERLAND GALLERY were encouraged to blog—right then and there—about what they were hearing. “Opus 2006” Bill Ivey and Steven Tepper, director and associate director, respectively, of by Sylvia Hyman the Vanderbilt Curb Center for Art, Enterprise and Public Policy, had worked with ArtsJournal.com and conference organizers to create the blog. For two Visual Arts: weeks leading up to the conference, 12 bloggers jumpstarted discussion about Stories Told with Fictional Clay the upcoming session’s topic with their postings, in hopes of preparing confer- At first glance, the basement of Sylvia ence attendees for the live blogging session June 21. The blog can be accessed Hyman’s home looks much like any other at www.artsjournal.com/league. clay artist’s studio. A shelf running along the “This was a chance to see if audiences could engage more deeply in the wall holds jar after jar of oxides, silicates, conversation if they had the opportunity to react, post questions and note fluxes and other materials used in the prepa- potential contradictions in the middle of listening,” says Tepper. ration of ceramic glazes. A large kiln sits in one corner, and two long work tables stand Muhammad Yunus, PhD’71, has been called many things: in the middle of the room. One of the tables visionary, world leader, Nobel Prize winner. Now there’s a holds a seemingly random stack of books: new addition to the list: rock star. Yunus has teamed with an art history volume, a suspense novel titled the European musical duo The Green Children in support Danger Music, a copy of Dr. Seuss’ The Cat of their efforts to promote micro-credit, education and in the Hat. A crossword puzzle book sits health care. He even makes an appearance in a music video, nearby, on a neatly arranged breakfast tray. which can be viewed at www.thegreenchildren.org. To date, Peer more closely, though, and you’ll do a the group has raised more than $450,000, which will be DANIEL DUBOIS double take: These aren’t books at all. They used to build an eye hospital in Bangladesh. Yunus are made entirely from clay. The art of Sylvia Hyman, MA’63 — mas- Mel Ziegler is the new chairman of the studio terful trompe l’oeil sculptures—uncannily art department at Vanderbilt. Ziegler had served mimics objects from real life. Whether tak- on the University of Texas-Austin faculty since ing the form of books, boxes, baskets, print- 1997. He was a member of the City of Austin ed scrolls, letters or playing cards, each piece Arts Commission from 2000 to 2006 and is skillfully deceives the eye. known for his site-specific public art. Ziegler’s To succeed as art, trompe l’oeil painting body of work in collaboration with late artist and sculpture must do more than simply Kate Ericson is the subject of a major exhibit at replicate an object or scene. In Hyman’s the Kansas City Art Institute through October, case, her ceramic works convey playfulness which then moves to the Contemporary Arts and joy, mixed with sly consideration. For Center in Cincinnati from Nov. 10 to Jan. 13, her these sculptures operate on a number 2008. Ziegler and Ericson worked together on of levels, but one central conceit is the idea major projects for the Seattle transit system of communication. and the historic district of Charleston, S.C. STEVE GREEN “My first ceramic trompe l’oeil works >> Ziegler

Vanderbilt Magazine 61 “Spilled Packages” were done for fun,” she explains. by Sylvia Hyman “Sylvia has kept herself young and engaged “In the 1960s I made dancing in the world of art in a way that transcends banana skins and partially eaten generations,” says independent curator and fruits on brightly colored, glazed arts writer Susan Knowles, BA’74, MLS’75, plates. Then in the 1980s I made MA’86. some porcelain birthday cakes, “She has been a great role model for other fortune cookies and cantaloupes artists here because she stands up for her- for gag gifts. The more serious works self as an artist, she’s interested in what’s that began in the ’90s—expanding on happening creatively in Nashville, and she’s the idea that fortune cookies carry con- willing to give her time to things she feels cealed information—started with scrolls are important. She has a real sense of jus- that tice and fair play.” imitated diplomas and certificates. —Jonathan Marx

“Now my work has grown to encom- COURTESY OF CUMBERLAND GALLERY (A longer version of this article was originally pass the myriad ways that humans com- various parts as my works become more published July 15, 2007, in The Tennessean.) municate, not only through language, but complex.” also with signs and symbols such as musi- Hyman’s art was the subject of an exhibit cal notes, maps, drawings, diagrams and at Nashville’s Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Film: puzzles. I’m enthralled by the way that humans, which ran through Oct. 7. Remembering through the centuries, have devised ways Hyman turns 90 this year, and the Frist the Chicago 10 to convey thoughts by making marks on show was only the most recent honor in an The 1968 Dem- stone, papyrus, clay, paper, etc.” energetic career that has seen her work trav- ocratic National For Hyman, achieving precision and el the globe, with exhibitions on three con- Convention was detail in her works is the result of a con- tinents. Her ceramic pieces sit in the collections an iconic event in stant learning process. “Almost every piece of the Smithsonian American Art Muse- American histo- I make involves trial and error. Sometimes um, the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague, ry.Young Vietnam I have to remake parts of a sculpture or and nearly a dozen other institutions. War protestors clashed with Chicago police even rethink the whole arrangement of the while millions witnessed their battles on live television. Eight protestors were tried Upcoming for conspiracy in a circus-like atmosphere. A new film about the event, associate- Musical explorers the Kronos Quartet produced by Christopher Keene, JD’96, will take the stage at Ingram Hall on opened this year’s Sundance Film Festival. March 14, 2008, at 8 p.m. as part of Using archival footage, trial transcripts and Vanderbilt’s Great Performances series animation, Chicago 10 brings the incident to perform Sun Rings, an evening-length, to life for a new generation of moviegoers. multimedia work in 10 movements that Academy Award–winning director Brett will feature choirs from the Blair School Morgen dubbed the film Chicago 10 to include of Music. The piece, commissioned for Bobby Seale, attorneys William Kunstler Kronos by NASA and others, has been and Leonard Weinglass, and the Chicago performed in London, San Francisco, Seven defendants: Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Calgary, Tucson (Ariz.) and Boston. Rubin, Tom Hayden, David Dellinger, Ren- nie Davis, John Froines and Lee Weiner. As a law student, Keene says, he gained tremendous respect for constitutional law after taking a course from James Blumstein, University Professor of Constitutional Law and Health Law and Policy. “It opened my eyes to how lucky we are to live in this coun- try. I’m a huge believer in the right to free speech and the right to protest.” Keene’s legal training has proven use-

62 F a l l 2 0 0 7 ful in film production, which involves when he interned with Cre- negotiating agreements, making contracts, ative Artists Agency’s music and gaining rights to intangible property. division in Nashville. “It While working on Chicago 10, “I tried to showed me how much fun find every photo and frame of footage it would be to work in that related to this subject and negotiated for world.” the right to include all of it in the film,” Keene After stints with a Los he says. Angeles law firm and the Endeavor talent Keene’s first foray into show business agency, Keene was hired by Morgen to be came during his second year at Vanderbilt associate producer for The Kid Stays in the Picture. A biopic about the rise, fall and rise again of legendary Hollywood movie producer Robert Evans, the film garnered numerous critical accolades, includ- ing three Best Documen- tary awards and recognition as one of the 10 best films of 2002. As head of the Archer Norris law firm’s entertain- ment practice, Keene has leveraged his film contacts to build a client list of actors, writers, directors, produc- ers, publishers and media financiers. “I feel privileged to have the opportunity to help peo- ple I admire create great work,” he says. “It’s a won- derful way to spend a career.” Chicago 10 is scheduled for release in theaters in February 2008 to coincide with the event’s 40th anniversary. —Joanne L. Beckham

Film Shorts Richard Hull, BA’92, is executive producer of the film Daddy Day Camp, starring Cuba Gooding Jr. The film was released Aug. 8. Hull’s previous films include the teen hit She’s All That.

Patrick Alexander, BS’00, has won the 2007 Student Academy Award given by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in the Narrative category for Rundown, a dark thriller about a television news reporter that Alexander wrote and directed as his thesis film at Florida State University.

Sam Friedlander, BA’00, made it into the top four on Fox Television’s On the Lot, the Mark Burnett/Steven Spielberg reality show that pitted aspiring filmmakers against one another to win a development deal with DreamWorks Studios.

Vanderbilt Magazine 63 12345 678910 Across 1. Jean and Alexander ______Library 11 12 6. Former Tennessee Senator who was a faculty member of the Vanderbilt University Medical 13 14 Center 11. ______Louisa Kissam, for whom Kissam Hall is named 15 12. ______Eaters (sophomore honor society) 13. Vandy’s sports mascot 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 15. Part of m.p.h. 16. 2006–07 Distinguished University Professor of the Vanderbilt Divinity School who was 24 25 notoriously expelled in the 1960s 24. U.N. VIPs 26 27 28 29 25. Where 41-Across received his Nobel Prize 26. Name of the former Social Religious Building on the Peabody campus, rechristened in honor 30 of a former chancellor and his wife 30. “Oedipus ______” 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 31. What Vandy’s mascot sports 39. “Give it ______” 40. Glowing coal 39 40 41. Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad who earned a Ph.D. in economics from Vanderbilt 41 42 42. ______Vanderbilt Hotel

Down Answers to this puzzle by Byron Walden are found on page 87. 1. “Let me think about that …” 2. Corn unit 3. Circle segment the words as algebraic objects. Popular Culture: 4. Home to Sugarloaf Mountain To me, it’s about manipulat- A Convergence of Numbers and 5. Decreases the amplitude of ing the letters as opposed to Words 6. Magnolia trees and such something like poetry where 7. Former Vandy football coach Dowhower It’s easy to imagine that crossword puzzles you’re thinking of words as 8. Skater Midori have existed for centuries—that they were whole units and trying to put 9. Big ______, California an amusing diversion for crusading knights them together.” 10. Mao ______-tung or monks killing time between illuminat- Walden Puzzles printed in The New 14. Country Music Hall-of-Famer Tillis ing manuscripts. But they’ve been around 16. Pliers part York Times follow strict guidelines and rules. for less than a century, having first appeared 17. Vandy soccer star Baumann The puzzles get progressively more difficult in the New York World in 1913. What started 18. Owen Graduate School of Management during the week, with Saturday’s being the as a fad quickly became an accepted compo- degree, most challenging. Walden also is a regular for short nent of newspapers around the country, the contributor to The Onion, which started run- 19. Superlative suffix notable exception being The New York Times, ning puzzles last year. Most puzzle writers 20. Took the gold which viewed the puzzles as unworthy pas- submit on a freelance basis and, says Walden, 21. Former JFK lander times. In 1942 the Times broke down and people who make a living creating crossword 22. Corrida cheer finally published its first Sunday puzzle. That Neither’s partner puzzles number in the “low dozens.” 23. puzzle quickly became the standard by which 27. Gaits slower than gallops Walden typically creates harder puzzles, others are judged. 28. 100 yrs. sometimes with a theme, sometimes with- For those who create puzzles, having one 29. Do well out. He spends six to seven hours on each published in the Times is quite an accom- 31. Vandy graduation time, for most creation. 32. S. Amer. country plishment—one achieved by Byron Walden, “I always like little phrases that have strange 33. Number of schools and colleges at Vandy BA’85, with just his second submission. letters in them. Someone working the puz- 34. Downtown Nashville campus, for short Walden, who teaches math at Santa Clara zle might think, ‘Nothing could go there,’ 35. Managed care grp. University, started making his own puzzles and then once they get it, they think, ‘Oh 36. U.K. award about seven years ago. 37. Seat in Benton Chapel yeah, of course.’” “A lot of people in the ‘numbers’ profes- 38. Soon-to-be alums His favorite clue of all time: “pitched like sions do crossword puzzles,” he says. “I see —Cindy Thomsen a girl.” The answer: “falsetto.” 64 F a l l 2 0 0 7 From Papyrus to Slanguage is “not a lot of people There was a time in the not-too- know that.” distant past when educators Certainly, slanguage viewed pencils with erasers as is not absolutely cor- crutches for lazy students. In rect—but is it wrong? the following years, other advance- “Surface level correct- ments like calculators and spell- ness is often the feature check raised similar concerns. people focus on when Now a new trend has found its they think about litera- way from the Web into the class- cy,” says Leander. “So they room. Call it “webspeak” or “slan- become more concerned guage” … English purists call it Leander that someone can spell a big problem. DANIEL DUBOIS correctly rather than the But Kevin Leander, associate professor fact that the person actually has ideas to of language and literacy at Peabody Col- communicate.” lege, isn’t so sure. “Often what happens in Leander believes some of the expres- education is that there’s a huge overreac- sions will end up in the dictionary one tion to any kind of technology. But literacy day. and technology have always been tied togeth- “One study talked about how children er in one way or another, ever since papyrus who send lots of text messages demon- and scrolls.” strate increased levels of phonetic aware- In slanguage, the writer uses abbrevia- ness and linguistic creativity. From that, tions and shortcuts as a matter of course. one could say that texting on mobile phones It is especially rampant in text messaging, makes writers better because they are exper- where space is limited. “See you later” becomes imenting with language.” “CUL8R.” And “NALOPKT,” Leander’s favorite, —Cindy Thomsen

Vanderbilt Magazine 65 S.P. O.V.*

Student Point of View Reality Bites * We saw Oklahoma City at age 7, Columbine at 11, Sept. 11 at 13. Is it any wonder we avoid emotional investment? By KATHERINE MARSHALL MILLER, CLASSOF 2010 he day of the Virginia to shield myself from becoming emotionally did not and went to Virginia Tech instead. Tech shootings, I realized that invested in the issues of the day. I hate writ- On April 16, Reema was shot and killed in the weather was gorgeous in ing about serious things. I’m more at ease French class. Nash-ville—almost as gorgeous with obscure pop-culture references and The boyfriend of that girl I never really as dirty puns about well-regarded historical liked, the one who always talked about the Tit was on Sept. 11, 2001, in Wash- figures. As a generation, though, I think we’ve Yankees on the bus during our freshman ington, D.C. learned to compartmentalize and make such year of high school—he died, too. There’s something sick in the fact that I incidents impersonal because we know another I feel detached from those people, though, made that comparison. Why couldn’t I just tragedy lurks around the nearest corner. like I’m looking at them through some sort focus on the thing in front of me and say, Virginia Tech was personal for me, though. of really thick veil. Maybe this is a kind of “This is sad, this is awful, this is a tragedy”? I grew up in McLean, Va., and I know a lot Facebook curse: The more information out Somehow, I became this sort of people who go to Virginia there, and the more quickly it’s available of meteorological soothsayer Tech—probably more than about people you barely know and never weighing one against the other. 50. I’m only good friends with see, the farther removed you are from them. I don’t think I’m the only half a dozen or so. I only know Or maybe if the tragedy weren’t so random, one wrapped up in compar- 0.2 percent of the Tech under- if the shooter weren’t frozen in time in that isons, though. We end up play- grad population. After the one photo, draped in black, arms outstretched, ing this surreal game of metric shootings they were all healthy guns brandished, I’d feel differently. He did- relativism with history all the and safe and alive. But they n’t even know any of them. But what if he time. Who suffered more, them all knew people who weren’t. had? It wouldn’t really change anything. The or us? Which is worse, this or Caitlin, who’s known as 33 victims would still be 33 victims. that? It’s like we’re arguing an unflinchingly sweet girl, Our parents live with the paralyzing fear macabre baseball statistics. sat in lockdown for two hours of getting the horrible call those 33 families In the days after the Tech Jenny Mandeville in French class in a building received that Monday morning in April. This massacre, I allowed myself to focus on the connected to Norris Hall and heard the gun- is not the first fear their generation has faced, sheer amount of information before me, shots. however. They grew up with the lingering amassing all the facts and details so I didn’t Heidi—roommate of my friends Abby dread of the Cold War and a dark, dismal have to think about them too much. People and Ryan—was shot in the leg. parade of assassination and war. From Viet- I knew tended to dwell on the numbers rather Adrienne, the elementary school friend nam to JFK, MLK, RFK—the letters begin than the stories, or rail against society for with whom I worshiped at the altar of 11- to run together. How do you aspire to any- the failures of the university rather than face year-old cool—a Backstreet Boys concert— thing when the heroes are falling down? They just how ubiquitous student shootings are. planned on going to the University of Vir- did, though, and they achieved a lot. They For me, though, that behavior goes beyond ginia together with her cousin Reema. They’d faced tragedy, too, and we shouldn’t forget the Virginia Tech tragedy. Whether it’s my wanted to go to school together for a long that. paradigm or a reaction to the times, I tend time, apparently. Adrienne got in. Her cousin Fears change, however, and our tragedies

66 F a l l 2 0 0 7 Our parents grew up with lingering dread of the Cold War and a dismal parade of assassination and war. From Vietnam to JFK, MLK, RFK— the letters run together. Fears change, however, and our tragedies are different.

their families deserve better; we deserve better. We must stick together, adapt, and

RiCK neaSe/MCT make sure this never happens again. We’re entrenched in the most serious game of Red Rover ever played. In the end, though, this life is what we are different. We saw Oklahoma City at age ing. They were us. That was the real horror have together—with our friends and our 7, Columbine at 11, Sept. 11 at 13, the Belt- in the Virginia Tech massacre. We’re not families. It’s not grand gestures that keep way sniper at 14, Katrina at 17. We saw bomb- perfect, but we didn’t deserve this. Nobody us together; it’s the everyday. Small acts of ings in Kenya, London and Madrid. We saw does, and yet we’re not surprised anymore. kindness and simple words of gratitude the tsunami. We have grown up with the Our generation seems to bear the bur- can change a lot. We don’t have to be valiant idea that it could be us. We’re not desensi- den of knowing the unthinkable will hap- heroes or saints. Just facing and struggling tized to tragedy—at least I don’t think we pen. Towers, cities, and that sense of security with our weaknesses are enough, to me any- are—but we’re not surprised, either. we have will fall at times. Perhaps, though, way. We’re not all the same, but that can The moment I knew my friends were fine, that idea is also a grace for us. We face impos- make us stronger if we let it. We share a coun- I knew that someone else was finding out sible issues and problems, but if we’ve learned try, a past, and—I hope—a future together. theirs weren’t, someone’s parents were find- anything, it’s that the impossible can become At the time of the Virginia Tech tragedy, ing out that their child was not coming home. reality. We can make the good kind of impos- many people, including myself, repeated How many more of these days will we see? sible happen, and when the bad kind jumps over and over again that we were all Hokies How many more of us will die? Why us? out and steals our favorite purse, we’ve seen and would be for a long time. Now, though, Those who died weren’t perfect; they were that we can survive that, too. Virginia Tech seems to have slipped from just like us. They went to classes and par- I don’t think tragedies like these can be our collective consciousness. The tragedy ties. They had career goals and doubts. They left aside; we need to be stronger, better and itself is incomparable, but to forget it, to had people who loved, liked and hated them. kinder after something like the Virginia Tech gloss over our fears and our parents’ fears, They succeeded and they failed, and they massacre because we have to make that day to simply wait for the next April 16, would probably didn’t want to go to class that morn- mean something. The fallen deserve better; be an even greater tragedy. V

Vanderbilt Magazine 67 A.P. O.V.* Alumni Point of View * Up from Slavery

They had experienced the worst of humankind. But they had something to teach their American visitor about faith and joy. By ASHLEY ROGERS, BA’06

e never know when Each day as I drew, I was surprised at the ple) home. one small incident will images making their home on my paper. I Then I unrolled my drawing and handed change lives. It was read- noted that of the six figures in my collage, it to Joy. “Do you know these two girls? Are ing a National Geographic five of them were from India, a land I could they from your shelter home?” I pointed to Warticle one September after- only dream of visiting. Little did I know the girl in the center and the girl in the right noon during my sophomore that within only a few months, I would be hand corner. Joy’s eyes filled with tears year at Vanderbilt that changed mine. selected by the U.S. Department of State for again. “Oh, yes. Yes, these are my girls! It is Reading the article “Twenty-First Cen- an internship in New Delhi, India, with the my Sunita. And the other, she is our precious tury Slaves” in my dorm room that day, I Trafficking in Persons Office. Grace Malla!” was horrified and heartbroken to learn there When I packed my suitcase, I included a A year after I met Joy, I finally had the are an estimated 27 million slaves in the few prints of my finalized drawing. Maybe, chance to visit the shelter home. Following world today, and that 800,000 to 900,000 just maybe, I would be able to trace the young my graduation from Vanderbilt in May 2006, are trafficked across international borders girls who had inspired me. When I arrived I returned to India to work in Calcutta with each year. I decided at that moment I had to in Delhi in June of 2005, I showed the draw- two organizations, and at long last I could do something. ing to my director. She sug- meet the children in the shelter home. I began by gathering a gested I meet with Joy Zaidi, On the way to the shelter from the train group of students and estab- who ran a shelter home in station, Joy told me stories about the chil- lishing a student organiza- Allahabad and would be dren: Kajal, a 4-year-old girl found at the tion, FREE, to raise awareness coming to New Delhi the train station, had been blinded with acid by of human trafficking. Dur- following week. her stepmother. Surendra was trafficked for ing months of research I found One week later I sat child labor and sold to drug peddlers who photos of children and young down with Joy as he told cut off his left leg. Rahul had been trafficked women who had been res- me about the shelter home for the removal of one of his kidneys. cued from human traffick- and HIV/AIDS program When I arrived at the shelter, the children ing. he had begun some years greeted me with curious, wide eyes—Rinki, Two in particular captured my attention. before. As he spoke he dabbed his moist Madhu, Ragni, Rita, Sunny, Gautam, Ramesh, The warmness of their gaze seemed to assure eyes, telling me about children for whom he Raoul, Surendra, Kajal. I bent down to take me that they, these girls, were the reason I could find no financial support. Many had Kajal’s hand, for she was the smallest. Look- must continue the anti-trafficking work been abandoned at the train station, or left ing at her damaged eyes stopped a beat of my that by then was consuming my life. The to begging rackets on the streets, or rescued heart. two girls in the photograph had been res- from forced child labor, or had been victims The children wanted to play in a nearby cued from slavery somewhere in a town in of trafficking. The small grant that kept the park. Rinki, Ramesh and Madhu never left India known as Allahabad. Suddenly, I felt home open had run out. I promised him I Kajal’s side. Not once did they run ahead to the need to sketch these girls into a drawing would do what I could to find funding for climb the slide or join a game without tak- of Freedom. the SOUP (Society of Underprivileged Peo- ing her hand and gently leading her so she

68 F a l l 2 0 0 7 and Grace’s airfare. My mother had gone to a Wal-Mart in Monroe, La., to find a USB drive for downloading photos of the chil- dren. She did not really know what she needed, but another customer, a man named Curt Gober, offered his help. My mom shared the story of the shelter home and Kajal. Mr. Gober decided at that very moment that he and his family wanted to be part of this project by donating the airline tickets. As he walked away, he turned and said, “Mrs. Rogers, I’m for real, and I am going to do this.” And he did—a stranger from another city passing through town, in Wal-Mart, on the same aisle at the same time as my mom. My smile was uncontainable that Christ- mas Eve as I watched Kajal play her favorite game with the other children—creating pat- terns and networks out of hands. One by one she took the children’s right hands and placed them beside each other before taking their left hands and laying them in a stack. Photos in a magazine inspired Ashley Rogers to make this drawing of children rescued from “Ashley di-di, give me your hand,” sang out human trafficking and, later, to work in India. Kajal. Kajal stood in the middle and began turning so that we all moved in a circle around too could take part in the fun. The other school classes raised enough money for Christ- her. children took special care to include Suren- mas presents for the children, and there Kajal is right, I concluded, as I watched dra in the games despite the limitations of was enough money left over for Surendra her form a web of connections, complete his short wooden leg. They were a family, a to be standing proud and tall on a new leg only when she had used both hands from team who took care of each other. specially made to fit him. every person in the room. We are all con- While the children slept around me that Now, a small voice called out to me. “Ash- nected, and we all have a part to play, hands night, I feared what would happen if we did ley di-di, English song?” Kajal tugged at my to give. While I had worried about how Kajal not find funding quickly. Would they be left shirt. would find the support she needed to jour- to the streets? The rent was months over- Kajal wanted me to sing her English songs ney to the U.S. for surgery, all I had to do due. Funds were so low that the children because she would be going to America for was play a small role by giving my hands had no milk to drink. sight restoration surgery. My e-mail call for and heart, and God did the rest by forming In the past, worries could pull and push help had found its way to Jenna Ray from an intricate network of people who gave a me into a frenzied panic. But these chil- Nashville, who enlisted the help of Dr. Ming “hand” from all over the world. dren had, in only one day, taught me a beau- Wang. Dr. Wang had developed exactly the In July 2007, Kajal had her first recon- tiful lesson. If these children who had lived surgery Kajal needed in order to see—a fem- structive surgery on her right eye in Nashville. through slavery, abuse, abandonment and tosecond artificial cornea transplant. He Dr. Wang believes she has a 50 percent chance pure evil could live each day with a simple offered to perform the surgery for free and of regaining sight. Her story has touched faith, finding joy in helping each other, even obtained a grant from the hospital. many lives, and we hope it may bring help then so could I. My resolve was steadfast, But we still needed $30,000 to pay for to other children. and I was determined to find funding for months of hotels, food, transportation, pass- Sunita and Grace Malla, the girls whose those children and, if possible, special help ports, visas and airfare for Kajal and Joy’s pictures I had drawn early in my journey, for Kajal and Surendra. wife, Grace, who would go with her as a trans- have passed away. Sunita died in June 2006 A few months later, at Christmas, I once lator and caretaker. Kajal’s story went out, of a fever. Grace Malla died in 2005 after a again journeyed to the shelter home. After I and help poured in. Within weeks dozens of battle with AIDS. This is dedicated to them— had sent out a call for help, family and friends families in Nashville had offered to take Kajal this article, this project, this lifelong mis- had contributed to SOUP so that overdue and Grace into their homes. People donated sion. When I drew their picture three years debts could be paid in full. Vanderbilt stu- to the “Kajal Project,” contributing enough ago, it was not me drawing the story; they dents from FREE raised $4,500 in three weeks— for Kajal and Grace to pay for their pass- were drawing me into their story. Thank enough to support the home for five or six ports and visas and needs once in the U.S. you, girls. This story is yours. V months. My mother’s and sister’s Sunday Most amazing was how we obtained Kajal’s

Vanderbilt Magazine 69 TheClasses “ Adair Margo, BA’76, led the first U.S. delegation o

70 F a l l 2 0 0 7 of federal cultural officials to the People’s Republic of China last June. “

Herschel Gower, MA’52, PhD’57 Dona Gower, MA’67, PhD’78

DANIEL DUBOIS Classical Revival

After Herschel Gower retired in 1985 as an English professor at Vanderbilt, he figured he’d take it easy and refinish furniture. “I’ve done no refinishing at all,” Gower says. “Working for one’s wife is certainly hazardous.” The two now live in Dallas, where Dona is executive director of the Athena Foundation and her husband is a faculty member. With $10,000 in seed money donated by teachers and $12,000 contributed by the Gowers, she established the nonprofit organi- zation in 1996 so that educators from kindergarten through col- lege could immerse themselves in classic literature, both ancient and modern. Tuition for teachers is free. “There is a profound need in America today for the classics to be brought to the forefront,” says Dona, who has spent 35 years teaching. The foundation operates on an annual budget of less than $100,000. Athena students (more than 1,600 since 1996) gather in borrowed spaces around Dallas, such as rooms provided by a church, an apartment complex and a nonprofit foundation. The Gowers hope to open a Graduate Institute in World Literature by 2012 that will offer master’s and doctoral degrees for teachers. “Most teachers are students, first and foremost, and that’s why they became teachers in the first place,” Dona says. —John Egan

Vanderbilt Magazine 71 T HE C LASSES “ Kelley Zelickson, BS’79, vice president and general manager of the tactical systems division o Alumni Association News

Members of the new Vanderbilt Student Alumni Board—Chrissy Baccich, Kristina Hilseimer, Katie Hunter and Steven Elliot—flank Karen Fesmire, BS’80 (center), president of the Vanderbilt Alumni Association.

Knowledge Is Power Remember when you were a Vanderbilt student, not quite sure where you would land after graduation or how you were going to make the transition from the classroom to the work world? Wouldn’t it have been great to connect with former students who had at least some of the answers? This fall the Office of Alumni Relations has launched a series of initiatives to bring alumni and current students together, increase students’ awareness of and access to Vanderbilt’s alumni network—and build unity and tradition among the classes. The hope is to involve students with the alumni community early on, even as prospective students. Benefiting from the wisdom of those who have gone before, these students will be able to seamlessly transition into engaged alumni once they leave the university. One of these initiatives is the creation of the Vanderbilt Student Alumni Association. Through the work of student commit- tees representing each undergraduate class, the association seeks to help foster connections between current students and alumni while also building a sense of community among the classes. Many students are looking to alumni to offer advice on career paths, to demonstrate to them that they are part of a global Vanderbilt community, and to help them understand the connec- tions between academics and life after Vanderbilt. By volunteer- ing with these programs, you can help make a big difference in the life of a Vanderbilt student. While the initial focus of student/alumni programming is on campus, the Alumni Association will expand these programs into Vanderbilt Chapter cities soon. For more information contact Lauren Schmitzer, associate director of alumni relations, by call- ing 615/322-2042 or e-mailing [email protected].

72 F a l l 2 0 0 7 of Northrop Grumman Corp., briefed the National Press Club last January. “

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Vanderbilt Magazine 73 T HE C LASSES “ Kathleen Ann Becker, BS’82, is now known as Sister Mary Sophia Becker Katharine Carroll, BA’03

BILL PARSONS/SCENIC CITY VELO Bound for Glory

In 2005 Katharine Carroll was beginning her career as a pro- fessional cyclist. She just missed a top-10 finish in her first race, the Athens Twilight Criterium, and then placed fourth in the Joe Martin Stage Race. Just two years later—a very short time in the cycling world—she won both prestigious events. “Once I got that first win, it all started to click,” she says. “You have to learn to win. It was a mental change, and I felt I could win every race after that.” Carroll’s success caught the eye of the U.S. National team, which selected her to train in Europe last summer. She raced in the mountainous regions of Spain and Italy, getting a taste for competing with the world’s elite cyclists. In September, compet- ing in France and Holland, she won one stage of the Tour Cycliste Féminin International Ardèche. With several victories under her belt and a sponsor in place, Carroll can concentrate on her next goal—making the U.S. Olympic Team. She says 2008 is a long shot, but don’t be sur- prised if you see her sporting the red, white and blue on the streets of London at the 2012 Summer Olympics. —Cindy Thomsen

74 F a l l 2 0 0 7 r with the Congregation of Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration. “

Vanderbilt Magazine 75 T HE C LASSES “ John Shehan, BA’89, moved last winter to Baghdad, where he is a psychiatrist s

76 F a l l 2 0 0 7 t serving U.S. soldiers, DOD/DOS employees and local Iraqis. “

Morgan Harbin (left) with Mary Kay Howard Bowden and Kim Howard Willson, both BS’02 A Spare Pair in Every Purse

Take three best friends forever. Let’s make them blonde, with Southern accents. One night over a dinner of martinis and mini-burgers, the trio happens upon an idea that grows into an international success story—Passport Panties. Turns out tiny pieces of lingerie equal big business. You can find them in more than 350 stores around the world. Identical twins Kim Howard Willson, BS’02, and Mary Kay Howard Bowden, BS’02, along with Morgan Harbin (a University of Alabama graduate), are the blondes behind the business. These young women aren’t just the creators of the product … they are the brand. A travel and airline theme is carried out in every aspect of marketing—from the pack- aging to the flight-attendant uniforms the three wear at trade shows. Their Web site (www.passportpanties.com) opens with an animated pink airplane emblazoned with the name “Air Force Blonde.” Their goal is to grow the business into a full lingerie line all marketed under the umbrella company MMK Brands. Body shapers are the newest offering, and others are planned to follow. Being in the intimate apparel business has its quirks, says Willson. “Because of the type of product, our customers seem to think they can tell us all about their personal lives. Some- times we think, ‘We’re not doctors—we’re just designing underwear.’” —Cindy Thomsen

Vanderbilt Magazine 77 T HE C LASSES

78 F a l l 2 0 0 7 Alumni Volunteers Boost Student Recruitment Efforts This year thousands of alumni assisted Vanderbilt in recruiting top- notch scholars by interviewing prospective students and attending college fairs. The Alumni Interviewing Program (AIP) allows undergraduate applicants to request interviews with alumni who live in their areas. Students contact alumni directly via e-mail to request and arrange for these interviews, and interview reports are submitted to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions afterward. More than 1,600 alumni partici- pated in the program this year, interviewing more than 2,000 prospec- tive students. Alumni volunteers also helped promote Vanderbilt by attending college fairs nationwide. Although representatives from the Office of Undergraduate Admissions attend as many college fairs as possible, they rely on alumni to help represent Vanderbilt when they cannot. This year alumni staffed information booths, answered questions about Vanderbilt, and encouraged prospective students to complete information cards, therefore enabling Vanderbilt to have a presence at more college fairs. If you are interested in learning more about the AIP, visit our Web site at www.vanderbilt.edu/admissions/AIP. To volunteer for college fairs in your area, please contact Angelo Lee in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions for more details by e-mailing [email protected].

Call for Board Nominations The Vanderbilt Alumni Association will soon select new members to its board of directors. Do you know the perfect candidate? Someone actively involved in your local Vanderbilt activities? We need your help identifying fellow alumni to serve your interests on the board. The board includes a minimum of 18 regional representatives, 10 representatives of the largest Vanderbilt chapters, and representatives from Vanderbilt schools and colleges. Rotation of board members, who serve four-year terms, is staggered. The Alumni Association is now calling for nominations for representa- tives from: Region I: Nashville Region II: Tennessee, exclusive of Nashville Region III: Southeast (North Carolina to Mississippi inclusive) Region IV: Northeast (Virginia and Kentucky northward) Region V: West of the Mississippi River Region VI: Areas outside the United States (Asia) Representatives from these Vanderbilt chapters will be selected: Atlanta, Chicago, Memphis and New York. Representatives from the School of Engineering, Owen Graduate School of Management, School of Nursing, and the Blair School of Music also will be selected.

To find out more, visit www.vanderbilt.edu/alumni/aaboardinfo.htm. To nominate an alumnus or alumna, please use the online form at www.vanderbilt.edu/alumni/aabodnom.htm, or print out the form and submit it to: Alumni Association Board Nominating Committee VU Station B #357735 2301 Vanderbilt Place Nashville, TN 37235-7735

Fax nominations to 615/343-1412, or e-mail [email protected]. Hurry! The nominations deadline is Jan. 31, 2008.

Vanderbilt Magazine 79 T HE C LASSES

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86 F a l l 2 0 0 7 Southern Journal continued from page 88 out heat sat on the dirt floor of the barn, old enough to drive, I found a summer job who was typically an older woman. and as their heat rose, baking the leaves, in air conditioning, working as a hostess- She tied the handfuls of tobacco on a they gradually turned from green to yel- cashier at a Ramada Inn. It was paradise. stick with cotton twine. They were not fas- low-gold. When they were completely dry, My father died in 1994, and my mother tened in knots, exactly, but the string was the leaves were removed from the sticks and has rented our land to other farmers since. wound around the bunches in such a way taken to a nearby warehouse, where they Sometimes they raise tobacco, but usually as to hold them fast. When a stick was full, were put in piles and graded. Buyers from they grow peanuts, soybeans or, like this we hung it on a frame. When the frames tobacco companies would walk among the year, corn. Everyone is growing corn for were full, the strongest and most agile of piles and bid on their favorites. ethanol. the young men hung the sticks on rafters in Tobacco warehouses were dim, hot and I have been thinking recently about why the barn. musty. I can still see the piles of yellow leaves I don’t feel guilty about my hand in grow- Once a barn was full, the process of cur- and smell their sweet pungent musk. It always ing tobacco. There are many reasons: It has ing began. The green leaves were dried by made me queasy, and I seldom accompa- been grown for centuries before me, and heat. Gas-fired stoves with flues for sending nied my father to the warehouses because smoking is a personal choice. Also, I used of it. the product for about 10 years. I fought the Aside from the heat, humidity, long war and survived, so to speak. Quitting was In eastern North days, and sheer boredom of put- tough, but I never swore at tobacco. Carolina where ting in tobacco, it’s a grimy crop. It has contributed greatly to my good Mary Tom Bass Tobacco leaves have short hairs that life. It bought me a horse, sent me to col- grew up, tobacco produce a thick, sticky substance lege, carried me to England one summer, remains tightly wound into the called “gum.” After a few hours, black and purchased my first car. Tobacco built economy and tobacco gum would be glued to your the region of North Carolina in which I the landscape. clothes, your hands, and anything live, and it did the same for other parts of you touched. Lava soap and Comet the state. If I were anything other than grate- cleanser would take most of it off, ful to tobacco, I would be a hypocrite. but even then, by the end of the week Today when I pass a tobacco field, I don’t scrubbing was futile—it had to wear see cancer and caskets. I see Susie, my favorite off. looper; Betty Jean, my best childhood friend; I worked in tobacco for just a and those young men hanging sticks of green couple of years. As soon as I was leaves up high in the barn. Tobacco is wound DANIEL DUBOIS

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Vanderbilt Magazine 87 Fall07_SJournal_P3:Southern Journal 11/4/13 10:06 AM Page 88 SouthernJournal

Reflections on the South The Crop That Built Carolina When tobacco has financed your education and sustained your family for generations, it’s not as simple as just saying no. By MARY TOM BASS, MED’85

icotiana tabacum. It’s their farm size and are growing more. In a lovely plant, really— fact, North Carolina remains the nation’s large, bright green leaves leading producer of flue-cured tobacco. Non a I am proud to be a member of an ever- central stem that reaches shrinking community that worked on a tra- 6 feet or more. Mid-sea- ditional tobacco farm. In those days tobacco son, a fat cluster of nearly white tube flowers was planted, tended and harvested by human crown the stem. It’s a hardy hands. Lots of them. plant, too, resistant to both heat and drought. In the late fall we planted tobacco seeds Perfect for the land I call home. in frames and covered them with porous I grew up on a tobacco and cotton farm fabric. By spring of the following year, the

in eastern North Carolina. My cousins and seedlings were ready. JIM HSIEH many of my friends did, too. We never thought Farm workers sat on a tobacco planter, much about being part of a community whose which was four seats wide and hitched to a fertile heritage included growing a product mule, and dropped the little plants in rows that has contributed to the deaths of thou- of freshly turned soil. Mid-season, when ing the smaller ones toward the top to mature sands upon thousands. The grownups paid those pretty flowers were blooming, workers a few weeks more. it no mind, either. walked up and down each row to cut them They laid the leaves in a “slide,” which Daddy used to say that cotton was king. off—called “topping”—so that all the nour- was a mule-drawn long wooden box that But the real lord and master in these parts ishment would go into the leaves. slid down a row just wide enough for it and was tobacco. By July tobacco was ready to harvest. When a mule. A “trucker” drove the mule. I covet- Flue-cured tobacco, the crème de la crème. farmers were “putting in” tobacco, other ed this job because I was horse crazy at the Grown primarily in the Carolinas, Virginia, chores were left undone. We worked steadily time, and mules were as close to a horse as I Georgia and Florida, it fairs especially well through the day, every day except Sunday, could get. But Daddy wouldn’t let me be a in the sandy loam that distinguishes this with a break for lunch. It was grimy, sweaty, trucker; I was a girl, and girls just didn’t do western edge of the coastal plain. Our tobac- hard work, and because of it many a girl and that. co is grade A prime produce. boy came to appreciate that a college educa- When the slide was full, the trucker brought Today the tobacco industry is light years tion might be useful. it to the barn. Tobacco barns were built in from where it stood some 40 years ago when Hand labor for the harvesting of tobacco clusters of at least two and often four. One I was girl, but it is by no means a dead or was considerable. Both whites and blacks of the barns was usually constructed with a even dying trade. The Federal Tobacco Quota worked on our land. The Hispanics who com- shelter attached, and those not in the field Buyout in 2004 ended a price support sys- prise the bulk of farm workers in North Car- worked under that shelter. tem in place since the 1930s that determined olina now weren’t here then. Children, girls (including me) and young how much would be grown where. I don’t remember race being so much an women were “handers.” Handers grabbed Everyone said the buyout would prove issue as gender and age. The boys and men four or five leaves, clumped them together, the end for tobacco growers. Even though worked in the fields and picked the leaves, and handed them, stems out, to the “looper,” fewer farmers in this part of the state now called “priming.” They picked from the bot- continued on page 87 grow the crop, those who do have increased tom up, grabbing just the larger leaves, allow-

88 F a l l 2 0 0 7 Fall07_SJournal_P3:Southern Journal 11/4/13 10:06 AM Page 89

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